Page 56 of Emperor of Wrath

“What the fuck?!” I snap.

She scowls back at me. It’s rare that my sister doesn’t look completely put together without a hair out of place. Right now, she literally looks like she slept in the damn Uber.

I drag her away from the car, looming over her and glaring down into her face. “Are you fucking serious right now?! Where—” I close my eyes, sucking in air through my nose to try and calm the sirens in my head.

Just as my pulse is about to creep down from thermonuclear levels, it spikes again as someone else slides their bedraggled ass out of the SUV, some dress bags over her arm.

Annika.

“Get the fuck inside,” I snap coldly at Hana. “I’ll deal with you later.”

Hana gives me a sheepish look, grabs the dress bags from Annika, and scurries into the church. Just as I turn to read my bride the riot act, Tak beats me to it.

“Where the fuck did you take my fucking sister!?” he roars in Annika’s face. She backs away from him against the side of the SUV as he cages her in with his hands against the windows on either side of her. Suddenly, he reaches out and grabs her arm roughly. “You fucking bitch?—”

“That’s enough!”

Before I even realize what I’m doing, I’ve crossed the distance between us, grabbed my brother by the back of his collar, and yanked him away from her. Takeshi goes stumbling backward, almost falling onto his ass on the sidewalk.

He shoots me a dark glance, but before he can chew me out for getting on his ass instead of Annika’s, I march over to him and jam a finger in his face.

“Don’t you ever lay a hand on her again. Understood?”

Takeshi’s eyes bulge in disbelief. A vein on his forehead starts throbbing as pure violence churns through him like diesel in an engine.

“I said,” I snarl. “Is that fucking understood, Takeshi.”

He grinds his teeth, but nods.

“Fine…fuck,” he growls. His eyes swivel past me to Freya getting out of the car. “What about this little psycho.”

“Oh, she’s fair game,” I grunt. “Do your worst?—”

“You lay a finger on her, and I’ll fucking cut it off.”

My brow furrows darkly as I turn. Annika is glaring daggers at me as the SUV behind her wisely gets the fuck out of Dodge.

“What did you say?”

“I said if you touch her,” she hisses, indicating Freya, “I’ll cut your fucking finger off.” She clears her throat. “Now, if you don’t mind, I have this bullshit wedding to star in?”

She and Freya march past us, and I sure as shit don’t miss the smug little looks on their faces.

“Are you seriously going to let her talk to you like?—”

“Why don’t you let me worry about how my wife speaks to me, Tak,” I growl at him. “Get inside. Get everyone ready. Tell Kir his little fucking princess has deigned to make an appearance at her own party.”

“Can I say it like that?”

“Write it on his face in fucking Sharpie for all I care,” I mutter, stalking off in Annika’s and Freya’s direction.

Inside the church, an usher smiles weakly at me and points me in the direction of a small room at the back of the church. I pause for a second to try and talk myself down from “livid” to just plain “furious” as I pause outside the door.

Then I’m barging in.

Annika startles a little, glancing up at me from where she’s plugging in her phone next to a table laden with makeup, hair products, and roses. One of the dress bags is hanging from a hook on the wall.

“Where the hell have you been?!” I snap coldly, slamming the door shut.

---