Page 11 of Unhinged

CHAPTER EIGHT

brYDGETT

They think they can keep me here? No way in hell. I’ve given them what they wanted. Whether I’m their scent match or not, it’s time for me to take my son and blow this popsicle stand.

“There’s no way you’re the Slayer. You’re an omega, for fuck’s sake.” Gears laughs, the sound grating on my nerves.

“Believe it or don’t, that’s your problem, not mine. I’ve told you what you asked. Now untie me,” I grit.

Arrow rushes over, dropping to his knees in front of me, a blade flashing as he pulls it from the back of his pants.

My heart races as he slices through the binding around my left ankle.

For a moment, hope flutters in my chest, but it’s quickly crushed when Gears grabs Arrow by the cut and yanks him back, sending him sprawling to the floor.

“What the fuck are you doing, Arrow?” Gears growls, authority radiating from him.

“She’s our scent match—our Kismet,” Arrow snaps back, his tone urgent as if this should be obvious to everyone. “I’m freeing her.”

“She ain’t the Slayer. Look at her,” Gears scoffs, throwing a dismissive hand in my direction.

Acid steps forward, looking as pale as a ghost. We lock eyes for a brief second before he quickly looks away. “She was in the bed with Kenny’s body. We saw her grab the knife. There was no one else.”

“It doesn’t matter about any of that,” Arrow argues, his voice rising. “She’s our omega, and we have her bound to a fucking chair in front of her son.”

Their omega? No. I’m not theirs. I’m not anyone’s.

Kismet means nothing to me. They put hands on my child, took both of us and kept us apart.

The trauma they’ve inflicted on Judge, the fear in his eyes…

that overrides everything else. I am not defined by my designation; it does not and will not control me.

But I know one thing for sure: we’re going to have to move again. They won’t stop hunting us now. It’s a shame—we really liked it here. Especially Judge.

“Okay, fine.” Gears finally relents, though his tone is still laced with skepticism. “Say she is the Alpha Slayer. We said we’d work out a deal with him . Now he’s apparently a she, so let’s work it out.”

Arrow takes that as his cue, releasing my other ankle and then my wrists. The moment I’m free, I stand, stretching my stiff limbs, shaking out the numbness. But as soon as I feel the blood flowing again, I turn and slam my fist into Gears’ already broken nose.

“Son of a fucking bitch!” he howls, clutching his face as blood spurts between his fingers.

With his hands busy with his nose, I follow up with a sharp knee to his groin. He wheezes, dropping to the floor, and I smirk at him.

“I told you if there was one mark on my boy, there’d be hell to pay. I might not be able to kill you since we’re Kismet, but I’ll be damned if we strike any kind of deal.” I spit on the ground next to him, my words low and venomous.

“But we’re Kismet,” Arrow whispers, almost pleading.

I spin around to face him, my face twisted in rage. “Yeah? And I usually slit the throats of the bastards who lay a hand on an omega. Go fuck yourself.”

Without waiting for a response, I storm over to Judge, who’s standing by the stairs, his eyes wide and frightened. My heart aches at the sight, but I push the emotion aside. “Come on, baby. We’re leaving.”

I lead him up the stairs, my grip tight on his small hand. As we reach the top, I cautiously push the door open and peer out. The hallway stretches out before us, dimly lit, with walls on either side.

“Judge, I need you to be quiet, okay? We have to get out of here without any trouble.”

He nods, and I lean down to kiss the top of his head, trying to convey some semblance of comfort.

I step into the hallway, moving quickly but carefully, checking the first door.

It’s a playroom, the sound of the Sonic movie humming from a large screen.

Not what we need. I shut the door and move to the next one, but it’s locked.

Panic starts to creep in as I hear the alphas charging up the stairs.

“Mom,” Judge whispers, pointing at a door on the opposite side of the hall.

How did I miss that?

I rush to the door, yanking it open just as the basement door slams against the wall. Gears stands at the top, chest heaving, eyes wild. “Omega!” he shouts, the command rattling through me, but I refuse to let it take hold.

Ignoring him, I shove Judge through the door and follow, my heart pounding in my ears. We’re in a large room with a bar, pool table, and a couch, but it’s empty—except for an older woman emerging from a door on the right. Her eyes widen in shock when she sees us.

“Get your ass back here now, Omega!” Gears yells, this time using his alpha bark. I wince, but keep moving. Ike had me practice for months, denying my nature to bend to the bark of an alpha. How could I kill them when they saw me coming, and they demand that I stop?

Ignoring Gears is a lot harder than some run-of-the-mill alpha, but I can still do it. My eyes scan the room, looking for an exit to the outside.

The woman whistles, catching my attention, and nods toward a door to my left. I don’t hesitate. Grabbing Judge’s hand, I dash toward it, flinging it open and stumbling outside into the cold night air.

I need my car. Where the fuck did they put my car?

As if on cue, I hear the roar of an engine and the crunch of gravel as my GTO rounds the corner, sliding to a stop just feet away.

“Get in!” a young girl shouts from behind the wheel.

I don’t know who she is or how she got my car, but I don’t care. I pull open the passenger door and haul Judge onto my lap just as Arrow, Acid, and Gears burst through the front door.

“Where to?” the girl asks as we pull out of the compound drive and out onto the open road.

“Who are you?” I narrow my eyes at her. “And how did you get my car?”

“That’s Dillon,” Judge pipes up from my lap, his words small. “She and Bettie were nice to me. They hung out with me while I was there.”

“Is that true?” I turn back to Dillon, suspicion in my tone.

She meets my gaze briefly before focusing on the road. “Yeah. Gears and Arrow are my brothers. My dad was the Prez before he died. They’re not supposed to harm women or kids. It’s club law.”

I laugh bitterly. “Well, they’re not exactly following that, sweetheart. At least, not with me.”

“We figured. My mom can always tell when one of us is lying, and she knew those three fuckheads told her some bullshit. So we made a plan to get you out ourselves. You sped it up a bit, breaking yourself out, but I like a damsel who rescues herself.”

Well, at least there’s a few people in that place that are decent. I wonder what will happen to Dillon and her mom for helping us. I don’t want them getting hurt for betraying their family.

“What’s gonna happen to you for this? To your mom?”

“Nothing,” Dillon replies without hesitation. “I’m sure Gears will lose his shit, but he knows Mom will smack his ass around if he disrespects her.”

I reach for the glove box, popping it open and rooting around until my fingers find what I’m looking for — a tiny black dime bag. Tearing the seal, I dump the small lavender pill into my palm.

“What’s that?” Dillon asks, glancing over.

“Emergency scent blocker,” I mutter, tossing the pill back and swallowing it dry. “Starts working in ten minutes. Can’t have your brothers following my trail like bloodhounds, can I?”

“No,” Dillon agrees with a faint smile. “Guess not.” She pauses, her fingers flexing on the wheel. “They’re not all bad, you know. They’re actually good guys — just… fucked up when it comes to you.”

I choke out a bitter laugh. “I’ll take your word for it.”

We drive in silence, my mind racing as I try to come up with a plan. We need to get out of town, and fast. Ike’s. We need to get to Ike’s. I’m sure since those assholes know where I work, they also know where we live. I’m not gonna force Judge to leave with nothing. This is the only home he knows.

Marcus.

We can hide out with him until the coast is clear, then I’ll send him up to Georgia’s and she can pack a bag for us. If anyone asks, she can say she babysits Judge. It’s close enough to the truth.

“Drop us at the corner of Genoa and Fifth,” I say, my voice firm.

“Yeah, I can do that. What about the car?”

“Keep it. It’s yours now. The title’s in my apartment, under my mattress. Forge my name and make it official,” I tell her, my chest tightening at the thought of parting with my pride and joy.

“You’re sure?” Her eyes widen in disbelief.

“Consider it payment for helping us.”

“Whatever you say, babe.” She shakes her head, pressing the gas harder as we speed toward our escape.