The Alpha's Oracle (SAMPLE, IronMoon #1)

The Nightmare of His Touch

 The Tides held me for two days. My nameless goons kept everyone from barging in. This had included enlisting Flint to impress upon Gabel that if he disturbed me during a vision I might die.

Die might have been an exaggeration... sorta.

I half-crawled out of my room, head searing with pain, and my body bent from being still so long.

Flint stood guard with my goons. I stared up at him, brain replaying his song and the vision of him leaping in a joyful golden arc down the side of the structure. The song rang between my ears.

"Lady Gianna," he stated as I collapsed into an undignified pile. My goons made some helpless noises. "I see you are back."

I just stared up at him, mumbling and probably drooling.

Big hands slid between me and the floor. Flint scooped me up as though I were nothing. "Alpha Gabel will be relieved to see you are back."

"Does he still have his balls?" I mumbled as Flint carried me down the hallway. My brain swam and sloshed.

"I have no reason to think they have been removed."

The other wolf. Who had been the other wolf? I moaned and tried to escape Flint's arms. Where the hell did I think I was going to go or what did I think I was going to do? I just had to...

Flint carried me to the second floor and to the room where I had spent my first night. I realized right away this was not the usual bed. Anxiety rattled my mind. This was not right. I should sleep with my BondMate. I should be with Gabel.

The Bond gnawed on me. I needed to be with GAbel. I should not be here. I should not be separated from him!

I whimpered as Flint set me down.

A punishingly jealous thought burned up from my depths: Platinum. She was in my bed, in my bed, with my BondMate, the slut, the bastard!

I whimpered again. I didn't want to hear it. I didn't want to feel it. The voice that I loathed. It wasn't fair or just or balanced. Faithless mongrel, let him have that whore and any others...

Flint's song countered the horrible feelings the Bond shoved at me.

I fell asleep to his song.

* * * * *

Most think riding the Tides is trivial. I have even heard some claim that Oracles feign their swooning dramatics to play to an audience.

If only.

I spent the next three days mentally sea-sick and physically exhausted. The Tides had taken me far, far away.

Gabel waited, impatiently, for his answer. He didn't come to see me, but I knew he wanted his answer.

When I finally really woke up on the third morning my thoughts turned to what I'd tell him.

It had been his question, but I thought that the answer was complicated and not intended only for him. Me appearing in my own vision? That was rare. Very rare. So rare it had only been mentioned in passing to me that it could happen. Oracles couldn't scry for themselves, so they never saw themselves.

My trainer had only ever told me how rare it was, and she didn't know much about it. She had mentioned it when explaining to me why Oracles could not ask questions for themselves.

This had been no small vision. Three days was at the outer limits. The body started to wither after much longer. I already had large, deep bruises from kneeling. The top of my feet had turned to sores from the pressure. My muscles still ached.