Darling Wildfire (Red Rabbit #2)

66

NYX

Pain.

It was all consuming to a point where it was a state of mind now, encompassing my entire body. I could feel shock begin to set in as I clutched my hand to my chest, taking deep breaths. Seeing Atlas get whipped was like enduring the lashes myself, although I knew that didn’t compare to the pain he was feeling. The fury I felt was unlike anything I’d experienced before. It was almost like its own entity inside me—hot, festering, wanting to be unleashed.

Now we both watched as Vetticus dragged a young girl down the steps of the cabin and North fell apart. It wasn’t hard to put it all together—it had to be his daughter. He went crazy, launching himself towards her only to get knocked down and continue his struggles in the dirt. It was hard to watch as he was beaten back by three of the guards. It took all of them to hold him as he continued to fight, his chest heaving in sobs and angry curses.

Vetticus had the girl by her hair. It was probably once a beautiful blond but it was matted and dingy now. I caught a flash of gray eyes strikingly like North’s before Vetticus shoved her to her knees a few yards away from North. North was panting, both arms restrained behind his back and another man holding him in a chokehold but it was like he couldn’t give up. He jerked against the hold they had on him, his eyes locked onto the girl.

“Emersyn—”

His voice broke.

She was crying. Her tears made dirty streaks of mud down her face.

“I knew you’d like this surprise,”

Vetticus said cruelly.

“I’ll go back with you—I’ll do—anything,”

North said hoarsely. “Let her go—”

Vetticus barked out a laugh. “Come on now, Kraven—you know me better than that!”

“If you’ve touched her,”

North snarled, a fire in his eyes unlike anything I’d ever seen.

“What if I have?”

Vetticus taunted. “You couldn’t do a thing to stop me.”

“What do you want?”

North demanded, sounding on the edge of panic. I’d never heard this edge to his voice before or seen him this undone. It broke my heart.

“What do I want?”

Vetticus repeated. “I want you to submit—you’ve played your games, you’ve had your fun thinking you’re in control—but that’s over now. You’re mine.”

He waved his free hand at the guards holding North. “Let him go.”

They hesitated and Vetticus sneered at North. “You move from that spot before I command you and I’ll slit her throat right here.”

The men released North and he slumped on his knees, devastation twisting his face into grief and pain.

“See, Kraven, you haven’t really learned who’s in charge here,”

Vetticus said. “I thought you did—you definitely had me fooled in the beginning. But thanks to your little stunt at the dinner, it’s all been made very clear to me.”

Vetticus ran a hand down Emersyn’s face and she flinched. An audible growl came from North and his hands were shaking where they sat in fists on his thighs.

“Don’t fucking touch her,”

he snarled.

“Again, I think it’s how you look at me—I should have shut it down early but I happened to like your fire. Now it’s simply annoying me. I won’t make that mistake again, that’s for sure. So we’re going to do this right now.”

Vetticus drew his knife again and held it to Emersyn’s cheek. North stiffened and glared hatefully at Vetticus, moving as though to get to his feet.

“Stay!”

Vetticus barked and North froze. “Look around you, Kraven. Do you really want to test me? Your team is a mess—your daughter is next—you have nothing.”

My gut twisted with nausea as I watched North’s devastation. The hopelessness pulled his shoulders down to a point I’d never seen before. Even through all of Vetticus’ abuse and all the fighting and killing, he’d never looked so lost. The fire dimmed and sputtered as his gaze remained locked on Emersyn and I knew he’d do whatever he needed to do to ensure her safety. I just wasn’t sure it was going to be enough.

Vetticus shoved Emersyn to one of his men and approached North who’s eyes jumped up to his and the glare returned. Vetticus smirked and stopped a few yards from North.

“Crawl to me, Kraven,” he said.

North hesitated for barely a moment before he crawled to Vetticus through the dirt. When he reached him, he sat back on his heels and looked up at him hatefully.

“See, you still have that look,”

Vetticus said, waving his knife in the air. “So angry. You just don’t get it. I can do whatever I want to you.”

Lashing out, Vetticus slammed his fist into North’s jaw, sending him crashing into the dirt. He struggled to get to his knees but Vetticus came and kicked him down, landing several kicks to his ribs and legs. When he stepped back, North tried to rise again.

“You don’t know when to stay down,”

Vetticus scoffed. “Like a stupid animal who continues to bite the hand that feeds him.”

Vetticus grabbed North’s hair and shoved him face down into the dirt, kneeling near his face.

“How does it feel knowing you still can’t save your daughter?”

He jeered.

Emersyn was sobbing now, her small shoulders shaking. She looked barely a teenager—twelve or thirteen—but it was hard to tell with all the dirt and grime on her.

North submitted. I watched his body go limp and the defiance sputtered and died. Vetticus felt it too and stood up. He went back over to Emersyn and taking her by the arm, threw her towards North.

North didn’t hesitate but launched himself towards her. They collided, scrambling into each other’s arms, both shaking. My heart lodged in my throat and my cheeks were wet. This was torture in itself—brutal and cruel.

North was murmuring to Emersyn who’d buried her face in North’s shoulder, her arms tightly wrapped around his neck. He was clutching her to him, frantically trying to hug her and make sure she was okay all at the same time.

Vetticus let it go on for a moment before he walked over and threw his knife in the dirt near North. The sound of a gun being drawn brought North’s attention back to Vetticus. There wasn’t rage and defiance in his eyes anymore. They were dark, vacant and despondent.

“Pick up the knife,”

Vetticus said.

When North didn’t move, he grabbed Emersyn by the hair.

She shrieked as he pulled her away from North who tried to keep a hold of her. Vetticus shoved her to her knees and pressed his gun to her head.

“Pick up the knife!”

Vetticus barked again.

North picked up the knife, his hand visibly shaking.

“I knew hurting you wouldn’t work—hurting your team might work for a bit but in the end, that didn’t quite do the trick either. You need to really learn who’s in charge,”

Vetticus said. “You are going to cut her…right here—”

Vetticus drew a line from above Emersyn’s eyebrow, down crossing her eye, down her cheek to her jaw, just missing the corner of her mouth. “—on the face—with that knife.”

North’s face warped into a look of horror, then violence. “No, no—don’t look at me like that or I’ll make you cut off her hand.”

North trembled, his jaw clenching and unclenching in an effort to neutralize his features.

“What are you waiting for?”

Vetticus said. “If you don’t do it, I’ll kill all your men before doing something even worse to your daughter…then I’ll kill her too.”

Vetticus shoved Emersyn back to North. He brushed her hair behind her ear, searching her face and trying to keep his emotions at bay. His eyes were full of tears that hadn’t fallen yet as he fought to keep his composure. Vetticus stepped to the side, gun pressed against Emersyn’s head.

“Do you need a countdown?”

Vetticus mocked.

I couldn’t breathe, muttering curses with what little breath I could manage. I felt so damn helpless. I couldn’t save anyone. Atlas was in bad shape, Preacher was passed out from the pain of losing his eye and I still couldn’t wrap my mind around the fact I was one less finger than before. My mind balked at the thought but focusing on reality was not any better.