Total pages in book: 126
Estimated words: 120031 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 600(@200wpm)___ 480(@250wpm)___ 400(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 120031 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 600(@200wpm)___ 480(@250wpm)___ 400(@300wpm)
She doodled circles on his chest. “And how had you felt about the whole thing?”
“I wished I’d killed the other humans that were part of the assault.”
Intuition pricked at her, but she still asked the question that she suspected she already knew the answer to. “Where are those humans now?” He didn’t reply. Just looked at her, his face blank, and she sensed her suspicions were right. “Does Roni know you killed them?”
“Probably, but she’s never said anything.”
“Are they the ‘bad things’ you mentioned you’d done?”
“Some of them. But they’re not things I regret. Those pricks deserved what they got. My sister didn’t. If you’d seen her after the attack … She was pale. Shaking. So scared.” And he’d felt like he’d let her down, because he hadn’t been there to help defend her as Nick had.
“It’s a measure of her strength that she got past it and became an enforcer, especially since any form of violence should have taken her back to that day.” Casey genuinely admired her for it.
“About a year after her attack, she asked me to put her in a chokehold; said she wanted to learn how to escape one.” Eli’s blood had run ice-cold. The very last thing he’d ever wanted to do was make her feel helpless ever again in her life, but she’d pushed and pushed him until he agreed. “She panicked at first. It was fucking hard to hold her like that, but she’d made me swear that I wouldn’t let go; that I’d give her the chance to beat back the panic and free herself. And she did. My sister’s a fast learner.”
“You taught her to fight?”
“I taught her to kill. Not defend herself, not just fight dirty, but to fight until she was the only one standing—to inflict as much pain as possible, and to do it without any mercy.”
“Why are you looking at me like you think I should be judging you for that?”
“You’ve seen me at The Den, baby. You’ve seen how brutal and pitiless I can be. I’ve never killed there, but I could have done it within seconds if I’d wanted to. I made sure she could do the same.”
“Then I’d say it wasn’t so much that you taught her to kill, it was that you taught her to survive. You gave her the skills she needed to be confident that no one could ever put her through a trauma like that ever again.”
“Someone did try it again. A jackal. There was a battle on our territory; it was all tied up with that fucked-up website I mentioned to you. She later thanked me. Said she felt like everything I’d taught her had prepared her for that night.”
Casey stroked his chest. “Obviously, then, I’m right.”
She wanted to ask him again where he’d learned to fight—mostly because she could sense he was expecting judgment from her about something related to the matter, and she wanted him to understand that she’d never judge him for anything. But pushing someone to reveal their secrets before they were ready to do so didn’t help anyone. And it would mean more to Casey if he shared with her because he wanted to.
Plus, right then wasn’t the time, and she really didn’t want him falling any deeper into the dark memories he was wading through. She could practically see him slipping away.
Casey touched the side of his face and said softly, “Come back.”
His eyes focused fully on her. “I’m here.” Kissing her soft and slow, he rolled her onto her back, giving her his weight. “Need you again.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
“Eli! Eli!”
Hearing his pack mate call his name the next morning, Eli paused in making coffee. There was no panic or sense of urgency in Bracken’s tone, so it seemed highly unlikely that there was a problem of some kind. Why Bracken hadn’t just knocked on the door, though, Eli didn’t know.
He strode through his lodge and pulled open the door. “What is it?”
Standing near the bottom step of the porch, Bracken said, “Tell her to move.” His eyes dipped down to the mink who sat on the porch like a sentry, staring at the enforcer.
Having been on the receiving end of that disconcerting stare, Eli understood Bracken’s unease. Still, amusement trickled through him. “Just step around her.”
The male’s eyes widened. “Do I look slow to you? I’m not turning my back on a mink—that shit’s just not done.”
“Come on, Brack, she’s just an itty, bitty thing. You don’t really think she’s going to attack, did you?”
“Um, yeah.”
“You should be used to vicious creatures. You have a pallas cat for a mate.”
“Yeah, but she’s nice to me. And she doesn’t look at me with cold, empty eyes.”
Eli sighed and stepped onto the porch. “There’s nothing wrong with her eyes. Come here, gorgeous,” he called out softly to his little mink. She glanced back at him and let out a low hiss. “Yes, I know he doesn’t belong here and he’s trespassing, but he won’t stay long. Come here.” She didn’t. But she did move aside, clearing a path for the enforcer.