Page 156 of His Stolen Omega

“A taxi?” he suggested.

“No. He doesn’t have any money.” Before Kian could ask, Levi hit the call button on his device, barking out a question as soon as it connected. “Baal, do you have him?”

“Eyes on him,” his underboss sounded nervous. “We were a minute too late. Serpents grabbed him.”

Levi slammed a hand against the steering wheel and picked up the pace, weaving dangerously through traffic, eyes flicking back and forth from the road to the flashing red light over his wrist. “Don’t you dare lose them!”

“I won’t,” Baal promised. “I—Shit!”

The sound of screeching tires echoed through the speaker, and both Levi and Kian tensed. There was a loud bang next, and then yelling as Baal gave orders, seemingly forgetting all about the call.

“Protect the Possessio! Go! Go!”

There was shattering glass, shooting, and then crackling before the line went dead.

Levi drove so fast he almost caused several accidents along the way.

Chapter 37:

Elm didn’t know where he was going.

Didn’t know what he was doing either, if he was being honest.

He’d raced from the restaurant with no sense of direction, his only purpose to get away. Now that he was out in the fresh air, listening to the bustling sounds of a busy city, the sheer overwhelming sense of grief he’d been experiencing dwindled enough for him to see through it.

Hearing that Levi had slept with Shiloh had been a blow. To his ego. And to his peace. His instantaneous reaction had been that it was all a lie, and he’d grieved over the loss of what he’d thought was a solid relationship. He’d always known when the foundation was rocky, nothing lasting could be built on top of it, and yet…

It felt like someone had reached into his chest and torn his heart out, and the worst part was how embarrassed it all made him.

Embarrassed that there was a chance Levi had tricked him.

Embarrassed that’s all his brother thought of him.

And embarrassed that he’d run.

Again.

After promising he wouldn’t.

Elm stopped in a side alley, out of breath, covered in a sheen of sweat despite the cold. The frigid air reminded him he’d left without his coat, and being stationary made him start to shiver.

He should go back.

Confront the issue.

Make sure Levi and Kian hadn’t killed each other in his absence.

But…

Resting his head against the rough brick wall behind him, Elm glanced up at the light gray sky. Cars zipped past both ends of the alley, and every now and again, someone would pass by on the sidewalk, momentarily coming into his line of sight. Some of them spoke on the phone, others were with friends, their chatter cutting through the quiet he’d grown used to at the lodge.

The comfortable silence that he now missed.

He hadn’t realized how exhausting the world had always been, or how he’d pushed himself so hard to interact with it despite the energy suck it gave him. In his mind, that was how it was meant to be, how everyone navigated society. Community meant acceptance. A place to belong. A purpose.

Elm’s role within it had always been the laid back, easygoing friend. Reliable. Content to jump between groups without ever really establishing himself in any of them. He used to whole heartedly believe that was because he was too plain to fully captivate anyone, but now he saw the truth.

He wasn’t boring.