Her name rolled down his tongue, and my anger reached the hot-white level of fury. I steered out another punch. My fist connected with his nose, jaw, and the side of his head. I gripped his hoodie, and slammed his tall, muscular frame against the wall.
Another blast. His head bounced against the bricks.
I was nowhere near Adrian’s level. If he wanted to, he could knock me out with one punch, but he was passive. He let me do whatever I pleased; his body was limp, though both fists were clenched as if it cost him a lot of restrain not to let his instincts take over.
I banged his head against the wall again. And again. And again.
He slid onto the dirty ground, his nose bleeding; eye swollen.
“You thought I’d let you anywhere near Nadia?!”
I gripped his hoodie and lifted him half a foot off the ground. My hand fell back then shot forth, connecting with his face at full speed.
No self-control. No brakes. No rational thoughts.
My imagination ran wild, creating endless scenes of Adrian hurting my girl. I heard her pleas; I saw her eyes filled with tears, the blood on her lips and bruises covering her petite body.
Adrian woke the monster: the one I kept buried deep inside since the moment I stepped out of the army.
Pain was absent even though my knuckles were bleeding. Mercy was absent even though Adrian whimpered, coughing up blood.
I cheered inside when I knocked out three of his teeth. He didn’t try to stop me, but it didn’t mean I took pity on him. There was no room for compassion among fury, worry and the need to hurt him as much as he hurt Nadia. I wasn’t thinking straight, sending blow after blow to his already massacred face.
I couldn’t stop or slow down. My chest heaved with the effort and my muscles burned, but Nadia’s bruised face lingered at the back of my mind turning the rage into a panicked, hysterical hell.
The punches kept coming. His head bounced off the concrete every time, the sound echoing in the dark, empty alley. Blood gushed from his nose and mouth. There was so much of it that the metallic taste lingered in the air. I failed to notice when he lost consciousness. I lost count of how many teeth he was missing, how many cuts marked his face and how many bones cracked under my knuckles.
It wasn’t enough.
Adrenaline pumped in my veins, but the genuine, overwhelming pleasure I got from hurting him vanished when two pairs of hands yanked me back. Nick and Scorpio pinned me to the wall. The looks on their pale faces a mixture of fear and sympathy. I pushed them away, effortlessly, as if they were two mannequins, my eyes on Adrian.
Maybe he wasn’t unconscious. Maybe I killed him.
I fucking hoped I killed him.
I was panting and shaking, my muscles strained and weak, but the images of Nadia covering her face, rocking back and forth forced my feet to move, to check if Adrian was breathing, or if I had to keep going.
I took one step before Nadia stepped in front of me.
Doe-like eyes and parted lips. The smell of her perfume; the look of utter helplessness. Small, trembling palms on my chest.
“Stop,” she uttered. “Please, stop. You’ll kill him.”
Dread passed through me like an injection of icy water. I cupped her face, smearing blood on her cheek, the crimson a striking contrast to the ashen tint of her skin.
“Are you ok?” I asked, my voice hoarse, throat dry. “Did he touch you? Did he say anything?”
She shook her head, knotting her fingers on my neck to drag me down. Her lips pressed against mine for a short, reassuring kiss.
“I’m okay,” she uttered, pressing her forehead to mine. “Please stop. It doesn’t matter how much you hurt him. He can’t undo what he did. Broken bones will heal in no time.”
Her proximity calmed down my racing mind, banishing the madness, clearing my head. I inhaled a deep breath.
She was right, but Adrian deserved a glimpse into the hell he put Nadia through.
“I know,” I drew her closer to get some semblance of normality. “You shouldn’t be here. I don’t want him to look at you.”
I glanced over my shoulder to Scorpio. He fished his keys out of the pocket, ready to take Nadia back home, away from Adrian and away from whatever was to happen next.