Page 25 of Trust No Alpha
First Father and now this. All in the same day. I needed to get out. And fast.
But I had no plan.
Any of my windows were out of the question as escape hatches. The side of the house was flat. The windows led to no balconies and no roof edges. I might be able to construct a rope of clothing and sheets, but I shuddered to think of repelling even three stories. I was a strong Alpha, but I was a bit afraid of heights.
I went to my bedroom door and examined what I could see of the handle and lock mechanism. On the inside it was unlocked, but that was of no help to me. I brought my tablet over and looked up lock-picking. Father had probably blocked anything like that from my repertoire online, but I had to check.
To my surprise, hundreds of sites came up.
Father had been remiss in his list of subjects he forbade me to research.
I watched some videos and after a while realized I did not have the proper tools on hand. But I was creative. Now that I understood how various inner mechanisms of doors that resembled mine worked, I could play at it.
Funny thing, though I did not use a printer for much anymore, I had one. And I did have some old papers in my desk drawers. Keeping some of those papers together were paper clips. They were just right for what I needed.
It took me a couple of hours to finally figure out the lock and pick it. When I succeeded, a surge of adrenaline flooded my insides.
It hit hard. I could really leave this place. Forever! But a small voice within said,Do you dare?
I stood by the door for a long time staring at it, thinking. I could not escape the honest truth. It wasn’t safe for me here. It wasn’t safe for me on the outside, either, but I could pass for Alpha and take my chances.
It was dark, past dinnertime. No dinner had been delivered to me. Now that Father was gone and Mathias had put himself in charge, he’d probably told the servants to ignore me. But thanks to Father’s renovations, I had my own kitchen now. I had food in my cupboards and a fridge.
I quickly fixed myself a sandwich. I stuffed a small backpack with minimal clothing and necessities, as well as dry food and fruit. I put on my thickest, longest jacket and stuffed my pockets with anything small I could find that might be worth some money. I had lavish gifts from Father over the years: diamond cufflinks, some gold rings and watches, expensive tie clasps. I gathered all my jewelry into one pocket. In the other I put a small stash of cash I kept, saved from change for when Father took us shopping or on vacation. It wasn’t a lot, but it might see me through hard times before I found my way in the world.
Yes, I was running away. It was the only way I could see to control my situation.
If I could pass for an Alpha I might be just fine. I realized I might be recognized if Father put out a search for me, but I gambled on the hope that he would not want the bad publicity. Though it was probably on record by now that I was labeled an Omega, Father would never bring that to anyone’s attention.
In fact, Father’s reputation seemed too valuable to him; he might not search for me at all.
My future was a scary prospect, but I allowed myself to think of only a single step at a time. Right now, I needed to move one foot in front of the other. I needed to wait until the house was silent and my brothers were asleep, then make my escape.
Tension pulled through my body. I tried to stay calm as I planned and packed. Even if I were caught, I could fight my way out. Mathias was no match for me. But if possible, I didn’t want to risk anyone seeing me. It would be best for all, especially Bren and Mica who probably barely understood what was happening, if I simply disappeared.
I dozed on my bed for a while. I heard no sounds in the rest of the house. No footsteps outside my door. Nothing.
When midnight struck, I went to the door with my paperclip, my backpack, my jacket, hat and scarf, and released the lock.
The door silently opened.
The hallway was dark. Trigg and Mathias’s rooms were at the end of the hall. Mine sat closest to the stairwell.
Walking slowly, listening to my every footfall, panicking that I might make the floorboards creak, I made my way to the stairs and down.
It was almost too easy.
Father had an alarm on the front and back doors, but we kids always knew the code.
Hoping it hadn’t been changed, I entered the key code and the door opened. On the porch, I inhaled the fresh air from outside, air I had not breathed, except through open windows, for over a month. It smelled of freedom.
The night sky glittered with a crush of stars—so many—like broken crystals forever falling.
It was freezing but I didn’t care. My walls were gone. I was out of that stifling house.
Even so, that first step was hard to take. I thought about my life here, privileged and secure. Growing up here kept us isolated, but we had everything we could ever want, every opportunity. After everything, I still loved Father. I loved my brothers, although Mathias was on my shitlist now.
Moving across the porch, I felt I was leaving behind my entire life. I blinked rapidly and my heart gave a jolt.
