Page 266 of Beyond the Blue Horizon
Horror slammed me like a fist to the jaw.
Piper was sitting in the middle of it.
Fucking tied to a chair with blood smeared all over her gorgeous face.
But it was those arctic eyes staring up at me from her drooping head that pierced me through. The way they’d always done. Like this woman had the ability to see to the depths of me the way I’d always been able to do with her. No question, she was silently begging me to protect what was most important to her.
While I swore with everything I had that I’d protect what was most important to me.
All of them.
Toga scrambled upright, jumping behind Piper like he was shocked that I’d made it through the waiting assault.
Motherfucker should have known me better than that.
I had my gun pointed at him while he had one pointed at Piper’s temple.
Fury clamored through my body. Flames licking at the underside of my skin. The hate I’d carried for this piece of shit for so long boiling my flesh.
But it was different now.
This feeling that swept me. Something more than just bare duty.
“Step away from the girl and put your gun on the floor and I might let you live,” I spat through clenched teeth.
Nah. It wasn’t going to happen. I was going to peel this monster’s skin from his body and feed it to him.
Toga laughed that deranged sound that had haunted me forever. “Now why would I go and do that when Piper and I were just about to have a little fun together?”
I knew what he was taunting. What he was implying.
Rage pumped like venom through my veins, all while I tried to wrap my head around what had happened back then. How Piper had been with him, and it’d led to Scarlett’s death.
I’d heard about the slaughtering of that family, but I had no clue that Toga was responsible.
“She’s such a good fuck, isn’t she?” He ran a tender hand down the back of her head, the gesture so bogus and menacing that it made me sick.
Piper whimpered, her eyes wide and pleading.
“Guess you and I have the same taste in women.” A taunting smirk pulled to his face as he sneered across at me.
Knew what he was doing.
Trying to set me off kilter.
Goading me into making a mistake.
“No, you’re just the disgusting prick who likes to prey on the innocent.”
“They both knew exactly what they were getting into.” Still hiding behind her, he wrapped his free hand around to her front and stuffed his fingers into Piper’s mouth. She garbled a strangled, mortified cry. Saliva and blood dripped from her mouth. “Think this one liked it.”
I nearly broke.
Charged him.
But I had to play this smart.
It was fucking brutal forcing myself to act like what he was doing wasn’t driving me to insanity.
