Total pages in book: 105
Estimated words: 97557 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 488(@200wpm)___ 390(@250wpm)___ 325(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 97557 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 488(@200wpm)___ 390(@250wpm)___ 325(@300wpm)
"What you feel and see is an illusion. I think the word you’re looking for is delusional, and borderline psychotic. That’s far more fitting.”
“Trying to hurt my feelings again?”
“No. I’m not stupid enough to think you have a heart inside that icy chest of yours. I want nothing to do with you. Not now, not tomorrow, not ever."
He slowly withdraws his hand, and I hate how much I miss his touch, his warmth. Fuck him.
"It wasn’t an illusion when your pussy clamped down on my cock and sucked my seed deep inside you. It wasn’t an illusion when you gave yourself to me, allowing me to claim you like no one else ever had.” His gaze pierces through me, sifting through all the vulnerable pieces I keep hidden. I let him in. I trusted him. How could I have been so naive? So stupid? “Maybe it isn’t just me who is delusional, maybe you are too?”
“I’m not. If I had to choose a husband it wouldn’t have been you.”
He lets out a humorless chuckle, “You sure do have a way with words.” The vein in his neck throbs, his irritation climbing. “Nothing you say, or do from this moment forward changes what is already done. Do whatever you must to come to terms with our marriage, tell yourself that you don’t want me. That in my arms isn’t where you feel safest. Tell yourself I forced you into this loveless marriage. Prove me wrong, Little Prey. Show me how much you hate me, let me taste it, dig your claws into my skin. Hurt me like I know you want to. It’s okay. I can handle it. Because I know it will be worth the pain and suffering when I get to watch you fall in love with me—all. over. again.”
I keep my face turned away from him because I refuse to let him see the effect his words have on me. I hate that he’s right, and I hate it that even a moment in his presence makes my body betray itself. I don’t know why he killed his grandfather, but the reason doesn’t matter. He did it.
Whatever medication Dr. Brooks administered finally hits me, making my thoughts fuzzy and my body lighter. I can barely keep my eyes open, and because it feels so right I sink back against the pillow. The suffocating panic from earlier recedes, but I’m still reminded of what I’ve done, what he’s done.
He's not the man I thought he was.
There was never a second I was under the impression he was the good guy, a knight in shining armor, but I never considered that he might be a murderer.
The word rings in my mind, echoing in and out.
Murderer. Murderer. Murderer.
That’s what I am now, too. A killer. Murderer. I fight against the tears burning my eyes, but there’s no holding them back. I’m so broken now. Will there be enough pieces of me left to put back together? Will I still be the same girl, or a shell of the person I used to be?
A ragged sob rips from my chest, carrying the grief and pain of what I’ve done with it. How will I live with myself? Yes, Yanov deserved death, but not at my hands. Never my hands. I’m not a killer. That’s not who I am. I save animals from danger and defend the vulnerable.
And yet, you killed him.
Fresh tears slip down my cheeks, leaving cold trails in their wake. Through the mess of tears, I can only briefly make out Sebastian climbing up onto the bed while Dr. Brooks slips out of the room.
"Fuck. I can’t handle it when you cry. It makes me want to punch something.” Sebastian growls, literally growls. There’s something vulnerable in his voice, making me want to reach for him. “What is it, Little Prey? Talk to me. Please fucking talk to me, or I might go insane. If you’re mad at me, so be it. I don’t give a shit, just tell me how I can help you. How can I make you feel better, because when you cry I feel helpless, and I don’t like it.”
I shake my head, inadvertently wiping the tears off my cheeks onto the lush pillow. "It's just...I'm a murderer now. A killer. I killed him. I killed him, and I can’t…there’s so much blood. My father…when he finds out—” Another sob escapes me, and I spiral in my thoughts. I’m so tired. So exhausted. I want to sleep for a million years.
Without hesitation, Sebastian grabs me by the shoulders and rolls me to face him. I’m trapped in the memory, sinking deeper and deeper into the abyss. I’ll forever wear the mark of a killer on my conscience.
"Stop," he snaps. "Stop, please… I can’t fucking handle seeing you like this.” His voice softens a bit. “You’re a survivor, Elyse. You didn’t kill him because you wanted to. You did it because you had to. There is a difference. You’re not a monster. And you never have to worry about your father again. You’re safe now. Nothing, no one, can touch you.”