"Rhyland…" Dani's soft whimper of hope and relief floods through me.
I lunge ahead, but Lilith appears out of fucking nowhere like death. My arm snaps with a sound like a rifle shot as she twists it behind my back—savage strength behind that delicate grip. She slams my face into the hardwood with enough force to send splinters flying. Her talons rip the Soul Stone from my finger.
What the fuck? She should be down, her skull crushed to pieces by Lucian's assault.
"Now, now, my dark prince," she coos. "Can't have you using Mommy's little trinket against me." The ring disappears into the shadows with a flick of her wrist, accompanied by that smug, aristocratic laugh I've always hated. "We're going to do this the old-fashioned way—just like old times, darling."
The power that had been surging through my veins vanishes, leaving me trapped beneath her. The bitch has me pinned like an insect, all that power bearing down on me with sadistic precision. Every move I make just results in more bones snapping under her grip. My maker always loved playing with her food before she devoured it.
"Oh, sweetie, is that any way to treat me? After everything I've done for you?" She tightens her grip, grinding my face harder into the splintered floor. "And poor, pathetic Lucian—always trying to play hero. I never did like that mouthy little shit. But don't worry, darling, I made sure his death was... appropriately unpleasant."
She clicks her tongue like some disapproving socialite at a charity gala. Every word is intended to cut, delivered with that superior, condescending tone that makes her sound like the queen bitch of the universe.
A wet thud beside my head draws my attention. The sight hits me like a sledgehammer—Lucian's heart, still dripping blood, tossed there like some fucked up calling card. My stomach clenches as the reality of what I see punches through my gut.
My brother. My sarcastic, pain-in-the-ass, loyal-to-the-death brother.
"NOOO!" The roar tears from my soul, primal and raw. Not Lucian. Not my wise-cracking brother who's had my back. The same brother who gave me shit about everything, who ran that ridiculous nightclub, who finally found his mate in Seraphina.
The sound that rips from my chest isn't human—it's the howl of a beast watching its pack die.
"Really, this is all so beneath us," she sighs dramatically. "All this fuss over some worthless little tramp? I expected better taste from you, darling. But then again, you always did have a weakness for damaged goods."
Dani's anguished screams tear through me as Lucian's "death" hits her. Our bond amplifies everything, turning our shared grief into a vicious cycle of agony. Her pain becomes my pain—becomes her pain—an endless feedback loop of raw devastation.
The bond we share, usually such a blessing, now feels like a curse—forcing us to experience this loss twice over, each of us drowning in not just our own grief but each other's as well. Her heart shattering for her friend, my rage at losing my brother, all of it spiraling together into a maelstrom of shared suffering.
"Oh yes, lover," she purrs, twirling Lucian's heart between her fingers like some fucked-up trophy. Blood drips onto my cheek as she flaunts her prize. "A souvenir for our little reunion. Isn't it divine?" Her laughter echoes through the room—that same deranged giggle that still haunts my darkest memories. "Your precious brother's heart—the one you so nobly tried to save by offering yours instead. There's something deliciously poetic about it—don't you think? Like a tragic opera, but with more... gore."
The scent of my brother's blood fills my nostrils, making tears burn behind my eyes. That heart in her hand used to tell the worst fucking jokes—used to beat faster whenever Seraphina walked into the room, used to... Christ, I can't even finish that thought without wanting to vomit.
The reality of what I'm seeing crashes over me. This can't be real. This isn't fucking happening.
"And now," Lilith purrs, grinding my face harder into the floor, "you get to watch my friend break your little pet."
I'mhelpless, arm shattered, pinned to the floor, as this fucker slams Dani to the ground. She's too weak to fight back as he forces her legs apart.
"NO! I WILL FUCKING KILL YOU!" The scream rips from me as I thrash against Lilith's grip, desperate to reach Dani.
"What's wrong, darling?" Nails dig into my scalp. "Why waste your time on this worthless thing when what we had was so... special?"
Dani's honey-gold eyes find mine across the room, and I watch in helpless agony as that precious light—that fierce spark that makes her who she is—starts to fade. Each brutal violation dims it further, like watching someone slowly extinguish the sun. Her gaze holds mine, silently screaming what her voice can't anymore while that piece of shit grunts and thrusts above her like the animal he is.
Hot tears scald down my face as I'm forced to witness the unthinkable—my mate's spirit breaking piece by precious piece. Each second burns itself into my memory like acid, a testament to my failure to protect her. Our bond amplifies everything, forcing me to feel each fragment of her soul splinter and crack.
This isn't just rape—it's the systematic destruction of everything pure and beautiful in my world. And I'm fucking powerless to stop it.
Some protector I turned out to be. "I'm so sorry, baby. So fucking sorry."
Rhyland
13
Dani's scream pierces through the fog in my head, yanking me back to—wait. The shadows still writhe around Lilith's throat like living nooses, exactly where they were before that nightmare started. My hands shake as I try to process what the fuck just happened—was any of that real? Cold sweat soaks my shirt, and I can still taste the phantom fear of Dani's screams and pain.
But Lilith's still here, still caught in my shadow grip, her perfect makeup starting to run as she claws at the darkness crushing her—suffocating her. Not lying broken on the floor. Not holding me down while some bastard... The terror and rage from that vision still pulse through my veins, making it hard to separate reality from whatever mind-fuck the Soul Stone just put me through.
The bond throbs with Dani's fear from upstairs—real fear, not the soul-shattering anguish I just witnessed. Or didn't witness. Fuck, my head is spinning, trying to piece together what actually happened and what the stone forced me to see. These memories—these vivid, gut-wrenching scenes—they don't match what's in front of me. But they felt so fucking real: the blood, the screams, the...
