Page 9 of Knotted By the Demon

I needed to keep my focus on the pale bruises and the way the omega flinched at the lightest touch. Every bruise, every cut told a story of pain that I could relate to. His body was starting to warm up. Sweat beaded his forehead. I needed to mix some herbs together to keep an infection from setting in.

I’d do that right after I’d cleaned and bandaged his wounds. The little thief had gone silent. I glanced at her out of the corner of my eye, unable to help myself. Her red curls framed her face, wild and untamed, much like her.Little Fox. Her hazel eyes watched me closely, following my every move.

“Did you... do that to him?” she asked, voice softer now.

Did I really look like an alpha capable of doing this to an omega? I sighed, knowing the answer. But looks could be deceiving. Normally, I welcomed having others think the worst of me. Not this time. Not her. Not him. I gritted my teeth, feeling out of sorts with myself. I returned to ignoring the sweet-smelling beta.

I let the cool cloth glide over the omega’s cheek, wiping away the grime. His skin felt too warm beneath my touch now, feverish. Yeah, I needed those herbs now. My jaw clenched as Itried to imagine the hell he’d escaped from. Each time the cloth touched a new bruise, he flinched, and something inside me twisted painfully.

“How did you find an omega?” she asked. “I’m sure he’s not in your bond.”

She’d guessed correctly, and she wasn’t done talking.

“Omegas are rare. And if you’ve stolen one, his bond will come looking for him. And my family will come for me, too.” Her tone dropped lower. “Free us, or you’ll just make things worse for yourself.”

My hand froze, the damp cloth halfway to the omega’s forehead. Her words sank in. She wasn’t wrong. Keeping them here was like painting a target on my back. It went against every instinct I’d honed over the years, every rule I’d set to keep myself alive. I had to let them go soon. A dull ache settled in my chest at that thought.

I wiped a trickle of dried blood from the omega’s lip, wincing when his face contorted in pain. It shouldn’t bother me like this. It shouldn’t make me want to protect him with everything I had, but here I was, holding my breath each time he let out the faintest sound. The little thief quieted after a while.

Her curses dwindled into silence as I bandaged the omega’s wounds with herbs to keep an infection from taking root. I’d have to change them in a few hours and rebandage them. Once I was sure his wounds would heal properly, I’d force them both off my property. Until then, they’d stay here, filling my damn cabin with their sweet scents.

Though the sly fox was silent now, I could feel the heat of her gaze, the way it lingered on my every move, and it unsettled me in ways I didn’t care to admit. Unable to stop myself, I cast a quick glance her way. Yeah. She was watching me. However, she wasn’t glaring anymore, not as savagely, anyway.

But her stare was still intense, curious even, as if she were trying to figure me out. Good luck with that.I couldn’t figure myself out at the moment. When I finally looked up, meeting her eyes head-on, she didn’t look away. Her gaze didn’t soften, but I could tell she wasn’t as angry anymore. The sour edge to her scent was gone.

I almost wanted it back. It was easier to resist... maybe. There was something else there in her gaze now, something I didn’t have the time to decipher. She’d asked me earlier if I was afraid of her.Yes. I was afraid of the little beta who’d attacked me in the woods, trying to protect a stranger.

I was nervous to be around the sly fox who was stirring feelings inside me that unsettled my peace of mind. I needed my mind to remain at peace. Because when it wasn’t at peace... bad shit happened. Jerking my gaze from her, I finished dressing the omega’s wounds.

I carefully covered him with an old blanket, wishing I had something nicer, softer to place over him. The feverish flush on his cheeks was worrying, but his breathing seemed a little less ragged, and he’d finally slipped into a real sleep. I stood, stretching my muscles that had tensed from kneeling next to him for so long.

“You going to let us go now?” the little fox demanded.

I didn’t answer. Instead, I left the room and approached the kitchen sink. I scrubbed my hands and watched the water run red, then clear, trying to ignore the blend of honey and orange cinnamon coming from the other room. Her voice picked up again, louder now, almost desperate.

“Hey! Are you listening to me? You can’t just ignore me!”

I know,I thought to myself. It was impossible to ignore her. But she and the omega were safe for now. And I had work to finish. Without another word, I turned and walked out, leaving the cabin in silence.

“Hey, where are you going?” the little fox called out as I pulled the front door shut, drowning out the rest of her words.

However, I was sure she’d called me a sorry excuse for an alpha. I chuckled, then stopped. That sound didn’t even sound right coming from me. I clamped it down.Unfeeling. It was best to be unfeeling. Outside, the evening air was crisp as I took a deep breath, trying to clear my head.

I craved peace but my mind was chaotic right now. Images of the omega’s bruised face and the way his skin had felt too warm under my touch just now drifted through my thoughts. Then, there was the sound of my little thief’s voice still ringing in my ears, fierce and defiant even as she lay tied up on the couch.

Neither of them should be taking up residence in my thoughts or in my home. Yet here they were, filling my life with their scents and their troubles. Orange blossoms and honey blending perfectly with citrus and the almost floral scent of the little beta. Separately, the two of them smelled fucking delicious. Together, they were damn near irresistible.

I shuddered to think of what would’ve happened to either of them if a pack of rogues had found them. This world wasn’t kind to omegas, and it wasn’t kind to women in general. They weren’t safe on their own, especially not in the swamps. And it was alphas who made it that way. No wonder the omega had begged me to kill him, and the beta female had assumed I’d harmed the omega.

Shaking my head, I made my way to the traps I’d set. They were empty. I glared back toward my cabin.Damn it, little fox!As I moved from trap to trap, checking each one, I kept catching myself glancing back at the cabin. She’d stolen everything from my traps. I sighed.Damn, little thief.I should be pissed off right now.

Yet, I couldn’t shake the image of her red hair framing her face, her hazel eyes, those full pouty lips, and that amazing scentthat clung to the air around her. It was maddening, that scent. It drew me in, stirring something dangerous. She was... a force. One I wasn’t sure I could control, even if I tried. But it wasn’t just her. It was him, too.

The omega, with his haunted eyes and broken spirit. The way he’d looked up at me, pleading for an end, as if he’d already given up. The memory of it twisted inside me, a painful reminder of things I’d rather keep buried. I shook my head, focusing on resetting my traps, but thoughts of them didn’t leave.

I had two strangers in my home, each one pulling at me in ways I didn’t understand. The omega stirred something protective, something I’d never thought I’d feel.Mine. I clamped that thought down. It was dangerous to think like that. The beta, on the other hand, was like a wildfire, bright and consuming, lighting up my life.

I hated the light. It hurt. That’s why I kept to the shadows. I knew I should extinguish the little light that had infiltrated the darkness of my home, but I couldn’t bring myself to. Just like I couldn’t bring myself to leave the enchanting omega in the woods to die. I sighed. When did my heart begin to thaw, and how the hell could I refreeze it?

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