BREAK ME (Teased and Broken Book 3) (21 page)

Pretty pictures of the formidable man half naked in a field.
 

That gorgeous, sensual brooding, intense as fuck, face, splashed all over the screens in the bathroom.

“The fuck!” I screamed and nearly fell ass over head as I exploded from the shower.
 

“What?”
 
I barely whispered as the accusations about Thornton’s involvement in the explosion rang out thick and fast. “Have you done Thorn?”

I hurriedly yanked on a long sleeved black dress I had pulled absent mindedly from the closet and stared at the screen.
Terrified.
 

“Elena!” Aaron’s voice clamoured outside the door.

I unlocked it.

“Oh babe, so sorry!” he wailed, engulfing me in a hug.

I pointed at the screen, unable to speak. Unbelieving.

“Promising artist and ex-soldier, Brett Argosy confirmed among those dead in the military base explosion.”
 

The news politely informed me.

I screamed, snapped my body from Aaron’s arms.
 

I couldn’t be touched.

No one.
 

Nothing.

Could touch me now.
 

Clarissa rushed into the room, took one look at me and freaked out. “She’s going into some kind of shock, let’s lie her down,” she yelled at Aaron.
 

I pushed her aside, stumbling awkwardly down the stairs. The absolute
last
thing I felt like doing was lying down.
 

“Where’s my fucking phone!” I roared. “Where is it?!”
 

“Here!” Clarissa couldn’t hand it to me fast enough. “I found it downstairs.”

I called Thorn.

Aaron who had peeked around at what I was doing, freaked out. “She’s calling the monster, that fucking
killer
!”

Thorn didn’t pick up.

I text messaged him.
 
Where are you? I need to see you.

He responded at once.

See the news? Like my work?

With soft cock dead, we can be together forever. No more complications. No more of your divided attention Enchantress. I will not and cannot abide it as your husband.
 

Want to see me?

You know where I am.

Come get me.
 

Twenty Six

“Oh, I’ll come and get you,” I hissed, as I looked down at the message from Thornton Darko for what was possibly the millionth time.
 

 
I was helpless to the compulsion to look at the damned thing.
 

On some fucked in the head level of delusion, I hoped I had misread it.
 

I hoped the disgraceful message was a mistake.
 

I hoped Brett would wake me up from this nightmare.
 

“El,” Aaron took the phone from me, and placed it face down on the back seat of the car. “Stop torturing yourself.”

“Aaron’s right. Stop looking at that fucking message.” Clarissa hollered from the driver’s seat.
 

“So he didn’t say where he is?” Aaron frowned.
 

I nodded. “It doesn’t matter. I
know
where he is.”
 

Yep. I knew
exactly
where that fucked up piece of shit circus freak was. On a soul grinding night like this, I imagined Thorn would be whipping himself pointlessly again before the dead town folk and his family in the forest reserve they were buried in.
 

My throat burned.

I was drinking too much vodka.

I wanted to be numb when I killed Thornton Darko.
 

I saw what I wanted to do to him vividly in my minds rather fucked up eye.

Pull out his heart.

Lick it as he choked on unending blood.
 

Stomp on it.
 

“Ease up Els,” Aaron pulled the bottle from my shaking hand. “You are confronting Thornton Darko. He is epic bad ass. I agree, don’t get me wrong, he’s too scary to confront sober. But you still need to make sense to yourself woman.”
I gratefully patted his shoulder, flashing him a strained smile in thanks.
 

Brett.

Oh. Holy fuck
Brett!

“This is all my fault,” I wailed.

“It sort of is,” Clarissa agreed.
 

“Fucks sake!” Aaron shouted angrily. “Things
not
to say,
bitch
!”

I saw Clarissa’s shoulders bob in a shrug. “I’m sorry. I was being harsh. But Elena honey, come on? This tragedy should hardly come as a surprise to you. You should
know
an Enchantress and a Warlock aren’t ever going to happen. One of them always fucking breaks the other! It was always going to end in tears.”

“Again, things
not
to say!” Aaron hissed between pursed lips. “Where is your fucking heart, witch? Elena just lost the love of her life!”
“By inviting a dirty fucking wizard into her bed!” She sighed.

“Fuck you Clarissa.” I snapped. “How dare you judge me. You fucked an almost married man!”

“And even if Brett had lived, what could you have given him?” Clarissa braked sharply, blowing out an angry breath. “When you promised yourself to
him!
To the dirty wizard himself!
”

My eyes widened.

“What?” Aaron’s head snapped back and forth between us. “What is she talking about Elena?”

“How could you know that?” I whispered, horrified.
 

Clarissa whirled around, hazel eyes glittering with tears. “How could I not know it? The whole magical community is talking about the crazy thing you did.”

“What crazy thing?” My friend wanted to know.

“Elena agreed to take Thornton Darko as her husband.”

Aaron groaned, head falling into his hands. “The magic fuck stick strikes again! Elena
please
! It’s all cock thrall gorgeous. Have I not explained this before? It is
just
a cock. Remember the utter scum bag that is attached to the cock!”

“Aaron!” I snapped. “Fuck you.”

“
Both
of you,” I added, throwing a dagger glare into the back of Clarissa’s head.
 
“I’m going to find Thorn.”

“Where is he, exactly?” Clarissa asked, glancing down at her mobile phone that was flashing in her hand.

“In a cemetery,” I hissed as I flung myself out of the car.

“Nice one!” Aaron congratulated, as he tumbled out after me. “Way to kick ass! You already buried him huh?”

I screamed when I saw the fire.

Thornton Darko’s castle looked like it had been flattened by a bomb.

Only half of the structure remained and that was quickly going to the shit. Crumbling, eaten away by hungry flame.
 

Brett. What the fuck did you do?
 

My heart pulsed with ugly dread.

A fresh wave of scalding tears descended.
 

This was such a fucking mess.
 

Later, as I strode into the wet, cool forest, I honestly didn’t know how I was upright.

Because I was on my fucking knees here.

Thornton Darko had
killed
Brett.
 

Murdered my
everything.

I wanted to fuck him up with my hate.
 

I wanted him to swallow my misery and choke on
all
the tears.

Thorn clearly wanted to end.

He
must.

To do this to me.

To … us.

Why?

My gaze swept over the graves of the town folk, his family.

Until it tripped and fell over
Him.
 

I froze.
 

He knelt there, torso bare, viciously flinging that whip over his back. His bulging inked arm was a blur of speed and craziness as he applied himself to his pointless self flagellation.
 

I squinted, making out the name on the headstone of the grave he was kneeling before.
 

Alice, his little sister.

Blood sped down his tortured skin.

“Why is he doing that?” Clarissa whispered loudly behind me.

“Fucked if I know,” Aaron answered.

Ignoring them,
 
I ran at Thornton Darko, aiming my body squarely at him. I wanted to flatten him, as he had me. I screamed. Well, I
tried
to scream. But no sound came. I didn’t have the air. He stole the breath right out of me. A strange breathy, strangled, agonised rasp fell from my lips instead.

I was overcome by devastation for all he had done.

All the cruelty.
 

All the bull shit.

All the manipulation.

All the lies.

Thorn snapped his huge body around, dark green eyes going wide with surprise.
 

He released the whip.
 

“Elena,” he said thickly.

“How could you?!” I wailed. My body slammed into his. I knocked him over onto his back. I leapt atop of him and punched him in the face. My fist was a haze of insanity as it pummelled his cracked up porcelain skin.
 

I wanted to smash his beautiful face in.
 

“What?” Astonished, his huge hands flashed to grip my wrists, stopping their violent trajectory. He pinned them to the cool grass as he rolled us over. I was trapped beneath him, held firm between his muscular thighs as he straddled me. His breath fell like warm silk over my neck.
 

“No!”
I protested and brought my knee up. It struck his repulsive huge ball sac.

He grunted, one hand falling from my wrist to flash protectively over his groin.

I flipped, writhed frantically and got free from beneath him.

“I fucking hate you!” I screamed and crawled away from him.

“Elena!” he growled.

His huge arms wound around my waist as he slammed me onto my stomach. My flushed cheek cracked against the ground. He covered my body with the insane heat and press of his. “What the hell has gotten into you?”

I scrunched my eyes shut against the sensual assault of that body.

The coolness of the nipple ring digging into my shoulder blade.

How deliciously firm, taut and well cut his muscles were as they pressed urgently through the thin black material of my dress onto my skin.

His enormous cock stirred against my trembling ass.

His lips as they nipped my ear, were a hot devastating caress.
 

“Please
?” he implored, on a broken cry. “I thought you would be happy. Did you get my message?”

I could barely process what he was saying.
 

“Let me go, you sick demented fuck!” I wailed, twisting, thrashing urgently. “Get the fuck away from me now! I don’t want you!”

Thornton Darko withdrew from me so fast I was blasted almost senseless by the cool fragrant night air. It whipped my tingling, aching skin.
 

I flipped up onto my knees, rose to my feet and whirled around.

He stood there, his beautiful face engulfed by horror.

His big chest was heaving.
 

The ravens at the V of his hips looked like they were in flight.

All of his skin appeared to ripple, tremble.

“What?” he choked out. “What did you say?”

“I said I don’t want you Thornton Darko!” I wound my hand around my slave choker, the raven necklace, this hell he had gifted me, and yanked it free.

Free.

I was free of him.

Fuck.

I hadn’t expected
that.

“What have you done?” He whispered. Tears filled his dark green eyes.
 

I blinked at him dazedly.

He was covered in tiny red flickering dots.

What the hell?

They were crawling all over the impressive ink upon his magnificent chest.

One red dot burned into the frown line between his eyes.
 

“What are those?” I asked, already
knowing
as a chill of recognition shivered through me.

His lips parted as he stared aghast, down at himself.
 

“Move aside Elena,” his hand took hold of my shoulder as he gave me a hard shove, pushing me from him.
 

His gaze was downcast as he simply fell away before my wide, terrified eyes as a siege of bullets took his body apart.

They poured out from between the trees.

I didn’t hear them.

My reality had become the soft wet squelch sound of Thornton Darko’s body eating
all
the bullets.

“Thorn!” I screamed.
“Thorn!”

One bullet caught him between eyes, propelling his body into a wild spin. He twisted and fell to his stomach.

Distantly, I thought I heard Aaron screaming.
 

Thorn began pulling himself along the ground. Grunting, whimpering, he wriggled determinedly forth on his belly.
 

To the grave.

Alice.

The assault ceased.

A wet red mist drifted in the air.
 

Remnants of Thornton Darko gently splattered my face.

Misery rain.

I ran toward him, dropping to my knees.

His big hand reached up to the grave of his sister, he laid it there, leaving a bloodied print, before it fell away.
 

 
“I fucked up,” he groaned. “Badly.”
 

“Elena, step aside.”

I stared in shock as Brett approached, assault weapon drawn.

Brett!

Not dead.

Not blown to hell.

Alive!

“You’re alive!” I uttered in a strange stage whisper. .

Brett would not look at me. The man was soaked with tense energy. He stunk of guilt.
 

“Of course he is,” Clarissa snarled. She strode up to Thorn. She hooked her high heeled boot beneath him and rolled him onto his back.
 

“That news report was fake.”

“What?” I stammered. “
Why?”

“Because Andrea was my sister!” Tears spilled from her hate slit eyes. “And
Thornton Darko killed her!”