206- Blood Under the Nails, Fire Under the Skin
POV Elowen Grimwald:
Biting my own cheeks hard enough to injure them and fighting the urge to vomit once again, I grabbed a less bloodstained lock from the side of her blond hair and lifted my head with the weight of a sack of rice, still carrying part of the neck.
After the hollow thud of the skull against the wood, I slammed the lid shut with a bang that cut through the air.
Who would blame me for feeling… relief?
I lost count of how many times I changed the water in the bucket in Aldren’s bathroom until I had rid the floor and the bars of every residual bloodstain. I checked every corner of the furniture and wiped away the slightest splatter.
I got rid of the rug and tore off the stained sheets. Before replacing them, I needed to strip myself of all that carrion clinging to me.
I removed what remained of my underwear and, with difficulty, pushed the full chests into the hallway. Then I cleaned the trail they left behind.
Next, even if it were to cost me the worst punishment, I did not ask permission to use Aldren’s shower to wash myself, nor to use up every last bit of his lemon-and-cedar-scented soap in an attempt to scrub that rot from my skin.
My arms and hands stung, and no matter how many times I scrubbed them fiercely, they never seemed clean enough. I stepped out of the glass shower walls, checking to see if I had left any trace of myself behind.
I wrapped myself in the towel I had been using before Teneris beat me and changed the bedding. At that moment, I truly was a spy, because I searched every corner of the room fearfully, afraid I might have forgotten something.
My worst mistake was looking at my hands. My nails, even short, were still stained with blood. I shoved one nail under the curve of the other, desperate to rid myself of every sign of that massacre, but it wasn’t enough.
Exhausted, I brought them to my mouth and began biting them, ripping away with hatred every short length that protruded beyond my fingers. I nearly exposed them to raw flesh, yet the corners remained dirty.
I realized I had truly gone mad when I sank my teeth into the dead skin along the sides of what remained of my nails, tearing it away piece by piece, ignoring the painful stings and the taste of my own blood.
Trembling, I raised my hand to eye level and contemplated the disaster I had done.
The tips of my fingers burned like living fire, throbbing as if my heart were beating there. Who needed a torturer? I was the one who had destroyed yet another part of myself.
The sound of the door opening made my body and heartbeat leap.
It wasn’t Nerin, as I expected—it was… Aldren.
With his hair still damp from having just showered and wearing clean clothes, he swept his cold green eyes over my entire body, stripping me without touching the towel.
The damned alpha released the doorknob and began his meticulous inspection of the room.
Ignoring me, he passed by, stealing the air of the space for himself, sniffing for any sign that the task he had given me had been done poorly.
Son of a bitch.
“You even took a shower.” His voice sounded behind me, putting my body on alert, and then his face drew close to mine. “Did you like my soap?” he hissed at my ear.
“Sorry, I… I should have asked permission. I don’t want to irritate you.” I hated having to pretend and apologize to that bastard.
The tip of his nose brushed along the curve of my neck to my ear, inhaling my scent and making my legs weaken. I didn’t understand how that male managed to melt me with so little effort.
I pressed my lips together and held back the moan that wanted to escape. I needed to be firm, proud, honorable, even though my desire was to jump into his arms and beg to be fucked by him.
“Believe me, I’m not irritated at all. I can say I’m impressed—the scent even matched your stray smell.”
Bastard. Damned bastard.
“Humiliate me as much as you want, Aldren. I won’t insult you back.” I stood firm.
“You won’t?” He grabbed my waist and, with a hard yank, slammed my thin body against his wall of muscle.
I closed my eyes and focused on the mission of not reacting,
even though my pussy was already throbbing and hot.
“I bowed and promised respect, even though I still haven’t accepted you as my alpha. Elowen Grimwald keeps her word,” I lied without a shred of remorse.
I would keep no promise—I would kill him as soon as I had the chance.
“You’d better not doubt my ability to break your neck.” The breath of his words against my nape sent pulses straight to the sensitive place between my legs.
“Breaking such a pretty little neck would be a waste…” Before I realized it, I had already said it.
Stupid tongue!
Wait…
Maybe not so stupid after all, because the devil… laughed. Not mockery, irony, or cynicism—
he let out a deep, genuine laugh.
“I must admit you’re not entirely useless, bitch. Your sense of humor and determination endure even in critical situations. See? You’ve just drawn a sincere laugh from a grieving wolf.”
I lifted my chin to look at him, and his serene expression showed not a drop of mourning, but I was determined not to provoke him.
Perhaps, right there behind me, stood someone even more skilled at pretending than I was.
“I’m sorry for being the cause of the death of someone you loved…” I used the last word on purpose.
His brow furrowed, and one of his massive hands slid up to my neck. His thick fingers tightened around it, forcing my chin to remain lifted.
I didn’t dare look away, afraid he would retaliate by choking me harder, stealing the little air passage I still had left.
“No woman is, was, or ever will be worthy of my love. I live for my people, but only for those who respect me as king.”
Hearing that was sad—even for him.
Even with the sense that good shapeshifters were becoming extinct, he longed not only for freedom but for a bit of true love. Every female, deep down, wished to be loved and protected.
I was one of them, and I wasn’t ashamed to admit it.
“I’m sorry. If I leave here alive, I hope to love someone one day.”
This time, his laughter was scornful.
“Another deluded one who dreams of finding the cherished predestined mate?”
“If he exists, somewhere in this world, as the prophecies say, yes, I want him.”
“Then pray you leave alive,” he growled, seeming irritated by my answer.
“I will leave alive and unharmed, if my alpha allows it.” I took advantage of the closeness to whisper sweetly and moisten my lips delicately. My provocation struck him so precisely that he released me at once, fleeing our contact and the room like someone running from a leper. “Should I return to the cage, Aldren?”
He stopped between the doorway and the frame and cast me a lascivious look, the kind that promises the victim won’t get off easy.
“Wait, bitch. You’ll find out very soon.”