Chapter 28

Twenty-Eight

LACY

T he next morning, I was relieved to wake up to an empty bed. I yawned, remembering the horror from the last night. Jordan took pleasure in making me orgasm at his fingertips repeatedly until I collapsed from exhaustion. According to Henry's rules, the alphas weren't allowed to do that unless the omega wasn't going into heat fast enough. It was supposed to be strictly cuddling for the pheromones.

Frustration boiled within me as I showered and put on clothes for the day. I planned to complain to Henry and force him to change my alpha handlers. I hated Jordan more and more with a passion. Deciding to go with a plain beige dress, I threw it on, hoping to look as dull and unappealing as possible. It flared at my waist, stopping at my thighs. I tied my hair up in a ponytail and in the mirror, realizing how drab I looked.

My eyes were baggy from all my sobbing last night, and my face was puffy. I put on a little bit of lip gloss and some eyeliner so I could look halfway decent when I hung out in the Social Room today. But first, I had to see Olivia and make sure she was okay.

I wore plain white slippers and carefully opened my door, checking to see if there was anyone before I left my room.

Walking across the hallway, a flood of emotion overcame me. I stood in front of her door, imagining the horrors that she was going through, too. Tears fell down my face as I sobbed in the hallway. Memories of how gruff Jordan was without a shred of care and how he slapped me reminded me of the monster he was.

I had to collect myself, so I took a few deep breaths, resting against the wall.

I sniffled, and I suddenly felt a hand wrap over my mouth.

Panic shot through me. My breathing quickened, but the scent of the alpha holding me was different. A familiar, calming smell that I knew all too well.

"Don't scream or talk loud," said Ryder in a harsh whisper. "I'm going to let you go now."

He released my mouth, and I spun around to see Ryder. Relief and joy flowed through every vein of my being. I honestly couldn't remember a time when I was more relieved to see someone more than today. Despite my hesitations about him, I wanted to hug and kiss him so badly. But I couldn't give away his cover.

He was wearing an all-black uniform, just like all the alpha guards here. A shirt, black pants, a silver belt, and the wolf badge on his shoulder.

"How did you find me?" I whispered, looking down the hallway to make sure no one was coming.

"Don't worry about that," he said quickly, looking back and forth. "I just want to let you know that I'm here for you. Sit tight, and don't cry, okay? We'll bust you out of here very soon, Lacy."

"I'm sorry for everything," I said as remorse flowed through me. I didn't want him to leave, and I felt panic at the thought.

"It's okay, sweetheart, I'm sorry too," he said, his eyes on my lips. "Why were you crying? What did they fucking do to you?"

"I.."

My heart palpitated as he neared me. I wanted him to kiss me so badly. More in this moment than any other. But we were soon interrupted by alpha guards, and I had to pretend not to know him as I quickly turned away from him.

He left down the hall, joining the other alphas. He turned back one last time to look at me, and my heart palpitated at the promising look in his eyes. I quickly scurried into Olivia's room. Olivia looked at me wide-eyed as she was combing her hair.

"Hey, girl," said Olivia, watching me through the mirror as I shut the door.

"Oh my god, we might be able to leave this place," I babbled.

"Slow down a minute," said Olivia, dropping her comb on the ground. "Tell me everything."

"Ryder's here," I said excitedly. I felt much lighter and happier than I had in hours. I didn't realize how the presence of a certain alpha could lift my spirits so much. "I don't know when we're leaving, but at least he knows we're here."

"Thank god," sighed Olivia. Even she looked like the weight of the world just dropped from her shoulders. "We're so fucking lucky."

"I know," I said. "Let's go eat. Suddenly, I'm like real hungry."

"Me too."

After eating breakfast in the Social Room with Olivia and her new friends, I decided to go downstairs and see if there was a chance I could see Ryder again. It was probably irresponsible, but I knew there were always alphas roaming around downstairs.

"I'll be right back," I told Olivia as she chatted with the two sisters. She nodded to me. I could tell there was a new glow to her now that there was a chance we were going to escape. I was also excited but very impatient as I slowly walked down the staircase. Just as I guessed, there were quite a few alphas down here. I looked around for Henry to tell him about Jordan's mistreatment, but I was also secretly looking for Ryder.

"What do you need?" asked an alpha as he spied me coming down the stairs.

"I'm looking for Henry. I have a complaint," I said.

"Oh, he's right over there," he said, pointing to the general gathering of alphas who were conversing in low voices and standing around.

My stomach flipped when I saw Ethan with his long, scruffy beard. He saw me, too, from across the room and winked. I smiled instantly. I was so happy to see him there, and the familiar feeling of warmth pricked my belly. Our last intimate time together was the hottest thing I'd ever experienced.

Suddenly, I felt a hard grip on my arm.

I looked over my shoulder, panicked to see Jordan and his angry red face.

"Come with me," he said. He dragged me to one of the rooms nearby and slammed the door. My heart was beating so fast I wanted to cry with fear. I was never so scared in my life. "I saw you smiling at the new guy."

"I was just being polite," I said, my eyes on the ground. I didn't want to escalate things now. I was almost out of this stupid place and regretting ever coming down here to see Ryder. I would have all the time to see Ryder later.

Jordan's spittle flew in my face as he neared me. His grip tightened on my arm until I felt like he would break it.

" I'm your alpha handler. Do you get that, bitch?"

"Yes," I whispered. "I'm sorry."

Ethan

I was surprised to see Lacy in the flesh when she came down those stairs. Her beautiful delicate features in her simple yet sexy beige dress made my cock hard as soon as I set eyes on her. She was here and alive.

I winked at her when she saw me, and I delighted in her joy of seeing me. I was glad she didn't hate us anymore, thank fuck. But when I looked back, I saw some other alpha dragging her off into a room.

"Excuse me," I said to the alphas, who were in the middle of introducing themselves to me. They looked affronted that I would stop them, but I didn't fucking care. I had to know if my Lacy was alright. I rushed to the room she was held in and saw him angry and shouting at her. I smelled her scent of fear at being yelled at by this abusive alpha.

"Hey! What did she do to you?" I asked, even though the sight of his hand on her arm made me want to rip him to shreds. He was causing my omega distress. He released her and turned his rage on me instead.

Good .

Because if he touched me, I was going to kill him. I didn't give a fuck. All gloves would be off. I positioned myself in the middle of them, so if he had to touch her, he'd have to go through me. And that wasn't going to happen.

"She belongs to me," he said, eyes flashing.

Anger bubbled in my throat. My hands clenched as I tried to keep calm.

"Then why are you shouting at her?"

"I can shout at her if I want," he said smugly. "Stay away from her. She's never going to be yours. This bitch belongs to me."

My fist struck his face within seconds.

The next thing I knew was that he was on the ground. I knelt over him, repeatedly punching his face as he tried to shove me off.

No one disrespected my omega.

Lacy's screams sounded distant to me. I was held in a fog of rage. Every punch to his weaselly face was glorious. The warm blood trickling off my knuckles, satisfying with every crunch.

"Fuck you," I yelled with intense rage until someone pulled me off him. "Don't you ever call her that. You're the biggest bitch I've ever seen."