Page 65 of Pack Obsession

“Nothing personal.” A man appears, standing over me. “Just following orders.”

Fuck. Fuck.Fuck!

The last thing I hear is him speaking into a radio. “Alpha team in position. Target secured. Proceeding to primary objective.”

Then darkness claims me, and I’m falling, falling, falling...

And Casey’s all alone upstairs, with no idea what’s coming.

Chapter

Eighteen

CASEY

The moment I reach the bathroom, it hits me. The burning starts deep in my gut, spreading south like wildfire through my veins. My fingers fumble with the door handle as I stumble inside.

“No, no, no...” I press my forehead against the cool tile wall. “You were supposed to be done. I had hoped you were done.”

Now, the damn thing builds rapidly, worse than before. My skin feels too tight, every nerve ending raw and screaming. Nash’s claiming helped yesterday, but now... now it’s like my body’s making up for lost time and demands even more.

I drag myself to the massive clawfoot tub, turning the cold water on full blast. My clothes stick to my skin, but I can’t bear to remove them, so once the tub is full, I’ll go in fully clothed. Everything hurts. Everything burns.

“Get it together,” I mutter, sliding down to sit on the cool floor. “You’re stronger than this. You’re not some weak little Omega who can’t control herself.”

My body disagrees. The need pulses through me in waves, each one stronger than the last. And now Axel’s downstairs, probably already smelling the change in me. Axel, who made me pancakes and talked about Hawaii like we had a future.

I crawl into the tub, not bothering to undress. The cold water helps, barely. I close my eyes, trying to focus on anything else. The sound of water. The distant chirp of birds. The?—

A crash echoes from downstairs.

My head snaps up, my heart suddenly pounding for a different reason. That wasn’t the normal sound of someone moving around the house. That was something breaking.

Heavy footsteps. Multiple sets. Angry voices I don’t recognize.

“Search every room,” a deep voice commands. “She has to be here somewhere.”

Ice replaces fire in my veins. Where’s Axel? He would never let strangers in. Unless...

Another crash, closer now. By the growing sounds, they’re coming up the stairs.

Move.Hide. Run. Do something.

But the heat makes everything fuzzy and my limbs uncoordinated. I drag myself out of the tub, water streaming onto the floor. The bathroom connects to my walk-in closet.

I stumble into the closet. My wet clothes leave a trail, but I can’t think about that now. Can’t think about anything except finding somewhere to hide.

The back corner has a built-in dresser. I squeeze behind it, making myself as small as possible. The space is tight, dark, and familiar in the worst way.

Stay quiet, baby.Mom’s voice shakes as she pushes me into the cupboard.Don’t make a sound. No matter what you hear, don’t come out until it’s safe.

I’m ten years old again, knees pulled to my chest, listening to heavy boots and angry voices. Then Mom’s screaming starts. Then silence, worse than the screams.

No. Not now. I can’t fall apart now.

Noises in the bedroom. Getting closer.

“Bathroom’s wet,” a man’s voice says real close.

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