Page 55 of Cruel Knots

She’s just as crazy as the rest of them, I think amusedly. My lips stretch into a smile without control. This is the first time I’ve felt so lighthearted in years.

Despite her petite figure, Lilja is strong. She left my brother’s guards writhing and groaning on the floor. Even if they can move, they’re choosing not to pursue her. They’re all too afraid to face her again.

My respect for the young woman grows. She’s the kind of person I want to be. If only...I think dejectedly.

“Lucia.” Callum’s venom-filled voice calls out to me.

Hating the involuntary shudder that goes through me, I look toward my brother. At the same time, I feel Damien’s arm tighten around me, but this time, there’s no knife digging into my side.

Oddly comforted, I stare back at Callum.

“You will not come?” he asks, his eyes swirling with rage.

I shake my head. “I can’t. You should go before you get hurt.”

“Have they touched you?”

I swallow, wondering if I should tell him the truth.

Mikhail starts laughing.

Leon moves down the steps to reach him and leans onto his shoulder. “You already know the answer to that,” he says. “What’s the point of bullying her over it? Just get the fuck out of our home already.”

Callum gets back to his feet and fixes me with a look that fills me with terror. He’s going to hurt someone to soothe the humiliation and rage he suffered here today.

“How could you let them touch you?” he says, seething. “How can you bear for them to touch you and still breathe?”

“You switched my meds! You knew what could happen to me but still did it anyway.”

Callum’s face reddens with rage. “Stop making excuses,” he hisses. “Your first heat was supposed to be mine!”

I glance toward Damien. “How does he know what happened between us?” I whisper.

“He knows because we showed him,” he replies. “We sent him our choicest nudes. Don’t worry about it though. We were all naked in the photographs.”

I squeeze my eyes shut. Shame and embarrassment flood me as I think of the way Leon thrust into me from behind while Mikhail’s cock stayed buried in my mouth.

If Callum saw all that...

Is he here to kill me? I wonder, staring at Callum’s deadly glare.

“I’m no longer worth all this trouble,” I say to him. “They’ve taken everything my body had to offer. It wasn’t even about me. They hurt me to hurt you.”

Callum’s expression softens. “They did it against your will. It makes you innocent, Lucia.”

I shake my head. “I’m not innocent. I begged them to help me.”

“Come with me, darling. I’ll make everything better.”

“She won’t go even if she wants to go,” Damien says in a commanding tone. “We’re keeping her with us. She’s ours now.”

Lilja turns back to stare at me before looking back at Callum.

Damien motions with his hand.

At once, the armed men who’d been waiting around us file out and surround Callum and his guards. Pointing their rifles at them, they gesture for them to leave.

My brother’s men immediately oblige. Even if they’re armed, there are simply too many of them to fight without losing their own lives.

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