Page 59 of Reckless: Chaos

“Morning.” Ryker’s voice carries an edge I’ve never heard before. When I turn, the sight nearly makes me drop my mug. They look like they’ve been through digital warfare made flesh—clothes disheveled, smelling of gunpowder and something metallic that makes my stomach clench.

“Coffee?” I offer with sugary sweetness. “You all look like you could use some. Must have been quite a night.”

Finn’s eyes narrow behind his glasses, catching the danger in my tone. His usually pristine shirt is torn at the collar, spotted with what’s definitely blood.

“Cayenne—” Theo starts, but I cut him off with a smile that feels like broken glass.

“Was I good practice?” The words come out razor-sharp. “A nice warm-up before the real action?”

Jinx makes a sound caught between a laugh and a growl. His knuckles are split, fresh bruises coloring his hands. “You don’t understand?—”

“Oh, I understand perfectly.” The mug shatters in my grip, sending ceramic shards and coffee across the floor. “I understand you stole my drive. I understand you tried to hack it without me. And I understand last night was just a convenient distraction.”

“It wasn’t like that.” Theo steps forward, reaching for me. I step back, letting my heel crunch on ceramic.

“No? Then explain it to me. Explain how the pack decided to handle their little beta problem. Did you draw straws to see who’d get to keep me busy?”

“We were trying to protect you,” Ryker growls, alpha power bleeding into his tone.

“Protect me?” I laugh, and it sounds like breaking code. “The way you protected your hostage?”

They all freeze. Jinx’s eyes go dark with violence.

“How did you?—”

“You smell like blood and fear,” I cut him off. “And there’s zip tie marks on your wrists, Finn. Didn’t have time to clean up properly after your interrogation?”

“That’s different,” Ryker starts.

“How? You’ll torture someone for information but won’t trust me with my own code?”

“The facility was compromised,” Finn says quietly. “We couldn’t get through the encryption, and then?—”

“Of course you couldn’t! It’s quantum-resistant with adaptive algorithms. You need specialized hardware just to—” I break off as horror dawns. “The secure location. You took it to Quinn’s setup, didn’t you? And now it’s burned.”

Their silence downloads all the confirmation I need.

“Do you have any idea what you’ve done?” My voice drops to a whisper. “That facility was our only chance at processing the data safely. Now it’s gone, and people are still dying, and I’ve been playing house with a pack that thinks I’m too weak to handle my own fight.”

“We can fix this,” Ryker reaches for me again. This time I let him catch my arm, feel the tremor in his usually steady hands.

“Can you? Can you fix the fact that every moment of connection, every touch, every kiss was just strategy?” My voice breaks as I look at Theo. “Was any of it real? Or was I just the mission?”

“All of it was real.” Theo’s voice carries that omega resonance that usually makes me melt. “The pack bonds, the connection?—”

“The pack bonds feel pretty hollow from where I’m standing.” I pull away from Ryker’s grip. “You know what the worst part is? I would have helped you. If you’d just asked, just trusted me...”

Something shifts in Ryker’s expression. “We can still work together on this. As a pack.”

I let my shoulders slump, let them see vulnerability creep into my posture. “I need time. To think.”

“Of course.” Finn steps forward, ever the mediator. “Whatever you need.”

I nod, letting tears gather in my eyes. “I just... I need to process this.”

They relax slightly, probably relieved I’m not screaming or throwing things anymore. Poor, emotional little beta, just needs some time to accept their protection.

If they knew me at all, they’d recognize this calm for what it is—the silence before a system burns.

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