Mudminnow River it will break my heart to go against your wishes [m]

Arielle spoke, but Aventus was not done. Not by a long shot. He heaved with panting breaths over the desecrated body of his aunt, filled with rage and grief and a confusing amount of lust, given the circumstances. It was all he could do not to turn and seize his beautiful Bruin-heart then and there.

He knew it was because he was in a passionate frenzy, whipped up by the death of his last remaining family. Avicus, Asperas, and Apophis were all long gone. No, he thought, only Avicus. The other two were not worthy of the title at all. He wanted Arielle so badly to fill his veins with some other sensation, to chase away the crushing feeling in his breast, and he turned his bright eyes to her for a moment, but he refrained. Now was not the time or the place and it would not fill the emptiness in him.

It was only a sort of mania taking hold of him, and he was not confident he would not hurt her in the process.

She spoke sense and brought him back to himself. Merrick would be buried in his kingdom. But there was business first. Laurel's body was a wreck. He bent and wrenched open her belly, fished out her innards, and turned to where the bypass was. We will leave her on their border as a warning, he decided, shutting down the voice of reason in him that said it was dangerous to leave such an obvious calling card for those who cared for her.