Chapter 18

chapter 18

. . .

Carmen

T he sound of Logan’s deep voice mingled with Tyler’s familiar timbre reached my ears as I slowly descended the stairs.

My heart raced, anxiety prickling through my body like a thousand needles. As I reached the bottom step, sure enough—Tyler was there, sitting among his pack members, engaged in conversation with Logan.

They looked up at me, their gazes locking onto mine.

“Tyler,” I said, my voice barely above a whisper. “What are you doing here?”

He glanced down at my swollen belly, his eyes widening momentarily, but he said nothing. Anger surged within me, and I rounded on Logan instead, my hands shaking at my sides.

“Logan, why is he here?” I demanded, my voice rising an octave. “I’m done with him. I don’t want to see him!”

Logan quickly rose from his chair, knowing how much seeing Tyler distressed me. He gently placed his hands on my shoulders, attempting to calm me down. “Tyler has some news he wants to share. It’s important. ”

“And what news may that be?” I asked, sighing. My legs were getting tired, and I sank onto the couch next to Logan.

Reluctantly, I allowed myself to calm down. But my attention shifted back to Tyler as I glared at him, my hand protectively cradling my belly.

“Listen, Carmen,” Tyler began, his voice strained with urgency as he took a step toward me. “Henry knows where you are, and he won’t stop until he has you. He doesn’t like to be slighted in the least, and I’m here to warn you.”

My heart raced at the mention of Henry, and I tried to steady myself.

“Okay, thanks for the warning. You can leave now,” I said, glancing away from him. I felt a strange mix of emotions with Tyler present. The wound in my heart still felt fresh, but I was determined to move on from him after everything that had happened.

“Wait,” Tyler said, his eyes pleading with me. “I know full well that I don’t deserve to be here right now in your presence, but you deserve an explanation.”

“What explanation?” I said, holding back tears as I crossed my arms over my chest. “There’s no way anything could explain the way you treated me.”

“Please, just hear me out,” he insisted, his gaze not leaving mine for a moment. “Do you remember the night I knotted you for the first time?”

The memory caused heat to rise in my cheeks, and I shifted uncomfortably. I wished I had just allowed Logan to knot me without Tyler being my first. I had given away my virginity to the last alpha on Earth that I wanted to be with.

“Yes, regretfully,” I muttered. “But so what? What does that have to do with anything?”

“After I knotted you, I received a call from Henry,” Tyler continued, his voice heavy with regret. “He demanded that I return and told me he was looking for you. ”

“Looking for me?” I asked, confused. “Why hasn’t he moved on? I literally left the alpha compound and betrayed him.”

“Because that’s not how Henry operates,” Tyler said, frustration seeping into his words. “You were never just another omega to him, Carmen. And he’s not going to let you go without a fight.”

“Are you fucking serious?” asked Griffin, handing me a cup of hot chocolate. I wasn’t in the mood to relax anymore, so I set it down on the coffee table. “Don’t worry, babe, we’ll take care of him.”

As I processed this new information, anger and fear warred within me. But one thing was certain—I couldn't let Henry find me, not now. I needed to protect my unborn child at all costs.

“Collecting omegas like trophies—that’s what Henry does,” Tyler explained, his voice filled with disgust. “I’ve seen it before. I had to stay away for your own protection, Carmen. I couldn’t just hand you over to him.”

“Oh really?” I asked, confused. “But what if we had stayed together? And I’m only asking hypothetically. Wouldn’t he respect our relationship?”

“Respect?” Tyler laughed bitterly. “Henry doesn’t respect the other alphas at all. He would’ve taken you in a heartbeat. That’s why I asked Logan to take care of you, to keep you safe from him.”

I suddenly felt the baby kick inside me. I looked down, one hand instinctively resting on my swollen belly.

“Leaving after raking my virginity was the worst thing you could do to me,” I said, suddenly becoming emotional despite trying to hold it in. “You should never have done that if you weren’t serious about me.”

Before he could respond, a sudden alarm blared through the house. There was an intruder in the house.

“Fuck,” said Logan, rushing to secure the front door.

The rest of us were frozen for a few moments, my heart pounding. Tyler's eyes went wide with alarm, and without hesitation, he rushed over to me.

He scooped me up into his arms.

“What are you doing?!” I yelled, punching his chest. “Was this your plan all along?”

But Tyler didn’t answer as he rushed us to the back of the house and into the night air. He ran across the backyard and past the pool.

Oh my God, he was going to jump over the fence .

I shut my eyes tight while holding onto his arms. Tyler jumped over the backyard fence with me still in his arms, landing nimbly on his feet.

“It’s Henry,” he rumbled over the sound of my heart hammering in my ears. “We need to get out of here!”

But we were instantly surrounded.

Alphas clad in black—their faces hidden behind masks—encircled us like hungry wolves ready to pounce on their prey. Terror clawed at my chest as Tyler gently lowered me onto the ground, positioning himself between me and the enemy.

“Stay behind me, Carmen,” he growled, his voice low and protective. I clutched my swollen belly, feeling the baby squirm inside me as if it, too, sensed the danger we were in.

“Leave,” Tyler snarled at the approaching alphas. His fists clenched, ready for a fight. They didn’t respond, but their threatening stances spoke volumes.

“Please, Tyler... be careful,” I whispered, my voice trembling with fear for both him and the unborn child. He glanced back at me, determination etched into his eyes.

“I won’t let them take you,” he promised before lunging at the nearest attacker .

The sound of flesh meeting flesh echoed through the air as Tyler fought fiercely against Henry's cronies. Each one fell under his powerful blows, but there were just too many of them.

Eventually, they managed to overwhelm him, dragging him down onto the bloodied sidewalk. Panic surged through me as I watched them hold him, his face battered and bruised.

“Tyler!” I screamed, tears streaming down my cheeks.

The commotion behind me drew my gaze, and I saw Logan and the other members of Tyler’s pack engaged in battle against more of Henry’s men.

Suddenly, police sirens wailed in the distance. One of our human neighbors must have called. The clash of bodies and growls of pain filled my ears. My heart pounded wildly, and I knew I had to do something.

As I turned, two of the men grabbed me, hauling me toward a black van parked nearby.

“No! Let me go!" I shrieked, struggling against their iron grip. Desperation clawed at me, and I feared for both my life and the life of my child. “Help!”

Tyler started running toward me, and I screamed one last time before being shoved into the van. The door slammed shut, cutting me off from the outside world.

“Let her go!” Tyler’s anguished shouts echoed in my ears as the van drove away from my alphas.

My pulse raced as the van sped through the night, tires screeching in their haste to carry me further away from my pack. I could feel the cold floor beneath my feet, the unforgiving metal pressing against my bare skin. My heart sank deeper with every passing second like there was a crushing weight over me .

“Please,” I whispered, choking back a sob. “Let me go. You don’t have to do this.”

A laugh echoed through the van, one of the masked alphas turning his attention to me.

“You think we have a choice, omega?” His voice was cruel and mocking. “We follow orders. You belong to Henry now.”

“Like hell I do,” I said, breathing hard. My hands balled into fists at my sides, though I knew it would be pointless to fight them all. But I refused to give up so easily. “I will never belong to him.”

“Keep telling yourself that, sweetheart,” another alpha sneered, his eyes raking over me hungrily. “Once he knots you, you’ll forget all about your precious Tyler.”

“Shut up!” I shouted, my voice breaking as tears pricked at the corners of my eyes. Desperation clawed at my chest, my mind racing with thoughts of escape, but the van was speeding down the highway.

“Leave her alone,” one of the other alphas snapped, his tone surprisingly gentle compared to the others. “She’s scared enough as it is.”

“Aw, does someone have a soft spot for the omega?” The first alpha taunted, but the van fell silent after that, leaving me to stew in my fear and grief.

I banged on the tinted window, my fingers aching from the effort. The glass felt cold and unyielding beneath my palms, mocking my desperate attempts to escape. With a frustrated growl, I tugged at the door handle, but it remained steadfastly locked.

“Please,” I whispered once more, my voice barely audible even to myself. “I’m begging you. Let me go. My alphas will pay you whatever you want.”

Silence met my plea, the alphas seemingly unaffected by my pain. The only sounds were the hum of the engine and the occasional muffled curse as one of the alphas shifted uncomfortably in his seat.

I leaned back against my chair, trying to catch my breath. My heart continued its frantic pace, each beat a reminder of how dire my situation had become. The baby inside me stirred, and I placed a protective hand on my belly, vowing silently that I would do everything in my power to keep us both safe.

For now, all I could do was wait and pray that rescue would come before it was too late.