The Rejected Luna (Avery and Kaden) novel Chapter 174

**Between the Wings of Twilight Lies the Memory of You**
**by Liren Ava Roen**
**Chapter 174**

The instant those fateful words escaped my mouth, I felt Steven’s arm around my waist tighten with a ferocity that stole the very breath from my lungs. My heart raced as I looked up at his strikingly handsome face, now twisted into a mask of seething rage, a darkness that seemed to pulse and radiate from him like waves of heat from a roaring fire. It felt as if a tempest was brewing within him, and I found myself standing at its eye, gripped by a paralyzing fear of the chaos that was about to erupt.

“Zephyra,” he growled, his voice a low rumble that sent icy tendrils of dread spiraling down my spine. Each syllable dripped with venom, as though he were savoring the taste of my fear. His gaze pierced through me, a predatory intensity that made my skin crawl, as if he were contemplating tearing me apart, piece by piece. “I think you actually want to die.”

A dull ache blossomed in my chest, and I felt my features contort in pain, a mixture of disbelief and horror coursing through me. Instinct kicked in, and I pounded on his hand, desperation fueling my frantic pleas. “That hurts! Let go of me!”

Yet instead of releasing his grip, his other hand slipped beneath the hem of my dress, his rough fingertips brushing against my leg as they traveled upward, igniting a tidal wave of shock and fury within me. My eyes widened in disbelief as I stared at his stone-cold expression, my mind racing to comprehend the violation that was unfolding in front of me. “Steven, are you out of your mind?!”

“Out of my mind? You’re the one who drove me to this,” he spat, his grip tightening further, a vice-like hold that felt as if he were attempting to crush me into his very essence. In the glaring sunlight, his once handsome features morphed into something grotesque and menacing, an image I could hardly reconcile with the man I had once loved. “You cheated on me last night, didn’t you? As your husband, it’s my duty to inspect the damage.”

*Inspect?!*

A chill slithered through my veins, freezing me in disbelief. There was only one way to “inspect” something like that, and it involved actions that made my stomach churn with revulsion.

Never in my wildest dreams had I imagined that Steven could sink to such a vile and shameless act. He had always prided himself on cleanliness and order! If I had truly betrayed him with Horace, wouldn’t he be repulsed rather than acting like a barbarian?

“Zephyra, you had better be lying,” he snarled, the fury in his eyes bubbling over like a tempest threatening to consume us both. “Otherwise—you will die by my hand today.”

I didn’t wait for the full weight of his threat to settle in the air. With a surge of adrenaline, I lifted my leg and kicked out with all my strength. My high-heeled shoe, crafted from stiff leather, connected with his shin, and I hoped it inflicted pain. I pressed my hand firmly against his, trying to halt his advance, my voice a frantic mix of terror and fury. “Steven, you’re a pervert! Don’t touch me! Let go of me, please!”

His breath hitched, and he shot me a frigid glare, his hand moving with even more forceful intent.

In that heart-stopping moment, the painful disparity in strength between us became painfully clear. Even with both of my hands gripping his one, he could easily toss me aside like I was nothing more than a feather. My dress felt like it was being torn away from me, and a wave of panic surged through my veins, overwhelming my reason. I screamed, desperation lacing my voice. “Enough! No, nothing happened! You don’t need to check! I didn’t cheat on you!”

Yet, his hand persisted in its relentless movement, his handsome jaw set in grim determination, as if he were hell-bent on uncovering a truth that I knew didn’t exist.

“Steven, you bastard! What gives you the right to do this to me?!”

This intimate violation left me feeling cold and numb, my complexion paling as the gravity of the situation settled in. In another life, when I had still been hopelessly in love with him, I might have twisted this scenario into some warped foreplay. But in this humiliating moment, faced with a man I no longer recognized, all I felt was an abyss of fear threatening to swallow me whole.

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