“She was running because she was mad. She ran toward what was familiar, but she wasneverspecifically running back to him.” The snarl is real, the invisible chain containing his emotions clanging as it falls, unraveling him from his own binds.
“Care to explain why?” Thorne interjects, and I raise my eyebrows expectantly, just as eager to understand why the hell we’re doing any of this. Yet the pointed look he gives right back to me doesn’t bode well.
“The fact that you’ve been dick deep inside ofher and don’t know the answer to that is concerning,” he grunts, the flare to his nostrils reasserting his disappointment, making me frown.
“What’s that supposed to mean? And who says I have?” My poor attempt at innocence is met with a deeper pointed look from the wolf in question. Even Thorne cocks a brow at me, and I don’t have the strength to argue with them.
Thankfully, the captive chooses that exact moment to stir, snapping all our gazes to him as he groans, rolling his head back feebly while working his jaw.
Did I punch a passed out drunk man for the sake of it?
Maybe.
Do I feel bad about it?
That would insinuate I have a soul.
Rion is the first to move, crouching in front of our poor, pathetic victim. The anger vibrating from our wolf is palpable, and I turn to Thorne to see if he notices it too, only to find him already peering my way, his brows gathered with concern.
“What are we doing with him?” Thorne asks, unfazed by the fact that the man in question is more alert and he’s talking about him like he isn’t even here.
Rion’s gaze whips to the two of us as a sinistersmile curls the corners of his mouth. With a wink, he jolts to his feet, turning back to Warren before yanking at the man’s hair and tugging his head back. His gruff approach earns a grunt from the chained man as his voice drops ten whole octaves.
“We’re going to make him pay.”
“Care to explain what is actually going on first?” I ask, but he’s already checked out, rearing his arm back before slamming his fist into Warren’s face.
A garbled sound comes from the fucker as blood trickles from his nose. “Tell Tommy I haven’t got his money yet,” he splutters through clenched teeth, his eyes remaining closed, and Rion snickers.
“I don’t want your fucking money,” he snarls, and the man smiles.
“You want my daughter, huh?” He shakes his head, his grin growing wider as my spine stiffens. “Many have tried, none have succeeded. I’d offer you the chase, but she disappeared, so I can’t give you a head start.”
Did he just…?
No…
Yeah…
My hands coil into fists at my sides as I blink at the delirious motherfucker before us, but it’s the menacing stare from Rion that captures my attentiona second before he cocks his arm back and punches him again.
He doesn’t stop this time. The sound of flesh on flesh echoes around the room, mingling with Warren’s grunts and pleas as they swirl for an eternity.
I don’t move. Neither does Thorne.
Rionclearlyknows more than we do, but even from that one statement, I know enough to be confident that this fucker deserves it.
It only takes three hits before Warren falls silent and Thorne takes a step forward. “Rion.” Our friend doesn’t hear him, landing another two shots before Thorne’s voice wraps around us again. “Do you want him to suffer such little pain?”
Rion freezes, bloody knuckles braced for impact again, but this time, he doesn’t land the blow. Instead, he grunts, taking a step back as his chest heaves with every breath. With a slight wave of his hand, Thorne strides toward them, knowing exactly what is wanted from him.
I hang back, letting the scene unravel before me, trying to decide how I feel about the matter, but my vision is clouded the moment I think of Elodie, and I can’t stand it. My resolve falters as Thorne steps back, the shadows dancing around the room evaporating at his command as Warren coughs and splutters,regaining consciousness as he returns from the brink of death.
To my surprise, he heals him to a better condition than he was in when we found him, and now, the fucker is propped up higher in his seat, eyes wide as he glares at us like we’re the bad guys.
“What did you do to Elodie Blackwood?” I ask, hating the words the moment they leave my tongue.
“Is this actually about her? Fuck me, that wretched bitch—” I’m before him in a flash and, this time, when he receives a blow to the face, it’s at my hand. “Fuck, stop. Just… stop.” He winces and I shake my head.
