POV's Jace
Liam nodded. "For twenty-one years."
"That's a long time," Philip said.
"Selena must look awfully delicious in comparison to your old wife." I shot Philip a look. Couldn't he keep his mouth shut for a second? Liam's hand twitched an inch toward the holster around his waist. My own hand is already resting on my gun. I met Liam's gaze.
He cleared his throat. "I've known Selena since her birth. She is a child." He said it with a hint of reproach. If he thought that would make me feel guilty or anything close to it, he is a fool. "She won't be a child for much longer," I said.
"She will always be a child in my eyes. And I'm faithful to my wife."
Liam glared at Philip. "If you insult my wife again, I'll ask your father for permission to challenge you in a knife fight to defend her honor, and I'll kill you."
That would make Philip's day. There is nothing he enjoyed more than a bloody knife fight, probably not even a pussy.
"You could try," Philip said, baring his teeth, "but you would not succeed."
Liam isn't a threat. Neither for Philip, nor for Selena. I could tell he is protective of her in a fatherly way. "I think you're a good choice, Liam."
I turned to Bernie. If we'd been in Montavero, I'd have already put a bullet in his head. Perhaps he thought I hadn't seen the looks he'd given Selena when he thought nobody was paying attention. I stepped right in front of him. He craned his neck to meet my gaze. He tried to look cool. He isn't fooling me. There is fear. Good.
"He's family. Are you honestly going to accuse him of having an interest in my daughter?" Finnick butted in from the side.
"I saw how you looked at Selena," I said to Bernie. His eyes flickered nervously.
"Like a juicy peach you wanted to pluck," Philip threw in, enjoying this entirely too much.
Bernie's eyes darted to Finnick like the spineless wimp he is. I knew guys like him. They got off on preying on the weak, especially women, because it is the only way they could feel strong.
"Don't deny it. I know what I want when I see it. And you want Selena,"
I growled. Bernie didn't deny it. "If I find out you're looking at her like that again…If I find out you're in a room alone with her…If I find out you touch as much as her hand, I will kill you."Bernie flushed red.
"You aren't a member of the Outfit. Nobody would tell you anything, even if I raped her. I could break her in for you. Maybe I'll even film it for you."
I grabbed the bastard and threw him to the ground. His face hit the floor hard, and I dug my knee into his back. I wanted to break his spine in two and rip off his fucking balls. Then he'd never even think about using the words 'rape' and 'Selena' in the same sentence again.
Bernie struggled and cursed. He is like a bothersome fly: weak and disgusting. Worth less than the dirt on my shoes. That he even dared think about touching Selena, about breaking her in…I grabbed his wrist and pulled out my knife.
I should cut off his balls and dick. That is what he deserved. But this isn't my territory. Even though it pissed me off, I looked at Finnick for permission. Finnick nodded. I brought my knife down on Bernie's pinky, cutting through bone and flesh and relishing in his pussy screams.
A female cry echoed through the walls. I let go of Bernie and stood. He cradled his hand like a baby, a blubbering mess. Disgusting. Samuel and Beckham had drawn their weapons. Finnick went to open a secret door, revealing the redheaded sister and Selena.
"Of course," Finnick hissed. "I should have known it was you causing trouble again." He wrenched the redhead away from Selena and into the lounge, raised his hand, and slapped her hard across the face. My fingers on the knife tightened. And then the fucker stepped toward Selena, raising his arm again. Fury burned through me. Mine.
I caught his wrist, stopping him. It took all my willpower not to ram the bloody knife into his stomach and let him bleed out like a pig. From the corner of my eye, I saw Liam drawing his knife, and Finnick reaching for his gun. Philip, Samuel, and Beckham had drawn their own guns.
I hated the words I had to speak next. "I didn't mean disrespect, but Selena is no longer your responsibility. You lost your right to punish her when you made her my fiancée. She's mine to deal with now." Finnick glanced at the ring on Selena's finger, marking her as mine. He gave a nod, and I released him.
"That's true." He stepped back from me and gestured at Selena. "Then would you like the honor of beating some sense into her?"
I turned my eyes to Selena. She is pale. Her fearful eyes darted to the knife in my blood-covered hand, then back up to my face. She froze. The idea of raising my hand against her is ludicrous. What kind of man hits a woman? And Selena? No, the mere idea set my teeth on edge. She weighed less than half of me. She is innocent and vulnerable. "She didn't disobey me."Im looked fucking unhappy. As if I gave a fuck.
"You're right, but as I see it, Selena will be living under my roof until the wedding, and since honor forbids me to raise my hand against her, I'll have to find another way to make her obey me." He hit Selena's sister a second time, and I had half a mind to intervene again, but that is beyond my control. "For every one of your wrongdoings, Selena, your sister will accept the punishment in your stead," Finnick said. Selena looked as if she'd rather have him hit her than her sister. She is way too innocent and gentle for someone like me.
Finnick turned to the bodyguard."Liam, take Jennie and Selena to their rooms and make sure they stay there." Liam sheathed his knife and led them out.
Selena avoided looking at me as she helped her sister. Bernie's whimper drew my attention back to him. He is still clutching his hand, crying like the fucking wimp he is. Philip held out a tissue. I took it and cleaned my hand and knife roughly. I'd need water and soap to get rid of it completely.
"I trust you'll keep Selena safe from male attention," I said coldly, fixing Finnick with a hard look. "I don't want him anywhere near her. If I hear that someone as much as looks at her the wrong way, nothing will stop me from dragging Valdoria into the bloodiest war you can imagine. I don't share what's mine, and Selena is mine. Only mine. She's under my protection from this day on."
Finnick's mouth thinned, but Silas would lose his shit if peace broke because Finnick couldn't protect his own daughter.
"Don't worry. She will be protected. As I said, she attends a Catholic school for girls and is never alone with men."
I knelt beside Bernie, and he shied back, terror flashing in his eyes. I leaned even closer. "This is nothing," I growled. "This pain is a fucking joke compared to the kind of agony you'll be in if you go near Selena ever again. If you ever touch as much as a hair on her body," my voice turned even deadlier, shaking with the force of my rage, "a single fucking hair, I'll shove my knife up your ass and fuck you with it slowly until you bleed out through your asshole. Got it?"
He gave a jerky nod."I want to hear it."