34. Oliver

34

OLIVER

N othing else matters. Not the ache in my shoulder where that guy kicked me onto my back, not even my own feelings. The tears burning my eyes, the vicious pounding of my heart, the acid churning in my stomach. None of it fucking matters.

All that matters is the look of horror on my mate’s face when she saw me. The anger I've felt for her leaving me drained away with the blood in her cheeks.

"She didn't look happy to see us," I murmur, gripping my hair and fighting every fucking urge I have to run back up the steps. "Why did she look so upset?" I toss my hands in the air and stomp away from Emmett. My frustration boils over in a fit of accusations. "She left us ! Why the hell did Amaya look like we hurt her ?!"

Now that I'm no longer staring at her sharp cheekbones and crying eyes, my anger floods back. "FUCK!" I roar, overwhelmed not only by seeing my mate again, but by my lack of control over my emotions.

I work so fucking hard to stuff down negativity and be the bubbly beta everyone likes to be around.

I shove my anger and depression aside so my alpha doesn't have to wonder where the hell the happy man he fell in love with went. Survival wouldn’t be possible if Emmett couldn't stand me without the laughter and smiles he's always known.

But the cat’s out of the fucking bag and I receive no goddamn response. He's rejecting this version of me and I only just snapped.

"Emmett?" I falter, turning around and expecting to see him looking at me with disgust, or maybe even disappointment.

Instead, my alpha isn't even paying attention to my meltdown. It pisses me off so much that my summery scent goes from subtle to a burst of fresh cut grass.

Emmett's nostrils flare, forcing him to pay attention to me. "Oliver, listen," he hisses, nudging his thumb over his shoulder.

I want to snap at him, to beg him to fucking hear me, but my ears finally pick up on what stole his focus from my explosion.

"...nightmare. She's one of the academy omegas so her PTSD is expected. I guess she just got out of the rehabilitation center. Her alpha will contact her father. Mr. Arison is responsible for her until she can prove she isn't a threat to herself. Ms. Rose also has one of those support people they told us about, so Mr. Katz, her alpha, will reach out to them as well."

I'm going to be sick.

Bile shoots up my throat before I can warn Emmett away, causing the splatter to hit his shoes, but he doesn't even notice, just as I hardly register the rancid taste in my mouth.

"Oh my god," I moan, wiping my mouth forcefully, deserving the aggression against myself. "Oh fuck," I repeat, stumbling to my alpha and gripping his arm. No words form. What the fuck do I say? WHAT DO I SAY?!

Emmett's face comes into view, making me realize waves and waves of tears obscured my vision. In the flashing red and blue lights of the cop cars, my alpha looks lost. Completely and utterly fucking lost.

This can't be real.

It can't be. It's just a nightmare.

Like the nightmare that woke Amaya up screaming bloody murder? The nasty voice in my head continues to accuse me. Like the nightmare probably caused by the torture she endured in that fucked up academy?

Amaya's eyes flicker through my mind, haunting me and reminding me of the endless pain I just witnessed in their depths. What happened to you, baby?

My omega has lived a nightmare while I secretly hated her for leaving me.

But she didn't leave by her own accord, did she?

"Hey," one of the officers shouts. "I really don't want to have to escort you off the property."

The reluctance I feel to leave Amaya is profound, so I can only imagine what Em's feeling. I don't have an alpha riding my instincts, and just the thought of moving even one step away from my omega makes me tremble.

Knowing Amaya is just beyond the doorway behind me makes my legs feel like dead weight. But learning what she's been through while we lived our lives, while we've loved each other and she had no one, has my heavy legs fucking begging to run to her.

I would collapse at my omega's feet time and time again, just so I could be in her presence. A kick to my jaw, screams of rage, words wielded as weapons, claws shredding my cheeks. Anything is better than not being near her. I'd rather her hate and punish me than never look at me again. Even if she shot a bullet in my heart, I'd go happy knowing she acknowledged me.

I can't do this. I don't know how to do this. What even is this?!

I don't know what's going on in Emmett's head, but the bond sparks, then misfires like he's having trouble computing everything we just heard and saw. He growls low in his throat, the threat of the officer forcefully removing us from her property triggering his instincts to be near and protect his mate.

I don't know how to be what he needs right now, but I do know we aren't welcome. Not by the cops, not by Amaya, and definitely not by the alpha claiming to be her fourth mate.

"Em, we have to go," I say hesitantly, the words burning my throat like a fucking brand. Do we have to go?

My hand still grips his arm from when I stumbled into him in a fit of emotion. I use the contact to tug on him a little. I'm wary of his thunderous, pale expression, but behind his devastation, he's still my mated alpha.

When he doesn't bite my head off, my confidence grows. "Emmett," I warn, and pull him harder. With the move, I take a step toward the road, hating myself even more for walking away from my omega.

"I-I can't," he whimpers between growls, sounding so savagely broken.

Emmett looks over his shoulder where our mate resides, and my gaze follows his. The hold I have on Emmett strengthens as reality crashes into me like a fucking hurricane.

White shutters, white wooden porch, blue door, five bedrooms, a beautiful, modernized kitchen with warm tones to create a comfortable family vibe. We sold this house. Our new neighbor moved in weeks ago.

Amaya.

Amaya is Mr. Arison's daughter.

I wanted to meet her weeks ago.

But Sam...

"It's late," Sam had said. It wasn't even seven that night.

"It's too soon. Let her settle in," my brother reasoned, but it had been three days and it was a weekend night.

I was confused, thinking he just didn't want to socialize. I gave him an out and told him he didn't have to come.

Sam's response was unnecessarily cruel. "I'm not fucking going there. Neither should you."

His behavior baffled Emmett. "Okay, what the hell is your problem? Did something happen at the signing?"

Sam immediately denied it. "Nothing happened." He even threw a little fit and slammed his hand on the counter. "Nothing happened," he repeated, quieter that time. His head hung like he was exhausted too.

I remember how worried I was about my big brother. Sure, I was also a little annoyed and definitely confused, but I was concerned for him above all else.

"Okay, well now I want to meet her even more," I teased, hoping to get a reaction from Sam that wasn't as depressing as his behavior.

I was so ready for a quick comeback that when he said we should go get drinks, I forgot all about the new neighbor. Blinded by my desperation to have my brother back, I breezed right over the fact that he manipulated me. I ignored how he seemed to have to force the damn words out of his mouth, like it pained him to hang out with me.

"Sam," I grunt, forcefully yanking Emmett to me so I can make sure he's fucking listening this time. "Sam! He knew! That asshole knew she was here!"

Gone goes my vulnerable alpha, and in his place is a raging man betrayed by his friend. One final tortured glance at the house, then we're both sprinting home to confront the asshole I once thought the world of.

How any of us will come back from this, I have no idea. We might just be lost for good.