Chapter dedicated to Breezelively. Thank you, thank you for reading and voting!

Music: 'Gone Away' by Noctura (I highly recommend you check this one out)

Chapter 135 –Do It!– Raine's POV

He ran with me in his arms.

Silent.

Furious.

For the first few hours, I screamed and beat against the solid wall of his chest, my agony all consuming, writhing in pain. Every second, every step, every thought, every breath...torture.

Still he ran.

Relentless.

His jaw clenched in restraint. The powerful muscles in his arms flexed and bowed, veins protruding from the skin, his grip tightened on my body painfully, restricting my movement. A feral command, "Stop fighting me!"

I bucked harder, unbearable power growing in my limbs. Energy inside my bones sparked and churned, burning for release. I twisted my body hard, jerking myself from his grasp, and flipped through the air, landing on my feet. My legs trembled like a newborn colt, unsteady and wobbly. I fought to stay upright. My hands clenched into fist, glaring at him, my fangs bared, hissing and spitting.

His eyes flashed crimson. He slunk low. A purposeful step in my direction. A guttural snarl, "I'm not playing this game with you. If you do not behave, I will hurt you."

A threat.

He meant it.

I laughed, the sound empty, dead, without humor.

He thought he could hurt me. My heart had just literally been torn in two. Cage was gone. The emptiness left behind felt like my soul had been ripped out of my chest, separated from my body.

Didn't Marku realize? Nothing he did to me mattered. Not now. Not anymore. I let out a sneer, a challenge of my own, "Bring it on."

His eyes narrowed. Tension rolled through his large frame, coiling, contracting. And then he released in a blur. I felt the impact of his fist to my shoulder before I saw it. My body spun out of control, crashing to the ground. He was on top of me in a second, holding me down.

I screamed, the sound coming out animalistic, primal. I writhed and kicked and clawed at his face, my nails puncturing deep, leaving evenly spaced bloody trails along his cheeks.

"Fucking hell!" he growled. His pupils dilated completely, anger rolling off of him in waves. He reared back and struck again, backhanding me hard to the side of my face.

My world went black.

.........

I struggled to wake. Light and sound began to invade the darkness. Consciousness played at the edges of my mind. Unbearable pain. Whimpers slipped through my throat. I fought to make sense of my world.

Where was I?

What happened to me?

And then it all came crashing back.

Oh no, no, no...Cage was gone! The cruel reality was too much for my fragile mind to take. A hard spasm crashed through me. My back arched. I wailed his name into the darkness, "Cage!"

"What's wrong with her?!" A male hissed. There was a fluttering of wings, a displacement of air.

I panted, unable to catch my breath. I'd heard his voice before...but where? I pushed against the fog in my brain, trying to force myself into complete awareness. But the darkness was too strong. I was only able to catch bits and pieces.

"Lock them up and throw her in as well, you know where," came the gruff reply.

Marku!

I remembered now. He had captured me. I fought but he had tackled and then knocked me out cold. My cheek bone and eye socket ached, but it was hard to tell what exact injuries he had inflicted since my entire body suffered from the agony of the broken mate bond.

"If you hurt her, motherfucker, I'll kill you with my bare hands!" A different male growled furiously, the sound of his bellowed threat reverberated with power and strength, shocking me. I knew him! But I'd never heard him like that before– Talon!

My eyelids fluttered, one opening halfway. I blinked against the invading harsh light. Three Fae males were restraining Talon, just barely. One had his elbow crooked around Talon's neck in a choke hold. The other hugged Talon's shoulders, working to contain his powerful arms and the last shoved hard against his chest with his full body, forcing him backward into a cell. Another hard shove and they released their holds. Talon fell back, off balance. In the blink of an eye, the Fae exited the cell and the heavy silver door clanked shut behind him.

Marku replied dryly, "Not today, you won't."

Talon's features contorted with rage. His nostrils flared. He looked like a bull in a china shop, ready to strike.

"What is the meaning of this? What have you done to her?" The first male demanded again. My head lolled to the side, both eyes half way open now. Killian. His amber eyes glowed brightly. His midnight black wings, a stark contrast against his bare chest, fluttered with agitation.

"Nothing...yet. Do as you are commanded, or you will see yourself neatly contained in one of those cells as well," Marku threatened with a low growl.

Killian's lips set in a thin line. He stalked forward and took me from Marku's embrace. His teeth were gritted together. "Where is her mate?"

"Dead," Marku remarked coldly.

My body convulsed, leaving me whimpering. Killian tightened his hold. Without another word, he carried me around the corner and deposited me into a cell, laying me gently on a stainless steel cot.

"The chains," Marku's spoke from out of site.

Killian ground his teeth together. "Do you think that is really necessary? She couldn't defeat a mouse, let alone break her way out of this cell."

Marku responded with a loud growl of displeasure at having his orders questioned. Killian snapped his jaw shut and lifted my upper body so that I was sitting. My head hung low. I didn't have the energy or motivation to keep it up. Nothing mattered now.

He lifted each of my arms and extended them out, away from my body, so that he could snap the handcuffs that were attached to the wall, around my wrists. I didn't struggle with him, I just sat limply and let him do what he needed to do. He muttered words in a language I didn't understand, but his irritation was universally clear. Then his voice lowered, a command my body was unable to refuse, "Sleep."

My head dropped even further as I fell to sleep.

..........

Awareness came to me quicker this time. I knew where I was. The lights had dimmed, almost dark, but I clearly saw the form of a man in the cell with me. The outline of his powerful arms and broad chest was unmistakable. He wore leathers low on his hips, revealing his sculptured abs. He had a dagger strapped to his thigh. I wondered if it was silver.

Anger coiled through my belly. I jerked hard against the chains holding my wrists, the metal clanking loudly. The acoustics in the small space making the sound echo off the walls. I spat, "So, this is how it's going to be? Is this what you imagined? Please do tell me all about your diabolical little plan to break me."

His hands curled into fists, the muscles in his biceps bulging. Tension rolled through his large frame. He replied through clenched teeth, "Not even close."

I gave a coarse laugh. "What am I supposed to do...thank you? Fall on my knees and beg?" I jerked against the restraints again and sneered, "Keeping me chained to the wall? Afraid I'll be too much for you to handle? You're an even bigger pussy than I thought."

Instantly, he was across the tight space, his powerful fist hit the wall next to my head, his face just inches from mine. The impact was fierce. Bits and pieces of the wall broke off and went flying. The resounding crack caused my ears to ring, but I didn't back down an inch and mocked, "Impressive...but you missed."

Fire lit in his eyes. He extracted a key from around his neck and slid it into the first restraint. The handcuff popped open. I flexed my wrist painfully. He moved to unlock the other one. A deep growl. "I think it's time for your first lesson."

I didn't give him a chance to strike first. Instead, I snapped to my feet and exploded with power, my fist making contact with his cheek. His head whiplashed to the side. Furious growls released from his throat. He spun our bodies and slammed me back against the wall, his fangs bared just inches from my neck.

He froze. His chest rose and fell heavily with adrenaline.

Why had he stopped??

"Do it, you coward!"I screamed.

Still he hesitated, the muscles in his body rolling with tension.

"Do it!" I screamed louder, frantically, shoving my throat closer to his lethal fangs. One quick bite of his powerful jaws and he could take my head clean off of my shoulders. He could end it all with just one quick bite. Why couldn't he just do it?!

He pushed me back with rough hands against my shoulders, his fingers digging into my skin painfully. His dangerous eyes bore into mine, searching.

A small sob escaped my throat, my false bravado gone. My voice broke as I begged him, "Please..."

His eyebrows rose in understanding. He knew what I was trying to get him to do. His eyes flashed with an emotion I didn't recognize. Abruptly, he released me and stepped away.

But I was ready. In one smooth motion, I had removed the dagger from his thigh and held it tightly in my fist. His eyes opened wide, recognizing my intent. His hands shot out and he roared, "No!"

But I was too fast, he couldn't stop me, my strike already in motion as I plunged the dagger deep into my chest.

.

Just a reminder. I did mention that things would get a teensy bit crazy.  lol.  The next chapter is in Marku's POV, so we will get to see what is on his mind!