He didn't pause. Didn't give her room to argue.
Because in that moment, Phei wasn't asking.
He was declaring a promise to her and his already Marked woman, Sierra, her daughter.
And the man who had done this to her—the monster who had turned her life into an unrelenting hell of bruises, blood, and bone-deep terror—would soon learn what true, unending, merciless fear felt like.
"Otherwise, what would be the use of saving Sierra only to watch her get consumed by darkness and guilt after she learns what's been happening to her mother?"
Phei's voice was low, cold, relentless. "You could die here. He doesn't care anymore. He'll kill you if it served his desires. What do you think Sierra would do when she finds out? That you died protecting her? That you sacrificed yourself so she could live while you suffered in silence? Let me help you. And I can."
Everything came out in a single, icy breath.
