Page 82 of Hero of Havoc

“Teddy, let’s go,” Ivy whispers, her presence inching closer, but I shake my head.

“I’m not done,” I rasp, crouching down so I’m eye level with my target. My pulse rings in my ears, desperation clawing through me to get revenge. I know my trigger; it’s always the same, but it’s uncontrollable, and I’m… having fun.

“Teddy, please,” Ivy insists as my grin widens, my eyes fixated on the fucker before me.

“Bark.”

My command snaps through the air, followed swiftly by a raspy woof from Silas’s lips.

“Teddy, that’s enough,” Ivy musters as the crowd laughs.

“I’m not done,” I retort, my tone short and snappy, and I hate it. Launching to my feet, my distress shifts to panic as I gape at Ivy’s pained eyes. “I’m sorry,” I breathe, the words but a whisper on my tongue as my body tries to catch up with the shift in my emotions. Ivy worries her bottom lip, keeping her distance, and it makes my stomach churn. “Ivy, please, I’m sorry,” I repeat, raking my hands through my hair. I can feel myself crumbling, unfazed by the crowd as I prepare to feel the tendrils of karma envelop me.

This is what I get for letting my emotions get the better of me, for making a spectacle of Silas instead of learning to better control myself.

I’m going to fall from grace with an audience, but all I care about is her.

“Ivy,” I repeat as Sax takes a step to stand between us, blocking her from my view as he narrows his eyes at me.

“You’ve done enough,” he states, the truth poisoning the air around me as I gulp.

My mother’s words on Silas’s tongue threaten to ruin me, but it’s the distance between Ivy and me that makes my heart stutter.

“Teddy, let’s just go,” Ivy murmurs, stepping around Sax with her hand extended.

“You don’t have to feel sorry for him, Ivy. He does this shit to himself,” Sax grunts, and Ivy shakes her head as she gulps.

“I know exactly what he’s doing, and I want to help,” she explains, glancing from Sax to me. “Let me.”

My body tightens with apprehension as she offers me her hand, and I take it without question.

She could ask me to jump through hoops right now, and I would do it.

Fuck, she could demand I get on my knees like a good little boy and bark too, and I would all but howl at the damn moon if it meant she was here with me.

As if sensing my thoughts, she glances down at my side. “Make him… not do that anymore,” she mumbles, waving a hand at Silas.

“Silas, stand,” I order, and he quickly hurries to his feet. “My magic will last as long as it takes me to get Ivy away from here. Don’t follow us. In fact, go look for Archer; he can take over the task with his magic,” I realize, dragging a hand down my face as I turn back to Ivy.

Concern flickers in her gaze, and I hate that it’s for me, yet there’s something about it that makes my pain less present, like there’s someone in this world who cares enough about me to feel concern.

“Ivy,” Sax mumbles, and she squeezes his arm.

“I’m fine, Sax. Just… give us some time.”

“And if I don’t trust him with you right now?” he retorts, glaring at me, and I take it.

“Then you don’t see what I see,” she offers with no further explanation as she intertwines our fingers and tugs me away.

Complaints from the crowd echo around us, but if she hears them, she doesn’t pay them any mind as she marches away from the carnage I’ve caused.

With every step I take, my destructive defenses shatter, leaving my heart bare and bleeding between us.

“Ivy,” I breathe, and she shakes her head.

“Not yet,” she replies, and I squeeze her hand tighter.

“Please,” I insist, making her huff.