Chapter 80

The Prey

I should’ve known better.

I should’ve seen it coming, the storm behind his eyes. The violent tempest that lurked behind the soft-spoken threats, the poisonous words that slipped from his mouth like honey laced with venom. But I didn’t. I was too blinded by the fleeting hope that, maybe, just maybe, there was a shred of humanity left in him.

Now I was trapped in his suffocating grip and the brutal reality was sinking in. There was no humanity. Not in him. Not in the man who stood before me now, he was a monster dressed in the skin of someone I once thought I could understand.

Hell.

Yes. He was hell.

He wasn’t holding me anymore—he was claiming me, as if every bruise and mark was a reminder of his twisted ownership.

I wanted to scream, to lash out, but I couldn’t. The force of his hand on my throat was too much, the pressure unbearable. My vision was going dark around the edges, and I could feel my strength slipping a