Page 51 of Tempting Shadowed Hearts
Avyanna tuts. “Now, now. If you continue to act like that, you’re going to get further acquainted with my knives.” He huffs out a breath, but stays silent, so she continues, “What kind of assignment?”
“Protecting another high-profile client,” he says.
“Why have you guys continued to protect Roxi after her father died?” she asks.
“Per her father’s request. He paid us for the next hundred or so years,” he explains.
Avyanna grinds her teeth hard enough that I can hear it from where I stand. “Will they continue to come after Roxi?”
The Wendigo laughs. “They could give a shit less at this point. After you killed my men last night, they want nothing to do with the bitch. We have better, less dangerous, and more willing clients to attend to.”
Avyanna’s jaw ticks hard. “Are your men also Wendigos?”
“I don’t fucking know!” he yells.
Lifting an eyebrow, Avyanna reaches behind her. “Attitude.”
The Wendigo rolls his eyes. “Some of them are demons, but I’m not sure if they’ve partaken of flesh or not. It’s not exactly something I ask on their fucking application.”
Avyanna’s hand whips around her, and another knife embeds itself into the Wendigo’s chest, just above his heart. He howls out in pain, thrashing in the chains again. “For fuck’s sake! Just fucking kill me already.”
“You don’t deserve a quick death,” she hisses, skin rippling as she steps toward him. “You didn’t give any of the women you murdered quick deaths, did you?” His heated gaze bores into her while he shakes his head. “Exactly. You will suffer just as they fucking did.”
“Get it over with then!” the Wendigo screams.
Reaching behind her, Avyanna withdraws two smaller blades made of the same material as all the others from her belt. I swear, all these blades make me think she’s some sort of Mary Poppins because they’re coming out of nowhere.
She gets in his face with those blades at her sides, and the Wendigo snaps at her. I start to jump forward, but her hand swings up, plunging one of the blades under his chin. His eyes flare as blood pours from his mouth.
Then she rips it out and hisses, “That’s for trying to take what ismine. Everything else I do will be for the women you hurt.”
The Wendigo tries to snarl again, but all the blood in his mouth makes it sound like a weird gargle. Satisfaction surges through me because I know he’s nearing his end. After my mimic does her thing, he’ll never hurt another again.
I watch as she takes her time with him, running the blades across his arms, just deep enough that it has blood bubbling to the surface, but not enough that blood flows freely from the cuts. When she gets to his shoulders, she jams the blades already there deeper. The Wendigo hisses in pain, but he’s near the point of losing consciousness. Avyanna must know because she plunges one of the small blades into his side. Adrenaline rushes through his body again, and he jerks upright. She laughs and leaves the blade there. Her now-free hand wraps around theknife in his chest while her lips tip into an evil smile. She yanks it out, and then her smile widens. In one swift movement, she sinks the knife into his belly and rips it up to his sternum. His organs spill out onto the floor, and his mouth opens as if he wants to speak, but blood pours out.
“We all know this isn’t enough to kill you, but you won’t heal because you haven’t been fed,” Avyanna hisses in his face.
A wet breath leaves his mouth, but my mimic isn’t done yet. She takes the other small blade and slowly pushes it into the Wendigo’s chest, right where his heart is. His skin sizzles as he looks down at it.
“This blade will be the only mercy you find from me. As it dissolves your skin and flesh, it’ll get closer and closer to your heart. Once it reaches your heart, that’s when you will die. Until then, you will suffer,” Avyanna whispers.
My jaw drops all the way to the floor. She’s even more ruthless than I thought she would be.
When she turns to face me, I school my features, but I see that prideful gleam in her eyes. “Let’s go check on our girls.”
Chapter twenty-six
Imake the flight back to Adrestia’s penthouse as quickly as possible because Roxi is shivering nonstop in my hold. I’m not sure if it’s because she’s cold or because she’s in shock over what happened to her. Again. Either way, I want her to know that she’s safe, forever and always, with Avyanna, Adrestia, and me.
When I land on the balcony, I wrap my wings around Roxi in a cocoon of sorts, trying to warm her up, and head straight for Adrestia’s ensuite bathroom. “I’m going to draw you a hot bath so we can get you warmed up.”
She shakes her head and clings to me. “I don’t want a bath. Just… hold me, please?”
I stop and glance down at her. Tears fill her eyes as she stares up at me. My heart aches for her, knowing she’s been through a lot lately, so I kiss her forehead and whisper, “Whatever you need, sweetheart.”
“Thank you,” she says, voice cracking halfway through.
Continuing into the bedroom, I say, “Anything for you. Always.”
