Page 100 of Twisted Violet

And then-

He leans in and licks me, from the curve of my jaw to the temple of my forehead.

I don’t react, not on the outside.

But inside?

Everything screams.

I reach for the gun in my waistband, fingers wrapping tight around the grip as I raise it between us.

His hand snaps out, catches my wrist, squeezes hard enough to make my bones grind.

He looks down, expression amused, curious even, until his eyes land on the tattoo peeking out of the top of my sweatpants.

It’s the celestial moth I got with Niko, the one that erased his ugly mark for good.

His smile drops.

He pries the gun from my hand and shoves me to the ground as his expression twists into something feral.

“You thinkthismakes you strong?” he sneers, voice sharp now as he raises my gun in the air. “You think covering my claim on you will change anything?”

I stare at him and say nothing.

He paces once in a tight circle, one hand dragging through his thinning blonde hair as he glares at me like I’ve offended him on a cosmic level.

“You are mine!” He snaps. “I’m the only one who’s ever really seen you. The only one who’s ever cared. And this, this is how you repay me?”

I laugh at his outburst.

It bubbles up from somewhere deep, sounding hysterical and borderline unhinged.

He startles, and his mouth parts like he doesn’t know what to make of it. “Whatthe fuck is wrong with you?”

I tilt my head, and level him with a vicious glare. “I was just laughing at the irony.”

“Of what?” He hisses.

I chance a glance over my shoulder. “Of them.”

His eyes narrow as he searches the darkness.

Thentheystep out of the shadows.

Stevie, Dallas, Rome, Niko, Atlas, Ezra, Tristan, and Cyrus are all here. Ollie is too, crouched low with his hackles raised like he’s waiting for the command.

All of their guns are raised.

All of their expressions are fierce.

All of their eyes are laser-focused on him.

My monster freezes and, in that moment, I see him for who he truly is… a pathetic, desperate, little man.

He fumbles for the gun in his hand,Rome’s gun, and spins it toward me with his finger on the trigger.

Click.