13. Dexter
13
DEXTER
D arkness slithered around me like a second skin as I slipped into the dimly lit bathrooms of Bound Dormitory, my movements silent and predatory. I’d tracked the sickening scent of poison berries here after I’d helped Nyx out in the hall.
Fuck Nightwind. Something would surely happen to that fucker soon.
Pandora was truly a gem because she was nothing like the rest of the nobles I’d met. They were fucking terrible. I didn’t think Bram was completely exaggerating with his hatred for nobility, but I also wasn’t as blind as him.
I knew from the start that our mate wasn’t anything like he’d claimed.
A twisted excitement spread through my veins as I found Shadeberry. This bitch? She was everything Bram and I loathed.
She was alone, her brown hair flat and unmoving as she washed her hands, oblivious to the danger lurking behind her.
With a swift, almost graceful motion, my shadows slithered toward the door. The click of the lock echoed ominously.
Shadeberry’s gray eyes lifted in the mirror to meet mine. They widened in terror as she saw me step out of the darkness behind her.
“Hello, Shadeberry,” I purred, my voice a low, menacing whisper.
“W-What do you want?” she stammered, gripping the porcelain sink with both hands. Fear had rooted her to the spot. She didn’t even try to use her shadows against mine—not that it would’ve worked. My shadows were much stronger.
My tendrils coiled around her waist and wrists, forcing her to stay exactly where she was.
I grinned, flashing the sharpness of my teeth as my shadows danced around the room. “Just want to make a point.”
I sharpened my shadow tendril and lunged it forth swiftly, slicing down her spine with precision. It sliced through clothes, flesh, and muscle and scraped beautifully against the bone.
“Stop!” she screamed as my shadows continued the assault, slicing and lacerating her skin with ease.
“Do you not realize what you did?” I asked, adopting my mother’s bored expression. It was a little too easy to slip into Poppy Shadowheart’s mindset, but that was a concern for another day.
Shadeberry’s pain flooded my reserves, and when they filled completely, I retracted my shadows and stepped back. She crumpled to the floor, gasping in pain, her body convulsing as blood pooled around her.
I knelt beside her, manic glee pulsing through me. I relished the sound of her whimpers, and the sight of her blood staining the sandstone.
This bitch deserved it for hurting my mate.
“ No ! Why are you doing this?” she managed to gasp between sobs.
I leaned in close, whispering in her ear. “You cut Pandora’s back today with your shadow. I’m just repaying that.”
“Why do you care?” she cried.
“Now, that’s not your business, is it?” With meticulous precision, I allowed my shadows to carve into her flesh again, each slice deliberate and cruel.
Her screams only fueled her pain.
When the blood puddle was sufficient underneath her and her body stopped healing the cuts, I stopped.
Pulling out my tablet, I snapped pictures of her mutilated form. The images were gruesome, but to me, they were art. I quickly typed out a message and sent the photo and message to Pandora. A twisted smile played on my lips.
Dexter Shadowheart
*Image of Shadeberry bleeding*
I heard what she did to you today. I’ve made her pay for it.
I’m always going to protect you, trouble. I’m sorry for not doing it sooner. I’m going to earn a place as one of your mates.
I knew Pandora wouldn't reply, but it didn't matter. The act of sending the message, of sharing this moment with her, was enough for me.
Putting away the tablet, I turned my attention back to Shadeberry, who was barely conscious. I slid a sharp shadow down a large section of skin from her back, and the flesh peeled away like a pretty ribbon.
This was my gift to my mate, after all.
I held it up to her face. “Eat it. You always wanted to be like Dreadful, right?”
“What are you talking about?” She gagged, trying to retreat into the shadows, but mine had too tight a hold of her.
Hate burned in my heart, and I forced the flesh into her mouth, my grip on her chin unyielding. “Eat your skin just like Dreadful ate her hand.”
Tears streamed down her face as she chewed, and her body wracked with spasms. When she vomited, my smile widened, and I forced her to consume it again.
Finally satisfied when it stayed down, I stood up, my shadows flicking her blood off them and painting the bathroom with a red splatter that really brightened up the place. “You can call me evil all you want, but your bullying of Pandora is why this happened. You all should’ve listened after the lesson I taught Dreadful.”
Shadeberry lay on the floor in the puddle of her blood, and she didn’t bother to respond. Agony and humiliation poured off her.
“Remember, Shadeberry,” I spoke softly. “Don’t fuck with her, or next time I won’t be so nice.”
With that, I unlocked the door and slipped back into the darkness, leaving her to her pain and disgust.
I wondered if Pandora would appreciate my gift.
The silence from our messages didn’t bother me. I knew she would understand, eventually.
She was my fated.