Page 62 of The Worst Mate Ever

Thorne laughed again. “That’s none of your concern.”

“They’re children that I care about! My own child! How is that not my concern?” I asked, my voice a growl as I did my best not to draw the witch’s attention.

Thorne held up his hand and with each word he put a finger up, one at a time. “Yeah? And? So? What? Am I supposed to fall to my knees and cater to your every whim because you care about these children? The only thing I can say is that they are special creatures, and while Brady might be disposable at this time, that will not be the case for the rest of them. So, the rest is of no concern to you.”

I gritted my teeth. Could I really believe that? They showed their obsession with the hybrids. He’s admitted that it had been her goal all along. So how could I believe that they won’t someday target any of the children like they clearly had targeted Brady and Liberty?

“Why is Brady expendable?” I asked.

“Weren’t you listening? You’re pregnant with his child. The bloodline is assured. His value is now transferred to your child. We no longer have an interest in him. Or his sister, for that matter. However, his sister doesn’t have any enemies left to come after her. So, we don’t even have the interest in destroying her.”

“What exactly do you gain from working with that rogue? Why help him get his revenge?”

Thorne shrugged and tilted his head from side to side. “That I don’t have the answer to. I believe it is simply because he might lead us to more cross mates. Or, he could have a witch mate who will give us a hybrid. However, that remains to be seen. Personally, I don’t think he has much worth at all. But who am I to question my mate and her desires?”

He paused, a mischievous grin spreading across his lips. “Well, it seems my show is about to begin.” His lips curled back, exposing the sharp fangs that his kind were infamous for, causing a shiver to run through me.

“Blood is about to be spilled. I wonder whose it will be.” He took a deep breath, as if he could already smell the scent of the blood in the air around us. His eyes grew brighter red, and his teeth seemed to grow a few inches longer.

He looked back at me, his grin like a feral animal. “Let’s make a bet, shall we? On whose blood will be drained before the end of the night. As much as I hate the bastard, I’d be willing to wager on Tristan. He’s learned some things about your mate’s powers, and ways to prevent himself from being burned further. I’d be surprised if the hybrid makes it out of this alive.”

“What makes you so sure about that?” I asked, my voice strained as I desperately tugged at the tight binds.

Thorne grinned wider, his gaze returning to the ceiling above us. “Because the one thing that Tristan and I have in common is the desire for revenge. Nothing can burn as hot as that raging desire. Not even the sun.”

I glared at the vampire, my gaze never leaving him as I pulled and twisted against the ropes around me.

“And that’s exactly how people get burned,” I explained while he watched me closely. “The sun is always hotter in summer.”

Chapter Twenty-Six

Brady

I could feel her closer the deeper we went into the forest. I had a hunch about her whereabouts, but certainty would only come once we arrived.

Just outside of the pack and coven territories, there was an old building that the humans once used during the Chios era of the pack. From what I was told, it had been a hotel. However, Chios forced my mother to destroy it when he heard rumors that witches were gathering there.

My mother unleashed a tornado over the structure at the order of Chios. She was only sixteen at the time, and her powers had barely developed. The destruction caused by my mother’s unleashed tornado was so severe that authorities declared the building condemned and transformed it into a memorial for those who died in the storm.

That day, not a single witch had suffered any harm, thankfully. But it was also the day my mother realized that she was nothing more than a weapon of destruction for Chios and she vowed to never let him see the full magnitude of her powers, because if he did, he would force her to take countless lives.

Given the building’s history and its remote location away from humans and supernatural beings alike, it was the perfect hideout for a dark witch, a vampire, and a rogue bent on revenge.

The pack rushed forward, howling in communication as we closed in on the pack’s territory border.

I let out a howl of my own in warning as a scent appeared from thin air. A scent of anger and burned skin. A scent that stirred the reminders of the visions I have had ever since the night that the rogue attacked.

Stepping out of the trees, Tristan stood before us, blocking our path. As his eyes landed on me, I could see the untamed fury burning within them.

“Fight me like a man, you bastard!” he yelled out to me, his hands shifting into claws dripping in the dark magic poison as they had the first night we met.

I looked over at Edwardo, his lips peeled back in a snarl as he faced against the enemy of our pack. With a quick yip, I caught his attention and felt the link between us open up.

“Go on without me,” I mindlinked to him. “Find Madie in the old hotel. Leave him to me.”

Edwardo nodded, his eyes filled with determination, and lifted his head in a commanding howl that echoed through the pack. Amidst the chaos, Tristan paid little attention to the wolves as they darted around him, their growls blending with the urgency of reaching the abandoned hotel where I believed my mate awaited.

His wild gaze locked on me. I was his target. I was all that mattered. And with the look of rage and desire for my end in his eyes, I knew that Madie was safe. If he had taken out his revenge on her, he wouldn’t be standing here. He would be gone, content with his revenge being sated.

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