The Night Movers -S1- Episode 23 (Patreon)

Unbeta'd/Unedited. Ridley sat on the sofa, wrapped in Titus’s leather jacket, his own fur coat laid over his legs like a blanket. Thirty minutes had come and gone since Sugar had given his warning, but he hadn’t returned for them as of yet. Ridley was in no hurry to go back to the stench of alpha egos. He’d rather stay there in the quiet cocoon of Titus’s office, drenched in his scent from the inside out. Ridley blamed his stupid biology. His mate had just bred him; his omega was preening. Ridley couldn’t stop burying his nose in Titus’s collar, inhaling the alpha’s scent, high off his mate’s pheromones. He tried not to make it obvious, but the small smile on Titus’s face let Ridley know he’d been caught at least once. Did he like Ridley smelling like him?  Ridley pressed his nose to the silky inner lining of the jacket, eyes on Titus, inhaling deeply. The alpha’s nostrils flared, a low rumble escaping from his chest that went sent off a thermo-nuclear meltdown in Ridley’s core. He was too close to his heat for this. He glowered at the alpha, irritated that he seemed the only one effected. “What?” Titus’s brows went up and he shook his head—amusement obvious—face the picture of mock innocence. “Nothing.” Ridley crossed his arms over his chest. “I like the way you smell. That’s not a crime.” Titus didn’t get it. “It’s not like I have any control over it. I’m bonded to you, remember?” Of course, he didn’t. This biological tie only went one way. His mood soured instantly. “But I guess that doesn’t matter to you since you’re not bonded to me.” Maybe it was petty, but Ridley felt slightly better when Titus froze, then slowly looked at him, almost like he’d forgotten the pesky little issue of their one-sided claiming. He dropped his pen. “Come here, strawberry.” Ridley huffed, his heart rate shooting into the stratosphere. “No.” His palms grew sweaty. Was this the right thing to do? Did it even matter? Titus had tied his hands. Ridley should be far more furious than he was but he just…wasn’t. Was it their bond? It wasn’t like Ridley didn’t get angry with him. Titus made him want to punch him whenever they were breathing the same air. “Now,” Titus purred. Ridley snarled, lurching to his feet almost against his will. He was a puppet and Titus controlled his strings. Asshole. When Ridley was within reach, Titus grabbed him, yanking him into his lap. Ridley didn’t look at him, but there was no denying the alpha’s pull. He squeezed Ridley’s naked hips, fingertips teasing softly. He couldn’t stop himself from pitching forward, rubbing his cheek over Titus’s scent gland with a whine, blushing at his own reaction. His only solace was the way the alpha’s breath hitched, his hands gripping his ass a little tighter, shifting him closer to press his lips to Ridley’s mating mark. There was something so raw, so…carnal about the way his omega reacted to Titus’s alpha. It was like the two existed as separate beings that controlled Ridley and Titus’s bodies. While they couldn’t stand each other, something pulled them towards each other like magnets. Ridley tipped his head as Titus sucked a bruise over his mark, then trailed his lips higher, nipping at Ridley’s earlobe, before capturing his lips once more. Another strangled sound left him, hips rocking forward, already half-hard from the feel of Titus’s thick thighs directly beneath his ass. Titus so warm everywhere? He smelled so good. Ridley licked his throat, purring at the tang of his skin on his tongue. Why did it make Ridley just want to melt into his arms and hide? Biology sucked. “How am I back here again?” he whispered, ghosting his lips along Titus’s before capturing his mouth in another deep kiss. Titus pulled away, nipping Ridley’s plush bottom lip, then gently pushing Ridley back to meet his gaze. “Some people would say this is the best seat in the house.” Ridley scoffed. “Then the bar is in hell.” “Don’t be mean, strawberry,” Titus teased. “Not when we’re about to seal our bond.” Ridley startled, his already rabbiting heartbeat tripping in his chest. “Here? Now?” Ridley didn’t know why he was reacting this way. He’d assumed when he’d called him over that it had something to do with the claiming bite but now that he’d said it out loud, Ridley was having a minor panic attack. It wasn’t that he’d expected rose petals or a ring or anything. It wasn’t the atmosphere, just the timing. Titus was about to go out there and beat a man to death. He wanted Ridley to sink his teeth into him then send him into the ring. Wouldn’t biting him…slow him down? Had it slowed Ridley down? Would it have slowed him down had he not been unconscious? “Why not? We have to do it anyway. Linus said we needed to make an impression, right? Imagine what they’ll think when they see your fresh claiming bite on my neck. Rurik’s head will explode.” Ridley snorted. “They’re going to think you have a head injury and that I’m taking advantage of it. They’ll have me branded a witch and burn me at the stake.” “I’m not entirely convinced you aren’t a witch,” Titus said with a laugh. “You’ve certainly got us all under your spell. The whole pack.” Ridley’s omega preened over that compliment but Ridley didn’t find it comforting…not even a little. For Titus, it was a joke, but to Ridley, the threat was very real. “Oh, good. I was just worried they might want to fuck me and kill me, now I have to worry about them wanting to burn me at the stake specifically.” Titus studied Ridley until his ears burned. He hated that it mattered. He hated that he cared what a bunch of criminals thought of him. When he couldn’t bear the silence anymore, he said, “They already hate me.”Titus sighed, tilting Ridley’s head up to meet his gaze. “Good. The opposite of love isn’t hate, it’s indifference. Up until tonight, every alpha in this place looked at omegas like livestock. Property. They were indifferent to them. There was no love or hate. Omegas were their product and they were the supplier. Now, their wheels are turning. They’re confused. They don’t know what to make of you and they can’t imagine how you’ve managed to turn us to your favor so quickly.” Ridley’s brow furrowed. “How do you know that?” Titus gave a humorless laugh. “I’ve been fielding offers to buy who off me all night, claiming bite and all.” Ridley shuddered. “Gross.” “Very,” Titus agreed. Ridley’s eyes went wide at the venom in Titus’s voice. This time it was Titus who looked defensive. “What? You seem to forget how we met, strawberry. I’m not the enemy. I don’t actually traffic omegas.” Right. They were the good guys. They helped people. Could murderers be called good guys? They talked about torture and killing as casually as some people talked about the weather. Did that make them good guys or just the better bad guys? “Why?” Ridley blurted. Titus blinked at him, his brow furrowed. “Why what?” His confusion made him look cute, younger too, less rough around the edges. What kind of people would they have been if they’d grown up in the world before their country had crumbled into an oligarchy, before it became about the haves and the have-nots. “Why do you do this?” Ridley asked. “What made you decide to infiltrate this world? What makes you stay? Why roll around in the muck with these people? You’ve been here so long they’ve claimed you as their king. I don’t know how you do it. How you interact with these…animals…every day without just killing them all?” “We were kids when we started doing this,” Titus admitted, sounding tired. “We were cocky, brazen even. We were in it for the excitement. We wanted to help omegas, but we really loved fucking over their handlers.” Ridley could picture Titus and the others as kids, cocky and stupid, in it just for the thrill of it. It still didn’t explain why though. There was no way it was just about the excitment. “Surely, there had to be a better way to save omegas?” he asked. “Why this?” Titus shifted Ridley so he was lying across his legs sideways, his head resting on his shoulder. It looked like a comforting gesture, like he wanted to cuddle Ridley close, but Ridley suspected he didn’t want to look him in the eye. Maybe he didn’t want Ridley to know the intricacies of the operation? Maybe his reasons were too personal? None of Ridley’s business? Maybe he didn’t trust him? Why would he? They were strangers. Strangers who fuck each other and are tied together for life. “My mom,” Titus finally said, voice strained. “My—” he cleared his throat— “mother is the reason I do this.” Ridley’s stomach churned, nose burning from the sharp scent of Titus’s grief. “What happened to her?” “My father happened to her,” Titus said, expression growing dark, eyes narrowed. “Were they mates?” Ridley asked. “No,” Titus said. It was like he was choking on the words. “No, they weren’t.” “You don’t have to tell me…” Ridley said, rubbing his cheek against Titus’s chest.Titus scoffed. His voice was steady but his rage clung to Ridley’s nostrils, acrid as a fire. “I’m about to let you claim me. You should know everything.” Ridley’s omega was restless, suddenly whining and agitated, pushing Ridley to soothe Titus in whatever way he could. But he forced himself to remain still. “Okay…” “I’m comfortable in this world because I grew up in it,” Titus said. “I wasn’t that noble. I didn’t give up any kind of luxurious life to sink into the muck of the underground to save omegas. I was born here.” “Born here?” Ridley repeated.Titus nodded. “My mother was a prostitute,” he said. “I was raised in a brothel.” Ridley’s blood ran cold. Raised there? He wasn’t stupid. He knew there were brothels—deep underground brothels—that catered to…those kinds of people. People who wanted…who wanted kids in that way. But was Titus one of those children?“Like you worked there?” Ridley could barely get the words out, his stomach slippery. Titus shook his head, then stopped short. “Not in the way you’re thinking but…yes. Steele, too. That’s how we know each other.” Steele? He’d brought up his mother and sisters when arguing with the others that night. He was such a mystery to Ridley. He was one of the most attractive people Ridley had ever seen up close, but he was cold, guarded, he played everything so close to the vest. Ridley was pretty sure Steele hated him. He dragged himself back to the present conversation, as nauseating as it was. “What do you mean by raised…in the brothel? Is that a thing? They have…children just living in there? Babies? Little kids? I thought they sterilized pros-brothel workers.” “They do,” Titus said. “The woman who ran the place made an exception for my mother…and eventually Steele’s mother.” “Why? I don’t get it. Did your mom get pregnant working there?” Titus shook his head, looking paler than a moment ago. “She was pregnant when she got there. She was fourteen.” “Fourteen?” Ridley whispered. “A friend of her father—an alpha—raped her. Got her pregnant.” He said it without any real emotion, but there was no missing the way the muscle in his jaw ticked. Ridley made a distressed sound, Titus’s emotions fucking with his own, taking on his hurt as his own. This was what a one sided claiming bite did. Still, Ridley’s heart broke for him. He didn’t even need to know much else. He could guess what happened next. It was always the same old story. Titus continued after a moment. “My grandfather tried to force this ‘friend’ to divorce his beta mate and claim my mother, to make my birth legitimate so as not to embarass him. The man laughed in his face.”Ridley made a disgusted noise. “Of course, he did. What did he care?” Titus snorted. “Yeah, he had no intention of divorcing his rich beta for my teen mom. Her father threatened to get the courts involved, but the man knew my father was bluffing. My mom was in heat when it happened—her first—so of course the courts would side with him. You’ve heard the excuses. We all have.” Omegas were assaulted every day. Probably hundreds a day. Those omegas rarely saw justice. Instead they became cautionary tales, demonized by alphas and martyred by omegas. There was never any defense strong enough. Not when every defense attorney fell back on the same old excuses. He was just an alpha. He couldn’t fight his instincts. What did she think would happen? Why wasn’t she locked up if she didn’t want it?It’s just nature taking its course. It was on them to keep themselves safe. Nobody would protect them. Not the New Guard. Not the judges. Not the jury. They were alphas too, after all. Hardly a jury of an omegas peers, but they didn’t care about fair. Ridley found the irony laughable. Alpha’s had everything—controlled everything—yet they were so good at playing the victim. It was Schrodinger’s alpha. The only ones stable enough to run the world yet somehow simultaneously overpowered by their instincts. How could it be both? Ridley’s scent soured too, but he couldn’t help it. It wasn’t Ridley’s story, it wasn’t his mother…But it was. It was every omega. The helplessness, the frustration…it belonged to all of them, this burden they all were forced to carry forever. “So what happened?” Ridley asked, more for Titus’s sake than his own. Ridley could guess how it went. “My grandfather had to recoup his losses. He couldn’t sell her off to some rich alpha. She was too far gone to get rid of me or trick some beta into thinking it was his.” The sick feeling in Ridley’s stomach intensified. “Her father sold her to a brothel?” Titus’s teeth clenched. “Worse. He put her up for auction. The—” He swallowed audibly— “handler assured him she’d fetch a good price, much better than a direct sale to any brothel or breeding farm.” “Monster,” Ridley muttered, trying not to choke on his own anger. “She was a rarity, like you. Black hair and green eyes. A rare beauty.” Titus’s breathing grew heavier. “If a brothel or a breeding farm wanted her, this way they’d have to pay top dollar. Or maybe, if she was lucky, just one alpha would keep her as a pet, as a…mistress.” “She was a kid,” Ridley whispered, his heart beating hard and fast behind his ribs. He remembered being fourteen. He couldn’t imagine dealing with everything he was going through right now at that age, much less having a baby. “What about the-the baby?” Ridley asked, his pulse racing. “I mean…you. What did they plan to do about you?” Titus shrugged. “Some brothels wouldn’t want to risk childbirth ruining her body, but there were others, those who saw the bigger picture, who knew we were a bargain. Once I was born, they could just sell me, too. And if I looked like my mom, they could get top dollar.” Their sick logic made sense. But it didn’t make it any less disturbing. Yet, it didn’t happen. “But they didn’t sell you?” “No,” Titus said, his laugh acidic. “My mom was bought by a high-end brothel just outside the city limits. They put her to work right away.” He shuddered. “Some guys pay big money to fuck a pregnant omega. Especially one as young as her. Especially a former rich girl. You can imagine how they treated her. Especially when word got out and half her clients were alpha’s she’d rejected for one reason or another.” Ridley didn’t want to imagine it. The only thing worse than an alpha was a rich alpha with an agenda and a chip on their shoulder. One set on getting even. Ridley’s eyes stung. She must have felt so helpless, so broken. She was probably terrified. “The closer she got to my birth, the more depressed she grew. It was like she just…gave up. She wouldn’t even pretend to…participate with these men. Some liked that. But most just left frustrated. It pissed off the owners.” “What did they do?” “If my mother hadn’t been so sought after—so rare—they would have cut their losses, sold her to a breeding farm. But too many people were willing to pay any price for the chance to be in her bed.” Ridley actually wanted to vomit. Grown men fighting over a chance to use a pregnant omega child. Monsters, all of them. They all deserved to die. “Right about then, the woman running the place died, leaving her whole estate to her beta mate, Charmayne. She was the one who came up with a brilliant way to keep my mother in line. Charmayne wanted kids. Not because she liked them, but because she liked controlling things—controlling people—treating them like dolls she could move and manipulatte as she liked.” She sounded as awful as any alpha. “She couldn’t have kids. She shouldn’t have had kids honestly. She was a terrible person. But she quickly realized she could fulfill her sick motherhood fantasy and keep my mother in line. She would keep me, raise me in her home, and, as long as my mother behaved, she would get to see me periodically…as a reward.” Ridley chewed the inside of his cheek for a moment, then prompted, “And that…that worked?” “So well that she did it again with another woman two years later. Steele’s mother. She came to the brothel in a similar fashion, unmarried, rare, a redhead like you. Only she was older, arrived with three children. A boy and two girls. Steele was only a toddler, a couple of months younger than me. His two sisters, a couple of years older.” “So she basically stole four children to manipulate their mothers?” Titus nodded. “We were the carrot she dangled in front of them to keep them docile and accommodating. As long as she had our lives in their hands, they would do anything, no matter how depraved.” “So you just…lived with the woman who kept your moms prisoner?” Ridley couldn’t fathom it. Having to rely on someone who had enslaved the most important person in his life? It seemed like…insanity. “She liked to play head games with us,” Titus said. “You never knew where you stood with her. One minute she was happy, the next she was livid. She was a big fan of tossing us into the basement or locking us in closets. Steele was afraid of the dark for years. Still sleeps with the lights on.” His gaze snapped to Ridleys. “I probably shouldn’t have told you that. Forget I said it.” Ridley wouldn’t forget. His heart squeezed at the idea of Steele being too afraid to sleep in hte dark. It was so…endearing. So human. It made Steele seem like something other than the indifferent alpha who hated him. He would never tell him he knew this secret of his. Maybe someday he’d trust Ridley enough to tell him himself. That seemed unlikely, but maybe. Ridley gave Titus a barely there smile. “Forgotten.” “When we were old enough, she started making us do odd jobs around the brothel. She paid us a little bit of money, but she took half of it for our room and board.”“She charged you,” Ridley said. It wasn’t a question. He just needed to say something. Needed to show he was listening. It was typical of traffickers. That promise of freedom if you just work a little bit longer, a little harder. It was quicksand. The more they struggled, the deeper they got. “Where’s your mom now?” Ridley asked, already dreading the answer. “Dead,” he said, flatly.Ridley bit the inside of his cheek to keep him doing something stupid like bursting into tears. “Did…someone hurt her?” He gave a sharp shake of his head, his voice devoid of emotion. “Cancer. She worked until she was too sick to take care of herself. Then she died.” Ridley closed his eyes, pressing his head to Titus’s. “Is that when you left?” Titus shook his head. “Steele and I were lucky enough to present young. I presented at thirteen and him right after, probably due to our close proximity. Once that happened, she gave us permission to leave. Alphas are protected, after all. So she couldn’t force us into anyone’s bed. We were free to leave, but it meant leaving our families behind. My mom was dying. Steele’s mother was there…his sisters too.”“What happened to them? Steele’s family?” Ridley asked, his chest aching. “I overheard him talking that night. Did something bad happen to them?”  Titus opened his mouth like he was going to say but a heavy fist against the door caused them both to jump. Ridley knew it was Sugar before he spoke, she could smell his cotton candy scent even on the other side of the door. “It’s time,” he barked, voice muffled. “I gave you extra time but they’re getting antsy out there.” “Coming,” Titus shouted back. To Ridley, he said, “Bite me.” Ridley’s eyelids fluttered as he processed his words. Right. That’s what started this whole conversation. Claiming him. Claiming Titus. He tilted his head, baring his throat. Ridley just stared at the spot, imagining he could see his pulse bounding beneath his skin. “Having second thoughts?” Titus asked, breath warm against his skin. How was he suddenly so much closer? “Not trying to pressure you, strawberry, but we’re on a time crunch. Sorry, it’s not…more romantic…or whatever.” Ridley huffed out a humorless laugh. Why should it be romantic? There was nothing romantic about any of this. It was barbaric. He was claimed by all of them while unconscious. They were already tied to each other by blood. Biting Titus would only make them even. It only meant mutually assured destruction. What happened to one, happened to the other. Ridley straddled Titus’s lap again, taking a deep breath and letting it out. Heeat shot through his belly as the alpha held him hostage with his piercing gaze. Ridley licked his bottom lip, then pitched forward, settling his mouth over his scent gland. Titus gave a low growl, his hands tightening on Ridley’s bare waist. Ridley closed his eyes, biting down until until Titus hissed in pain, until the taste of rust bloomed on Ridley’s tongue. The moment he drew blood, a strange sensation settled over him, like being slowly submerged in warm water, like being dipped in candle wax. Everything was safe and warm and peaceful. Ridley reeled back, moving so quickly, he’d have ended up on the floor if not for Titus’s reflexes. Ridley’s gaze went straight to the bite, bloody and red and raw at the edges. There would be no missing it. Not with his jacket off. And he couldn’t possibly fight in that. By the time Ridley dragged his eyes back to Titus’s face, the alpha stared at him, pupils dilated, a dumbfounded expression on his face. “That was weird, right?” Ridley asked. “Did…did you feel that too?” Titus just stared at Ridley like he was the answer to all the universe’s questions. Ridley snapped his fingers in front of Titus’s face. This time it was the alpha’s turn to jerk away, shaking hiimself from his stupor. He carefully pushed Ridley off his lap, letting him get his feet under him. “Are-Are you okay?” Ridley asked, trying to catch his gaze. Titus refused to meet it. “Yeah,” he said, tone a little sharper than it was moments before. “I’m fine. Let’s just get moving.” Titus stood and Ridley went to take off his jacket, prepared to return it to him. Titus tugged it back onto his shoulders. “No, leave it on.” At Ridley’s questioning look, he said, “The other alphas will already smell that I’ve been inside you, but the jacket will have the betas talking as well.” Ridley nodded, pulling the edges of Titus’s jacket closed. Titus held out his hand. Ridley stared at it for a moment, before grasping it. A spark shot through Ridley as they touched, like static electricity. If Titus felt it, he pretended he didn’t, threading their fingers together. Ridley took a deep breath, shaking off his nerves. “Alright, lets go piss some people off,” Ridley said, voice full of mock cheer. “…some more people off,” Titus corrected absently. Ridley snorted. “Right. Let’s go piss some more people off.” Ridley expected Titus to let go of his hand when they reached the end of the serpentine tunnels. But when Ridley attempted to release him, Titus held firm. Ridley ignored the way his heart clenched behind his ribs. God, he was so easy for Titus. Everything he did made Ridley’s omega all gooey. When they emerged back into the arena, Ridley was punched in the face with a potent combination of pheromones, sweat and pure alpha rage. He staggered, would have probably hit his knees if not for Steele appearing out of nowhere, wrapping an arm around his waist, keeping him on his feet. Something was off…or at least different. It was like someone had turned the world up to full volume. The lights too harsh, the crowd too loud, the smells overpowering him. Ridley fought the instinct to cower between the two alphas. The crowd was turning on them, on him. They were all talking to each other in hushed voices that rang in Ridley’s ears like squirming bugs. Ridley could only watch as these alphas—these all-powerful men—noted three things at once: Ridley had Titus’s jacket. Titus had Ridley’s bite. Titus was the one in a collar.