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“Not through my own choice.” His gaze lands on Mia, and I see the affection flicker in his eyes. I don’t like that one fucking bit. He still has feelings for her. She left him behind to come to Casbury for reasons I have yet to discover. Jealousy fills my blood and has me ready to launch myself at him next.She’s mine, my mind screams.
My gaze returns to Mia, my warring queen who risked herself and my brothers to save me, using herself as payment.How could she do that? How could she agree to belong to another man for my father’s head?Don’t get me wrong, the fact that the terms she dictated involve his death helps to stave off my own need to murder him. She had to know there was no way we would accept her belonging to this Diego guy, no matter whose head he brought her.
She releases her hold on Isabella’s hand and moves towards me in slow, precise movements like I’m a rabid dog that will attack her at any second. I watch her warily, her mouth is set in a hard line, and her eyebrows are furrowed. Doesn’t she know I would rather rip out my own heart than hurt her? That everything I endured was to ensure her and my fellow brothers’ safety.
“Theo.” Her voice breaks on my name, and my chest tightens painfully. She stops when she’s no more than a foot or two away from me. So close I can breathe in her scent, with it bringing longing. Longing to take her and run from this room, from this miserable life.
“Are you in any pain, bro? Carter inquires in a soft, emotion-filled voice, and I pull my gaze from my little queen in his direction. His question may be directed at me, but his eyes never leave Mia. The beast inside of me roars that she’s mine, even his gaze on her, causes waves of anger to rush through me.
I don’t bother to respond to his question. What does it matter if my body is in physical pain, my soul is in agony, and my mind is fractured from everything I have endured. I will never be the same Theo I was before. He’s utterly broken and gone; this pathetic, fearful shell is left in his place.
“How can we help you, Theo? How do we bring you back to us?” Tears shimmer in her eyes as she inches even closer to my body, so close that I can see the freckles on her nose and the specks of darker blue in her eyes.
My jaw clenches tight, and my body seizes at her nearness, everything in me wanting to run away from her, not allow her to touch me. At the same time, the urge to grab her and fuck her into the ground, marking her as mine, fills my body.
“You are such a disappointment, boy.” My father’s voice echoes in my mind. Before the phantom touch of multiple hands on my body makes a snarl leave my lips and acid burn up my throat.NO!I will not allow myself to be touched or used for anyone’s sadistic pleasure.FIGHT!My mind screams. My mind no longer registers that I’m in Mia’s house, on the floor of her living room, but instead trapped in the dungeon of my house with my father and his lackeys.
“MIA!” Isabella and Raegan’s voices scream out as my hand reaches out and grabs Mia by the neck, pulling her body off balance and closer to me, even though the touch of her skin burns against mine. I snarl and snap my teeth at her. I turn my feral stare at the others around me, wrapping my one hand tightly around the long, graceful column of her throat while my hand with the cast fists her hair tightly and makes her body bow backward against mine.
I see movement from Diego and Raven from the corner of my eye, and Carter shifts in front of me, fear and anger across his features. “Theo, fucking release Mia!” He shouts, his jaw set and body rippling with malice.
MINE. My body and mind scream at me.She is ours; she belongs to us. We suffered for her; we endured, and we survived.I will not let them take her from me, even though touching her pains me. I want to crawl back to my room, to sit in the dark and fight the memories and terrors that plague me, but now I want Mia to be a captive like I am.
“Mine.” The sound that leaves my throat doesn’t even sound like words but animalistic growls. I pull her body tighter to me and squeeze till the breath leaves her in a sharp gasp, and she wraps her hands around my harsh hold and tries to dislodge my fingers.NO. No, I won’t allow anyone to hurt me, but I also won’t release her.They will try to take her from me; I’m a danger to her now. I’m trapped in swirling darkness threatening to drown me, the weight almost too much to bear. The sound of my heartbeat is thundering loudly in my ears; sweat breaks out across my body, and nausea causes sour bile to race up the back of my throat.
“Theo! Theo release her, she can’t breathe. You’re hurting her!” Mateo shouts, his eyes large with terror.
Chapter 15
Mia
“Yes, she knows pain, but she is strength. Her heart knows no other way.” A.R. Asher
“MINE”The animalistic and violent sound that comes from Theo as he grabs me has the hairs on the nape of my neck standing up straight. The sound of so much pain and anger in his tone has me paralyzed and unable to move as his strong fingers tighten their hold around my neck and slowly start to close my airway. A gasp leaves my lips, and his other hand digs harshly into my hair, pulling my body taunt against his and bowing my back. A growl leaves his lips, sounding primal as fuck.Holy shit!
I need to break away from his harsh and violent hold. He doesn’t know what he’s doing. He’s trapped in his fears, what he experienced in that dungeon is causing him to hurt me. I try to pry his hold off my throat, but he tightens his fingers, even more, causing the little air I was breathing to stutter out. Dark spots are dancing in front of my eyes.One more second, he’ll let go, realize that he’s hurting me, and release me.I try to convince myself, even as I try to pry myself from his harsh, unrelenting grip.
“Theo! Theo release her; she can’t breathe. You’re hurting her!” I hear Mateo shout from behind me. I can’t turn my head to look in his direction with Theo’s firm grip on my hair. He sounds terrified. Does he genuinely believe that Theo will hurt me? Am I deluding myself that he won’t?He’s not the same Theo, my mind screams at me, begging me to release myself from the captivity I find myself in.
A barbaric pain-filled cry leaves Theo’s mouth, and his body slumps forward over mine, his grip releasing on my throat, and I take a stunted breath into my lungs, fall to my knees, and crawl away from him. My heart is so loud in my ears, and tears trail down the side of my face as I try to get enough air into my lungs. I gaze back in Theo’s direction and see him slumped forward on his elbows and knees, Raven standing behind him, breathing heavily.
“You fucking lunatic, you could have killed her!” Raven shouts, his body shaking with unspent wrath and his face red from exertion. “The rest of you are crazy, letting him grab her like that. He’s unhinged and a danger to her and everyone in this house.”
Theo’s dark midnight blue eyes rise to mine, every word out of Raven’s harsh mouth making an impact on his body and causing it to shudder. Is he even aware of what he’s doing? Was he seeing me or the ghost of someone that harmed him? For the first time since they told me he would survive his extensive injuries,I’m afraid. I’m scared of the Theo I see before me.
His eyes continue to hold mine prisoner, their dark blue depth calling to the part of my heart and soul that he stole for himself. His control is shattered; the feral need to claim me there deep in his depth and in the way his body is heaving. The anger and despair are a molten fire within him, desperately calling to my own. Despite what he just did to us, my heart begs me to go to him, to soothe him and bring him back to us. He lost so much down there in that dungeon. So much of himself, his pride, his hard-fought control. His disgusting, sadistic father took everything from him, and now he’s a battered, broken shell of himself.
He wants to be free of his demons, the ones that plague him nonstop. I hear his terror-filled shouts and him begging not to be hurt through the walls of his room. The sounds of his mind replaying the torture, horrifying and breaking my own heart. How do I bring him back to me? How do I help him see that he is safe now? That he is mine. He is ours, and we will not let anyone retake him or hurt him. I need to help release him from the captivity his mind still thinks he’s trapped in. To give him back some of the control and power he lost.
Movement from the corner of my eye has a flash of irritation searing through me. They are circling him like he’s a wild animal about to spring out and maim us. This is Theo, my Theo, and I will not allow any of them to hurt or restrain him further. “Don’t touch him!” The words leave my throat with deadly intent. I will personally break the nose of anyone who touches Theo further. He doesn’t deserve this. Can’t they see all he’s been through? All his mind is still going through.
“Mia…please.” The sound is hoarse, leaving Finn’s lips. Anguish and concern across his face. He wants to come to me, to sweep me into his large arms and protect me. I can see it clearly, but can he not see that I don’t need protection, especially from Theo? I ignore everyone else in the room, my focus only on Theo. He’s watching me like an apex predator about to catch his dinner.
Is that what he needs to get some of his control back, to be my Theo? The alpha predator that I always knew he was. I can see desire and longing in his depths, but also disgust, anger, and self-loathing. He believes he is broken, lost to us.No, fuck that. I refuse to accept that. He is mine, and not even he can take himself from me.
“OUT! All of you out.” I shout, my gaze never leaving Theo’s.
“What the fuck are you talking about, Mia? We are not going anywhere and leaving you with him. He’s not himself; he already hurt you!” Carter shouts back at me. His face is red with rage, and spittle is flying from his mouth.
