Page 142 of Wrath

Z

Icouldn’t think, couldn’t breathe, couldn’t move. There was a ringing in my ears that refused to let up.

S had been my boyfriend and lover for many years until he was killed. Or at least, I’d assumed he had been killed. Unbeknownst to me, Devlin had captured S’s soul in his magic lamp in an attempt to save his life. S’s brother had made a deal to free him, but Aaliyah got to my ex-lover before I could. Due to his proximity to the hell portal, S became corrupt. Evil. Malicious. The sweet, witty man I once knew and cared for had long since evaporated, leaving behind a decaying husk of who he once was.

I couldn’t even blame S. This wasn’t him. Not really. This was Aaliyah and her magic’s influence.

S seemed to be struggling to focus on me. His milky white eyes—one larger than the other, almost as if it was popping out of his skull—flickered from one shoulder to the other, never sticking for longer than a second. He scratched at the skin of his wrist, unintentionally peeling off flesh in the process.

I tucked my terror in a steel vault and focused on my rage instead. It was much easier to handle.

“What are you doing here? How did you get in? Where’s my mate?” I had no idea which mate I was supposed to be looking for, and pesky fear battered at my defenses yet again.

“This isn’t how it’s supposed to be,” S murmured, still scratching incessantly at his wrist and arm. Ribbons of flesh peeled back, and I had to fight the urge to vomit. “You were supposed to love me.”

I held the shattered glass steady, debating my options. Could I kill him? What evenwashe anymore?

And how the fuck did he get in here to begin with?

I flicked my gaze to the slightly opened window. Had he climbed up here? That could explain his broken fingernails and the blood welling beneath the chipped nubs.

“This isn’t me.” S brought a fisted hand to his forehead and began to pound. “This isn’t me. This isn’t me.”

He was distracted. If I was going to do anything, it should be now.

I braced myself, bending my knees slightly?—

When S let out a roar of pure anguish and dropped to his knees, clutching at what little remained of his hair.

Footsteps pounded behind me, but before any of my mates could open the door, S tossed his hand out. Black sludge immediately enveloped the wood. Someone tried the handle, but the sludge held firm, making it impossible to open. Something rammed against the door, then again, then again. The door creaked but ran into resistance against whatever the fuck that substance was.

I tried to calm my racing heartbeat.

Great. Just great. Now I was trapped in a room with my deranged, psychotic ex. Yay me.

S continued to scream and scream and scream. Clumps of hair rained down around him as he tugged at his scalp. The sight broke something inside of me.

Because, at the end of the day, this was S—the human I once loved fiercely and unconditionally. He’d painstakingly fixed what Lin broke with his disappearance. And to hear him scream like he was in utter agony?

Tears pricked the backs of my eyes.

Fuck.

Fuck.

Fuck!

The screaming reached a crescendo, shattering my eardrums, then tapered off. S remained on the ground, panting, his fingers scratching at his now-bald head. Slowly, he tilted his head to stare up at me, and tears shone in his glassy white eyes.

“Kill me.” His voice was a rasp.

I blinked, certain I’d heard him wrong.

“Please, Z. Kill me.” A sob broke free, and those tears I saw before ran unrestricted down his face. “I can’t live like this anymore. I don’t want to hurt people. I don’t want to hurt you. The things I’ve done…”

He began to shake his head, as if in denial.

Tentatively, I took a step forward. “S? Is that…you?”

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