Ismerelda screamed beneath him, her voice hoarse as a result of him abusing her throat. But she was a fucking wildcat, her terror having melted into a wrathful wave of vehemence. She scratched his face. His chest.Anywhereshe could hit him as she writhed furiously beneath him.
But it wouldn’t be enough.
I knew it in the way he was staring down at her.
Knew it because he was a vampire… and she was a human.Myhuman.Mymate.My Erosita.
Michael was about to take her from me. To ruin what we shared. Tarnish what was left of our bond.
And my brother is going to ensure I forget all about it.
No,I thought.Fuck. That.
I refused to forget.
I refused to block her out.
I refused to let this fucking happen.
My eyes flew open, the alarm still splintering my skull. But I pushed past it, my mind linking to Ismerelda’s to give me a semblance of peace. To be able tobreathe.
Becauseshecouldn’t hear anything.
She felt none of my pain at all.
Instead, she experienced the agony that was Michael. His touch. His growl. His nefarious intent.
My brother said something, his words no longer loud in my mind. I could barely hear him at all.
I was consumed by Ismerelda. Focused entirely on my female.My queen.
Her fight became my fight, her determination bolstering my own as I curled my hands into fists. My brother thought he could best me with his penchant for technology, this weapon he called a neutralizer. He wanted to cure me. Tochangeme. To mold me into his perfect king.
But I was already content with my role in the world.
Pleased to be Ismerelda’s Cam.
Her villain.
Her partner.
Her king.
I bowed to no one else but her. Served at her throne, not his. And I was fuckingdonewith Cane’s game.
A growl rumbled in my chest, and I sprang to my feet, my brother’s eyes widening in shock as I grabbed him around the throat. The volume escalated, the vibration nearly bringing me to my knees once more.
But Ismerelda held me steady.
Her mindanchoredme.
“You’re wrong,” I told him, my voice a snarl of a sound. “Having a mate isn’t a weakness.” I squeezed, my hand cutting off his ability to breathe. “It’s a fuckingstrength.”
I snapped his neck before he could reply.
Because there was nothing he could say.
He’d made his choices. Dug his grave. And now it was time to ensure he fucking slept in it.
