Page 118 of She Who Holds My Wrath

I drop the blade instantly and shake my head. “No.”

Her brows pinch in confusion for a brief second, before she leans down, resting her forehead against mine, her warm hand on my chest, the other placed lovingly on my cheek. “You won’t hurt me, Korithax. I trust you.”

She rolls her hips slowly, her lips hovering just above mine as our breaths mingle. I grip the sheets, my entire body trembling as The Void claws at my control.

“You won’t hurt me,” she repeats on a breathy moan, her movements quickening.

Her nails dig into my chest, dragging a growl from my throat as she grinds her pussy against my rigid cock. Even through fabric, I can feel how soaked she is. She moves her hand from my face to tangle her fingers in my hair, brushing over my horns in a touch so intimate I shudder.

That’s when I snap.

I grip the back of her neck and crack my mouth onto hers, her fingers curling around the base of my horn as my tongue sweeps into her mouth, swallowing the soft moans that spill from her lips while she keeps rocking against me. She tastes faintly of mint and something sweeter—something that is entirely Daisy.

“Fuck, Korithax,” she whimpers, her rhythm turning broken and desperate, every movement of her hips telling me she’s teetering on the edge.

My free hand grips her hip tightly, certain I’m bruising her. “Come for me, princess.” I groan against her skin. “Make a mess while you grind on my cock.”

I lean forwards and drag my tongue across the blood-slicked skin, the coppery taste igniting my senses. The Void purrs, but I shut it out the best I can. This is mine. This is hers. This is us.

I take her breast into my mouth, sucking hard before grazing my fangs over her sensitive peak. She jerks above me with a sharp cry, fingers tightening painfully in my hair as I mouth at her relentlessly—biting, soothing, then biting again until her whole body trembles.

“That’s it,” I rasp, feeling her come apart piece by piece. “Give it to me.”

Moments later, she shatters. Her cry rips through the room as pleasure crashes over her, her body convulsing above mine, thighs shaking, hips stuttering helplessly against me as wave after wave tears through her.

“Gods,” she breathes, collapsing against my chest in a boneless heap.

She nuzzles her face into my neck as her breathing evens out, and I trace slow circles along her lower back.

Wouldn’t she sound so pretty begging for her life as you strangled her, The Void whispers.

My fingers twitch instinctively before horror crashes through me. Violent images slam into my mind without warning—Daisy beneath me, limp and lifeless, my hands locked around her throat. Her skin drained pale, lips turning blue, eyes bloodshot and glassy as they stare at nothing.

“No.” The word tears from me on a raw, broken plea.

Terror detonates in my chest as I shove her away from me, lurching out of bed so fast, the room spins. My heart is pounding hard enough it feels ready to burst through my ribs.

“Korithax?” she gasps, barely catching herself before she falls from the mattress.

Confusion flashes across her face, followed instantly by hurt. I can’t look at her. If I look at her, I’ll see those images again. I drag my boots on with shaking hands, every breath ragged, every move frantic. My skin feels too tight, like The Void is clawing beneath it trying to get out.

“Korithax, wait,” she pleads, scrambling to the edge of the bed to reach me.

I jerk back before her fingers can touch me, recoiling like I’m poison.

“I should’ve never have stayed,” I choke out, shaking my head. “I’m sorry.”

Sorry for touching you. Sorry for wanting you. Sorry for every part of me that still reaches for you while something so monstrous lives inside my bones.

She says my name again, softer this time, and it nearly breaks me where I stand. I don’t let her say another word. I tear the door open and flee, slamming it shut behind me hard enough the walls tremble. Still, even halfway down the corridor, I can hear the silence and pain I left her in.

The corridors of the castle are nearly empty at this hour.

Torches burn low, casting long shadows that stretch and warp as I pass, the stone beneath my boots echoing too loudly in the quiet. Every step away from Daisy feels wrong. But every step away also feels like survival.

The Void simmers beneath my skin, restless and irritated because it didn’t get what it wanted. But it’s no longer screaming now: it’s just sitting, waiting for its next opportunity to strike. Why then? Why did it wait until after she trusted me enough to climb into my lap and place herself in my hands? Why let me push it back long enough to give comfort to both her and I, only to poison it at the very last second?

The answer slithers through my brain. It wanted me to enjoy it first. It wanted me soft, vulnerable, wanting her so desperately I forgot all reason. It wanted me to remember exactly what I stood to lose before it showed me how easily it could be taken. My stomach turns violently. Because it is learning me. Studying where to cut deepest. Not with claws or fire, but with timing and patience.