Chapter 294
Chapter 294
37 – Finn
Greta guided me over to Ryker’s packhouse, where I was able to freshen up and change clothes. It still amazes me how fortunate I am to have access to all the essentials-clean clothes, supplies, everything right at my fingertips. Cindy, the petite kitchen omega with a heart of gold, packed us some meals to take along, and soon we were on the road.
“Uh… so how is this going to work?” I asked cautiously, breaking the silence. Physically, we had the whole mating thing sorted out. Greta had even allowed me to hold her hand for most of the drive, which was a small but significant comfort.
“What do you mean?” she replied, though her voice lacked conviction. I could tell she was wrestling with practical concerns, just like me.
“Well, now that we’re mated, there’s no way I’m sleeping apart from you. But my apartment? It’s tiny. It won’t fit you, me, and potentially up to four kids.” I watched her eyes widen in surprise. Maybe she hadn’t been considering the same logistics I
was.
“What makes you think we’re going to have up to four kids with us?” Her voice cracked slightly, that husky tone making her sound even more adorable. I couldn’t help but smile at how nervous she was. Kids had never factored into her life plan before, and now I understood why. But we had this chance to help children who were lost and alone—and I refused to abandon them the way I had been left behind.
“I figure that until we figure out what happened to their pack, and we’re absolutely sure there’s no one else willing and able to take them in, it makes sense to keep them together. And since Trinity seems to have decided that we’re her people p>
“You Greta interrupted, a teasing laugh escaping her lips. “You’re her person. She must have been a daddy’s girl.” She chuckled at me.
“I think every girl should be a daddy’s girl. Weren’t you?” I teased, watching a fleeting smile cross her face so quickly I almost missed it. It was a subtle attempt to coax her into opening up about her past. Thanks to Ryker, I already knew some of the trauma she’d endured, but I wanted to hear the good parts too. She was silent for a moment, and I struggled to find a way to keep the conversation flowing. Then, she took a deep breath and turned to look at me. Nᴇw ɴovel chaptᴇrs are published on.net
“As a matter of fact, I was. But that probably had a lot to do with the fact that we lost my mother when I was young. For a long time, it was just him and me p>
“And he’s not here now, so I’m guessing he didn’t make it out of your pack with you.” A tear slipped down her cheek, but she didn’t avert her gaze. I had to remind myself to keep my eyes on the road and not get lost in the beauty of her face.
She inhaled deeply before continuing. “No, he didn’t make it out. I think he made the choice early on to stay behind until everyone else was safe. Then I was taken, and everything changed p>
“What do you mean p>
“The attack was sudden. The rogue pack that invaded didn’t kill everyone immediately. Most of us were captured and locked away in the dungeons beneath
the packhouse. The rest fled into the surrounding forest p>
“Dungeons?” I asked, incredulous. Who even has dungeons these days?
“Yes.” She let out a watery laugh. “Our packhouse was actually an old castle, complete with dungeons. My father moved back and forth, rescuing people a few at a time. I tried to help. Early on, the daughters of the ranked members were kept in the upper bedrooms for breeding. The rogue alpha was desperate to have the strongest pup, and he didn’t care how many girls he went through to get one p>
I struggled to focus on that disturbing detail without losing control of the truck. “So, how did you help your dad get people out?” I asked, shifting the conversation.
“At first, we were allowed to move around our floor, going from room to room. That ended once they realized fewer and fewer of us were around. A few of us girls knew secret ways to sneak out of the castle unseen-that’s the benefit of being reckless teenagers. But we could only free one person at a time, so the guards wouldn’t notice right away. Some girls never left their rooms out of fear, and after being forced to spend time with that monster, they came back broken—mentally and physically. We focused on rescuing the weaker and broken ones first. One night, after freeing a beta girl, I was heading back to my room when one of the rogue alpha’s guards caught me. That’s when I was thrown into the dungeons. None of them were allowed to… you know, but that didn’t stop them from doing whatever else they wanted p>
I swallowed hard, the weight of her words settling heavily between us as we drove on through the quiet night.