Page 59 of A King So Savage

A familiar stubbornness overtook Ava’s features. “Talking about your crimes is upsetting? Imagine being the victim of them.”

“Ava, don’t push him on this. Please. It won’t end well,” Neil advised.

Ava slanted the doctor a harsh glare. “You… you should be ashamed. You are a doctor. A decent man, I think. You have a duty to take care of others and see to their well-being. And yet, you sit at the right hand of a monster and condone his crimes.”

Neil possessed enough decency that Ava’s words made his face flush a dull red. “You’re absolutely correct, Ava. But like you, I’m a part of something much bigger than myself.”

“That’s enough, both of you.” Kingston’s hands clenched into fists.

Ava stood up quickly. “You’re right. It is enough.I’vehad enough. Excuse me… I’m ready to return to my room.”

Kingston watched impassively as she fled the dining room.

“Will you let her go alone?” Neil threw his napkin down across his plate. His features were stormy with conflicted emotion.

“No.” Kingston picked up his glass, swirling the liquor inside it in a circular motion. “But she needs a few moments so she can calm herself down.”

“Before you punish her?” Neil snorted in disgust.

Kingston tilted his head while regarding his friend. He understood Neil’s desire to rescue the princess in the tower. But that was an impossibility here. Ava washisprincess. His to ruin. His to own.His to save.“That’s not your concern now, is it?”

Neil pushed back from the table. “It became my concern when you brought her here, King.”

“Don’t suddenly develop a conscience now, Neil. I’ve done a lot worse over the years, and you know as well as anyone the amount of blood on my hands. I’ve not harmed her, no matter what she thinks or says to the contrary.”

“Yeah. Blood from people who deserved it. That girl doesn’t deserve any of this. Let her go and focus your attention on her brother.”

Kingston’s laughter was harsh. “I can’t let her go. Haven’t you been listening? She’s not safe… not with Carson making his plans and my own brother helping him.”

“You know this for a fact? That Oliver has aligned himself with Carson?”

“I had him followed. He reached out to my enemies and offered up Ava.” Kingston shook his head. “I always suspected Oliver would betray me one day. He still blames me for Rebecca’s death. Seems he’s using Carson and this debt as a way of achieving that goal. He returns tomorrow but I haven’t decided how I shall deal with him. He is my brother, after all.”

Neil shook his head. “I can hardly believe he would go against you like that. But Kingston… make no mistake, you are all using Ava as a pawn. It’s wrong and so damned disturbing on all levels. She doesn’t belong in this world. And deep down inside, you know this.”

Kingston scowled. “I haven’t crawled up to where I am by doing the right thing, Neil. She might not belong in this world, but for the moment, she belongs to me.”

“Then you must protect Ava by any means necessary. She should not be used by Carson or Oliver.” Neil’s voice lowered. “Or by you, Kingston. Don’t make her a whore for your own personal benefit.”

Kingston tossed back the scotch. His fists clenched with the effort it took to keep from punching Neil in the mouth.

His friend’s statement hit a raw nerve in the recesses of Kingston’s black heart. Realization made everything so much clearer. So much brighter. This obsession with his captive was leading him into unchartered territory. A foreign land where it might be possible to care for another’s welfare. And while Ava certainly hated him, it wouldn’t stop him from protecting what was his.

Even if he was forced to erase the threats with his own bare hands.

ChapterNineteen

For I love you with a wounded heart

For all of time

Across universes and fallen stars

Ava fled the room,chest tight with emotion and her head spinning from the wine.

Her destination was not clear-cut. While she’d intended on returning to her room, her feet carried her someplace else. She wasn’t even sure where her blind panic led her until she found herself on the pool deck.

Leaning over a low stone wall, she stared out into the ominously dark edge of the forest and heaved in giant gulps of the cold night air.

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