Reign of Wrath (Dirty Broken Savages #3)

by Eva Ashwood

“You’re fucking wrong if you think that. You’re not ruined. You’re strong as hell. You’re a queen, with four men who would all get on our knees for you. We wouldn’t want you so damn bad if you weren’t steel all the way through, baby girl. You’re not. Fucking. Ruined.”

“Please come back to me, baby,” I whisper roughly. “Don’t do this. Don’t let the darkness take you. You’re stronger than this, I know it. Please. Come back to us. We fucking need you.”

Trying to drag her back from the darkness before she’s gone forever.

There’s no finesse to it, nothing even particularly sexy or hot. It’s base and animalistic once I really get into it. Like we’re just two people trying to bind ourselves together closer than our physical bodies will let us get.

“You’re not ruined,”

“You’re not broken. You’re a fucking warrior, through and through. You hear me, goddammit? You’re strong enough to survive this.”

There’s never been anyone as perfect for us as you.”

There’s a word written there, the raised, swollen cuts stark against the rest of my skin. Ours.

Whatever Gage sees now, it must be enough. He nods, dragging his fingertips down the line of my jaw. “I told you, baby girl. We can’t let you go.”

“Yeah, but none of us are exactly great examples of people who turned out ‘good,’ you know?” I laugh. “Okay, fair point. Maybe we’re not good. But we’re bad to the right people. That counts in my book.”

“Why did you want to know?” He grins. “Because you have to hold on to those good memories just as hard as the bad ones. They exist too. Right alongside the bad. They’re yours as much as all the awful, shitty ones are.” I raise an eyebrow at him, surprised by the depth and insightfulness of the statement. “Wow. That’s very Zen of you,” I tease. “You’re like a psychotic, murderous Winnie the Pooh.”

“You know, you’ve changed.” “How do you mean?” “Since River came into our lives, you’ve been... I dunno. More alive. More present than you were before. I’m glad to see you coming to life again.” I don’t really have anything to say to that, so I just nod. He’s right, in his way. Things really have changed since River came along. She’s changed me for the better. She’s so deep under my skin that I couldn’t get her out if I tried. And I like it, although a part of me fears it too. Because if something ever happened to her, it would wreck me beyond repair.

I look so patched together at this point that I probably shouldn’t even be standing. But I am. I’m still on my fucking feet. And as I go up against pure evil, I’m determined to be the last one still standing.

Let the whole fucking world know. River is ours. Ours to protect. Ours to worship. Our fucking queen.

The sight of it speaks to the feral, psychotic part of my soul that always screams out for more when it comes to shit like this. More chaos, more chase, more death, more violence. I like watching the flickering flames of the car as it burns. Staring into the heat of it all and listening to the snap and crackle and groan as the fire eats away at the SUV. I spare a thought that maybe I don’t work with fire enough. It’s chaos and violence, the most bright, wild, and beautiful thing there is. Then I look over at River, standing just a little ways away from me. I look at her blue eyes, shining in the firelight, and I have to admit I was wrong. That’s the most beautiful, wild thing there is.

Karma’s a bitch, and her name is River.

Maybe I can have what I want. Maybe that future can really be ours. For the first time in what feels like a long time, I let myself do something that feels more wild and dangerous than anything else I’ve ever done. I let myself hope.

Bad people usually get what’s coming to them one way or another.”