“Hey,” I say to Loran gently, not hesitating to descend to his level and settle on my knees myself. He looks at me with wide eyes, his astonishment briefly outweighing his apprehension. “What’s wrong?”

  He eyes me for a moment and then lowers his gaze again.

  “I…” He hesitates and licks his lips. “It’s my fault your companions were kidnapped,” he confesses in a rush.

  I still, something freezing inside me. Is this a confession? River’s report made it clear he was part of this gang prior to his conviction. Has he been conspiring with them without my other companions’ awareness? But it seemed like Dexil was surprised when he recognised Loran. And Alyna too. Unless they were acting. Better be sure.

  “Did you conspire with Dexil to have everyone kidnapped?” I ask bluntly. Confusion laced with horror spikes through the Bond.

  “No, master, I swear I didn’t!” Loran desperately exclaims. There’s no doubting he’s telling the truth, not with the Bond blaring his sincerity.

  “Did you pass information to anyone about the whereabouts of my Bonded, thereby revealing how they could be kidnapped?”

  “No, master!” Loran’s response is just as quick and just as definite. I shrug.

  “Then I don’t really see why you should blame yourself for their, and your capture. If anything, I should apologise.” I look around at the Bonded who have formed a concerned circle around the two of us. “It’s likely my actions that made you targets – my carelessness which revealed how you could be used against me. And for that, I’m sorry.” I slump slightly as the guilt which had previously been pushed away by sheer relief now crashes back down onto my shoulders.

  Artemis and Trouble are the first to approach, brushing against my shoulder and rubbing heads with me. But they’re not the last. One by one, my non-humanoid Bonded make their forgiveness plain. Once they’re done, River leads the samurans and pulls me to my feet with a clawed hand, rubbing her cheek against mine.

  We don’t blame you, egg-bound idiot, she tells me warmly. Your enemies are our enemies.

  Hunter is next, seconding River’s words. Then it’s Happy’s turn – and she’s got her own burden of guilt on her shoulders.

  If anything, it’s my fault. Reducer thought we should wait for you to return but…I was too impatient. If we had stayed in the estate, we wouldn’t have been captured.

  She’s right, but….

  I can understand why you wanted to go, I tell her. It wasn’t the most sensible option, no, but…I can’t say I’ve never made a stupid decision out of impatience either. I give her a wry smile. People in glass houses shouldn’t throw rocks. Just…try not to do it again in the future, alright?

  She clicks fervent agreement and rubs cheeks with me again.

  We hold neither you nor Loran to blame, Catch tells me firmly, and I feel that his words are directed at the man who’s still kneeling. It is none but the enemies’ fault and our own failure to be as wary as we should have been. Iandee steps up next and practically repeats the same words in his own way. When he steps away again, I reach out a hand to Loran.

  “See – no one blames you for this but yourself.” Loran looks up, his expression fragile. And then he takes my hand and allows me to pull him to his feet. I eye him thoughtfully. “Loran, how much is your service contract?” He looks startled and wary – like he’s not quite sure why I might ask that question. He replies nonetheless.

  “Two and a half golder, master.” I nod, decision made. Reaching into my Inventory, I pull out my money pouch. I withdraw three gold coins and hold them out to Loran. He eyes my hand warily, not reaching out to take what I'm offering him. “Take them,” I instruct him gently.

  “Master?” He eyes me disbelievingly. I just shift my hand slightly to remind him of its presence, looking at him expectantly. Moving slowly, he reaches out towards me. As if fearful that my hand will be withdrawn the moment he tries to take them, he hesitates just before touching the coins. And then, as I stay still, he plucks them from my palm. Three gold coins – so small and yet deemed more valuable than the life of the man standing in front of me.

  “They’re yours,” I tell him quietly but firmly. “As a reward for doing everything you could to protect my companions while you were imprisoned. Yes, River told me everything,” I confirm at his widened eyes. “How you tried to convince Alyna to set you all free. How you fought for them to have their gags removed. How you offered yourself in their place, willingly taking on Dexil’s torture so no one else would have to. How you stayed and made sure everyone was set free before you tried to escape.”

  “But…master, you’ve already healed me,” he protests, gesturing with the hand that’s not holding the golden coins. “Anyone would consider that to be more than enough reward for a…for a slave.”

  If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  I raise an eyebrow at him.

  “Are you trying to argue against being rewarded?”

  His fist clenches around the three coins.

  “....No?” he replies warily. I give him a smile.

  “Then take them. The coins are yours – do with them as you will. Save them, spend them, or use them to buy out your contract. Nicholas still holds it so you’ll have to accompany us to Whalehost, but after that, it’s up to you what you do.”

  I see him swallow and his eyes dart around the circle. Even with the Bond it’s impossible to know how he’s feeling right now – his emotions are so tumultuous.

  “Can…do I have time to think about it?” he asks tentatively.

  “Take as much time and ask as many questions as you need,” I assure him. “Nothing will change until or unless you decide to buy out your service contract. Though, bear in mind that you will need to decide about that prior to us setting off to the Lost Continent because once we’ve set sail, you won’t be able to return here for a while.”

  Loran dips his head wordlessly, opening his hand just a touch so he can see the gleam of gold within his grasp.

  “Alright, everyone, let’s go,” I announce and the circle around me splits open. Not far away is a figure who might be mistaken for a statue because of how still he is. “Ah, Rory,” I greet coldly. “Good of you to return to us. Join the train – I will speak to you when I have a moment.”

  For now, I pointedly ignore him and instead move over to walk next to Alyna as we set off for the manor. I’m not terribly surprised when Loran manages to break through his stupor to come and join me. I am a little amused when he conspires to stand between me and the woman – apparently he struggles to stand up for himself, but when it comes to defending someone he cares about, he knows no fear. Then again, perhaps I should have already guessed that.

  “I’m not going to eat her, I promise, Loran,” I tell him with a touch of amusement. That doesn’t seem to remove the furrow from his brow.

  “Master, please. I know she was part of it but…she was scared! Dexil…you don’t know what he was like. But I do – no one would dare disobey him. Especially not someone like Alyna – he held her life in his hands and any whisper of disobedience would have caused him to throw her to the courts and the collar! Or worse! I swear, she helped as much as she could have!”

  Surprisingly, someone else speaks before I can.

  “Loran, do ye think I’m so helpless that I need ye te speak in my defence?” Alyna’s voice is harsh and unyielding – an odd tone to come from someone who looks like a stiff breeze might blow her away. But the braid of pale hair pulled back from her dusky face reveals a stern expression and iron in those amber eyes.

  “Alyna–”

  “Let me speak to him,” she demands, though I can hear the hint of entreaty underlying the tone.

  They exchange a look and then Loran sighs and steps away. But, unbeknownst to Alyna, he uses our Bond to send me a silent message.

  Please be kind! She really did try to help. I send him a sense of reassurance, but make no promises.

  “I’m taking you to the courts,” I tell her firmly. She tenses as if in expectation of a blow. “But what happens after that is up to you.”

  “...Milord?” Alyna asks, cautiously hopeful.

  “I recognise you have helped my companions to a certain extent over the last few days so I give you two options. One, I buy your service contract. I don’t think any of my companions would object to that.” Just to check, I send around a query. Though Blaze and Orion hesitate for a moment, even they join the general chorus of acceptance of the idea after a moment. “And I would promise to at least make your service bearable and limited in duration.” She looks confused. “As long as you work willingly towards the good of the group, I will pay you for your efforts, enabling you to buy out your service contract in time,” I clarify. A look of disbelief creeps onto her face.

  “An’...an’ what’s the other option?” she asks warily.

  “Two, I can owe you a favour. A reasonable one, mind – I’m not going to agree to do just anything.”

  She’s staring at me, looking more than a little flabbergasted. Then that looks turns a little calculating.

  “An’...an’ what if I asked fer a favour here an’ now an’...asked if ye lordship might…look t’other way while I…accidentally take the wrong turn…” she suggests meaningfully.

  “That’s not happening,” I say flatly. I see her shoulders slump. “One way or another, you’re passing through the courts first.”

  Because the thing is that though she certainly helped in the last instance, she’s had a long history of committing crimes.

  Regardless of her actions in this last kidnapping, from what River related of the conversation she and Loran had, Alyna would still face being collared for the same incident that had Loran sentenced to the same. And who knows what she’s done in the time since then? Coerced or not, she’s been a party to many crimes – if I let her go, she’s likely to return to it just because that’s the only life she knows. And unlike Valence, without a Bond, there’s no way I could keep track of someone like Alyna.

  But that doesn’t mean she should be facing a life sentence of rape and torture either. And I know that a pretty, delicate-looking girl like Alyna is likely to catch the wrong sort of eyes.

  “Think on it,” I insist. “We’ll pass by the courts on our way to the manor. Decide by then. And be aware that if you wish me to buy your service contract, I will require a soul-Bond for the duration of your service.” I’m afraid I'm not going to trust a barely-reformed thief off the bat. Rory has just proven why the Bond is so necessary.

  On that note, I nod at Alyna and leave her to her deliberations. As I stop and allow the rest of my companions to move past me, I see Loran stepping closer to the woman. I purposefully squeeze the Bond between us until it’s almost shut – I don’t want to accidentally eavesdrop on their conversation.

  It’s not long before Rory has caught up, though he’s clearly trailing his feet as much as possible.

  “Walk with me,” I instruct him. I don’t use the Bond, but he picks up the pace a bit to match my own strides. I pretend not to see the nervous looks he’s sending me. We walk in silence for a while – some instinct is telling me to wait.

  The longer the silence drags on, the more fidgety and nervous Rory becomes until, finally, it seems like he’s had enough.

  “If yer gonna…gonna punish me, jus’ go ‘head an’ do it already!” he exclaims in an outburst, and then sidles away a little, ducking his head and staring warily up at me like a dog who’s been beaten before and fears it happening again.

  “And why would I punish you?” I ask almost idly. Rory blinks and looks baffled for a long moment.

  “‘Cause…’cause I tried te escape, didn’ I?” ‘

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