Page 157 of Pretty When She Breaks

I desperately kicked off the wall, and thankfully, Finch turned, barrelling down the dark stretch of tunnels. My shoulder was screaming in protest, and it may have opened again, but I couldn’t let go.

It smelled musty and damp down here, and I grimaced as the floor grew more and more wet, Finch’s footsteps scattering sharp splashes as he ran. I didn’t know where he thought he was going, but we were getting further away from the relatively stable main passage.

I’d explored down here a few times and was using my wall kicks to redirect his momentum and keep us away from what I knew were dead ends.

We turned a corner, and to my alarm, I saw a light up ahead, sticking out of one of the walls.

“Here!” Kaos hissed, and I could have fainted from relief.

Jade had texted me and Kaos as soon as things had started to go wrong, and I’d come as fast as I could.

Not fast enough.

Finch had been in a full-on rut by the time I’d made it. I was lucky we’d escaped.

As we came closer, I saw Kaos, head sticking out of a panel in the wall, goggles glinting in the dim red light.

I took a breath and kicked the wall sharply again, Finch careening to the side as I changed his direction. I stretched out my arm, reaching for the glowing light. Kaos grabbed hold of my hand, and with a painful jerk, I was torn off Finch's back and started scrambling into the hole.

Finch’s snarl peeled through the air, reverberating around us as he skidded to a stop. I was panting as Kaos helped haul me up, and then Finch was behind us, his hand grazing my leg as I slipped into the wall.

Kaos was in a low crouch, pressing himself back.

“My nest?” I asked him, pointing left.

He nodded, and I crawled past him as Finch followed me into the tunnel. It was cramped, and dusty, and overall extremely uncomfortable trying to flee in this forgotten space behind the walls. Finch grabbed hold of my leg and dragged me backwards, and I cried out as my knee caught on a nail, tearing the skin.

There were sounds of a scuffle, and then something small and hard was shoved at me.

“Headlight,” Kaos panted, and Finch’s grip on me loosened.

I squirmed around, switching on the light and illuminating the two alphas crammed into the tunnel behind me. I reached out and touched Finch’s face, causing him to still.

“We can’t stop yet,” I told him gently. “We could still be found here.” I turned to Kaos. “You lead the way.”

He nodded and wriggled forward. The movement caused Finch to stir again, trying to pull me to his side. I let Kaos past, trying to stop Finch from pinning me down completely.

Kaos went ahead as I slowly coaxed a wild Finch through the old passages. I slipped out of his grasp and squirmed forward. He snarled again, and I managed to avoid his hand as I led him on.

“Come on,” I panted. “You can do it.” I glanced back, illuminating Finch’s filthy and grumpy face. He was squeezing through a smaller gap where a metal pipe had bent. He’d started whining by the time we began ascending the wall by the Blood Well, his attempts to catch me getting more and more frantic.

Finally, I pulled myself onto the rickety platform and collapsed on the pile of blankets. Finch clambered up next to me, immediately descending on me with an indignant huff.

Kaos had switched on the fairy lights, and I tugged Finch until we were finally settled in my nest. I felt a weight lift off my shoulders as Finch closed his eyes, clutching me tight.

Safe.

We were finally safe here.

My head flicked up as I felt something pulling on Finch’s shirt, and I found Kaos trying to remove it.

“What are you doing?” I asked, jerking away as Kaos tore the fabric down the back. Finch snapped his jaw as Kaos retreated.

“I know it’s not ideal, but you need skin-to-skin contact,” Kaos said. He’d taken off his goggles, and they had left deep red marks on his face. He cocked his head to the side. “You’ve soothed an alpha through a rut before, right?”

I turned back to Finch, brushing the dust off his shoulders as his eyes met mine again. “Not exactly.” I leaned forward, resting my head against Finch’s bare chest. “But it’s my job, and I don’t need you telling me how to do it.”

“Okay.” I thought that was it, but then I felt the blankets shift behind me and Kaos was there. “You should probablytake your clothes off, too,” he said, and I smacked his hand away as he reached for me.