Chapter 82
EIGHTY-TWO
LAUREL
I woke with a dry mouth and a pounding headache.
With a groan, I opened my eyes, finding a familiar face with black eyes hovering above me. He wore his usual beanie, with all his hair tucked up inside.
What had happened last night? I remembered the party, and the phone, and Jade coming to my suite… everything after that was a blur.
Though, I did remember booping Finch’s nose?
No, that must have been a dream. Please let that have been a dream.
“Wakey, wakey,” Kaos said, holding out a plate of scrambled eggs.
Blinking, I gave him a smile, and he beamed as if I’d given him a trophy. The plate he was offering looked dangerously close to tipping onto the floor, so I sat up and took it from him.
He gave a happy chirp when I took it and sat down beside me, grabbing a fork and digging into his own plate.
“Hungry?” I asked, and he nodded.
He swallowed, his cheeks reddening a bit. “Gotta get my strength back,” he said, looking away.
We ate in companionable silence, and my headache had cleared a bit by the time I was done.
Kaos followed me as I entered the bathroom, and I blinked as I saw the claim necklace the Lucas pack had given me last night sitting in the toilet bowl. I decided to leave it in there for now.
Kaos cleared his throat as I started brushing my teeth. “Can you help me with something?” He was chewing on his lip, and I could feel his anxiety through the bond.
I rinsed my mouth out in the sink before replying. “Sure,” I said, hoping it wasn’t anything awful.
He tugged off his beanie, letting his long hair tumble around his face. “I want to cut it all off.”
I looked up at him, to where he was staring at me, shoulders tense. “Okay,” I said gently, gesturing to the toilet seat.
He sat down, and I rummaged through my drawers until I found scissors and an electric razor. When I turned back to him, he’d taken off his shirt and was still staring at me with his large eyes.
“You sure?”
He nodded, not breaking eye contact.
I leaned down, cupping his cheek and pressing a kiss to his lips. When I pulled away, I offered him a smile.
He closed his eyes as I snipped off a huge chunk at the side of his head. The sound of the scissors cutting hung between us, and his shoulders seemed to loosen with each snip. Long chunks fell to the ground at our feet, and soon, I’d cut off enough length that I could use the razor.
I felt like we were both holding our breath as I ran the clippers through the rest of his hair until he was left with a buzz cut.
“Done,” I said, breaking the silence.
He opened his eyes, first focusing on the pile of hair on the ground. Carefully, he rose and faced himself in the mirror. I stood beside him, taking his hand in mine. He was shaking a bit, his face pale.
“It looks good,” I offered.
His face split into a wide grin. “I’m back,” he said. “And ready to destroy your enemies.”
In response, I pulled him down into another kiss, my heart swelling with warmth. “Thanks,” I said breathlessly as we pulled apart.
There was the sound of a knock at my door, though it was so faint, I wasn’t sure if I’d imagined it. Kaos had looked over, though, so I sighed and went to answer it.
Jade was at the door. She looked in a bad way as she groaned and came in to collapse on the couch, throwing her arms over her head dramatically. “Kill me now.”
“Why are you even here, bitch?” I muttered, going to pour her a coffee.
“I passed out on shift and woke up just before we clocked out. Then remembered what happened and ran away, rather than face Casey like a man. Or woman.”
I grimaced as more flashes of the night before came back. I turned around to find Kaos perched on the kitchen counter, grinning at me.
“Holy shit,” I said, almost jumping out of my skin.
“What does eyyyoh mean?” he asked with fake innocence.
I ignored him, turning back to Jade. “Did you kiss Hugo?” I asked. “And Casey?”
Kaos wrinkled his nose. “You kissed Hugo?”
“Shhh! Why do you think I’m hiding here right now?” Jade grumbled, throwing something at him.
“The prophecy is fulfilled,” he muttered to himself, catching the throw pillow and hugging it to his chest.
There was another knock on the door, this time a loud rap that made me wince and Jade groan.
“You might need to hide,” I told her and Kaos, going over to peer out. An exhausted-looking Casey was standing there, an almost panicked look on his face.
“Sorry, Miss Laurel,” he said. “Do you know where Miss…Shaun is? They didn’t come back to the dorms and I’m worried.”
“Jade’s here,” I told him. “Come inside.”
“Traitor,” Jade grumbled from the couch.
Casey hovered nervously by the door until I practically forced him to sit down, then I roped Kaos into making more eggs—and bacon—for everyone while I put on a big pot of coffee.
I spread out the food and coffee on the kitchen counter, my heart lifting as everyone gathered around to eat. I only had two barstools, but that didn’t seem to matter.
It was a beautiful morning, with sunlight filtering into the dim room and making my villa into something of a home. We only needed Ocean, Jule, Finch, and Hugo, and we’d have everyone I’d ever cared about in one place.
But Ocean was half-feral, Hugo was locked up, and if Jule was still alive, he and Jade hated each other, so that fantasy crumbled as soon as it had formed in my brain.
Finch’s text came through when all the food was gone and Casey had passed out on the couch. I scrolled through it as Jade grabbed him a blanket.
Finch: I’m making our move tonight. If everything works, we’ll be out of here by the end of the week. I’m also doing what I can to find out about your brother.
I felt a breath on my neck and found Kaos peering over my shoulder.
“Your brother?” he asked after he’d read Finch’s text.
I shook my head. “I don’t know,” I replied. The end of the week didn’t give us much time. “The last solid thing we have on him was him leaving the cells with Ashton Vass.”
“Then we have to ask Ashton what he knows,” Kaos said simply.
I nodded, thinking. I needed to find out Finch’s timeline. If I was going to interrogate Ashton, it needed to be right before we left, otherwise I’d be facing serious consequences.
“Did you remember anything else about Jule?” I asked Kaos. I still didn’t understand why he cared. Jule had broken him, according to my father. I could feel panic and pain stirring in Kaos’s mind, his face shuttering as he thought about it.
“I didn’t want to fight after him,” Kaos said slowly.
I nodded. “Father sent Jule to try and get you to fight again. Or kill you.”
Kaos swallowed, and I reached out and squeezed his hand. He closed his eyes, hanging his head. “He led me to the tunnels,” Kaos said quietly. “Then… fresh air. Bright light. Home.”
“So, he did help you escape,” I said, relief coloring my tone. “Thank you.”
That gave me hope.
That, even after he became an alpha, there was still some of the Jule I’d known left in him. The Jule who would defy my father and try to do something right.