Page 78 of Twisted Mates

“Yeah, and it would have worked if the two of you could have just stopped being so damnpicky!” she exclaims, pulling at her hair by the roots, the vial of whatever she brought for her father still tight in her grip.

I’m so stunned that I almost want to laugh at the absurdity of this situation, that Carrington would ever do something so sick and twisted to me, but I'm too brokenhearted. “What the hell did you think was going to happen? We’d have sex tocomplete the ‘bond’ and then try to shift without the full moon... if we wouldn’t have been able to, we would’ve had an idea that something might be wrong!”

She laughs, a condescending, bitter chuckle. “Of course you’d forget that not every mated couple can complete the anti-lunar shift. It can still be a real bond without it. I would’ve been there to comfort you and remind you of that, Alexia.”

I do laugh then; the idea of Carrington ever comforting me is a damn joke. “Real?You’ve always been too self-absorbed to see what is real,” I say, no longer caring what it will cost me. If this is the end, I might as well take whatever peace I can find in the moment. Goddess knows that I won’t get to say all the things I want to the person who matters the most. “I’m glad I screwed it up. I’m elated that neither of you got what you wanted. In the end, someone will figure out what you did, and I hope you both rot for it.” I wonder if she knows that Clayton was going to kill Kai. I somehow doubt it. I open my mouth to tell her, but before I can, Clayton grips my hair and yanks my head back.

“Get it over with, Carrington. I’m tired of listening to her.”

Her hands tremble as she unscrews the cap on the vial she brought in the room, and Clayton tugs hard on my hair, ripping strands out by the root. When I still don’t open my mouth, he pinches my nose. The silver liquid sloshes around, threatening to spill over the side of the glass container.

She stands over me with the vial ready to tip. “I’m sorry, Lex. So sorry.” Her words mean nothing. After what she’s done, what she’s helped her father to do, my best friend is dead to me.

My lungs burn as I fight to keep my mouth closed. The edges of my vision blur. If I pass out, they have control and I’m dead. I refuse to give up the fight, so I thrash as I inhale through my teeth. Clayton presses his fingers into my jaw, pushing my cheeks inward. I struggle against his hold, but he reins me inby my hair. Carrington tips the vial, the poison gathering at the edge.

A thunderous roar has us all jumping as the door crashes to the floor. A long-haired, gray wolf leaps into the air.

My mate.

He and Clayton collide and tumble to the floor. Fur and skin. Fists and teeth. They fight for dominance, but it’s a losing battle. Clayton cannot shift, so the odds are heavily in favor of Xander.

Carrington screams and rushes to throw herself in the mix, but she is stopped short. Kai runs up behind her and detains her with his arms wrapped around her torso. She kicks and scratches at him, but her twin doesn’t let go.

Xander growls in Clayton’s face as his large paws pin him to the ground.

“Don’t do this, Xander. What would your mother say?” Clayton says, pleading for his life in the most desperate and manipulative way.

Xander tilts his head to the side, like he’s considering letting his stepfather go. I wouldn’t want him to take a life if it meant it would lead to regret. Nothing is worth carrying that feeling for the rest of his life. He’s done that for too many years already.

But after what Carrington just said, and the way Clayton reacted...

You thinkthisis sick and twisted? I’m guessing you don’t know what the king regent over here did to Xander’s da?—

His paw slips from Clayton’s shoulder, and I blow out a puff of air. Xander’s electric blue gaze locks with mine, and he bows his head.

“It’s okay,” I softly say. “You don’t have to do it if you don’t want to.”

When he lifts his snout, a new resolve glows in his eyes. He plunges forward and sinks his teeth into Clayton’s neck. Everything mixes in a horrific cacophony of sound—screaming,growling, gurgled breath, and the wet splattering of Clayton’s throat hitting the ground. Kai lets Carrington go and she rushes to her father’s side. There is nothing to salvage of him. He was dead the moment Xander’s lethal teeth bit down. Kai doesn’t even bother to join her; he just lets her cry alone. I can’t say I blame him for all he’s put him through.

Especially when the rest of Clayton’s plan included killing him too. Not that he knows that yet. But when the time is right, I’ll have to tell him. He deserves to know the truth about his father.

My wolf moves to my side, gliding his silky fur covered in blood against my leg. I sob in relief, wanting nothing more than to touch him, but I’m still tied up. Xander huffs and lifts his chin to Kai, who comes right over and stoops down, pulling a small knife out of his pocket.

Kai touches the ropes and pulls away with a hiss. “Shit.”

He rips the bottom of his shirt and wraps it around his hand. It takes what feels like forever for him to saw through the ropes. When I’m free, my wrists are red and blistered, but I am so glad to be free, I barely notice. When he gets to his feet, he rests his forehead against mine and whispers, “Alexia, I am so, so sorry for leaving you the way I did. I promise I will explain everything.”

I reach up and place my palms on his cheeks. “I forgive you. And thank you for bringing him to me.”

“Of course.” He stands and backs up, giving us space.

I drop to my knees and pull Xander close to me, wrapping my arms around his neck, savoring the feeling of his fur against me. He sighs, and I feel every bit of his relief sinking into my own skin. “Xander, I love you,” I whisper in his ear. “I was so worried. I thought I was never going to see you again.”

“I’m taking her out of here,” Kai says in a low voice, and I realize he’s speaking to Xander before I answer. “There’s a spotdownstairs where I can keep her until y’all are ready and we can get rid of his body.”

Xander dips his head but doesn’t take his eyes off me.

Everything else around me fades out as Kai struggles to get a hysterical Carrington out of the room, and I tangle my fingers in the fur around Xander’s muzzle. “Shift back, please,” I breathe. “I need to feel your skin.”

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