Wolf Endangered (Willow's Forbidden Pack #2) - Avery Song Page 0,196

been gifted to Neo a while back. They performed marvellously according to Neo's standards, so he soaked them in an expensive clear liquid that got blood out of the bristles far quicker.

Those concoctions help clean shifter blood from crime scenes.

Only shifters really knew that blood carried a special scent that could linger for months, if not years depending on the shifter. It was one of the reasons why Neo always had to use a special layering coat on his creations to ensure the scent was a rich cologne fragrance that overpowered the scent of blood.

Some of his clients liked the bloody scent, so he'd use the layer of cover-up to a lesser degree, but he'd only had a few clients want the full scale of the aroma on their paintings.

They wished to smell the scent of their slain enemy hanging on the wall.

"You have anything else to say, Ronald? This is your last chance."

The poor man had probably lost his soul in the crossfire - his eyes were practically lifeless. His body was ripped open, his organs all visible, while his heart seemed to be the last functioning thing. His lungs barely expanded and deflated.

It was like opening the hood of a car and watching the engine work, only we were witnessing how a shifter functioned in their last minutes of life.

When I was still new to this world of bloodshed, I wondered what Mother Moon would think of us. Would she disdain our actions of torture, or approve of them because we delivered punishment to those who purposely sought to destroy our own kind?

Those thoughts faded with age and experience, but once in a while, I wondered if she'd love us when we returned home one day.

Would she give us salvation for living a lifestyle of justice through the act of bloodshed?

Ronald fought to speak, and I expected some sort of swear word because that was what everyone said with their last breath.

"Fuck...you."

"Could have been more creative than that," Neo stated with disappointment, his eyes scanning his masterpiece before him. I was sure with his heightened magic he could see with perfect vision, but once Ronald's life force faded, so would Neo's vision once more.

"Sweet Mate," Neo called to Willow. She was sitting up and looking curiously at Neo as he finally pulled his eyes from the filled canvas. "Wanna do the honors?"

"I wanna watch, actually," she admitted. "On your lap."

I arched an eyebrow at her statement, looking back at Neo, who was literally smiling from ear to ear. The last time I'd seen him with such a genuine look of happiness on his face was when he'd won his global award, and even then, he had his blindfold on for that occasion.

Here, he truly looked like a happy man in love with a woman who lit up his entire world. That could have been exactly what Willow did. She gave him the ability to see past his limitations, and watching it like an unfolding movie made me crave the same.

Made me crave the light at the burning end of the tunnel.

Willow slid off the table, her heels clicking against the cement surface as she reached where Neo sat and didn't hesitate to sit on his lap. Neo had his arm around her waist in an instant, his lips brushing hers in greeting before she took a moment to admire the piece up close.

I could feel the pride leaking off her, which was mesmerizing to feel. After watching an hour of Neo's antics, she wasn't in the slightest bit afraid of him.

She was fucking proud of his work. Impressed by his creativity and workmanship.

To simply put it, she accepted him.

"You have a better idea, Sweet Mate?"

"Hmm," she began. "Why don't we give Milo the chance to end it? He did let us have some fun."

She did have a point.

I looked at Milo, just like they did, and he didn't seem opposed by the idea.

"Would that be allowed?" Milo inquired. "He's your kill. I shouldn't be given the opportunity when I didn't struggle for it."

Whoever trained - or tortured - him probably instilled those bullshit olden ways of thinking upon him. It was the typical “catch your prey, reap the rewards” movement.

It was stupid because the saying was flawed in the shifter world because no matter who caught the prey, it would end up in the hands of your Alpha and they would determine whether you joined their meal, like it was the Last Supper, or starved.

"You did struggle for