Chapter 26: Emperor of Wrath: Chapter 26

Blood.

So much blood.

I stand under the warm spray of the shower, my hair slicked across my face and my arms crossed over my chest.

Pink water trickles down my body. Red swirls at my feet and spirals down the drain. But there’s still so much of it.

So much fucking blood.

The image of Ulkan roaring in my face and trying to grab me while his lifeblood gushed out of his chest plays on a loop, making me flinch and shudder. I squeeze my eyes shut, breathing in steam as I try to shake away the memory.

A hand touches my side. I flinch, whirling with a scream in my throat before my eyes lock with Kenzo. Naked, his own wounds still bleeding, he steps under the water with me.

Wordlessly, his eyes lock with mine. And that’s when I worry that I’ll see it: the look.

Like I’m broken. Faulty.

Damaged goods.

He knows everything now. He knows the worst part of me, my disgusting history with Valon.

Kenzo reaches for me. But I flinch again and retreat against the tiled wall at my back.

His brow furrows.

“Why,” he growls quietly.

“I’m…dirty,” I whisper.

He turns to reach for the body wash. “I’ll get the spots you missed⁠—”

“No, Kenzo,” I choke, pulling back as his hand reaches for me. “I…”

I avert my eyes again. He stills for a moment, but then suddenly his hands grab my hips, pulling me close. I stiffen, trying to pull away again. But he holds me fast and tight, reaching up to cup my face and lift my eyes to his.

Water streams over his gorgeous face and dark hair. His piercing eyes hold mine.

“Kenzo…”

“What was done to you was evil, Annika,” he says quietly. “That in no way taints you in any way. It doesn’t change the way I see you.”

His one hand slips into my hair. The other tightens on my hip.

“None of that changes the way I feel about you…”

He backs me against the wall, chest to chest, heart to heart.

“The way I’d kill for you…”

My pulse skips as he brushes the hair back from my face and leans closer, our eyes never even blinking under the spray of the shower.

“Or the way I love you.”

He cups my face as his mouth descends, his lips crushing mine as I melt against him. I moan, clinging to him desperately, like I’m being tossed in a hurricane and he’s my only grounding point. I whimper hungrily into the kiss, holding him tightly as he lifts me into his arms, shuts off the water, and carries me out of the shower.

The air hitting my wet skin is a reality check. I stiffen against him and pull back from his lips with a shudder.

“He…” I swallow. “He’s still out there,” I breathe. “He got⁠—”

“Leka’s dead, Annika,” Kenzo says quietly. “The police found a body not far from the rental house—cut to hell, but matching his description.” His eyes harden. “They say he bled out slowly.” Kenzo grits his teeth. “I couldn’t bury the past for you, princess,” he mutters quietly. “I’m sorry⁠—”

“Yes, you did,” I whisper back, cupping his face and resting my forehead on his. I kiss him softly as my heart thuds against his chest. “You just did.”

I melt into his lips again as he turns and carries me out of the bathroom.