Athena\u2019s POV\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIsn\u2019t it?\u201d he asked, stopping in front of me again. \u201cWhen was the last time he said he loved you and meant it? When was the last time he chose you over his pack responsibilities?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I couldn\u2019t answer not because not because of anything, but because Daxon was already getting into my head and that terrified me more than being chained up in this basement.\u00a0<\/p>\n
This is what he always did back when we were dating and he wanted to break me down mentally before he started with his fists.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019ll come for me,\u201d I said instead, trying to sound more confident than I felt. \u201cWhen he realizes I\u2019m missing, he\u2019ll tear this place apart to find me.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOh, I\u2019m counting on him trying,\u201d Daxon said, and his smile was back. \u201cBut he won\u2019t find you, not here, not with all the wolfsbane I\u2019ve been pumping into this room. Your bond is completely blocked, isn\u2019t it? He can\u2019t feel you and you can\u2019t call to him for help.\u00a0<\/p>\n
My heart sank because he was right and the knowledge of it made me feel more alone than I had ever felt in my life.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The wolfsbane in the air was thick enough that even if I screamed with everything I had, Tristan wouldn\u2019t hear me through our mate bond and he wouldn\u2019t be able to sense where I was or if I was even still alive.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd even if he does somehow track you down, Daxon continued, \u201che\u2019ll walk right into the trap I\u2019ve set for him. Either way, I win.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat trap?\u201d I asked, though I wasn\u2019t sure I wanted to know the answer.\u00a0<\/p>\n
*Silver\u2013lined cage, wolfsbane in the air, and enough firepower to take down an entire pack,\u201d he said casually, like he was describing what he had for\u00a0<\/p>\n
breakfast.\u00a0<\/p>\n
71\u00a0<\/p>\n
*Your precious mate is going to come charging in here like the hero he thinks he is, and I\u2019m going to put him down like the dog he is.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re insane,\u2018 I whispered, because what he was describing wasn\u2019t just revenge, it was a complete break from reality.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018I\u2019m practical,\u201d he corrected, his voice cold and matter\u2013of\u2013fact. \u201cYou took something from me, so now I\u2019m taking something from you. An eye for an eye,\u00a0<\/p>\n
a mate for a mate.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018I didn\u2019t take anything from you,\u201d I said desperately, pulling at my chains even though the metal was cutting into my wrists and I knew it was useless. \u201cI\u00a0<\/p>\n
was never really yours to begin with.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou were mine, you are mine,\u201d Daxon said, and there was something almost religious in his voice, like he truly believed what he was saying.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe ceremony was just a formality. In my heart, in my soul, you have always belonged to me and you always will.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s not how this works,\u2018 I said, my voice getting stronger even though my situation was getting worse by the minute. \u201cYou can\u2019t just decide someone belongs to you because you want them to.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWatch me,\u201d he said simply.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He turned and walked back toward the stairs, leaving me chained and alone in the dim light, and I felt panic rising in my chest like I was about to\u00a0<\/p>\n
drown.\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/2\u00a0<\/p>\n
4371\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 166\u00a0<\/p>\n
The concrete walls seemed to be closing in on me and the smell of wolfsbane was making my head spin and my wolf whimper in the back of my mind.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWait, I called after him, hating the desperation in my own voice but unable to stop myself from asking. \u201cWhat are you going to do to him?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhatever it takes to make sure he suffers the way I did,\u201d Daxon said without turning around. \u201cI want him to know what it feels like to lose everything he thought was his. To be locked up the same way I was locked up and forgotten about. How about your brother and Sarah, or little Lily, or baby Liam. Who should I start with first?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
All the blood drained from my face and I felt like someone had just punched me in the stomach. He was going to hurt my family because of me and because of choices I had made and there was nothing I could do to stop him from here.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cPlease,\u201d I whispered, and I hated myself for begging but I would do anything to keep them safe. \u201cPlease don\u2019t hurt them. If you want to punish\u00a0<\/p>\n
someone, punish me. This is between you and me, nobody else needs to get involved.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Memories Drifted Into Soft Silence by Kyx Frost 166 Athena\u2019s POV\u00a0 \u201cIsn\u2019t it?\u201d he asked, stopping in front of me […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[77],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-26323","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-second-gear-of-love-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26323","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26323"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26323\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26323"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26323"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26323"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}