Calvin’s POV
The first thing I registered was the sound.
A door slamming against the wall. The sharp, ragged inhale of someone barely containing their fury. And then-
A roar.
Not just any roar.
A sound so raw, so drenched in murderous rage, that the very air in the room seemed to shudder.
I lifted my head slowly.
Lorien stood in the doorway, his chest heaving, his serpentine eyes burning with an unfathomable fury. His hands were clenched so tight that his claws had unsheathed, digging into his own palms. His aura flooded the room, suffocating, oppressive, a force of nature ready to tear through anything in its way.
Franklin took a wary step back. Even he, ever composed, looked pale.
But I didn’t move.
I didn’t have the strength to.
Or maybe, I just didn’t care.
Then Lorien’s voice shattered the silence.
“You-” His voice was low, guttural, like the growl of a beast about to tear into its prey.
I barely had time to process it before he lunged.
His fist slammed into my jaw, snapping my head to the side. Pain exploded through my skull, but I barely had a second to react before his hands were on me, yanking me up from where I had been sitting on the floor.
I staggered, blood already pooling in my mouth.
And then-
The second punch landed.
This time, to my ribs.
A sickening crack echoed through the room. I coughed violently, choking on the taste of iron. The force of the blow sent me crashing into the wall, my already battered body slamming against the hard surface. My vision blurred for a moment, but before I could even think to brace myself, Lorien was on me again.
“You dared to blind my mate?” His voice was thunderous, shaking with barely restrained rage. “You dared to lay your filthy hands on her?”
His mate?
Lysaa…
Lysaa was his mate.
Shock flared through me, but it was drowned out by the overwhelming pain of his next strike.
A hand wrapped around my throat, lifting me clean off the ground.
I choked, clawing at his wrist, but it was useless. Lorien was stronger than me even at my best-right now, in my current state, I was nothing.
His grip tightened. “Did you think I wouldn’t find out?”
I tried to speak, to rasp out some kind of apology, but no words came.
It wouldn’t have mattered.
Lorien wasn’t listening.
He threw me like I was nothing.
My body crashed into the wooden table in the center of the room. Wood splintered under the force, sharp pieces stabbing into my side. I barely had a second to catch my breath before he was on me again, a firm grip digging into my scalp as he dragged me up by the hair. White, hot spare flared through my skull.
There wasn’t even time to process it.
Another punch came out of nowhere.
My head snapped back, and this time, I felt my lip split. Warm blood dribbled down my chin, but Lorien didn’t stop.
A knee to my stomach.
A fist to my side.
A sharp, brutal kick that sent me sprawling.
I hit the ground hard, gasping, my vision flickering.
My back.
The wound that Franklin had just treated-it had torn open.
I could feel the slow, sticky warmth of fresh blood seeping through the bandages, staining them red. My entire body ached, screaming in agony, but I made no effort to fight back.
I deserved this.
I knew I did.
“Get up,” Lorien growled.
I didn’t move.
Another kick. This time, to my ribs. I was certain I heard something crack.
“GET UP!” he roared.
I didn’t.
Not because I couldn’t, but because-
What was the point?
What was the point of anything anymore?
Lorien grabbed me by the back of my neck and hauled me up again, shaking me like a ragdoll. His face was a storm of fury, his breath ragged.
“You don’t even have the fucking dignity to fight back?” His voice was thick with disgust. “What, are you going to cower like a dog now? Disgusting mutt!”
I barely heard him over the ringing in my ears.
Somewhere in the haze of my mind, I felt a distant sort of relief.
At least the pain in my chest-the one from Kamrynn’s rejection-was overshadowed by something else now.
“Stop it!”
Franklin.
His voice was desperate, but he might as well have been whispering into a hurricane.
Lorien didn’t stop.
He slammed me back into the ground, his knee pressing into my chest. I gasped, the weight crushing, suffocating.
Franklin tried again. He really did.
I heard him shouting my name, his voice strained with panic as he lunged at Lorien, trying to pull him off me. It was useless.
Lorien didn’t even turn to acknowledge him. With a single movement-almost careless in its ease-he threw Franklin aside like a crumpled piece of paper. The sickening sound of his body crashing against the wall echoed through the room. A choked noise left Franklin’s throat as he slumped onto the floor, dazed, before struggling onto his hands and knees.
“Franklin-” I tried to warn him, but my voice was weak, barely more than a rasp. My head ringed uncontrollably, I could feel the blood dripping down the side of my face as Lorien’s boot dug into my ribs again.
The impact sent white-hot pain lancing through my body, forcing the air from my lungs in a strangled gasp. My vision tilted dangerously and I could feel my body finally start to give out.
Through the haze of agony, I saw Franklin push himself up, his expression twisted in anguish as he realized he’s powerless. He looked at me-really looked at me-and something in his face broke. He knew I wouldn’t survive this much longer. His lips pressed into a thin line, hesitation flickering across his features before he turned on his heel and bolted out of the room.
I already knew where he was going.
He was going to get help.
But there was no one strong enough to stop Lorien. Not here. Not now.
And honestly? I didn’t want anyone else to get hurt.
I brought this on myself. This is my burden to bear, my cross to carry.
Lorien’s hand tightened around the back of my neck, dragging me up from the crumpled, bleeding mess I’d become on the ground just to send me crashing back down again. My body slammed against the ground, my head snapping forward from the force. Blood pooled in my mouth, metallic and thick.
Every part of me screamed-skin torn, ribs bruised or broken, vision swimming between flickering light and suffocating darkness.
I couldn’t hold on much longer.
The world tilted dangerously, my limbs trembling under their own weight. A sluggish numbness started to creep in, dulling the sharp edges of my pain. My body knew. It knew I was on the verge of slipping into unconsciousness, and it welcomed it.
I heard…
Footsteps.
Rushed, frantic.
And then-
“LORIEN, THAT’S ENOUGH!”
A voice.
Sharp. Shaking.
But unmistakable.
“Get away from him now! Please!”
My mind struggled to process the sound, my sluggish thoughts clawing their way through the fog. My vision, blurry and uneven, barely made sense of the figures in front of me.
Franklin.
And-
Kamrynn.
She was standing there, horror carved into every line of her face. I could barely make out the way her chest heaved, the tremor in her hands, but I felt it. I felt the weight of her fear. The sheer desperation in her voice.
Lorien finally paused. I think he was saying something, but I couldn’t hear it.
Everything was fading.
I couldn’t hold on anymore.
My vision blurred uncontrollably, the world around me twisting and fading at the edges.
The last thing I see is Kamrynn.
She’s rushing toward me, her golden hair flying behind her, eyes wide with panic. I barely register the way she falls to her knees, reaching for me, her touch warm as she cradles my face in her hands.
Her palm presses against my cheek, grounding me in a way nothing else can.
She smells perfect.
Soft. Familiar. Like home.
I want to tell her that.
I want to tell her so many things.
But my lips won’t move.
My head pounds, my body throbbing with unbearable pain. Every breath is an effort, every inch of me screaming to give in, to surrender to the weight pulling me under.
Are those tears in her eyes?
I think they are.
Or maybe I’m dreaming.
Maybe none of this is real.
But it doesn’t matter.
She’s here.
And the fact that she’s here with me makes me so very happy…
My eyes finally closed as the darkness swallowed me whole.