Dominic's POV

The warehouse smells of rust and old bloodmy favorite combination. I test the chains hanging from the ceiling beams, making sure they'll hold. The metal feels cold and solid under my fingers, perfect for what's coming.

'Tonight's going to be special. One last chance to break her completely before Sterling gets his hands on her.'

I've been looking forward to this all day, ever since that weight lifted off my shoulders. The anticipation has been building in my chest like a fine wine, getting better with each passing hour.

The sound of car engines cuts through the evening air.

I move towards the door, and fuck, I'm so excited. This feels like Christmas came early. This is what I've been missing these past few weeksthe pure, intoxicating rush of teaching that worthless brat her place.

The SUV doors slam shut one by one. Footsteps crunch on gravel.

But when they walk through the door, something's wrong.

Moira walks between her brothers, her head held highnot the broken, cowering posture I was expecting. Those green eyes of hers scan the warehouse with a calm that makes my blood boil.

She looks ready. Like she's already decided she can handle whatever's coming.

Rage shoots through my veins like liquid fire.

"What the fuck is this?" I snap at Victoria, who's practically skipping beside her brothers.

Victoria's smile falters slightly under my glare. "Jaxon told her, Daddy. He warned her about tonight."

The words hit me like a physical blow. My hands clench into fists so tight the knuckles crack. "He WHAT?"

"She knows about everything. The warehouse, Sterling, all of it." Victoria's voice gets smaller, but she presses on eagerly. "But she came anyway. She chose to stay."

'That traitorous piece of shit. I'll deal with him later.'

I turn to look at Moira again, and she meets my eyes directly. No flinching. No cowering. Just that same steady gaze that's been infuriating me since she was a child.

Fury builds in my chest, hot and violent. I need to watch those defiant eyes fill with terror and pain.

"Strip her and chain her up," I growl at the boys, my voice thick with anticipation.

Tristan and Ethan move forward eagerly, grabbing her arms. I wait for her to fight back, to scream, to give me the satisfaction of a struggle.

Instead, she goes completely limp.

They chain her wrists above her head, the metal biting deep enough to draw blood. She doesn't make a sound. Just hangs there, staring at the wall behind me.

Her silence feeds my furyand my excitement.

'Look at her. Even now, even like this, she thinks she's better than us.'

Her dark hair falls around her shoulders like a curtain, and there's something almost regal about the way she holds herself despite being chained and exposed. Like she's a queen enduring temporary captivity, confident in her eventual victory.

That thought makes me want to tear her apart with my bare hands.

"You think you're tough?" I step closer, close enough to see the pulse beating steadily in her throat. No racing heartbeat. No smell of terror. Just that same steady breathing, that same straight spine. "You think you can handle whatever we do to you?"

She doesn't answer, but her eyes shift to meet mine directly. There's something in that gazepity, maybe? Like she feels sorry for me.

'How dare she. How fucking dare she look at me like that.'

My fist connects with her stomach before I can think. The air rushes out of her lungs in a sharp whoosh, and her body doubles over as much as the chains will allow. The impact sends a satisfying jolt up my arm.

But still no scream. Her face goes white with pain, but her lips stay pressed firmly together.

The disappointment is almost as sharp as the rage.

'SCREAM, you stubborn bitch!'

I hit her again, this time in the ribs, putting all my strength behind it. I hear the satisfying crack of bone, feel the give of her body under my knuckles. Her whole frame shudders with the impact, and for a moment I think I see her composure waver.

But she straightens slowly, meeting my eyes again with that same unbroken stare.

The next punch catches her across the jaw, snapping her head to the side with brutal force. Blood spatters on the concrete floor in dark droplets.

I wait, breathing hard, watching for her to break. For tears, for begging, for anything.

Instead, she slowly turns her head back to face me, blood trickling from her split lip. And there it is againthat same steady gaze.

"Daddy, let us have a turn," Victoria whines from behind me, her voice bright with excitement. "You said I was in charge tonight."

I'm breathing hard, my knuckles split and bleeding from connecting with her bones. Pure fucking anticipation courses through me.

I study Moira's face, memorizing every detail. The way her green eyes never waver. The stubborn set of her jaw despite the blood.

When I come back, I'll take my time. I'll find every crack in that armor and pry it open until she's screaming for mercy.

"She's all yours," I say to Victoria, stepping back with visible reluctance. "Do whatever the fuck you want. Make her understand what happens to little girls who think they're special."

Victoria claps her hands together like a child on Christmas morning, but I barely register her excitement. My eyes are locked on Moira, studying every micro-expression, every tiny tell that might give away her breaking point.

I walk towards the door, needing space to plan my next approach. But I pause at the threshold and look back one more time.

Moira hangs there, blood trickling from her split lip, her ribs already swelling from my punches.

But those goddamn eyesstill holding that spark of defiance that makes me want to tear her apart with my bare hands.

The door slams behind me, but I can still feel those eyes burning into my back.

*****

Jaxon's POV

I crouch behind the oak tree, straining to hear anything from the warehouse.

Nothing.

Minutes crawl by. My wolf paces restlessly, every instinct screaming at me to charge in there. The bond between usthe one I tried to ignore for yearspulls at me like a physical chain.

Half an hour passes. The silence stretches on. No sounds at all from inside.

My legs shake as I stand and move toward the warehouse. Every step feels like walking through quicksand.

I'm still twenty yards from the building when a figure steps out of the shadows.

"I was wondering when you'd show up."

Dad steps into the light, his hands stained with bloodMoira's bloodhis eyes bright with sick satisfaction.

"Come to save your little sister?" He takes another step closer, and I can see the split knuckles, the splatter of blood on his shirt. "How fucking noble of you."

"Dad, I"

"You warned her." His voice turns deadly quiet, but underneath I hear something elsedisappointment. "Told her everything. Made her think she could handle it."

"She needed to know"

"She needed to be SURPRISED!" His Beta presence slams into me like a physical blow. "She needed to be terrified and broken and SCREAMING!"

I back away, but he's blocking the door. Behind him, I can hear Victoria's laughter echoing from inside the warehouse, high and delighted.

"Instead, she hung there like a fucking martyr. Took everything we gave her without making a sound." His fist clenches, and I can see Moira's blood under his fingernails. "Do you have any idea how that felt? To put everything I had into breaking her, and watch her stare at me like I was nothing?"

She didn't scream. She didn't break. The pride I feel gets immediately crushed by guilt. She's in there suffering because I couldn't find another way.

"She's a worthless little bitch who's about to become Sterling's personal whore." Another punch to my ribs, but his heart isn't in it. He's still thinking about Moira, still frustrated by his failure to break her. "And you're a traitorous piece of shit."

I try to fight back, but he's too fast, too strong. Part of me thinks I deserve this.

"You want to save her so badly?" He grabs my shirt and hauls me up, his eyes bright with renewed inspiration. "You're going to watch Sterling fuck her tomorrow night. You're going to see what happens to little girls who think they're too good for their family."

"No"

The final punch connects with my temple. The world explodes into stars and darkness.

As consciousness fades, I hear Victoria's voice drifting from the warehouse, sweet and excited: "Oh, Moira, we're just getting started."

I'm sorry. I'm so fucking sorry I couldn't save you.