Page 39 of Monster Mate

This was it. The only positive at this point was that after he killed her, maybe he’d decide not to set the bomb off. Because once she was dead, what would be the point?

Hopefully, after she was gone, Waldo would run away and go find Riordan and Winston.

Her heart constricted. Riordan. Damn it, she wished she could talk to Riordan one more time. Tell him how she felt about him. Kiss him one more time.

She’d been such an idiot. She should’ve grabbed him when they first met and never let him go. The fact that she was going to die having not told him she knew he was her mate just pissed her off.

At some point, though, it occurred to her that she wasn’t dead yet. Roxie cracked one eye open and reconsidered.

Maybe she was dead. Because why else would Riordan and a giant green orc be standing between her and Neil?

Typical of Neil, he didn’t fully grasp the severity of his new situation, because his eyes narrowed on Riordan and he spat at him angrily, “You. How the fuck did you find me?”

Riordan ignored him, instead reaching down and scooping her up off the floor. He snapped the ties around her wrist with one of his talons. She immediately wrapped her numb arms around his neck and clung to him for dear life. “Are you alright?” he said into her hair, his voice shaky with either fear, rage, or some combination of the two.

She nodded. “I am now.”

The orc sighed loudly. “This is all very romantic, but can we move on? I didn’t come here for a heartwarming reunion.”

“Why are you here with an orc?” she whispered.

“I didn’t hear you accept the mating bond until I’d already contacted him to track you,” Riordan admitted somewhat sheepishly.

“Why did he want to help track me?”

“I didn’t,” the orc said on an annoyed groan. “Let me sum this up for you since you’re obviously very slow.” He paused, pointing a stern, hooked fingernail at Neil. “Do not take another step toward that bomb, human.”

Neil, wide-eyed, held up his hands in supplication.

The orc kept his eyes on Neil, but said to her, “I’m Khill. Your mate—who can’t track for shit—told me this human killed my cousin for harassing you.”

Roxie blinked up at Riordan. “Guy the orc?”

It was a little hard to believe, because Khill was way hotter than Guy. He was at least a foot taller, his muscles had muscles, and he didn’t have the ugly boar tusks his cousin sported. How was it possible for one gene pool to produce Guy and Khill?

Riordan nodded, but it was Khill who answered, “My cousin was an idiot and probably got what he had coming to him, but he was family. Which means this human must die.” He cracked his knuckles. “So, little man, I’ll do you a single courtesy. I can rip out your heart or tear your head off. The choice is yours.”

Neil swallowed convulsively. “But I-I didn’t kill anyone! It was them! Your cousin tried to attack her, and she fought him off, then this fucking…monster killed him.”

Khill glanced back at Roxie, who did her best to school her features into an expression that looked totally guileless. He chuckled. “Right. This human woman who can’t weigh a hundred pounds fought off Guy. It’s not even possible.”

It was a little flattering that he thought she only weighed a hundred pounds, and a little insulting that he was so sure she was a weak, helpless damsel in distress. But no matter what, she wasn’t stupid. Arguing with him on either count would just make it clear that Neil, for once, was actually telling the truth. So, she kept her mouth shut.

Neil sputtered, “S-she’s tougher than she looks! I’m telling you, I had nothing to do with it. I never even got close to your cousin.”

Khill got nose to nose with him, and it was gratifying to see Neil cower. “Then how was I able to track you here? Your scent, your DNA in your skin and hair, was all over the area where Guy tried to grab this woman. Which supports this man’s side of the story, not yours.”

She glanced up at Riordan, who winked at her. The sneaky bastard had gathered DNA from Neil’s house to plant at the murder scene. Damn. That was some pretty badass framing.

Knowing him, he'd probably read a book on the subject.

Tears and snot slid down Neil’s face. She would’ve felt sorry for him if he hadn’t been terrorizing her for months. And if he hadn’t kidnapped her dog. For that alone, the fucker deserved whatever karma—and this giant orc—were planning to deal him.

“Don’t I get a trial or something?” he asked desperately.

Khill burst out laughing. “Fuck no. We don’t do that in my dimension.”

“But…but…I’m not in your dimension.” Neil licked his lips. “You’re in America and there are rules about murder.”

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