Total pages in book: 85
Estimated words: 79692 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 398(@200wpm)___ 319(@250wpm)___ 266(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 79692 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 398(@200wpm)___ 319(@250wpm)___ 266(@300wpm)
I winced. Wasn’t he basically dumping me right now – in public – for the nth time?
Alejandro cursed.
“What the fuck?” the panther roared. “Are you actually having some stupid lover’s quarrel right now?”
“No!” Alejandro denied.
“Yes,” I snapped at the same time. Then I realized what Alejandro said. Riiiight. He really was dumping me in public.
The panther burst into laughter. “I think The Human Monster just got dumped.”
I was so depressed I couldn’t even muster enough strength to get mad. Yay for you, Cortez panther. Way to go, rubbing salt on my wound.
Alejandro’s cheeks had stained with color. “It’s not like that, dumbass. The princess is engaged to Prince Pasquale.” He took my hand, surprising me. “Also, I think you’re right.”
I blinked. “I am?”
“They should be shown the error of their ways.”
IT WAS ALREADY EVENING when Alejandro and I came out of the bar. It had taken us longer than I expected to knock everyone out. The panthers had put up a good fight, and there was also the fact that they did outnumber us ten to one.
“Why didn’t you have one of your fits, dammit?” Alejandro bit out as we headed to the cottage I had rented for the night.
“I told you, it doesn’t work like that. She only comes out when I feel angry. Or I’m in real danger.”
Alejandro was incredulous. “You were fighting off ten panthers and that’s still not enough danger for her?”
I shrugged.
His teeth audibly gnashed against each other.
“She knows how strong I am.”
“I don’t think she knows how weak you are.”
Sighing, I changed the subject, knowing there was no point convincing him that my darker half knew what she was doing. “Did you notice that none of Pasquale’s pack came to help us?”
Alejandro’s face became grimmer. “I did.”
When we reached the cottage I had rented out, he said quietly, “Good night.” His eyes spoke a different message. Take care.
“Good night,” I said quietly. I will.
Inside the cottage, I took my time showering. Under the stream of water, I also found myself praying. I had a feeling tonight might be the last time I’d ever see Pasquale.
Our plan to trap Pasquale was simple. It had to be since there were just the two of us. Alejandro would circle the town, waiting for whomever Pasquale would hire to kill me. No matter how many they were, we both knew he would able to handle it. He was not The Den’s #1 fighter for nothing.
As for me, all I had to do was wait. Once Pasquale realized none of his hired assassins would be coming, he was likely to come to me and finish the job himself. Knowing Pasquale, he would engage me in small talk first, hoping to take me by surprise.
That was the plan, but it was an epic fail.
Pasquale was already knocking on my door when I came out of the shower. Right way, I knew something was wrong. It wasn’t right that he was here too early. Running down the stairs, I grasped the doorknob as I checked the peephole.
Pasquale was smiling, and he wasn’t alone. He had a young boy with him, a bird shifter, and Pasquale had a gun pointed to his head.
I opened the door. “Pasquale—-”
“Hello, my princess.” His smile didn’t reach his eyes.
I didn’t even think of pretending. “I’m not going to fight. Just let the boy go, and I swear, on my father’s honor, I will do whatever you ask me.”
He stepped forward, pulling the boy with him, and I moved aside to let them in.
“Close the door,” he said pleasantly, still holding the gun to the boy’s head. When I was done, he gestured to the couch. “Sit down, Calys.”
Again, I did as asked. The boy’s eyes were filled with fear, and my heart clenched for him. “It’s going to be okay—-”
“Will it?” Pasquale snarled. “I’ve a mind to make you kill yourself right now—-”
“If I do, will you let him go?”
He barked out a humorless laugh. “Always so damn heroic, even when everyone calls you The Human Monster. All these years, you’ve known how the panthers never thought of you as their own. So why do you damn keep trying to force yourself on them?”
“I’m not forcing myself on anyone—-”
“Yes, you are!” he shouted. “You should have killed them all. If I had your powers, I would have killed them all!” Sheer fury had his hand shaking, and the boy started to cry as Pasquale’s gun knocked against his head.
Swallowing, I said, “Please, Pasquale. Please, anything—-”
Someone knocked on the door, making all three of us freeze.
Pasquale’s eyes burned into mine, and I knew one wrong word from me and the boy was dead. Trying to keep my voice from trembling, I asked, “W-who is it?”
“It’s Juriaan.”
Oh my God, no.
“I really need to talk to you.”
“Get rid of him,” Pasquale hissed.