Page 5 of Knight’s Dominion

Taren’s gaze shifted to Rocco, and the fucker’s smile widened as he brushed the female's hair away from her face.

Rocco roared. The sound bounced off the brick walls, the pain of it hitting Chaos in the chest with force, and he instantly knew who that female was to his brother.

The female stared at Roc, confusion and terror twisting her gentle features. "Rocco? What…what’s happening,” she asked, terror making her voice brittle, small.

The sound that left Rocco was pure animal, so raw it grated like sandpaper across Chaos’s skin.

And that's when he felt it, the reason Roc had kept this female under wraps.

Chaos’s body went haywire. His spine torqued, followed by his demon rocketing to the surface, like the bastard was trying to jump though his skin. If they hadn’t been at the portal, that’s exactly what would have happened.

The female was a hellsgate, a demi-demon who could be used to open and close the gates of Hell at will, and powerful enough that even without going through her transition, without having developed her powers yet, he could feel it.

Taren wrapped his hand around the front of her, gripping her throat and leaned in, eyes still on Rocco, who shook with rage so fierce Chaos was surprised the ground didn’t shake with him. "Say goodbye now. This will be the last time you see your female."

“Rocco!” she screamed, tears streaming down her face. “Please…oh, God, please, help me.”

A bolt came out of nowhere and lodged in Taren’s shoulder. Two more quickly followed, taking out both orthon at his side. Taren hissed in pain but held the female tighter, using her as a shield as he backed up.

“Kyler!” Rocco roared and exploded into action, running for them.

Chaos sprinted after him—

Taren yanked the female back, back through the portal.

It would remain open for another few minutes, but they were fucked. Knights couldn't enter Hell. One step through that portal with the angel brands they'd each had burned into their skin, and they'd die almost instantly.

Rocco knew this as well, which was why he’d pressed the bloody knife in his hand against his own forearm and started sawing at the brand, cutting at his flesh.

They all moved as one. Zenon got there first, tackling him hard to the ground. Rocco fought and bucked, determined to go after her, the sounds of his anguish sending a shiver down Chaos’s spine and tearing through him.

In the end, it took four of them to hold him down and wrestle the blade from his hand.

"Get the fuck off me!” Rocco’s voice was almost unrecognizable, fear and rage strangling his vocal cords.

A flash of light lit up the alleyway, followed by a familiar pop, and the portal closed.

Rocco’s tortured scream was like a wild animal being slaughtered in the most inhumane of ways, and they all felt his soul-deep agony. It shredded Chaos. It shredded all of them.

"What have you done?” Rocco rasped, the fight leaving him immediately. His haunted gaze locked on the wall where the portal had been moments ago. He moved up to it, pressing his hands to the cold brick.

“Brother," Zenon choked, stepping forward.

Rocco shoved him away. “If that was Mia?"

Zenon's jaw tightened, his face twisting in agony. “I couldn't let you kill yourself."

Now that the portal was gone, their powers returned, and Rocco shifted, immediately taking his Kishi demon form. His clothes, now nothing but tatters, lay scattered on the ground at his feet. His deep crimson skin, so dark it was almost black, gleamed under the dim light in the alley, making his enormous fangs and black horns almost sparkle. But there was barely anything left of Rocco in his dark blue gaze, and Chaos watched as obsidian crawled in from the edges of his irises, washing away the color completely.

Gunner reached for him. “Roc—”

Without a backward glance, their brother took flight.

Zenon began to strip, and Chaos shook his head. "Leave him. He needs time to cool off."

Laz’s head jerked up and he turned to Chaos, disbelief in his bright green eyes. "Cool off?”

Chaos didn’t know what the fuck to say.