Page 41 of Monster's Secret Baby

Brooke's laughter rings out again, bright and clear, as she successfully balances another sugar cube. She's completely unaware of the danger sitting mere feet away, magic gathering in his twisted hands, his corrupted smile widening with anticipation.

As Brooke's laughter fills the air, I realize I've made a fatal mistake. I should have grabbed her immediately, should have run upstairs when the corrupted nymph first walked in. Now I'm caught in this horrible standoff, watching death gather between his fingertips.

Time slows. The magic in the nymph's hand pulses, a sickly green glow that promises agony. I lunge forward, knowing I won't reach Brooke in time but unable to stand still.

Then the world explodes into motion and sound.

The door crashes open. A blur of movement surges past me—something massive, powerful, unstoppable. The air crackles with the scent of lightning and winter frost.

Before I can even cry out, the nymph's head jerks backward at an impossible angle. Blood sprays across the polished wood floor in a crimson arc. His body slumps forward, twitching once before going completely still, dead eyes staring at nothing.

The silence that follows feels absolute, broken only by Brooke's confused whimper from behind the counter.

And there, standing over the corpse with a thin silver blade in his hand, is Adellum.

My heart stops. Then starts again, too fast.

His massive gray wings are partially unfurled, filling the small space of Marda's dining room. They catch the lamplight, casting feathered shadows across the walls. His white-blond hair is windswept, as though he's flown hard and fast to get here. The sharp lines of his face are set in stone, revealing nothing.

Nothing except his eyes. Those silver eyes that used to look at me with such tenderness are now cold and calculating as he studies the nymph's corpse. He hasn't acknowledged me yet, busy wiping his blade on a handkerchief before tucking it away inside his coat.

"Adellum." His name feels foreign on my tongue after so long.

He looks up then, and the transformation is immediate. The coldness melts away, replaced by something fierce and burning.

"Harmony." Just my name, but the way he says it—like a prayer and a curse combined.

"How did you—" I begin, my voice shaking.

"I told you I'm watching everything." He tucks the blade away inside his coat, and his gaze drifts to Brooke, who peeks out from behind the counter with wide eyes. "You must know I wouldn't let anyone hurt you."

The realization of what just happened crashes into me. He killed the nymph—slaughtered him without hesitation or remorse. One fluid motion, a whisper of steel, a burst of magic, and a life extinguished.

And I'm glad. Gods help me, I'm glad.

"Mama?" Brooke's small voice fills the silence. She pads over to me, careful to give the still-bleeding body a wide berth. But I still feel too stunned to speak.

Adellum kneels, bringing himself to her level. His massive frame somehow makes itself smaller, less threatening. The contrast is jarring—moments ago, he was a killer, and now he folds himself into something gentle.

He holds his arms out and she runs into them. His wings wrap around her, shielding her from the sight as she clings to him. "You killed the bad man."

Not a question. A simple statement of fact.

"Yes." No sugar-coating, no lies. Just honest brutality packaged in that velvet voice. "He was going to hurt you and your mother."

"With his magic," Brooke nods. "I saw it. It was ugly."

"Very ugly," Adellum agrees. "Corrupted. Like poison."

I find my voice at last. "Brooke needs to go upstairs."

"But—"

"Now, little bird."

He levels me with a look that tells me he is not happy about this but slowly sets her down. She whispers, "Thank you for saving us," to Adellum before scampering up the stairs.

When we're alone—alone with a corpse between us—Adellum rises to his full height. Blood has splattered across his fine clothes, droplets catching in the hollow of his throat. He killed for us. Without question. Without regret.

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