“You’re talking about my father Wyatt. I can’t let him die.”
“If it’s to save your life then yes not only can you let him die but you’re going to. I’m not risking your life for his. If it meant saving you then I’d let the whole world die.”
“I don’t care about the whole world Wyatt I care about him. He put his whole life at risk so that he could bring me up. I’m not going to abandon him when he needs me most. I’m immortal Wyatt there’s nothing he can do to…hurt me.” The lie stuck in her throat. There were definitely things that Ethan could do to her that would hurt her in unimaginable ways.
The scent of a lie made his nose wrinkle in distaste. When all this was over he was going to have to have a serious word with his mate about the consequences of lying. Determined to know the truth he reached for their bond and quickly found the memory of what Ethan had said. His whole body tensed and he saw red. “Never!” He roared so loudly that the walls shook.
“Wyatt, calm down.” The arms around her tightened almost painfully. It didn’t take her long to realise that he knew the truth and wasn’t happy about it. “I’m immortal now he’s not going to be able to kill me.”
“But he’ll be able to rape you! He’ll try to touch what’s mine. He wants to hurt you and you’re thinking about letting him.”
“I don’t have a choice!” she shouted back. “That’s my father that he’s torturing. I am going to save him and if you’re not going to help me then get out of my way.” Wriggling in his arms she tried desperately to get away.
Her struggles against him were weak and her helplessness made her angry. Sweat built on her brow while Wyatt wasn’t even breathing hard. His strength sent her anger rocketing into the stratosphere. It wasn’t fair. If it was his sister being held captive she knew there was nothing he wouldn’t do to get to her but her father, the only family she had, was supposed to rot? She wasn’t going to stand for it. Her hand delved into her pocket and she pulled out the lighter that she never left behind. A single flick of her wrist set her clothes on fire. From within the growing flames she watched as Wyatt began to burn with her. The smell of charred flesh turned her stomach. He was doing nothing to escape her growing flames instead choosing to simply stare at her. There was no condemnation in his brown gaze, there was nothing but acceptance and Kass felt her anger begin to dwindle.
If Wyatt’s eyes were brown then he was in control of himself, which is more than could be said for her. She’d let anger consume her and taken out her frustrations on the one person in the world that would never do anything to deserve it. She was his mate; it was ingrained in his very DNA to protect her. Of course he wasn’t going to let her go strolling into the danger. He needed calm to convince him that saving her father was in her best interests and she’d given him nothing but violence.
Sighing, the fight left her in a single breath. Drawing the heat into her body, she let herself relax against him. “I’m sorry Wyatt. I shouldn’t have done that.”
Looking down at the burned remains of his clothes and the charred bed that they were sitting on Wyatt couldn’t help but nod in agreement. “It’s good to know that you have a way of defending yourself but you’re right, you shouldn’t have done that. I’m your mate. Mates don’t try to hurt each other.”
“I wasn’t trying to hurt you,” she spluttered in protest. “I just wanted you to let me go. I thought that if I was burning the heat might make you let me go.”
“You could be as hot as the sun itself and I still wouldn’t let you go. I know that your dad means a lot to you but even so you can’t expect me to let you go to a man who said quite clearly that he wants to rape and murder you.”
Wyatt couldn’t hide the surprise from his face when she nodded her agreement. After her frantic struggles and her desperate pleas he hadn’t expected her to give in so easily. Her capitulation made him uneasy. There was something going on inside her mind and he had a feeling he wasn’t going to like it.
“You’re right. I wouldn’t expect you to let me go to him…” She slipped her fingers through his and brought his hand to her mouth for a soft kiss. “Alone. I don’t expect you to let me go to him alone but we can go together. We can save my dad together.”
Cocking his head to regard his mate, Wyatt smiled at her. “Or I could just go down there alone, rip out Ethan’s throat and bring it back to you in a box with your dad safe at my side.”
“It’s too risky Wyatt. If he sees that I’m not there he’ll kill my dad.”
“Still better than the alternative of him killing you.”
Growling, she bared her teeth in a gesture that made Wyatt’s heart swell with pride. His little mate was becoming a ferocious thing; she’d make any cub proud to call her mother. “I need to do this Wyatt. I’ve spent my whole life cowering in fear of this man and running from him. My entire life until I met you was based on what he might do. He’s had power over me since the moment I came back into this world and I need to let him know that he can’t control me anymore. I need him to know that my life is mine to do with what I want and that nothing he can do will change that. Even if Charlie could be saved without me being there I’d still want to go. I’d still want to confront him.”
“Kass–”
She cut him off before he could argue any further. “If you don’t help me Wyatt then I’ll just run away and save Charlie myself. I’ll save him, come back and prove that I could take care of Ethan myself.”
“You’d never get out of the estate without me finding out.”
“And that’s what you want is it? You want your mate to be a prisoner in what you claim is her home? You want to do to me what Anna did to you? Is that it?”
“What?” he spluttered in confusion. “No! That isn’t what I want.”
“Then prove it. Prove that you mean it. Help me save Charlie. I’m sure that I could do this myself. If he caught me I’d put a knife through my own heart before I let him touch me. I’d be able to come back exactly as I am now. You wouldn’t lose me but it would hurt like hell. If we go together then that doesn’t have to happen. Mates have each other’s backs Wyatt. They protect each other and when one needs help the other is there to support them. Support me Wyatt. Help me do this.”
The tears that were brimming in her eyes made Wyatt curse. She was right. He didn’t have to like it but she was right. “Fine. We’ll go but I’ll think of a plan that means you’re protected at all times and you will not under any circumstances deter from the plan. Do you understand?”
She flung her arms around his neck and pressed eager kisses against his flesh. “Have I told you lately how much I love you?”
“Yes…but it doesn’t hurt to tell me again especially since you set me on fire.”
Kass threw her head back and laughed. Only Wyatt would make light of the fact that she’d tried to turn him into a human flame. Her mate was one of a kind and as soon as Ethan was dead she couldn’t wait to truly start her life with him. “I love you and I’ll never leave you.”
“Never?” he demanded, trying to extract her promise.
“Never,” she confirmed pressing a kiss to his throat. “If the world ended tomorrow I’d be right there by your side. From now into eternity.”
Chapter Twenty-two
The door was open. As soon as Kass touched the handle the wooden door to Charlie’s home swung open. She took a deep breath, bolstered her courage and walked in. She took a few hesitant steps, looking around at the destruction that Ethan had caused when she heard the distinct sound of the door closing. Her heart racing she spun on her heel expecting to see her nemesis sneering from behind her. The man in the suit wasn’t Ethan but from the disdain on his face it was clear that he worked for him. They stood, each staring at the other for long moments before Kass realised that he wasn’t going to try and touch her.
“Where is he?” Her voice was calm and she had to resist the urge to smile. Even though Wyatt wasn’t in the house with her she could feel his strength filling her.
Ethan isn’t going to know what hit him.
The suited man tilted his head in response.
“Not allowed to speak to me?” She shrugged her shoulders. She couldn’t care less whether or not Ethan’s minions spoke to her. They were almost as guilty as he was. The fact that they probably had no idea of what she was made them even worse in her mind. As far as they were aware she was just a defenceless woman and they were chasing her because someone had paid them to do it. They were clearly not men of good conscience.
Turning her back to the man Kass held her head high and walked into the kitchen where Ethan and Charlie were waiting for her. The kitchen was relatively in tact but she cast her eyes about the space making sure that Wyatt saw everything around her. It was a surprise to see that Ethan didn’t have an army to protect him but she wasn’t going to question his decision when it made her plan easier. Charlie sat bloodied and slumped over in a chair while Ethan stood at his back a gun pressed to her father’s head. The sight of the weapon explained a lot but it also made Kass furious. Ethan probably thought the gun would be enough to control them both and why would he want his men to find out exactly what she was when they would probably try to take her for themselves. She’d come here willingly and Charlie looked like he could barely stand, there was no need to threaten him any further.
“You can put the gun away Ethan. I’ve come alone just like you asked. I’m not going to run.”
At the sound of her voice Charlie managed to lift his head and meet her eyes. “Kass!” Charlie shouted. “Get out of here! Leave me to die. As long as you’re safe then my death will be worth it.”
She smiled a sad smile. “Not to me it won’t be. I love you dad. I had to do this.” She could see tears forming in his eyes and felt pain lance her heart. It had never been her intention to make him cry but it looked like that was unavoidable now. “Let him go Ethan then we can talk before you take me off to your cage.”
“Andy,” Ethan called to the guard at the door. “Escort our guest off the premises and let the others know that they can come and escort us to our next location.”
“Yes sir.”
Charlie’s eyes were accusing as he was hefted out of the house. Kass wanted to comfort him, the urge to wrap her arms around him and tell him that everything was going to be okay was a strong one but she forced herself to resist. There was no telling what he might do if he touched her and she had a plan to follow. If she took a single detour from the instructions that Wyatt had made her memorise she might be putting her mate in danger.
“I love you dad,” she called after him. She watched as he was walked out of the house, waiting until the door shut before turning to look at Ethan.
“Alone at last,” Ethan crowed, pointing the gun directly at her.
Kass sighed, pulled up a chair from the dining table and sat down regarding Ethan carefully. “You don’t need to point that at me. I chose to come here I’m not going to run.”
Ethan’s eyes narrowed in suspicion but he took a seat opposite her. “I’m glad that you decided to do the right thing and come back for him. And you’re much earlier than I thought you would be.”
“I didn’t want to risk you hurting Charlie any more than you already had.” The words were true. She had convinced Wyatt that sooner definitely was better than later and now here she was, sat across a table from her worst enemy about to have her first ever conversation with him.
“You made a good call doing that. I was so very tempted to do…other things to him today.”
She shuddered trying hard not to imagine what the other things were. Shaking her head to dispel the unpleasant thoughts she locked eyes with him. If they were going to talk then she wanted answers before it was too late. “I have to ask you Ethan. Why do you want to live forever? What is living for so long going to bring you? All your family will die. Everyone that you ever come to love will die while you live on. All that my heart would bring you is loneliness. Surely you want better.”
“Love?” he scoffed, his face contorting in disgust. “Family? You really think that I want to live longer so that I can love and have a family?”
“Why else would you want to live for so long?”
“Power you stupid girl. I want power. I’ve lived a long time and have already acquired a lot of power but imagine just how much more I could gain if I had an extra hundred years. Imagine how much money and power I could gain if I lived forever.”
Outraged, she shot to her feet knocking her chair to the ground in the process. “That’s it?! You want to end my life because you want more power. You’re already a powerful man why can’t that be enough for you? Why have you ruined my life, ended Emily’s, just so you can have more of what you already have? Do you realise what your madness has cost me?”
“It isn’t madness. Every human wants to be more powerful than those around him. I just happen to want to be more powerful than everyone else. And I have no idea what it’s cost you but I’m very aware of the thousands that I’ve wasted trying to track you down.”
Almost hyperventilating in her fury Kass struggled to see straight. She’d never thought about what his answer to her question might be but she hadn’t expected his answer to be one as weak as that. At the back of her mind she’d thought that maybe he had an incurable disease and was seeking her heart to stop death claiming him early but to hear that he wasn’t dying, that he was perfectly healthy and had ended her life once already just so that he could get more power was disgusting.
“You have no idea of what’s really important in life. I’m in love with a wonderful man. We’re planning our life together and you want to steal that future away from him just so that you can make more money than you would be able to in your normal lifetime. You disgust me and I feel sorry for you.” She spat the words her eyes ablaze with contempt.
“Don’t feel sorry for me.” He waved the gun in her face. “You have no idea what I have planned for you. I’d save that sympathy for yourself; you’re going to need it. I was planning on using IVF to get you pregnant but after that outburst I think I will let my men take you as a reward for their service.
He didn’t care about what he’d already cost her and she wanted to make him suffer. As an idea formed in her mind she forced herself to distance herself from Wyatt, blocking his thoughts from reaching hers as best as she could. The instant that he got even the faintest inkling of what she was planning he’d come storming to rescue her even though she didn’t need it. Her attempts to push him away failed and she could feel him barrelling towards her his task complete. She didn’t have long to act before he’d be breaking down the door. Keeping her movements slow, Kass started to put her new plan into action. Wyatt had only let her come here on the provision that he got to kill Ethan. After hearing his selfish declaration she’d be depriving her mate of that honour. She’d kill him herself.
“I’ve got to ask.” Keeping her voice calm and quiet she hoped to throw him off. He wouldn’t use the gun to kill her but he could slow her down and if she hesitated even for a second her plan would fail. “What are you going to do if you manage to breed me – and I’m not saying that you will, I’ve never met any other phoenixes for all I know we’re all sterile – even if you manage it what will you do if you get a boy? How is that going to work for your grand plan of living forever?” She saw his lips move but couldn’t hear his words over Wyatt roaring in her mind.
Kass what are you doing? We had a plan. I’ve gotten rid of all of his guards–
Were there many? She interrupted, hoping to keep his mind off the problem long enough for her to put her plan into action. She was so close, the knife block was a mere whisper away.
Ethan is fucking paranoid. There were men everywhere. He let lose a snarl realising what she was doing. I’m not going to let myself be distracted. You’re not following the plan.
I have to do this Wyatt. He’s taken so much from me I want to take away the one thing in the world that he really wants.
No! he roared, fina
lly seeing her plan in all it’s horrifying splendour.
I have to do this Wyatt. She wrapped her hand around the knife and pulled it from the block. Don’t worry. I love you. She pulled back quickly and turned her attention to Ethan, the man who was now pointing a gun firmly in her direction.
“What do you think you’re doing? Are you going to try and kill me?” He scoffed in derision clearly believing there was no way that she’d be able to carry out her threat.
The corners of Kass’ lips rose in a victorious smile. “You?” she mused. “No. I’m not going to try and kill you.” She turned the blade on herself and pointed the deadly knife at her own heart. “You’ve ruined my life trying to get my heart and the years that come with it. It’s the only thing that you care about and I’m going to take it from you. You don’t have enough life left in you to wait for me to come back and even if you did I doubt that you’ll survive this.”
She plunged the knife deep and twisted it hard. She’d thought there would be pain but despite the fact she was dying, her life blood dripping on to the kitchen floor she felt nothing but warmth…and satisfaction. Ethan’s face had crumpled and the man had fallen to his knees screaming in defeat. Her smile widened. His true screams hadn’t even started yet. The mournful howls that filled her ears as she slipped away made tears fall from her eyes but it wasn’t water that poured down her cheeks. Fire, hot and scalding fell from her eyes like rivers of lava. The heat built, the fire burning hotter and hotter until her body exploded and Kass was no more.
*********
“Keep moving. Don’t think about her. Don’t think about her.”
Repeating the words to himself over and over didn’t make the task any easier. Wyatt still couldn’t believe he’d caved and given into her demand to do this. He’d allowed his mate to walk directly into the path of danger and he couldn’t shake the feeling that this wasn’t going to end well.
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