Page 151 of Monsters Wear Crowns
“Now.”
Kieran exhaled sharply through his nose but didn’t argue. He turned and left without another word. I wiped my blade against my slacks, exhaling through gritted teeth.
I’d know soon enough if she betrayed me.
And if she did?
I didn’t know what I’d fucking do.
***
ADELA
The vibration of my phone broke the quiet of my apartment. I barely glanced at the screen, expecting a message from Laura, until I saw the name.
My stomach dipped.
A single text.
Kieran is on his way. I need you for a bit.
I stared at the words, my surroundings suddenly blurring. I didn’t even text back. What was the point anyway? I inhaled sharply, running my hands over the front of my gray tank top before pulling a sweater over it. My body felt strangely light, almostuntethered, as I slipped on my boots and grabbed my bag.
I was still trying to convince myself not to go when I saw the car park on the street below. This was a bad idea. I knew it. But I took a deep breath and walked out the door anyway.
The black SUV idled at the curb, its windows completely tinted. Kieran stood beside the passenger door, his expression unreadable as I approached.
The moment I was close enough, I folded my arms and raised a brow. “What’s this about?”
Something flickered in his eyes, possibly wariness? “Rafe wants to talk to you.” His voice was unusually flat.
I studied his face, noticing that his shoulders were more rigid than usual. His jaw was set just a little too tight, and he smelled faintly of...blood. “You look like you just came from a funeral,” I muttered, trying my very best to ignore the stench.
Kieran’s mouth pressed into a firm line, and he looked away.
Unease curled in my stomach. But I lifted my chin, inhaled deeply, and climbed into the car. I’d deal with Rafe.
***
When we arrived at the sprawling mansion, Kieran stepped out first, rounding the car to open my door. His steady gaze offered no reassurance as he nodded toward the entrance. “He’s waiting for you downstairs.”
My stomach knotted.The basement.
I swallowed hard, my throat suddenly dry. Sudden memories of being tangled in Rafe’s sheets barreled into my mind. But being here now...it was different. This was the part of his home I had never stepped foot in. The part where the monster inside himthrived.
Kieran escorted me inside, his heavy boots echoing as we moved through the dimly lit corridors. He paused at the basement door, then pushed it open, revealing a stairwell that descended intodarkness.
I hesitated.
“Go,” Kieran said, softer than I expected.
I forced my legs to move, gripping the railing as I stepped down. The deeper I went, the colder it became. I wrinkled my nose as the metallic scent of blood reached me.Fuck.
And then I saw him. Rafe stood in the center of the room, his arms spattered with blood, his black T-shirt likelydrenchedin it. His dark hair was disheveled, and his stance was wide and predatory. And before him, bound to a chair, was a man I recognized. He was one of Moreau's men.
A sharp inhale. “Rafe.”
He turned slowly, his lips curling into something that might have been a smirk if not for the madness in his eyes. A glint of steel caught my attention, and I realized he was holding a knife, the blade slick and glistening under the dim light.
