Page 66 of Piece You Saved

“Stop,” I order when a familiar figure comes into sight. Dariel’s footsteps are quiet, his face utterly blank as he crosses over to the body, stops, and stares down at it.

Saige’s tone turns insistent. “But I—”

“He was my brother,” Dariel says.

Saige whips her head his way, startled by his sudden appearance. She wouldn’t have scented him or even heard him. Only a shifter would have, and despite all the times Rylan bit her—savaged her throat—she’s all human. He must have come through the back gate, drawn by the alarm and Saige’s scream.

What a fucking sight to come home to.

I look at Dariel, recognize he’s nowhere near as calm on the inside as he is on the outside, and nudge her toward the house. “Inside. Go up—”

And then I remember Aden. How the fuck do I keep forgetting she can’t be alone with him? He was asleep before, but there’s not a fucking chance he’ll be sleeping now.

Dariel can’t be alone. Saige can’t be alone. What the fuck am I supposed to do?

Footsteps approach on my right. “I’ll take her inside.”

I grit my teeth.

Fucking Harley.

Before I can argue, a slow, rumbling growl warns us that the end of Dariel’s control is fast approaching.

I forget how much I want Harley dead as I turn Saige back to the door. “Go.”

Her instincts must be screaming a warning for her to take one look at Dariel and pull her hand from mine. “Are you sure you’ll be—”

“He was my brother.” Dariel speaks over her in the same flat, monotonous tone that makes my wolf sit up in alarm. Whatever is coming, it can’t come while Saige is out here. She might not survive it.

I don’t take my eyes off Dariel, and he doesn’t take his eyes off Leandro.

“Come on, Jane.” Harley grips her arm. I try not to snarl at him as he leads her into the house and pulls the door closed gently behind them.

Dariel’s fingers flex. I watch them closely as he forms them into fists and uncurls them. Claws burst from the tips of his fingers. They disappear as fast as they appeared.

“I hated him for what he did, but he was my brother.”

The claws return. They stay a little longer this time, and white fur—wolf fur—dusts his knuckles.

With Saige inside, now is the time to diffuse this situation. If that’s even possible. “We should—”

“He fucked her in my bed.” A smile curves his lips. “My big brother fucked my mate in my bed. I’m sure it was his idea.”

Fuck me.

I move closer because diffusing this situation is not going to be straightforward, and for once, I’m not looking to get into a fight. “Dariel, man, you need—”

“It didn’t hurt nearly as bad as when I walked in to find her fucking my father.” His smile widens, but his voice never gets any warmer. “That one really fucking hurt.”

Who the fuck needs family? Mine didn’t give a shit, but his? Makes me glad I took off when I did.

Claws burst from the tips of his fingers and disappear again, just as quickly.

“We’ll get him, Dariel,” I promise. Because only one person could have done this.

He lifts his head, and his green eyes are bleaker than I’ve ever seen them. Almost as bad as when we found Nica.

“He was my brother. I tried to—” He cuts off the rest, choking as he swallows hard enough for me to track the motion.

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