Page 188 of Tempest of Wrath and Vengeance

Her smirk faltered before she recovered, her mask slipping back into place. “All in good time,” she simpered. “Still want my help?”

Axel huffed a laugh of disbelief, his arms falling to his sides. “I know the Fates dealt you a shitty hand, Tessa,” he said. “But that doesn’t mean you have to be a shitty person because of it.”

She stepped back from him in shock. “This isn’t about me, Axel.”

“Sure seems like it is,” he replied, striding past her. “If you’re not going to kill me now, I’ll be on my way.” He paused before he unlocked the door. “But the help was for Kat, not me.”

“For Kat?” she repeated, lurching forward. “What’s wrong with Kat?”

“Guess it doesn’t matter, does it?” he answered, before he pulled the door open and left her behind.

He rushed around the room, stuffing various items into two overnight bags. Mainly Kat’s stuff. He had plenty of things at the Underground penthouse for himself. She would need things. And the baby. No, wait. They had time to prepare for that.

Going into the bathroom, he studied all the hair products before swiping them all into the bag with one fell swoop. Admittedly, he should have made sure they were all sealed properly, but he was in too much of a hurry. He’d bought some extra blood from a dealer at the inn he’d been staying at, and he was praying to any god that would listen that would be enough. It had tasted terrible, but if it kept him from lunging for her the second she walked through the door, it will have been worth it.

He was just coming out of the bathroom to grab one of the soft blankets she preferred when the door opened. Amber eyes locked onto him as she pushed the door shut behind her, and she never slowed, crossing the room to him.

“Kat, I?—”

But he never got to finish what he was going to say. Not as her palm went across his cheek, the crack reverberating through the room. He slowly turned back to her, shock rippling through him, and he found flames flickering in her eyes.

“What are you doing here, Axel?” Kat demanded, and there was nothing soft or demure about her right now.

“Okay, you’re angry. That’s understandable in this situation,” Axel started, the side of his face burning.

“Answer the question,” she hissed. “What are you doing here?”

“I came for you,” he said, holding up one of the bags he still held.

“You left.”

“I know, but not because?—”

“I told you how I felt. Told you I believe you are my twin flame. Told you I am carrying your child. You said you were happy. You agreed. And then you fucking left,” she cried, her hands slamming into his chest and shoving.

Axel stumbled back, his chest burning now, and he looked down to find two perfect handprints burned through his sweatshirt down to his flesh.

“I did it to protect you,” he insisted, dropping the bag and taking a step towards her.

“Then why are you here, Axel?” she asked again.

“I thought you’d be safer without me.Bothof you,” he said. “I… Cienna showed up to check on you, and she told me the reason Eliza couldn’t give me the twin flame Mark was because I triggered the curse, Katya. When I took so much from you, I… I panicked and left. If I’m away from you, I can’t be a danger to you.”

“You’re not answering my question,” Kat said, the fire still burning in her eyes. “If that’s the case, then why are you here?”

“Because I realized no one will protect you both like I will,” he said, throwing his hands in the air in frustration. “I made a mistake, Kat. I’m here to rectify it.”

“For four days, you have been in the Acropolis, Axel. Yet you just came here now?” she countered.

Well, fuck.

“How do you know how long I’ve been here?” he asked.

“Because I still bear my twin flame Mark,” she snapped, holding up her hand. “It allows me to feel you, find you.”

“Kat, I’m sorry. I’m so sorry?—”

“No,” she interrupted, shaking her head. “You don’t get to apologize to me. For the first time ever, you treated me like just another Fae when you left me.”

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