Chapter 175: Cleaning Up the Mess

Lila's POV

We were both still catching our breath, skin slick with sweat, the night air cooling our bodies. His arms were around me like he was terrified I’d vanish again. For a moment, it almost felt like peace. Almost.

I tilted my head, brushing my lips along his jaw. “You know what I’d love?” I whispered, my voice low, dangerous. “To see the girl who dared to taste a meal meant only for me.”

He stiffened, then chuckled darkly, the sound vibrating against my ear. “You want to see her?” His lips curled into a grin. “I’ll take you to her. Right now if you want.”

A wicked grin spread across my face. “Good. Because I’ll teach her what happens when you eat a fruit meant for the queen.”

We got dressed quickly, him helping me tug on my clothes when I struggled with one hand. He made it look natural, like he was meant to. When his eyes lingered on my sleeve, his face hardened.

“Your arm…” His voice was raw, demanding.

I met his gaze coldly and uttered one word. “Ivy.”

His whole body snapped. His face twisted with so much rage it was almost grotesque. He staggered back, muttering, then suddenly slapped himself across the face. Hard. Again.

“I should’ve killed her by now!” Smack. “I’m a failure!” Smack.

“Dante!” I barked, catching his wrist with my only good arm before he could strike again. My grip was firm. “Stop.”

He looked at me, eyes burning, chest heaving like an animal.

“It’s not your fault,” I said evenly. “She’s escaped for too long. But not anymore.” I leaned closer, letting my wolf’s venom lace my words. “This time, I’ll make her pay. She’ll die by the hands of the very person meant to protect her. I’ll strip her of everything she stole from me. And then, you and I…” My lips curved into a cruel smile. “…we’ll toast with wine and fuck like animals on her grave.”

Dante’s eyes lit up with wild excitement. His wolf was clawing beneath his skin, and I could feel his hunger for blood mixing with mine.

“God, Lila,” he groaned, almost trembling with it. “Do you know how long I’ve dreamed of this? Seeing her crawl, seeing her scream while you tear her apart. I’ll burn the world just to watch her bleed if that’s what you want.”

My smile widened. This was why I chose him. My perfect monster.

But I needed him calm, not reckless.

“I’ll be away for a while,” I said finally, brushing my fingers against his cheek. “When it’s done, I’ll come find you. This time, there won’t be any mistakes. Because the one preparing me for this… is a sorceress everyone in our realm fears.”

His grin faltered instantly. His face fell, desperation flooding his eyes. “You want to leave me? Again?” His voice cracked. “No, take me with you. Please, Lila. Don’t do this to me again. I can help…I’ll kill whoever you tell me to, I’ll do anything, just don’t leave me.”

I shook my head firmly. “It won’t work. I need to go and finish this as quickly as I can… so we can finally be together without anything in our way.” I leaned closer, my lips brushing his ear. “Trust me.”

He clenched his jaw, torn between rage and devotion.

“But first,” I added, pulling back to look him in the eye. My grin returned, sharp and dangerous. “Take me to that stupid little girl who dared spread her legs for you. I want to see her face before I carve it off.”

Dante’s eyes lit back up with that savage fire. He grabbed my chin, kissed me hard, and when he pulled back, he was smiling like a man about to set the world on fire.

“As you wish, my queen.”

Dante’s bike growled through the night, his chest pressed against my back, his hands caging me in. He didn’t speak the whole ride, and I didn’t need him to. I knew where this was heading.

We rode for what felt like forever until he rounded a corner and stopped near a shabby hostel. He leaned in, his lips close to my ear.

“Apparently, she doesn't work at the mansion anymore,” he said. “She cleans floors at a salon now."

I stiffened. “How do you know that? Did you meet her again?” My voice was sharp, suspicious.

He barked a laugh. “Hell no. I had one of my guys track her down, just in case. I thought about venting my frustration on her…” He paused, his tone dropping darker. “…but I didn’t. She’s still breathing only because I wanted to save her for you.”

I believed him. If he had touched her again, if he had laid a hand on her, I would have felt it in my gut. He was telling the truth.

I slipped off the bike and hid in the shadows of the parking lot while Dante went up the narrow stairwell and knocked. Minutes later, she came out.

Pathetic. Wrapped in a blanket, hair messy, eyes half asleep. She smiled at him…smiling, like a weasel…like she thought he’d come for her. To patch things up.

My chest burned. What did she think? That he called her out here to fuck her? Stupid, delusional whore. I was going to make her regret that smile.

Dante led her down the steps, right to where I was waiting. She barely noticed me until I stepped out from the corner.

She frowned. “Get out of the way, miss,” she said, confused.

I sneered, spit landing on her blanket. “You dare stand there and smile at him? Spread your legs for my mate? You’re going to pay for every moan you ever let out in his presence.”

Her eyes went wide. She turned to Dante, desperate. But he was whistling, staring off at the night sky like this had nothing to do with him.

Her voice shook. “Is she your wife or something? Is this some kind of joke?”

I laughed in her face. A hard, ugly laugh. “Joke? No, sweetheart. This is a lesson. You touched what was mine, and now you get to suffer for it.”

She started to cry when she realized the dangerous situation she just walked into. “Please…he came to me, I swear! I didn’t…don’t hurt me!”

She grabbed Dante’s arm, clutching him like he’d save her. “Tell her the truth! Please!”

Her voice grated in my skull. I snapped at him, eyes flashing. “Her whining is pissing me off, baby. Do something.”

Dante ripped a piece off her discarded blanket in one quick motion. He shoved it between her teeth, gagging her. He then took off his belt, and bound her hands behind her back, dragging her forward by the hair.

He threw her down at my feet like garbage. “She’s all yours, my love,” he said, then walked away, leaving me with my prey.

She writhed, muffled screams tearing through the gag. I crouched low, my lips curling back. “You even dared to hold him in my presence,” I hissed.

Her eyes widened, horror spilling out of them. She tried to crawl away, but it was too late. My wolf surged up, furious, wild, unstoppable. My body snapped with the shift, claws digging into the ground.

I pounced.

Her muffled scream ripped through the night as I struck. She flailed, tried to nudge me off, but my wolf was too strong, too fast. The gag choked her cries into pitiful whimpers.

I tore into her with no mercy. Her struggles weakened, slowed, then stilled. Her body went limp beneath me. The last sound was a choked gasp that faded into nothing.