Forbidden (Blood Ties #7)

He just looked at the screen in front of me and the still image of Helene as she looked into the camera. A nerve twitched in the corner of my eye. I didn’t like him looking at her. Not. One. Fucking. Bit.

“Come with me,” he demanded, and turned away, heading for the door before he stopped. “Now.”

The fuck?

What was I, some kind of fucking dog they could command to heel?

Yes.

That’s exactly what I was.

I gave a snarl and rose from the seat, hitting the button and ending the video. Gone was the desire, leaving behind the savage craving to tear the goddamn world apart, starting with this asshole. I followed him out of my office and along the corridor, heading toward the Daughters’ rooms.

The moment I pushed through the last set of doors, I heard the screams. Guttural, terrifying roars of the new guards were met with shrill cries from the Daughters. I clenched my jaw at the sounds. We might’ve been fucking cold, controlling bastards, but we weren’t fucking barbarians. Not like those guys.

Walker was the first one I saw when I turned into the corridor. He stood outside the communal bathroom door, his face ashen and his eyes filled with rage. The sickeningthudof a fist echoed before the weak, pathetic whimpers turned into low, chilling moans.

They were beating them.

The fucking bastards!

They. Were. Fucking. Beating. Them.

I pushed past Walker and strode into the neon bright bathroom. Memories slammed into me, Ryth Castlemaine standing terrified in a stall while I implied we had her stepbrother hostage. I was a lying, manipulative asshole, that was for sure. I strode in, pushing past Coulter and his three leering scumbags as the guard crowding the cowering Daughter raised his fist once more.

I stared at her green eyes wide and terrified. Her face was bleeding, lip swelling where he’d already hit her. She lifted her hand, trying her best to shield herself from his blows, and for a second, all I saw was Melody.

My pulse boomed. Rage filled me as the guard’s fist clenched tight.

That’s my sister.

The words roared in my head.

THAT’S MY GODDAMN SISTER!

I strode forward and grabbed his fist as it arced through the air. She lifted her gaze to mine and the face of Melody faded. Still, that merciless rage was left behind as I turned to the guard. “Touch her again and I’ll put a bullet in your head.”

He jerked his gaze upwards, bestial fury shining in his eyes.

The Daughter kicked against the cold tiles, curling her naked body even tighter into a ball, if that was possible. He jerked that raging glare behind me to where his leader stood. But I wasn’t budging.

“Malcolm,” Coulter murmured.

There was a curl in the bastard’s lip before he turned that sickening hunger for blood my way. In the corner of my eye, Walker slipped in and slowly lifted his gun. But it wasn’t the Daughter he aimed it at, it was the asshole in front of me.

“Walker,” I said clearly. “You’re to shoot this asshole, and anyone else who raises a fist to these women, do you understand?”

“My fucking pleasure,” he answered.

He would, even if it meant he’d take one in return. We had rules about anyone beating or hurting those we were tasked to protect and train…we hadresponsibilities.

I swung my gaze to the man responsible, the one who’d just stood there watching this all unfold.

“They have twenty-four hours,” Coulter said, shifting his stare from the cowering Daughter to me. “Twenty-four hours for you to train them.” He took a step closer. “Or they won’t be the only ones I lead down into the basement once more.”

I sucked in hard breaths as he cast that sickening fucking stare at the naked woman behind me before he turned and walked out, taking his men with him. Goosebumps raced down my arms as the piece of shit who liked to beat women stopped behind me.

I waited for a blow to come,cravingit almost. Anything to give me a goddamn excuse. That savage hunger burned in my belly as I turned around and met his stare. “Do it,” I urged.