Page 5 of Rescue Me

“She threw a lamp at me yesterday,” I force out, gritting my teeth to keep from letting my mother catch onto the rage simmering beneath the surface. “She hit me because she didn’t like the light bulb, Mom. That’s not normal.”

There’s a long pause and for a moment, I think she might finally understand. But then she sighs, exasperated. “Reid, you’re overreacting. Hailey is a little high-strung, sure, but that’s why they hired you—to keep her happy. You should be grateful. Do you know how many Betas would kill for the chance to work for a family like the Wilhelms?”

Grateful. That word makes my chest ache and yet, it’s almost laughable. “You mean how many parents would sell their son to a family like the Wilhelms,” I mutter, the bitterness slipping out before I can stop it.

“Watch your tone,” she snaps. “That money is keeping this family afloat. Do you think your father and I could afford to retire without it? Pay off the house? You’re doing your part for this family and you’ll keep doing it.”

“I don’t even have a life anymore,” I say, my voice breaking. “I’m barely surviving here and you don’t care.”Not that I expect you to.

Her silence is damning. Finally, she says, “You need to grow up, Reid. Be good. Behave. And stop being selfish. Goodbye.” The line goes dead.

I stare at the phone, the knot in my chest tightening until it feels like I can’t breathe. I want to throw it, smash it against the wall, but that would only give Hailey another reason to yell. Instead, I set it back on the nightstand, my hands trembling.

The bed creaks as I lie down, curling into myself. I reach for the bottle of pain meds hidden in the drawer and dry-swallow two, hoping they’ll dull the ache in my shoulder and the pounding in my head.

A bitter laugh falls from my lips, the sound hollow in the quiet room. “Cinderella had to have it better than this,” I mumble to no one. At least she had a fairy godmother.

Here, there’s only me.

Chapter three

REID

I don’t remember falling asleep. One moment I’m staring at the cracked ceiling and the next, I’m being ripped from the fog of restless dreams by a sharp, searing pain in my ear. My body jerks awake as a hand yanks me upright and I blink rapidly, disoriented, my breath coming in short panicked gasps.

“Get up, you useless Beta!” Lyle roars, echoing off the walls of my small room. His grip on my ear tightens and I stumble out of bed, bare feet hitting the cold floor.

“I—what?” I stammer, my brain scrambling to catch up but he doesn’t let me finish.

“Hailey is crying in her nest,” he snarls, dragging me toward the door like a disobedient child. We’re around the same age, Lyle 26 or 27 but I always feel so much younger with how much larger he is than me. “What the hell did you do this time?”

“Nothing!” I gasp, clutching at his wrist, trying to ease the pressure on my ear. “I didn’t—she didn’t say—” I swallow back the whine of pain, knowing that Lyle will only find pleasure in that sound.

“Shut up.” He cuts me off with a growl. “You don’t get to make excuses.”

I bite my tongue, swallowing down the number of things Iwantto say. It doesn’t matter that I have no idea what set her off this time. It doesn’t matter that I’ve spent every waking moment bending over backward to keep her happy. None of it matters because, to them, I’m already guilty. I always am.

Lyle drags me down the hallway, his heavy boots thudding against the hardwood while I stumble to keep up. My heart pounds as we approach the kitchen, dread curling in my stomach. Did I not clean up all the pieces of her mug? Did I miss a spot on the counter? Or could it be something else entirely?

He shoves me forward and I barely manage to catch myself before I hit the floor. My knees slam against the tiles, the impact reverberating through my body. Everything hurts from earlier and this just makes it worse, pain tearing through my limbs.

I look up, and there he is—Jackson seated at the head of the table, his expression cold and unforgiving. “Look who finally decided to show up,” Jackson mocks. He stands, his imposing frame towering over me. “Do you know what I just dealt with, Reid? Hailey, in tears, because you can’t do your damn job.”

“I didn’t—” I start, but his hand shoots out, gripping my chin and forcing my head back until our eyes meet. The sudden movement sends a jolt of pain through my neck and I wince, but I don’t dare pull away.

“You only have one job,” he growls, his face inches from mine. “One. Job. To serve our Omega. And you can’t even manage that, can you?”

I clench my jaw, forcing myself to stay still. The rage in his eyes is palpable, a fire that threatens to consume me. I know better than to stoke it but his words cut deeper than any blow and something inside me snaps, just a little.

“I don’t know what’s wrong with your damn Omega,” I mutter before I can stop myself. The words are quiet, barely audible, but they’re enough.

Jackson’s growl is low and feral and before I can even brace myself, his fist connects with my face. Pain explodes across my cheek, sending me sprawling to the floor, my head spinning. The metallic taste of blood floods my mouth, a small gash on my tongue where I just bit it.

I stay down, my cheek pressed against the cold tile, breathing heavily as I fight back tears. Crying won’t help. It never does. So I grit my teeth and swallow the pain, the anger, the despair.

“You don’t speak unless spoken to,” Jackson states, anger rolling through his tone. “You don’t think. You don’t feel. You serve. That’s your place, Beta. Don’t forget it.”

I don’t respond. I can’t. My head throbs and every inch of me screams to fight back, to tell him exactly what I think of hisplace. Instead, I press my palms to the floor and slowly push myself up onto my knees, keeping my gaze fixed downward.

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