Page 12 of Chain Me Knot

Asher’s eyes blaze with fierce need. “How do we fix this?Canwe fix this?”

Dr. Chen glances down the corridor, voice lowered. “Legally, I shouldn’t say. But there’s a chance and I owe it to that omega in there to give her every chance. You’re her scent-matches. That changes things biologically.”

Soren’s brow furrows. “What does that mean?”

“Instead of taking from her system, it may act the opposite way and help her.”

“What do you mean?” I ask.Please let this be the Hail Mary I’ve begged for all night long.

Dr. Chen removes his glasses, face grave. “Those alphas only created partial bonds. Control without connection. There’s not a lot of research, but you’re her true scent-matches; a full bond might override theirs.”

“Might?” I press.

“If she’d been fully bonded to her pack, this would not be possible.” His lips tighten, giving me an inkling of what he thinks of Pack Carmichael. “Their cruelty left a window. The biological drive toward true scent-matches is powerful. If she chooses to complete that bond with you...” He casts a harsh gaze at all of us, as if daring us to do what he suggests. “It could break their hold and her system would normalize. In theory. Bonds formed by choice and scent compatibility are far stronger than any forced connection.”

Hope hangs fragile between us.

“This isn’t simple. An omega who’s suffered this trauma may never trust again; never bond fully. You need to respect the depth of her pain,” Dr. Chen warns.

The hum from the fluorescent lights above us fill the silence.

We’ve seen the chains. The basement. What they did to her.

And now…

We’re part of the nightmare.

Heavy footsteps thunder down the corridor, and my heart stops when I see who's approaching. Matthew and his pack storm toward us, surrounded by officers I recognize from the precinct. My hands curl into fists. I’d be happy to grind their smarmy faces into blood and bone and even that wouldn’t be payment enough for what they’ve done.

“How the fuck are they already out?” Soren says, voicing my thoughts.

“Where is she?” Matthew snarls, trying to shoulder past the police escort when he sees us. His expensive clothes are rumpled, but he still carries an air of entitled arrogance. “Where's my omega?”

The word 'my' triggers something in Asher. He lunges forward with a growl that makes the fluorescent lights flicker. “She’s not yours, you fucker.”

Soren and I barely catch him in time, muscles straining as we hold him back. The rage pouring through our bond is nuclear. Asher wants blood. I’ll happily draw it out of their bodies for him.

“Emma belongs to us,” Matthew continues, either too stupid or too arrogant to recognize the death in our eyes. “You have no right to keep her here. We own her. The contracts are clear—”

“Emma?” I wheeze, sharing a glance with Asher and Soren.

That’s her name. Our omega. Our mate. Her name is Emma.

“That's right,” Matthew sneers, clearly mistaking our stillness for submission.Stupid fuck. “And you're interfering with legal property. We paid good money for that female. I demand you hand her over.”

“For what?” I snarl, my control slipping as images of Emma's bruised body flash through my mind. “For the right to torture her? To starve her? To chain her like an animal again?”

“I have the law on my side.” Spittle flies as Matthew speaks.

“The law?” Asher's muscles coil under my grip, ready to explode. “Like anything is legal about the way you took such good care of her in that basement?”

“She’s our property to do with as we wish,” Matthew says.

A growl comes from deep within Asher’s chest. “You males are fucking degenerates.”

“Degenerates with the law on our side.” James speaks up for the first time. I don’t think he realizes the insult he agreed with.

“Despite the law or legal ownership, there’s no way I’d clear Emma to be discharged at this stage. I’m legally obligated to place her under a medical hold to ensure she remains here for close monitoring and treatment until she’s stable. In this instance, the law is onmyside,” Dr. Chen says.

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