Total pages in book: 137
Estimated words: 138683 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 693(@200wpm)___ 555(@250wpm)___ 462(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 138683 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 693(@200wpm)___ 555(@250wpm)___ 462(@300wpm)
He landed a punch to the back of my head.
Pain splintered, but it had nothing on the red that blurred my sight.
Rage full.
I had him flipped around and pinned to the pavement before the asshole could make sense of the motion.
I let one punch free.
It cracked against his face.
Blood gushed.
In an instant, my sight bleared over.
You worthless little shit. You’ll never amount to nothin’. Blow after blow. Come on, fight back, you pussy.
End him.
Your betrayal won’t go unnoticed.
Autumn, baby. I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry.
Karl hit me. Can you believe it?
You bitch. It appears you need a reminder of your position.
Voices spun through my mind.
So many. Too loud. Too much.
Sanity slipped.
Blinking in and out.
Tessa.
Autumn.
Fists flew.
I no longer realized they belonged to me. Not until I was being hauled up and pushed against the wall.
Trent flung his arm across my chest to hold me back. His voice broke through the chaos. “Cool it, man. You’ve gotta snap out of it. Someone called the cops, and they’re on their way. You hear me?” he hissed, his face close to mine, breaking through the disorder.
Pants rushed my throat, and my entire body writhed with the thirst to destroy.
“Listen to me,” he urged low. “You’re fine. Take a deep breath.”
Worry rushed through his pitch-black eyes.
I squeezed mine shut and tried to gather the rage that still burned in my fists.
I slammed my head back against the roughened bricks.
“Fuck,” I groaned as the reality of what I’d done bled through.
“It’s okay, man. Get out of here and go into my office. I’m going to take care of this shit, and I’ll be in.”
Trent handed me a tumbler of amber liquid before he leaned back on the edge of his desk and crossed his feet at the ankles. He blew out a heavy sigh before he looked down at me, where I sat trembling in a chair.
“Is he hurt?” I could barely force out the question.
Trent cracked a grin. “More than likely since you went beast on his ass, but he and the rest of them took off as soon as they heard the sirens.” Trent smirked. “Saves paperwork.”
I grunted. “You should fire my ass for pulling that shit.”
Trent actually laughed. “Fire you? I hired you because of that shit.”
I took a shaky sip of the whiskey. Hot liquid burned as it rolled down my throat. “Not supposed to lose it like that.”
“Would have lost it, too. Kult told me he hit that girl.”
My throat threatened to close off. “Yeah.”
“Asshole deserved it.”
I inhaled deep. “I can’t do it, Trent. Can’t lose control like that. Can’t become him again.”
Trent rubbed his fingers over his mouth, contemplating, before he stared me down. “You fought to survive, Milo. Don’t ever fucking apologize for that.”
“Did it for the wrong reasons for a long, long time.”
“Did you have a choice?”
Not once I’d sold my soul, no. Not without it costing everything.
My spirit shivered as Autumn’s face flashed through my mind.
Guilt clawed at my insides. “I came here tonight already on edge, and that’s on me. Karl’s been messing with Tessa. Threatening her. Not sure I can control it when it comes to her.”
Fury clouded Trent’s expression. “Did he touch her again?”
“We went to get her stuff. Fucker didn’t know I was there, and he got his hands on her, thinking he was gonna take what she didn’t want to give.”
His jaw clenched while the violence I’d just tamed screamed.
Trent pushed from the desk and knelt in front of me, his voice as dark as my heart. “We fight for the ones we love, Milo. It’s who we are. It’s in our blood. And we fight to the end.”
Except I hadn’t fought hard enough for Autumn.
“I won’t let that bastard get near her.”
“Good, because if you don’t do it, then I will.”
Grinning, he stood.
“You okay?”
Hardly.
I choked out the scrape of a laugh and the somberness rolled in. “I have to control it, or I’m going to lose my kids forever.”
Trent set his hand on my shoulder, and he dipped down, his voice low with emphasis. “You fight for them, too, Milo. With everything you have. Whatever it takes. I know you, man, you’ve been hurting for a long fuckin’ time. It’s time for you to find what you’ve been missing.”
And I needed to remember that was my kids.
I stepped into the vapid shadows of the cabin. It was late, the darkness thick, my spirit heavy.
I needed to drag my ass to my room and take a shower.
But no.
I couldn’t stop myself from quietly edging across the floor to her door.
Drawn.
Persuaded.
Moved.
Her influence more than I could resist.
She’d left her door open a crack, and I nudged it the rest of the way so I could check on her.
Make sure she was whole and safe.
That she wasn’t tossing with the fear of the monster that I wanted to end.