Page 149 of Dance of Defiance

He didn’t even before I pictured Val about to go off and have a wild, debauched threesome with those two fucks.

But now?

May God have mercy on Bobby Rizzo. Cause I won’t.

He gets one good jab in, which misses me. That’s his peak.

I disarm him right after that, and watch the color drain from his face. Then I toss my own knife aside, slam him to the ground, and start to lay into him.

Over and over and over.

…and fuckingover.

His face turns to pulp. His body crumples. Blood spreads like a fucking ocean around me and wet sounds of my fists pummelinghis flesh fill the cathedral until a hand lands heavily on my shoulder.

“Bull. BULL.”

I hesitate, my blood-soaked fist freezing in a drawn back position. I blink, turning to see The Stag standing beside where I’m knelt over Bobby’s body.

“Enough,” The Stag growls quietly. “He’s dead, okay?”

I glance back down at the bloodied puddle that used to be Bobby.

“Enough, brother,” The Stag murmurs again. “It’s done.”

I haveno idea what time it is when I'm shuffling toward my building. After the trial I went to Reaper, because I fucking needed it. But even that place said no to me at the door—maybe partly for the manic look on my face, but almost certainly because of the fuckingbloodcoating my shirt and still staining my hands.

So I grabbed a few drinks to numb it all in various dive bars on the way here.

I'm fishing in my pocket for my phone when I realize there’s a figure leaning against the side of my building.

A figure in jeans and a leather jacket, his messy, mid-length hair shoved back from his face, his haunting blue eyes piercing through the darkness into me.

I stumble to a stop a few feet from Val, my skin tingling as we lock eyes.

“What the fuck are you doing here,” I mumble, glaring at him.

Val clears his throat and takes a slow breath. “It…occurred to me, that what I did the other day, with Dasha?—”

“Could have gotten me killed?” I snap.

He shakes his head. “I clocked her. She wasn’t going to?—”

“You gambled with my fucking life!” I roar.

Val frowns. “I get that what I did was fucked up. But you’re being dramatic?—”

I surge into him, grabbing his collar and slamming him to the wall.

“Youdon’t get to make that fucking call!” I roar at him. “What you did?—”

“Got you off the hook!” he snaps. “Itold youI was going to take care of it for you, that I was going to fix it! Thefuckdid you think that meant?!” he yells, grabbing my collar right back.

I stare at him, fury surging behind my eyes. But instead of exploding, I take a slow breath and level a cold glare at him.

“I think maybe…I don't know,” I mumble, defeated.

“Then stop,” Val groans, his eyes flashing ice-blue fire at me. His hand tightens on my shirt, and I feel my breath catch and my pulse thud wildly. My eyes drop to his lips, and heat tingles across my skin.