Page 168 of Lost
“Shh, you can sleep, baby. We’ll all be with you when you wake up.”
Darkness surrounds me as I allow myself to get pulled down into sleep.
I’m standing naked on an auction stage, and the sound of alphas yelling is physically painful.
“Make her turn around and show us her cunt!” one of them roars.
My arms are wrapped around myself as I also use my hair to hide my body from those bidding on me. Tears rain down my face, my only thoughts are that I failed to get back to my alphas.
I don’t want to be here, I want to be home. My memories are hazy, but maybe I didn’t kill the beta who tried to kidnap me.
Maybe I didn’t act and I let him drag me away.
Maybe…
“Nova,” a deep voice says. “Little Warrior, wake up. You’re okay, baby. They can’t hurt you because you saved yourself.”
Gasping, I find myself cradled in Lars’ arms. Caleb and Tyde are sitting up in front of us, purring to soothe me, while my heartbeat roars in my ears.
“It was a dream,” I whisper, my chest heaving.
“It was,” Lars murmurs. “We’re going to buy that car tomorrow, baby. I think we’ll all feel better once you’re driving a tank.”
“I still have clients and a van that’s completely trashed,” I sigh.
“We’ll figure it out,” he says. “Even if we have to get you a driver like Hollis has for a while.”
While I wrinkle my nose, I know he’s right. Too much has happened for me to believe that stomping my foot while insisting I’m an independent omega will make much difference. I also don’t blame my alphas for being worried.
“Will you teach me how to defend myself?” I ask, already beginning to fall back asleep. “I don’t like how it feels to kill, but I want to come home to you. That’s what the nightmare was about. I felt like I failed you all.”
“Us?” Tyde asks, pushing my hair out of my face. At some point, someone pulled the pins out of my updo and took out my braids. I am going to have some serious detangling to do when I get up later. “Nova, you could never fail or disappoint us.”
“We’re the fuck ups,” Lars grumbles. “We should have offered to meet you at Pack Dresmond’s house when you were done. It didn’t even cross my mind and I should have.”
My jaw pops as I yawn, shrugging. “There’s no reason you’d think to. I’m used to coming and going as necessary. No one offers to meet Tyde when he has an early morning or night shift.”
“That’s not the same and you know it,” Tyde says.
“Why not? Those men didn’t care who came down the road. Alpha, beta, or omega. They were taking that person regardless of designation for their fucked up auction,” I sigh.
“You’re right,” he agrees. “However?—”
“No howevers,” Caleb says gruffly. “If one of us is up or out at an ungodly hour, we’ll drive out with them. I think ‘barnacle life’ needs to become a bumper sticker.”
“Maybe it’ll help the aesthetic of a hippy van with bulletproof windows,” I chuckle.
Lars lays down with me next to him, and Tyde kisses my forehead before getting up.
“I have to get up for work, baby,” he says. “I’ll see you later.”
Caleb checks the clock and decides it’s an acceptable time for Tyde to go to work alone before snuggling against me.God, they’re insane.
“You bet your ass we are. Go back to bed, baby,” Lars says against the shell of my ear.
I don’t think I’d change it for all the world.
Chapter Thirty-Four
