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“Mm. Proud of it, sweetheart. Now get the fuck out of my library, or I’ll find Riley and tell him who hurt his little brother.” She clicks her fingers in front of her nose. Forcing him to focus on her angular face and those coffee brown eyes that hold no fear. “You got it?”
“I didn’t do nothing.” He snaps.
“Uh-huh.”
“We were just talking!”
“Leave her alone,” Lillian growls. “Leave.”
Lillian’s got some super traits that border closely on almost being alpha. I’ve a theory that, in betas, the strength is a spectrum.
She raises her eyebrow and stands up, moving to brush her arm possessively against me. I have to fight the urge to move away from her. “Son, you want me to tell your dad how you talk to women? He’s over tonight for poker and beer.”
Eli stomps his foot. I edge away from him.
“Nasty cow,” Eli mutters.
“Don’t be jealous, sweetheart, if you want pussy-licking tips, you just need to ask.” Lillian cuts in between us, putting her back to the alpha, and gestures me in front of her. Eli lets out a sound like a boiling kettle. “I got those books for you, love.”
“Thanks, Lil.”
“No, probs.” She cuts her eyes over her shoulder and gives Eli a glacial glare. “Get out of my library, Eli. I will not ask you again.”
He hesitates, the dominant alpha scent almost choking me, but at the moment I think he might explode, he turns and stomps away.
“Fuck.” I rub a shaky hand over my face. Looks like I’m trapped in the library. I mean, it’s not all bad, but still, it makes my skin crawl. I hate feeling trapped.
“They’re hunting you now. You gotta be smart. Stay one step ahead. Time to stop coming here, I think. It’s the fourth time this month.” Lillian says calmly as she leads me into the back. She hands me a book.
“I know. Thanks. I thought being here early might help, but looks like I was wrong.” I let out a bark of laughter and scowl ahead of me. “I need their help.”
Lillian raises an eyebrow.
I shake my head. “Nothing. I just…had an idea, but it’s not turning out in my favour.”
I look down at the book in my hands. Trauma and how to help your loved one. I move across the room to a ratty old armchair and sit down, flipping the book open to read.
Lillian jostles me hours later. I rub my aching eyes and find the stress I’d hoped to lessen has increased. What did I learn? Trin needs to be safe in order to heal. She needs to be safe, and we don’t have that. We barely have a roof. The pressure and demands of my life makes my throat ache, and I take a moment to get myself together.
I look up and startle when I find Lillian still standing there waiting for me.
“Sorry, Lillian.”
Her face draws tight, and even when she smiles, it doesn’t meet her eyes. “Hey, you’re safe to flee.” I’ve never heard her use such a soft voice before. “Missy, is there anything I can do? I…I know you’re an omega.”
I laugh, a wry, jaded sound that I diffuse by reaching out and squeezing her hand while shaking my head.
“It’s the secret that’s not so secret. I’ve got it handled. How did you know?”
She sighs and runs her hand through her short hair. “I had a daughter. She was an omega, too.”
“What happened to her?”
Lillian is quiet, her shoulders curl inward. “My baby, My Kenzie was eighteen, and she had the world before her. A pack was courting her. She was so happy.”
I wait, my chest tight, somehow knowing the answer, like so many around this part.
“She went to a friend’s house for drinks. Three young women and a male beta disappeared. Two came back, unable to remember anything. The beta was found dead in parklands a month later, and six months after that, I walked outside and found Kenzie on my doorstep. She was gone. Just shattered from the trauma. The doctors kept her sedated, but no one could have,” Lillian’s voice hitches, unable to go on, she clears her throat and tries again. “We didn’t know. No one could have imagined. Her pack had moved on. I was all she had, so just me and whatever nightmares they’d given her. Twenty-two days after she came home, she left me again, unable to cope with it all.”
