Page 26 of Rot In Knotty Pieces

He is human. He can be killed.

“It’s not your fault,” Sage says and puts his hands on my shoulders. “Just in case you need to hear it, what that monster did to you and made you do is not your fault.”

Pain drives anger. Fear pushes rage.

I throw him off, whirling on him and lashing out. He shoves my arm to the side so my blow doesn’t land, but that just pisses me off more.

“It is my fault,” I hiss. “It’s our fault. It’s mine, Merle’s, Raven’s, Jay’s, and Kestrel’s. Dove was left to save us again. Every time we get that weak, she’s the one that has to deal with us.”

“When did it happen before?” Sage asks, dodging another blow.

“Years ago. When we escaped. When we declared war on him.” I snarl, baring my teeth.

I move with a ferocity of violence that can’t be reasoned with, driving him backwards and around the clearing. When he trips and falls, I’m on him in an instant, wrapping a hand around his throat and straddling his chest.

I don’t want to kill him. That in and of itself surprises me. I slam my fist into the ground beside his head, my chest heavy, teeth gritted so hard they ache.

“Damn you for making me care, damn you for making me weak.”

He lifts his hand and cups my cheek. I don’t pull away, I just stare at him, wondering what I am if I’m not Raptor the killer. What role do I function as in our system if I can’t be the one that destroys the threats?

“I don’t make you weak, Raptor, I am the other half; I bring the skills to level us up. We will be unstoppable. I won’t ask you to be less than who you are, I’ll help you do it better.”

I fist his hair, watching him ignore the pain, and then I slam our mouths together, ignoring the way it hurts, ignoring the uncomfortable feeling and angle I’m in. I just need to taste him.

“Promise me.”

“I promise I will only ever lift you up. I will never hold you back.”

He sits up, pulling me against him so I’m straddling his lap.

“You are beautiful the way you are, and not a single one of us wants to change you.”

I tense, staring into his eyes, waiting for the inevitable but…it just doesn’t come.

I want to ask about my other alters, but I’m not ready to hear it, so I don’t say anything. I just try to struggle up away from him. To his credit, he lets me go.

The way this alpha has a hold on me is all kinds of wrong. Rolly appears in the treeline and walks straight towards me. He doesn’t hesitate when I tense and when I lash out, he takes the blow and uses my movement to get even closer to me.

“Hello, baby.”

“I’m not your baby.”

“Oh, but I think you are,” he says and nuzzles my throat. “A gorgeous, lovely, sexy killer.”

Oh, so, he does know who I am. A part of me melts. I don’t want to melt. I want to be an iceberg. That’s safer than having feelings, but there is a connection, a biological one, that is pulling me towards these alphas, and I have to admit that I do like them. I get to see the memories the other alters share, and I like them.

I really don’t want to.

I am infected with limerance. My whole body, all six of us, are infatuated with these alphas.

“Gah!” I hiss and pull myself free of his octopus arms. “Hands off me, Rolly.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

I snarl, and he bounces back when I lash out at him.

“Don’t hurt me.”