Page 56 of Shades of Scars

He moves forward instantly, but he’s quick to stutter out a response. “You h-have the wr-wrong idea.”

I laugh at that while we make quick work of getting him far away from the entrance of our omega’s apartment building. This dick head smells like rotten apples and bad decisions. There’s no way he’d been standing there by accident. I’d seen it in the way his shoulders had gone rigid the moment he sensed us behind him.

“You won’t be fooling us, mate. I know a rat when I see one. You certainly smell like one, too.” The scent of urine quickly coils with his signature rotten apples when we duck around the corner into the nearest alley way, and I peel my lips back in disgust before twisting him to slam him against the brick wall.

I make sure I keep my body away from the damp spot now darkening his khaki slacks.

“L-look, I w-was just asked to check out the b-building. Nothing m-more.” He’s stuttering so bad, it’s hard to make sense of his words. I exchanged a look with Apollo. He gives a slight shake of his head, and that’s all I need.

He doesn’t believe this bullshit, either.

“Does the name Harlan Erossi ring any bells to you?” Judging by the way the beta’s face pales, I don’t need him to answer. I dip my chin to Apollo, who steps back and slips his phone out of his pocket. “Hang tight, mate. We’re just going to call a ride for us so we can go somewhere a little more private to chat. Doesn’t that sound lovely?”

The beta sobs, and I fucking revel in it. The impending violence that I can practically taste on the air. Finally, Erossi is making moves. I can start by exacting some of my revenge and pent up anger out on this poor sap for taking a job from the wrong fucking alpha.

What can I say? We can’t all be winners in this game.

35

Scarlett

Light floods the bathroom, and I groan, rolling over to try to stop the glare from penetrating down to my skull behind my closed eyelids. “Fuck, Kate! Turn it off!” I snap, waving a hand in the general direction of the doorway where I can just sense her standing there. I know she probably has her hands on her hips and a scowl etched onto her pretty face.

“Are you hung over?” She sighs, sounding incredibly disappointed in me.

“Fuck, no. I have the damn flu or something. Can you please turn the light off now?” I growl, then I barely manage to sit up and throw my face over the opening of the toilet bowl before I am dry heaving into it all over again. My stomach revolts against me, but there is literally nothing else for me to vomit up. I haven’t been able to keep even water down.

I feel Kate’s soft, warm hand glide over my forehead, but she doesn’t say anything until I am done gagging and I’ve slumped back against the edge of the tub beside the toilet. Thankfully, she turns the light off, but the soft glow coming in from the open door is enough to highlight her features for me.

I squint up at the frown on her face. “I thought you were hung over. You’ve been throwing up like this for the past two days. Are you sure you haven’t been drinking?”

“No. I told you. It’s the flu or something.” The look she’s giving me says she’s heavily doubting that.

She stares at me for a long moment while I try to breathe through the nausea churning in my stomach. “Don’t you find it odd that you only seem to have these symptoms in the mornings?”

Confusion swirls within me at that. “What are you getting at, Kate? If you don’t have anything useful to add, can you please leave me be? I’d like to die in peace now.”

“Weren’t you supposed to have a heat? Like two weeks ago?” She’s got her hands on her hips, and I seriously don’t like the way she’s staring at me. Like she has a secret that she wants me to puzzle out for myself. I also don’t like what she’s implying.

“It’s probably just delayed because of my recent stress and this flu.” I shrug, sighing out in relief when the churning of my stomach settles slightly.

“Come on. Get up. I’m taking you to the clinic. They can give you a test for the flu there.” She doesn’t at all look convinced that the flu is what I have.

“I don’t need a test to tell me what I have, Kate. I’m just going to crawl back to my nest and sleep this off.” It takes me longer than normal to haul myself off the bathroom floor. Once I am standing, I curse when I start to list sideways, and Kate catches me before I can crash into the toilet and counter.

“You can either let me take you, or I will call one of those stalker alphas of yours inside from their permanent posts across the street.”

I tip my head back and groan. “Fine. Let’s go.” I spit out. I really don’t want her to alert any of them that there’s something going on with me. I’m still not ready to face them aftereverything that happened three weeks ago. I’ve already fucked shit up enough.

* * *

Kate takes me to the small clinic the guys took me to after my attack several weeks ago. My stomach is back to roiling again the moment we step through the door, and I clutch my arm around my middle as if that will help keep the bile down. I follow Kate over to the receptionist’s desk, and the young and pretty beta sitting there looks up at her with a broad smile stretching her ruby painted lips.

“How may I help you today?”

“I booked an appointment online this morning for my roommate. Scarlett Reighn.” The beta nods before she starts to tap away at her computer.

“Ah, yes. If you will please have a seat in the waiting room, one of our nurses will be with you to take you back to a room.” She keeps that smile up as Kate takes me by the arm and practically drags me over to the waiting room off to the side.

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