I stop breathing, my ears straining to pick up on any subtle shifts in the air, any undercurrent of danger.
Nothing.
I exhale.
Inhale.
Listen again.
Still quiet.
But a burning scent trickles into the air, causing my nose to wrinkle in response.
Someone whimpers again in the room.
Another whine.
And smoke starts to thicken around us.
Followed by the faint echo of crackling.
A fire, I realize, my calm facade slipping as my heart kicks off into a chaotic rhythm in my chest.Something’s on fire. And I’m trapped in a cage.
Oh, moons…
I press my palm to the metal, my fingers only partially able to slide through the holes in the crisscrossed pattern. I haven’t tried escaping or moving much at all since my Alpha unceremoniously dumped me here. There wasn’t a point. If I ran, I would be hunted, rutted, and potentially killed. That was what happened to Omegas in my home pack.
I have every reason to believe the same will happen here.
But I don’t want to beburnedto death.
I push against the metal, my fear rising as the acrid stench grows stronger and stronger. Just like the flickering crinkle of an approaching flame.
Shit, shit, shit…
The cage won’t budge.
Stealing a deep breath—and wincing as the smoke infiltrates my lungs—I study the edges of the cage, then the place where my Alpha locked me inside.
Is there a way to?—
Pounding fills my ears in the next instant, the reverberation of Alpha growls adding a deep base to the otherwise ominous soundtrack.
I freeze, then jolt backward to hold my knees against my bare chest once more, determined to represent the epitome of docile.
A door slams open, sending a jitter down my spine that I try to fight. But my pulse betrays me, my heart beating a little too fast.
“Fuck,” an Alpha snarls. “Enrique! Elias! There are more down here!”
My ears prick upward as harsh footsteps follow the male’s shouting.
“They’re in fucking cages!” the Alpha adds, sounding livid.
I curl into myself as tight as I can, not wanting to be on the receiving end of that fury. Because he sounds like he wants to kill everyone in sight. And I know all too well what Alphas do when furious.
He skips my cage, going toward the back of the room.
My shoulders fall a bit, temporary relief allowing my nerves to calm. Only for the hairs along my arms to stand on end once more as two burly shadows enter the space.
