Page 83 of Bleed with Me

“Let’s just say, I crossed a line,” he said, throwing the skull mask inside the car.

“You murdered a man because of her, almost started a war, and ordered seven men to rape her ex,” I recited, scowling. “What the fuck does it mean that you crossed a line?”

He sighed heavily, running a hand through his hair, and my frown deepened.

“I paid a former military officer, a woman, to regularly attend Valeria’s support group meetings,” he answered quietly. Shame crossed his face as he finally glanced at me. “I just wanted to be sure she is okay, but when she found out, she…”

“Fuck, Zyon,” I whined.

“I know, I know,” he grumbled, kicking the car’s rear wheel. “But I just…” He exhaled heavily. “I can’t imagine losing her. If something happened to her, I…”

“She’s fine,” I tried to reassure him, but he knew best what they went through. “She’s safe and happy with you.”

“Is she?” He whipped his head toward me, quiet uncertainty slipping through his expression. “She said my rules and overprotectiveness are suffocating. We argued like crazy, and suddenly I’m sleeping in a guest room. What the fuck?”

He threw his arms in the air helplessly.

“I’m dying without her. I can’t breathe.” His eyes glistened with wetness while I stared at him in pure shock. I’d never seen him like this. “I found out about the food poisoning from our mother. Can you believe that? My wife told someone else that she feels like shit. Not me! How the hell could I be okay?”

“Zyon.” His anger and confusion were palpable. “It’s going to be fine. It’s not your first rodeo.”

“Yeah, the two rodeos before ended with divorce papers,” he snapped, glaring at me. “I can’t let that happen. I can’t lose her because I’m an overprotective, paranoid psychopath.”

“You won’t.” I grabbed his shoulders and steadied him. “You won’t lose her. She loves you.”

He stared at me like he couldn’t believe my words. My heart almost collapsed. They were the perfect couple, the ideal match.

“Listen to me.” I lightly slapped his cheek to demand his full attention. “You go home, apologize, and promise to never go behind her back.”

“But what if—”

“No!” I shut him up. “You’ll compromise. That’s what marriage is about, idiot.” I gave him my hardest glare, my mind working to its full capacity to help him. “And her birthday is coming soon. You’ll need to spend a few million.”

“She doesn’t like jewelry,” he groaned.

“I’m not talking about diamonds. You need to be creative and surprise the shit out of her.”

“What if it wouldn’t work?” he mumbled, throwing his phone on the back seat because it wouldn’t stop buzzing.

“Then I’ll kick your ass,” I threatened, opening the door for him. “Now go. I want to have my fun, and you have work to do.”

“Yes, boss.” He saluted with a grin, but it didn’t reach his eyes. However, I couldn’t do more now. He had his duties, and I had to help Malin.

Watching the car’s taillights disappear in the darkness, I sighed. But then a creepy smile spread across my face.

First, the hunt. Only after we were done with Julien Young would I go through the information Zyon gave me. I wouldn’t let it ruin my time out for anything.

-40-

Dorian

The forest swallowed the last traces of light, leaving only fractured beams between the branches. Shadows shifted through the trees, blurring into the darkness. Damp air carried the scent of earth and decay, while the silence pressed in as if the forest itself were waiting for something to die. Or, in this case, someone.

A small smile grazed my lips as I crossed the distance between the gate and the spot Malin had chosen as the starting point. He knew this playground like the back of his hand. Two decades ago, our father had given it to us as a birthday gift. A vast, secluded stretch of dark forest, enclosed by a ten-foot concrete wall.

We once tested whether we could escape the perimeter. Malin succeeded, so he decorated the wall with barbed wire. Our next attempt ended in the ER with fifteen stitches.

“He’s still out,” Malin grumbled when I sat beside him on a fallen three-trunk. Julien lay in the mud a few feet from us. Zyon’s Cane Corso, Bluff, watched him like he was dinner.