CHAPTER 27: CHAPTER 27

The silence pressed against me like a weight.

The air in the Alpha’s room was thick, suffocating, every shadow stretching too long, every breath I took too shallow. My chest heaved, but no matter how much air I dragged in, it wasn’t enough. I pulled my knees up to my chest, curling tight against the headboard, wishing I could fold myself into nothingness. But his presence was everywhere.

He didn’t even need to speak aloud his voice pulsed inside my skull, silk wrapped around knives.

"Do you know how skin feels when it tears, Elie? It doesn’t scream. It sighs."

A violent shudder ripped through me. "Stop..." My own whisper cracked like glass.

"I’d start with your shoulder," his inner voice murmured. "Pull it slow. The flesh would peel back like a dress slipping off. And I’d watch. I’d savor."

I pressed my palms against my ears, desperate, but it didn’t matter. His words weren’t sound. They were thought, crawling under my skin. I tried to focus on something anything. The bedframe digging into my spine. The burn of my fingernails biting into my palms. The sour taste of iron still lingering where I’d bitten my lip. But the images came anyway. In the dark, my arm glistened wet. Strips of skin hung loose, blood sliding down in slow, sticky lines. My bones peeked pale and obscene through the crimson.

"No!" I gasped, grabbing my arm, clawing at the skin, desperate to hold it in place. But my hand came away dry. Whole.

"Look closer," Alpha Zach’s voice purred.

Against my will, my eyes darted down again this time my stomach lurched. My entire hand was gone. Just bone. Tendons dangling. Blood pooling on the sheets.

I screamed, shoving myself backward into the headboard until my skull thudded against the wood. My vision blurred, tears hot and unstoppable.

The smell hit next burnt flesh, thick and bitter, filling my nose, coating my tongue. I gagged violently, clutching my throat, my stomach convulsing with dry heaves. Nothing came up but spit and sobs. The walls moved. I froze, horror locking my body in place as the wood rippled turning soft, slick. Flesh. Veins throbbed beneath the surface, faint and pulsing, as if the entire room was alive and breathing. My shriek broke raw through my throat. "Stop! Stop it!"

But he only laughed. Not in the room, not in my ears inside my head, reverberating against my thoughts until I thought my skull would crack.

"Do you see now? This house... it’s me. You’ll rot inside me when I’m finished with you."

"No—" My voice shredded into sobs.

The blanket under my hands twitched. No, not the blanket. Skin. Warm, damp, twitching beneath my palms like living flesh. I flung it away with a cry, stumbling sideways off the bed, my knees cracking against the floor. I scrambled backward, palms scraping against the carpet, until my spine hit the wall. But the wall pulsed. It was warm. Alive.

I clutched my head between my hands, rocking back and forth, sobbing, begging silently for it all to stop.

The door exploded open.

"Zachary!"

The voice cut through the madness sharp, commanding, human. I jerked my head up, blinking through tears. Elizabeth. The Alpha’s aunt stood in the doorway, her night robe wrapped tight around her, silver hair falling loose around her shoulders. Her eyes blazed fire. She didn’t even look at me. She stared at him. Because he was still here. He stood at the foot of the bed, tall and still, watching me writhe with silent, predatory fascination. His eyes glowed faint in the dark.

"Enough!" Elizabeth snapped, her voice cracking the air. "You’ve done enough to her."

"She ran." His voice was flat, unrepentant. "Prey needs to learn."

"She is not prey!" Elizabeth’s voice thundered, filling the room. "She is your personal omega. Your responsibility. Do you even understand what you’re doing to her?"

His head tilted, his lips barely twitching into something that wasn’t quite a smile. "Teaching her what happens when she forgets who owns her."

My stomach dropped. Tears ran unchecked down my cheeks. How can this psycho call this teaching?"

Elizabeth stepped forward, placing herself between us, her figure a wall of defiance. "You’ll release her. Now. Do you hear me, Zachary? She will not spend another moment locked in this nightmare."

For a long, brutal second, silence reigned. His stare bored into her, heavy with threat.

"You presume to command me?" he said at last, voice silk stretched thin.

"I am your father’s sister," Elizabeth answered, steel laced through every word. "And I will not stand by while you destroy her and yourself with this madness. Release her, or you’ll answer to me."

The air thickened. My lungs shriveled. And then, after what felt like forever, the psycho Alpha stepped back. Slowly. Reluctantly. The crushing weight of his presence loosened enough that I gasped for breath, sagging against the wall like my bones had given out. Elizabeth turned to me, her expression softening. She held out her hand. "Come."

I crawled toward her, my limbs trembling, and she steadied me, pulling me gently to my feet. Her warmth felt real. Solid. Not like the walls, not like the flesh blankets. She kept me close as she guided me toward the door. His voice followed us, low and venomous.

"Run again, little toad and I’ll make sure you never have legs to run with."

A choked sob tore out of me, but Elizabeth’s grip tightened. She yanked the door shut behind us. Out in the hall, my knees buckled. I slid down the wall, my body wracked with shaking sobs. My throat burned raw, every breath ragged. Elizabeth crouched beside me, her hand smoothing damp hair from my face. "Hush, child. You’re safe now."

The word scraped across my mind like a lie. Safe? Nothing about him felt safe. Nothing about this house felt safe.

Elizabeth’s eyes softened, but her lips pressed into a grim line. "Elie, you must understand. The Alpha..he isn’t well."

I lifted my blotched, tear streaked face to her. "He’s insane." My voice cracked, hoarse.

She flinched, but didn’t deny it. Her words came slowly, heavy. "His mind has been... unstable since boyhood. He carries a violence in him, a darkness he cannot control. Sometimes he fights it. Other times, it consumes him."

Hot tears slid down my cheeks. "Then why me? Why is he doing this to me?"

Elizabeth’s gaze locked onto mine. "Because you calm him."

I froze. My breath caught. "What?" How?"

"You tether him," she said, her tone raw with truth. "When you are near, the madness doesn’t take him as far. He doesn’t unravel completely. You—" her mouth trembled before she firmed it again "you are the only thing keeping him from collapsing into the void."

I shook my head violently. "No. No, I can’t—"

"You must." Her voice was firm, though her eyes glistened with pity. "If you run, he will break. And when he breaks, Elie, no one will be safe."

Sobs clogged my throat. "I can’t stay with him. I can’t, he will kill me, please.

"You won’t stay here," Elizabeth said, her hand gripping mine firmly. "You will move into his mansion. From now on, you’ll serve as his personal omega."

The words knocked the air out of me. My body recoiled as if struck. "No. Please. Please don’t make me.

"Elie." Her voice softened again, but it held iron. "This is the only way. If you leave, he will come for you again and next time, I may not be able to stop him. If you stay close, I can protect you. And more importantly... you can protect him, in the only way you can."

I shook my head until it throbbed. My tears fell in heavy, hopeless streams. The thought of living under his roof, of being his personal omega, trapped beneath his gaze, his voice in my head it hollowed me out. But what choice did I have? Elizabeth squeezed my hand tighter, her grip steady as iron shackles. "It is decided. Tomorrow, you move into the Alpha’s mansion."

I collapsed against her shoulder, my body heaving with silent sobs. And deep inside, a cold realization burned: Escape would never come.

The morning came too quickly. I hadn’t slept. My body had curled itself on the thin mat in the servants’ quarters, trembling through the hours as Elizabeth’s words echoed over and over.

Tomorrow, you move into the Alpha’s mansion. Now, the light filtered gray through the tiny window, weak and cold. My eyes burned from crying. My throat was raw. My stomach twisted in tight knots that refused food, even when one of the older omegas shoved a stale piece of bread into my hand. They knew I had been summoned. Word traveled fast in this stupid pack, faster still among the omegas. I felt their stares when I rose, clutching the small bundle of belongings I owned. A single dress, a comb with broken teeth, and the thin blanket I had always used. It looked pitiful tied in cloth, but it was all I had.

"You’re lucky," one omega muttered, her voice just loud enough for me to hear. Her eyes glittered with something sharp. "The Alpha never takes a personal omega. You must have done something special."

Her words burned. I wanted to laugh if only she knew what kind of special treatment he gave me. Another girl, barely older than me, sneered. "Probably whored herself for it. Why else would she be chosen?"

The others giggled, and my cheeks burned with shame. I hugged my bundle tighter against my chest, staring at the floor so they wouldn’t see the tears welling in my eyes.

If only they knew. If only they understood that every step closer to his mansion felt like a march toward my own grave. But they didn’t. They only saw the title. Personal omega. A position they envied, imagining fine clothes, better food, maybe even the Alpha’s favor. They couldn’t imagine what it truly meant to be the chosen prey of a predator who never tired of the hunt.

"Leave her alone."

The voice was soft but steady. Joan. I turned, relief flooding me when I saw her. She was slight, with dark curls framing her kind face. Joan had always been gentle with me, offering me scraps when I was too weak to work, whispering small comforts when the others tore me down. She walked up and slipped her hand into mine, glaring at the others with a fire I’d never seen in her before. "Don’t talk about what you don’t understand." The others rolled their eyes but fell silent. Their whispers picked up again the moment Joan guided me away, but I tried to block them out.

When we reached the end of the hall, she stopped, turning to face me. Her eyes searched mine, and what she saw there made her lips tremble. "Elie..."

I swallowed hard, my voice breaking. "I don’t want to go."

Her hand squeezed mine. "I know."

"I can’t survive in that place. I can’t survive him." My chest heaved, panic spilling out in waves. "Joan, he he’s not right. He’s..." I broke off, shaking my head, unable to put into words the horrors of his voice, the visions that still lingered like stains on my mind. She didn’t press me. Maybe she already knew. Maybe she had seen enough to guess. Her arms wrapped around me suddenly, pulling me into a fierce hug. "Listen to me," she whispered into my hair. "You are stronger than you think. Whatever he does... hold on. Don’t let him take you from you." I clung to her, my tears soaking her shoulder. "I’m scared."

"I know." Her voice cracked. "But you’re not alone, Elie. Remember that."

She pulled back, brushing at my tears with her thumb. She tried to smile, though it wavered. "When you can, come find me. I’ll always listen."

My throat ached with the words I couldn’t say. What if I never get to see you again?

But I nodded, because I didn’t have the strength for anything else. Elizabeth arrived soon after, her presence commanding enough that the other omegas scattered. Her gaze fell on me, softening slightly. "Come, child."

Joan gave my hand one last squeeze before letting go. I followed Elizabeth, my bundle clutched tight, my legs weak but moving because there was no choice. The path to the Alpha’s mansion felt endless. The main house loomed larger with every step, three stories of stone and shadow, its high windows like watchful eyes. It looked less like a home and more like a beast crouched, waiting to swallow me whole. My feet faltered at the door, but Elizabeth’s hand guided me forward.

"Remember what I told you," she murmured. "Stay close. Stay calm. You’re safer near him than away."

Safer. The word tasted like ash, I can never be safe from that crazy psycho.

Inside, the mansion smelled of polished wood, leather, and something darker beneath his scent, sharp and suffocating. The halls were wide, draped with heavy curtains and lined with portraits of long-dead Alphas staring down with cold, painted eyes.Elizabeth led me upstairs, her hand steady on my shoulder. We stopped at a door on the second floor.

"This will be your room," she said. "It is close to his. He may call for you at any hour."

My stomach twisted. The thought of him just a wall away made my skin crawl.

Elizabeth placed a hand against my cheek, her gaze heavy with something between pity and resolve. "Be careful, Elie. I’ll watch over you as best I can. But much of this is between you and him."

I wanted to beg her not to leave me, but the words caught in my throat. She gave me one last look before turning away, her robes swishing softly as she disappeared down the hall. The door clicked shut behind me. The room was small but neat. A narrow bed, a dresser, a single window with thick curtains drawn tight. It smelled faintly of dust, and beneath it all, that same suffocating scent him. I sat on the bed, clutching my bundle to my chest. My body trembled, my mind racing with Joan’s words, Elizabeth’s warnings, his voice that never truly left me. Night came slowly. The mansion grew silent, shadows stretching long across the floor. I lay on the bed fully clothed, my eyes wide, my ears straining for every sound. The first time the door creaked open, my heart nearly stopped. His figure filled the doorway, tall and dark. He stepped inside without a word, his eyes glowing faint in the moonlight spilling through the curtains.

I froze, every muscle locking tight.

"Inner voice: Still here. Good. I thought you might have run again."

I swallowed hard, pressing myself against the headboard.

"You look better frightened," he mused, his inner tone curling with satisfaction. "Eyes wide. Breathing shallow. Like prey that knows the trap has closed."

He stayed for what felt like forever, just staring, just letting me drown in his presence. Then he turned and left, the door clicking softly shut. I let out a shaky breath, tears slipping silently down my cheeks. But it didn’t end there. The second time, the door opened slower. He stepped inside again, closer this time. His shadow fell across the bed.

"You won’t leave me," his voice hissed. "Even if I have to chain you to the floor, you’ll never leave again."

I curled tighter into myself, biting down on my lip to keep from sobbing aloud. He lingered, then left again.

The third time, he came all the way to the bed. I felt the mattress dip slightly under his weight as he sat at the edge. His hand didn’t touch me, but it hovered close, close enough that my skin burned with phantom fire.

"Mine," his voice growled low and possessive. "You will sleep, you will wake, you will breathe under my watch. Every breath you take belongs to me."

A sob tore from my throat before I could stop it. My hands shook violently as I tried to cover my ears, but it was useless. His voice wrapped tight around my thoughts, inescapable.

He leaned closer, his breath brushing against my hair. "Inner voice: Run in your dreams if you want. I’ll be waiting when you wake."

The door shut behind him again, but I didn’t move. Couldn’t. My body shook so violently the bed creaked beneath me. I lay awake the rest of the night, eyes wide, listening for the door, waiting for the next time he would come. Sleep never came. Only his voice, echoing in my head long after he was gone.