Chapter 24
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
SKYLAR
My heart splinters into a million pieces. Rejected and safe worded in a matter of seconds. Holy fuck.
“That could have gone better,” Fishman says under his breath. “Let me know if you need help hunting him down or anything. You also know I’m never above a little kidnapping.”
Fishman slinks away as if he didn’t just destroy my life. No, I did that. I should have found a way to tell Koen, because things always have a way of finding the light.
“Rhodes,” I say, my fingers trembling as he reaches out for me.
“Absolutely fucking not,” he barks. “No touching, don’t look at me, I can’t do it, Sky. Everything is ruined.”
“You have to let me take you home,” I remind him. “You can’t drive in this.”
Rhodes looks down at Princess Sunny, and I’m incredibly grateful she’s the one thing keeping him together. He may risk himself, but not her. He’s pissed enough to attempt to drive himself.
“Go fuck yourself,” he replies, but since he didn’t punch me, I follow behind him as he stalks through the hallways.
My mind races through every possible way I can fix it. I’m slowly putting it together as Rhodes snuggles Princess in his coat as we walk out to my car, throughout the terrible drive to our house, and it all clicks when I get a text to my phone from Olsson.
Olsson
You fucked up, and now my best friend is crying on my couch. The crazy fucker was half frozen when I found him walking on the sidewalk. I don’t know what you did, but you have to fix it.
Me
Did he tell you what I did?
It doesn’t matter either way to me if he does know. I’m still kidnapping my fucking scent match back. I don’t care if he rejected me, I’ll show him why I’m perfect for him.
“Whoever it is you’re texting, ask them if they’re looking for an alpha for sale,” Rhodes says glumly as we trudge inside.
“That’s adorable, but you know you’re stuck with me. We both know why I’m currently giving you space, but that’s not going to last very long,” I say, disarming the alarm once I lock the door behind me. “This too shall pass, or whatever the fuck they say.”
“You’re not a Persian Sufi,” Rhodes grunts. He’s so fucking smart. It hurts so much more to see the pain in his gaze as he collapses on our couch with the puppy.
I don’t have it in me to remind him why the dog isn’t allowed on the furniture when I’m the one in the doghouse. Besides, Princess Sunny is laying on his chest and is technically nowhere near the furniture. Ugh, my head hurts.
I need to fucking focus.
“I definitely am not, but I will fix this,” I tell him. “Fishman has a big fucking mouth. However…we are responsible for our own actions. Take a breath, Rhodes. You’re going a little pale.”
I used my bark with zero remorse on him, and he sucks in a breath at my command.
“Passing out to escape the pain will not help,” I say.
“Then knock me out because this fucking hurts. How are you not losing it right now?” he asks.
“Look at me,” I growl. “Rhodes. Don’t fucking make me force you.”
Rhodes’ eyes are closed tightly, refusing to open them. His chest heaves as he struggles with his emotions, causing our puppy to ride the wave as it rises and falls. She whines slightly before wiggling up to his neck to curl up and offer him comfort.
My brain is screaming for me to work faster while calling me every terrible thing it possibly can. I am far from okay. Being rejected is like being dropped into a sea of fire and told to swim, only to find you’re also drowning because even oxygen hurts to breathe.
Nothing about the past hour is okay.
Sniffling loudly, Rhodes turns his head to look at me. The couch is arranged in a big U-shape at the moment, and he has to strain a little since I’m behind him. He stares at me for a long moment before tears begin to fall down his cheeks faster.
My phone vibrates but I remain quiet as I allow Rhodes to get his fill. Finally, he sighs, swallowing hard.
“So what are we going to do, Pinky?” he asks.
My lips barely twitch as I reply, “Kidnap our man, of course. I just need to get some sedative from the cabinet.”
I am always prepared, even when I’m not sure why I decide I need to have something. The sedative will help calm an omega who doesn’t think he’s mine.
“Okay,” he whispers. “Fuck, I don’t know why I trust you, but I can’t help myself.”
“Koen was ambushed with the information he received,” I say. “There was no context, and it paints us in a very bad light. He loves us. I could see it in his eyes when he was yelling at us.”
“We broke his heart,” Rhodes breathes, rubbing his chest. “It feels like one, long, strangled scream into the void. His voice never breaks, and it never fucking stops.”
Fuck, that’s terrifying.
My phone vibrates again in an attempt to remind me there’s an unread message and I drop my gaze to read it.
Olsson
No. He’s drinking, despondent, and refuses to speak. Congratulations, you made my already grumpy best friend non-verbal. Are you going to fucking clean up your mess?
Me
I always clean my messes. Give me an address.
Olsson
Dude, you sound like the goddamned mafia.
Snorting, I shake my head. I suppose I do, but sometimes, bending the rules over a rail and making them scream my name is the only way to get shit done.
I’m not sorry for the things I’ve done. I’m remorseful that Koen was hurt by them. Those are very different things.
Me
Are you going to give me your address or are you going to make me work for it?
Opening another text chain, I shoot off a message to Fishman.
Me
This is what I need. You will suck it up and not ask for payment. Are you ready for the list?
Fishman
Fuck, why can’t I keep my damn mouth shut? Of course it’s on the house. Send me this list. I’ll even pitch in thirty percent of whatever you’ll need.
Damn. Fishman doesn’t fuck around with his money, and he definitely doesn’t offer to pay for things. If he’s fronting money for something, then someone is paying him back.
It shows he feels badly about how he just blew up our lives. I’ll take his help, though it’s not like I need the financial support. No, I’ll accept it because one of the only ways to make Fishman accountable is through his wallet.
At some point, I stopped breathing. My focus can drill down to a single pinpoint until everything else disappears. My vision is going dark, and Rhodes shouts at me to breathe.
Fuck.
Forcing myself to take a breath, I nod in his direction to show I heard him. I need to get the ball moving, or I’ll be unable to do anything because I’ll overthink every single thing. I can’t afford to do that.
Not now.
Me
Book me two cabins next to each other, clone my number and pretend to be me and tell my pet sitter I need her to come watch Princess out there.
Get me rope, handcuffs, water, wood, and food for both cabins.
Use your best judgement about what you deliver to which cabin.
I don’t need to traumatize my puppy sitter, jackhole.
Make sure Evelyn’s cabin has dog food as well for the puppy, and that the fire is already started for her.
If the power goes out, I don’t want her to worry about anything.
I might reach out for more later. There will be at least two kidnappings happening.
Fishman
I’m on it. I’ll get some generators for shit and giggles too. Shoot things off as you think of them.
Nodding even though he can’t see it, I suck in more oxygen as I stand up.
“I gotta move,” I grunt. “Go change, get whatever Princess needs for a three day trip, pack a bag for yourself, and meet me downstairs.”
I refuse to look in his direction as I walk toward the stairs, knowing he can hear how serious I am right now. I need him to not ask questions, and thankfully, he doesn’t.
This house feels too big without Koen, and I find myself jogging up the stairs to get the fuck out of here faster. My foot trips on the carpet because I didn’t lift it high enough, and I hiss as my knee hits the stair hard.
“Fuck,” I hiss, pissed I’m making sloppy mistakes.
Shaking my head, I get up and begin to pull my clothes off as I make it to the landing. The room I shared with my pack is another eight steps, which is how I need to measure things by. If I don’t, I’ll make another mistake, one I can’t come back from.
Dropping my suit into the hamper to deal with later, I pull out a pair of sweats from my closet. I’m going to need to stay warm for what I need to do, and I’ll also need a few changes of clothes.
Methodically, I grab two duffle bags and pack for both myself and Koen. He’s going to be handcuffed to the bed, but that doesn’t mean he can’t be comfortable during it. Chewing on my lower lip, I pack the necessities, and then walk into the bathroom for the sedative and syringe.
I also pack a medical bag of shit I may need “just in case.”
If Koen is slamming down drinks the way that Olsson mentioned, he may be passed out by the time I arrive at his house. Hangovers aren’t conducive to groveling, so I want to make sure I have enough supplies.
I can hear Rhodes rummaging through his closet, and he makes no move to interrupt me. I’ve given him tasks to occupy himself with, so he’ll continue to do those until he’s done. This will give me enough time to finish up, though giving myself shit to complete isn’t helping the noise in my head.
Me
Address, Olsson. Now.
Olsson
I see absence makes the heart grow grumpier.
It’s 5679 Cater Way Lakeview, MN 45788. Koen is starting to mutter to himself.
I’m not sure how much longer I’ll be able to keep him.
Do I tie him to a chair for his own safety?
The snow will turn him into an omega popsicle if he decides he wants to take a walk.
Me
If you have rope, you should use it.