Page 131 of Unhinged Omega

His expression doesn't change. "You told me if I walked out that door, I should keep going and never look back. Because you wouldn't waste another moment of your life thinking about me." He leans closer, his voice dropping to a rasp. "Is that true, Nikolai? Did you think about me?"

The question knocks the wind out of me for a moment, even if it shouldn't. Even if it should be easy to answer. But nothing is evereasywhen it comes to Raven. That's the great irony of it all.

My hands tighten on the bars until my knuckles turn white, close enough to his that our fingers brush. The contact sends a jolt through me that I refuse to acknowledge.

Of course I thought about him.

Every fucking day.

Every time I caught a glimpse of golden hair in a crowd. Every time someone made a smartass comment that would have made him laugh. Every time I walked past his old room in the compound, still exactly as he left it because I couldn't bring myself to change a goddamned thing.

But I look him dead in the eye and lie.

"No," I say, my voice cold. "Not even once."

I see the hurt flash across his face before he can hide it. For a moment, I think he's going to leave me here. Part of me hopes he does. It would prove I was right all these years, every time I successfully resisted the urge to hunt him down and drag him back home.

Instead, he turns and drops the keys into my cell. They land at my feet with a metallic clatter that echoes in the sudden silence.

Then he walks away.

Again.

Just like before.

And just like before, I feel the irrational sting of betrayal—even though this time, I know I have only myself to blame.

If I'm being honest, maybe it was my fault then, too.

Chapter

Thirty-Two

COSIMA

As I drift up through layers of exhaustion and soreness, I find myself still curled against the Knight's massive frame. His arm is draped protectively over me, metal claws glinting in the early morning light. The memories of the past twenty-four hours flood back, making my cheeks flush.

Well.

Thathappened.

My heat has finally broken, leaving me wrung out but clear-headed for the first time in days. The Knight's fever seems to have broken too. His skin is still warmer than a normal human's, but no longer burning hot to the touch.

Another realization hits me.

It's the first night I didn't dream about him.

I try to sit up, but my muscles scream in protest. Everything hurts. Places I didn't even know could hurt are letting me know exactly how they feel about taking this beast of an alpha's knot.

The Knight stirs at my movement.

"Morning," I mutter, not sure what else to say after he fucked me through my heat.

He just watches me, silent as ever. Though his deep, broken purring picks up as I stretch, working out the kinks in my muscles.

"We need to get moving," I tell him, trying to ignore how the sound makes my chest feel warm. "It's not safe to stay in one place too long."

Back when I was trapped in that tower, I'd heard about the black market a few hours away. It's our best bet for supplies, and more importantly, for emergency contraceptive pills. My life is already complicated enough without worrying about getting impregnated by a giant mutated alpha. Pretty sure that would be deadly.

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