Page 28 of Hunted
Chapter 10
Ruya
Imade my way downthe hall on shaky legs.My breath came in uneven gasps, and every heartbeat felt too loud, too strong, as everything in me demanded that I go back to my alpha and beg her to claim me.
I wanted—no,needed—to be cherished, protected...owned.
My heat cycles were still a little bit unpredictable—the others said it was because I was only just maturing as an Omega, and that it would even out over time.But I didn’t think that was what this was...it felt similar to the mindless drive of a heat, but...not.I could think through this.I had someveryclear thoughts just now.
It was simply that they weren’t thoughts any logical person should be thinking.
Robin had always said she didn’t want the true mate bond between us.Even once we finally became lovers, she was clear that wasn’t what she was aiming for.She didn’t want the complication of bonding to and caring for an omega.She saw it as a distraction from her goals.And, I privately thought, it also had to do with her traumatic past and the carefully controlled way she had lived her life for so long.Our bond would introduce a level of change—chaos and a loss of control that she probably found frightening, not that she would ever admit to that.
Iknewall of this, and yet...if I was being honest, I was always waiting for her to change her mind.Some part of me was convinced she was just being stubborn and eventually she’d admit that she really wanted the bond and would sweep me off my feet and care for me for the rest of my life like some pampered princess or treasured pet.The shiniest jewel in her hoard.
But as much as I wanted that, some small part of me still feared it.Even though I knew it was simply part of who I was, part of the omega needs that were ingrained in my being.Even though I knew that despite what Robin thought, shecouldbe trusted with my life.That small part of me reminded me that I had escaped the control and influence of The Mother and the Order of the Triple Moon only to be here now, salivating at the idea of giving so much control to someone else—someone so much more powerful than I was.Someone able to do far more damage to my heart and soul than The Mother ever could.
“She knows that,” I muttered to myself through gritted teeth.Robin knew.She knew that if she bound me, she would be taking away some measure of my freedom, of my free will, even if she didn’t do it on purpose.If I was magically bonded to an Alpha as a true mate, the part of my being that wanted to please them and garner their favor would be so much stronger.It would color everything I did, every decision I made.
Robin had realized that long before I had, and she had wasted no time in telling me.Her greatest gift to me was now, and had always been, mychoiceand my free will.Something I had never been granted before I came to live with the rebel court.
I turned the corner, stopped in the middle of the hallway, and pressed the heels of my palms into my eye sockets, trying to relieve the pressure there.Logically, it made no sense to tie myself to an arrogant, overpowered alpha.I knew that.
But...when had cold, hard logic ever been my strong suit?Hadn’t The Mother always told me I was too emotional for my own good?
A little squeak startled me out of my frozen state, and I looked down to see a darker blur moving against the grays and shadows of the stone floor.“Cheese Crackers?”I said, a little humor creeping into my voice at the impatient tone of his squeaks.
“My witch?Are you sad?Want a cracker?I have many nice crackers.The cold pixie give.I fetch?”
I shook my head.“No, buddy.I don’t need a cracker.But thank you for offering.”
My animal friends weren’t any less intelligent than people.But they did approach things with a refreshing sense of simplicity.Sad?Have a snack and maybe a nap in your nest.Though...maybe it wasn’t such a simple notion, after all.Maybe some food and some rest was what I needed?It certainly couldn’t hurt.
Their love and loyalty warmed my heart.It was so much easier to navigate relationships with animals than with humans.
Which gave me an idea.My animal friends had been paying more and more attention to my people friends lately.I thought maybe they could sense that the people around me were important to me, and that they were all struggling with a lot of heavy emotions.They liked feeling useful.They wanted to help...
“Cheese Crackers?”I asked, squatting down near where I thought the rat was standing.“Would you mind doing me a favor?”
The rat put his little paws on my knee and gave an affirmative chitter.
