Mary's POV
My throat constricted under Marcus's iron grip, panic flooding my system as I clawed at his hand. This wasn't the reserved younger brother I remembered-this was a stranger with murder in his eyes.
"If I ever hear those words from your mouth again, you won't have a voice to speak with," he whispered, each syllable dripping with venom.
Humiliation burned through me like acid. Despite our distant relationship, we shared blood. Yet here he was, choosing some outsider over family.
"You're threatening me? Marcus Murphy, you'd treat your own sister this way for some second-hand_" The rest of my sentence died as his fingers tightened, cutting off my airflow.
"Who's the outsider here?" His voice dropped even lower. "Anna is the woman I'm going to spend my life with. She's my wife, my family."
