4. Oliver

Chapter 4

Oliver

My eyes snap open as I jerk upright. The blankets fall away from me, and I gasp for breath as I look around the empty hotel room. My nostrils flare to catch any stray scent, but I don't catch anything immediately concerning. That doesn't allay my fears.

"Shit..." I swear as I look at the clock on the nightstand. It's nearly noon. Checkout is twelve-thirty. I'd planned to be long gone by now. I haven't stayed in one place this long since I first caught sight of the strange guys that've been following me.

I quickly rise and gather up the few things I'd bothered to bring into the hotel with me. I don't know what woke me up, but my wolf is agitated, and I'd rather not stick around any longer. The room is paid for, and technically I should swing by the front office to check out, but I'm not gonna bother. Something's up, and I don't like it.

Peeking through the curtains on the front window, I glance around the parking lot for anything out of the ordinary. Nothing immediately stands out, which only makes me more paranoid. My car is at the end of the row. If I can just get there then everything will be fine. I'll hit the road and be on my way before anyone knows any better.

I slip the strap of my bag over my shoulder and head toward the door.

My heart hammers in my chest as my wolf starts to whine and pace inside me. Ever since I started seeing the guys that've been following me, the panic has been rising in my chest. And it's reaching a crescendo now.

I need to get out of here.

With a quick turn of the knob, I pull the door open and step outside. I slam it shut behind me and take off at a jog across the parking lot. I keep my gaze down and focused on the pavement ahead of me, refusing to look anywhere else. My ears strain for the sound of approaching footsteps. For any sign of the stalkers that've been dogging me for days.

My car is only a few steps away when I spy an unfamiliar shadow ahead of me. I look up, catching a glimpse of a tall figure standing near my car. It's one of them. One of the guys.

Fuck.

My stomach drops, and I feel like I might vomit. My lungs start to tighten, my chest growing heavy. My wolf whines inside me, and I can't stop myself from letting out a low whine.

I take a step back and notice movement from the corner of my eye.

Another one.

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.

I whirl around, looking for an escape route, and nearly trip over my own feet.

But they're all here. All four of them, moving in around me and cutting off all avenues of escape. I'm trapped with nowhere to go. And yet, despite the very real fear pounding in my veins, I realize that my wolf's whining and pacing is from something else entirely.

My wolf is excited.

I've never felt so disconnected from my wolf before. It wants to run toward these guys. It's telling me to embrace them, romp with them like they're old friends or something, greet them with a smile and a wagging tail. But...there's nothing about this situation that's good. These guys are massive, head and shoulders taller than me. They've been stalking me for days without so much as a word of explanation.

Now they've caught up to me and all I can think of is that I'm beyond screwed. I can't pick up a scent from any of them, which probably means they're hunters. Humans that stalk shifters and capture or kill them for various reasons, most of them monetary.

They're hunters, and I'm their prey.

"It's time to stop running, Dodger," one of them says with a voice of authority. "You should've known you couldn't escape justice."

I frown at him, barely holding back a snarl. "What the fuck are you talking about? Who's Dodger?"

The man takes a step forward, his brow furrowing as his eyes narrow at me. He nods to his companions who tighten the net around me. There's no escape now.

The tall, dark-eyed alpha closes the distance between us, and he hooks a finger under my chin. I try to resist, but he's so much stronger that I have no choice but to let him tilt my head back and examine my face. He's so close now, my entire field of vision is filled with his piercing gaze.

His lips twitch into a smile, a smile that makes me want to punch him.

"You really had me going for a minute there," he says. "But you match the description we were given. Oliver. Dodger. Whatever name you're going by, it doesn't matter. We're taking you back."

"I'm not going anywhere with you," I snap.

He laughs. "We can do this the easy way or the hard way. But either way, you're coming with us. Don't make it harder on yourself."

I'm keenly aware of just how close the other three alphas are standing right now. I can feel their eyes on me, I'm well within arm's reach of all of them.

My wolf is going insane, demanding that I run to them. I'm so confused. What the hell is going on?!

"You're a long way from home, omega," one of the others says. "And we're all tired of chasing you. Let's just go back and you can explain yourself to the elders."

Elders? I raise a brow as I look at them. Once again, I try to find their scents. It's difficult, but now that they're so close I can barely pick up a hint of something underneath whatever they were using to mask themselves.

"You're...you're wolves?" I look back at the leader. "You're all wolves?"

The leader seems surprised by my confusion but shakes his head and quickly regains his composure. "Let's go," he says, ignoring my question. "Sebastian, we'll put him in your car for now. Theo will drive the omega's car. Lucas, you'll go with Sebastian to keep an eye on the omega. I swear to the gods you better not let him out of your sight for any reason until we're back home."

The three of them nod, then the blond-haired alpha turns his attention to me. He grabs my upper arm and steers me toward one of the cars. I try to resist, but it's not like I have any chance of getting away. He's not even bothered by my attempts to dig in my heels.

I glance back at the leader of the group as he strides across the parking lot toward another vehicle. They must've been following me in a few separate cars, which is why I rarely saw all of them together. I knew that stopping for the night was a mistake. If I'd just kept going...or parked on the side of the road somewhere or done anything else, I would probably still be running free.

Now I've fallen right into their trap, and I'm fucked.

The worst part is, I don't know what the hell they're talking about. They were sent to find someone named Dodger who looks like me? Someone who needs to answer for their crimes? They've mistaken me for someone else entirely, and they're not interested in hearing what I've got to say about it.

I'm shoved into the back seat of a car, and a red-haired alpha climbs in after me. The blond gets into the driver's seat. Neither of them seem interested in talking to me, but they're both watching me carefully.

"I'm not the omega you've been looking for," I protest as the car roars to life. "I seriously have no idea who you guys are or what you're talking about."

"If you're going to lie, you should come up with a more creative story," the redhead replies.

I scowl at him and look away. Clearly there's no point in trying to reason with them. I don't know where they're taking me or what is waiting for me when I get there. The only reason I'm feeling any semblance of calm is because my wolf seems to be quietly content sitting in the same car with two of them.

And I have no idea why.