Fury
1043 Words
Thalia's Pov
I stormed into his office, my heart pounding so hard I thought it might burst out of my chest.
“What the hell were you thinking?” I snapped, my voice low and dangerous. “Adopting a teen? And not just any teen, Lorenzo’s sister? Are you out of your mind?”
Raze’s eyes never left his papers, but I could see the corner of his mouth twitch, just slightly. He was enjoying this. Enjoying seeing me unravel.
"You have never had a problem with the dirty work before, Thelia. Why start now?"
I clenched my fists so hard I felt my nails digging into my palm. My mind raced, flashes of things I had done under Raze’s command. I’d killed, tortured, and betrayed countless people. Hell, I’d done things that should’ve shattered me long ago, but I kept pushing it all down, all for the job. But adopting a teen? That was crossing a line I wasn’t sure I could stomach.
"This is different, Raze," I said through gritted teeth. "I have done a lot for you, but making me adopt her? That’s too far."
Raze finally looked up, his gaze cold and calculating. "Different?" His voice was so calm it sent a chill through my veins. "Don’t pretend you’re some kind of saint, Thelia. You have killed children, families... what makes this any different?"
The words felt like a punch to the gut, but I wouldn’t let him see it. I was stronger than that. I was stronger than the memories he was trying to dig up, memories that I’d buried deep for a reason. But he knew. He always knew which buttons to push.
"That was different," I spat, my voice low, barely contained. "You made me do that because there was no other choice. You lied..."
His hand slammed against the desk, cutting me off, and the sudden force made me flinch. But I didn’t back down. I stared him straight in the eye, refusing to be intimidated.
"You think I care about your excuses?" he asked, his voice dark, threatening. "You don’t get to make the rules, Winters. I do. You follow them, or you pay the price. Just like everyone else."
I took a step closer, my fingers twitching with the need to hurt him, to show him I wasn’t some puppet he could control. "You are pushing me too far, Raze. This isn’t a f*****g game. You know damn well why I have stuck around all these years, but this..." I shook my head. "This is where I draw the line."
He stood up so suddenly it caught me off guard, his eyes locked onto mine with that familiar coldness that made my blood run cold.
"Do you think you get to decide when to draw the line?" his voice was deadly soft, his tone full of menace. "I have watched you do worse, Thelia, and if you think adopting a child is what will break you, then you have no idea the plans I have installed for you."
I shoved them down the memories, but it wasn’t enough to drown out the shame that bubbled up.
"That was different," I repeated, my voice trembling only slightly. "I did what I had to do, if..."
He stepped even closer, "It’s the same, Thelia. The same as everything else. You do it because I say so."
I stood there, chest heaving, blood rushing in my ears. My hands balled into fists, but I kept them at my sides, trying to maintain control. But I wasn’t backing down. Not this time.
From the corner of my eyes, I saw Silver roughly shoved into the room by one of Raze's men.
"You think I will just follow your orders like some dog?" I said, my voice low and dangerous. "You’re wrong. You are not the only one who has control here, Raze."
Before I even realized what was happening, he moved in faster than I could react, his hand slapping across my face with such force I felt my world tilt. The sting burned like fire, and I barely had time to recover before the second slap came, knocking my head back and drawing blood from my split lip.
I wiped the blood away with the back of my hand, my body shaking with a mix of anger and pain. But I didn’t flinch. I didn’t show him how much it hurt. I wouldn’t give him the satisfaction.
Raze’s voice was deadly soft, his tone full of menace. "You think you can defy me? Think again."
Before I could say another word, he gestured to his men, who moved toward me, each of them gripping cuffs, ready to restrain me. But I wasn’t going down that easily.
The men lunged at me, but I was already moving. I dodged one, grabbing his arm and twisting it behind his back, using his momentum to send him crashing into the wall. I kicked another in the stomach, hearing him grunt as he hit the floor.
But then I heard the commotion outside. Footsteps, yelling, the sound of gunshots.
Lorenzo.
"Raze, we can..."
"Don't let her and the girl go anywhere," Raze barked, disappearing through a hidden door.
The room tensed, the men began squaring up against me, suddenly, the door slammed open.
A shiver ran down my spine despite myself. His presence filled the room like a tornado.
He moved like a predator, dismantling Raze's men in seconds, his fury coming off him in waves.
His gaze locked on me, before moving to my arms. Recognition filled his eyes as he took in the band around my arm. I knew he was putting the puzzle together. Rage and confusion flickered in his eyes, freezing me for a moment.
Then, without warning, he lunged at me, but I was quicker, sidestepping with a fluid motion that had me just out of range.
The second strike came too fast, this time with all his power behind a punch. It landed hard, slamming into my face with a sickening crack that sent me reeling backward. I hit the ground hard, blood trickling from my nose and lips.
Before darkness claimed me, I caught a flicker of something softer in his furious eyes.
- Writer
