Rage

Chapter 3

Chapter Three

Ivy

M y hands are sweating profusely as I follow the nurse through the doors and into a private room. Hurst dropped me off, along with my bag and a reminder that he will kill me if I tell my new mates about my time with the Forrester pack. His words still ring in my ears.

I tamed you, Ivy Allaway. Not this man. Don’t you ever forget it.

If I hadn’t witnessed them kill five women and two men in the last six months while I lived in that house, maybe I wouldn’t believe him, but unfortunately, I do. I can’t even take solace in having mates that will protect me, because I don’t want to do anything to upset the monstrous men I’m leaving.

I’m getting out by the skin of my teeth.

And keeping my own demons hidden in the process.

I may be filled with scars, burns, brands, wounds, and bruises, but I’m alive. And otherwise intact. That’s one thing Hurst seemed relieved about when he was driving me here. That he kept his brothers from doing anything sexual while I was with them, continuously reminding me that if they needed a doctor to check me when I went into heat, I couldn’t have any signs of trauma or they would immediately take action and call the police. Meaning my back, shoulders, and arms are covered. Anywhere a doctor wouldn’t need to look to assess my ability to carry a child for them.

And thankfully, now I never have to.

Though, to be honest, I’m not sure I could have.

I wipe my hands on my pants as I wait. The nurse speaks to me, letting me know that it’s my choice if I want to leave with the man coming in to see me—the mate I’ve always dreamed of. Oliver, she said his name was. If not, I’m welcome to go my own way—with my one bag of clothes and the twenty dollar bill Hurst gave me before peeling out of the parking lot.

I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t terrified. Those men stripped me of everything. My belongings, my livelihood, my inheritance. My dignity.

Everything.

The door creaks open, and I shoot to my feet, the skin-healing tape on my back stretching and causing a stinging sensation. The scars will always be there, but forcing me to push off this meeting for an entire week means the prescriptions they put me on and the medicated tape have had time to clear up most of my issues. Hell, Hurst even brought me to get my hair done the other day. Said he couldn’t let Oliver meet me and have me look like the mutt I am.

So sweet, that one.

Oliver strides into the room, and my first reaction is that he’s strikingly handsome. His six-something frame towers over my measly five-foot-two stature, but he doesn’t have the looming presence the Forrester pack did. Instead, Oliver looks a bit shy and dorky with his swept-over onyx hair and thick black-framed glasses. He’s dressed a bit preppy in a sleek, navy-blue button down tucked neatly into khakis.

“Ms. Allaway,” the nurse says, interrupting my ogling of Oliver with his warm brown eyes and inviting smile. “This is Oliver Bergman. Mr. Bergman, this is Ivy Allaway. I’ll give you two a few minutes.”

I barely notice as she leaves, too engrossed in the man in front of me. He’s not what I expected. Not that I’ve had a ton of experience with wolves outside my hometown, and they’re a close knit group. Of assholes, that is.

“Ms. Allaway,” he croons, stretching out his hand toward me in greeting.

“C—call me Ivy,” I state, taking his hand and noticing the way his smile grows even wider.

Gods. He is beautiful.

“Ivy it is,” he replies. “You can call me Oliver, or Olly. That’s what Ewan calls me anyway.”

“Ewan?” I question, confused by his response.

Oliver drops his hand and rubs the back of his neck. “Oh, yes. Sorry, I wanted to wait to tell you. Ewan pulled his information from the bank, but he’s my other mate, and that means he’s likely yours as well. We didn’t want to overwhelm you by both showing up.”

Holy shit.

“I have two mates?” I ask, trying to keep the hope I’m feeling from becoming too apparent. I’m not supposed to let him know how shitty my life has been thus far.

Oliver nods. “I believe so. I guess we’ll know once you meet him. That is… if you want to.”

My head bobs fervently despite my attempts to keep myself in control. He has a life. A real life. And another mate. This is my way out. Out of the disgusting town I’ve been trapped in my whole life. Out of the despair of being a mutt. Out of the guilt and shame.

This is my new beginning.

They don’t know who I am or what I am. And they don’t need to. I’ll figure it out eventually—how to hide it from them. But for now, I just want to get the fuck out and find some peace for once.

“Of course I do!” I blurt.

Oliver chuckles. “Do you want to sit down? Get to know each other a bit before we move forward?”

As much as I don’t want to do that, I figure it makes more sense, so I nod my head, moving toward one of the comfortable chairs arranged in the room. Oliver follows behind me, giving me a respectful amount of space and opting for the chair across from me.

It’s odd, but I feel a lot more at ease with him having just met him than I ever did in that fucking house.

“I’m a software developer in the city, so I do work long hours, but I take a lot of time off too,” he tells me, settling himself back in the chair when the nurse comes to check on us and leaves us with some tea. Oliver thanks her before pouring me a cup and taking a tentative sip of his own. “Ewan is partial to staying home, so we haven’t traveled much, but I’m hoping maybe we can change that.”

“And what does he do?” I ask, holding the warm mug in my still-sweating hands.

Oliver smiles, but it’s slightly different, something seeming off about it as he answers. “Currently he’s been painting. Ewan is creative and though he worked as an art professor for years, he decided to retire early and now paints from home. You should know, he suffers from fairly significant panic attacks and agoraphobia, so he won’t be getting a job outside of the house again.”

“Oh,” I reply, unsure what to say. “That’s awful to hear. But he’s happy?”

“Of course he is,” Oliver responds—maybe too quickly? He’s obviously protective of his other mate. “He has a friend that spends a lot of time with him. Ewan really is a wonderful soul, I’m sure you’ll love him.”

I nod, a little nervous when he asks me what I do. “Umm,” I begin. “Well, I’m in between jobs right now. Currently looking for a new one, but I don’t have a degree or many skills.”

Swallowing, I watch for his reaction, but Oliver just appears to relax a bit more. “No? You didn’t go to school?”

“No. I lived at home until I was twenty-one and then went to live with some friends this past year when my mother passed away. I—I come from a fairly closed-off community so I wasn’t allowed to work or go to school.”

It’s not entirely a lie. More a mix of a lie with some omission.

“Ahhh,” he replies. “Say no more. I’m aware of those little pockets that still exist. Old-world wolves, right?”

I bob my head repeatedly. “Yes.”

“No worries at all,” Oliver states. “I want you to rest assured, Ivy, I make enough money to take care of both you and Ewan without any concern. I know the bank only allows us this one meeting, but I wanted to extend the invitation for you to come stay with us as we get to know one another. We have a guest room, and there would be no expectations whatsoever.”

As crazy as I feel saying yes to him, I find my mouth forming the words. I can’t go back to the Forresters. I would rather die.

And those fuckers just won’t let me.