Page 4 of Rot In Knotty Pieces

“When I need you, come running. Please.”

“Always, Brother. Always.” He sighs. “Sari is looking for you.”

“Tell her…” I trail off. “I don’t know what to tell her; make something up,” I say in resignation.

Missing my alphas. Missing my family. All of it hurts. Nothing is good. Being secluded in a small hideout with Rose has been agony. Oh, I understand him, and now, I respect the fuck out of this alpha. But there’s been no time for a relationship to build, no time for anything other than become so used to each other that we anticipate each other’s movements.

“Gasp. And lie to your best friend?”

I snarl, frustrated at the guilt trip and the fact that I can’t tell anyone the truth.

“You are my best friend,” I grumble at him.

Mark sighs. “Then, as your best friend, I’m asking again if there’s anything else I can do to help?”

The fact that he’s offering helps and hurts. The fact that he’s always on my side gives me the strength to say no.

I open my mouth, then stop, freezing where I stand when I see the cottage door open. Through the pouring rain, I watch intently. My heart thudding hard.

“Pix?”

“Just take care of everything until I can come back,” I say quickly.

I hang up and watch the girl come out of the cottage. She doesn’t look my way. She tosses her hair, pulls up an umbrella, and then disappears down the side street and out of my view.

Still safe.

The secret is still a secret.

Raven’s secret…is still safe.

I wait another fifteen minutes and then return to my bike and leave as quickly as I arrived, with no one the wiser.

It’s time to get back to my pack.

Blaze

He tugs against the arms holding him but more like he’s testing their conviction. I feel sorry for them because this is not going to go well. The man looks like my beloved.

Except right now…I can see all the differences in stark contrast. His hair is thinner and a shade or two lighter than Sage’s natural deep red colour. Their eyes are almost identical, but his father’s eyes are flatter, duller, and show his fear and greed too easily.

He roars at Sage, ignoring King holding him, his tendons bulge, and his face turns purple. King’s grip holds the alpha in place, preventing him from moving even an inch.

Sage has had enough.

I’ve been waiting for years for him to get to the stage where patricide was finally the only option he had. It’s inevitable.

It’s going to be glorious.

I’ve had this property forever. Keeping it specifically for this purpose. No one will hear him scream. It’s been weeks, and Sage kept my mind from breaking, letting me hunt and kill until my bloodlust was sated, then held me when exhaustion gripped me. But the bonds flow both ways, and we’re both too close to the edge. Our omegas are gone.

What fucking sanity?

And this…his plan. How could I say no?

Beside Dwight is a woman. An omega who has quickly become one of my most least liked people on the planet. She looks nothing at all like her son. Her hair is a dull brown and her eyes are muddy. She’s thin and tall and has pointed features. I just don’t see Rose in her at all.

She hurt my alphas.