Page 29 of My Unhinged Alphas
A cross. It’s not decorative. It’s not polished wood bought from a store. It looks handmade, like someone welded it together out of twisted metal rods. The lines aren’t perfectly straight. One side is slightly longer than the other.
It feels less like faith and more like a warning.
My pulse spikes again.
Okay. Breathe.
I swing my legs over the side of the bed slowly, expecting something to pull tight, for rope to bite into my skin?—
Nothing. No restraints.
No one standing in the corner.
No sound except my own breathing.
Then memory hits me in jagged pieces. The restaurant, Ethan, his smile, the way he said his full name and for a split second I was sure the last name was different than what I’d seen on the app. I told myself he was nervous. People mess up when they’re nervous.
The drink.
God. The drink.
The way the room started to tilt, just slightly. The way my fingers felt heavier than they should. The way I tried to stand and the floor moved away from me instead of staying where it was supposed to.
The car.
The basement.
Masks.
Blood.
Three men arguing like I wasn’t even the main event.
My stomach flips violently. I press a hand to it and force myself not to gag.
Ethan. Where is he? Is this his place? Did he bring me here?
I look around again, sharper this time.
No purse, no shoes, no phone.
My chest tightens. Where is my phone? I reach instinctively toward the bedside table that isn’t there. My hand closes on empty air.
“Okay,” I whisper to myself, voice rough from disuse. “Okay, Lena. This is fine.”
It’s not fine. But panic won’t help.
Think.
I remember the masked men. One laughing. One calm and precise. One quiet, watching. I remember fading out again.
I look down at my clothes. I’m still dressed. Same top, same jeans. Wrinkled. My shoes are gone, though. Socks still on.
No visible bruises except faint ones around my wrists. I rub them slowly and the memory sharpens. I was tied. I was definitely tied.
Which means someone untied me. Why?
My heart starts racing again. Where is Ethan? Was he one of the men in masks?
