Toxic Glory

TOXIC GLORY RUTHLESS SOCIETY: BOOK 3 RAVEN RAGE Copyright © 2023 by Raven Rage. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental. Cover Design by Melissa Cunningham Developmental Editing by Melanie Yu, Made Me Blush Books. Proofreading by Aurora Reed. Created with Vellum CONTENTS Toxic Glory Author’s Note Join the #RAGELIST Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18 Chapter 19 Chapter 20 Chapter 21 Chapter 22 Chapter 23 Chapter 24 Chapter 25 Chapter 26 Chapter 27 Chapter 28 Chapter 29 Chapter 30 Chapter 31 Chapter 32 Chapter 33 Chapter 34 Chapter 35 Chapter 36 Chapter 37 Chapter 38 Chapter 39 Chapter 40 Chapter 41 Chapter 42 About This Series Acknowledgments About the Author TOXIC GLORY The cards have been dealt. The final move must be made. Nothing will ever be the same. For the hopeless romantics. AUTHOR’S NOTE You’re here! I’m a little emotional about this author’s note, because it is the last one for Alize and Alexander’s trilogy. Their story means so much to me. I know you’re excited to get started, so here is my customary warning. Your mental health is important. Toxic Glory is intended for people 18+ and contains gun play, breath play, dubious consent, bullying, public humiliation, mentions of rape and torture, graphic depictions of violence, and sexual assault. If any of these topics make you uncomfortable, this book is not suitable for you. If you do choose to read Toxic Glory, it is my hope that you will enjoy it. Happy reading! XO, Raven R. JOIN THE #RAGELIST Raven Rage’s #RAGELIST is a weekly dark romance newsletter. Sign up to receive Ruthless Temptation as a welcome gift. “We make each other alive; it doesn't make a difference if it hurts.” — INGMAR BERGMAN ONE ALIZE Alex shoves me into the stateroom with a harsh palm against the small of my back, slamming the door shut behind us. My head’s spinning—mostly from the clinic’s email—and he isn’t making it any better. It might just be my imagination, but he seems different. When he came back into the bathroom with the water I asked for, it was like a switch had flipped. The concern and warmth in his eyes just minutes earlier withered into something empty and cold. And all the courage I mustered up to tell him that I could be pregnant withered along with it. “Are you alright?” I ask, swallowing around the lump in my throat. He’s towering over me, both of us standing in the aisle of the plane’s stateroom, between the double bed and the bureau. Earlier, Alex led me through the seating area without a word. The whole plane is decorated in shades of cream and gray, with white leather seats and carbon fiber-covered bulkheads. My question hangs in the air. Alex takes in a sharp breath through his nose, his blue eyes narrowing slightly. His blonde hair falls over his forehead, the top of it mussed like he’s been in a fight. “Get on the bed.” His sentence comes out clipped. I raise my eyebrows, unsure if I’ve heard him correctly. “What?” Alex’s nostrils flare, his hand shooting out to grip my neck. He pulls me closer to him, close enough for me to feel the heat of his skin, his chest rising and falling against my own. He cocks his head, glowering down at me with an expression that sinks into the pit of my stomach. It wasn’t in my head after all. He is different. Ice prickles the skin along the back of my neck. I try to pry his hand from my neck but it’s no use, so I dig my fingers into the skin of his forearm. “What’s your problem, Alex?” I can barely get the words out thanks to his vice grip. Alex bares his teeth, the corners of his mouth turning up slightly as his eyes skim over my face. I can’t figure out what’s caused this. It’s like we’re back to the first time he cornered me after Professor Holmes’ lecture. Which makes no sense because so much has changed since then. His child could be growing inside of me, for one. That thought comes right as he tosses me on to the bed. I land against the fluffy comforter, scrambling to breathe and right myself all in the same second. Alex’s gaze is searing, the darkness of his aura spreading through the room like a choking haze. I straighten my spine, meeting his gaze head on. “Take your clothes off,” he commands. Beyond the closed door of the stateroom are the muffled sounds of the crew preparing for takeoff. The walls of the room are closing in on me but I can’t take my eyes off Alex. The longer I look at him, the wilder he seems—the vein bulging in his forehead, the tension of his muscles as he balls his fists by his sides—every bone in my body is telling me to bolt out of the room. And that’s exactly why I can’t move. Because the terror he instills in me feels too familiar. Something is definitely wrong, and though I can’t be sure what’s bothering him, I know what he needs. There’s a promise in his harsh stare. It’s all kinds of fucked up, but it’s what makes us who we are. He needs to hurt me to get some reprieve from whatever’s