Page 41 of Red Dreams

My hands curl into fists at my sides, nails biting into my palms. The pain is a distant thing, drowned out by the roaring in my ears. I'm shaking, my whole body trembling with a rage so intense that I can’t breathe.

With a scream that tears from the depths of my soul, I lash out, my fist connecting with the mirror in a blinding explosion of rage and glass. The surface shatters, radiating spiderwebbing cracks from the point of impact. Shards rain down, tinkling against the sink and floor like jagged diamonds.

I pluck the largest shard of glass from the spiderweb forming at the point of impact, ignoring the way it slices into my palm. Crimson drips down my wrist, staining the white porcelain sink.

Kaden appears in the doorway, his expression a mix of concern and grim understanding. He reaches for me, but I shake my head. As much as I long for his comfort and strength, I know I need to perform this next part on my own. He moves to the side so I can get through the doorway and stand in front of the monitors. Cassie is still there holding Ethan hostage, smiling. She’s enjoying this, the sick bitch. Enjoying watching me suffer.

Kaden comes up behind me, pushing my hair to the side and kissing the nape of my neck before coming to the front. He gives me a single, solemn nod before reaching for the hem of his shirt and pulling it over his head.

I’ve seen his hard, sinuous power and his map of scars many times before, but this time, I’m adding to it.

This is wrong. It goes against everything I believe in, everything I am.

“That’s it, kitten,” Cassie croons from the speakers. “Save your friend over your lover. And I don’t want a small scratch. I want you to dig in. Hurt him badly. I won’t be content until he’s on his knees.”

I don’t bother to look in her direction. Tears turn my vision hot. I whisper brokenly, “I don’t want to do this.”

Kaden's expression softens. He reaches out and tenderly brushes a strand of hair from my face, lingering on my cheek.

“You have to, Wraithling.” His low voice is steady and strangely calming. “It’s all right. I’ve endured far worse.”

A choked sob escapes me. I know he has. I've mapped every one of his scars with delicate strokes in stolen moments of intimacy. Each one represents the unspeakable acts he’s done. And still, he stands tall and proud.

“Look at me,” Kaden commands.

I drag my gaze to his, desperate to drown myself in his fathomless blue depths. There’s no fear there. Just something infinitely tender.

Something that looks a lot like love.

“You are not defined by the evil others do. This is not your choice,” he says.

Fresh tears spill down my cheeks at his words. Even now, even as I prepare to cut into his flesh, he seeks to absolve me. To shoulder the burden of this heinous act.

I press my free hand over his heart, feeling the steady thrum beneath my palm. “I will never forgive myself for this.”

“You will,” he vows. “Because I already have.”

Kaden covers my hand with his own, holding it fast against his chest. With his other hand, he reaches for the shard. His fingers close over mine, guiding the makeshift blade to hover over his skin.

“Boring,” Cassie whines. “I had a better time catching Reaper and putting her and her rodents in a cage. Can we move on?”

I suck in a deep breath at her intended meaning.

“You’re going after cat families now?” I ask, my voice not sounding like my own.

“There really is no line I won’t cross,” she replies. I can hear the dismissive shrug in her tone.

Rage and revulsion surge through my veins, warring with the agony of what I’m being forced to inflict.

With a trembling hand, I raise the shard, winking maliciously in the lamplight. Kaden doesn’t flinch as I hold it high. He doesn’t even look at it. He just stares into my eyes, injecting calm.

I bring the broken shard down with a small cry, slashing toward Kaden’s bare chest. Time slows as the sharp edge glints with silver.

But before the keen edge can find its mark, Kaden's hand flashes out, quick as a striking viper. His fingers close around my wrist in an unbreakable grip, halting the shard's deadly descent a hairbreadth from his skin.

I gasp at the suddenness of his movement and the sheer strength in his grasp.

Kaden wrenches the shard from my hand and pivots, hurling it with lethal precision at the monitor displaying Cassie and Ethan. The screen explodes in a dazzling cascade of sparks, a few shards of glass raining down like razor-sharp confetti. The feed cuts out with a harsh crackle of static, plunging the room into sudden, oppressive silence.

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