Dream Girl (Into The Parallel Omegaverse #1)

Chapter OneGrace

Chapter One

Grace

D arkness swirled around me, chest pounding, sweat dripping down my back, as I fled as if my life depended on it.

Keep going, just keep going.

I tripped, hands stinging as I hit the ground. Every inch of me screamed to give up and just curl into a ball on the ground.

No. Stopping wasn’t an option.

Picking myself up, I continued to run, pain clouding my head.

There’s some light. Just a little further…

I looked around, a frown tugging at my lips. Where was I going again? None of this looked familiar.

Fatigue coated me. Each step was like running through quicksand. Did I have to keep moving?

No. No stopping . I had to keep going; I had to get…

But they were going to catch…

Who? What? Why? My head pounded, as my thoughts vanished like words off a dry-erase board. I paused, rubbing my head.

A lamppost illuminated a couple of benches through the trees. Maybe I could take a little break and compose my thoughts.

I ran to the park bench. My body collapsed onto it, exhausted. Something nagged in the darkest reaches of my memory. But I couldn’t find it in myself to get up and keep moving.

Instead, I curled up on the bench. I’d rest for a moment, and that would make everything better.

“Hey there, why are you sleeping by yourself?” someone said, voice so loud I winced inwardly.

“Do you need a warm place to sleep? I’ll give it to you,” a different male voice jeered.

My eyes opened, head pounding. Four young guys that I’d never seen before crowded me.

Where was I? I rubbed my head and hit a sore spot.

Ow. Beyond the four guys were trees, green space, and playground toys.

It wasn’t quite daylight, though the lamp above me had gone out, and I shivered from the cold.

Why was I on a bench? Had my roommate kicked me out again so her boyfriend could stay over?

Wait, did I even have a roommate? I didn’t recognize this park.

The blue maxi dress I wore had a tag, making me reach up and scratch it as I shivered again. Snow dusted the ground. No, I wasn’t dressed for the weather.

Snow?

“Are you going to say anything?” The first one poked me with his finger. “Don’t you want to come with us?”

“Leave me alone,” I snapped, not in the mood for this, swatting away his hand. How dare he touch me?

“Guys, knock it off, something’s wrong,” another said. “Look at her bruises.”

Bruises. Had I fallen? My memories felt sluggish. Maybe I was hungover. Adrenaline shot through me as I got a flicker of something. Running. Fear.

“Did you piss off your alpha, Sweetheart? I’ll give you some place to go.” One got into my space, leering.

“Get away from me.” I fumbled for pepper spray or keys. But I had no purse, no pockets.

Alpha. What? I frowned. I ached. They all smelled weird; not like body odor, more like I was in a candle shop–or a middle school hallway.

“A pretty little thing like you shouldn’t be out here alone.” He grabbed me, trying to pull me off the bench.

“GET OFF!” I struck out with my fist as blood roared in my ears. “Don’t touch me.”

“Ooh, a fighter,” one sneered, getting close to me.

“What do you think you’re doing?” A large officer stormed over.

“Don’t you dare run,” another uniformed officer said to the others. “Freeze, all of you!”

“We found her on the bench,” one said, putting his hands up. “It’s not what it looks like. We were gonna call someone.”

“Were you?” The officer’s eyebrows rose.

My body shuddered as I shrank away from them, making myself small on the bench, hands up. I wanted them all to go away so I could figure out what the hell was going on.

“Miss, you can’t sleep here. After I get your statement, do you want me to take you to a shelter? You can have a hot breakfast and, if you want to, maybe someone can try to help you out?” the first officer suggested, his look softening.

At least I thought they were police officers. So many things crashed around in my head, confusion overwhelming me.

“Where am I? What if they get me?” My chest heaved with anxiety. I was supposed to be running away from someone. The idea of being caught made a sob rise in my chest, mixing with my panic.

No, they can’t catch me.

“Who?” the officer asked, voice kind. He looked at the other guys. “Them?”

“No.” Squeezing my eyes shut, I tried to press the memories out. “Someone else. But I… I don’t remember.” My voice was a whisper as I opened my eyes. “I have no idea how I got here.”

“You’re hauling us in?” one man said, as the second officer cuffed them.

“You were trying to assault her,” the second officer retorted, as the first called for backup.

The first officer studied me. “Do you remember who gave you those bruises?”

I frowned and looked at my arms, mottled purple peeked out from my sleeves. When I touched my face, it was tender, and I winced.

What happened? It was dark, I was scared, being chased…

“No. Not them. The people chasing me… I think.” That seemed about right.

“Some people chased you, and you ended up sleeping here in the park?” His voice was soft and not accusing. “It’s a little cold for that.”

“Yeah.” My teeth chattered. “Everything’s a little foggy.” I rubbed my head, willing myself to remember.

“What’s your name?” he asked.

My mouth opened to answer, but nothing came out. I had a name. I could almost hear it. Looking around, my heart pounded with panic. “I don’t know. Where am I? How did I get here?”

“You don’t remember your name? Do you have an ID or your phone?” he asked.

“I… I don’t have my purse.” I frowned. It seemed like I had nothing with me—no phone, no wallet, and no ID. I looked up at him, confusion making my heart thump in my chest, my throat swelling. “I don’t know what’s going on.” Tears pricked my eyes and dizziness washed over me.

“That’s fine,” he soothed. “We’re going to get you checked out, and then I’ll bring you to the station so we can figure out what happened. Come over to my car with me?”

“Am I in trouble?” Unease coursed through me. I was in trouble. Big trouble. I just couldn’t remember why. Or what kind.

“No, you’re not in trouble. You look cold. Let me get you a blanket.” The officer led me to his police car.

Opening the car door, he had me get in. Taking a blanket out of a plastic wrapper, he draped it around me.

Much better.

“Can I get your thumbprint?” He held out a little box about the size of a cell phone.

I pressed my finger to the pad on the bottom half of the box. While I didn’t know what it did, I didn’t see any reason not to. The box beeped, and something flashed up on the screen at the top.

“Huh.” The officer frowned at the box.

A cute little mini-ambulance drove up, and someone got out. The officer motioned her over.

“Can you give her a look-over? She’s disoriented,” the officer said to her, then turned to me. “Let the medic check you out, I’ll be right back.”

The medic took me to the little ambulance and looked me over, asking me questions, and running some tests using some unfamiliar instruments. I must be in a fancy county. Finally, the officer came back over to us.

The medic looked over at the officer when he came back.

“The toxicology insta-screen came back negative, but that doesn’t mean someone didn’t slip her something harder than a recreational.

Eazy-E, maybe? Pretty sure she’s got a concussion, but she’ll be okay until she can get to a doctor.

No signs of exposure either. Thank goodness. ”

I had no idea what Eazy-E was, but I was hardly up on the latest street drugs.

“We’re going to take her in and see if we can’t figure out who she is,” the officer said.

“Okay.” No one could get me if I was in a police station. Right?

He helped me into the backseat, and he and his partner got into the front. Their cologne was overpowering, but I couldn’t open the window.

I gazed out the window as we drove. None of the streets looked familiar. In the sunrise, I could see the outline of a city, and some mountains. It was quite beautiful here.

Mountains? Did I live near mountains?

Besides being unfamiliar, everything was a smidge different from what I was used to. Even the air felt different, clean and crisp, maybe a little thinner. Eastside Station, the sign said. The eastside of what? But I didn’t want to ask too many questions until I knew what was going on.

Maybe one of my colleagues was playing a prank? They got me drunk, drove me into the next state, and left me there? I had done something… messed up their research, maybe? Why couldn’t I remember?

Think, think.

That feeling of being chased, of heart-stopping fear , lingered. Also, I had bruises . My colleagues wouldn’t hurt me. While the dress was pretty, it was itchy and had no pockets .

“Let’s get you some tea,” the first officer said as we entered the station. “Or would you rather have some coffee?”

“I’d like coffee, please.” That sounded about right.

He led me down the hall and into a small room that looked more like a little living room than an interrogation room, but seemed to have a two-way mirror. The other officer brought me a coffee and a breakfast sandwich. I still had the blanket, which was fluffy and soft.

“Would you like another officer to sit in with us?” the first asked as the second left, leaving the door open.

I shook my head. “I’m okay.”

“Let’s go over everything you remember about your ending up on the bench, and the betas who tried to assault you,” the first officer said, taking out a tablet.

Betas? I frowned.

I told him everything that I could remember as I gobbled the breakfast sandwich. While hot and filling, it didn’t quite taste right; neither did the coffee.

The second officer came in with a little box again, and they had me put my thumb on it. Again.

Like before, it beeped, and he frowned. “That’s odd. Let me try this.”

We tried a different box that took a picture of my face.

It also beeped and flashed. The second officer’s brow furrowed. “Huh.”