“I just... I don’t know where to even begin.”
He laced his fingers through mine, lifting them to press his lips to my knuckles, affection sinking deep into my soul. “Then show me,mea luna. Share your pain. Let me help carry the weight of it.”
I swallowed. Show him? “Are you... are you sure?”
He smiled warmly, his eyes dancing between my own. “We will work through this together, and I will be with you every step of the way.”
I drew a deep breath, afraid of just how he’d react. I didn’t want him to see what had been done, and yet... I didn’t want to be alone anymore.
He lowered my hands, and I scooted closer to him, leaning my forehead against his as I closed my eyes—
And I shared everything.
8
DAMIEN
Her chest rose and fell in an uneven pattern as she rested in my arms, the salt of her tears still lingering in the air.
The images tore through my memory.
My arm burned, the cut fresh from Marcus’ blade, as panic surged through Cassie and his tongue ran over the cut. My view jerked to Cole, who sat nearby, unfazed as he watched.
“Please! Stop this! I’ve done nothing to you!”
Cassie’s voice echoed to the deepest corner of my mind, and Marcus’ words overlapped it, the venom in his voice enough to curdle my stomach as his whisper slid into Cassie’s ear.
“I can hear your heart pounding, little songbird.” His voice blurred, the rest of his words muddled, and the image skipped as Cassie’s memory faltered, as if her own mind struggled to relive it.
The memory skipped, and I felt Marcus at her back. The cut on her busted lip burned mine as his finger brushed over it. He jerked her back against his chest as he leaned in to whisper. “Let’s see that pretty little mind shatter.”
Blinding light pierced my thoughts, fracturing across every inch of my mind as Marcus invaded her thoughts again and again, the pain almost too much to bear.
My blood boiled at the memory, my hands twitching, the dark void in my chest rippling and pressing at the walls containing it. The headache still lingered an hour later after witnessing the things she’d shared with me, the pain still fresh on the surface of my skin, though Marcus had never cut me, never burned me with his cigarettes, never bruised my body with his punches and kicks.
Gods, I couldn’t believe all the things Marcus had done to her, each marking he’d carved into her, physically and mentally—how much Cole watched her endure while doing nothing. The void in my chest stirred as rage surged within me, the darkness asking to be unleashed. It begged to find Cole and make him pay for every bit of suffering Cassie had endured under his watch.
For each wound they left, mea luna, I swear, I will give them tenfold.
I wished I’d been the one to end Marcus, to let my shadows tear him apart from the inside out before letting him die in the dirt in the most agonizing way I could imagine. Marcus might be gone, but Cole wasn’t. It didn’t matter what I had to do to find him. When I did...
My gaze fell to her face, her closed eyes swollen and red. She’d finally opened up to me, though, shared it all with me, revealed every moment of her capture and torment. I hated that she had to endure it, that I hadn’t been able to get to her fast enough.
It hadn’t been easy, the memories enough to break us both, but I was there to help pick up the pieces, to hold her as she cried. It had taken a lot out of her, and I’d held her for a long while, allowing her the time she needed. At first, I’d feared it might’ve been too soon, that she hadn’t been ready, but I’d seen it in those hazel eyes, seen the relief of no longer bearing those memories alone, understanding that I was there to share her burden.
I inhaled her scent as I eased into the pillow, narrowing in on the sweet sound of her breathing as she slipped deeper into a truly restful sleep.
It was the most wonderful sound.
9
CASSIE
Ifelt like death warmed over when I forced my eyes open. Exhaustion lingered in my bones, and my eyes were swollen. I wasn’t surprised, what with how much I’d cried the night before. It felt good, though, as if a weight had lifted. Though the chains that had held me in that cell still shackled me, they didn’t feel as tight.
The sun leaked in through the curtains, and I realized I’d slept in. For a moment, I didn’t know if I could make use of my limbs, let alone the rest of my body, but it didn’t matter whether or not I could. Damien’s arms held me tightly against him, his rich cedarwood and leather scent filling my lungs with each breath.
“How’re you feeling?” he asked lazily as he hugged me close. Nuzzling his face into my neck, he inhaled deeply, and the stubble lining his jaw tickled in all the right ways.
