Tethered Novels & Stories

I could do this because I needed my girl back where she was safe. The tether between the Guardian and charge was a one-way connection between the two. It did two things. It acted as a compass which pointed towards the charge. It also allowed for the Guardian to connect with the mind of the charge. Once all was said and done, it would help guide me to her while also allowing me to keep tabs on her. Unfortunately, that was easier said than done. I spent multiple hours a day working on this but had yet to make a connection with her. However, I would not give up.

I could feel him, like a thorn in my spine. Creed was laid on a mattress that wasn’t fit for a dog. His shirt was soaked with blood. His face was too pale. His lips… too was still. No. No no no. I dropped to my knees so hard i could hear the sounds of my bones crack. My hands hovered over him, shaking, refusing to touch. I couldn’t feel the bond properly anymore, I didn’t want to feel it in the first place but now it feels worse than not feeling it at all.

Why? "She is in his city, and it might get complicated which will require his help." "He will know when the time is right." It was a few minutes before their flight landed in Virginia. They drove to the nearest port. "Anything yet?" Michael asked Elliot as he worked on his system trying to tap into the port camera. "No." "Can we go to the next port?" "Nothing here?" "Obviously, so we can move now." "Yes." Michael drove them out of the port to the next one, making it their second port.

“So what is the over-under on it killing us the moment we touch it?” Soraya didn’t answer. Because what we all already knew the answer. Maxwell’s jaw tightened. “No, Lena, we’re not doing this right now.” “Yes,” I said, moving closer. “We do.” I could feel it. This one was different. The first tether had struggled against us, but this one wouldn’t struggle. It was waiting. Because it knew I would come. The shadows at the edge of the room Vectored Images, shrank away as I came closer.

A ghost in someone else's fairytale. Only this wasn't a fairytale for me. It was a trap, a way to end my life, and I had willingly walked into it. I was joining hands with my family to scam, betray and play with the intelligence of the man standing at the end of the altar beside the priest. My heart slammed against my ribs as the orchestra shifted into the bridal match. The damn corset was making things even worse for me. It's so fucking tight. He was waiting for me at the end of the aisle.

But not a natural one. A forced one. I whimpered, curling into myself on the cot, pressing my thighs together as the pressure built. It wasn’t just physical—it was wrong. Synthetic. Like a false tether pulling at my instincts while my body rebelled. My wolf stirred inside me, but weakly. The connection between us was smothered, like someone had pressed a pillow to her spirit. She growled faintly, confused, disoriented. There was no strength to shift. No clarity to call on.

Shadowed. She closed her eyes and reached inward, into the tether that linked her to Maxim. Every mated pair shared it—some a flicker, others a bond like rope braided tight. But today? Today it flickered. Like candlelight in a storm. She gasped and snapped her eyes open, a jolt of heat sparking across her ribs. Something was wrong. “Zara,” came a voice through the link, hoarse and gravel-edged. Maxim. She stood at once, ignoring the ache in her spine. “Where are you?”

“He’s serious.” “He’s in love,” Eira corrected softly. I ignored them. “Tell me what we need.” Eira raised her hand. Her palm glowed with faint runes. “A tether strong enough to anchor you both.” I frowned. “What kind of tether?” She looked directly at me. “You.” The snow fell silent. Even the wind paused. “What do you mean?” I asked. Eira stepped closer. “Seren’s bond with you is the only unbroken tie she has left in the mortal world. If you enter the Thread’s realm without anchoring yourself to her, you’ll be lost. If you anchor yourself, the Thread will follow your path back.”

Sweat clung to my skin, my shirt damp against my back, but for the first time in what felt like forever, I could breathe without feeling like my ribs were collapsing inward. I sucked in a shaky breath. "It's... gone," I rasped. Tara didn't hesitate. "It's gone," she confirmed softly. "The tether snapped clean. She can't reach you through it anymore." Disbelief washed through me, followed by something dangerously close to relief. "It hurt," I murmured. "Gods, it felt like she was tearing something out of me." "You need to get some rest," she told me. I closed my eyes. This was a miracle, I thought dimly.

When she reached the top, her fingers brushed his, deliberate, grounding. “You felt it too?” she asked quietly. He nodded. “It’s still there. Waiting.” Aria’s eyes darkened. “Then it’s not finished.” “It never is.” Kael let his hand fall to his side. The veins beneath his skin pulsed once, the glow flickering faintly as if reacting to her words. He could feel it, the way the tether inside him responded to emotion, to touch, to the smallest tremor in his will. It wasn’t just inside him anymore; it was listening.