Page 39 of Savage Sacrifice (The Savage Six #4)

ASHER

I know that knock. It’s a knock I heard once and have dreaded ever since. If I were to close my eyes, I would be able to visualize the very first time it haunted me, but there’s no time for reminiscing now.

My entire body stiffens, and even with my cock still inside of Polaris, the sound has killed the moment. Instead of worshipping my woman as she worships me, I slip from her core, pulling her panties from her mouth as I press a kiss to her shoulder.

“Get dressed, Silver,” I breathe, rising to my feet, and she glances back at me, confusion thick in her eyes.

“What’s going on?” she breathes, wrapping her arms around her middle nervously, and I fail to offer her a reassuring smile.

Instead of answering, I reach for my boxer shorts, dragging them on quickly before shaking out my jeans and slipping them on too.

“Asher?” she murmurs, forgoing her underwear as she hurries into her black sweat pants and white t-shirt.

I part my lips, ready to answer, when another knock pounds from the door. It captures both of our attention, leaving us gaping at the wood when they call out from the other side.

“I’m knocking out of kindness. Don’t make me wait, boy.”

Polaris gapes at me in understanding and I hurry to give her the black sweatshirt she discarded earlier. She takes it, slipping it over her head before banding her arms tightly around her middle again. Last time it was uncertainty, this time it’s fear.

Fuck.

Hurrying to pull my t-shirt on, I glance around the room, making sure there’s nothing on display for him to see before I take a deep breath, exhaling so fucking slowly, and reach for the door handle.

I look over my shoulder at Polaris standing by the bed, her back ramrod straight, but she still nods eagerly at the door, encouraging me to answer.

The second it opens an inch, he pushes his way inside. His top hat is as obnoxious as ever, his mask firmly in place. The elongated nose makes my toes curl as his floor-length leather jacket crinkles with every step.

Rage coils in my veins, and it only heightens when he sets his sights on my Silver.

“Polaris, I’m glad to see you looking like yourself again.” His lips curl into a sinister smile, and I watch as Polaris gulps nervously, but doesn’t speak a word.

Opting to leave the door open, I clear my throat. “What do you want?”

The Crow tilts his head as he peers at me. “No pleasantries?”

“We’ve never done pleasantries,” I say with a scoff, and he hums.

“But now we’re in the presence of a woman,” he states, aiming a finger in Polaris’s direction.

My nostrils flare with irritation, but I tamp it down instead of exploding on him like I want to. “What do you want, Crow?” I repeat, and he sighs, folding his hands together in front of him as he glances back and forth between us.

“Isn’t that the question of the hour, huh?”

Pinching the bridge of my nose, I exhale slowly again, but staying calm is futile around this man. “I’m not playing your mind games right now.”

“Of course not.” His lips purse and I feel like I’m walking a tightrope, except he’s got ahold of one end of it. He’s never like this. Almost jovial. It’s off-putting.

“So, what do you want?” I repeat for the third time, desperate to get him far away from Polaris as soon as possible.

“Don’t speak to me like one of your fucking mongrels didn’t kill my right hand man,” he snaps, and I rock back on my heels.

There he is. The charade is over. But before I can say a word, Polaris gasps.

“Are you joking? You were going to kill Blaze,” she bites, furious at the man before us, and I hate that he’s there. I hate that I can’t tuck her behind me and defend her from his toxic stare.

He whirls his head in her direction. “I’ll get to you,” he growls, and I side-step him, coming to Polaris’s side, refusing to let her face this monster alone, but she seems unfazed by his intensity.

“This conversation doesn’t roll on your terms,” she insists, waving a finger in his direction. “You might be the big bad crow out there, but in our private space, you’re not. You will be respectful, or you’ll get the hell out.”

He bares his teeth, but that’s not what captures my attention.

No.

It’s his eyes.

His… glowing eyes.

What the fuck?

“Your eyes,” I blurt, grabbing Polaris’s hand as I pull her against my side, and The Crow looks away.

Disbelief floods my veins as I stare at him. Rage consumes him, I can hear it in his racing heart, feel it in the trembling of the floor between us, and see it in his coiled fists.

“You’ll be mindful of how you speak to me,” he bellows darkly, stealing the air from the room as Polaris squeezes my hand tightly, but instead of backing away, I step forward.

“You’re not a wolf.”

“What?” Polaris interjects with a gasp, but we’re in a stare off, neither of us daring to look away.

His eyes are normal now, almost making me question myself, but I know what I saw.

“A wolf doesn’t do that with their eyes,” I state, and I sense Polaris’s confusion, but to my surprise, The Crow shrugs, standing taller than ever.

“When did I ever say I was?”

I blink at him, instinctively taking a step back in surprise. I run my tongue over my bottom lip, aware he’s watching my every move.

“You’re my family.” I hate the words in my mouth; they taste like ash.

“Am I?” He cocks his head to the side, and my head rears back as my eyebrows gather in confusion.

“What the hell is going on?”

He smiles, rolling his shoulders, not at all taken aback by the revelations unfolding between us. Instead, he almost seems…relieved?

“Your mother was a bargaining chip, you were the prize.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Polaris blurts, her hand a deathly vice around mine now.

“Think about it, Asher. Think real hard,” he pushes, and there’s something about his tone, the hint of amusement, and the cock sure curl to his lips, I can’t take it.

“Fuck you,” I bite, using my free hand to shove at his chest.

He doesn’t budge. He never fucking does. He’s like a brick wall, unwavering, but when he falls, he’ll break the ground beneath him as he goes, likely taking me along with him.

“She stays away because I ensure it. You’re alone because I chose it, and tomorrow will not come unless I decide it.” His words are laser sharp, drenched in acid, burning through my chest and cutting me open. He’s not lying, I can feel it. I can fucking feel it.

“You’re not a fucking god,” Polaris shouts, trying to tug me back a step, but I can’t move.

The Crow turns his attention toward her and I hate it. “Am I not? Tell me what I don’t control.”

“Me. You don’t control me,” she insists, and he laughs. He fucking laughs.

“But you’ve done my bidding. So as feisty as you might be, you’re wrong.” Color drains from Polaris’s face at the acknowledgment, and it cuts me deeper than my own pain. “We were rudely interrupted the other night. How are your parents? I never got the chance to ask.”

“Screw you,” she spits back, the same rage coursing through her veins as it does in mine.

The Crow slowly rocks his head from side to side, cracking his neck as his presence continues to fill the room, growing stronger with every breath.

“I wield those around me with fear. I know where to hit, I know the marks, their weaknesses, which then gives me the satisfaction of controlling your emotions.”

Her jaw is tight, anger flaring in her eyes as she refuses to back down, despite the sharpness of his truths.

“Can you get to the point of why you’re here?” I interject, barely able to breathe, and he thankfully turns away from her again, but his dark eyes find mine with intent.

“I think it’s obvious.”

“If it were, I wouldn’t be asking,” I grind out, and he smirks, lacing his fingers together.

“I have a deal to make,” he states, flexing his fingers before he straightens his leather jacket.

Is he… nervous?

“It’s a no,” Polaris insists, and he snickers.

“No isn’t an option,” he explains, and I gulp, fully aware that there’s never truly an option with this man.

“It’s always an option,” she insists, standing firm, and he shakes his head.

“You’re trying my patience. Shut her up before I do it for you,” he warns, glaring at me, and I shrug, despite the tendrils of ice shooting down my spine.

“You won’t go near her, and she’s her own person with her own mind. If she wants to hand it to you, she can.”

He grinds his teeth, his frustration palpable once again as he rolls his shoulders back. “The deal.”

“It’s a no,” Polaris repeats, and he grunts.

“I don’t think it is.”

“How can you be so sure?” she goads, giving him the opening he was waiting for.

“Don’t ask him that, he always knows he’s wagering what you want,” I grind out, and her eyes narrow on the man before us.

“Which is?”

The vicious smile that curls his lips threatens to bring me to my knees.

“There is nothing you haven’t done that I haven’t known about. That goes for you too, Polaris,” he states, glancing between us. “Would you like me to start at the beginning or cut to the chase?”

What the fuck is that even supposed to mean?

“Cut to the chase!” Polaris snaps, her nails digging into my hand so hard I’m certain there will be blood.

It’s almost as though he pouts, disappointed by the fact that she doesn’t want to hear his elaborate story, but my blood runs cold as he opens his mouth, placing the offering on the table.

“I know what your sacrifice is.”