Page 32 of The Silver Pact
I hate me now, too. She will never forgive me.
I’m so tired.
Present Day
There is something really, really wrong.
I open the door to the nest, and everything inside me goes feral. I have to fight back a snarl and whirl, staring at the others.
“I need you to stay out here. Just give me a few minutes.”
“What the fuck?” Quint snarls, but I shake my head, and his face transforms. He backs off warily.
“Trust me,” I say to Ross and Ian.
They hesitate, and then nod. I calmly close the door and send a quick prayer to whoever is on the other side that I’ve made the right decision.
It takes me a moment to find her. She’s perched in the middle of the bed, with her arms wrapped around her knees. She is so painfully still. In the dark, it’s hard to make anything out, but the scent is crystal clear.
She’s terrified.
“Silver?”
She shudders but doesn’t answer.
“I’m just going to move a bit closer. I’m not going to touch you.” I keep my voice pitched low and my movements slow and even.
I take a slow, cautious step towards the bed. She eyes me like she doesn’t know me. That’s not good.
“All right, Silver, sweetie. I know this is hard, but I need you to see if you can remember who I am. Can you tell me what my name is?” I keep my voice low and unthreatening, silently pleading for her to remember me.
She lets out a low growl of pure warning.
“When I was little, Quint and I used to look similar enough that no one could tell us apart. Can you tell me my name?”
She unclenches her jaw, and I notice the death grip she has on her legs. That’s got to be hurting.
“West-“ the rasp comes out, and my heart jumps in my chest. I have to hold back a shout of triumph.
I take a step closer. “No one is going to hurt you. No one is going to touch you without your express permission, baby, but we don’t want to see you hurting, and you are hurting.”
She shudders. “I-” She cuts herself off short and tightens that terrible hold she has on herself.
“Talk to me, tell me what’s wrong.”
“Lights. Sounds. Smells. This room.” Silver spits out and lets out another growl.
I chance another two steps until I’m halfway up the bed. I could reach out and grab her, but that would be a shocking betrayal of the fragile trust I’m building.
“We don’t have to stay here. We could have a look in the house and see if there’s a better spot.”
“I don’t want!” She hisses and rises up. “Do you want my body, Alpha?”
I don’t like this sudden seductive tone.
“I don’t just want your body, Omega, I want all of you. Your mind, your soul, your heart, and your body. I want you to trust me and know that I’ll take care of you, and you’ll never feel pain from my hands.”
Confusion flickers in her eyes. She sucks in a deep breath. “West?”