"I'm someone," Ty said, crossing his arms.
Paige shot him a pointed look. "Someone who understands what she's going through."
The growl that rumbled through Ty's chest only caused the omega to glare at him, wholly unintimidated.
A second later, Ty sat back down.
"Don't go far," he said, defeated. "Stay close to the cabin."
"We will," Paige promised. "Though it's not as if anyone would dare come onto your land uninvited."
Giving her hand a squeeze, Paige led Mia down the path that led away from Ty's cabin. The pair walked in companionable silence for a while. Mia took the time to admire the dense, old trees and the wildflowers that dotted the open spaces.
"Better?" Paige finally asked once they were deep into the woods, serenaded only by birdsong.
"A little," Mia admitted with a shrug. "Though I'm sure they can still hear us."
"Oh, without a doubt," Paige said. "That's probably the only reason they agreed to let us go. But it's not all bad. If they can keep track of us, then they can also track anyone who might be after you."
Mia swallowed the lump in her throat. She hadn't thought of that. It wasn't just that Ty was keeping an eye on her. He was keeping an eye out for her.
And his ears.
And nose.
She might not be able to get away from Ty… but that meant that neither could anyone else.
Mia drew in a deep breath, filling her senses with the beauty of the lush green world around her—the scents of clean pine and damp earth, the crisp air gently raising the fine hairs on her arm, the soft background noise of their footsteps and wind rusting through needles and branches.
A little more of her tension melted away.
But not all of it.
The crushing reality of her situation wouldn't allow her to relax completely. Not now. Maybe not ever.
So what was the point in pretending?
"I take it you've brought me out here to try to talk me into claiming Ty as my alpha," she said.
Paige shot her a glance out of the corner of her eye but kept a steady pace on the path.
"Kian asked me to try," she admitted without a hint of apology or shame in her voice. "Is it that obvious?"
Mia smiled. "You're not exactly the subtle type."
"No, I guess I'm not," Paige said. "Though I used to be. This life has a way of… changing a woman."
Mia had no trouble believing that. She'd already changed so much in so little time. If it wasn't for the clothes that Paige had generously loaned her, Mia wasn't sure she would even recognize herself.
"Whether we want it to or not," Mia said.
Paige squeezed her hand. "Oh trust me, I get it. I sure as hell didn't ask for this life. But sometimes the best things come along when we aren't looking for them."
"And sometimes they get shoved down our throats," Mia said—then instantly regretted her words.
Paige stopped in the middle of the path and turned toward Mia. All humor had disappeared from her eyes, replaced by worry and concern. "You don't want Ty? He hasn't hurt you, has he?"
Mia shook her head, wondering how to explain. "No, it isn't that."
Paige took both Mia's hands in hers and gave them a squeeze. "Then tell me what it is."
For a moment, Mia thought about brushing off the other omega's concern. It would be so easy to insist that it was nothing. That she was just emotional and confused because of hormones or some other bullshit.
But she didn't.
Deep down, Mia was sick of all the hiding—physically, socially, emotionally. All of it. There was only so much she could bottle up before she broke.
"I'm pissed that I don't get to make a single choice. Not one. I didn't choose to come to the Boundarylands; I was dumped here. I didn't choose to come to Ty's cabin; he brought me. I didn't choose for the FBI or the army to threaten everyone when they came looking for me. I sure as hell didn't choose for every alpha and omega in the Boundarylands to know my most intimate business and make it their own."
Paige bit her lower lip as Mia spoke, nodding now and then, never letting go of Mia's hands. She didn't seem angered by Mia's words—quite the opposite.
"Now, you feel like the only thing you can control is to withhold your claiming bite from Ty."
So Paige did understand, Mia thought.
Except…she didn't know the entire truth.
"It was the only choice I had," she said bitterly. "Ty took that away from me too, about five minutes before you and Kian pulled up."
Paige's brows knit together. "What do you mean?"
Mia gazed up the tall trees that surrounded them, hoping that the dappled green and blue canopy of the forest would calm her surging anger. It wasn't Paige's fault, after all.
But it didn't make her feel any calmer.
"Ty gave me an ultimatum," she said, biting off the bitter words. "Either I give him the claiming bite, or he will kill two betas who used to be my friends."
"Oh, that shithead."
Mia looked at Paige in surprise. She wasn't sure what kind of response she'd been expecting from the omega—sympathy, maybe, or even some soft chiding to resign herself to Ty's plan for the good of the pack—but it certainly wasn't shared anger.
"What did you say?" Mia asked, just to make sure she'd heard right.
Paige was shaking her head in disgust. "And here I thought the way that Kian manipulated me into claiming him was bad." Paige let go of Mia's hands and started walking down the path again, this time with more determination in each waddling step.
"Kian blackmailed you too?"
"No," Paige said quickly. "Nothing like that. Just a little light emotional exploitation. But what Ty did, that's awful."
"So you don't think I should do it?"
Paige tilted her head thoughtfully, weighing the choices. "No," she finally said, "I still think you should."
Mia felt the heavy weight
