Page 219 of Unhinged Omega

Chapter

Forty-Seven

COSIMA

Knight's knot deflates just enough for us to finally untangle ourselves, and I bite back a groan as I slide off the broken piano. My legs feel like jelly, a sweet ache spreading through me like warm honey. I fumble with the borrowed robe, trying to make myself decent—whatever that means anymore.

"Holy shit," I whisper, taking in the wreckage around us. The piano lists at a forty-five-degree angle, one leg completely snapped off. Keys scattered across the floor like broken teeth. "We made quite the mess, didn't we?"

Knight makes that rumbling sound deep in his chest. The one that's somewhere between a purr and a growl. His blue eyes catch the dim light behind his silver mask, watching me with an intensity that would be unsettling if I hadn't just...

Well.

My face burns when I think about who's waiting on the other side of that door. Geo. Maybe Nikolai. The walls in this place aren't exactly soundproof, and we weren't exactly quiet. The piano itself practically screamed in protest with every thrust.

Shit. Shit. Shit.

I splash some water on my face and find a pair of what must be Raven's sweats in the dresser. They're too long for my legs, but anything's better than trying to face Geo in just this flimsy robe.

My, how far I've fallen. Oh, well. It beats dead raider clothes any day.

"Well," I say, squaring my shoulders. "We better face the music. So to speak."

Knight follows close behind me as I inch toward the door, my fingers hesitating on the handle. With a deep breath, I open it and peek around the corner, trying to look as casual as someone can after loudly getting railed by an eight-foot mutant alpha on a piano.

The living room comes into view, and I see Geo still sitting in his armchair. Alone. His single eye flicks up from his book as I hesitantly step out.

"Nikolai's gone," he says dryly. "You can come out."

For a moment, I'm relieved, then strangely… what? Disappointed?Worried? Why the hell should I care where that arrogant alpha went?

I hate that I do. Even a little. All the more reason we need to get out of here as soon as possible.

"I wasn't hiding," I reply, channeling nonchalance I don't feel. "Just needed a moment to... freshen up."

Geo gives me a look that says he isn't buying it for a second. As if he heard everything. "I'm sure."

I move further into the room, Knight's heavy footsteps following behind me as he looms like a shadow. A floorboard creaks under his weight, breaking the uncomfortable silence.

Geo snaps his book shut, the sound making me flinch. "I was particularly fond of that piano, by the way. Been with me for fifteen years."

Heat crawls up my neck again. "Right. About that..."

"It was a relic from the pre-war Eastern conclave. Only three were ever made." His tone is conversational, but there's an edge to it.

"I can explain?—"

"Its ivory keys were harvested from the skeletons of the last elephants before elephants weren't elephants anymore."

I wince. "That's... unfortunate."

"It survived three radiation fallouts, two territorial wars, and a flood that nearly washed away half the compound. Pretty sure it's still haunted by the prince who commissioned it, so now his immortal spirit has to live with that."

I mutter a string of Vrissian curses, throwing my hands in the air. "For fuck's sake,fine! I'm sorry about your piano, and as for your ghost, you can tell him the show was free."

Geo continues to glower at me for a few seconds before his grumpy expression cracks into amusement and he huffs. "Guess I should be grateful the entire compound is still standing. Could've been worse."

"How generous of you," I say flatly.

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