Page 150 of Kill Feed

Adrian

The words drift through the darkness with infuriating calm as I step out from behind the pillar.

Dante stands several meters away, his broad frame and tattoos almost blending into the shadows. Green light emanates from the eye sockets of his ram skull mask, and I need to double take to realize it’s much different from before.

“Night vision?” I scoff. “That doesn’t seem fair. You hunters really do get every advantage, don’t you?”

He tilts his head. “Some advantages.”

Distant screams echo somewhere deeper within the building, followed by the unmistakable clang of metal striking whatever or whoever’s on the receiving end. I tear my attention away from him, eyes focused on the doorway he stepped out of.

“Don’t worry, they won’t dare come near you; I made sure of that,” Dante claims loudly before lowering his voice. “We need to talk.”

Does he really think I’m interested in talking to him? Is he truly out of his fucking mind?

“Yeah, I don’t think so.”

“There’s a blind spot.” He nods toward the far corner of the room where two enormous machines stand pressed against a crumbling brick wall. “Over there.”

A humourless laugh escapes me as I take a deliberate step toward him.

My body is on fire, but what’s the point in holding back? It’s kill or be killed, so we might as well just finish the job.

If Dante ends me here, fine. At least I won’t have to deal with this shit anymore.

A sharp, searing pain tears through my side as I straighten, trying to show this man that I’m not falling for his antics. I suck in a breath through clenched teeth. “Shit.”

“You’re hurt,” Dante states, gaze sweeping over me, lingering on the shoulder that took the worst of the fall, then the hand pressed against my ribs. “What happened?”

“Drop the fucking act and come at me already.”

Dante exhales sharply, shaking his head while flexing his fingers at his sides. He seems… annoyed, but I’m barely able to register it when he lunges straight at me.

Strong arms wrap around my torso before I can react, pinning both my elbows against my sides. My feet leave the ground for the briefest moment as he pivots, turning both our bodies away from the centre of the room.

The brick pillar flashes past my shoulder before my back meets the wall. I wait for the pain to detonate, but it never comes. Instead, Dante only presses my back gently against the wall, caging me with his own body.

“What are you—”

“I’m not going to hurt you,” he states in a husky tone, filling my vision with ram horns and green orbs.

The words leave my mouth before I have time to stop them: “You already have.”

I can feel his muscles tense at that before easing, letting me go and taking a step backwards.

“We don’t have much time,” he says with all urgency underneath his calm exterior. “I need you to listen to me.”

I should hit him while I have the chance, but somehow my fists refuse to move, my mind desperately waiting for him to explain instead.

“I wasn’t the one who put you in Kill Feed,” Dante continues. “I know my actions prove otherwise, but I had to put on a show for the cameras.”

“You don’t expect me to believe that, do you?” I interject, working my jaw.

“I need you to believe me, Adrian—”

“You manipulated me,” I cut him off, because it’s been so much easier blaming it all on him. It’s easier to spare myself. To shove the way he makes me feel so deep down that I end up feeling nothing again, and I so desperately want that part back.

I take a step forward, shoving him. “You’ve been toying with me from the start. You were the one who said that I wasn’t broken enough, remember that?”