Sera's Pov
Gideon said the word and then went quiet, like he needed a second before he could keep going.
"Sent," I said. "What does that mean?"
He rubbed his hand across his jaw. His eyes did not meet mine right away.
"The mate bond is real," he said. "I want you to know that first. It cannot be faked. Nobody can manufacture that pull, not even the Vaels, not with all their money and all their old tricks."
"Then how..."
"They didn't make the bond," he said. "They made the chance for it to happen."
I sat back in my chair. My hands were flat on the table in front of me, and I made myself keep them still.
"Explain it to me slowly," I said. "Like I'm not following yet. Because I'm not."
Gideon nodded. He leaned forward a little, the way a man does when he is about to say something har
