Chapter 18
CHAPTER 18
KAYLA
S weat slicks my skin, every muscle tensed and cramped from waiting in the toolbox for Nexus to find me. My heart is still hammering against my ribs after that little hide-and-seek session with Nexus.
But Ryker, of all Alphas, didn’t rat me out.
My knees threaten to buckle, but I steady myself against the cold metal of the toolbox.
“Why didn’t you turn me in?”
He snorts. “Could’ve,” he says, all nonchalantly. “Didn’t want to.”
Gee, thanks for that riveting explanation. I tighten my arms around myself, fighting off a shiver.
“Uh-huh. And why’s that exactly? Last I checked, handing me over to Nexus was top on your to-do list.” Not that I’m not super grateful, but he was all about shipping me to Nexus before.
Those icy blue eyes of his bore into me, and I can practically see the gears turning in his Alpha brain. Then he does something I definitely didn’t see coming—he rubs the back of his neck, a small blush creeping across his chiseled cheekbones.
“Don’t make this a big deal.”
“You had an easy out. You could’ve said they smelled me.” My voice shakes despite my best efforts, betraying my fear. “Dane and Liam would’ve believed you.”
“Didn’t want them sniffing around and taking you.” He blows out a breath, his gaze locking on my face. “Liam thinks you’re our Omega. I scoffed at that idea, but damn it, Kayla... I’ve been around others, plenty of ’em, and I never...” Ryker’s voice trails off, and for a moment, there’s a vulnerability in those steely eyes I haven’t seen before.
“What? You never what?” I prod, curious despite myself, the fear momentarily edged out by intrigue.
Ryker’s jaw clenches, and he looks around the garage as if searching for an explanation among the scattered tools and oil stains.
“I’ve never felt like this,” he finally admits, and there’s a gravity to his words that pins me in place.
“Like what?” My breath catches at the intensity in his gaze when he looks back at me.
“Like I’d burn down the world before I let them take something that could be mine.” He takes a step toward me, and I can’t move, not from fear but something else, as though I don’t want to break this spell between us.
“Oh?” is the only thing I can squeeze out.
“Yeah. I would’ve killed that guy before I let him lay a fucking finger on you.”
That does things to me, stirs up a whirlwind inside I’m not ready to face. Before I can respond, he’s moving on, giving me no chance to dissect that bombshell.
“Elara… my sister, she was sold to an Alpha by our father. The fucker who was supposed to protect her, keep her safe, murdered her.”
My heart cracks a little at his anguish, at what he went through. And despite every self-preservation instinct telling me to stay guarded, I find myself wanting to soothe him, to let him know he’s not alone.
“I’m so sorry.”
“She was eighteen, too young for that fucking shit.” He winces, shaking his head like he’s trying to push away painful memories. “I will never forget the look of terror on her face. How she pleaded with our father not to sell her.”
My throat dries. The youngest I’d ever heard of an Omega going into heat was twenty.
“I tried to stop the transaction. Tried to get my dad to call it off.”
His crooked smile doesn’t fool me. I know he’s masking a whole hell of a lot of pain. I can see it in his eyes. Feel it in the space between us like a living thing.
“How old were you?”
“Ten.”
Briefly, I place a hand over my mouth. “Oh my God, Ryker. You were a child. And your father should’ve known better.” My stomach roils at the thought of him having witnessed his sister being taken like that.
“Ever since then, I always thought Nexus knew best, that they were the good guys.” Ryker’s voice drops lower, a haunted look slipping over his face. “I believed in the system. Before I experienced this feeling inside being around you, I would’ve handed you over without a second thought. But now...”
“But now?” I echo, feeling a sudden tightness in my chest.
“Now, all I can think is that I don’t want that for you. Can’t stand the thought of you with any other Alpha but me, Dane, and Liam.” His admission hangs heavy between us, and the air feels thick, charged with an emotion I can’t quite name.
“Ryker, I...” I start, but what can I even say to that? The words just kinda die in my throat.
“I won’t let Nexus touch you. Not while I’m still breathing.”
And just like that, the garage feels entirely too small, too intimate. The raw honesty in his voice rattles me more than I want to admit. Ryker, the volatile Alpha with smoke and leather stitched into his scent, has just laid bare a piece of his soul.
I’m standing here, walls still up, trying my damnedest not to let them crumble, wondering why the hell it suddenly seems so difficult.
I nod, swallowing hard against the knot forming in my throat. “Thanks,” I manage to whisper, and I mean it. Relieved doesn’t even begin to cover how I feel, knowing that these three Alphas won’t give me to Nexus. But there’s a but, a huge one, that looms like a shadow over my heart.
I can’t be their Omega. Hell, I can’t be anyone’s Omega.
Not after what that sick bastard stepdad of mine did.
The memories claw at me, threatening to drag me under into that dark, gut-churning abyss. Big, calloused hands roam where they don’t belong. Hot, rancid breath on my neck as he?—
No. I can’t go there, not now.
My lungs constrict as Ryker’s presence envelops me, his heady, visceral scent rolling off him in waves. It should terrify me, an Alpha radiating such overwhelming power as he invades my space. But instead of fear, something else uncurls deep in my core—a primal curiosity, a reckless urge to lean into that scorching heat.
He doesn’t touch me, but I can feel his heat. It should terrify me, an Alpha invading my space like this, but... it doesn’t. Weird.
“We will never let anyone hurt you,” he says firmly, the single word sounding like a vow etched in steel.
I want to believe him, I really do. Part of me is already leaning into the idea of safety, of belonging, but then there’s the other part, the scarred, battered part that’s been on high alert since I was sixteen. It keeps screaming at me to run, to hide, to trust no one.
“Ryker, I…” Flashes of memory pummel me—the shadows closing in, the stench of stale whiskey and sweat, the merciless grip leaving bruises on me as I fight back.
Get it together, Kayla. You’re not there anymore. He can’t hurt you.
But fear’s claws are hooked deep as it drags me back under. I clutch at my chest, lungs screaming for air that won’t come. Darkness creeps in at the edges of my vision.
“Kayla.” Ryker’s rough growl cuts through the panic, an anchor in the storm. “Look at me.”
His eyes bore into mine, blue flames blazing with a raw intensity that shouldn’t calm me... but it does. A strange sort of solace settles over me, smoothing the jagged edges until I can breathe again.
“Trust takes time,” he says, as if reading my mind. “We’ll wait… for as long as you need. We’re here, and we’re not going anywhere. And neither are you.”
Those last words should scare me, and maybe they do, but they also fill me with a strange sense of comfort. For the first time, I don’t feel so utterly alone.
I suck in a breath, trying to steady the tremor in my hands. “I can’t be your Omega,” I manage to say, even as his scent—smoke and leather—distracts me. Making me wish I could.
“Kayla,” Ryker murmurs, his eyes never leaving mine. “You don’t have to decide anything right now.”
It’s as though he’s offering me a lifeline, but I’m too scared to grab it, afraid it’ll burn my fingers raw or pull me under into depths I can’t escape from.
“Ryker,” I start, but then I pause and swallow hard. “I need time.”
He steps back, giving me space, respecting the boundaries I haven’t even set yet. For now, I have to stay with them, with Dane, Liam, and Ryker. It’s the only play I have left—the only way to keep breathing while Nexus prowls the streets looking for stray Omegas like me.
“Let’s get back inside,” Ryker suggests, glancing toward the door that leads back to the main house. “It’s safer, and Dane and Liam will want to know you’re okay.”
“Okay,” I agree, nodding stiffly. As much as every fiber of my being wanted to run away, I know it’s suicide. Nexus has eyes and ears everywhere; they’d find me before dawn.
“Hey,” Ryker interrupts my spiraling thoughts, his hand brushing against mine so lightly, it might as well be a ghost touch, but it still sends this weird shiver through me. “You’re safe here.”
I nod again, not trusting my voice. Inside, I’m all confusion and fear, but on the outside, I make sure to keep my expression neutral, unreadable. I follow Ryker back to the safety of the mansion, to the temporary sanctuary they’ve offered.
This is where I’ll stay, hidden in plain sight, surrounded by Alphas who vow to protect me.
But what if I’m wrong about them, and they end up just like Stepdouche? I clench my fists so hard, my nails dig into my palms, a silent promise to myself that this is not the end. This is merely a pause, a strategic retreat.
For now, I’ll play the part, bide my time, and wait for the moment to make my next move. Whatever that is, since I can’t really leave. At least not yet.
One thing’s for certain—I won’t be caged again. Not by Nexus, not by anyone.
Ryker’s gaze locks with mine, and for a heartbeat, the whole damn world disappears. There’s a spark in his eyes, something raw and untamed. Maybe it’s wishful thinking, fueled by the desperation clinging to me, but for a crazy moment, I dare to hope. Hope for what, I’m not sure. Freedom, maybe. Real, unchained freedom, not this gilded cage everyone keeps trying to shove me into. The thought hits me hard, both exhilarating and terrifying. Like maybe there’s a glimmer of light starting to pierce through this suffocating darkness.
And somehow, standing beside Ryker, a chance at happiness feels just a little bit possible.