Page 6 of In Their Arms

Maceo would advise me to keep a neutral expression, to let this moment pass but I can’t. So I smirk.

I lean back in the chair, the cuffs rattling as I shift, the cold steel biting into my skin. “I had every right to take care of that sweet, battered Omega,” I muse. “Because in the moment, he was begging for my bite.”

The snarl he lets out, his growl following, reverberates around the room as his entire body locks up. Then the first punch lands clean against my jaw. Pain bursts white-hot behind my teeth, radiating outward, sinking into my nerves, but I barely have time to process it before the second hit slams into the side of my head. The third comes faster, snapping my head to the side with enough force to send a ringing through my ears.

Blood fills my mouth. The taste of iron sits thick on my tongue, pooling under my teeth as I try to swallow around it.

The cuffs keep me locked in place, the chains rattling uselessly with each blow. There’s no way to move with the impact, no way to brace. The pain spreads, radiating from my cheekbone, my jaw, the pounding at my temple making my vision swim.

I force my head up anyway, blinking past the sting, past the static edge of my sight, and focus on Hudson. His fists are still clenched, knuckles split and red from the force of the hits. The heat rolling off him is thick with rage, choking the air from the room. But it’s not enough, not that it ever would be for him.

Because no matter how hard he swings, no matter how much he takes out on me, it won’t change the fact that Luca is gone. That Luca is mine now. That Luca wanted out. Hudson won’t ever forgive me for that. He’ll never forgivehimfor that.

“Enough,” Peyton cuts in, stepping forward.

Garrett is already moving, gripping Hudson by the shoulder, yanking him back, forcing space between us. Hudson doesn’t resist, but his wild eyes never leave mine. Peyton adjusts his tie, shaking his head like this is nothing more than a minor inconvenience. Like me sitting here, blood pooling in my mouth, is just another problem to be managed. Another box to check off on a long, tedious night of paperwork.

“If you just hand over the Omega,” Peyton says, tone clipped, “we can close the investigation.”

Was this supposed to scare me? Was Hudson part of the tactic to get me to confess to something I didn’t do? To something that would never happen in my house? I tip my head back, let the pain settle into my bones, let the moment stretch. It gives me something else to focus on than the strained bonds, a way to feel when everything else has been taken from me.

Then I turn my head to the side and spit onto the table, letting the blood splatter across the metal in a slow, dark stain. “If any of you were smart enough to truly understand why I was here, you would have known that the investigation was opened to determine whether or not Hudson abused Luca,” I say, steadying my voice, despite the throbbing in my skull. “And we’ve already provided sufficient evidence to support those claims. Somehow, though, the focus turned onto me,” I continue, watching the way they shift uncomfortably. “Because I made him mine during a heat. If you don’t see the irony in that,” I murmur, spitting more blood onto the floor, watching as it pools against the tile. “Well, that’s not really my fucking problem, is it?”

“You’re nothing,” Hudson roars, Garrett still holding him back. “You’re fucking nothing. You took what’s mine and you’re going to pay for it.”

“Yeah, Hudson? What’s next, huh? You gonna threaten me some more? Gonna beat me until you feel better about yourself?” I rattle the chains, testing his control. Some part of me knows that this isn’t going to help anything but the amusement of making Hudson seethe is a little too hard to pass up. “Beating a man when he’s down makes you truly a big, strong Alpha, doesn’t it?”

Hudson lunges but this time Garrett slams him against the wall, telling him to calm down, Peyton looking just the slightest bit worried. As if he hadn’t planned for Hudson to be this unhinged. And when Hudson slips free, I brace for impact.

Nothing happens.

The door opens, an entirely different presence entering the space, a presence that immediately demands respect. We all freeze, staring at the entrance, the chief of police stepping inside. Trenton glares at the four of us, taking in the scene with a silence that has fear creeping down my spine. There are few men that rival my Alpha instincts. Trent is one of them.

Having met the Alpha a few times, I’ve done my best to avoid him and work with Detective Ward or some of the officers when the need arises. His gaze falls on Garrett and then Peyton, his entire demeanor morphing from ‘what the fuck is going on here’ to ‘you better have a good fucking explanation’. Peyton wilts beneath his stare, Trent shaking his head. “I want Hudson out of here.Now.”

Garrett yanks him out of the door, Hudson still glaring at me like those beady little eyes will do anything. He starts flinging curses at me, his voice disappearing as he moves out of earshot. I’m more excited to watch whatever Trent is about to do to Peyton, though.

“Chief, Ward let Grayson in so I was just—”

Trent lets out a hearty laugh. “You’ve got to be fucking kidding me, Peyton.” His voice drops lower, but it doesn’t lose its sharpness. “You think for one goddamn second that letting a man see his mate is the same thing as letting someone beat a defenseless man bloody? If you do, we’re gonna have a fucking problem.”

Peyton doesn’t speak.

“As it stands, Peyton,” the Chief states, taking a slow step forward, “you’re suspended for the week. Get the fuck out of my face before I make it two weeks.”

“But Ward—”

“Was suspended as well. I don’t discriminate when it comes to breaking the rules. However, he was 100% prepared to take his punishment. You on the other hand did this for what reason? Validation? So that someone would suck your balls? If I find that you’re getting paid in any way for the bullshit you pulled, I will have your badge. When I’m done with Keller, I don’t want to see you.” Trent waits until Peyton leaves the room before he shuts the door and then turns to face me.

His expression falls, exhaustion filling the deep crevices along his face. I swallow, a little nervous and confused about his interjection. I haven’t seen him the entire time I’ve been in here so Trent coming to my rescue feels like suspicious timing.

Trent steps up to the side of the table, undoing the chain. “I run a tight ship for the most part, keep my officers in line when I can. The moment I’m pulled away, though, it seems that all the wrong people start putting their fingers in my goddamn pot. I tasked Ward with keeping an eye on you and told him to alert me if Hudson entered the station.”

That doesn’t explain the treatment I’ve endured the past few days. I’m unsure if I want to push or just get the call I’ve been asking for. “You couldn’t have come a moment sooner,” I say, a bitter edge to my words.

Trent nods, stepping away from me. “This isn’t the only precinct in the area and I thought I could trust my detectives to work without me breathing down their necks. However, it seems that I was wrong. That’s on me, not that you’ll forgive me for it. Tell me, where is Luca?”

My brows furrow at the question as I wonder if Trent is stupid enough to think I’d answer that. We both know Luca is at home with my mates or at least safe with my mates, but I won’t admit to it without Maceo at my side.

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