Page 69 of Knot Enough
His gaze slid to Lena. That alone made him ease off, lifting his boot. Valerie coughed violently, clutching her throat, but she never took her gaze off Rath.
Lena was in the cell, mere feet from her sister. The evil twin sneered at her. And I knew whatever she was about to say would cut deep.
“I fucked with your pills,” she rasped, her voice hoarse but dripping with poison. Her words hit me, and I growled as I stepped forward, ready to rip that stupid smile from her face. “You weren’t taking your precious depression meds. Month after month, I gave you suppressants. Why the fuck would I help you?”
Lena gasped. Soaking in her sister’s confession. Kane and I exchanged a glance before he pushed off the wall.
“You’re fucking dead,” he seethed. His lip pulled back, lip curled with disgust. I couldn’t agree more. Valerie wouldn’t live to see tomorrow, but words cut deep, and Lena was the only thing that mattered right now. I was holding Lena’s hand, but she released it as if my touch burned her.
“Please,” Lena begged as she looked between me and the guys. “Give me a minute with. . .” I nodded my head, and the guys filed out one by one. When it was just me and Kane, he growled, but followed me out. We squeezed into the hall, unable to leave her completely alone, but we were just out of view. There was no way we were leaving her alone with that psychotic bitch.
“Why?” Her question was a whisper. “Why would you do that to me?” Lena cried, her voice seeped with heartbreak.
“You think I give a fuck? It didn’t matterwhatyou were. I just needed to make sure my stupid little sister didn’t beat me. On the off chance that you were an Omega, I wasn’t going to let you present.Ever.” Valerie spat.
“I wanted Pack Reaper, and their stupid little Omega was in the way.” Her grin widened, sick and mocking. “I likerealalphas. I already took 2 of them with me. No one wants the ugly, stupid twin.”
Lena’s breath hitched. Every word lashed at my soul like a whip, so I could only imagine what it did to her. I felt every shuddered breath for what it was, pieces of my mate as her sister broke her.
“I’m going to take your pack, Lena. Why? Because you’re nothing.”
This bitch is insane.
A wounded sob cut through the silence. There was a scuffle and a sickening sound of skin tearing, and we raced to her. Rath was in the cell first, and I followed close, staring at what was before us. Valerie gasped, but all I saw was Lena. Pushed against the wall, a hand pressed to her cheek as her hair shrouded her face. Rath shoved Valerie back, and she dropped a rusted screw. That metallic taste of blood was back in the air, and this time, it was Lena’s. I stepped in front of her and tipped her chin up. I searched my mate’s face, taking in the deep gash that cut through her brow and ran down her chin, but it was her eyes that gutted me. Her bitch of a sister’s words had affected her more than the wound she now wore.
Kane grabbed Lena, positioning himself in front of her. Rath’s roar exploded in the confined space and echoed down the hall.
Rath’s focus was on Valerie as he spoke. “No one wants you, Roach. And you’re wrong. You’re the ugly, stupid twin.” Hope fluttered in my chest.
Her face morphed with unadulterated anger, but before she could speak, Rath stooped down, picking up the screw, and pierced his brow before dragging it down in one slow, deliberate motion. Skin split. Blood welled. The sound—wet and grating-turned my stomach. My heart broke and mended all at once. My vision blurred as I witnessed Rath’s devotion. It was beautiful. The anger that festered and weighed me down disappeared.
“I don’t deserve her, but I’ll love her and worship the ground she walks on. I’ll spend the rest of my life atoning,” he said through the pain, his voice steady. “My mark matches hers. If anyone stares at her, I’ll force them to stare at me.”
Val froze where she lay sprawled on the floor. Mouth agape, eyes fixed on the raw, jagged wound slicing through his face. I couldn’t look away. That mark—it wasn’t just skin deep. It was a vow carved into flesh. This was his way of saying it.He loves her.
Beside me, Lena sobbed. I gripped her waist and angled her chin to look at me. It was no longer a wound her sister inflicted, but a mark my mates now shared. Gently, I peppered kisses along the puffy, raised skin. Tremors ran down her shoulders and arms, and tears rolled from her cheeks. She stared at Rath and the gash that mirrored hers.
The sound of rushed footfalls reached us before Grimm and Axel ran in. Kane swiped some of Rath’s blood with his knuckles.
“This isn’t exactly what I meant when I said to apologize. It’s better.” He slapped Rath on the shoulder. “We’ll handle it from here.”
I stepped forward and grabbed Rath’s hand.
“Pack comes first,” I murmured, glancing at Lena.
“They’ll get tired of you!” Valerie’s shrilled scream filled the cell as Rath let me lead him to Lena. When I’ve got a hold of each of them, they follow me through the cell door and up the stairs. Valerie hurled insults until her voice faded under the house. When we’re in the bathroom, I push them both back so they sit on the tub. I grab the first aid kit under the sink and focus on Lena first. Gently wiping her cheek and dabbing at the cut. It would need stitches. Rath grumbled at her side.
After the slow, meticulous process of stitching her up, she never released his hand. She seemed out of it. Her fingers remained laced with Rath’s as I moved to him, beginning my work on his wounds. When she squeezed his hand, he didn’t pull away, and I saw the way his fingers tightened in a fierce grip. His thumb began to gently caress the back of her hand, and her lip trembled. His eyes, usually shadowed and hard, had lightened, darting vulnerable looks at her–a silent admission that his defenses were gone.
“I hate what you did, and I hate that I understand why. Nox … should have been here. If not for my sister… he would have been mine too. Maybe … someday … I’ll find a way to forgive you. But that’s not today, nor is it tomorrow.” Lena’s words say he’s got a chance, one that isn’t deserved.
I held my breath until he nodded.
I worked slowly, dabbing at the split cut that ran from his temple to the edge of his lip. I quickly stitched the ragged wound where that bitch had ripped his ring out. Then swiped the last of the blood from his brow and cheek before moving back. Lena stood, a soft smile on her face as she checked my handiwork. So much was said without words.
They’d made amends, and everything would be okay.
THIRTY-SIX
