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“Then I guess you’re staying,” Gideon says. “Boys—lock up his ship and find his partner.”
Javi’s shoulders tense, but he doesn’t move a muscle. I don’t understand why he’s doing this, but I find myself grateful for his protective arm around me, for the way he glares at the other encroaching alphas. He just risked everything for me—but it remains to be seen what he’ll do next.
He could hurt me. Break me. Make me forget everything that makes meme…
…and it would be within his rights as my alpha in this pack.
I close my eyes as my chin starts to tremble, tears threatening to burst through. I’m such an idiot, a stupid girl. I wish I would stop crying. But here I am, about to sob in front of all these people who will probably revel in my pain.
“Well,” Gideon says. “You caught her. You marked her. There’s just one more step.”
He reaches out a hand, Javi snarling in response—but he doesn’t move any closer.
He just offers what he’s holding: a leather collar with a silver ring.
Something feral erupts in my chest, my tears turning to rage. The indignity of this—the cruelty!—makes me want to scream. My chin stops trembling, my lips pressing into a thin line as Javi plucks the collar from my father’s hand.
He faces me, green eyes roiling with possessive lust. Javi’s tongue slides across his lips as he looks down at where he bit me—where blood still streams down my collarbone and stains my dress. He pulls me in roughly by the waist with his free hand and, in one fluid motion, he wraps the collar around my neck and clasps it tight.
The leather sits heavy on my throat, like his fingers are squeezing around it.
I can hear the other wolves laughing, my father looking on with approval. The feral beast in my heart screams at me to take my claws out, to go down like a warrior rather than a lamb.
But I can’t read Javi’s expression, and it gives me pause.
Because he doesn’t just look angry.
He looks disgusted.
CHAPTER EIGHT
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JAVI
In a matter of minutes, I’ve screwed over three—maybefour—people.
Myself, Boyd, Lila…and Peaches.
I don’t break contact as we follow Gideon and his generals through the crowd of alphas, the men of the Rig leering at Peaches even though I’ve claimed her. I bare my teeth and snarl at them, holding my omega close to my side and staring daggers at anyone who dares look at her. She’s still vulnerable—even with my bite still bloody on her neck, she’s so vulnerable I can hardly stand it.
I can’t figure out why I did this.
I think…
No—the fact of the matter is that I wasn’t thinking at all.
I did this because I let my wolf win.
The storm is just getting started again when Gideon guides us into the citadel, the metal supports swaying overhead. If I didn’t have my sea legs, it might scare me, but I know that platforms like this have been through worse over the years. Peaches, on the other hand, can’t stop trembling. I grip her tightly, wishing she would juststopdrawing attention to herself like this.
The citadel is just as spooky as the last time I was here, featuring old, decrepit artwork and piles of loot all over the place. I catch the scent of other omegas in the building, but they’re nowhere to be seen—not like last night when I saw them chained to the floor.
Maybe that’s why I did this.
Because I grew a fucking conscience all of a sudden.
My timing could not have been any worse.
