Page 42 of Knot Unwanted: Part Two

“Do something!” Caldwell snaps.

“There’s nothing to do but wait it out,” Heath replies, though she doesn’t sound entirely certain. “The drug needs to fully circulate.”

I throw myself against the restraints again and again, heedless of the pain, of the blood now flowing freely from my wrists. Hailey is dying before my eyes, and I can do nothing.Nothing.

The convulsions gradually slow, Hailey’s body going limp. For a terrifying moment, I think she’s stopped breathing altogether. Then her chest rises slightly, a shallow, labored inhalation.

“There,” Heath says, satisfaction in her voice. “The worst is over. Now we wait for her to regain consciousness.”

Caldwell doesn’t look convinced. “And if she doesn’t?”

Heath’s smile is cold. “Then you don’t owe me three million.”

I’ve never hated anyone as much as I hate Veyra Heath at this moment. Not Father, not any of the alphas who’ve benefited from the omega trade.

The beta kneels beside Hailey, checking her pulse. “Her pulse is rapid but stabilizing,” he reports. “Pupils equal and reactive to light. I think she’ll pull through.”

“Excellent,” Heath says. “Get her back in the chair. She’ll be more comfortable when she wakes.”

As he lifts Hailey’s naked, limp form, I notice something that makes my breath catch. Her eyes are open, just slightly—fluttering, but open. And they’re fixed not on me, but on something near her feet.

The syringe. It rolled under the chair after the beta dropped it when she seized.

Hailey’s fingers twitch, not randomly as before, but with purpose. She’s not as unconscious as she appears.

They set her back in the chair, arranging her limbs like a doll’s. Her head lolls forward, hair obscuring her face, but not before I catch the faintest ghost of an expression—determination.

“Now what?” Caldwell asks. Fucker reaches down and adjusts his puny cock in his pants.

“Now we wait,” Heath tells him. “When she wakes, she’ll be receptive to your scent, your touch. Ready to bond.”

I stare at Hailey, trying to decipher what she’s planning. Her hand hangs limply at her side, inches from where the syringe rolled. Is she…surely she’s not thinking of using it somehow?

“I need a drink,” Caldwell mutters. “This has been more…involved than I anticipated.”

Heath’s smile doesn’t reach her eyes. “There’s a bar in my office. Seven floors up. We can wait there until she’s ready.”

“And him?” Caldwell jerks his chin toward me. “I still don’t like him being here.”

“He’s serving his purpose,” Heath replies. “His very presence proves the formula’s effectiveness. If she still recognizes him when she wakes, then she isn’t ready.” She steps closer to the glass, studying me with cold curiosity. “Besides, I want him to see his precious omega bond with another alpha. I want him to watch as everything he fought for crumbles.” Her smile widens. “Consider it my parting gift before we send him to join his sister.”

Caldwell’s expression hardens momentarily, something like guilt flashing across his features. But it’s gone just as quickly, replaced by a carefully cultivated blankness.

“Fine,” he says. “But when I return, I want privacy. No cameras, no observation. Just the omega and me before I take her home.”

“Of course,” Heath agrees smoothly. “You’ll have all the privacy you need.”

They move toward the door, Heath pausing to speak to the beta. “Check in on her momentarily, and no alphas on this floor. Her scent is making even me react.”

The beta nods, and then they’re gone, the door closing behind them with a soft click.

The moment they’re out of sight, Hailey’s hand moves. Not much—just a slight inching toward where the syringe fell.

Chapter 10

Hailey

Cold. So cold.

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