Page 160 of Unholy Bonds

“Are you hungry?” he asked as he parked the car. He was holding up a paper bag filled with food.

“I… am starving,” I whispered as he set the table. We ate in silence.

“Let me take you to bed,” he said as he pulled me up from the chair.

“Thank you,” I whispered as he lifted me in his arms. I snuggled closer to his chest. “I don’t deserve this, but I’m selfish enough to not say no to any of it.”

He didn’t answer. He placed me on my bed and stripped me. His eyes darkened, and I waited for him to take me, to make me forget everything, but he grabbed one of his T-shirts and pulled it down over my head, softly tracing his finger along my collarbone before bending down and pressing a kiss on my neck.

“Sleep tight, Red. I’ll be right here when you wake up.”

And I fell asleep.

I stood in the middle of a burning forest, a flaming torch in my hand.

Irene screamed as fire engulfed her skin, and soon, she became nothing but ashes.

I ran, trying to get out of the maze of blazing thorns that grew around me. Everywhere I turned, I saw people—people who died because of me.

Ryden sat next to Amy on a decayed wooden bench, holding onto her broken body. Miranda was curled on the ground next to Daphne, who was soaked in blood. Tany was leaning against an old tree—there was no skin over her bent bones. Kat was lying on a steel gurney, trying to untie the red garrote around her throat and failing.

No. No.

YOU KILLED US. YOU KILLED US.

The screams went higher and higher until the whole woods were echoing with their broken, accusing voices.

I threw the torch away, trying to drown out the sound, and every tree, every bush caught fire until the forest completely burned down around me, drowning out their screams.

I was the only one left in a graveyard of ashes. Coughing, I woke up panting and drenched in sweat. I wasn’t in a forest. I was still in my bed, Ryden lying next to me, as he had promised.

I walked to the kitchen and gulped down a bottle of cold water, anger slowly turning into resentment.

When I find that bastard…

Ryden was still sleeping when I went back to my room. I sat on the bed, watching him in the moonlight, my eyes tracing his body with need and desperation. I wanted to forget everything.

Fucking him made my mind empty. I softly trailed my finger up the snakes on his arms until I reached his neck. Strong, fucking beautiful. Too big for my hands, but I loved how fragile, how helpless he looked asleep.

If I killed him now… he wouldn’t be the wiser.

I licked my lips.

The need was back. The urge to take him, to break him, to make him mine. I tightened my palm around his throat, trying to feel that power. I needed to be in control.

Everything else was falling apart, but here and now… I was in control. I wasn’t helpless. I was fucking strong.

I moved lower and pulled his pants down, my hands raking up his body in desperation. Fast, faster, I clawed at him, marking him.

I didn’t care that I was hurting him. I wanted to hurt him. I wanted to… take and take everything until he was nothing.

The demons screamed for release, blood. More. More. My mouth closed around his erection. His cock jerked in response.

“Red?” he moaned, half asleep, half awake.

“Go back to sleep, Ryden.”

“Wh-what…” He shuddered again when I took him all the way in, my lips closing around him greedily, my nails raking over his skin. “Ah, Yara… baby…”

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