Ehlian couldn’t move an inch without brushing against an alpha, and the bastards didn’t make it any easier. He got it. He was fresh, unclaimed meat. But that didn’t mean they had to act like feral animals. Decency clearly wasn’t part of their vocabulary, though he doubted half of them even knew the word.
There should have been a separate shower room for omegas, but he’d long since accepted that rules didn’t apply here. Bribe the guards, and they’d look the other way.
Sometimes Ehlian wondered if his uncle had orchestrated his transfer here, hoping he’d be killed off. It wouldn’t have surprised him.
The shower was eerily silent as the inmates faced the wall, water streaming over their bowed heads. Ehlian was the only one with his back to the spray, his eyes scanning the room like a cornered animal, ready for an attack.
One day left until the unspoken deadline.
Grasson’s hulking frame stood out even among the other alphas. His thick muscles flexed as he moved, water running down his broad back. Ehlian wondered how a brute like him had ended up here. Probably hugged someone and broke all their bones.
He made the mistake of lingering too long. Grasson turned, dark, nearly black eyes locking onto him.
Cold fear shot through Ehlian.
Fuck.
Telepaths.
Every alpha here could sense attention like predators scenting blood.
Grasson’s gaze roamed over Ehlian’s body, like it was nothing more than a thing to use and discard once he grew bored.
Something unspoken shifted in the air.
Ehlian froze as Grasson began to move towards him, each step louder than the last. Fear crawling over his skin, he was torn between fleeing and standing his ground.
Then Grasson stopped. Abruptly, mid-stride, his eyes darted above Ehlian’s shoulder.
Ehlian sensedhimbefore he saw him. A shadow. Heat radiating at his back. Hayce was so close their bodies almost touched, the paper-thin space between them charged with tension.
“Me or him?” Hayce’s deep voice slid into his ear.
Ehlian’s gaze didn’t leave Grasson. The massive alpha’s wariness was plain as day, his stiff stance almost retreating. If even Grasson feared Hayce, what was Ehlian supposed to feel?
Ehlian swallowed thickly. “You.”
Grasson’s jaw clenched. Without a word, he turned on his heel and left the shower.
Warm fingers brushed against Ehlian’s hip, tracing lazy circles over his damp skin, staking a quiet claim for any alpha in the room to see.
“Good choice,” Hayce murmured.
“I have a boyfriend,” Ehlian blurted out.
Hayce laughed softly. “The one who dumped you the second the guilty verdict came in?”
Ehlian’s face burned. He hadn’t just guessed. Heknew. The bastard knew everything, even about Geald abandoning him, and he wasn’t above mocking his heartbreak. Fury bubbled in Ehlian’s chest, rippling through his telepathic power, ready to—
‘Control your anger.’Hayce’s voice slithered into his mind, calm but commanding.‘You don’t want to make a scene. Unless we form a pack bond, Grasson will come for you, and he won’t do it the civilised way.’
‘Fuck you.’
Hayce’s thumb brushed another teasing circle against Ehlian’s hip, sending an unwanted spark through him.‘Let’s not get ahead of ourselves, shall we?’
Ehlian clenched his fists. ‘You can’t force me to sleep with you.’
‘I won’t force you,’Hayce’s thumb stilled. ‘Eventually, you’ll come to me.’
