“I know, Carn. I’m not letting any of you get hurt because of me. I’ll be okay.” I snort. She needs to stop making promises she can’t keep.
“Get in the fucking car, Tink,” I hiss, then release my hold on her. She obeys like the dog she is and ignores those fuckers calling out to her. I face the four of them and make sure they can see the devil inside me and know I’m not some motherfucker to be trifled with. “Get the fuck out of my town.”
“You have no idea who the fuck we are and what we are capable of.” I run my gaze over them, not finding anything that stands out or even indicates who the fuck they are. “We are the Denver Kings,” the cocksucker holding the gun adds. I keep my outrage from displaying over my face, that little cunt went and shacked up with the enemy. How the fuck did Kellar know who they are?
“And you have no idea who the fuck I am and what I am capable of. I’m the don of the Devlin Cosa Nostra and not some fucker you want to piss off, unless you want to wind up in a fucking ditch with no lips,” I warn, then turn my back on the motherfuckers and climb into my car. Cas stalks off to get his bike and I don’t stick around to wait. I plant my foot on the gas and leave those assholes in my dust as I head into town. Her presence alone is suffocating and the smell of citrus wafting toward me from her shampoo has my stomach rolling. I roll the window down just so I can breathe. I’m fighting against everything inside me not to wrap my hands around her neck and choke the fucking life out of her. When her time comes, I want her to look me in the eyes so I can watch as the life slowly drains out of her.
“Where are you taking me?” Her voice ruptures my blissful state of picturing the ways I’m going to kill her.
“Shut your mouth. The sound of your voice is going to push me over the edge and it’s taking everything inside me right nownot to strangle the fuck out of you.” I’m met with silence. I blow out a breath and try to calm myself. I don’t know why I brought her with me. I should have left the cunt behind, but the look on her brother and Kyle’s faces egged me on. I wanted to show them that she is under my control.
I don’t realize where I’m going until I pull into the rink parking lot. I kill the engine and just sit here staring at the building that was meant to grant me my freedom. The bitch makes the first move and climbs out of the car. I watch as she bypasses the front entrance and heads through the back.
“Fuck,” I snarl as I slam my hand down on the steering wheel. I hunger to feel her blood coating my hands as I carve her skin. I can picture the sound of her screams and groan, my cock hard at the thought. “Yeah, she’s gonna die tonight,” I vow as I step out of the car. I wanted to save her for last, but Masen has training first thing in the morning and I can only imagine the look on his and Kyle’s faces when they walk into the rink and see her mangled corpse lying there lipless and lifeless on the ice.
CHAPTER TEN
TOREN
To teach is to learn. To learn is to excel. To excel is to thrive. To thrive is to live.
I fucking hate how that stupid phrase still gives me comfort. Without the pendant I’ve had no choice but to latch onto it and use it to keep me grounded.
I pull the door open and step inside the dark rink. I don’t bother looking for a light switch as I can see far enough in front of me to not trip or crash into something. I continue forward and come to a stop at the edge of the ice. I look out over it and find myself smiling. This place used to bring me a sense of peace when I would come and watch my brother, Kellan and Cas play. Kenna and I would paint our faces and cheer so loud in the hope they would be able to hear us in the stands.
Pain lances my chest at the thought of my best friend. I would give anything to have her here, she would know exactly what to do and how to help me navigate my way through this new path and help me master this new version of myself.
I don’t think as I take a step onto the ice and glide my feet along the sleek ice slowly so I don’t fall and make my way into the center. The moonlight offers a glow over the rink and it’sbeautiful. I know I should be trying to find a place to hide and avoid Xaden, but what’s the point?
He’s proven tonight it doesn’t matter how protected I am or where I am, he’ll always get to me. I know he brought me here to kill me, I saw it in his eyes. Xaden isn’t capable of love or compassion. I preached a big game about wanting to rule and be the boss but the truth is, there is no guarantee I would win this war even with the Denver Kings at my side, but only in madness do you find a beautiful death. I would rather die by his hands than give my brother or father the satisfaction of taking me out.
If I am to die, then so be it. But I want my death to mean something and it will because Xaden will use my demise as a way to get the Kellar Cartel to make the first move. They will be too consumed by their anger to think straight. He may be the devil in the flesh but he’s smart and calculating.
I wanted to remain two steps ahead of all of them but I’m new to this game and it’s apparent that Xaden knew I would be there tonight. He was lying in wait for me to make my grand appearance just so he could prove I am nothing without him.
If he hadn’t shown up, I don’t believe Halo, Pope and Vatican would have let Carnage save me from Darren and the others.
When I hear skates scrape against the ice I don’t turn, there isn’t a need. I felt him the moment he entered, the hairs on the back of my neck were standing on end. It feels like there is a rope attached to my chest and it constantly pulls me in his direction without consent. I’m a damn moth and he is the fucking flame that will burn me alive.
I stand still as Xaden begins skating around me in a circle. He has his black hoodie on with the hood up covering his black hair. When he passes by me again, his gray eyes are tinted with rage. Beneath the anger I see the hatred he feels for me, it rolls off him in waves. The stab of pain I feel in my chest is nothing compared to how I would feel if he found out the truth.
It’s safer for me to leave this world with him never knowing, he terrifies me and I’m not ashamed to admit that. If there was a choice to face a war against my father and brother or him, I would go to war against my family.
He skids to an abrupt stop in front of me, spraying ice over my bare legs. I look at him and note how shadows cling to him like he’s their master. He wields them with a swagger only he could pull off. He’s never hidden that he’s a monster, he knows it and never tries to change or be something he isn’t to fit in. He’s an enigma men wish they could be but will never attain.
His gaze bores into mine with an intensity that has my breath hitching and my spine stiffening. He skates forward until there is only a sliver of space between our bodies, heat emits off him, blanketing me in a warm embrace almost like a cocoon. I tip my head back to hold his gaze, inhaling sharply when our eyes clash.
His mere presence commands attention. He’s the god of darkness and the prized heir of the devil himself. Everyone from Somerset views him as vermin, cruel and cold. He oozes fuck off vibes but it’s justhim. He’s built differently than every guy I know. He doesn’t ask permission, he takes what he wants and that’s what adds to the allure of Xaden Devlin. He is the worst of them all because I never saw the silent killer sneaking up on me until it was too late.
“What happens to fairies when people stop believing in them, Tink?” he asks in a quiet husky tone. I shiver and force myself not to cower under the weight of his words and what they mean for me.
I dart my tongue out to moisten my lips and don’t miss the way his eyes track the move. “They die,” I rasp out.
A low growl comes from deep in his chest. I try to keep the fear from splaying across my face. “You know what that means for you, Tink?” His calm tone and the way he is looking at me like a predator ready to close in on its kill has me fighting backtears and the urge to give into my fight or flight instincts. At least this way, I can die knowing I tried. I didn’t just roll over and let them fuck me. I fought back until the end.
I nod and smile sadly up at him. “Yeah,” I breathe out, then reach out and grip the front of his hoodie. His upper lip lifts in a snarl but I ignore it. “Can I ask one favor before you end it?” I whisper.
His face blanks and he walls off all his emotions as he slips his mask into place. “Why the fuck would I do anything for you?” The hatred that laces each of those words is like a sucker punch, I don’t know how he ever masked it well enough before. Or maybe I was blind to it and just desperate to have someone close. I was grasping at straws and didn’t even know it until I let him inside me.
