Page 41 of Petals and Strings (Broken Melodies #1)

Chapter Thirty-Four

Audrey

“ D r. Malik is calling you all in,” the art therapist called out to our group. It was just us left now.

We’d come too far, I couldn’t do this. Wouldn’t let him touch my meds.

“Now,” the beta waiting for us barked. I recognized him as one that worked in Malik’s office. Odd that he only had betas in there.

Kane was so lost in his art he didn’t stand with the rest of us. Of course, we collectively moved without him, knowing he needed to be here, but the asshole wouldn’t let it go.

“All of you,” he said, voice cold and firm. Biting back a comment I moved closer to Kane, trying to distract him.

The asshole kept huffing from the doorway like this was some huge inconvenience. He didn’t stop until we were standing with the group. Kane’s hand was in mine, firm and warm, and I didn’t let go even when the beta eyed our connection with a sneer.

Let him see. There was nothing inherently weird about holding hands with someone who needed comfort. It didn’t give us away and they all likely knew that we were a pack by now anyway.

My eyes darted around, looking for Ares anywhere. Nurse Nancy spotted us, her lips tipping to a frown.

“Tell Ares,” I pleaded without sound. She gave a sharp nod before feigning normalcy. Her pen scribbled over paperwork until we were out of sight. I just had to hope she was going to actually help.

This place gave me far more trust issues than I had before. At least in my cell I knew I couldn’t trust a soul. Here, it was a gamble.

Dr. Malik was waiting for us at the clinic. His smile widened as we were ushered in and sat in the waiting area. His eyes landed on each of us for a beat before moving to the next, as if taking inventory of us.

Caspian shifted uncomfortably. “What is this about? I’ve done my weekly check-in and it’s stated in my chart ‘no medication changes without a meeting.’”

Malik’s eyes narrowed before he answered, voice as sharp as his glare. “I’m aware of what your chart says. However, Sarah is not a doctor so her input is irrelevant.”

“Excuse me?” Caspian asked in shock. “You can’t be serious.”

“Oh, I assure you. I am very serious,” Malik said. “I didn’t make it this far by allowing simpering family members to dictate how I treat my patients.”

Ansel pushed himself against me, the touch firm and desperate. I could scent his fear in the air and I swear Malik’s nostrils flared, glee in his eyes.

He was fucking getting off on this. Creating fear. Holding onto control he had no fucking right to.

Fuck this man.

“Come on, Ares,” Ansel said under his breath. It was so quiet but Malik still heard, a laugh bursting out.

“Oh, you think your new therapist is going to save you? He has no sway here, nor is he allowed in during these procedures. I ensured the board agreed with me on that. In fact, he’s in a meeting right now figuring that out.”

“We won’t be taking anything new,” Rydell finally spoke up.

He stood, widening his stance to take up even more space.

He made this man look like a child in comparison.

Malik reached in his pocket on instinct, but Rydell’s grin only widened.

“You can’t sedate me anymore. I suggest you think very carefully about how you proceed.

We will be staying as a group in all things. ”

“You will comply or you lose your spot here,” Malik challenged.

“Last time I checked you don’t get to overrule the court,” Ledger said calmly. “Nor is the board going to lose out on the money we bring in.”

Malik turned sharply, grabbing a tray with a set of syringes waiting. The fact they were all the same stuck out. Color, size, needle, nothing varied. That was a red flag. Not one of our conditions was the exact same. Giving us all the same medication was not only dangerous, but unhinged.

“Chad, the door,” Malik said, ignoring us completely now. The fact he was brave enough to turn his back on Rydell was equally as suspicious.

Why was he so confident?

My answer came the moment the lock clicked. A hissing sound filled the air right as Malik and Chad stepped through the door on the other side.

“What the fuck is that?” Ledger growled, standing up and heading for the door. The moment he tried to twist the lock, it didn’t budge. “Rydell?!”

The bigger alpha surged forward, the metal groaning as he twisted, the knob eventually snapping off completely and falling uselessly to the ground.

My head was spinning, panic hitting me hard enough my vision was pulsing in time with my erratic heartbeat.

The air had a sterile scent now. When none of us fell to the ground or reacted, I realized exactly what this was.

A warning.

We were pushing back at his control and he didn’t like it. This was him showing us that this could end very differently next time if we didn’t watch ourselves.

Until then, we were trapped. Merely prey waiting for the predator to come back in.

Only, that wasn’t accurate. We were stronger together. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be so desperate.

It felt like we had the upper hand, and he was trying to fix that. We were unharmed now but next time… we wouldn’t be.

We’d have to be even more vigilant than before, staying together as much as possible, or we’d be left in Malik’s grasp.

I had a very strong feeling he wasn’t the only one behind this, either. Men like that never worked alone. He was too comfortable here to be running the show under Cross’ nose.

A loud banging on the door had Malik sauntering back out like he had no care in the world.

He shot us a smirk before the hissing stopped and he moved to the door.

He pressed his thumb to the side of the lock, revealing why it hadn’t clicked.

It protested, but eventually shifted, the door swinging open so violently it sent him stumbling back.

All hints of amusement were gone as Ares burst in. His gaze roamed over us, lingering on me, then back to the doctor.

“You’ve started something I assure you that you are not ready for, Malik,” Ares warned. “My group is exempt. Your little tactic to regain control didn’t fucking work. It was denied.”

The doctor had the balls to laugh in Ares’s face. I watched my alpha’s body tense in response. Ares leaned in, keeping his voice measured as he laid out his thoughts on Malik’s actions.

“You know, it’s always the puny alphas that think they’ve got the upper hand. Don’t worry, Malik. It always comes crashing down around you. Just know, when it starts, that I’ll be the one making sure it causes more pain than necessary.”

He stepped back, ignoring the venomous gaze Malik was shooting his way now. With a nod of his head we were moving, rushing out of the office and straight to our wing. I didn’t stop until we were past the threshold.

“Holy shit,” Caspian burst out, hands gripping his long, blond hair in frustration. “What the hell was that?!”

“Since when does he give shots?” Ledger added, just as agitated.

“Wait, what?” I said. “I’ve been given multiple shots.”

“Me, too,” Ansel tacked on. “For years. I thought it was standard.”

Ares burst in after us, locking the door behind him. He was shaking as he stalked toward me, not stopping until we were standing toe to toe.

“Did he hurt you?”

“No,” I breathed out, my voice quiet. The tension didn’t drain away when he had my answer. His fingers traced over my face softly, not stopping until he was holding onto the side of my neck.

I moved forward, resting my forehead against his. His scent sharpened, amber and spice wrapping around me like a gentle caress, reassuring me silently that my alpha had me.

He came for me. For us.

It felt like the first time in my life I could truly trust someone to keep me safe. The rest of my pack would try and I appreciated their efforts. But Ares was different. He was in a position to put that sentiment into action.

“Get me out of here,” I whispered. “Save us before he makes another move.”

“What happened in there?” he demanded, stepping back to stare at us all to make sure we knew he wanted every detail.

“He locked us in, then as they stepped out, he pumped something into the room,” Ledger said.

“It smelled sterile, not like it had drugs in it. I think it was a warning,” I said. “Telling us that he can still get to us, that your protection won’t help us. Neither will our freedom from the bracelets.”

“I hate that I gave him that chance,” Ares said, starting to pace. His combat boots slammed down with a thud each step he took, red hair flying out as he spun around to pace the other way. He looked like he was ready to go to war.

For us.

“He said he was making sure you had no say in our ‘treatment,’” Rydell told him as he air quoted the word. Because it was hardly based ion true medicine.

No, I had a feeling this was some sort of experiment. Or at least, testing out ways to keep us compliant. It wouldn’t be the first time he’s done it.

Those syringes still haunted me. What the hell was in them? Would he have used them if Ares hadn’t shown up?

I doubted our peace would last. The truth was Ares couldn’t be everywhere at once or he’d blow his cover.

In the end, I had to hope he’d get us out of here, but I wasn’t na?ve enough to think it would be simple or quick.

We had more to endure before we’d seen the last of these halls.