Page 18 of The Night Runs Red

Rion’s fingers dug into the soft flesh of my arm as he slammed me into the wall. My head cracked against the hardwood, and I winced, tears filling my eyes as pain radiated down my neck and spine. My vision blurred, but I still saw how his lip curled, turning into an angry snarl.

“What the fuck were you doing, Calia? Spying on me?”

“N—No, I wasn’t spying. I was just—”

“How much did you hear?” His breath fanned against my face, and I turned away, refusing to meet his gaze. His other hand snaked up and gripped my chin, jerking it back to him. “Do not look away, and do not deny it. What. Did. You. Hear?”

Each word was sharply punctuated, an accusation on his tongue to scare me into compliance. In that moment, he didn’t see me as his wife. He saw an outsider who had thrust herself into his life in the most permanent way, a stain on his legacy and the key to his damnation.

Maybe part of that scared him. To know that if I decided I didn’t want this anymore, I could walk right now and enjoy my last two and a half months of life without regret. I wasn’t afraid to die—the end was inevitable—but I was afraid of not living. Of being so restrained by one person, place, or obligation that I forgot how beautiful life could be when you simply let go. Did he share the same opinion? Or did he prefer to lie to himself, pretending the life he was living was one he wanted?

“Answer me!” he roared, and I lost my self-control. The tears I’d been trying to hold back came cascading down my face like a river that couldn’t be stopped.

“Fuck. You. Let me go!”

He leaned closer, inhaling deeply as he caged me in like a wild animal. Something changed in his expression, his sensual lips parting and nostrils flaring. Carnal lust stared down at me, nearly stealing what little breath I had left.

The corner of his lips kicked up, the first sign of amusement I’d seen, even if it was edging on the side of cruel. “Are you scared of me, love?” His tongue darted out and brushed my neck, licking away the fallen wetness. “Your fear has a very distinct smell.” I could feel the presence of his lips, the way he fought to keep them away from my pulse point. As though he could imagine how my blood would feel flowing freely into his mouth. “It would not hurt…”

He’d been right; I was scared. I was terrified, but not for the reasons he thought. I hated the possibility of dying without knowing what it felt like for him to possess my body. It would ruin me forevermore, decimating my body, mind, and soul until no other could come close. More so, I hated the way all of this made me feel. How could he hurt me, yell at me, piss me off more than anyone else, and still cause an ache between my legs unlike anything I’d ever felt? It wasn’t natural, this attraction. In fact, it was dangerous.

Continuing down this path would have me eating out of the palm of his hand, so yes, I was terrified of what would become of me.

“Rion!”

I heard the voice clearly, yet all I could think of was the man holding my life between his calloused fingers. We stared at one another, unsure how to break the stalemate we constantly found ourselves in.

Suddenly, his body was yanked away from me, and I fell to the floor, gasping for breath. The heat of Rion’s body faded away, and cold rushed in to take its place. The sudden rush of pain brought awareness to just how hard he’d been gripping me.

Jasper stood between Rion and me, releasing his hold on my husband’s shoulder and pushing him backward. The buttons of Rion’s navy shirt had been torn away, revealing more of that deep, jagged scar I’d seen the tip of earlier. Unimaginable brutality must have been used to leave a mark like that.

Jasper immediately helped me to my feet. His heavy hand ran along my jaw, neck, and shoulders to examine the damage done. The fluttering muscle in his jaw gave away just how bad it was. “Let’s get you back to your room, yeah?”

“Wait,” Rion called out, and I felt my heart stutter as it waited in stilted silence. He walked over and gripped my chin once more. “Do not ever spy on me again. Are we clear?”

This time, I refused to censor my speech, especially not for him. “Or what?” I hissed. “What’ll you do, Rion?”

He tsked, tightening his grip. “Or I will truly give you a reason to fear me.” He looked over my head and released his hold like I burned him. “Get her out of my sight.”

My body tensed at the hurled threat, but my adrenaline dissipated into defeat as Jasper wrapped his arm around me. He tugged on me softly, prompting me to leave my husband behind, watching me walk away.

CHAPTER TWELVE

“Are you sure you are alright?” Jasper asked for what seemed like the hundredth time; I’d lost count after ten. After we returned to my room, he’d inspected me from head to toe, taking care as he examined around my neck where bruises were beginning to bloom along my skin.

Jasper sat a steaming mug of peppermint tea beside me, and I let the sweet mint wash over me. I’d always been drawn to the scent; it reminded me of my mother’s favorite essential oil. She often used it in her baths, turning the room into a small sauna. It would seep through the top floor of the house, bringing with it a comfort I hadn’t known since her death. Reaching over, I grabbed the drink and hugged it tightly. “I’ll be fine, I promise.”

It wasn’t a complete lie; My body would be fine, even if I had a migraine, but I wouldn’t be able to forget Rion’s words. That was the first time he’d shown any emotion, and he’d flown into a blind rage when he thought I’d heard something I wasn’t supposed to. Which begged the question: What were Leonora and Rion hiding?

My gaze drifted back toward Jasper, sitting on my couch with his head in his hands. It seemed as though he lingered there just in case I fell to pieces and needed help picking them up. But now that I was safe in my own space, I knew I wouldn’t break further.

“Want to tell me what you were doing before he attacked you?”

I debated lying to him, but knew Rion would likely tell him the truth. Jasper was the closest thing I had to an ally here, and I couldn’t risk jeopardizing that. “I, uh, got bored and wandered through the house. I was going to visit the library, but…” I trailed off, forcing myself to take a breath. Would he tell me I deserved it once he discovered what I’d done? It wasn’t like I’d committed a murder, but I was curious about Rion. Not only who he is now, but who he was before—his interests, his dislikes, what makes him, well, him.

Jasper’s eyes widened a bit, waiting for me to continue. “He’d told me his rooms were off limits, including the staircase leading up to that small tower. I let curiosity get the best of me. He was having a conversation with Leonora and—” I shrugged.

“Ah,” he said, hanging his head slightly. “Rion’s always been a strange one about his privacy. He had a rough childhood.”

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