Tasting

424–Or I’ll Die

Nora:

“You see that b*tch over there-” Daphne raised her hand to point at me, but Ryker quickly stepped in front of me, blocking my view.

“Oh, come on, Ryker. Do you really think I’d hesitate to kill you?” she rolled her eyes, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

“Then let’s find out,” Ryker challenged her. I didn’t want this to go like that. She really surprised me with her sudden change in behavior.

“Why don’t you ask your pathetic little creatures to get through me first?” His defiance made me instinctively grab his arm, trying to move him out of the way, but he wouldn’t budge.

“Ryker, what are you doing?” I groaned inwardly, my fingers wrapped tightly around his arm.

“Fine. Go, my creatures. Show this man who you really are.” Before I could stop him, Ryker stood his ground, ready to face her monsters alone. Her creatures, now fully under her control, darted from behind her and charged at him.

“She’s the vessel. If she goes down, they go down,” Ryker turned to me and said quickly, locking eyes with mine.

“But what are you going to do?” I held his arm tighter, stopping him from running off before he explained his plan.

“I don’t need to do anything,” he said with a soft smile, glancing down at my hand holding onto his arm. “I’ve already accomplished everything I needed to tonight.”

He leaned in and gently kissed my forehead. Instead of pulling away or acting distant like usual, I let him. I closed my eyes, savoring that small, tender moment, and when I opened them again, he was gone. My hand felt empty without his.

The feelings that rushed through me in that moment took me by surprise. A swirl of emotions I didn’t expect.

“Look at you, finally exposing your little affair,” Daphne sneered.

“Maybe you should know something tonight.” I squared my shoulders, realizing the others had disappeared–probably led away by one of her diversions.

“I never had an affair with the brothers.”

“That’s bullshit,” she snapped, rolling her eyes. But I cut her off, determined to set the record straight.

“Ryker is my mate.” The moment those words left my lips, her smirk faded.

“A pathetic omega like you has an alpha king for a mate?” Her tone was laced with jealousy. So they didn’t just hate me because they thought I was involved with their crushes; they hated me for simply existing.

“You know what–I wasn’t planning on killing you. That wasn’t on my list. I thought I could help you, cure you, and send you on your way. But now, you leave me no choice, I don’t negotiate with monsters like you—I destroy them.” My muscles tensed as I clenched my fists, my body preparing for what was to come.

Daphne caught on quickly, sensing I was challenging her.

“I’m not sure what others have seen in you, but there’s no way you’re truly a fighter. Brody must’ve been drugging those mutants to make them weaker. But I’m not on any drugs. I’ve never felt more powerful or alive than I do tonight. So, watch me crush you and let my creatures devour you,” she said, stepping back onto the road, preparing for battle with an unsettling grin.

Well, if she was asking for a fight, how could I say no?

The wind howled like a living creature, tearing at my clothes and whipping my hair into a frenzy as I faced Daphne on the road. Dark clouds gathered above us, casting everything in an eerie, bruised light. The first heavy drops of rain began to fall, signaling the storm was about to break.

I didn’t only see her as a monster, but someone who had made my life miserable in the past.

It was insane how the night had escalated. I hadn’t expected this outcome with Daphne. I genuinely thought she’d break down, beg for help with the curse. Instead, she stood before me, feeling like a queen.

Daphne’s wild, unblinking eyes locked onto mine. There was no fear in them. Her lips curled into a sneer as she took a step closer.

Without warning, she lunged. I was ready. The moment her hands shot out toward me, I spun to the side, driving my elbow hard into her ribs as she passed.

“Ugh,” she grunted in pain, the sound telling me everything–I needed to win tonight. She fell to her knees but scrambled up quickly, denying me a chance to strike her from behind.

Not that I ever attack from behind.

She came at me again, faster this time, her movements erratic and wild. I deflected her blows with ease, each strike reverberating through my arms. It wasn’t difficult to predict her next move–she was fighting on pure pride, not strategy. And that was her weakness.

Her body began to ripple, the bones beneath her skin contorting right before my eyes. Her growl deepened, turning into something inhuman, and her hands–no, her claws–elongated. Within seconds, Daphne had fully shifted, letting her wolf take control.

She was faster now, more dangerous. When she lunged again, her teeth aiming for my throat, I barely managed to dodge. She had become a monstrous figure, towering over me, her breath hot and rancid, her strength amplified tenfold.

But I wasn’t afraid.

I was the storm.

Her wolf might have been crazed by the curse, but I was the curse itself. Akira was no child, and neither was I.

Tonight, it was kill or be killed.