Page 25 of Havoc

Was it obvious?

She flips her blonde hair off her shoulder. “And you are?”

Her smile is less friendly now. Her tone is territorial.

The younger version of me would have let her taunt run my heart over. But I’m not that girl anymore, and after the past few weeks, I’m at the end of my rope.

“I’m Aimee.” My smile is overly sweet, matching hers. “The girl who slept in Havoc’s bed last night.”

For the first time, his road name doesn’t sour on my tongue because everything about my comment has the desired effect. Reina’s smile slips, and her eyes narrow. But I don’t give her the opportunity to respond before walking away. She can think what she wants.

I don’t like playing games, but if someone is going to drag me into one, I’ll sure as hell win.

9

Aimee

There’s nothing like punchingsomething to let out a little frustration. My knuckles crack as my fist meets vinyl, and pain radiates through my hand and up my arm.

But I don’t pull back. I strike again.

And again.

After last night, I need to release this ball of tension.

More importantly, I need to regain strength after the Iron Sinners locked me in a cage and spent two weeks holding me at the brink of starvation. It was exhausting and painful, but it wasn’t unexpected. After I escaped from Titan a decade ago, I assumed he’d make me suffer. At least this time, Titan began his torture with isolation, and I got out before it went any further.

The next stage would have been worse.

It always is.

Once I was hungry and weak enough, he would have dragged me to his room like he did back then.

Some mornings, I still wake up feeling the chains at my wrists. Feeling his hands on my skin. Reliving the nightmares again and again.

I strike the bag once more and picture Titan’s face.

Eyes that haunt me when I close my own.

Levi is worried because of the state they found me in, but he has no idea that was nothing compared to a decade ago.

Sweat drips down the back of my neck as I release the rage breeding in my chest. Every painful strike of bone against bag is satisfying. But not enough.

Nothing will be enough until Titan suffers like I did. Like he’s making my father suffer now.

“Maybe you should wrap your wrist before you break it.” Luna eyes my hand.

I step back, shaking my wrists out. “Probably.”

But I won’t. I need to feel this if for no other reason than to remind me what I’m fighting for. Pain is a reminder that I’ve felt worse and survived. If Titan couldn’t break me back then, nothing will.

“I, for one, need a second breakfast.” Tempe wipes the sweat off her forehead with the back of her hand.

With her and Reagan being pregnant, I expected a calmer workout. That wasn’t the case. Clearly, the two of them have no plans of letting pregnancy slow them down. So even if they were careful, they worked almost as hard as Luna during their self-defense sparring.

“Ghost has to take a trip into the city to switch out a camera at Sapphire Rise. We could tag along and grab breakfast in town,” Luna offers.

Reagan’s eyebrows furrow. “At the strip club?”