The Forsaken King

My hands loosened on my ax, and I nearly dropped it. “You…did…what?”

“I have saved HeartHolme from a bloody war—”

“You fulfilled your own need for revenge because you’re incapable of feeling anything else.”

She remained stone-cold. “It’s done, Huntley. Forget about her.”

“Forget about her? She’s my fucking wife.”

Now her eyes narrowed. “She won’t be your wife anymore when she’s dead.”

My hands shook. My entire body trembled. My hands wanted to grip the ax and start chopping, and my mind barely resisted the urge. I’d never felt this way in my life, so angry that I would ever hurt my own mother. But fuck, that was what I wanted.

“You think I give a damn that you married her? Changes nothing.”

“She’s family.”

She sucked in a breath, and it sounded like a hiss. “She’ll never be anything more than what she is—a fucking whore.”

“She said she would help us—”

“And you’re a fool for believing that. She’s just like her father. Violent. Malicious. Dishonored—”

“She is nothing like her father.” I’d had enough of this, so I turned around and stormed off.

“Where are you going?” she called after me.

I turned back, all the muscles in my face twitching because I was out of my mind with rage. “To get my wife back.”

Her sculptured faced slackened, and her eyes widened in terror. “You will not—”

“I will kill every man who gets in my way. So, if you don’t want your men to die tonight, I suggest you tell them to stand down, because nothing is going to stop me from riding through the night and getting to her before it’s too late.” I continued to the stairs.

She ran after me, her bare feet growing louder as she came close. “Huntley!”

I didn’t stop.

She grabbed me by the arm and yanked me back. “They’ll kill you—”

I pushed her off. “Then I’ll die.”

Her eyes shifted back and forth as she looked into mine, terrified.

“She’s my wife—and I’ll die for her.”