Page 111 of Monster. Me.

"As far as I know, about three and a half days."

"Oh…" I mutter, finally understanding why I’m so hungry. I’ve been fed through IVs the whole time.

We leave the facility.

Two alphas watch me with rather unfriendly expressions, but they don’t stop us from passing through the gate.

However, as we pass one of them, I notice a very fresh hickey on his neck. Well… did I just push them toward some unexpected on-duty entertainment?

When we reach the parking lot, I remember that I left the Santoro family’s vehicle in a parking lot in Franklin. I hesitate for a moment, unsure what to do, but my need to see Marlow is overwhelming.

But I also should find out what happens to me now that my contract with Blue Lowen has been reinstated.

"Where am I supposed to go now? I won’t lie, I’d really like to see Mr. Marlow Nolan—"

The attorney smiles slightly.

"My instructions are to deliver you directly to Mr. Nolan. Mr. Lowen will contact you within the next few days to work out the remaining details."

I stare at him in shock for a moment.

Just like that? This easily?

We approach a large limousine and climb inside.

"It would be nice if Blue Lowen got his claws into Welrun," I mutter. "They’re planning to open a facility here where they’ll study mutants and perform experiments on them. From what one of the employees mentioned, they’ve already brought several people here. One of them was supposedly rescued from some abusive situation where his parents kept him isolated from the world. Nobody could communicate with him, and because a police officer knew Lomax, he sent him here."

"I’ll pass that information along to Mr. Lowen, and we’ll see what can be done if they’re holding people here illegally. But that may be a more complicated situation than yours, where we actually had a contractual loophole to work with, so I can’t promise anything."

"Sure. I’m just mentioning it so you’ll keep in mind that more is happening at Welrun than what’s visible on the surface."

"That’s hardly news," the attorney says with a dry smile.

Silence falls.

I stare out the window at the forest, which reminds me of the green creature, aka the member of the Santoro family. I promise myself that I have to thank him, because without his help I wouldn’t have been able to get to Franklin on time. But for now, I can’t focus on anything except my goal.

My head is filled with a single prospect: seeing Marlow. My heart is pounding. My palms are sweating.

"Do you happen to have any gum?" I ask one of the men.

Most of them shake their heads, but the second lawyer pulls a tube of mint candies from his pocket.

"Help yourself," he says with a grin.

Every minute we spend driving makes my heart race even faster.

"Take it easy," says the attorney, who, as an omega, can hear it. "Or you’re going to give yourself a heart attack."

"I love him," I blurt out, even though I know how cringeworthy it sounds, sitting in a car with four other guys… I turn so red that the lighter part of my face is probably matching the lower purple half.

"Good for you that he obviously feels something too, considering he set this entire thing in motion to get you out of Welrun’s grasp."

I don’t answer because I feel like squealing with happiness, like a little kid who’s just been promised the world.

At last, we arrive in the town of Rainbow Spring.

The landscape gives way to gentler, greener hills covered with fields, dotted with scattered houses.