Page 26

The shrill beep of a timer yanks me from the edges of sleep, my heart seizing like a trapped bird. The world spins, a disorienting blur of half-formed dreams and stark reality.

“Cal. Wake up.”

Mac's voice, gentle and soothing, feels like sandpaper against my frayed nerves. His hand lands softly on my shoulder, but it might as well be a brand scorching through my skin.

I flinch, recoiling from his touch as though it burns.

Our eyes meet—his, soft and concerned. “Time's up. But I'd like you to stay.”

“Stay?”

The word echoes in my head, a foreign concept.

My heart stutters, an erratic drumbeat in my ears. Everything's moving too fast, spinning out of control as I'm sucked into a whirlpool of emotions I can't name, can't even understand.

Panic grips my chest with icy fingers, squeezing until I can hardly breathe. The walls seem to close in around me, suffocating and oppressive.

I shake my head, an instinctive, desperate need to flee overtaking me. I have to move, to escape this crushing tide before it swallows me whole.

“Cal?”

Mac’s voice sounds far away and muffled.

I scramble out of the bed in a clumsy, uncoordinated rush, my limbs tangling as I crash onto my hands and knees. My breaths come in sharp, ragged gasps as pain flares through my ass, my insides still feeling bruised and raw.

But I push upright, even as the room tilts wildly, then stagger toward the entryway, ignoring the cum running down the inside of my leg. Each step is a herculean effort, my body screaming in protest, but I can't stop. I have to keep moving.

Mac follows, his voice laced with concern. “Talk to me, Cal. What’s going on?”

My fingers are clumsy, fumbling as I dress in a hurried, mechanical fashion. My gaze fixates on the floor, but I see nothing, my vision blurred by the moisture welling in my eyes. Pressure builds behind them, unidentifiable emotions swelling recklessly, threatening to burst forth in a torrent I can't control.

“Shit.”

Mac rakes his hand through his thick hair, frustration and worry etched into the lines of his face. “Cal, just sit for a second. Let's figure this out.”

For the first time, I don’t do as he says, cinching my belt tight and hunching my shoulders as if to shield myself from the relentless assault of feelings battering against my psyche.

“Don’t leave like this.”

His voice falters, raw and aching. “Fucking hell. Wish Colt or Rex were here.”

Colt? Rex? Who the fuck are they?

I shake my head, the names spinning around my mind like a top, ones I know, but can’t slow enough to glimpse.

My hand trembles as I reach for the door handle. I need to get out of here. I can’t think, can’t breathe. The walls are closing in, the air thick and heavy, pressing down on me until I feel like I might suffocate.

He touches my forearm, a gentle restraint. “Let me help you through this, Cal. Whatever you're feeling, we can work it out together.”

“Out.”

The word tears from my throat, ragged and desperate. I gasp for breath, fighting against the constriction in my chest. “I need out.”

He pulls open the door, resignation and sorrow etched into the set of his jaw, and hands me something. It takes a moment for the smell to register, for my scattered thoughts to coalesce into something recognizable.

Meat.

I stare at it blankly for a moment, uncomprehending, before taking it and bolting through the open door. The cool night air hits me like a slap, a shock to my overheated skin, but I don't slow down.

I can't.

Tears spill down my cheeks, blurring my vision as I run. Each footfall sends a jolt of pain through my abused body, my ass throbbing, my insides aching.

My lungs burn, my muscles scream in protest, but I keep going. I just need to move, to escape, to outrun the terrifying depth of feeling that consumes me.

Eventually, I stumble to a stop, my body giving out, my strength depleted. I collapse against a tree, sliding down until I'm huddled on the ground, knees drawn to my chest, arms wrapped around myself in a futile attempt at comfort.

Sobs wrack my frame, tearing from my throat in harsh, guttural sounds that barely sound human. I don't know what to do, where to go. All I know is that I can't go back.

Not to Mac.

Not ever.