MATED TO FATHER, FAT Chapter 50: BLOOD KILL

Chapter 50: BLOOD KILL

RYKER

The kiss.

They kissed.

When the fuck did that happen?

The thought consumed everything else, burned through my brain like acid while I lay there with my ribs screaming and Commander Bruno standing over me ready to rip my throat out.

Rowan kissed her.

My brother, my perfect responsible engaged brother, put his mouth on what was mine and she let him, kissed him back, and never thought to mention it to me.

Rage flooded every nerve ending, hot and vicious and completely irrational because I had no claim on her except the mate bond neither of us asked for. But rational did not matter when jealousy tasted like copper in my mouth and made me want to tear Rowan apart limb by limb.

Was it before or after I kissed her?

Before or after I had my fingers inside her making her moan my name?

Bruno’s jaws opened wider, saliva dripping onto my fur, and some distant part of my brain screamed at me to move.

You fool you are about to die.

The thought cut through the red haze and my body reacted before my brain caught up. I twisted hard, my back legs coming up to slam into Bruno’s chest with enough force to send him flying backward. He hit the ground and rolled, already scrambling back to his feet.

I forced myself up, ignoring the sharp pain in my ribs that meant at least two were cracked. Blood dripped from cuts along my shoulder where his teeth had caught me during the initial impact.

Focus. Fight now, kill Rowan later.

Bruno circled again, more cautious this time. He had landed a solid hit and thought he had the advantage, thought I was weakened and easy prey.

He thought wrong.

I lunged first this time, closing the distance between us faster than he expected. My jaws caught his front leg and I bit down hard, tasting blood and feeling bone crack under the pressure. He yelped and yanked away, leaving fur and flesh in my mouth.

We crashed together again, a tangle of claws and teeth and violence. His jaws snapped at my throat but I ducked low, using my weight to slam him sideways. We rolled across the dirt, both fighting for the dominant position.

He was good, I would give him that. Years of training and combat experience showed in every move, every calculated strike. But he fought like a soldier, methodical and disciplined.

I fought like someone with nothing left to lose.

My claws raked across his side, opening up long gashes that poured blood onto the ground. He retaliated by sinking his teeth into my shoulder, the pain white hot and immediate. I snarled and twisted, breaking his grip but leaving more of my flesh behind.

Give me more reasons to win and live.

Amaris’s words echoed in my head, cutting through the pain and rage.

If I win, I get to have you to myself.

The promise fueled something dark and possessive in my chest. I was going to win this fight, going to walk away from it breathing, because Amaris had given me something to fight for even if she did not realize it yet.

I was going to have her.

All of her.

Every breathless gasp and desperate moan, every inch of skin I had not touched yet, every secret she tried to keep. I was going to ruin her so thoroughly that she would forget Rowan’s name, forget what his mouth felt like, forget everything except me.

Bruno came at me again, faster this time, his teeth aimed for my throat. I dodged and his jaws closed on my neck fur instead, tearing out a chunk but missing anything vital. I used his momentum against him, letting him pull me forward while my back legs came up and caught him in the stomach.

The hit landed solid and he wheezed, his grip loosening. I ripped myself free and spun, my jaws finding his throat.

Not killing yet. Just holding.

Just showing him I could.

His body went still under me, survival instinct finally kicking in and telling him that one wrong move would end this. I could feel his pulse hammering against my teeth, fast and panicked.

I thought about Amaris underneath me instead of this piece of shit, thought about her pulse racing for entirely different reasons. Thought about stripping that black dress off her slowly, watching her eyes go dark with want while I made her beg for it.

Thought about making her scream my name loud enough that everyone in this fucking pack knew who she belonged to.

Bruno tried to struggle and I bit down harder, just enough to draw blood and make my point clear.

The fight was over.

He just did not know it yet.

I released his throat but before he could move I slammed my full weight into him, pinning him to the ground with my paws on his chest. My jaws hovered over his face, close enough that he could see every tooth.

The fallen soldier punishment that you wanted to inflict on me,

I sent through the pack link, making sure everyone heard it. You will be receiving it yourself.

His eyes widened, fear finally breaking through that arrogant superiority.

And I want your wife here to see it.

Bruno’s wolf form tried to shake his head, tried to deny it.

I had heard the rumors for years, seen the bruises his wife tried to hide, watched her flinch whenever he raised his voice. She claimed it was consensual but I knew suffering when I saw it, knew the difference between choice and survival.

You are a fucked up disgrace to manhood, I snarled in the link.

Then I tore his throat out.

My jaws closed around the soft tissue and I yanked hard, ripping through muscle and tendons and everything that kept his head attached to his body. Blood sprayed hot and metallic across my face, into my mouth, soaking into my fur.

Bruno’s body convulsed once, twice, then went completely still.

I stepped back and let him fall, watched the light fade from his eyes while his blood pooled in the dirt underneath him.

The crowd erupted in cheers.

The sound washed over me but I barely heard it, my focus still locked on the corpse at my feet. Adrenaline pumped through my veins, mixing with the satisfaction of a kill well earned and the darker pleasure of eliminating a predator who deserved worse than a quick death.

I shifted back to human form, not caring that I was covered in blood and standing naked in front of the entire pack. Someone threw clothes at me and I pulled them on mechanically, my hands still shaking slightly from the fight.

My eyes found Amaris in the crowd.

She stood there with her hand over her mouth, her face pale but her eyes bright with something that looked almost like relief. Rowan had his hand on her shoulder and I wanted to break every single one of his fingers for touching her.

Later.

First I needed to make sure everyone understood what happened here today.

I turned to face my father who stood off to the side with Beta Marco, his expression unreadable. For once he did not look disappointed or angry, just vaguely impressed like I had finally done something worth acknowledging.

"He is better than I gave him credit for," I heard him mutter to Marco.

Marco nodded. "Well Ryker has your genes. It makes him stronger."

I walked past them without stopping, my eyes locked on Amaris. The crowd parted for me, everyone stepping back because I was covered in blood and still radiating violence.

She did not move.

Just stood there watching me approach with those amber eyes that saw too much, that made me want things I had no business wanting.

I stopped in front of her and Rowan’s hand dropped from her shoulder, his body tensing like he was preparing for another fight.

"We need to talk," I told her, my voice rough from the shift.

She nodded slowly, she moved to the side away from Rowan’s hearing and her gaze darting to the body still lying in the center of the courtyard. "You killed him."

"I did."

"For me," she whispered.

"No," I corrected, stepping closer. "For the promise you made me."

Her face flushed pink and she swallowed hard. "Ryker—"

"You said if I won you would be mine," I interrupted. "I won."

"I know what I said," she finally responded, her chin lifting in that stubborn way that made me want to kiss her and strangle her at the same time.

"Good," I leaned in until my mouth was near her ear, close enough that only she could hear. "Because I am collecting tonight."

I pulled back and watched panic and desire war across her face, watched her try to come up with some excuse or escape route that would let her back out of the deal.

She would not find one.

I had won my fight and now I was going to claim my prize, consequences be damned.

I began making my way out the damn courtyard. I need to clear my head.

"Ryker." My father’s voice followed me, "Now that you have stripped Bruno of his title, and Victor is back, what exactly is your plan, what are we going to do?"

I stopped walking but did not turn around.

"That," I said, loud enough to carry, "is your problem, because if you had not stolen Victor’s fiancée none of this would have happened, you caused this, you built this yourself, you destroyed his pack, you destroyed his life, you destroyed every single thing he had and now you want to stand there and ask me what we are going to do about the consequences of your own actions."

I turned around then and looked at my father across the distance between us. "Don’t come to me trying to make me feel responsible for cleaning up your mess."

"You are out of control," my father said, his jaw tight, "and it will get you killed."

I looked at him for a long moment, at the man who had built an empire on other people’s suffering and called it leadership, and I felt disgust settle in my chest that was cold and absolute and had been a long time coming.

"When all of this is over," I said quietly, which was somehow worse than shouting, "I will be standing over your grave, and I will make sure it is not an empty one like that of Victor,"

I held his gaze.

"I will make sure you are in it, Alpha Corvin."