Page 76 of No Escape

Leo grabs my arm, tugging me out of the way. “You’re safe now, sweetheart. We’re not going to let anything bad happen to you.” He moves to hug Saylor, but she steps back.

My heart fucking drops.

“Like I said, I appreciate it.” She offers a tight smile. “It would be a whole lot easier to believe you if you hadn’t disappeared without a word. I mean, you couldn’t even muster up a phone call for a quick goodbye.” Her head shakes. “It doesn’t matter. My senses are buzzing, and I know I’m about three seconds away from a meltdown. I don’t want to say anything I don’t mean, so I’ll be taking a minute to myself.” She spins around and makes her way to the ladder before haphazardly kicking her shoes off and climbing up.

* * *

There’s no way I’ll be able to eat.

That alpha’s scent is everywhere, and my instincts view it as a looming threat.

I won’t be sleeping in either of the two beds that the room boasts, but the wall between the door to exit the room and the bathroom only has one small dresser and a trash can on it. We briefly discuss dragging over the pull-out sofa from the room we started in, but Saylor throws a pillow at my back while we’re talking.

She’s majorly overstimulated, which we’ve seen on occasion over the years. Back then, I would have sat with her to help her breathe through the anxiety and worked on grounding exercises. Now I’m afraid one wrong move will have her permanently kicking us out of the cell. Us standing around talking is only going to make her more stressed out.

Leo and I head into the hallway and hover just outside the room Saylor brought us to.

It’s fucking crazy seeing guards doing their rounds above our heads with only a metal grate floor separating us. They don’t even spare a cursory glance, and once the man’s boots get farther down the hallway, Leo gives me a look.

We’ve been partners for a lot of years, and I still don’t know what the fuck that face means.

“She didn’t seem happy to see us,” Leo mutters, running his hands through his short brown curls. “Hell, I’d even settle for relieved.”

That part didn’t go over my head, but I really fucking hate that he’s right. “We knew it was going to be an uphill battle.”

“Yeah, but I wasn’t expecting her to look at us like we’re strangers. We lived together for two and a half years.” His head shakes, and his gaze moves to his boots. “Do you think there’s a chance she didn’t get the birthday card we sent when she turned eighteen?”

“No fucking idea, but even if she did…” My teeth grind together so violently, my jaw clicks. “It doesn’t seem like much when I look at it from her point of view.”

“Those guys are going to be a problem. I could tell just by the way she looked at the blond. Omen? Seriously, what kind of name is that, anyway?” Leo scoffs, kicking his boot against the carpet.

It really is a ridiculous name.

“I don’t know, but the harder we push her to keep her distance, the more we’ll push her right into their arms.” Why does it feel like I’m about to crack a motherfucking tooth? Probably because I am. “They’re using her for a way out. We just need to let her see that for herself.”

Leo frowns, scratching his jaw. “How do we accomplish that without them bonding? Saylor has a lot more to lose than they do.”

My whole body shrugs.

I don’t know, exactly.

I haven’t made it that far, but I guess we break out if it comes to it. It’ll be the only way to get them out too without being released due to bonding.

If we can get them on the outside…they won’t need Saylor. I’m sure they’ll see themselves out in no time flat.

ChapterTwenty-Three

Leo

Shaw looks a lot like I feel. He helps me drag the pull-out sofa from our cell into Saylor’s room. From the wall of pillows she built around the edge of the bed that she’s currently crying in, it’s pretty obvious she’s not going to willingly leave this room.

She’s always gotten attached to people easily, and she’s worn her heart on her sleeve for as long as I’ve known her. It’s a huge part of why I spent the last three years worrying about her and how she was coping.

I have so many regrets, I could drown in them, but feeling sorry for myself gets us nowhere. What I need to do is apologize, see where we start fixing things—if that’s even possible—and work on getting us the fuck out of this place.

Once we’re safe back in the real world, I can court her the right way.

“I’m going to see if I can track down McCabe,” Shaw says, keeping his voice low as we hover in the hallway outside the cell. “He has to have insight on those two.”

---