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He blew out a shuddering breath.
“C’mon, you first,” I said, motioning for him to go ahead so I could remain between him and this human trashcan.
Lars went, his movements stiff, and I glanced back at Oskar, our eyes locking for one tense moment before dismissing him completely.
I knew a narcissist like him would hate being perceived as an insignificant threat. Sure enough, the second I turned my back, he rushed me, but I anticipated it. Hoped for it. Spinning, I hopped a few steps back, drawing him farther forward. I planted my back foot into the floor and turned, firing a punch right into him as he lunged. My fist caught him as he came in, knocking him off balance, and he stumbled to the side.
Reflexes rebounding quickly, he launched at me again, both fists up and ready to punch. This time, I angled to the side, shooting into his blind spot and hooking my arms around his waist, slamming him onto the floor.
“Win!” Lars’s voice was panicked, and I felt him move closer.
“Stay back,” I commanded over my shoulder as I pushed off the ground, but the brief distraction gave Oskar an opening, and white-hot pain lanced across my side.
Grunting, I stumbled, raising my arms to look at the slash in my side, a dark-red stain blooming across my ripped shirt. Incredulous, I stared at Oskar who was back up and bouncing from foot to foot with a blood-stained blade in his hand.
“He’s got a knife!” someone yelled, and anarchy ensued.
Ignoring the chaos, I locked my focus on the man with gleefully psychotic eyes and a poisonous tongue.
“What did I tell you, Lars?” he taunted, shifting the bloodied weapon from one hand to the other, then back again. “I told you it was him or you. You were late, so I guess it’s going to be him,” Oskar threatened and leaped forward.
“No!” Lars shouted, throwing himself into me and knocking me out of the way. He grunted, and I hit the ground and rolled, ignoring the searing pain in my side as I jumped up.
Lars was still on his feet, reaching across his body to press a hand around his upper arm. Rivulets of blood dripped from beneath his sleeve, streaking his arm and curling around his wrist.
Total. Eclipse.
All traces of light inside me were snuffed out, obscurity taking over. It was as if a shroud dropped over who I really was, and out of the shadows stepped someone I hoped I would never have to meet.
I didn’t roar. I didn’t yell. I didn’t even breathe. I moved like an efficient robot and went on autopilot, barreling toward the man who had the sheer audacity to attack what was mine.
He lashed out again, but I didn’t yield, instead grabbing his wrist and twisting until I heard the bone crack. He yelled, and the bloodied knife dropped soundlessly at our feet. Releasing his broken wrist, I grabbed him by the throat, adrenaline giving me more strength than any workout ever would, and lifted until his feet dangled over the floor. His eyes bulged, a flicker of fear filling them.
“The last time we met, I told you if I ever got to the point of hitting, you wouldn’t have a chance.” I spoke matter-of-factly.
His nostrils flared, and he started to kick.
I threw him on the floor, his body landing like a rag doll. He scrambled up, but I planted my foot in his back and forced him back down. Flipping him over, I leaned in, taking a fistful of his shirt.
“If I had known then what I know now…”Slam!My fist smashed into his face, finishing my sentence and sending him sprawling onto his back.
I yanked him up again and delivered another series of blows that had blood spurting across his face and splattering his neck. People were yelling in the background, but I hit him again and again, completely satisfied by the crunching of his bones.
“Enough,” a familiar voice growled as he towed me off Oskar’s body.
I glanced over my shoulder at Max who was still restraining me. “Just one more.” I panted.
Max glanced back at Oskar who was groaning on the ground. “Yeah, okay.”
His arms left me, and I dove at Oskar, grabbing his bloody face and forcing it around, digging my nails into his cheek. He glanced at me through slitted, pain-filled eyes. I lowered enough to ensure he would feel the promise on my breath. “You ever touch him again, and I swear to God they will never find all the parts of your body.”
“Win.”
I looked up at the sound of Lars’s voice, saw him standing there with wide, pale eyes. Blood soaked the sleeve of his shirt, and worry made me dizzy.
“Lars,” I said, shoving off the asshole and closing the distance between us to grab Lars’s forearm and gently lift my hand toward the knife wound.
“Win.”
