Page 81 of Drown My Sorrow

“Oh, Kelly. I have never been more disappointed in you.” My mother turns away from me, and that hurts. It’s easy after all these years to pretend I don’t care what they have to say, but I love my parents, and I miss them. I do care what they think.

“The Daane forced bonds on us!” Ezy says.

“Did you or did you not refuse that omega when you first met her?” The booming question comes from the most unlikely of places.

I blink at Sol’s hostile question. “I did refuse her.”

“Did you at least go and make sure she was okay or protect her?” Wayne asks.

My parental pack is a united front of four. Wayne’s blue eyes glare sapphire accusations at me. Sol and his normal peace-filled aura are almost rigid with his rage. Charles and August Raines are united in their disappointment and fury. These people are my home. No, they were.

I shut my mouth because I don’t want to drag them into what happened with Typhor.

“So, you don’t want her now. You just want to put her back where she came from, but you’ve now taken away her support network?”

“She will be happier-”

“She will not, and you stop lying to yourself, Ezekiel Boothe. Your grandfather was a friend of mine, and he would be ashamed. As for you, Gael, I know your mother, too, and I’ve already spoken with her. You’ll be hearing from her soon.”

“My mother hasn’t cared about me since the day I was born. I doubt she will be contacting me anytime soon. Thank you, Alpha Raines,” Gael says with a bite of ice.

My mother shifts and sits on a chair. “Maybe you’ve spent too long out here. Too long being irresponsible. I know you’ve helped the family, but did you look at anyone else? Or did you three just run away from home, take up surfing, and just live the life of sporting kings?”

I stare at her because we kinda did do that.

“What would you have me do?” I sound like a little boy again, sullen and scolded.

“Release the Daane and give her back to them. And walk away from her.” My mother says bitterly. “You clearly don’t deserve an omega. You can’t even look after her for a day.”

The insult hurts more than my father’s hand.

I can hear the rain, and it completely feels like my mood at the moment.

Oh, god. No.

My father intercepts my lunge, catching me and holding me back.

“LET ME GO!”

He holds me tighter. “No, you will not-”

I pull on the bonds inside me. “LET ME GO!”

My father lets go immediately, stumbling back in shock.

I jump towards the room, forcing the door open, but the bed is empty, and the window is open. She didn’t even take her cane.

“What?” My mother cries, brushing back her dark hair and rushing past me into the room.

“She’s afraid of water,” I whisper through numb lips. How will we find her? “She’s terrified of water!”

“And you didn’t think to mention that?” my mother shouts. “That’s something you would have dealt with first! Charles, call security, get everyone awake.”

Sol grabs my shoulders, but I shake him off and turn to Ezy and Gael.

“We’ll find her,” Gael says.

I hate this. I hate it. It’s not fair. They took something from us, and they made us weak and a joke. They violated us. I’ve never been treated like that, and I hate it. I hate it more than I can breathe.

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