“They know you?” I whisper.
“I help out in the kitchens,” she murmurs back without breaking stride.
“They aren’t asking about me,” I say, a little too fast. “Suppressants don’t work that quickly.”
“It’s not uncommon for me to bring an omega friend to help with the baking shifts. I don’t think many of them know what Judge actually smells like.”
Okay, keep moving, then. I just need to see what she wants me to see. That’s it.
Rebecca leads me into what looks like a cellar with low ceilings and stone walls that are freezing to the touch. There are narrow windows lined high along the wall, rimmed with frost.
I can see a bunch of people in another outdoor gathering ground, and there are a lot of fires.
My heart slows as I seehim.
From where I’m standing, it looks like Roxy’s in his lap. His hand is on her thigh, and she smiles up at him while the crowd moves around them. The patch on her shoulder readsJudge’s Property.
He’s not pushing her away, either, and she even laughs assomeone speaks to them, and she puts her arm around his neck. The bond between us… just more contentment. He’s not bothered in the slightest.
My vision tunnels. Maybe there’s an explanation. Right?Right? Well,fuck. Even if there is, he’s sure as hell not fighting for it! Shit, I don’t even care what the reason is. This ishumiliating! He bit my neck, made me look into his eyes while his knot was in me, forced me to share my nest with him, and now he’s letting another omega sit on his lap withJudge’s Propertyon her back?
In frontof everyone? What if… What if the suppressant balm wasn’t for my scent but was to coverherup…
“When did this happen?” I ask quietly.
The cellar feels too small. My throat tightens, my chest aches, and for the first time since the bite, I can’t feel the bond. It’s like it’s gone silent, buried under the noise of the crowd.
“This whole thing is literally just to announce Roxy as his property,” she gives a wild laugh. “I mean, there’s no way I could leave without sharing this with you. You come with us, and you can get rid of being an omega, and we canbothdisappear.”
I can’t even nod. I just keep staring, waiting for him to look up. Waiting for anything. My fingers dig into the frigid stone.
He doesn’t acknowledge me at all.
“I can get you out of here, Diana,” Rebecca says, touching my shoulder. “I can get usbothout of here. It has to happen literallynow.”
It’s not like I can run out there and make him look like the villain. What will that do? Make everyone look at me with pity as they shrug their shoulders? Judge is their leader. They won’t give a shit about me. Rebecca tugs on my shoulder, and I know that it’s now or never.
Then, Judge looks around like he smells something he shouldn’t. Can he sense that our tether is fucked up because of him? “Do it,” I say.
I don’t even care what his excuses are. I’m in a house of mirrors where I don’t trust a single reflection, and I wantoutof this chaos! If he wants to sayanythingto me, he can do it when he can’t manipulate what reflects back.
Judge has expertly controlled my experience ever since we met, which means he is notsafe. There’s no way I can fucking trust him.No way. With as much impulse as I can harness, I take off with Rebecca. I know it’s what I need to do. I will never get a chance like this again; Judge will make sure of that.
“Get me out of here,” I tell her.
My body knows what I’m doing before my mind does—it panics. Ithurts.
But staying would hurt worse.
“Stay close.”
We move through small, skinny corridors. There’s a rage, and even fear, bubbling in my chest that doesn’t feel like it belongs to me. “I think he knows, and he’spissed,” I say.
Rebecca doesn’t reply as we come across a door. She slowly opens it, peeks out, then motions for me to follow. She holds her hand out. “Shit, take this.” She reaches into her pouch. “In case you need it.” They’re needles.
“Perfect. I know what to do.”
I slide one into my palm so it’s easier to hide, tucking the other in a pocket as we round a corner and—fuck.
