Page 14 of No Escape

He cracks a bottle of water, holding it in front of my face as he leans over me. “It’s safe. No drugs or anything like that.”

My brain is so fuzzy, all I can do is blink as I stretch away from him.

He sighs, brings the bottle to his lips, pours some into his mouth, and swallows before offering it back to me. “Don’t be stubborn. Drink it. You need it.”

Taking the bottle, I follow his instructions, mostly because my mouth is so dry that my throat hurts.

I needed the bathroom when that evil lady sedated me, but I no longer have the urge to go.

“What did she do to me?” I ask, grimacing at how hoarse my voice sounds.

“She flushed the suppressants from your system.” He stands to his full height, and my jaw falls as it clicks…

We aren’t in the same room as earlier.

I’m in what looks like a room in a hospital, or maybe in a psych ward.

“No,” I say, shaking my head. “You cannot lock me up in here.” Propelling myself up until I’m standing, I grab his forearms. “You don’t understand. I might be an omega, but I panic in confined spaces. It’s even worse when I’m alone.”

“Step the fuck back,” a dangerous voice growls from the doorway.

My jaw falls, and I stagger backward a step. There’s another guard, but this one is in full tactical gear, and he has a very big gun pointed at my head. I think that might be an assault rifle, but what I can’t seem to process is why it’s pointing atme.

“Calm down,” the guy inside the room with me snarls back. “She’s terrified and clearly not a threat.”

“It’s protocol to keep the inmates in our sights when a member of the staff is out on the block,” the man in the door says, like he’s repeating a quote from their handbook or something.

“You can’t teach common sense,” the guy in front mutters, nodding toward the doorway. “Give us a minute. You can tell she’s not a danger.” He refocuses on me. “The doors to each room unlock at eight a.m. and relock at eight p.m. Make sure you’re somewhere safe, or any of the alphas can claim you and drag you to their cells.”

I take a step back as my eyes widen. “Please, just verify my story. My father will pay…” I panic and ramble out the phone number to my childhood home, since it’s the first one that comes to mind, but I have no idea if he cares enough to commit it to memory.

The man cuts his eyes toward the door and back at me. “I will do my best to notify your family of where you are, but there’s no guarantee this place will even negotiate for your return. I can’t save you from what comes next. You’ll need to keep yourself alive…” He grimaces, swiping a hand over his face. “We’re talking days, at a minimum, possibly weeks. There’s no guarantee how long it will take, and chances are, you’ll be leaving here bonded.”

“No,” I hear myself say. “Please, you have to let me out now.”

“My bosses would never allow it.” His jaw clenches. “You’re a scent match to multiple alphas. The best advice I can give you is to find yourself a protector or two. Hell, even a pack. There are enough of them around here. There’s a hierarchy. Find someone near the top. They’ll keep you alive until you can be extracted.”

“You’re telling me to seek out alphas and let them do whatever they want in exchange for their protection?” My head shakes. Nothing makes sense. “What about when they’re locked in their rooms? How will they protect me then?”

“There are no rules that say you can’t be locked in with them,” he says, keeping his voice low. “It’s actually encouraged. You’re dealing with the most dangerous assets some very rich men aren’t ready to lose. They’ll do anything necessary to get their assassins back to working order, and omegas are the key to that. You’re not the only one of your designation on this floor. There are eight other omegas in A block alone. The facility doesn’t force bonding, but they do put rabid alphas in a confined space with unbonded omegas, so it’s really the same thing…”

Fear like I’ve never experienced washes over me so violently that I find myself bending in half.

“Look, stick with the women at mealtimes. We put you in their wing to start.” He sighs. “If I were you, I’d avoid anyone with a Russian accent—at least, the ones in A block. They did some especially heinous things to earn their stay here. I have to go.”

“Give me a name,” I beg, trying to find something to give me hope. “Someone who isn’t going to rape and murder me.”

His entire body goes rigid. “They won’t kill you. The other inmates would never stand for it. An omega is an opportunity for mental clarity and a chance to escape this place.”

Okay, so they need me…or at least a few of them might. There are limits to how many bonds an omega should take on. More than eight or nine, and the connection becomes too overwhelming for one person to sustain. And it’s always the omega who faces the worst repercussions.

Even if I have a purpose, that doesn’t mean they’ll treat me well or even respect my right to consent or my insistence that I want nothing to do with them.

“If you can make a deal with someone, it’s probably the fastest way to get out of here, but bonds can’t be forced,” he says, heading for the door. “Just remember that.”

“None of them are safe enough options for you to give me a name? Someone I can seek out?”

He spins in the doorway and frowns. “They’re all killers—machines trained to enact orders and not to ask questions.”

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