I grabbed Lexi’s hand, breathing easier now that I was touching her again. “Cordi’s safe with you, right, Gage?”
I gave him a look, and he grumbled something under his breath, then headed toward the exit.
“Come on, Red.” I followed him. “I’ll drop you off at your dorm while I?—”
“You are out of your mind if you think you’re going anywhere without me, Kill.” That unrelenting blue gaze burned into me as she pulled me to a stop. “I’m part of this.”
My jaw clenched at the stubborn side of her I loved as much as I loathed. She would never just listen to me for her own good.
“I love you, Red,” I whispered. “But these are dangerous people. I’m not letting you near them.”
She flicked her hair over her shoulder. “You don’tletme do a damn thing, Killian. I make my own decisions, and that doesn’t change simply because we’re together now.”
Together.
We were together.
“Besides, I’m not going to my dorm room alone just for someone to bust in and abduct me.” A shiver cascaded down her spine as she glared at Bass curled in a ball on the floor. “I won’t feel safe until he and his father are on their knees, begging for mercy.”
Another onslaught of rage poured through my bloodstream as images of what I had walked in on flashed through my mind. I’d never be able to burn those memories away.
“Theywillbeg, but I’ll make sure no one grants them any mercy.”
I gingerly skimmed my thumb over the bruise darkening Lexi’s cheek, longing to break every bone in Bass’s body. “Are you sure you’re okay, Red? You should get examined at the hospital.”
She curled her fingers into my shirt and drew me closer, kissing my jaw. “Shouldn’t this guy be here by now?”
I rechecked my watch as we waited in a dusty, abandoned shipping warehouse, the rising sun peeking through cracks in the derelict building. Declan was fifteen minutes late. It wasn’t like a member of Arcane to be late.
When Gage arranged this meeting, he made it perfectly clear that the information I had was worth dropping everything for.
Since Stan was the Grand Domnus of the Serpents & Daggers and had allies everywhere, I couldn’t simply hand over the video to the cops or the press. The brotherhood could, and would, kill me for turning on one of their own, especially one as important as Stan.
But if Arcane discovered this information and released it to ruin Stan, they couldn’t pin this on me.
Hopefully.
“Areyouokay?” Lexi bit her bottom lip, and fuck if that didn’t make my cock hard. “This can’t be easy for you either.”
She was too good for me, and my darkness might one day tarnish her, but I couldn’t give her up for anything. I’d rather die than live another minute without her. The need to be with her had always been under my skin. Hell, I marked my flesh with a tattoo to remind myself of how much she owned me.
Being without her had shattered me. And now, being with her was slowly mending my pieces back together. I only hoped I didn’t break her in the process.
“This is nothing compared to the years I spent without you. I’d do anything to keep that from happening again.” I pulled her against me, burying my face in her hair. “I love you so fucking much I can’t breathe.”
Her arms tightened around my waist, a little sniffle echoing. “I love you, Kill.”
“Isn’t that sweet?”
The icy claws of dread ripped into my chest as Stan materialized through the shadows. Lexi stiffened and angled her head, a gasp falling from her lips at my stepfather’s unsightly appearance. Bruises mottled his face, a cut dug into his brow, and one of his eyes was almost swollen shut.
I yanked Lexi behind me as Stan approached. “What the fuck are you doing here?”
“Declan will have to miss this meeting.” His laughter was worse than nails on a chalkboard, making every hair on my nape stand on end. “Did you really think you could go to Arcane and I wouldn’t find out? I am everywhere, son. And it’s time you and your whore realized who you’re dealing with.”
CHAPTER 50
THE TRUE MONSTER
