Page 3 of My Ruthless Alpha (Alpha Outlaws Club #5)

I couldn’t feel my legs by the time I noticed a small town up ahead, almost like a guiding light at the end of the tunnel.

I never thought a small thing like that would be able to instill me with such a strong sense of hope, but in the moment, anything sounded better than aimlessly walking.

After running for how long while carrying Margo, I could feel my body preparing to give out from underneath me, but I couldn’t stop. I had to get us as far away from the grounds and as close to safety as I possibly could.

Even if I was determined more than anything else, it was getting harder and harder to ignore the voice in my head telling me to stop. To quit moving and just rest. But I couldn’t do that. There was no guarantee Colton and the others wouldn’t find us, and I couldn’t keep Margo in harm’s way like that.

So, I kept going. Pushing and pushing to the point of mumbling about needing help.

The pavement beneath my feet sent jolts of aching pain up my legs, but I didn’t care. I couldn’t stop.

Moving through the dark was starting to scare Margo, so I’d told her to close her eyes some distance back. At some point, she fell asleep, to my relief, and the streetlights started to brighten our way, making the night feel less intimidating.

My heart had been racing for so long that by the time the town drew closer, my pulse felt like nothing more than a shallow beat beneath my skin. I could hardly keep my eyes open, and my whole body felt incredibly weak, yet I kept moving.

That was until I noticed him.

Through the haze of my vision, I saw him standing there, and the moment his face registered in my mind, my heart almost stopped altogether.

It was him…Beau.

The father of my child.

Immediately, a rush of muted panic moved through me, and I felt the need to run away—to run away after everything that happened between us.

I wanted to turn, keep going in the opposite direction, and pretend that none of it ever happened. To forget him and the pain he caused me.

As tempting as that thought was, I couldn’t keep going. I was exhausted, and even if it felt impossible to come to terms with, I had to think about Margo. Hauling my four-year-old through the woods for hours wasn’t ideal.

I wanted to keep going, but I just couldn’t. I was at my limit, and I needed to rest.

“Faye?”

The sound of his voice was enough to make my heart swell and fracture simultaneously. It was one of the things about him that always seemed to pull me in, like a call I couldn’t ignore.

Along with his dark eyes and the way his black hair always seemed to stay so perfectly in place with at least one strand that curled just above his eyebrow regardless of how many times he pushed it back.

Once, everything about him drew me in and held me hostage. And while there was no mistaking how attractive he was, even in my broken state, the familiar pain that came with the way he left me so callously was too great to ignore.

Pulling in several weak, shallow breaths, I just barely held his gaze. “Please…help.”

Swathed in concern, Beau’s brows furrowed as he stepped closer, glancing between me and Margo—the daughter he never knew about.

“What’s going on?”

Swallowing hard, still feeling a sense of dread and fear moving through me, I glanced over my shoulder at the dark woods behind us that seemed to surround us from almost every side.

The prickle of fear that made itself home within the top of my spine made it impossible for me to relax, even if we weren’t alone then. I could only think about being tracked, wondering when one of them might jump out and grab me.

I couldn’t tell if my panic was valid or just exaggerated from being too tired to think properly, but either way, I knew I wouldn’t be able to come back down until I knew we were safe inside somewhere.

“Faye…why are you running through my territory at midnight?” Beau asked, pressing his questions regardless of my obliviousness.

Still, through that spacey mindset, I felt torn.

I was worried about Colton or his beta Hunter finding us, and that was one thing my mind wouldn’t stop fixating on. On the other hand, I registered Beau’s questions, but something in me was afraid to tell him the truth.

After everything, I didn’t know if I wanted his help. I knew I needed it, but trusting him felt nearly as scary as putting my faith in Colton.

But even if my past with beau muddied the water to some degree, at one point during my journey there, I could’ve sworn I had sensed either the alpha or his beta nearby. Again, I had no way of knowing if I had imagined it, but the thought alone had been enough to make me move faster and fear stopping for even a moment.

If I didn’t confide in Beau or take his help, then there was a chance I’d be risking them finding us sooner rather than later. I ran the risk of being too weak to keep going, and the thought alone was enough to make me tense up.

“Faye, I can’t help you if you don’t tell me what’s going on,” Beau insisted, tone gentle yet firm. “I want to help…you just need to let me in.”

The thought of letting him in made my chest ache, especially since I didn’t know what to think of him anymore.

At one point, he had been my everything, but after it all, it was hard to see him as anything but a kind of enemy.

Still, I didn’t have any fight left in me. I needed a break, and from the way I saw it, there was a chance I could get one if I just gave in.

Letting go of a tired breath, I carefully adjusted Margo in my arms and met his gaze. “Me and my daughter…we’re in danger. The alpha is tracking me because I fled. I’ve been running for hours…”

His brows furrowed as a spark of disbelief and anger crossed his features. “Cyrus?”

I shook my head. “No…Cyrus is dead.”

Beau’s eyes widened by a fraction. “…What?”

“The new alpha killed Cyrus and his Luna…and now he’ll be looking for me if he isn’t already.”

At first, he seemed to struggle with the information, but then something else moved through his eyes—something that spoke of a need to protect—a duty to help me and Margo despite not knowing her.

It had been a while since I last saw him, but it seemed he couldn’t fully drop that instinct.

For a moment, I found a sense of relief at that look of determination in his eyes. It was surprising to see, given how things ended between us.

But through my exhaustion, something about it still irritated me. As if a part of him still felt entitled to keep me safe even though he had hurt me beyond words before.

Even if he looked ready to protect Margo and me regardless of the cost, and even if I desperately needed help, part of me hated that it had to be him, of all people.