Page 41 of Marked By Him

Shit. Way to go, dumbass.

I wasn’t thinking.

Fear spiked through me, adding to the high of the chase and making my pulse go wild.

Roman pressed his weight against my back, making me achingly aware of how hard he was. “I’m not the only dangerous thing out here. But I am the only thing that can save you.” His teeth sank into my flesh, hard and sharp. “You’re mine now, sweet Eve.”

“I believe she was mine first,” someone interrupted.

Dread lodged in my throat.

Roman let me go, then stepped beside me. We both turned to the sound of the other male voice.

Jared stood at the edge of the forest, his dark hair longer now. The shadow of a short beard covered his jawline. He wore dark clothes that looked brand new. Nothing like what we had to scavenge from other camps. His mouth spread into a wide grin as his gaze slid over my body. Panic made my heart thrash against my ribcage.I thought he was dead.

“You know this man?” Roman asked, his voice drowning in violence.

You could say that.

Jared was my first. First love—if you called it love. First boyfriend. First lover. Then, he disappeared, leaving me to believe he was dead.Until now.

“Well done, Eve,” Jared said. “We’ve been trying to get inside that camp for over a year. You managed to make it your home within days.”We.He’d joined the familiars.Or the vampires.The darkness made it hard to tell if he was still human.

He ran a palm over his crotch. “Then again, you always were a hard one to resist.”

No. Tell me this isn’t happening.

Roman snarled as I looked over at him. He bared his teeth. “You lied.”

“What?” No!” My stomach hollowed out. I wanted to vomit.

“You were never alone. When I told you to run, you ran straight to him. You’re one ofthem. You’re a fucking liar.”

I grabbed his arm. “No. Roman, please… that’s not what this is. I swear.”Can’t you see my heart about to explode in my chest?

“Was any of it real? Or was it all part of the lie?” He smiled coldly as a heartless mask slid over his face. “Never mind. It doesn’t matter because I’m going to kill him regardless.” He yanked free from my grasp. “And you better run, Eve. For real this time. Because you’re next.”

Terror—realterror—rolled down my spine, paralyzing me. I wanted to scream, to plead my case, tomakehim listen. But in a shot, he was gone.

His shadow was a blur as he darted toward the woods. Bone crunched as his fist connected with Jared’s jaw.

I ran forward, not caring that I was throwing myself into the middle of a lion’s den.

There was a loud groan and then another punch. A bone-chilling thud when Roman shoved Jared to the ground. His hand clamped around Jared’s throat.

Jared grunted and gasped for air. He kicked his legs, breaking twigs and crunching leaves. He thrust his head forward, crashing his forehead into Roman’s nose.

Roman’s howl tore through the darkness and I fell to my knees beside them.

“Stop!” My cries were wasted.

My tears were useless.

Roman growled as he squeezed Jared’s throat harder. Blood coated his hand, poured from his nose, painted Jared’s face.

I stared down at Jared’s eyes, once the color of honey, now bloodshot and almost lifeless. My heart cracked wide open, splitting me in two. I wanted to save Jared, but I knew doing that meant losing Roman.

“It’s almost fucking poetic,” Roman said, looking over at me as he drew the life from Jared’s lungs. “The moment I saw you, I knew.”

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