Page 60 of Knot Unwanted: Part One

As I watch Ren’s then Jax’s door close, I lean against the wall.

We’ve fucked up so royally with Finn, it would be better if Hailey never entered this house. Never met any of us. Scent match or not, it would probably be better if she bonded with another pack.

The night air is crisp against my face as I make my way down the familiar path to the cabin. Guilt gnaws at my stomach—the fact I’m sneaking around our property like a thief and the fact I left her alone for so many hours.

When the cabin finally comes into view, it’s a dark silhouette against the star-studded sky. No lights on, not even a faint glow from the lamp. But that’s not surprising. Each time I’ve visited, I was always the one to turn on the lamp, not her. For an omega, she didn’t seem scared of the dark. But then again, she isn’t just anyomega. She’souromega. Our omega that’s been tortured and abused by some Reform Academy I’ve found zero information on.

The hours spent researching and pushing that investigator have turned up zilch. I’ll have to take it higher, and if I’m going to do that, then I can’t keep hiding her here.

My steps quicken as I walk up to the cabin. I tell myself that she’s probably sleeping, but something feels wrong. The air is too still, carrying none of her sweet scent.

I grip the doorknob, forcing myself to open it smoothly even though I want to throw it wide and rush in.

“Hailey?” I call softly into the darkness.

Nothing.

I wait for my eyes to adjust to the even darker interior of the cabin as I focus on where the cot is. I can barely make out the shape of the blanket I bought her. I’d had to literally smuggle it like it was a ton of cocaine just to get it to her.

Stepping closer, I call her name again, but there’s no answer. She’s usually easy to wake, or maybe that was just the adrenaline left over from her escape. Maybe she’s finally resting properly. I hang on to that hope as I step closer.

“Hailey?”

If she’s sleeping, I shouldn’t disturb her. But as I get closer, my brows furrow.

Flicking on the lights reveals an empty room. The blanket is on the cot, yes, but it’s cold when I touch it. No trace of her warmth remains.

“No.” The word comes out as a snarl, my instincts surging with the need to hunt, to track, to find. I prowl through the small space, checking every corner, though I know it’s futile. The bathroom is empty. The clothes I brought her are still in their neat pile.

Her scent is stale, too—hours old. She’s been gone all day.

While I was sitting in meetings, while I was dealing with pack drama, she was out here alone. Afraid. Running.

“No, no, no,” I burst out of the cabin, nearly taking the door offits hinges. “Hailey!” My voice echoes through the darkness, but only silence answers. The night air is crisp. She’ll be freezing out here.

Forcing myself to think rationally, I try to track her scent. But I’m not a fucking dog or a wolf. I can’t track her that way. Never mind that it’s pitch black out here. “Think, Stone. Think.”

“Fuck.” A nervous energy rolls through me as I head back to the cabin, grabbing a torch from where I keep them underneath the table. The beam slices through the dark like a knife, catching on branches and leaves, creating dancing shadows—none of them her.

“Hailey!” I call again, moving deeper into the trees. “It’s Stone—I’m sorry I was away so long!”

She’s run and that means she’s gone deeper into the forest. Probably over the fence again. Shit. I’ve been so focused on getting back home, I didn’t check the perimeter report. But then again, the system hadn’t sent me any alarms either.

“Stupid,” I growl, shoving through a thick patch of undergrowth. Branches snap against my face, but I barely feel them. “So fucking stupid. You knew better than to leave her alone.”

I should have brought her to the house the moment I found her. Should have trusted my pack, trusted we could deal with this. Instead, I let fear rule me—fear of disrupting the fragile balance we’ve built, fear of adding more complications to our already strained relationships.

The beam of my flashlight catches on something—just a deer trail, but my heart lurches anyway. Every shadow could be her. Every sound makes me whirl around, hoping to catch a glimpse of her hair or her small frame wrapped in my shirt and my sweats.

“Hailey!” I shout. Hoping beyond hope that she’s out there listening. “Please! Just let me know you’re okay!”

The forest swallows my words. The temperature has dropped significantly since sunset, and the thought of her out here, alone and cold, makes my chest constrict with panic. Is she warmenough? Did she find shelter? Or is she still running, pushing herself beyond exhaustion?

I stumble over hidden roots, catch myself against rough tree bark. The moon and the flashlight provide just enough light to navigate, but the shadows are playing tricks with my vision. That could be her behind that tree. That could be her curled up under those branches. But it never is.

“I’m not going to hurt you,” I call out, voice growing hoarse. “I just want to help.Please.”

Hours blur together as I search. I check the entire fucking perimeter, circling the entire property, and still turn up empty-handed. She just…gone. I even return to the cabin, collapsing on the porch as my chest heaves. She hasn’t returned since I left, and I found no evidence of her between the trees surrounding our property.

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