Life at home really sucks, but I find a little solace in the fact that, for once in my life, Jessa and Phoenix are on my side.

    Kind of.

    I am still a little worried that Jessa''s just going to stab me in my sleep, but I don''t think she wants to deal with the wrath that will come with that kind of drastic measure. I''m pretty sure she''s keeping it as an option, but I don''t think she''s going to do it anytime soon.

    Thanks to Jessa''s pointing out of the obvious, my stress level is somewhat reduced as I thank Clayton in my head for succumbing to his heat-driven passions. Until Alpha Renard is sure that I have no Aspen pup in my womb, he''s not going to touch me.

    I can tell he has no true desire for me. Every time he looks at me, it''s with calculation. I don''t think the man''s capable of feeling true desire for someone like me.

    If our numbers were greater, I truly believe he would eradicate humans from the world instead of fighting with other packs.

    It doesn''t keep me safe now with this ridiculous ''true omega'' nonsense they''ve got in their heads, but at least I have the luck of Mother Nature on my side...

    And Jessa''s cell phone.

    She''s not thrilled about it, but sits on the couch while I wait in the kitchen, listening to the ringing as I call Lisa''s phone.

    They shouldn''t be keeping tabs on her now that I''m back, right?

    But even if they do—she''s my only ticket out of here.

    "Hello?" her suspicious voice finally answers, after I call her three times in a row.

    "Lise, it''s me."

    "Ava. Oh, my God. You''re alive. You''re okay. Wait, are you okay?"

    A laugh bubbles in my throat even as tears fill my eyes. I love Lisa so damn much. How did I ever deserve a friend like her?

    "There''s a lot to fill you in on, but just wait and listen to the important stuff right now. I''ve been dragged back home. They caught me in Washington, where—oh, shit, you don''t even know. I was with the Aspen pack... There''s a lot to unpack there. We''ll do that later. Anyway, some things happened and somehow they found out about it."

    Wait. How did they find out?

    I need to ask Phoenix.

    Like, as soon as I hang up the phone.

    "Ave?"

    "Sorry. I got distracted. Um, anyway, they found me and brought me home. Long story short, my alpha wants to make babies with me because he thinks I have some special womb—"

    "Oh, are you an omega?"

    Pulling the phone away from my ear, I double check the number on the screen. It''s definitely Lisa. "Um, how do you know about omegas?"

    "I can''t. Not until I know it''s safe. It''ll be the first place they look." Because they think I''m mated to Clayton.

    "Then I''ll figure out somewhere for us to go. When are we going to meet? Where?"

    "I don''t know yet. I have to find a way to get out of here. You''d never make it onto pack lands, so I have to somehow get away first."

    "That''s fine. I''ll get cash. Ooh, maybe I can convince Dad to get me a new car. Something they can''t trace so easily."

    Lisa''s taking this seriously, but I can hear the excitement in her voice. To her, running from here is going to be an adventure. She doesn''t understand...

    She hasn''t seen what I have.

    She doesn''t know what I know.

    This is nothing like in the books or stories.

    My brother brought a gun when he came to bring me home.

    My sister wants to kill me.

    These aren''t normal things good, law-abiding humans deal with.

    "We''ll figure it out," I say again, trying to infuse confidence into my voice. "This is my sister''s phone, so just save it in case I call from it again."

    "Your sister? I thought she hates you."

    "Well, we''re temporarily united in a common goal," I say dryly, hyperaware of Jessa''s presence in the other room. I''m sure she''s listening to every word. "If I give any kids to our alpha, my brother''s not going to be the alpha anymore."

    "Oh, shit. Your brother is going to be alpha? Wait, then can''t we just kill the old one and let him take over?"

    I cover the mouth of the phone, as if that''s somehow going to stop Jessa from hearing what''s coming out of it. "Shh," I hiss. "You need to be careful saying things like that."

    "I''m just saying, it''s probably what they''d do on TV."

    "TV isn''t real life, Lise," I groan.

    "Okay, okay. I know. But are you okay right now, Ava?"

    "I''m fine. I''m better than I was. Everyone''s just kind of ignoring me. I''m always under guard." It''s nice when Jessa''s here, because they aren''t outside. Jessa''s stronger than any of the guards they''ve assigned to guard me.

    "Are you going to be able to do it? You know, get out of there?"

    I look in the direction of the living room. All my hopes are pinned on Jessa and Phoenix. Even if they aren''t doing it for me, having them on my side, even temporarily, is my best bet by far.

    "Yeah."