Total pages in book: 30
Estimated words: 26760 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 134(@200wpm)___ 107(@250wpm)___ 89(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 26760 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 134(@200wpm)___ 107(@250wpm)___ 89(@300wpm)
I felt exposed under their combined stares, like a deer caught in headlights, wearing nothing but Aidoneus’ suit jacket. It covered everything while leaving no guesses as to what we’d been doing.
“She never sounded like that when you fucked her, did she? Never begged for more or came so hard she drew blood.”
I clenched my fist, guilt gnawing at my gut along with a slow-churning rage.
“He didn’t see anything, Visari,” Aidoneus stated. “I would never allow another man to see you like that.” He reached out and took hold of Ezra’s flaccid cock, gently extending it and brushing his thumb over the tip.
I blinked, taken aback by the act. Ezra’s chest heaved like an enraged bull, but he made no move to stop Aidoneus from doing whatever he intended.
“This itty-bitty cock did nothing for her. I almost feel bad for you.” He held his other hand out and issued an order in his dialect that I couldn’t understand. The enforcer closest to him fluidly removed a gun from his side and handed it to Aidoneus.
The sight of it made my stomach drop. He cocked his head and ran the barrel up and down the length of Ezra’s cock. I could do nothing as all the color drained from his face.
“It sickens me that you put your hands on what was mine, Ezra. You’re absolute fucking scum. A bottom feeder I wouldn’t allow to eat a whore’s ass.”
“She isn’t yours,” Ezra seethed, his skin drenched in sweat.
“No? She's draped in my jacket, resting in my suite, and very soon she'll be wholly mine, in every sense of the word. How does it feel? Knowing you couldn’t protect her from me?”
I wanted to scream at him to stop, but his visceral reaction when I simply mentioned Ezra’s name warned me from pleading on his behalf. Ezra’s eyes met mine, and I could see that his fierce defiance now simmered with raw pain and rage. The secrets he kept from me hurt us both. There was so much we needed to say, and I could feel it in my soul that we wouldn’t get the chance to do so.
I opened my mouth to speak, and the look that came across his face stopped me cold.
“You won't break her spirit, Aidoneus. No matter what you do. She’s stronger than you think.”
Tears sprang to my eyes, and I slowly shook my head. I wasn’t strong, not at all. I wasn’t brave either. The idea that everyone had of me was nothing like who I believed myself to be.
“Your concern is touching.” Aidoneus chuckled coldly and moved so that his back was to me. “I wanted you to have one last memory of her. I think her screaming my name is fitting; shame you won’t be alive to cherish it.”
He raised the gun and pulled the trigger.
The world seemed to stop.
He kept going until he ran out of bullets. Ezra's body fell limp, the light in his eyes fading away. A stifling silence gripped the gardens, the air thick with the finality of death. I felt a scream building up inside me, but before it could escape, it transformed into gut-wrenching sobs.
My knees buckled, and I would have collapsed had Aidoneus not caught me, holding me up with an iron grip.
"Steady now," he murmured, his voice chillingly calm. "No need for dramatics. The night's still young."
He tossed the emptied weapon to the Enforcer who had handed it to him and then, with surprising gentleness, lifted me into his arms. From over his shoulder, my gaze collided with Ezra’s empty eyes, a sight that would forever haunt me.
Tears blurred my vision as Aidoneus silently carried me back into the suite. The darkness of the room enveloped us, the outside world seemingly locked away once the door closed. He took me to the bed, gently setting me upon it.
“Go ahead and cry.” His fingers weaved through my hair in a soft caress that contrasted starkly with the coldness of his actions.
I didn’t need his encouragement. I sobbed, raw and unrestrained, grief and guilt threatening to shatter me from the inside. "Why did you do that?" I choked out, my voice trembling. "Why did you make me watch?"
He glanced down at me, a dark glint in his eyes. "Do you really hate my gift that much?”
It felt like an eternity passed before he cupped my face, forcing me to meet his gaze.