Chapter Ten
The minute my back hits the other side of my front door, I sigh in relief. While I have zero complaints about the money I was able to bring home tonight—considering it's the most I have ever made—the eyes that penetrated my body were enough to set me on edge.
Every single moment I was out on the floor, whether that be during my stage set or speaking with a potential customer, I could feel them watching me.
It was unnerving.
I have never felt that way before. Not even when I have drawn big crowds.
It was like they still undressed me even when I had nothing on. Like they were peeling back every single inch of my flesh until they got to the core of me.
Strangely enough, the moment I was out of their sight, I found that I missed the feeling of them watching me.
Because while it was unsettling, it also gave me this feeling of comfort. Of safety. A feeling that could be dangerous if I was to get used to it.
I am under no delusions that these three Alphas are after more than one thing. Isn’t that what they all want while they are waiting for the one?
I’m not interested in being someone for them to just pass some time with. Maybe younger me might have been, but older me knows better.
I know that Alphas are a trap. Delicious and tantalizing traps that will suck you in and spit out just as fast.
While their interest is flattering, I don’t want it. I have enough on my plate. The biggest being Amity.
Having three dangerous looking Alphas lingering around isn’t good for her. I want to set her a better example.
I don’t want her to hold the same traumas that I do.
I want her to want a pack of her own. To safely find her scent matches. To be able to be loved and to love in return.
I want everything for her that has been stolen from me.
Once upon a time, I dreamed about having a pack. Of finding that group of Alphas that scent called to me. I want so desperately to have what my mother had with my four fathers.
But it was a dream that was stolen from me when I caught the attention of Pack Andrews.
If I could go back in time and not attend that dinner my parents and I were invited to, I would have.
I would have run as far from that pack as I possibly could.
The moment their eyes were set on me, I was already doomed. They were persistent from that night on. They did everything they possibly could to court me.
Even though I denied them at every turn, they didn’t care.
That should have been enough of a red flag for the authorities to be called in. But my fathers thought they would be able to handle it on their own.
Unlike many other parents in the circles that my family used to interact with, arranged matings with packs was a common practice.
These hoity-toity packs couldn’t have their sons and daughters mating with trash could they?
Their words, not mine.
Thankfully, my parents didn’t share the same sentiment. Especially not when their background was the ‘trash’ the other packs turned their nose up at.
My parents worked their way from the bottom to the top.
They built an empire that saw their success soar for years. They were able to become a part of high society with their success.
But all of that work was for nothing when Pack Andrews stole it from them.
That night is still burnt into my brain.
The sounds of distant gun shots had me shooting out of bed. I could feel my heart pumping in my chest as my eyes remained glued on my bedroom door.
Each shot had my entire body jolting.
Tears ran down my face as pure, unfiltered terror ran through my blood.
The gun shots slowly got closer and I knew I couldn’t just sit on my bed frozen, waiting for the inevitable.
Even though hiding under my bed was the first spot I knew they would look, I had to do something.
The minute I finally slid under my bed, my door shot open, hitting the wall with a bang.
I slapped my hands to my mouth, holding back a scream that wanted to desperately escape.
Dark chuckles that sent a chill down my spine seemed to echo through the room.
I knew that I was done for.
That I was only biding myself some time.
But I prayed to every God that they would leave. That they would decide that I was too hard for them to deal with and they just left.
My luck ran out when rough calloused hands gripped my ankles and ripped me from my hiding space.
No matter how much I kicked and screamed—yelling as many obscene curses as I could—the grip never faltered as I was dragged down the hall to my parents’ room.
The scene that welcomed me has my earlier dinner rising up in my stomach.
My mother and papa lay on the floor with bullet holes in both of their heads. Their eyes were blown wide, shock on their features even in death.
Puddles of blood surrounded them where their bodies had fallen after more bullets had peppered their flesh.
“Ah, finally. Our Omega has arrived just in time.”
The hands that had been dragging me, finally let my legs drop, allowing me to sit up and get my bearings enough to try to escape them.
I was stopped by a force behind my back before I could get too far.
With a whimper, I turned my head to find the hard glare of Trey behind me.
“Not so fast, Omega.”
The sound of his slimy voice had chills running over my entire body. A sick feeling clenched my stomach as Trey caught the reaction. His eyes heated with pleasure at seeing my reaction.
No.
No. This can’t be happening.
In a lightning fast motion, Trey bends down, grips my ponytail in his fist and yanks my head back to where my dad and pa are sitting on the bed.
Their hands have been tied behind their backs. Gags have been secured around their heads.
Their eyes are what kills me the most.
Grief has already taken hold as they look from me to my mother and papa in horror.
“No. Please no,” I whimper, even though I don’t mean to.
“Too late for begging, little girl. You should have allowed us to court you that first time. But like the brat you are, you denied us time and time again,” Scott, one of the Alphas, says as he slowly steps towards us.
Out of all four of these Alphas, he is the one I despise the most.
Since the moment I saw him, his attention sparked caution in my chest. His scent of rotten apples turns my stomach even more now as his slimy hand grips my chin.
I swallow roughly as both of the Alphas hold me tightly between them.
“The chase was fun for a while. What wasn’t so fun is when you allowed other packs your attention. Didn’t you know that you are all ours, Omega?”
I shake my head as best as I can. “I will never be yours.”
A slap across my face has me yelping out in pain. The skin burns as I bring my hand up to clutch the area that I know will bruise.
“Wrong. You are ours. Tonight, we have made sure of that,” Scott chuckles darkly as he steps away.
My cheek throbs but I look up at my two remaining parents with so much regret.
The fire that had started to burn inside of me has been snuffed out.
I should have known that it was a mistake saying no to these Alphas.
I should have been thankful to have their attention.
I should have said yes to them courting me.
Maybe if I didn’t fuck up, my parents wouldn’t have met their maker.
Maybe my life would have been peaceful in whatever way I could have made it.
Maybe I wouldn’t have watched as Jason and Matt held pistols up to my dad and papa’s foreheads.
Maybe I wouldn’t have watched the light being taken from their eyes.
Maybe I wouldn’t have been taken from the pack that raped me for the next six years.
Maybe I wouldn’t have had to kill the four men that held me captive.
Maybe I wouldn’t feel the need to constantly look over my shoulder, terrified that I didn’t do it right. That they still haunt the shadows, waiting for me.
A hand on my shoulder has me startling out of my flashback.
Gripping my chest, I can feel just how fast my heart is racing. That familiar sickness that claws my insides everytime I think back to that night, turns my stomach contents.
“Valentina, it's okay. You are safe honey. You are at home. No one is going to hurt you.”
The sound of Mrs. Perry’s voice has me slowly calming down.
I look up at her motherly face and attempt the best smile I can imagine.
“Thank you. I’m sorry for freaking out like that,” I apologize but the older woman is already shaking her head.
“Don’t you dare apologize for something you can’t control, Valentina. You should know me better than that by now,” she berates me just like I knew she would.
I sigh, shaking my head as I push up off the door that has been holding me up.
“Do you need me to stay for a while?”
I look towards the hallway that leads to both mine and Amity’s bedrooms.
“How did she go down tonight?” I question, trying to divert the attention away from me. Amity is a very predictable sleeper. If she goes to sleep early, she will be up early. If she goes to bed later, she will give me a sleep in.
The fates seem to be on my side when Mrs. Perry replies with, “She went down late tonight. Little Miss was a bit hyper.”
She laughs and I smile even though my heart clenches at just how much I miss her.
“I will be okay. You should go home and get some rest. I know just how exhausting looking after her can be.”
Mrs. Perry waves her hand in the air, collecting her bag from the bench.
“Nonsense. That beautiful little girl keeps me young. You know just how much I wanted kids and grandkids of my own. You both help to fill that hole I have been missing all of my life.”
Tears well in my eyes as I walk over to the older Beta woman and wrap my arms around her tightly. She chuckles, returning the embrace but I don’t miss the sniffle as she does.
“You have no idea how much you fill that mother and grandmotherly hole for both of us too,” I murmur into her warm jacket, unable to say anything more. It would be a sobbing fest if I did.
“I love you, Valentina. I hope you know just how proud your mother would be of you.”