Chapter 64: Paranoid
Torin Pov
By the time Lorali and I get home, the sun is setting, painting the sky in streaks of orange and violet. I smile to myself, remembering the events of today. I never thought I’d feel that kind of joy again, that kind of lightness, from something as simple as lunch. For once in a very long time, I had a good day.
My pack, on the other hand, I’m not so sure. You know things have gone wrong when they’re all locked away in their rooms instead of huddled in the kitchen or lounging together. I know for a fact this silence has something to do with the decision to go public about Lorali. When we’re on proper speaking terms again, I’ll drill them until they tell me exactly what happened.
"Are you sure you don’t need my help?" I ask, sprawled out on my blanket on the floor, staring at the ceiling, trying to distract myself from the fact that Lorali is about to take a bath, naked. She’s right behind me. Gosh, I am really regretting the design of my bedroom right now. What was I thinking when I approved Walter’s idea for this layout?
"Fine," she sighs from a distance, her voice carrying a note of hesitation. Then quickly, almost shyly, she adds, "Just with my zip though. The rest I can manage."
I can feel the nervousness in her words even from here. I push myself up to my feet, my heart tightening. I turn and walk over to her. Hard to believe she’s still in her dress, she’s been in the bathroom for thirty minutes now. I thought she was already undressed and soaking in the tub.
"I’ve been struggling with this zipper for the longest time. Please, just unzip it," she says, her back turned to me, her left hand awkwardly reaching for the tiny clasp.
I take hold of the zipper and slide it down slowly and savor the moment of being this close to her. "There you—" I stop mid‑sentence. My breath catches in my throat. Her back is revealed to me, and what I see makes my chest burn with rage. Countless whip marks scar her skin, healed but not fading, etched into her like cruel reminders of a dark past.
As if sensing the reason for my silence, Lorali pulls away, turning quickly to hide her back from me. "You weren’t supposed to see that," she mumbles, her voice dripping with nervousness.
I just stare at her, my mind reeling. "Where did you get those marks?" I force myself to ask, my voice low, trembling with restrained fury. Please, let it be Alma. Please. They’re too old to be from the auction, so it has to be from before she was kidnapped which leaves either Alma or... my pack.
I know myself, and I can already feel the anger building in my chest as images of her back flashing in my mind. All hell will break loose if my pack was involved in any way.
"I... I..." She avoids my gaze, her silence confirming my suspicion.
"It was my pack, wasn’t it? They were the ones who hit you with a whip." My voice hardens, disappointment cutting deep. I can’t believe my pack would stoop so low, resorting to whipping her just to drive her away. And I know it’s them, her refusal to meet my eyes says everything. Alma would never strike their omegas to the point where it leaves marks. They’re known for psychological torment, not physical punishment. Unlike the institution.
"Please, just leave it, Torin. It’s in the past now. Miss Yurena was only doing as Oril asked, to protect his mate. No one else hit me. It was just her, so don’t be angry with them."
My heart clenches at the mention of my mother’s name. Of course she’s involved. I’m not surprised, she hates Alma’s omegas enough to do this. But Oril? That’s the shock. I knew his love for Walter could drive him to questionable decisions, but never this.
I should have hit him harder the other day. But no matter. It’s not like I can’t make him regret being born now.
I clench my fist, my jaw tightening, and turn sharply toward the door. "Torin, please leave this matter!" Lorali pleads, her footsteps quick behind me, her voice desperate. But her words fall on deaf ears.
How she can still plead for the person who indirectly inflicted those wounds on her is beyond me. Today, Oril will feel the same pain he inflicted on my omega for his.
Oril Pov
"You seem to be in a bad mood," Kei points out, his voice cutting through the tension. Walter has been sulking ever since he came back from talking to my brother about something I’m still not sure of. I just hope it wasn’t about Lorali.
I know how apprehensive Oracle can get the moment he’s accused of something he didn’t do, he’s a lawyer, after all. When we were younger, I used to steal biscuits off his plate and then cry to our parents, claiming he ate mine. He would cry for days, even after I apologized, simply because I lied on his name.
"You’re stomping your foot," Kei continues, pointing out Walter’s behavior from my bed. We’re all crammed into my room tonight, instead of being in Walters room, Why?, I don’t know. Augi’s room would have been a better choice, it’s bigger then mine, but Augi made it clear he doesn’t like anyone other than Walter touching his things.
Speaking of Augi, where the hell is he? It’s late, and he still isn’t back. Did he get into a fight? It would make sense. He hasn’t fought in months, and I was starting to get concerned about him.
"Oril, stop just standing there. Do something about Walter. Can’t you feel he’s a nervous wreck through the bond?" Kei exclaims, tossing my oversized guitar pillow at me. It lands flat on my face before flopping to the floor.
"Yeah, I can feel it," I reply, stealing glances toward Walter. "And he’ll talk about it when he’s ready. We can’t force him." Truthfully, I wasn’t concentrating. I knew he was upset, but I didn’t realize it was this bad.
"Do you think I think of Lorali as my competition?" Walter’s question hangs in the air. Kei and I exchange shocked looks, both of us at a loss for words.
"So you do think I see her as competition," he pouts, running a hand through his curly hair before balling his fist against his scalp.
"Umm... Walter, we don’t think you see Lorali as competition," I say carefully, walking closer to him, trying to ease the tension. "Then why would Oracle say that about me?" he huffs, his voice cracking with frustration.
"Oracle said what?" Kei asks, stepping closer, his brows furrowed.
"I don’t get it. Why would Oracle say that?" I add, crossing my arms. My brother may be sharp‑tongued and downright rude most of the time, but that’s reserved for us. Oracle usually controls himself when it comes to Walter.
"It’s my fault," Walter admits suddenly, his voice breaking. "I let that girl manipulate me into thinking Oracle backstabbed me. But I was clearly wrong. I can’t believe I fell for her words." He buries his face in his hands, pacing the room, his movements restless.
"Oracle... is this about that whole pizza thing? I told you to leave it," I sigh, disappointed.
"What pizza thing?" Kei asks, confused, clearly not up to date.
"Walter thinks Oracle tried to delay us with the whole pizza thing yesterday so Torin could go public about Lorali," I explain, shaking my head. Kei’s face morphs into the same look of disbelief I had when I first heard it.
"That’s ridiculous. Oracle would never do that. And besides, if Torin wanted to go public about Lorali, nothing would stop him, not even us. He wouldn’t need Oracle to make some underhanded play," Kei points out, voicing exactly what I’ve been thinking.
"I know that now!" Walter shouts, his voice raw. "I fell into that lying omega’s trap. Lorali lied to me, she said Oracle was in cahoots with Torin because they’re not only fated but bonded, and he’ll always take Torin’s side. I was gullible, and I believed her."
"What? Why would Lorali lie? She doesn’t look like the type," Kei questions, his brows furrowed. I find myself wondering the same. That little omega, who I try not to think about, doesn’t seem to have a single lying bone in her body. She’s innocent‑looking, fragile, the kind of person who seems more like prey than predator, someone who is dumb enough to be used by money‑hungry manipulators like Torin.
"I think you misunderstood whatever she was trying to tell you," I say carefully, choosing my words with caution.
Walter stops pacing, his eyes snapping toward me, glaring like I’ve just crowned myself the biggest fool on the plant. "That is exactly what she wants you to believe," he huffs, his frustration now directed squarely at me. I wish I had kept my mouth shut.
"Believe me, Lorali wants nothing more than to rip us apart, to have us fighting with each other. She’s the one poisoning Torin’s mind and almost mine."
"Walter, cinnabun, this is crazy. I think you may be... paranoid," Kei says slowly, his voice soft, almost pleading. He reaches out, holding Walter’s hands, looking into his eyes, rubbing his cheek gently as he tries to soothe him.
But Walter jerks his hands away, irrational, his movements sharp. This is bad. When did things get this bad? I knew Walter had been off these past few months, but I didn’t realize he was this far gone.
"I’m not paranoid! Why don’t you see it? Lorali is crazy. She’s evil. She has no heart. I’m telling you... she is mental!" Walter exclaims, crossing his arms tightly across his chest, his voice rising with conviction.
"It sounds an awful lot like you’re describing yourself there, Walter."
My gaze snaps toward the doorway, and my stomach drops. Standing there with his arms crossed and his expression carved in fury, is Torin. The man responsible for the wounds on my face.
This is not going to be good.