Page 151 of Bite Marks & Broken Hearts

Scattered purple embers danced on the breeze like ethereal fireflies before blinking out of existence one by one.

“She saved you.” He drew a shuddering breath. “For me.”

“Why?” The word came out hoarse.

“Because she saw what you mean to me. The depth of my love.” His forehead pressed against mine. “She chose to break free from Lilith’s hold, even though it meant…” He couldn’t finish.

His arms tightened around me, crushing me against his chest as he buried his face in my neck. I felt the tremors running through him, heard the catch in his breathing. Then his hands were running up and down every inch of my body, slipping under my T-shirt to press his hand against my chest, seeing if the chill still marked me.

“Seb—” I swallowed down a lump of emotion. “I love you too. And I’m fine. It’s completely gone.”

His lips curved into a beautiful smile.

My gaze slipped past him to the pond, reaching out with my mind like I had before. Nothing. The water remained still, lifeless. “I… can’t feel the water anymore,” I said, disappointment seeping through me.

“It was the dark magic reaching its peak—like a pressure cooker finally exploding.”

A sound like breaking branches drew my attention. A figure stepped forward—Damien, but not how I first met him. His scaly skin had turned an oily black, stretched tight over elongated limbs. His fingers ended in curved talons, and when he smiled, rows of needle-sharp teeth gleamed in the moonlight.

“Such a waste,” he purred. “All this death, when you could have just given yourself to us willingly.” His eyes fixed on me, hungry and cold. “I could have made it pleasurable, your death. Could have shown you ecstasy beyond imagining.”

My heart thundered against my ribs, but I forced myself to my feet, Seb beside me. “Like you showed those other victims?”

Damien laughed hollowly. “They served their purpose. And there’s still time for you to join them.”

As he stepped towards me, a growl rumbled through the air—low, dangerous, promising violence.

“You will die for what you did.”

Seb moved so fast my eyes could barely track him—one moment he stood beside me, the next his hand was around Damien’s throat. Otherworldly strength radiated from him, an aura of raw power that made the air crackle. Damien’s black eyes widened in shock, his talons scrabbling uselessly against Seb’s grip.

“You dare touch what’s mine?”

Damien broke free, slashing at Seb with razor-sharp claws, but Seb dodged each strike with fluid grace, still possibly feeling the effects of my blood.

Fear flickered across Damien’s twisted features as Seb caught his arm mid-swing and wrenched. The crack of breaking bone echoed across the park. Damien howled, black blood oozing from the wound, but the sound cut off as Seb slammed him into the ground.

“Por mi amor,” Seb growled, pinning Damien down. “Por todas las víctimas.”

The silver dagger appeared in Seb’s hand, its blade gleaming with an inner light. Damien thrashed, his confidence shattered, reduced to animal panic. Seb drove the dagger into Damien’s heart. Black blood erupted from the wound, turning to ash as it hit the air. His scream cut off as his flesh crumbled away, leaving nothing but a pile of dark ash.

I couldn’t take my eyes off Seb as he stood, dagger still clutched in his hand, power radiating from him in waves. Our gazes locked, his eyes ablaze. Perhaps I should have been frightened, but instead I felt drawn to him like a moth to flame. Blood stained his shirt, his chestnut curls were dishevelled from the fight, but he’d never looked more beautiful.

The silver dagger slipped from his fingers, landing in the grass with a soft thud. The rage melted from his features, replaced by something softer—so human, so vulnerable. He took a step towards me, then another, until barely a breath separated us.

His hand cupped my cheek, thumb brushing over my skin as if checking I was real. I leaned into his touch, my eyes fluttering closed for just a moment.

“Flynn,” he breathed, and even the way he said my name made my heart skip.

When our lips met, it felt like coming home to a place I’d never been. All the fear, all the running, all the nights spent staring at dark waters wondering about my choices—they crystallised into this perfect moment of certainty. His kiss was gentle at first, careful, like I might shatter. But when I pressed closer, something broke in him. His arms wrapped around me, and suddenly we were drowning in each other, finding air in the spaces between breaths.

This was real. The most real thing. Inevitable. This was falling and flying all at once, and knowing someone would be there to catch you.

When we finally broke apart, I could still feel the ghost of his kiss lingering on my lips, like an echo of everything we could be. Everything we would be.

Seb smiled, that soft, lovely curve I’d only ever seen on his face when he looked my way.

A wolf’s howl shattered the moment, and I became aware the night air was filled with the stench of death. Bodies lay scattered across Richmond Park—cambions with their flesh half melted, vampires mauled and bleeding, and near the oak tree, a grey wolf lay motionless, its fur matted with blood. My stomach lurched at the sight, but thankfully it wasn’t Kit—he was limping towards us, favouring his right leg. Rory followed, golden fur splashed with dark crimson, but his movements still fluid and strong. Priya was stumbling after them while rifling through a pack around her waist, bandages streaming out.

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