a

ing. Every corner held a me

te, or so I had thought-with a trash bag in

on business? Trash. The necklace he gave me for my birthday,

d photo of us from five years ago. We were smi

the bag. I threw

ra

shards skittering acr

u think you

oorway, his chest heaving. He had just returned from a run; he was

de my knees weak. Toda

I said coldly, picki

down," h

N

. He was across the room in a blur, gripping my wri

a, Ava! You do

o die!" I screamed back, wrenching my arm. I

e. To an Alpha, defiance from a mate-especially an O

earn your plac

, my legs hitting the edge of the

weight was crushing. He wasn't hitting me, but he was

ojected into my mind.

f me!"

or not, you belong to me. Y

er-something he used for 'play'-but I saw the g

That has silv

he headboard. The moment the wire touched my skin, smoke

screamed, tears le

down. He buried his face in my neck, inhaling

ion; it was a territorial claim. He was trying to mar

mant, snarled from t

ht h

, trying to claim what he thought

th into his l

d coppe

is mouth, his fingers coming away bloody. To

ending. For a second, I thought h

Ring.

on the dre

leared instantly. He looke

from a monster's growl to a

searing in the silver b

oming. Don't cry. I

bed, bleeding from the silver burns, te

ng the blood from his lip.

d and wa

t me.

g at the ropes. The silver bit

as my onl

ed into darkness. My wrists were raw, the poiso

gh the bond, just t

felt the phantom sensation of so

in bed

l pain was nothing compared to th

flesh filling my nose, and I let the hate t

romised the empty room