Chapter 91
It takes less than three minutes to make it to the visitor center when I run flat out, and that’s what I’m doing, cutting across grassy areas and through the pass-over between the union and the library.
The visitor center comes into sight and I’m so excited I don’t notice the scent of angry alpha or even realize anyone else is here until a foot comes out of the building’s shadow and I’m tripping over it, flying through the air.
My body hits hard, my hands and knees taking the brunt of the force as I slide across the sidewalk and onto the grass.
It stings like a mad bitch, and I’m pretty sure my knees are bleeding since I’m wearing shorts.
Though I’m either kinda shocky or all the nerve endings have been scraped off…
I’m going with option one since my mind feels floaty too.
My legs fold under me, and my head spins.
I shouldn’t have rushed over here. My whole fucking body feels like it’s on a tilt-a-whirl and I can’t get my bearings.
Big hands come down on my shoulders, flipping me over so my back slams into the hard packed dirt beside the sidewalk.
Could be worse, at least my head didn’t hit the concrete, but fucking hell that hurts.
I look up into the angry and disheveled face of John.
He’s clearly cleaned up some since this morning, but his eyes have dark bruising and his nose looks twice its normal size. Good.
His fingers close around my throat, dragging me back up, lifting me off the ground and shaking me hard. “You’re going to pay for what you did. You think you can fucking reject me? Me!” My head snaps back, teeth clicking together painfully.
“Were you expecting someone else, you stupid slut? Maybe those fucking alphas you spent your heat with?” He shakes me again and my head spins.
Pain blooms across my lip and I feel the skin split from his knuckles when he backhands me.
“This is all your fucking fault, you classless mongrel! My pack had questions when I got home. Amber was angry that I let an omega assault me, more so that I found my scent match and didn’t tell her.
Not that it would have changed anything.
My pack is having a meeting to decide if my ‘slumming it’ has had a negative impact.
I’ve been kicked out of my fucking pack house, and it’s all your fault. ”
His hand squeezes tighter, cutting off my air and making black spots dance in front of my eyes.
Sudden vicious snarling reaches my ears and I have a flare of panic that all my fears are coming true—he’s going to feed me to a bear or some shit.
How the hell did he even get a bear past security? How did he get past security?
Fuck!
I left the fucking key card in the door.
Whelp, I’m boned.
Maybe it’s the lack of oxygen or my panic-filled brain has just reached its limit, but I feel light and floaty right now.
The fingers around my throat jostle and loosen, and I’m dropped unceremoniously on the grass. My mind faintly registers shouting and all I can think is that thank fuck security got here before I got eaten…then nothing.
Paul
We’re waiting for Sarah in the office of the visitor center, staring out across campus in the direction they said she’d be coming.
There is so much paperwork to get registered that we’re still at the counter when we see her as she sprints around a building—suddenly she’s falling.
I look at the woman behind the counter. “Something’s wrong.
She just fell. We need to go make sure she’s ok.
” She looks past me and out the window, panic crossing her face as a man steps out of the shadows and puts his hands on our omega.
I see red as some random fucking alpha picks Sarah up.
He’s yelling something at her, and I sprint from the desk, ready to rush to her aid as I hear the static from a radio as the woman behind me calls for security.
My legs freeze, my mind going back to a year ago when some psychopath was threatening to shoot Kelly.
I locked up. He could have killed her, and I could barely move.
Not that I have a gun on me now that I could do anything with; airports frown on that sort of thing.
The walking dead man shakes her back and forth, screaming in her face. I need to get my feet to move, but her struggling is growing weak. A loud snarl rips from behind me, and I’m shoved aside right as Sarah goes limp.
My body hits the ground, and all I can see is Spence.
He grabs the alpha by the back of the neck and lifts him off the ground, shaking him until Sarah’s lifeless form drops from his grasp.
Spence flings the smaller man aside like tossing a ragdoll and then drops to his knees, scooping our omega up in his arms and burying his face in her short hair.
Alistair and I both seem to come back online at the same time, scrambling to our packmate’s side.
Spence mutters quietly as he rocks back and forth, his words causing his purr to stutter as he tries to talk at the same time.
“Please be ok, Shortcake. Please. I need you. You have to be ok. Please?” He mutters more words nonsensically against her hair, completely focused on the small woman in his arms, and I’m quickly reminded how fast everything just happened as shouting rings out around us.
Greg runs up; he’s out of breath, his eyes locked on Sarah in Spence’s arms.
The injured alpha pushes up on his hands and knees, his arms shaking with the effort.
“You great, lumbering brute. You won’t get away with this, any of you.
I’m calling the police. You’ll all go to jail.
And this little bitch. She’ll never find a pack.
No one is going to want a foul-mouthed, violent omega. ”
Alistair walks over calmly; his voice is cold and lower than I’ve ever heard it, but the words make no sense.
“There is no justice, there is just me.” His foot comes out, catching the other man in the temple and dropping him back to the ground before he turns to us.
Everyone looks on in puzzlement because, yeah, that was just gibberish.
Sarah’s wheezing laugh draws my attention down to the tiny woman in Spence’s arms. Her voice is a raspy croak, and bruises are already forming across her throat as she pushes out of his arms, standing on wobbly legs.
“Fuck me, I love that book. Teach, I didn’t know you read Pratchett.
We’ll have to compare notes sometime. Speaking of which…
” Her voice trails off as she walks closer to the prone man.
“Not classy enough for you, you fuck? How’s this?
Knackered! Kippers and tea! Cor fucking blimey!
” Each word is punctuated with a kick on the groaning alpha still lying on the ground.
“Goddamned, motherfucking, crown jewels you cocksucking piece of—hey!” She’s yanked off her feet and pulled against Greg’s chest before she can deliver the swinging foot she’s aimed at the downed man’s testicles.
She coughs, and her hand comes up, weakly rubbing at her neck. “Fucking stuffy goddamned son of a bitch. Didn’t kick him hard enough.”