The Hybrid Alpha's Mate

Chapter 4: No Way Out

The second Kael disappears and I hear his footsteps move down the hallway, I’m off the bed.

I don’t care what he said.

I don’t care how dangerous he claims it is.

I’m not staying locked in some stranger’s room like a scared little kid.

I grab the doorknob, twist it, and yank the door open—

Two massive men stand right outside.

Not just tall.

Not just muscular.

Huge.

Their eyes snap toward me instantly.

And they growl.

A deep, animalistic rumble that vibrates through the floorboards and straight into my bones.

I slam the door shut so fast I nearly crush my fingers.

My back hits the wood.

My breath stutters.

My heart tries to escape my chest.

“Oh my god,” I whisper. “Oh my god—”

I’m trapped.

Actually trapped.

No way out the door.

No way out the window.

No way out of this house.

No way out of this nightmare.

I stumble away from the door, panic clawing up my throat. My hands shake as I start tearing through the room, searching for anything — anything — that could help me.

I search drawers, the closet, the bathroom, under the bed. I find nothing.

Nothing I can use to defend myself.

Just blankets, old books, carved wooden trinkets, and clothes that definitely aren’t mine.

As if I would even stand a chance.

I sink onto the edge of the bed, my chest tight, my breathing uneven.

How did I end up here?

My mind spirals — not gently, not willingly — but like a dam bursting.

~~~

Four months ago, I turned eighteen.

Most people celebrate that.

I got kicked out.

“Congratulations, you’re an adult now,” they said.

“Pack your things,” they said.

“Good luck out there,” they said.

And that was it.

No family.

No safety net.

Just a trash bag of clothes and a bus pass.

I got a job at a coffee shop.

Minimum wage.

Burnt milk.

Rude customers.

Tips that barely covered groceries.

I found a room in a crappy apartment with four other people — strangers who partied too much, stole my food, and never cleaned anything.

But it was a roof.

It was mine.

It was… something.

Still, everything felt heavy.

Lonely.

Wrong.

Tonight, it all piled up at once — the noise, the stress, the bills, the feeling that I was drowning in a life that wasn’t going anywhere.

So I went for a walk.

Just a walk.

Just to breathe.

Just to get away from the chaos for a minute.

I didn’t even go far. I’ve walked that trail behind the apartments a hundred times.

But then I heard the first howl.

Then the second.

Then the growls.

And suddenly I was running, branches tearing at my arms, lungs burning, heart pounding so hard I thought it would explode.

I didn’t think.

I didn’t look back.

I just ran.

And then—

Kael.

His chest. His hand over my mouth. His voice in my ear.

His arms carrying me like I weighed nothing.

I squeeze my eyes shut, trying to push the memories away, but they keep coming.

The wolves.

The blood.

The glowing eyes.

The way he looked at me like he already knew me.

Like he’d been waiting.

Why was he out in the woods anyways? Was it just a coincidence that he happened to be right there?

A floorboard creaks outside the door and I jolt upright, heart slamming against my ribs.

Voices murmur — low, tense, impossible to make out. Not Kael’s. Not the woman’s. Not the man from earlier.

More guards.

More wolves.

I wrap my arms around myself, trying to stop shaking as the sun starts creeping up, letting me know it's about to be morning.

I don’t know what Kael is.

I don’t know what he wants.

I don’t know why he brought me here.

But one thing is painfully clear:

I’m not getting out of this room.

Not today.

Maybe not ever.

And whatever Kael is hiding…

I’m not sure I want to know.