Turn of the Moon (Royal Shifters #1)(55)

His jaw tensed. “Did he rape you?”

“No.”

“But he bit you. Before I killed him, he made sure to let me know in great detail.”

Swallowing hard, I averted my gaze. I felt ashamed and dirty for being so weak. “I wanted to fight him, but I couldn’t. Maret made sure of that. It was one of the worst feelings, not being able to protect myself. Hopefully, you made him suffer.”

He sighed. “I did more than that. It’s one of the reasons I shut my mind off from you. I know I hurt you, making you think I was dead, but I would rather you think that for a couple of days than see what I did. I didn’t think you were ready for that.”

“What did you do? It couldn’t be any worse than what I’ve already seen,” I said, furrowing my brows.

“Trust me, it was. The thought that I had to do it to my own brother made it even more difficult. At the beginning, I made him think he had the upper hand by letting him bite me. When I howled, that gave Cedric the cue to attack. When our wolves came through the wall, it gave you the chance to escape. The Yukons were more focused on defending their own lives than trying to keep you captive.”

“How many of our people were killed?” I really didn’t want to know. The last thing I wanted to do was face the packs when we got back and see the pain in their faces. It would all be there because of me.

He sighed. “We lost eight men in total. One from our pack, the rest from the others.” My eyes burned, but I was tired of crying. Ryker lifted my chin and I took a deep breath before looking at him. “They all knew the risks, angel. I didn’t force them to be here. With any battle, lives will be taken.”

“I know, but I didn’t want them to be because of me.”

We sat in silence for a few more minutes before he got to his feet and held his hand out. “I think it’s time we get back. I’ll tell you the rest on the way.”

Taking his hand, I didn’t let go when he helped me up. Very slowly, we made our way back to the cabins. We were still in Canada and I couldn’t wait to get back home. “So what did you do to Kade and his pack?” His body tensed and I could feel his reluctance. He was trying to hide the images from me, but flashes of Kade and blood replayed in his head. “Stop blocking your mind from me. I’m not going to think less of you, or be afraid of you if you tell me. If you could hear what I was thinking a few days ago, you’d be scared of me.”

He chuckled. “I’m shaking now.” I smacked him on the arm and that seemed to loosen him up. “After you left, all I could think about was you, my family, everything. I wanted to rip Kade apart and be done with it, but I couldn’t. I needed him to suffer. I knew he wouldn’t bow down to me, so I gave him a choice; submit, or I’d literally rip him apart, limb from limb.”

“He wasn’t the type to submit,” I stated the obvious.

He shook his head. “No, he wasn’t and I bet on that. I didn’t want him to submit. When he refused, I took out one of his eyes, and then the other when he refused again. It only went downhill from there, as I dismembered him piece by piece. His people watched and some ended up pledging their loyalty to me. Those who didn’t were killed on the spot. I wasn’t about to show them mercy when none was given to me.”

“What about the women and children?” I hadn’t seen any while I was there, but I knew there had to be some in their community.

“We let them go, with the understanding they would find new packs and not cause any trouble.” We were almost back at the cabin when he stopped and turned me to face him. “I was so angry at my brother for taking you from me. It was as if I was someone else. I know we’re violent creatures, but after what I did to Kade, the thought of you seeing me like that scared even myself. I tore him apart and enjoyed every minute of it. When he roared in agony, I smiled. I took satisfaction in his pain.”

He was ashamed and I could see it in his eyes. “If I was there, I would’ve smiled too. There’s nothing wrong with punishing an evil man—brother or not. Kade was soulless. He was filled with greed and a lust for power. Don’t ever feel ashamed of doing what you did.”

His lips turned up in a small smile. “So you don’t hate me for shutting you out?”

Lifting up on my toes, I kissed him gently. “No. You did what you had to do,” I murmured against his lips.

“I’ve missed you too f*cking much.”

“I can think of something we could do to remedy that, but I don’t think we’ll have much privacy in the house. There are a ton of wolves everywhere.”

He bit my lip and grinned. “Then they’ll just have to mind their own business or get out.”





Bailey

“I see you didn’t kill him,” Sebastian teased.

Ryker chuckled and loaded up Seraphina and Tyla’s bags into the back of Micah’s SUV. “No, but I think I made up for it last night.”

I winked at him. “That you did.”

Tyla shook her head. “Yeah, I’m pretty sure we all got quite the visual with the noises coming out of your room.” She laughed. “I’m just glad this clusterf*ck is all over.” She gave me a hug. “I’ll see you when you get back home.”

I hugged her tight. “Thank you for everything. You and Micah helped my mother save me.”