42. Red
Chapter forty-two
Red
I stare across the room at my archnemesis. No matter how many boxes I tick, the head psychologist seems determined to keep me here. Oblivious to my anger, or maybe just ignoring it, Dr Woods pulls off her glasses and cleans them on her shirt hem.
“What makes you think the next heat will be different, Red?”
Fuck! She’s so hung up on making me talk about my heats; it’s enough to drive me insane. Maybe that’s how psychology works. Make the clients insane to keep yourself in a job. “I’ll have my alpha with me,” I reply tartly, struggling to maintain my sweet, vulnerable Daisy character.
Dr Woods sighs. “This isn’t something you can ignore, Red. You locked yourself in a room and threatened a nurse. I know you don’t want to admit it, but even your eyes close up when I talk about heats. I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but not even having an alpha or pack will change your trauma response.”
“You can’t know that for sure,” I say sulkily. It’s not like they could’ve studied every single case known to man.
Dr Woods rubs at her temples. “You’re due for your heat in three weeks. We’ll prepare a nest for you here and allow your alpha to come in. That way we can monitor your health.”
“Fuck that!” I cry, standing up. “I don’t want a bunch of sickos watching me and my alpha go at it like rabbits.” Although I already know I won’t be doing that. The abuse that happened to me and my own craziness before now was private. I don’t think I could bear the shame otherwise.
Despite all the brave words, my upcoming heat scares me more than anything I’ve been through so far. I don’t want my alpha to see me raging like I’m demon possessed. I was thinking I’d find a hotel room for three days and lock myself away. As long as I drink water, I can survive for seventy-two hours.
A tiny voice in the back of my mind asks about the excruciating heat fever, but I brush it away. It’s essential I maintain my composure in front of the doc, and I’m not doing a good job of it today. Going through the scent book and not finding a single scent match rattled my confidence.
Not to mention my head feels like it could explode any second from the pressure of my unknown alpha’s rage. Or pain. I’m not sure which one. Distress for sure.
“I can’t release you until I know you’ll be safe, Red. That’s Omega Center policy.”
“I think I need to take a break,” I mutter, bracing my aching head in my hands.
Dr Woods checks the clock. “No worries. We can talk again next week.”
I hesitate, knowing I should refute her. Should demand to resume tomorrow. But right now, all I can think about is getting out of this room.
I slam her door shut behind me and stumble as my head throbs. I haven’t told anyone about the migraines. It’ll just be another reason for them to keep me under observation. Although nothing’s wrong with me, the doctors could make up any old crap. But why they want to chain me up escapes my comprehension. Here I’m another mouth to feed. Unless they really have sinister reasons. What if they want to “test” my haze during the next heat?
I shudder.
Well, I have one available course of action, even though I was avoiding it. I march to my room, gathering my courage and my sanity back around me. It’s harder than I thought to pick up the phone and dial my supposed lawyer.
Callisto answers immediately. “Hi, Red.”
Hearing that familiar voice sends conflicting emotions spiraling through me. “Hello.” I chew on my lip, the silence stretching.
“I’m glad you called,” he says, voice unsure. “I’ve been wondering how you’re doing.”
“Rickon updates you, doesn’t he?” I can’t help the snappy edge leaking into my voice.
I drew a professional line between me and Callisto, but it still feels weird. I can’t help asking myself the “what if” question. What if he were my alpha, and instead of ringing for legal advice, I jumped onto my bed and told him I was spreading my legs? Phone sex with his clear, pleasant voice would be the bomb. But that’s not in our picture.
“Rickon does update me, but it’s better coming directly from you.” He pauses, and I don’t know what to say to that. “Is there something I can help you with, or did you simply want to talk?” He rushes to add, “I’m fine with it, if that’s what you want.”
Why does he have to sound so damn eager? This would be easier if he were curt like the first time, when he walked away. Phew. Get your head in the game, Red. “I’m calling for legal advice. I’ve done everything the Center’s asked of me, but they still won’t release me. I was wondering, is there anything you can do to get me out?”
He answers quickly, businesslike. “What reasons are they giving?”
I snort. “That I’m not safe.”
“Even with your alpha?”
I press one hand to my aching forehead. It feels warmer than usual. “They say—” Fuck, if he were my alpha, I’d never mention this, but I have to think of him only as my lawyer. “They say I have a personality disorder. And sometimes I don’t . . . like, I kinda have episodes when I’m a bit different.” It’s harder to admit than I thought. “Repressed trauma, or some bullshit.”
“Lots of people have personality disorders but don’t get locked up for it. Did something happen for them to use that as a reason?”
I lean against the windowsill and stare at my toes, painted gold during a pedicure I did with the other omegas yesterday. I don’t want to say it, but I can’t stall forever. “I locked myself in a room and threatened to kill a nurse’s family. Probably some other stuff.” Best to cover all bases. I hold my breath, waiting for his answer. How Callisto replies could change everything between us.
He hums lightly. “Well, the way it sounds to me, right now the Omega Center are the ones triggering your stress. You have an alpha who can be with you full-time, so I think we can make a good case.” Callisto hesitates for a moment, and then sighs. “But I have to tell you, Red, I’m a barrister on the cases coming out of the illegal trafficking center, so um—”
Strength leaches from my legs and I throw myself backward onto the bed. In the chaos of making my statement and getting hauled back to the Omega Center, I’d forgotten what Callisto said on our last phone call.
“So you know,” I murmur. I run my fingertips across the rows of scars on my collarbone. Put a needle in a person enough times and the skin can’t heal properly.
“Yeah, I know some of it.” His voice thickens like he’s the one in pain. “There’re no words to describe how sorry I am this happened to you. Trauma is totally normally in these situations, and none of it’s your fault, Red. I promise I’ll get you out of there.” He goes quiet for a moment. “But I may have to use details of your past in order to make the case.”
I tug my pillow into a better position, letting the phone fall beside my ear. It shouldn’t matter that Callisto knows I was used like a sex toy and drained of haze, but no matter what I do, I can’t stop the crawling sensation on my skin. Has he already told Rickon? I wish life had a refresh button, like the one on browsers when they stop loading properly. A nice, clean reset would down smooth, right about now.
“Still there?”
“Yeah, I’m here,” I whisper, running my tongue over my lips. Nothing matters if I can’t get out of here. “Do what you have to do, but the psychologist here, Dr Woods, she’ll use the same story to argue I should stay here. She said they want to observe my next heat. Can you imagine?”
I shut my eyes and grind my fist into my forehead, trying to massage away the pain simmering behind the skin. As if the Bitches and the Spineless Bastard forcing their way into my heats wasn’t bad enough, now I’m supposed to let the Omega Center in on everything too?
I can’t go through that again.
A soft growl comes down the line and I stiffen, remembering Callisto really is an alpha with a strong presence. The little reminder makes me smile.
Callisto catches himself and clears his voice. “Before I can legally represent your interests, I need you to sign a letter of engagement.”
I stiffen. “Engagement?” What the fuck’s he talking about? Does he mean with Rickon?
“Yes, so I can begin representing your interests.”
Oh, so that kind of engagement. I thump my fist against my forehead, feeling stupid. “Right, of course.” Disappointment weighs me down.
A smile lifts his voice, like he knows I was thinking about something different. “Does that mean I can come visit you?”
Something flutters in my belly. Callisto, here at the Center? I press my hand to my midriff. Stop that. He’s only coming as my lawyer. “Sure, I guess.” Not my alpha coming for me—that was a pipe dream.
“I’ll be there as soon as they let me see you.”
“Okay,” I murmur. “See you then.” I end the call before he can say anything else, but I can’t shut down the conflicting emotions colliding inside.
All that matters is getting out of here.
Butterflies flock through my stomach as Callisto takes the seat across the table. Since he’s visiting a client, not his omega, we’re using a plain meeting room rather than the visitor wing. I wrap my arms around myself. It feels cold and clinical. Definitely no climbing into an alpha’s lap like I do with Rickon.
“Good to see you again, Ms Jones,” Callisto says with a shadowed smile.
“Likewise.” What else am I supposed to say to my alpha who’s not my alpha?
His lashes flicker a few times, and I wonder what’s going on inside that brain of his. What makes him tick? What does he think of this situation? And what does he think of me? I’d love to pry it all out of him.
Callisto glances at Samantha, who sticks to me like a bad smell; then he slides a document and pen across the table. “This is your formal letter of engagement. Once you sign this, I’ll be able to act in your interests.”
It’s chunky, running to about eight pages, but I already looked at a sample online so I knew what to expect.
Samantha leans closer. “We recommend omegas get our in-house lawyers to go over contract terms before sign—”
With great relish, I pick up the pen and scribble my name where the sticky arrows indicate.
My carer snaps her mouth shut with a pained sigh.
Stupid signing an unknown contract? Maybe. Worth it to shut her up? Definitely.
Callisto catches my victory smirk and his mouth quivers. At least someone enjoys my rebellion, because Samantha’s going to need blood pressure medication soon.
My new official lawyer skims a copy across the table, and while he speaks to me, he angles the document toward the Omega Center worker. “By all means, have the lawyers here check it over. It’s a standard legal contract.”
I poke one finger on top and slide it all the way in front of Samantha. “Go ahead.”
Her face reddens.
Callisto smiles, a cold, glittery sort of look. “Now, I’d like to meet with my client in private, if you please.”
Samantha goes rigid, but stands. “I expect the meeting to remain of a professional nature.” She glares at me. “No knots.”
I loll my head lazily in her direction and flutter my lashes. “You know saying that gives me ideas, right?”
“No knots.” She shuts the door with a little more force than is truly polite.
Callisto chuckles. “Sounds like you and Rickon are getting along well.”
“We fit together nicely,” I shoot back, pun fully intended.
His shoulders shake with silent laughter before he takes a deep breath, his serious face coming back into play. “He told me about the book of scent matches. I’m sorry, Red.”
The way his tone loads on that apology tells me he’s not just talking about my lack of mates.
I shrug. “It is what it is. How do we get me out of this pit?”
His brows jump. “Are you being made to do things against your will, or being abused in any way?”
“Duh,” I lift my hand toward the door. “No knots.”
He snorts, and I congratulate myself for cracking his stiff work persona.
“Seriously, apart from being bored to death and attending way too many therapy sessions, I can’t complain.” I look up and catch his gaze on me. My skin heats from the intensity in his black eyes. “I just hate feeling trapped. I didn’t feel this way out there with Rickon.”
He nods. “I just wanted to check. So I think we may have a viable route.” He digs into a leather satchel and drops a document an inch thick on the table. “This came from Director Yun. I took the liberty of having a friend of mine who specializes in entertainment contracts look over it. Both he and Ricky have left notes, and I can answer any questions you might have.”
Callisto taps a finger on the table to make sure he has my full attention. It’s not a hard ask, since he has quite the formidable presence. “Rickon says the director wants to start table reads in two weeks and have them done before your next heat. As a signed actor, at the very least the Omega Center will have to release you for employment you already have.” He grins, and a weight lifts off my chest. “Between the stress of confinement, the availability of an alpha who can take care of you, and the proximity of my apartment to the studio, we’ll be able to put enough pressure on them to release you for employment purposes.”
I hold up one hand, bobbing my head as I digest each fact but stumbling on the last one. “Your apartment?”
The highly composed Callisto Wren flushes all the way to his ears. “Um, yeah. So, Ricky’s been staying with me while the restraining order gets sorted. And his house is too small anyway. So, until he gets a new place . . .” His words hang like spiderweb in the small room, but I can’t tell if it’s to trap me or something else.
Do my eyes deceive me, or is my lawyer pleading?
My breath wooshes out with a humming noise.
He rushes on, like he’s gotta convince me all in one go. “Plus, I have a nest you can convert—”
“Fuck the nest.” It’s out of my mouth before I can stop it, but at least I hold down the accompanying shudder.
Callisto flinches. “I don’t have bad intentions, Red. I just want to do anything I can to make it up to you.”
I slap both my palms on the table. “That had better not be pity I hear, Callisto.”
He shakes his head. “It’s my pathetic apology. Just—just let me do everything possible for you that you’ll consider allowing. I regret so much the way I brushed you off, and I totally understand why you’ve drawn boundaries now. But.”
I stiffen as his eyes sheen over, and he chokes. A lump forms in my own throat.
He leans forward across the table. “I want to be close to you, Red. As close as you can tolerate. I won’t get in your way, and I won’t ask for anything. Just please, let me help.”
I massage my throat to clear it while I think. “Until Rickon gets a new place?”
His chest jerks. “Yeah.” It’s clear he doesn’t want Rickon getting a new place and a thought occurs to me. How long could he have Rickon living under his roof and not realize his best friend has feelings for him? Even if I can’t accept a deserter as my alpha, that doesn’t mean I have to spoil Rickon’s dream. I want my angel of an alpha to have everything he’s ever desired.
That makes up my mind. “Fine.”
Callisto looks up from the table, his dewy eyes filling with hope. “Truly?”
I nod. The vulnerable look on his face suits him better than I could’ve imagined. I bet being at someone else’s mercy isn’t a sensation the indomitable Callisto Wren is accustomed to. It softens him a little, and I can’t help wondering what he looked like in high school. Both he and Rickon must have been super cute. I’d better take another look at that photo I saw in Rickon’s house.
But musing over their school days doesn’t get me out of here. “What’s next?”
Callisto beams and taps the acting contract. “Once you sign this, you’ll have a bona fide employment agreement. Then we have cause to get you out, without dredging too much psychology into it.” He crosses his fingers.
I nod and flick to the end pages. Callisto leans right across the table and drops his hand on the top, forcing the pages closed on my fingers. “This one we’re going to be thorough about.”
I pout my bottom lip. “I told Rickon to take care of the details.”
He shakes his head, smiling wryly. “He did, but let’s take our time. This will affect the rest of your life. Rickon insisted we go through it together to make sure you understand everything.”
I sigh noisily and flip over the first page. “Happy?”
“Yes.”
Considering the thickness of this contract, it could take hours to go through it. This might be a ruse to spend more time with me, but at the end of the day, he’s my lawyer before anything else. I slide the pile back across the table. “Read it out loud.”
Callisto grins. “As my client instructs.”
I’m gonna get a numb ass sitting here for hours. I thrust my chair back and boost myself onto the big oval table before flopping down on my back with my arm thrown up behind my head. “Begin.”
Callisto chuckles and clears his throat. “This employment contract (Agreement), along with the standard terms and conditions (Terms) is made effective—”
Yeah, this is gonna take a while. But it’s not so bad lying here. Callisto’s voice is easy to listen to, and his unique scent fills my nose. I could get used to this.