Page 75 of Tangled in Knots

Aisling gets up and pulls water bottles out of the mini fridge set up and hands me one.

“You need to replace the fluid you just leaked out,” she says with a small smile. “We don’t know their side of things, but I still can’t imagine how they honestly thought this was a better option, than literally anything else.”

Opening the bottle, I take small sips to ensure my body doesn’t cramp from how cold it is. Nothing seems to be making it happy lately, and the last thing I want is to end up on another IV drip.

I think I have traumatic feelings around it due to my experience with them.

Dashing away the tears with a tissue I pull from the box, I sigh, shuddering.

“Now, they’re proposing that I stay with them while they kill their father, but it feels like too little too late,” I grunt. The words are honest and torn from my lips. “I’m ruined, jumping at shadows, and the fucking bathroom threw me into a panic attack this morning.”

“You didn’t tell us about that,” Wren says. “What happened there?”

“The bathroom that Ophelia has for prep is a large stall with concrete floors. I don’t know why I didn’t think about the bathroom here being communal, it makes sense,” I explain.

I don’t want to seem ungrateful, it’s just my experience that triggered the reaction. “When I walked in, all I could see was the bathroom from the auctions and it threw me into a spiral. I managed to get it together and figure it out.”

“Ugh,” Aisling sighs. “Usually we explain all of that in our tour, but it was late and Aurelia probably didn’t even think of it.”

“Very few people would ever have the reaction I did,” I remind her. “I’m okay, and I doubt it’ll trigger anything again.”

“We have one single bathroom on the other side of the shelter if you decide you’d be more comfortable using that,” she says. “It’s rarely used for some reason.”

“I think everyone may forget it exists,” Wren says with a smirk. “Just as well in this case. Are you finding that anything else is triggering a reaction?”

“Not yet,” I say. “I haven’t had enough time for my brain to start fucking me over, I think.”

“I get that,” she says with a nod. “The auctions are barbaric, and Ophelia is an asshole. Her benefactor keeps her in omegas and money.”

“Rock,” I mutter. “His eyes are soulless, and he has this sick need to make me pay for something I had nothing to do with. I’ll never be safe from him.”

“Unless he’s dead,” Aisling counters. “Right now he thinks you’re with that other pack. I’ve met the Kelly brothers briefly.”

“It’s a nice house, even if I did get kidnapped there,” Wren grumbled.

At my wide eyes, she shrugs. “Life isn’t safe. It never will be for us. Everyone handles that differently,” Wren says. “I don’t leave the house very often, and Flynn is very selective aboutwhen he leaves. His anxiety can be really awful, though he’s working on it. Aisling on the other hand?—”

“I always carry a knife,” Aisling explains. “I learned self defense to help me feel more in control. My pack worries about me, but I can’t stop living my life. This place needs me, we’re expanding to help more people. Wren does a lot of the communication and computer work so I don’t have to.”

“Emails and accounting aren’t things she enjoys,” Wren says with a huff of amusement. “Sometimes I feel badly that she handles so much of the front-facing stuff, but we have Aurelia now. She helps take care of things Aisling isn’t needed for. It was overwhelming for a while though.”

“Anything worth doing typically is,” Aisling says. “Which is the point. Rebuilding a life is difficult, finding what you need to fight through is even worse. It’s okay to struggle. Do you think extra support may help?”

“Like what?” I ask, confused by what that would look like.

“We have a therapist who works with anyone here who wants the help,” she explains. “It’s confidential, no one will ever know what you talk about, and it’s helpful if you’re ready for it.”

“The right therapist is something that people don’t understand is a key issue,” Wren explains. “So many victim-blame, when we had nothing to do with what happened to us.”

“That sounds awful,” I mutter. “It’s nice to know that it’s available, but I can’t imagine cutting myself open regularly to examine things. This was hard enough.”

“That’s okay,” Aisling says with a nod. “How can we help you move forward? Pack Dresmond can’t get in here. If they do any real research, they’ll find out quickly who my and Wren’s packs are. The name Rock Dresmond and his sons aren’t very well received in Minneapolis, because of all the issues Rock creates.”

“I don’t know what Jed and his brothers do for their father outside of torture and kill people who piss him off,” I explain. “Outside of that, I’m in the dark.”

“We aren’t asking,” she reassures me. “There are guards here, and you’re safe. Focus on you.”

A pain pulses in my side, and I grunt, rubbing it. “Have you ever heard of a bond going wrong or being stronger than it should?” I ask. “I can feel Damon, hear his thoughts, make him do things when I’m really mad. Is that normal?”

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