Chapter 25 #2
Sometimes, the people who are able to torture you the most are the ones who know what you hate because they hate the same things. As an omega, my mother has inside knowledge about the things that drive me up the wall.
This place is officially a prison. There’s not a soft blanket in sight.
Thankfully, my e-reader is still on my nightstand. Picking it up, I find all of my books still there and I take it to the balcony to read outside. Curling up against the railing with the window open, I lean my head back to read.
No one bothers me out here, there’s a light breeze, and I read until the sun completely sets. My eyes feel heavy, and I yawn as I gaze out at the dark lawn. Something drops over the edge of the gate at one point, forcing me to blink hard as I wonder if I’m seeing something.
Instead, I watch as the figure scales up the side of the house and drops down next to me.
“Why are you outside?” Carter hisses.
“I can’t stand my room,” I murmur. “My mother messed with everything, and even my bedding is awful. ”
He gazes at me for a moment before he shakes his head.
“Explain,” he grunts.
“Nevermind, I just like things a certain way,” I grunt. “Aren’t you worried someone will see you?”
“No,” he says. “I will not just ignore what you said. To answer your question, though, the alphas are here. They have your mother and they’re teaching her a few lessons in how to treat people. I’m here to keep you company.”
“Oh,” I say, checking my phone to see that Cassidy texted me to tell me something similar.
“Now, come snuggle with me and tell me what your bitch mother has done to your room,” Carter says, pulling me closer so I can drop my head on his shoulder. “Don’t say it’s dumb.”
Picking up his phone, he shoots off a text before getting comfortable.
“Are the pillows also fucked?” he asks.
“I didn’t check that far,” I admit. “I touched the blankets and escaped out the window.”
“Huh,” he murmurs. “Let me look.”
I watch as he climbs back into my room to forage for pillows, all the while smiling. I never thought I’d have a village like this.
I seriously love it.
Cooper
Cassidy glances at her phone in the basement of the house, pursing her lips.
“You’re such a fucking bitch, Miss Vivian,” she groans, glaring at my ex-wife. “What did you do to Nina’s room?”
My eyes snap back to Vivian, who is currently zip-tied to a chair.
The alphas that have been taking care of Nina in our stead surround her with me, while Riley and Ethan stand guard inside.
They also asked the staff to leave, and since Vivian doesn’t have any loyalty with the people she employs, they quickly did.
The only thing they asked is if Nina would be safe, which says volumes about her more than her mother.
“I rearranged her room,” Vivian mutters. “I really don’t understand these theatrics. You aren’t going to actually hurt me.”
I’m standing toward the back of the group and she hasn’t seen me yet. She also never saw Riley or Ethan, which means she believes these are upstanding pack members who would never touch a hair on her head.
Typically, she’d be right, but she’s pushed these alphas too far. They’ve been forced to see Nina in pain, hurt, and silently suffering for way too long.
She’s strung them all along while Nina was at Weeping Willow, all while they were kept in the dark. The blinders have fully been removed, and it’s not pretty.
“Perhaps you’re too comfortable, Miss Vivian,” Lyle, the lawyer, says with a fierce smile. I bet he’s a fucking shark in the courtroom. He certainly looks as if he enjoys the hunt. “I think we need to change that. We brought our own chains, didn’t we?”
Someone from Pack Nisim drops a bag at Lyle’s feet, and I watch as he pulls thin chains from it.
These are Carter’s alphas, which is interesting since they are stoic while he cracks jokes.
When I asked if I needed to bring anything, Silas told me they had it handled, and everything would be untraceable.
I guess having a lawyer in your corner for this is helpful. Mine tried her best, but couldn’t help at all while Nina was being imprisoned at Weeping Willow. Maybe I’ll keep Lyle on retainer.
My musing continues as I think about the alphas surrounding me. Someone in Pack Nisim is a medical examiner, while another is a police officer. I don’t think Vivian was thinking about how dangerous these men could be in the face of her greed .
Hindsight really puts things into perspective.
There are hooks in the basement that I put up when I wanted to hang a large swinging chair down here. I thought about turning this large area into a hangout space for Ethan and Nina, but Vivian eventually distracted me away from the project.
Now, those hooks are still here all these years later, and are being used to string Vivian up.
Handcuffs circle her wrists, while the officer uses black zip ties to attach them to the chains.
Then, the chains are pulled through the large hooks in the ceiling until Vivian can no longer touch the ground.
“Let’s cut the bitch’s clothes off,” Cassidy suggests, slapping down Vivian’s kicking feet as she gets to work.
Yet still, I stand and wait as I watch Vivian scream and twist. The feral beast inside of me is enjoying this. Once I begin to participate, blood will begin to flow, and the alphas around me deserve to get their pound of flesh first.
“What, no. No!” Vivian screams, the chains clanging as she fights. I’m still waiting for her to realize how much shit she’s in. “Are you seriously going to hurt me over Nina? She already has a pack. Why do this when she’s yours, Silas?”
“I never said she was mine, Miss Vivian,” he murmurs. Always polite. I think he may continue to be right up until he begins to carve the knife he has in his hand across her alabaster skin. “You always insist on hearing whatever you want.”
“That’s a dangerous habit,” Easton grunts.
“Just stay still,” Abbott says, bored. “I need Cassidy to hurt you a little so she’ll stop pouting at me.”
“I’m not the one withholding sex!” Cassidy yells, making me smirk. Well that sounds fun.
The female alpha punches Vivian in the stomach, making her grunt as she loses the rest of her clothes. Her body has aged. She’s not as pretty as she once was, or maybe I ignored the ugliness inside of her.
Abbott kicks Vivian to make her swing in a wide circle, and the two alphas use her as a punching bag. Lyle picks up a bat from the open bag and slams it into Vivian’s kneecap, making her scream.
“Is that how Nina sounded when you beat her with a belt?” Lyle asks innocently.
“She texted me that day,” Cassidy adds, rifling through the bag for something. “Whoever packed this is my new favorite.”
Lifting it out, I see that it’s some kind of wand, and when she turns it on, it sparks.
Vivian’s eyes widen, and she screams, which makes me growl. The sound makes everyone turn toward me, giving me space as I walk forward.
“I fucking hate your voice,” I say. “Dramatic, fucking cunt.”
“Cooper,” she whispers. “You’re not supposed to be here.”
“That’s the wrong thing to say,” I growl, crossing my arms. Cassidy raises her weapon and I nod as she shoves it into Vivian’s side cruelly. “The correct question is why you thought to keep scent matched mates away from each other. You’re not fucking God, Vivi.”
She hates that nickname, and I plan to use it often now.
“I’ve seen her hair, know how you had her tortured at Weeping Willow,” I continue. “Your arrogance is showing if you truly thought no one would think that shit was fucked up.”
Her body flops around as the electricity courses through her body, and Cassidy giggles before pulling away the rod. It reminds me of a cattle prod.
“Omegas should be cherished,” Abbott grunts. “Except you. No one gives a fuck about you, much less your current husband. I took it upon myself to call Martin.”
“You did?” Vivian asks, her eyes wild with pain. She looks like a cornered animal, but there’s nowhere for her to run.
“Yes, and I explained to him that he’d married a shit omega,” Abbott says. “I told him I’d start the divorce proceedings for him, and he thanked me, Miss Vivian. You see, no one wants someone who is a terrible fucking person. ”
My ex-wife appears stricken as Lyle pushes the air out of her lungs with the bat in his hand.
“He hired me to expedite the paperwork,” the attorney alpha says. “You’ll be pleased to know that it’s a no contest divorce, and it’s already gone through. You’re going to die alone.”
“You’re doing all of this,” Vivian wheezes, “for her?”
“Nina is one of the most beautiful omegas that I’ve ever had the privilege of meeting,” Lyle says, ignoring my glare.
“The way you’ve treated your daughter is disgraceful, Miss Vivian.
She deserves to be with her scent matched alphas.
I have a strong sense of justice. It’s why I’m a lawyer instead of a hockey player. ”
I always forget that he went pro, because his stage presence is so large as a lawyer. There’s this air of confidence inside of him that says he’s used to getting his way.
“Think we can flip her upside down?” I ask, smirking.
“Is it waterboarding time already?” Lyle drawls. “I’m glad we have a doctor on hand, aren’t you?”
“Medical student,” Riley calls out as he takes the last step down. “I don’t really care if you kill her, but I can keep you from making it happen too quickly.”
“I thought you were staying upstairs?” I ask, surprised as he makes his way to the front.
“I had to watch those doctors hurt her,” he says. “Now, I want to watch her mother suffer. I can enjoy that without ever having to cut her. Ethan is upstairs still. I left the door open so he could hear her scream. That’s as close as he wants to get.”
My son doesn’t enjoy the sight of blood, and I don’t blame him.