Chapter 46: Chapter 46

Helen chuckled. “Nonsense, he’s infatuated with you. I wonder… have you kissed yet?”

“No? Yes? If kisses on the neck count,” she sputtered her response to which the older vampire grinned.

“Ah, you’re so cute. It’s like I’m watching a romance movie where everyone is rooting for the main characters.”

“You love making fun of me,” Elena sighed, her lips twitching in amusement. “Enough talk about Ryder. What’s up with you and Edgar? I saw you wearing matching rings. Does that mean you’re married?”

Helen’s demeanor changed once her friend brought up her soulmate. Her expression softened. “We got married about ten years ago. And we threw a huge party. It was an amazing day. I could show you pictures when we’re home.”

“I’d love to see your wedding dress,” Elena grinned. “I bet you looked like a princess. Edgar must have been flustered.”

Helen cracked up. “He blushed when he first saw me,” she admitted, making her friend swoon.

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Since Ryder had promised Elena to check if everything was in order with her flower shop, he left the mansion shortly after the two women. Taking his car, he reached the city center in no time and even found a parking space right in front of his destination.

As he entered the shop, he noted a strange smell lingering in the air. He scrunched his nose. Ruby red dyed his irises. He was on high alert in an instant. Someone had been here, and Ryder knew exactly who. This particular smell reminded him of one he had found in Elena’s former home when he had picked her up for their date. It belonged to Steph.

Ryder smoldered with resentment. It had been the right decision not to let Elena return to her shop yet—Ryder didn’t want to imagine what might have happened to her had she been alone with that abusive bastard. Steph showing up here, where he was anything but welcome, was a deliberate provocation. He likely knew Elena lived with her soulmate now… and he had to be aware Ryder would notice his scent.

His lips formed a grim line. He approached the counter where he spotted a piece of paper with a note on it. “I will make your life hell, slut,” he read, voice cracking in anger. He grabbed the paper and crumpled it, making sure Elena would never see it. She had gone through enough. The last thing she needed was this lowlife calling her a slut.

It was the last straw. The very last. Ryder’s blood boiled in his veins. He saw red. No matter what he had promised Elena, he couldn’t keep it. He couldn’t let this despicable man live. Steph posed a threat to her life, and whether she liked it or not, he had to be eliminated. Ryder couldn’t show mercy any longer. Steph’s time would run out today.

He decided against taking his car—it was too slow, so he left it in front of the flower shop and relied on his supernatural speed to reach his destination. The location of Steph’s flat was ingrained in his mind—he had accompanied Elena home often enough, and he regretted not paying more attention. Perhaps he would have discovered the terrible truth about her former relationship much sooner if he had followed her inside at least one time.

He should have done a better job at protecting his soulmate.

Ryder entered the foyer of the apartment building and followed the bastard’s familiar scent until he reached a door at the end of a long and empty hallway. Using his heightened senses, he checked whether anyone was home. He heard a heartbeat from behind that door—actually, he heard three different ones. Steph and two other people were in there.

Ryder didn’t care about the other two. He needed to stop Steph no matter what. His lips curled with disgust. A well-aimed kick brought the front door down. It stood no chance against his monstrous strength. The noise shattered the silence in the building like a gunshot.

He clicked his tongue and entered the flat with the arrogance of a predator who already knew his prey wouldn’t slip through his fingers. Ruby's eyes flitted from door to door as he made his way through the apartment. In the living room, he found him.

Steph sat on the sofa, casually putting his arm over its backrest and smirking at Ryder. The air in the room was freezing. Sheets of ice covered the leather of the sofa as the wizard let his magic spread. Ryder wasn’t fazed by his ridiculous little show and stopped in the middle of the room, glaring him down.

“I’m sick of your fucking games,” he snarled, his tone of voice promising a devastating end for Steph.

“Hello, Ryder. Took you long enough to show up. Frankly, I expected you a bit earlier,” Steph countered, his smirk not vanishing. “Aren’t vampires known for their bloody revenge?”

“I respected Elena’s wish to forgo revenge, but you overstepped a boundary, and I can no longer turn a blind eye.”

The wizard laughed and shook his head. “So the slut held you back. Did she cry again? You should have slapped her. That always shuts her up.”

Ryder was done. He couldn’t fight his explosive rage anymore. His bloodred eyes focused on Steph’s jugular. Muscles tensing, he lunged towards Steph, going straight for his neck.

But he never reached it. Suddenly, several things happened at once. The only warning Ryder got was Steph’s victorious grin. With his vampiric instincts screaming at him to be cautious, Ryder pivoted and narrowly dodged a silver bullet that had been meant for his heart. His head snapped around. He locked eyes with two hunters.

It was a trap. Like molten lava, this realization burned itself through his mind. Ryder growled threateningly, about to crush the foolish humans with his bare hands—but when he tried to move, he couldn’t. His legs were frozen to the ground.

“You’ve lost, leech,” Steph taunted and slowly got up. “I will teach you what it means to get in my way.” His voice was not lighthearted anymore. It had changed, was filled with loathing.

One of the hunters raised her gun and aimed at Ryder a second time. He gritted his teeth and struggled to break free of the thick layers of ice. Cracks formed on its translucent surface—but he wasn’t fast enough. A bang echoed through the apartment. Searing pain exploded in Ryder’s torso. It hurt so bad that he couldn’t even tell where exactly the bullet had hit him.

But one thing he knew for sure. It was coated in poison. The numbness that spread through his body was overpowering—it could only be caused by wolfsbane. He stood no chance against the plant’s potent toxicity. With a curse on his lips, he went down. His body no longer listened to him, giving in to the poison running through his veins.