Table of Contents
I
II
III
IV
V
VI
VII
VIII
IX
X
XI
XII
XIII
XIV
XV
About the Author
The Heartborn Mate
The Ironborn Cycle, Book Two
By D. Brumbley
Also by D. Brumbley
The Jannah Cycle
The Initiative
The Rebels
The Fugitives
The New World
The Ironborn Cycle
The Ironborn Claim
The Heartborn Mate
The Lightborn Queen
The Elements of Moonlight
Rise with the Tide*
*forthcoming in 2021
Dedicated to
To those who always support us,
and most importantly,
to each other,
for never giving up.
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the authors’ imaginations or used fictitiously.
No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without the written permission of the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
ISBN: 979-859758591-8
The Heartborn Mate. Copyright 2021 by D. Brumbley.
Published by Two in One Publishing.
Cover art by Diana Sousa.
All rights reserved.
Distributed by Kindle Direct Publishing.
I
Nick couldn’t think straight as he watched Orlando approaching Candra. All he could hear were Teresa’s words of warning rattling through his mind over and over again.
It’s not a choice when the two kinds come together, she had said to him, her words heavy with the caution of someone who knew firsthand what they were talking about, he won’t be able to resist.
He ran on instinct through the water that filled the hallway up to his ankles, sprinting as fast as he could for Aura.
When he got to her, he caught her around the waist and picked her straight out of the water, then leapt with her onto a part of the wall that had fallen when he shattered the bars on Aura’s cell. When they were up on the stone, he almost fell over her in a rush to cover her body with his, though he doubted it would do any good in keeping her safe.
The growl that rumbled through Orlando’s throat fought with the buzz of power running through him for dominance as both shook the room around them. The bars of every cell ignited with electricity, arcing with a web of power. Cascades of electricity laid themselves out between his body and the water like a descending cloud of power. He became, all at once, the center of a web that stretched out to every piece of conductive material in the room. In the chaos around them the only safe place seemed to be the stone barricade where Nick and Aura hunched down in terror.
Candra’s growls were just as loud and just as clear about the pleasure she felt at the proximity of Orlando, and the feel of him. The touch was beyond anything she’d ever imagined, and it was nothing that a book could have taught her. Her power was funneling directly into him, and though he was taking everything she gave him and pouring it back out in waves and waves of electricity, it seemed that she had an endless amount to give. As far as she was concerned, it was all his. Everything was his. The connection wasn’t only physical, it went deeper, and there was no denying the strength of the draw and the emotion behind it. They were meant to be together.
Orlando pulled her slowly into him, his fingers never leaving her skin, until she was almost crushed against him. She was a complete stranger whose name he couldn’t even remember, though he knew someone had shouted it a moment before. He was filled and complete at that moment, like a man who had been starving all his life after the first course of a buffet. His fingers wove through her hair once in a gentle caress, and he closed his eyes against her as the room around them began to shatter into pieces. He didn’t care. The world was right. It was all just too right.
Candra welcomed the embrace and the caresses. Even with her masters, she had never felt quite so welcomed and quite so at home as she did with Orlando’s arms around her. In the short time she had known Aura, she had learned things about Orlando, but she’d never imagined what it would be like to touch him. How could she ever have known? It felt unique and intimate, and she never wanted to let go of him or the feeling between them. Candra held tighter as she continued to pour her power into him, and her fingers dug into his skin.
Aura held tightly to Nick, though she could feel the room around them heating up with all the electricity. Even though they weren’t being electrocuted, there were still plenty of ways for them to die. Being crushed was still distinctly an option, though she didn’t know how much more crushing her body could handle. Between the moment she had temporarily witnessed with Orlando and Candra, the expression of complete hurt and betrayal of Nick’s face etched in her mind, and the fact that somewhere out there was still the Council and its fighters, she wondered if it would just be easier to stick a toe out and let Orlando do what he did best.
Up the hall, there was a sudden howl of pain from another cell as one of the other imprisoned wolves was met by the water flowing past Orlando’s feet and instantly electrocuted. Orlando didn’t let go of Candra, but his hold on her loosened a little as he opened his eyes again. The sound didn’t repeat itself, but he knew the wolf was dead, whoever it was. That fact broke him out of his trance. The lightning crashing through the room began to slow to a sizzle, localized around Orlando, and he seemed to be wake from a dream as he blinked and looked down at Candra. “Are you alright?”
Candra breathed heavily as he pulled her out of it, but she continued to hold tightly to the stranger she swore to herself she would never let go of again.
