Page 78 of Beta Lies and Cursed Lives
“Miranda!”
My gaze whips toward the familiar voice. Colt stands a little off to the side, his brows drawn, his mismatched eyes glistening in the moonlight. His lips are parted, one arm extended toward me.
Is he afraid? I’ve taken care of the threat and protected my pack. Why does he look so scared?
“I’m worried about you, my love,”he says in my mind, making me blink.
Worried about…?
The gore all around me suddenly screams for attention, and I turn wide eyes at the scene.
I did this. But…
“Come on.” Colt’s arm wraps around my shoulders, and he steers me away, toward our group and the woods beyond.
As we pass my statuesque father, staring at me with horrified eyes, I can only wonder what I’m becoming.
Miranda
A small, one-room cabin deep in the woods is where we all stop to rest during daylight. It’s about halfway between Tenebrosa and the academy, according to Lucas, the rebellion soldier who wields the reflective shield.
There are two single beds adjacent to one another in a corner where Zephyr and Lucas are resting. Zephyr slept through all the events after he crushed the facility with his power. I can’t imagine how draining that must have been.
Aubrey and Rai sit in old, dusty chairs by the unused fireplace, Aubrey sleeping with his head tilted back, mouth open slightly. The sight makes my lips twitch a bit.
I’m seated on the floor with Colt’s arm possessively around my shoulders. He rubs my arms and back every so often, but stays mostly silent. My father sits on the floor all the way across the room, his gaze flicking to me warily and then away.
“He’s being an idiot.”This from Colt in my mind.
I don’t react to his jab because this is the umpteenth time he’s said something like it since I murdered those soldiers.
I don’t blame my father for being frightened. I still don’t remember everything that happened, but the amount of blood and...bits...I had to wipe from my body when we got to the cabin clued me in that I’d probably killed more than I thought.
The killing itself didn’t bother me. It was the lack of control.
It was like when I’d started to go feral before mating with Aubrey, only amplified a million times. Which doesn’t make sense, because my pack bond is complete now. So why?
Maybe my desire to protect my Alphas was so strong that I lost it.
My father clears his throat quietly, drawing my attention to him. “How...did you escape the academy?”
I scrutinize him for a moment, Colt pulling me close and kissing the top of my head almost possessively. Then I give my father the abridged version of events, whispering so as not to disturb the others. I leave out any mention of mating, but I know he knows. It’s obvious.
When I get to the part where we met up with the rebellion, my father stills, hanging on every word.
“When I was first brought to the lab, the Beta in charge was...monstrous,” he tells us. “I only knew him for half a day, but that was enough.”
“You’re lucky,” Colt says. “If he hadn’t been replaced, you might not be here right now.”
Colt doesn’t tell my dad that I’m responsible for Dr. Ness’ death, and I’m thankful for that after what he just witnessed me do. I don’t need him to be more disturbed by my actions.
My father nods. “I believe you. A Major Tomlin addressed all of us during the transfer of power. He said we just had to hang on a while longer, but none of us knew what he was talking about at the time.” He looks over at Zephyr. “Some of the Cursed had been there since they were children. The ones still alive were deemed ‘special,’” he says the word like it disgusts him. “We were all experimented on. Even Dr. Song would inject us with things, but the other prisoners said the shots made them feel better or nothing at all. Since Ness didn’t get a chance to touch me, Song was the only scientist I encountered aside from her assistants.”
“Do you know what you were injected with?”
His head shakes no at my question. “Zephyr said that his curse got stronger, though.”
Colt sighs, leaning back against some piled-up blankets. “We need to rest so we’re ready for tonight.” He opens his arms to me, and without a second thought, I snuggle into him and close my eyes.
