Chapter 77: Chapter 77
The corridors of the pack house were silent, unnervingly so. I pressed my back against the wall, every muscle in my body stiff, every breath shallow, like even the sound of my lungs would betray me. The moonlight slipping in through the tall windows was pale and cold, washing everything in silver, but it wasn’t enough to light my way. The Alpha’s quarters lay deeper inside, past winding hallways and guarded doors.
I shouldn’t have been here. I knew that. I should have been in the omegas’ quarters, pretending to sleep, clutching my blanket like it was a shield against the nightmares. But the thought of Rose sweet, quiet Rose alone with him gnawed at me. I had seen the way she trembled when Elizabeth called her name, the way her lips had parted but no words came, like her voice had been stolen. And I had done nothing. I had just watched her go.
So now I was here. Desperate. Foolish. My heart hammering loud enough I swore it would echo down the empty corridor. I told myself I was only going to peek. Just to make sure Rose was still alive. I wouldn’t speak, I wouldn’t knock. I would see her and leave, and then maybe the guilt pressing against my ribs would ease. That was the lie I repeated with every step.
But beneath it, in the pit of my stomach, I knew the truth there was no such thing as "just looking" when it came to him.
I moved carefully, barefoot, the wooden floorboards creaking faintly beneath me. Every time they did, I froze, convinced someone would come. But no one did. No guards. No voices. Nothing. That was strange in itself. Normally there were always sentries near the Alpha’s wing, men standing tall and rigid, eyes forward, jaws locked. Tonight there was no one.
The silence grew heavier with every corner I turned.
The Alpha’s quarters weren’t far now. I could see the carved double doors at the end of the corridor, their dark wood gleaming faintly under the moonlight. They looked like a mouth waiting to swallow me whole.
I hesitated, my fingers tightening on my nightgown, twisting the fabric until it nearly tore. My throat was dry, my chest tight. Maybe this was far enough. Maybe I should turn back now, run before anyone found me here.
But then I thought of Rose’s face again, pale and fragile, and my feet carried me forward.
I reached the doors. My hands trembled as I raised them. I wasn’t even sure what I planned to do push them open? Press my ear against the wood? Whisper her name? Every option was dangerous, every choice reckless.
And then it happened. I turned and slammed straight into someone.
The impact knocked the air out of me. I stumbled back, my hands flying to my chest as if that would keep my heart from bursting through. My eyes shot up, and in that instant, all the blood in my body turned to ice. He was there. The Alpha.
Standing silently, like he had grown out of the shadows themselves. His presence filled the narrow hallway, tall and sharp-edged, his aura suffocating. His arms were folded behind his back, his posture relaxed, almost casual, but his eyes those merciless eyes glittered in the darkness.
And he was smiling. Not wide, not friendly. Just a faint, knowing curve of his lips, soft and mocking, like a cat that had just caught the mouse exactly where it wanted.
"You really are predictable, little omega," he said, his voice low, velvet-smooth. It slid through me like smoke, leaving a shiver in its wake. "I was wondering how long it would take before your guilt dragged you here."
My mouth went dry. I tried to speak, but no sound came. My tongue felt heavy, useless. My knees weakened, and I had to press a hand against the wall to keep myself upright.
He tilted his head, studying me as if I were a puzzle he had already solved. "Tell me, Ellie what did you think you would find behind those doors?" His eyes flicked toward the Alpha’s chambers, then back to me. "Did you hope to rescue her? Or was it only your conscience you came to soothe?"
My lips parted, but still no words. His smile deepened. "Ah. Neither. You didn’t think at all. You let your heart drag you here, the same way it always does. And hearts..." He leaned down slightly, so close I could feel the warmth of his breath against my ear. "...hearts are the easiest things to break."
I squeezed my eyes shut. My body trembled so hard it felt like my bones were rattling. I whispered a prayer under my breath, though I didn’t even know the words anymore. Just fragments. Please. Please.
He chuckled softly. The sound wasn’t cruel exactly it was worse. It was amused, indulgent, like he was laughing at a child who thought they could hide behind their hands.
"You pray as though God can hear you in my house." His words coiled around me, light but suffocating. "But it’s only me here. Always me."
I forced myself to look up, even though it felt like dragging my gaze through quicksand. His eyes were waiting, sharp and unreadable, watching me flinch.
"Next time, Ellie," he murmured, brushing past me with a whisper of movement, "you might break your leg running into things you don’t understand."
And then just like that he was gone. He didn’t shove me, didn’t drag me, didn’t even raise his voice. He simply walked away, his steps unhurried, confident, like he had known from the start how this night would end.
I stayed pressed against the wall long after he disappeared, my whole body shaking, my throat raw with the scream I hadn’t dared to release.
The corridor seemed to breathe again, but I couldn’t. I sank to the floor, curling into myself, my palms pressed against my mouth to stop the sobs from spilling out too loudly.
He knew. He always knew.
And the worst part was the smile calm, mocking, certain that told me he was only waiting for the next time I tried to fight, the next time I tried to run.
I didn’t wait. I didn’t even think. The moment the Alpha’s figure melted back into the shadows, I bolted. My legs moved before my brain could catch up, carrying me down the corridor so fast my vision blurred. I didn’t care if the sound of my feet on the wooden floor gave me away. I didn’t care if my nightgown snagged on the corners of the hallway or if my breath rasped loud enough to echo. All I knew was that I had to get away away from his smile, away from those eyes that had looked at me as though I were already dead, already his.
My slippers betrayed me first. One caught on the uneven edge of the floor and flew from my foot, spinning into the darkness behind me. The other slipped loose a few steps later, abandoned like it couldn’t keep up with my desperate speed. Barefoot, I ran faster, the cold wood biting at the soles of my feet, the edges splintering into skin, but none of it mattered.
Every step sounded too loud, like a countdown. My chest burned, my lungs begged for air, but I pushed harder, faster, as if speed could erase what had just happened.
He was behind me. I was sure of it. I couldn’t hear him, couldn’t see him, but I felt him. His presence clung to me like a shadow that wouldn’t break. No matter how far I ran, the echo of his mocking voice curled around me: You really are predictable, little omega.
My eyes watered as I sprinted down the last staircase. I nearly missed a step, my body lurching forward, my palms grazing the banister hard enough to scrape skin. The sting barely registered. My entire body was trembling, sweat slicking my back, but I kept running.
The omega quarters. That was all I could think. I had to get there. I had to see Joan. Elara. I had to bury myself in their presence and pretend I was safe.
The wide hallway stretched out endlessly before me, every flicker of candlelight on the walls warping into shapes that made me jump. A whisper. A laugh. A footstep. My imagination twisted the silence into horrors. I swore I felt his gaze on my neck, close enough to touch.
I stumbled at the final turn, almost colliding with the heavy door that marked the omega quarters. My fingers fumbled with the handle, slick with sweat. I shoved it open with a force I didn’t know I had and crashed inside.
The room erupted.
Dozens of heads turned at once, eyes wide, startled from their sleep or their whispered conversations. The crack of the door against the wall echoed through the chamber, and there I was panting, barefoot, hair plastered to my damp face, my nightgown torn at the hem.
"Ellie?" Joan’s voice was the first I heard, sharp with worry as she jumped from her cot. "What happened?!"
I couldn’t answer. My body folded under me, collapsing to my knees on the floorboards. My palms slapped down to catch me, trembling so violently I thought they might give out. My throat worked around words, but nothing came out except ragged gasps of air.
"Elara, water quick!" Joan’s command snapped the others into motion. I heard the rush of feet, the squeak of wooden cups pulled from shelves.
But more than that, I heard the whispers.
"She’s gone mad."
"Look at her eyes."
"Maybe the Alpha finally—"
The rest trailed into murmurs, but I didn’t need to hear them. I could feel the weight of their stares pressing down on me, poking holes in what little strength I had left.
Joan dropped beside me, her hands warm on my shoulders, steadying me. "Ellie, breathe," she urged. "You’re safe. You’re here now. He’s not—" She didn’t finish. She didn’t dare say his name aloud, as if the mere sound might summon him.
Elara knelt on my other side, pressing a cup into my hands. I tried to grip it, but my fingers were shaking too hard, water sloshing over the rim and onto the floor. I brought it to my lips anyway, spilling half of it down my chin as I gulped desperately.
Finally, with my throat wet, a word broke free. "He-It cracked, barely audible. "He was there. Waiting."
Joan’s brows furrowed. "The Alpha?"
I nodded, violently, my damp hair sticking to my cheeks. Tears burned my eyes, spilling faster than I could blink them back.
Elara’s face paled, her hands clasping together as if in prayer. The whispers behind us grew louder, some scoffing, some murmuring in fear.
"What do you mean waiting?" Joan pressed gently.
"He knew," I gasped, clutching Joan’s arm like it was the only solid thing in the world. "He knew I would go. He knew he was smiling. Like it was a game." My voice cracked into a sob. "I thought maybe Rose but he was there. Always there."
The room went silent at Rose’s name, as if no one dared breathe in case the Alpha overheard through the walls.
Joan’s hand rubbed circles on my back, firm but trembling. "Ellie, listen to me. You made it back. You’re here now. He didn’t stop you."
Didn’t stop me. No, he hadn’t. That was what made it worse. He could have crushed me right there in the corridor, silenced me forever. But instead he let me run. He let me live with the fear gnawing at my insides, knowing I would bring it back with me like poison to the others.
Because in his eyes, I was no threat. I was entertainment.
I curled into myself on the floor, the water cup slipping from my grip, spilling across the wood. My sobs came harder, muffled against my knees. Around me, the omegas whispered and shifted, some sympathetic, most fearful, all uncertain.
Joan stayed by me. Elara too. Their presence was the only anchor I had left in a world that felt like it was tilting further and further into madness.
And through it all, one thought clawed at the back of my mind.
No matter how fast I ran, no matter how far I tried to escape he was always watching.