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The bastard bucks against me, pushing to get up, his fingers digging into my arm, tearing flesh, but I flex harder and hold. It’s just a waiting game now, really, as I tense, jaw clenched tightly, until the asshole doesn’t move. I hold it for extra measure, for pissing me off, then shove him to the ground.

And he lies there unmoving.

All right, I might have gone too far because even his chest isn’t moving with breaths. Oops. Fuck him!

I lean over and grab his mask, ripping it off his head. Man in his late twenties, short, dark hair, a healed scar across his chin. He’s got a thick nose.

“Why do you look familiar?” I tilt my head to the side, crouching beside him, my scrambled brain trying to make sense of this.

Then it comes to me. I don’t know the fucker, but I’ve seen him around back in Grimvale. He’s from my family’s court. Not of royal blood, but an assassin for hire by the larger families in our realm. This blade-for-hire will work for anyone in our court who pays him.

So what the fuck is he doing so far from home?

And who exactly was he targeting? Corvin or Dawn?

Could my father be behind this? He comes to mind first, as he has the connections and wealth to sneak someone else into Earth. It could explain how he got a passage out of Grimvale. The king would love nothing more than to squish the Obsidian Sun Court, except he’s made a pact with their king to retrieve Dawn and not kill Corvin.

It makes no sense for him to send someone to take out Dawn, as he invested too much money and called in favors to get us into the city to collect her.

He’s not the most empathetic king, but when he makes a vow, he lives by it.

I reach down and place two fingers against the man’s throat, confirming that he’s very much dead. “Guess I shouldn’t have killed you so quickly. We had things to chat about.”

Well, too late for that. I shove myself up on my feet and crack my neck. Now, get rid of the evidence, and go find Corvin and Dawn. They’ll need to hear about this.

Clenching my jaw, I collect the blades, tuck them into my boots, and reach down to heave the bastard over my shoulder. Then I hurry to the door, his body flopping about. A quick check shows that the corridor is empty, so I slip out and take the side door I used earlier to climb up onto the viewing platform in the room.

Once I reach the top, I grab one of the chairs used for anyone’s viewing pleasure, and climb up onto it. “Fuck, this is going to be fun.” Grasping the guy’s sides, I push him up off me, and with all my strength, I toss him up and over the lip of the open roof.

He hits like dead weight, his legs dangling off the edge, and I chuckle at my own joke, realizing this must be how Corvin feels. Like a loser.

Next thing, I grasp the roof’s edge and drag myself up. Then comes the fun part of hauling the assassin by his arms across the flat platform. I recall seeing a river behind the building when I first arrived, as I like to check the perimeter in any place I intend to visit. So I make a path toward it.

The cool breeze flutters against my nape, which feels incredible. Voices and laughter fill the air from the city behind me, while my thoughts turn to Dawn, wondering where Corvin has taken her now. Or are they heading to the compound already?

A feral obsession comes over me to get there before he claims her again.

I picture her lying on the bed, her legs spread and that pretty pussy on display. Shit, I’m getting hard thinking of her while hauling a dead body.

With rushed breaths, I finally reach the back end of the roof and peer down, finding the river that laps up against the building. It’s dark down there, and I swear something’s moving through the water. I’m counting on it.

I glance around behind me, then back down below, confirming that I’m alone. “This is it for you.” I drag him to the ledge, then use my foot to shove him right off the roof.

He hits the water with a splash. Instantly, something long and slithery pushes up out of the water, its mouth gaping open with lines of razor-sharp teeth. The creature leaps at the body. In a heartbeat, he chomps down on his head and yanks him under in an explosion of bubbles.

“Ouch.”

Moments later, the river smooths over, leaving no evidence.

“That was easier than I expected,” I murmur, waiting to make sure nothing pops back to the surface. Then I decide it’s time I left this establishment.

Once out in the streets, I’m suffocated by the crowds, the sounds, the cocktail of smells. It reminds me so much of Grimvale, where most people sleep during the day and flood the streets at night.

I shove myself through the masses, eyes peeled for Corvin and Dawn. Just thinking of those delicious tits pulls my balls up tightly, and I’m eager to see her again. I can’t recall the last time I met anyone as beautiful as her.

A tide of emotions surges through me, which I know is fucking wrong because I’m letting myself fall for someone I shouldn’t. But I struggle to care when I’m suffocating in desperation. Jealousy. Fury.

Around her, all the noise in my head silences, and she’s awakened something different in me. I’ll most likely regret this decision to pursue her, but for now, it’s all I can focus on.