My eyes widened, and she laughed softly, shaking her head. “I’m teasing, sweetheart. You look about as dangerous as a wet kitten.”
Heat crept up my neck. I didn’t know if that was a compliment or not, but her tone was warm enough that it didn’t sting.
Still, the questions hung between us, unspoken but present.
Who are you? Where did you come from? Why is my son letting you stay here?
She didn’t ask them outright. She was too kind to do that. But I could feel her curiosity gently and patiently, waiting for whatever pieces I was willing to give.
And I didn’t have many.
Maren shifted her weight, studying me with that soft, motherly concern that somehow made everything worse. She wasn’t suspicious, just trying to understand, but even that was enough to make my pulse skitter.
She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Kasey…I’m not trying to pry. I just want to make sure you’re okay. Are you…in any type of trouble?”
The question hit me like a cold wind. My fingers curled into the hem of the shirt, one of Evander’s since they were bigger and didn’t pull on the scabs so much. Or that was the excuse I was using.
“I – no.” I said too fast, too sharp. “I’m not…I’m fine.”
Her brows pulled together, not convicted but not pushing either. “You just seem…shaken. Like you’ve been through something.”
That was an understatement.
She looked around the room again, a bit closer than I would have liked. Did she see something I had missed? Was there a streak from where I cleaned the window?
“No family nearby, and you aren’t in trouble…” she trailed off. I could feel her gaze linger on me as I shifted where I stood. “Did you come from…Lockswell?”
The name hit me like a punch to the ribs.
My breath stuttered; vision tunneled for a second. I forced myself not to flinch, to react. But I knew something must’ve shown on my face because she stepped forward before backing up again.
“Oh, sweetheart. I didn’t mean to upset you. People talk, and I know some Omegas have had a hard time coming out of that place. It’s okay if you did.”
I nodded once, blinking back tears. It wasn’t like it was a secret, but for some reason, I felt like bawling my eyes out.
Maybe it was because she reminded me of a mother I didn’t have anymore. Maybe it was the way today already twisted itself into something I hadn’t expected. Or maybe it was something else entirely. Something I didn’t have a name for.
Whatever it was, the words started spilling out before I could stop them.
“H-he…I’m here because Evander said I should be,” I stammered, hands twisting together. “He brought me here afterhe saw me there, and now…now I’m here and he thinks I’m someone I’m not. But that – that’s not the point.”
My breath hitched but the words kept coming, messy and tangled.
“I’m here to serve him however he wants. I don’t know why he’s not here right now or what his days look like. And you seem very nice, Ma’am, you do but…but I’m nothimI’m not the boy he thinks I am. And I’m lost. And I’m confused. And I don’t really know what I’m trying to say so I’ll just…. I’ll just stop now.”
I snapped my mouth shut so fast, my teeth clicked, and my heart got lodged somewhere in my throat. None of them made sense. Not to her. Not even for me.
What was Evander doing to me?
I used to be able to string a few sentences together without falling apart. Now everything came out in a rush. Chaotic and unfiltered like my thoughts were tripping over each other on the way out.
Maren didn’t interrupt me, didn’t correct me. She didn’t even look confused. She just watched, really watched, as the words tumbled out of me in a frantic, tangled mess. And will I finally force myself to stop talking, her expression shifted in a way I couldn’t read.
Not suspicion or judgement. But something deeper.
Her eyes softened, but there was a flicker behind them, like she was trying to place me in a memory she couldn’t quite reach. It was the same look Evander had that first time he seen me, which seemed to be forever ago when really was like a week.
For a moment, she just stood there, studying my face with a quiet intensity that made my skin prickle. Not in a bad way. More like…recognition.
