Page 104 of Pretty When She Breaks

It was only when my limbs were shaking from the effort that Hugo said I could stop.

I wiped the sweat from my forehead. “You’re a real hardass, you know that?” I puffed.

He snorted. “Please. Laurel could do all those for twice the time without breaking a sweat, when she was twelve.”

I perked up with interest. “She could?”

“Sure, she could. The older Jule got without claiming an aura, the more his twat of a father sent him to me. As if you could make someone an alpha by having them train to fight. Laurel used to sneak in and join us when she could.”

“What a little rebel,” I said, imagining a small Laurel learning to kick ass.

“She’s a good kid. Her brother was a complete brat, but his heart was in the right place. She lost a lot of her fire when she lost him.”

“What happened?” I asked.

“His father, that’s what,” he snapped, and I decided not to push the conversation further.

I sank down on my pallet and lay back, preparing myself for another day of staring at my cage walls.

God, the sheer boredom of being stuck here might make me go crazy faster than any rut drug.

The time was only marked by Casey’s comings and goings as he tended to the alphas here.

He put down my breakfast with an apologetic smile. He had a black eye and a split lip.

“Jesus, Casey, what happened to you?” I asked, frowning at him.

“Oh. Just an accident when I was washing Titan,” he said, shrugging it off.

“They should have alphas doing that stuff. I mean, they shouldn’t be keeping feral alphas down here in the first place, but you know what I mean.”

He shrugged again. “We’re getting a new guard today,” he said, looking worried. “I might not be able to keep talking to you like this.”

I nodded, my heart sinking.

We’d lose a lot more than just talking.

Casey was the only nice person who worked here. It sucked when anyone else was on duty, and even though I felt a bit guilty, I was really grateful that Casey was scheduled so much.

“Boy!” Lars’s voice cut through the room, and Casey jumped. “Come meet your new partner.”

Casey gave me a worried look but walked away, cranking up the portcullis gate, then stepping through the reinforced door to where Lars was waiting for him.

Standing next to Lars was a small, dark-haired male. For a second, I blinked, sure there must have been a mistake. There was no way this person was a security guard—his tranquilizer gun and guard uniform looked comically big on him.

He could have been the poster child for male omegas. He didn’t even look old enough to grow facial hair yet, and his long, dark lashes and plump lips landed him firmly in adorable territory, even as he scowled at theroom.

“This is Shaun,” Lars said disdainfully as the boy directed his scowl at Casey. “Honestly, they keep sending me fuckin’ trash. First you, now this kid. Try not to let him get killed on his first day.”

I stifled a laugh as Shaun flipped Lars off from behind his back. Casey gave a cough.

“Hi,” Casey said, straightening up to his full height. “I’m Casey.”

The new guard nodded at him curtly.

“Right,” Lars said. “I’m out of here, then. There’s keys and an ID on the desk.”

“Yes, sir,” Casey replied, and Lars glared at him before storming off.