CHAPTER 36
AVA'S POV
My fingers froze, hovering just above his skin, my eyes pinned to the puckered, raised flesh at the base of his neck.
A curved, broken crescent intersecting an iron crown.
I had looked at that exact configuration of lines less than two hours ago on a scroll bound in heavy iron chains.
Draken didn’t flinch away from my hand, but I felt the sudden tightening of his muscles. The bond didn't flare with heat; it was cold, like ice water flooding my veins. His head tilted back, eyes tracking my frozen posture in the reflection of the glass window.
“Ask,” he said, completely devoid of the Alpha authority he usually wrapped around himself like armor.
I swallowed the lump in my throat, my heart hammering against my ribs. I dropped my hand, stepping back a single pace to
