Riley’s POV
That voice—
The mont it cut through the air, sothing inside snapped awake.
Even through the pain, even through the poison dragging down, I knew that voice.
Caden.
Relief hit so hard it almost hurt.
My eyes fluttered open weakly, my chest rising unevenly as I tried to breathe through everything. My body was still trapped beneath Ethan, his weight pressing down, his breath still hot against my neck, his fangs still hovering where he had been about to mark .
But everything had changed.
He froze.
I felt it imdiately.
His body went still above , his muscles tightening, his breathing shifting from heavy and possessive to sothing sharper. Sothing alert.
Danger.
Slowly, he lifted his head.
I turned my eyes weakly toward the front of the car.
The door had been ripped open.
Caden stood there.
His expression—
I had never seen anything like it before.
His eyes were glowing, dark and furious, his entire body tense like he was holding himself back from sothing violent. His fists were clenched so tightly that the veins in his arms stood out clearly.
"Get off her," he said, his voice low and deadly.
Ethan didn’t move.
For a second, neither of them spoke.
The air inside the car felt thick.
Heavy.
Then Ethan let out a slow breath and shifted slightly, his body still hovering over mine.
"You’re too late," he said calmly, like nothing was wrong.
Like I wasn’t barely holding on beneath him.
My stomach twisted in disgust.
Caden’s expression darkened even more.
"I said," he repeated slowly, "get off her."
There was sothing in his tone this ti.
A warning.
A real one.
Ethan tilted his head slightly, his lips curving into a small, mocking smile.
"And if I don’t?" he asked.
That was it.
Caden moved.
It happened so fast I barely saw it.
One second he was standing outside the car, and the next second his hand had shot forward, grabbing Ethan by the collar and dragging him off with so much force that the entire car shook.
Ethan didn’t even have ti to react before he was thrown out of the car.
His body hit the ground hard.
I gasped softly, my chest heaving as the weight lifted off .
Air rushed into my lungs.
But I couldn’t even move.
My body felt too weak.
Too heavy.
I could only lie there, watching through blurred vision.
Caden stepped out of the car slowly.
His eyes never left Ethan.
Ethan pushed himself up quickly, his expression shifting from calm to irritated.
"You really don’t know when to stay out of things, do you?" he muttered.
Caden didn’t answer.
He just walked toward him.
Slow.
Controlled.
That alone made my heart pound faster.
Because I knew that look.
He wasn’t just angry.
He was beyond that.
Ethan stood fully now, rolling his shoulders slightly like he was preparing for a fight.
"You think you can take ?" he said with a small scoff.
Caden stopped a few steps away from him.
Then finally, he spoke.
"You touched her."
His voice was quiet.
But it carried sothing terrifying.
Ethan smirked slightly.
"She’s my wife," he replied.
That was the worst thing he could have said.
Caden moved again.
This ti, it wasn’t controlled.
It was violent.
His fist slamd into Ethan’s face with brutal force.
The sound echoed loudly.
Ethan’s head snapped to the side, his body stumbling back from the impact.
Before he could even recover, Caden grabbed him by the front of his shirt and drove another punch straight into his stomach.
Ethan choked, his body folding slightly as the air was knocked out of him.
But Caden didn’t stop.
He hit him again.
And again.
Each punch harder than the last.
Each one filled with pure rage.
Ethan tried to fight back.
He swung his fist toward Caden, but Caden caught it mid-air easily, twisting his arm sharply before slamming his elbow into Ethan’s jaw.
Ethan’s body hit the ground hard.
I could barely keep my eyes open, but I forced myself to watch.
Because this—
This was everything Ethan deserved.
Caden stepped over him, his chest rising and falling steadily as he looked down at him.
Ethan groaned, trying to push himself up again.
"You think this changes anything?" he spat, blood dripping from his mouth.
Caden didn’t respond.
He just grabbed Ethan by the throat and lifted him slightly off the ground.
"You should have stayed away," Caden said quietly.
Ethan struggled against his grip, but it was useless.
"You don’t get to decide that," Ethan choked out.
Caden’s grip tightened.
"Yes," he said coldly. "I do."
Then he slamd Ethan back down onto the ground.
Hard.
Ethan let out a pained groan.
But Caden still wasn’t done.
He grabbed him again, dragging him up only to punch him across the face once more.
The force of it sent Ethan stumbling again, barely able to stay on his feet now.
Blood covered his face.
His breathing was uneven.
But he still tried to stand.
"You’re... not taking her from ," Ethan managed to say, his voice strained.
Caden’s eyes darkened dangerously.
"She was never yours," he replied.
Then he moved again.
This ti faster.
More brutal.
He hit Ethan so hard that he dropped to his knees instantly.
Before he could fall completely, Caden grabbed him by the hair and forced his head up.
"Look at ," Caden said coldly.
Ethan’s eyes barely focused.
"You ever touch her again," Caden continued, his voice dropping lower, "and I won’t stop next ti."
Ethan let out a weak laugh.
"You think... this scares ?"
That was it.
Caden snapped.
He slamd Ethan’s face into the ground.
Once.
Twice.
Three tis.
The sound made my stomach twist, but I couldn’t look away.
Ethan stopped struggling as much after that.
His body went weaker.
But Caden still wasn’t done.
He grabbed Ethan’s arm, twisting it behind his back in a way that made a sharp crack echo in the air.
Ethan scread.
Loud.
Broken.
I flinched slightly at the sound.
Caden leaned down slightly, his grip still tight.
"You’re alive because she would not want blood on her hands," he said.
Ethan barely responded.
His body was barely holding together.
Caden’s hand moved suddenly toward Ethan’s head.
His fingers caught hold of his ear.
And for a mont—
It looked like he was actually going to tear it off.
My breath caught.
"Caden..." I whispered weakly.
He paused.
Just for a second. That small mont was enough.
Ethan used what little strength he had left.
He shoved Caden hard and rolled away quickly, stumbling to his feet.
Caden moved to grab him again, but Ethan had already backed away.
His breathing was heavy.
His body is barely.. steady.
But his eyes—
His eyes were still locked on .
"I’m not done," he said, his voice rough and filled with sothing dark.
Ethan turned and ran
Caden then..stood there for a mont, watching him disappear into the distance.
Then slowly—
He turned back to .and none of kd up a pick up to gjeowndolyn he stop!
"It’s...it’s Daphne "
User Comments
0 comments from readers