Page 63 of Found

So I smile again and back up. “Goodnight.”

I walk out of the silent room and Franklin closes the door.

“They seemed afraid,” I say.

“They have no reason to be afraid as long as they stay in their room.” He lifts his hand. “I’ll show you to your room. It’s not much, but you should find it comfortable.”

I quietly trail him as I run those words over in my mind.

No reason to be afraid as long as they stay in their room.

There was one large window in that room. Khaki green drapes covered it, so I have no idea if escape is possible out of it, or if Franklin boarded it to prevent the omegas from climbing out of it.

Franklin stops at a door at the end of the hallway and throws it open, revealing a large, rustic space. There’s a queen size bed with a dark wood bedframe, dresser, and two doors which must lead to a closet and a bathroom. It’s as simple as he promised.

“Did you want to eat?” Franklin asks as I’m taking in the room. “I can have someone bring you a meal.”

I shake my head. “I’m not hungry. Tomorrow, I want to meet with the enforcers and discuss those patrols. And I want to see those new buildings as well.”

He smiles, pleased. “Then that is what we will do. Goodnight, Alpha.”

Again, I hide my reaction to the unwanted title. “Good night.”

He walks out, closing the door behind him, and I take in the bed before crossing over to the window and pushing aside the drapes.

It’s a balcony style window, with a full size door. Probably identical to the one Aerin had in her room.

And maybe similar to the one in the omegas room?

I hope so. Rescuing them is going to be much easier through a door than a window.

21

AERIN

Sunlight is warming my face and the sound of several voices wakes me.

When I peel my eyes open, I’m sleeping on the couch, a blanket covering me, and a pillow that someone must have gotten from upstairs under my head.

Penny is sitting in Colton’s lap in an armchair and they’re quietly talking to each other. Or they were because, as I struggle to sit up, they twist to face me.

“How’d you sleep?” Penny springs to her feet with a grace I’m immediately envious of. With three months still to go until I give birth, I feel like I’ve been pregnant forever already.

“I don’t know. It felt like I just passed out,” I mutter as she helps me sit up.

She smiles at me. “Yeah, you nearly fell asleep in your omelet.”

I raise my eyebrow.

She laughs. “I’m only half-joking. We were going to carry you up, but the stairs in this house are pretty steep. It’s not something you want to discover coming down them while still half asleep the next morning. Ask Colton. He nearly fell down them the other day.”

I look at Colton, who smiles wryly at me. “They are steep. We’ve all eaten breakfast, but Ivy said she can make something for you.”

I glance at the open doorway, toward the kitchen. “What’s up with all the raised voices?”

Penny sinks onto the couch beside me as Colton gets up and crosses the room to open the curtains to reveal it has to be near mid-morning or even afternoon.

“Not long after you fell asleep, we agreed we needed more help,” she says.

---