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“Grace.” I sob her name into the cold tile wall. Please come help me. I can’t even speak the words aloud since my throat hurts too much. Come hold me. I wrap my arms around my shoulders and rock back and forth. She’s the only one who’s ever cared about me. I squeeze tighter as my head falls and rests on my knees. The only one who’s ever touched me in a kind way. I won’t survive here. I know it. This will kill me. With my last bit of energy, I whisper, “Please save me.”
Part III
The Betas
Dom
The sound of my mate crying is killing me. My chest feels hollow as I lean my forehead against the door to her temporary room. Her sobs never stop and my touch is useless to console her. I don’t understand; it’s not supposed to be like this. Her whispers echo in my head and my wolf whines in absolute torment. Rage replaces the agony … toward my wolf and myself. I should be able to soothe her, to be a balm to her broken soul. Instead, I’m the one causing her pain. The way she looks at me with sheer terror in her eyes shatters any hope I have at claiming my mate.
I need to do something, but how can I help her when she won’t let me anywhere near her? I don’t know what the hell to do. I pound my fist against the wall in fury. My only consolation is that our Alpha’s mate can calm her to the point that she’s still. I’ll do anything to heal Lizzie, to have her whole and happy. But first she needs to let me the hell in. The sooner, the better.
A scowl mars my face as Caleb approaches the door. I don’t want to share her. Fate’s a real bitch.
“She’s not letting you in?” His voice is low, with more than a hint of worry.
“No shit.” I practically spit out the words but he doesn’t flinch at my tone. He’s already used to my bitterness over this situation.
“We should tell her we’re her mates.”
I just barely resist the urge to knock him out. I’m worried about healing our mate and he’s worried about fucking her. I grit my teeth but manage a response. “Do you see the way she looks at me?” I say. He ignores my words like the stubborn asshole he is.
“Let’s just do it,” he says and I shake my head. “It’ll be like ripping off a bandage.”
“I can feel the hate and fear radiating off of her all the way from here and you expect me to tell her she’s my mate.”
“Our mate!” I can’t look at him so I just stare at the wall. “If we don’t, then what’s going to happen when her heat hits? What about three days from now when the full moon comes and we have to claim her?” He’s out of his fucking mind.
“Have to claim her? We don’t have to claim her.”
“You don’t want her?” Shock and disbelief are both present in his voice, but also overwhelming sadness. “How can you not want our mate?”
“Of course I want our mate!” His audible exhale is heavy with relief even though my words came out as a low growl. Caleb is truly out of his fucking mind if he thinks she’ll roll over and let us claim her. Her terror is so thick it drenches the air around me. My next words come out easy. “We can wait till the next full moon. Or however long it takes.”
“I’m not waiting. And I’m not risking her heat coming on and it fucking us over like it fucked over Alpha.”
I finally meet his gaze, which stops him from pacing the hall. “How is he?” I heard him and Lev earlier but tuned them out to give my mate all my attention. Lizzie had been saying something in between sobs but all I could understand was Grace. It’s clear she loves her Alpha and it breaks my heart that she has so much love for her, but only hate and fear for me.
“Not looking too good. She ran from him.”
“What the fuck?” My brow rises with shock. None of this is happening the way it should.
“Yeah, when he caught up to her, she knocked him in the jaw trying to get away.”
Holy shit. The admiration in Caleb’s voice is comical, complete with a cocky grin although the humor doesn’t reach his eyes. No one’s gotten a hit on the Alpha in years. Of course his own mate, a human mate, would get the best of him. It almost makes me smile. Almost. But I don’t. So both of our mates have a bit of a violent streak? I can’t help the fact that the Alpha’s mate hitting him makes me feel a little better about my own mate.
“But she reacts to him.” I saw her melt into him at the offering. Despite being petrified for Lizzie, she was perfectly fine in his embrace. “And that’s the way it should be.” Now I’m the one pacing as Caleb leans against the wall.
He comments, “Yeah and then her heat hit and it freaked her out.”
“Why?” I don’t understand how wanting her mate’s touch could possibly hurt their relationship.
“According to Lev, abducting them, not telling them why, and then fucking them is not a good idea. Judging by how pissed off Devin is, I’m going to have to agree.”
A grimace spreads across my face as I say, “You make it sound way worse than it is.”
He raises his brows and says, “Not really. Anyway, she rejected him after they bonded.”
Oh shit. I’m sure Devin’s hurting after that. “But she’s his mate.”
