Page 51

Chapter

Forty-Seven

K YSON

Gannon pulls the funnel out of Tanner’s throat with excruciating slowness, causing him to choke, gurgle, and sputter on the remnants of the wolfsbane.

The acrid taste of sulfur lingering on his tongue, his blood-drenches the floor beneath him, and his hand that is trapped in the vice, is gruesomely split down the middle.

With a sickening twist, I hear the final crunch as the vice-grip closes, severing his hand in two.

Tanner’s screams reverberate through my veins, sending shivers down my spine.

Seizing the old lead sprinkler, Gannon’s eyes gleam with sadistic intent.

Originally, a medieval torture device designed to shower victims with molten lead, we have repurposed it, filling it with sulfuric acid.

The giant ladle-like contraption has an iron handle and a sphere at the bottom, brimming with corrosive acid.

Gannon begins shaking it vigorously, a malevolent grin spreading across his face as he showers Tanner’s writhing form with the burning liquid.

Even in his agonized state, Tanner manages to rasp out defiant words between his hoarse screams. “What do you plan to do with the hunters? And where is Ester, Tanner?” I demand, my voice laced with determination.

Gannon withdraws the lead sprinkler, yet the flesh continues to be eaten away by the acid.

He reaches for the baking soda to neutralize the corrosive substance, but Tanner’s wails persist, his breath straining from choking on wolfsbane and his own harsh screams.

“I hope they annihilate all of you!” Tanner rasps defiantly.

I click my tongue in disapproval and shift my attention to his feet.

Grasping the top of his foot and his ankle firmly, I yank and twist with a deliberate force, contorting his foot in a sickeningly wrong direction.

The bones snap, and Tanner’s screams echo through the room.

Moving to the next foot without hesitation, I prepare to inflict the same agonizing pain.

“What are their plans, Tanner? This ends when you divulge what I need to know,” I growl, my voice dripping with raw fury.

Tanner’s laughter fills the air, a sadistic sound that sends chills down my spine. He cackles as if this is some twisted joke, relishing in our torment.

“Has the storm subsided?” he taunts, before choking on his own blood.

Gannon slaps him, attempting to clear his airway, and swiftly removes the silver strap holding his head in place.

He turns Tanner’s face away from the danger of suffocation, ensuring we extract the information we need.

Tanner spits out blood, his dazed eyes glinting with a wicked smile as he looks up at the ceiling.

“Pain, such a fickle thing. You won’t break me, my King!” he sneers, his voice laced with venomous defiance. I growl in frustration, and move to break his foot.

“Oh, how she screamed, yet no sound escaped her lips. That’s when you know you’ve broken them,” he taunts sadistically, causing Gannon to glance at me.

“Plop,” Tanner chuckles darkly. “Her body just plopped right at her feet.” His laughter intensifies, emanating a sinister aura.

“But it made even me sick when she stuffed your nephew back inside her. I always knew she was unhinged, but she completely lost her mind. It disgusted me to witness it. You should have seen the look on Claire’s face when she killed her mate.

Priceless. The poor fool didn’t stand a chance.

She woke up just as I drove that dagger through his chest. But her baby?

Dead the moment he fell at her feet. It was as if her soul abandoned her as she stared down at him.

” His words drain the blood from my face, leaving me pale and shaken.

“He’s trying to provoke you, Kyson! He wants you to kill him!” Gannon snaps, gripping my wrist tightly as my fingers instinctively reach for Tanner’s throat. I hadn’t even realized I was moving toward his head.

Tanner giggles like a deranged schoolgirl. “That bitch couldn’t keep her mouth shut! She had to run to your sister when she caught Ester and me preparing our deliveries for the council. She ran, yes she did,” he laughs sinisterly.

“Who ran?” Gannon demands, his grip on my wrist tightening as my hand trembles, hovering dangerously close to Tanner’s throat.

“Marissa! She moved into the castle and discovered Ester, didn’t she? Started scheming to expose her, but then she took it a step too far by following us. The damn bitch went straight to Claire. Couldn’t mind her own damn business! Had to interfere,” Tanner spits with venom.

“Claire, always the righteous one. She played by the rules. Instead of coming to you directly, she confided in the council and requested a meeting with us the next morning after your blood donations, we knew she’d run to you the moment you returned.

She made the mistake of contacting Crux, who gave us a little heads up.

So we took care of it!” Tanner laughs, relishing in his own malevolence.

My other hand twitches, but Gannon swiftly grabs it, preventing it from descending upon Tanner’s head. He growls fiercely, his voice filled with warning. “Keep your damn head or get out!” Gannon roars. How can he say that? He killed Claire and tried to kill my mate – he had killed my nephew!

“The Hunters. What are their plans?” Gannon demands, his voice commanding as he begins turning the handle on the rack, stretching Tanner’s limbs to their limits.

Tanner’s screams pierce the air, echoing with unbearable agony.

As much as I desire to end his miserable existence, Gannon is right.

Killing him prematurely will yield no answers.

“Plop,” Tanner laughs, just as Liam nonchalantly descends the steps, whistling a tune. His presence seems incongruous amidst the grim scene unfolding before us.

“The storm has passed. Look at you, growing like a weed!” Tanner taunts, his laughter punctuating the room.

“I’ve always liked you, Liam, such a shame about Claire,” Tanner chuckles, his voice laced with a twisted kind of fondness. Liam tilts his head to the side.

“What did he say about Claire?” Liam asks, and I see him stagger back.

“Liam, get out if you can’t handle it. I am already trying to stop Kyson from killing him.

Out or stay the fuck back!” Gannon warns him.

Gannon twists the handle beside me, forcing Tanner’s body to stretch even further, tearing his skin under immense pressure.

His screams tear through the air, filling the room with an ungodly symphony of pain.

But I have listened to enough of this vile creature’s taunts.

I need answers now. Pushing Gannon and Liam aside, I thrust my hand into Tanner’s diaphragm, plunging deep into his innards.

I fish around, searching for his spine, until my fingers close around it.

Tanner chokes and gasps, his body convulsing in agony as I halt my movement just before he succumbs to shock.

“Wait!” he rasps, lips turning gray. My claws pierce through his abdominal aorta, blood pooling around my hand.

“Where are they?” I roar into his face, watching as terror flickers in his widening eyes.

His mouth opens in a silent scream as I maintain my grip on his spine, refusing to release him from his excruciating torment.

He smiles, his eyes fluttering, and I know he is teetering on the edge of unconsciousness or bleeding out.

Despite lying on his deathbed, a twisted smile adorns his face, and my heart pounds erratically in my chest at his final words.

“They’re already here,” Tanner breathes.

A primal growl escapes my throat as I clench my teeth, squeezing my fingers around his spine, and with a savage jerk, I rip my hand out, tearing his spine away from his body. Blood sprays in all directions, and drenches us.