bChapter /bb62 /b

Khaos didn’t just mark her- he forced it.

I see the deep red scratches trailing down her arms, the bruising Angerprints around her swollen wrists. A small tear splits her lower lip.

1 bite back a curse, but it slips out anyway Son of a bitch. That bastard didn’t learn his lesson, did he? Not even after clined up his face as a warning

Jasmine’s eyes fill with tears, but I don’t sohen.

“Did you go back to him?”

Her mouth opens, then closes. Shame bleeds across her face before she even speaks. Her fingers twist in the hem of her sweater but I don’t bbother /bmasking the disappointment in my voice. I can’t.

“Because how the hell did he find you, Jasmine? You were supposed to be hiding at the treehouse. That was your secret ce where he couldn’t find

you, remember

A broken sound escapes her lips–something between a sob and ba /bbsigh/b. “I… I thought after what you did to him–after you wed his face–it bwould /bscare him off for good”

My chest burns as her beyes /bmeet mine for a moment.

“Besides, I couldn’t stay hiding forever, Kali. I just I needed to live again. So I tried going back to my routine…and I didn’t think he’d been watching me.”

She nces down at the bruises on her arms. Her voice trembles like it’s trying to hold together what’s already broken. “I forgot… we were once together. He knows all my patterns. Everything Except the treehouse. But he walted… hiding in the shadows, knowing I woulde by, and when I did, he grabbed me out of nowhere. And bhe/b–he forced it, Kali,”

My heart breaks as I watch her crumble. Her hands tremble as she wraps her arms tightly around herself.

“I tried to fight, I swear, but… my fear made me weak. I froze. He was stronger. And his eyes–his eyes weren’t even his. He doesn’t even look human

anymore.”

I mutter through clenched teeth, “When the hell was he ever human?”

She keeps going, like if she stops, she’ll fall apart.

“I came bhere /bbecause I couldn’t go back to the treehouse, I didn’t want him to follow me there too.b” /b

Inod, lips pressed into a thin, tight line. Every inch of me is vibrating with fury, with helplessness, with guilt. I should have ended him. When I had the chance. But I hesitated–because of herb. /b

And now..now it’s toote.

He marked her

On bpurpose/b.

The bastard knew exactly what he was doing. By marking Jasmine, bhe’s /bshielded himself. He knows what that bond means. If I try to kill him now… she’ll feel it. It could destroy her.

He made himself untouchable.

Sman

Dirty.

b1/5 /b

bite back another bcurse /bas the rage binside /bme builds like wildfire–hot, relentless, merciless. Jack’s not here. And I don’t even know? bhe /bfinds out but I know bwhat /bI’m going to do.

I’ve seen enough monsters for one lifetime.

And I’m done letting them win.

Jasmine’s voice cracks through my thoughts, barely a whisper. “Are you going to tell my brother?”

I snap my head toward her. I stare. Really stare. Her eyes are ssy, pleading Scared.

I don’t hide my frustration this time. “ts that even a question?”

She shrinks back, lips trembling, I shake my head and start pacing, needing to move before explode.

“If we’d told Jack sooner, this could’ve been dealt with. It never should’ve gotten this far.”

She looks down, ashamed. “I know,” she whispers just… I thought I could handle it.”

“Well now I’ll bhandle /bit,” I snap, “Since Jack’s not here, I’m taking matters into my own hands.”

Her posture stiflens, panic rising “Kali, don’tb–/bbhe’s /bdangerous.”

I level her with a cold re. “So am L”

She opens her mouth again, probably to beg me not to go, but I cut her off.

*Lock the door. Open it only for bFury /bwhen he arrives. No one else. Got it?”

She hesitates, then nods slowly. Just bas /bI reach the door, her voice stops me.

“He’s at the same house you came tost time,” she says quietly. “I know because of the band… I can feel him there.”

I turn to her, hold her bgaze/bb, /band nod once.

“Good. Then I won’t bhave /bto waste time tracking him down.”

With that, I throw the door open and march straight toward that goddamn house–the one isted bso /bfar out no one can hear her scream when he hurts

her.

The wind howls around me as i storm forward, rage pulsing in every step. When I reach the front door, it swings open without resistance–unlocked. Like ba /bsilent invitation. I should be afraid as my instincts scream at me to turn back. But I don’t slow down and ignore them.

Because there he is.

Sitting on the couch like a damn king on a throne–legs spread, arms draped casually across the backrest, that same smug smile twisting his lips.

“I’ve been expecting you,” Khoassays, his voice slick like oll

It’s almostughable, considering thest time he saw my beast, he nearly pissed himself. But now?

Now he’s bold.

Now he’s brave.

Because he thinks I can’t touch him.

Because he marked Jasmine.

he knows the band will protect him… at her expense

Because he knows

Tcross the room in The

“You bastard.” I growl, grabbing a fistful of his thick hair and yanking his head back

The size difference between us is almostical–barely reach his chest–but the fe

e fury in me could tear down mountains.

“Why the hell did you mark her?” I hiss through gritted teeth. “I wanted you, Khoas. Hold you if you ever touched her again, I’d and you.

Khoas chuckles, his face twisting into mock sympathy. “Mmm,” he purrs, lips parting to reveal perfect, sharp teeth. “You did warn me And yet… here w

His eyes glint as his voice drops. “Go ahead, Kali. Pull harder. Rip me apart. But just know every ounce of pain I feel, Jasmine feels it twice as much

I shove him away, a hiss escaping my lips as disgust coils in my gut. He’s not bluffing. I know he’s not.

Just like how my father copsed when my mother was tortured.

“You’re a coward,” I spit, stepping back, my fists trembling b“/bJack’s going to end you when he finds out what you did to his sister.”

Khoas leans forward slowly, resting his elbows on his knees, his voice low and cold. “You should be more worried about yourself. About how he’ll react when he finds–or doesn’t find your body instead.”

And then–before I can see iting–his hand snaps forward, too fast. I feel something cold and sharp jab into the side of my neck.

wy skin.

Pain explodes like a firework beneath my

I gasp, stumbling back, my legs buckling. “You… son of ba/b…” My vision spins, the world tilting like a broken picture frame. I drop to my knees, trying to shift, to call my wall–but she’s trapped, strangled by whatever toxin he used.

My world dims as Khoas crouches beside me, his breath–reeking of blood and something fouler–hot against my cheek.

“If only you’d stayed in your ce like I warned,” he murmurs. “You’re lucky I’m not killing you yet. My master wants something from you first.”

I try to lift my hand, w his bface/bb, /bscream,light–anything–but I’m inking. Fast

He keeps talking, voice fading in and out like a dying me. “There’s a price on your head, Kall. And when I’m done… the world will thank me for getting

rid of a monster like you. You’re no woman–and that woll of yours is a beast. Even Alpha jack would be grateful.”

Thest thing I feel is his arms scooping me up blike /ba sack of potatoes, my head lolling against his shoulder as he carries me out.

Then-

Nothing.

Complete, consuming darkness.

bLight/b.

Too much of it–blinding, searing

I groan, turning my head, but it feelsb! /b

And I’m not alone.

s like it’s made of stone. My eyes flutter open for half a second before I squeeze them shut again. Everything hurts.

Someone’s here.

I can feel it

Then a voice–smooth, amused, unmistakably pleased–cuts through the haze

“You’re awake, Good, Watching you sleep was fun and all, but i was starting to get bored.”

My bload runs cold,

I know that voice.

Somewhere in the back of my mind, rm bells are ringing. But the fog won’t clear.

“What do you want?” I croak, each syble scraping painfully against my diy throat. The light still stabs at my eyes like knives, forcing them shut

There’s a pause, then the voice replies–calm and bcasual/b.

“I won’t waste your time. Let’s cut to the chase.”

Another pause.

“That blue ne. I want it.”

My heart skips a beat.

What?

How the hell does he know about bthat /bne? Jasmine’s words echo in my mind–how she said it looked just like the Alpha Queen’s, swearing mine

had to be fake.

My fingers twitch instinctively toward my corbone, beven /bthough i left the ne hidden at the home I shared with Jack.

“It’s just a ne,” I rasp.

“It’s not,” the voice snaps, suddenly sharp, impatient. “Hand it over. Or you die a very slow, very painful death.”

I grit my teeth, still refusing to open my eyes against the blinding light. “That all you’ve got? Emply threats?”

“Oh, you misunderstand,” he bsays /bsmoothly, almost delighted. “It’s not just you. Your mother… byour /bbig, bad Alpha mate… even sweet little Jasmine. They’ll all die. Slowly. I wonder who you’ll beg for first

The rape res, hot and sudden, giving me a moment of rity.

Then something else a sound.

Tap

Tap

Тар

A stick. Hitting the ground in a slow, rhythmic beat.

I know that sound.

bGods/b, I know that sound.

The bhairs /bon my arms brise/b. My senses sharpen. The fog lifts just a little more

13:39 Satb, /b21 Jun

My mind reels back

To the day Lady Celestia came to have me sirested and the man at her side.

with his dead eyes.

And his twisted leg

And that cane

The same one he tapped against the ground just like this,

And the worst part?

The way he looked at my ne that bday/b–like it was the only thing that mattered. He was absolutely obsessed.

“Oh.” I whisper, the honor finally settling into my bones. “It’s you.”

He chuckles in the corner.

“Yes,” he says, and I can hear the smile in his voice. “I told you we’d meet again,

A beat

“Now…let’s try this again. Where is the ne?”

?