Moving very slowly, I shift onto my hands and knees, then I assess my options. Climbing over Rhett would probably wake him, but if I’m very careful, Imightbe able to make it over Myrick. I glance at the beta. His breath is deep and steady. Out cold.
I hold my breath and crawl, inching over his back like I’m navigating a sleeping mountain. His skin is warm under the thin sheet, and I freeze when he shifts ever so slightly beneath me—but he doesn’t wake.
My foot hits a cold patch of mattress, and then I’m off. I land softly beside the bed, adjusting my very short nightie.
The floor is cold under my bare feet as I move, one cautious step at a time, out into the hall. The house is still and dim, everything wrapped in soft shadow. I keep to the edges, avoiding the creaky board near Rhett’s office. My heart thuds harder and faster with every step toward Charlie’s room.
I pause outside his door.
The air here feels different—warmer, almost heavier. Then I hear it.
A low, guttural growl—Oli’s voice, unmistakably alpha. Then a sharp, strangled sound sends a chill down my spine, followed by a whimper.
Charlie.
Something tightens in my chest.
I don’t think. I just reach for the handle and push the door open. The light inside is dim, but enough.
Charlie’s on the bed, legs in the air. He’s flushed and sweating while Oli pins him down. The alpha has one hand on Charlie’s chest and the other grips his hair as he thrusts deep inside the beta.
“What?” I whisper, struggling to understand what I’m seeing.
Oli isn’t pack.
He’s not one of my mates. And he’s touchingmybeta.
I stare at Charlie’s face, trying to figure out why he’d do this to me, but then I see his tears. They leak from his frightened eyes, pain making his face scrunch and twist.
Oli’s hurting him!
My stomach flips.
“Rhett!” I scream, taking a small step back. “Rhett!”
Oli’s head snaps to me. His eyes are blown wide, dark and furious. For a second, he doesn’t even look human—he looks like something ready tokill. In a flash, he curls his big body around Charlie, shielding him, then he snarls at me, flashing his pointed teeth.
What the fuck?
“RHETT!” I scream again, louder this time, my voice cracking. I hear the crash of movement down the hall—heavy feet pounding the floor.
Charlie makes a small, raw sound beneath Oli, but I can't see him anymore. Oli shifts, moving fast. He wraps his arms tighter around Charlie and turns his back to the door, crouching low over him like he’s bracing for an attack.
Then Charlie screams. It’s raw and rough, scraping across his throat in a way that tells me he’s dying.
“HELP!” I shriek right as Rhett barrels down the hall, chest heaving and fists curled tight.
The pack alpha doesn’t say a word as he reaches for my upper arm and pulls me behind him. And then he sees Oli. He sees the way the young alpha is curled around Charlie, his hips rolling forward, still fucking into our beta.
“Get the fuck off of him!” Rhett growls so loudly, the sound cracks in my ears.
“No!” Oli roars, voice rough. “He’smine.”
It all happens so fast—Rhett moves across the room, fist raised and teeth bared.
Oli’s big body tenses as he tightens his grip on Charlie, his eyes wide and shining with somethingferal. The young alpha’s chest is heaving. His body’s trembling with rage? Fear? I can’t figure out what’s happening right now.
Charlie groans, confused and dazed, his head lolling against Oli’s shoulder. His whole body trembles as he tries to speak. “St-op…” he manages to say. “Please—don’t?—”
