Page 43 of Owned By the Hvrok

And just as her thoughts reached the ragged edge of total collapse…

Heappeared.

The wall to her left rippled open as seamlessly as water. No sound, no warning.

Justthere.

The alien.

Still armored. Still silent. Winged and as intimidating as ever.

And…alive.

She stared at him, trembling, her chest still rising and falling in short, panicked bursts.

And without a word…

The restraints released.

They hissed softly, folding away into the bed frame, leaving her flushed and shaking, her limbs too heavy to move.

She didn’t say anything.

Shecouldn’t.

She just looked at him: this silent, hulking shadow standing in the doorway of her prison.

And for the first time… her anger didn’t surface. Not straight away, anyway, even though she still thought he was an asshole.

Instead, what came before it was raw, unfiltered relief.

He was alive.

And for better or worse…

That meantshemight survive too.

CHAPTER 26

She bolted upright the second the restraints released.

The hiss of their retreat barely registered before she was on her feet, heart slamming in her chest, her entire body tight with aftershock. Her breath still came in gasps, too fast, too shallow, her limbs aching from the strain of being held down.

He just stood there.

Motionless.

Silent.

Like a statue carved from black metal and nightmare.

The fear, the helplessness, the confinement… it all snapped. The tight coil of control she’d held since the moment she’d woken up in this hell… it finally unraveled, shredding into something hotter.Wilder.

Shescreamedat him.

“You asshole! You fucking bastard! What the hell is wrong with you?!”

She knew he didn’t understand her. Didn’t care. He made no move. No sound.

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