On days when the weight of River’s curse had felt unmanageable, when everything had been dark and heavy and even getting out of bed had felt like the greatest of chores, she used to wonder if death would be simpler.
Back then, after the Incident, River had held on for Ryker and her father. It wouldn’t be fair to leave them, and she hadn’t wanted to hurt them.
But now, the clouds had parted. The darkness was gone, and River felt like she could see a future for the first time in what seemed like forever. One where she wouldn’t have to be alone, constantly fearing that she would lose control. She could picture herself living alongside the man she loved, and shewantedit.
Now, Gale Harringdale wanted to steal that from her. As if her life was his to take.
And that made Riverfurious. Because what the fuck? How dare he do this to her? She gritted her teeth as anger flowed through her, bringing clarity to her situation.
Fuck Harringdale for taking her hostage.
Fuck him for hurting her and thinking she was a weak little girl that he could threaten.
Fuck him for thinking that he could take River’s life just because of who her mother was.
Anger cleared River’s mind, and as it did, she came to a stark realization. She wasn’t ready to die. Not now. Not when she had so many reasons to live.
She would not go quietly into death’s waiting arms. If Harringdale meant to kill her, he would have to come up against the force of a hurricane.
With her newfound clarity making it easier to think, River reevaluated the situation. The claws digging into her neck. The blood trickling down her skin. The way Harringdale breathed against her as he dragged her back against his chest.
Every point of contact was brimming with wrongness.
Harringdale was still raving in River’s ear, blustering on and on about how the Representatives and the Chancellor had caused him great harm. The more he spoke, the clearer it became that the man was downright delusional.
At another time, River would’ve felt bad for him. He clearly needed help. There were people who were equipped to deal with mental health issues. Doctors who could evaluate Harringdale and medicate him. Try to bring him back from the edge that his mind was currently at.
But there was a time and a place for medicine, and it wasn’t here. Not only that, but River wasn’t the right kind of doctor to help the rebel, and it was evident he wouldn’t accept it anyway.
River forced herself to focus on the situation at hand. There was still a knife in her boot, and perhaps if she broke his hold on her arms, she could get it and turn it around on him before he ripped out her throat.
It seemed unlikely, though.
But even though the rebel leader had tossed aside her weapons, and even though her hands were pinned to her chest, River wasn’t defenseless. Guns were manufactured. They wereweapons made by people desperate to be stronger than nature had intended.
River was already a gods-damned force of nature. She had been born with the potential for destruction running through her veins, and power was her birthright.
She was starting to understand where Nikhail and her father had been coming from when they insisted she wasn’t cursed. How could River call her storm a curse when it might be the only thing that would save her from this evil man?
Her storm was a part of her, and if Nikhail loved her, he loved her storm, too.
It was that thought that had her reaching within herself to the brimming well of power inside her. Her arms were bound, and she wasn’t sure that this would work, but she had to try. Either way, she was certain she would only have one chance to try and free herself.
She would have to make it count.
CHAPTER 34
Love Won’t Save You Now
“We’re all set to go, Taliyah,” Nikhail addressed the vampire as he rounded the corner from the tunnel into the bunker, wiping his hands on the sides of his pants. He assumed River was talking with her, since she hadn’t returned from the bathroom. “We’ll just prepare the prisoner for transport and?—”
A litany of curses tumbled from his lips. His heart lurched. His gun was in his hands before he formed the conscious thought to unholster it.
A series of thoughts raced through his mind, one after the other.
Taliyah was dead.
Fuck.