Broken Dreams (Unhingedverse)
Broken Dreams: Chapter 18

QUINN

Scent dampening and slick wicking panties are worth every fucking penny! I’m not embarrassed about sex, but I figure smelling as if you’ve been freshly fucked probably isn’t a great first impression. On the other hand, my alphas both came in their pants, so this may all be a lost cause.

Cerenity smirked when she saw the four of us, and took the reins by shooing off the alphas and introducing Linus and I to the guards who will walk us to our marks. This is where we’ll get into our cage. We both have our own guard just in case, as she says it should be a busy night. She also handed me my mini tablet to communicate at work, and my heart soared at the idea of someone who actually cares if I could speak to people my way or not.

Next, she showed us where to change. There are several rooms in the back instead of a single large one, which surprised me.

“Privacy is important to a lot of people,” Linus reminds me softly as we slip inside of a room to change, duffle bag in hand. I nod because while I understand that, it’s not something either one of us have been afforded in a long time.

Putting the bag down on a chair, Linus opens it up so we can begin to change. We don’t need chatter, and the silence helps put me in the right frame of mind to dance tonight.

The clothes I bought to work in are comfortable, and so different from the usual fare I’d worn for Slick Dreams. There’s a built in bra in the mesh bodysuit I’m wearing tonight, and it fits well. I feel sexy, but still covered, as I sit down after slipping on the shorts to begin fixing my hair. There’s so many differences between the two places of business, like the fact that I actually get paid here, I may as well stop listing them. Club Serenity is already a superior workplace compared to anything else I’ve experienced.

Making a face at my hair as I pull out my revitalizing spray and plug in my curling iron, I decide this may take some work to fix. I may have messed up my curls while I was getting fucked. Lips pursed, I spritz, scrunch, and curl as Linus pulls out my makeup bag and places it on the table.

“I got your hair, Quinn,” he murmurs, taking the curling iron gently. “It’ll soothe my nerves.”

I guess we’re both nervous, and I sigh as I sort through my makeup. A door opens sharply even though I watched Linus close it. A girl with a slicked back ponytail, wearing the same uniform as me walks into the room as if she owns it, a snarl on her lips.

“Can we help you?” Linus asks.

“This door is never locked,” she says, her eyes running over us. “It’s bad taste to fuck at work, you know.”

“Well, it’s a good thing we weren’t, isn’t it?” he asks, gesturing for me to continue with my makeup routine.

I begin to prime my skin since I didn’t wear any makeup today, allowing it to breathe before this. I’m replaceing myself wearing no makeup at all so much more often and I’m loving the change. My alphas and Linus don’t care about all of that shit. They just want me.

“Hey, you!” the girl says, coming over to snap her fingers in my face. I’ve dealt with a lot of cattiness over the years, but I’m very close to breaking her fingers.

Continuing to ignore her, my gaze is solely on the mirror and what I’m currently doing. I need to know how terrible she can be before I decide to retaliate. Hopefully it doesn’t get me fired.

Inside of my bag are also hair pins that are sharp and perfect to hold back the front of my hair. Now that it is a bit more manageable, Linus is slipping them in strategically since the girl is ignoring him completely.

Still, I refuse to acknowledge her.

“We can share the room if you need to get ready,” he offers, though I’d rather blind myself with my hairpins. The girl is also completely made up, she’s just trying to stir up trouble.

I’ve dealt with worse things in my life than her.

“Does she not talk?” the girl asks snarkily.

Picking up my tablet, I write, No. Showing it to her, I watch her mouth open slightly.

“Cerenity mentioned we’d have a mute joining us,” she says nastily. I hope she falls out of her cage while dancing and drops to her death. Apparently, she’s beginning to get under my skin.

That’s not a good place to be.

“Lara?” Cerenity asks, popping her head into the room. “Can I speak to you for a moment?”

I don’t know her well, but even I can hear the undertone of anger in her voice. The omega in front of me blanches, and I watch as she scurries away. Dismissing her from my mind, I finish my makeup. I have fishnets under my shorts, and found a place for a knife holster at the back of my thigh underneath them.

That’s a last resort place since it’ll be a pain to dig out, but if I have to reach for it, I’ll be in trouble anyway. Hair pins that are sharp as fuck to the eye or throat it is.

I can vaguely hear hissing as well as a screeching whine moving away from the room as the two talk, however I pretend to hear nothing as I check my finished makeup.

“Faker,” Linus whispers in my ear, making my lips twitch as I shrug.

“Linus, Quinn?” Cerenity asks from the door as we turn to face her. I’m currently standing after also making sure the knife along my thigh isn’t showing, putting us on equal ground.

“Yes?” Linus asks for the both of us.

“I wanted to apologize for Lara,” she says. “I’ve been looking for a reason to fire her, and this just gave me one. I won’t employ people who are so hateful. That’s not what the club or I stand for. I walked by the room and heard everything she said. God, she’s a twat.”

“She was trying to push our buttons,” Linus adds. “It’s a lot harder to mess with us than it would be for someone else. Lara is less than nothing.”

“Maybe, but I hate that she’s the first person you interacted with at the club,” Cerenity sighs. “Things are starting to ramp up out there, but let me introduce you to the other dancers. I swear they’re not at all like her.”

Nodding, we walk out to meet the other dancers. We’re here to work, friendships aren’t something we’re interested in. Sounds bitchy, but our circumstances have always meant that acquaintances are transitional. The omegas I’ve met on the club scene are also catty.

Chatting together, the dancers are all in the same attire as we are. I’ve been working on stretching out my ballet shoes because I’ve never worn any before. At first they felt tight on my feet, and I had to watch a few videos on how to break them in. It was really funny for Linus and I to do this, because we were both terrified we’d break them entirely.

Now, while they’re easier to walk and dance in since we’ve been practicing, it’s still a work in progress. As are most things in life, I guess.

“Here are our new dancers,” Cerenity calls out. I have my mini tablet in my hand, but I’m more interested in who we’re meeting than adding to the conversation. My new boss goes around the room so everyone can give their names, though I doubt I’ll be able to tell them all apart. “Now, we have a full house coming in. Finley, Róisin, and Calista, go warm them up, please.”

As the guards move forward to walk them out, Cerenity turns toward us.

“Want to see their fly pole routine?” she asks with a wide smile.

I’ve never heard of such a thing, and Linus and I glance at each other before we nod excitedly. Any form of dance makes me happy. Pole has such an odd history in my life, I’m not sure how to feel about it.

“I have the perfect spot to watch from. Follow me,” Cerenity says, leading the way. “We recently started this format of dance, and it’s so beautiful. Coupled with the right music, it hypes everyone up.”

There’s a hallway that empties into a hidden space with a perfect view of the dancers as they begin their routine. The pole hangs from suspended tension rigging, and can be raised as necessary. The dancers are barefoot as they swing themselves into the air, climbing up the pole before twisting their bodies around it. Finley flips himself upside down, and my core muscles clench in solidarity.

It takes a lot of control and discipline to be able to do this, and it’s just as beautiful as Cerenity said.

I want a pole like this at home, I write to Linus, and Cerenity huffs out a chuckle as she glances at my tablet. Thankfully, it lights up so they can see it in the darkness, a huge upgrade from chalk and board.

“Something tells me Duncan and Callum will be down for that,” she murmurs.

Together, we watch the sensual scene as they flow through the motions around the pole to the music, showing that pole dancing isn’t just sexy. It’s an art form.

The long lines of their limbs, the controlled movements that show the careful tension in their muscles, all of it is so beautiful. I was forced to dance before, but it’s hard to mesh together the joy I feel when watching them with the atmosphere of Slick Dreams.

Since the pole was installed in the dance room by our alphas, I’ve been reconnecting with dancing on it from a place of strength. No one is forcing me to do it, it’s my choice. My body feels stronger by the end, and my mind thankfully exhausted. Everything is just quiet after a dance session lately.

I’m grateful for the silence in a way I’ve never been able to appreciate before because of the nightmares I experience. Duncan and Callum are now a permanent part of our bed in the nest. While I don’t remember the bad dreams or even having them, they told me they’re able to catch them sooner and help soothe us into a more peaceful sleep.

Peace is a step forward.

As the trio ends their dance, we hurry backstage so Cerenity can move on with her night. Everyone knows when to go, and we’re dancing a bit later. Linus and I chat back and forth, until someone walks up to us.

“Have you considered sign language at all?” the girl asks. I think her name is Aryana.

I shake my head, trying to figure out how to explain why I can’t speak. I don’t even really understand it, and when I’m alone in the bathroom, I try to say words aloud but they won’t come.

I wasn’t in the right situation to learn, I say instead.

I don’t necessarily want to put my business out there.

Aryana nods. “If you ever want to learn, let me know. The tablet seems to be working pretty well though,” she says.

Thank you, I tell her with a small smile.

I think Lara’s the only bad apple so far, because people have been nice. Before I know it, the guards are ready to walk us across the club.

“The boss suggested that you wear these,” a beta guard says, handing Linus and I a mask. I think he introduced himself as Trigger earlier.

Nodding because it’s not a bad idea, we both fix one to our faces. There are loops that go over our ears so it doesn’t affect my appearance.

Even though we watched the dancers earlier, I was so entranced by them, I didn’t notice how packed the club was. Linus and I hold hands as the guards act as bookends. People are dancing, drinking, and laughing. They’re all enjoying themselves on a Thursday night, living life to the fullest. It’s like seeing a snapshot of peoples’ lives in a moment in time you’ve never experienced.

I feel old, watching the world as if through a magnifying glass.

Before I know it, I’m handing my tablet to the girl who is standing by my cage who will lift it up into the air. Linus helps me in, and I grin as he steps in with me.

“Just you and me, baby,” he says, shrugging. “Let’s dance.”

As the cage goes up and the music changes, the butterflies change from anxiety to excitement. He’s right.

It’s always going to be him and I.

DUNCAN

Since there’s a few hours before Linus and Quinn will dance tonight, my brother and I went home to work on a few things to surprise them.

We’re all up in each other’s space now unless they’re dancing or we’re working. Even then, Callum and I will replace ourselves getting tasks done in the living room with them. Most of our work is done remotely, which gives us flexibility.

Tonight, we’re putting together Linus’ large swing for the nest. After we cleaned up and changed, of course. I’ve never had a hotter voyeur experience than watching Linus tease us. Shaking my head as I remember, I get started on the work ahead of me with Callum.

I bought a second swing for the patio area where our courtyard is located. It felt perfect for that space. I want our home to have all the little nooks they need to snuggle and hang out.

The swing decided to be difficult, but Callum and I managed to get it together, though it took longer than expected.

“These instructions are trash,” my brother grumbles, tossing them over his shoulder. “This clearly goes into this piece, and then it’ll be ready to be hung.”

“That’s what you’d think,” I mutter. “These instructions aren’t very helpful.”

Together, we get the swing hung from the ceiling before looking at it and then each other.

“Moment of truth. Whose big ass is going to make sure it doesn’t fall down?” I ask.

Rolling his eyes, Callum sits down gingerly before lifting his feet to see if it’ll bear his weight. This is supposed to hold up to six hundred pounds.

The swing doesn’t complain, the ceiling hardware doesn’t bend under the weight of his body.

“Mission accomplished,” I breathe, watching for anything that might go wrong as he hoists himself out of the swing. “Next one?”

“Fuck, why not,” he says with a snort, cleaning up. “We already know what not to do from this one.”

Walking downstairs, we throw out our trash before hauling the large swing box outside to put together. Just as we’re getting into things, my phone buzzes. God, what now?

“Hello?” I answer, once I’ve confirmed it’s not from my forwarded line.

“Duncan,” Ayla says, her voice full of pain. My knees drop out from underneath me, the sting from the concrete pavers on my knees easily ignored in the face of it.

“Do you need me to come get you?” I ask, hoping she’ll say yes.

It’ll sure as shit fix so many problems if she just left Hudson.

“I have nowhere to go, Sweet Boy,” she says, and my brother freezes once he hears her voice over the speaker.

His ass hits the ground as well, and I feel like a child again.

“Live with us,” Callum says, swallowing thickly. “Quinn is our scent match, Ayla. She’s here. Please leave.”

“Is he home?” I ask. “He’s using you against your daughter. Please, don’t let him.”

“It would probably be better if I just wasn’t here anymore,” she sighs, her voice reminding me of the sound of old paper. “This is all my fault anyway.”

“I highly doubt that,” I bark out. “Did you kidnap her as a child?”

“No, but I’m the reason it happened.”

“Hold that thought,” Callum says, eyes wild and fearful. “Ayla, Quinnie should hear this. Is Hudson home?”

“Not yet,” she whispers.

Ayla sounds so beaten down, so fucking tired with life. I’d be suicidal too if I had to deal with everything she has.

“Then we’re coming,” I growl. “Do you know how to turn off the cameras?”

“Yes, but wouldn’t he know if I did that?” she asks.

“It’ll be for three seconds, then Callum can loop the recording so you won’t be seen leaving,” I explain.

My brother nods that he can do that, and we wait for her agreement. It won’t do anyone any good if we’re stuck at the gates.

“Ayla?” I ask. It’s too quiet. I usually don’t mind silence, but I feel an urgency here.

“Yes. I mean, I’ll pack a bag,” she says.

“You’re not going back,” I state, standing.

“Only take what you need,” Callum adds, following my lead.

Hopefully it won’t rain, because we’re leaving the scattered pieces of this porch swing along the ground.

“I understand,” she says. “How long till you get here?”

“Twenty minutes,” I reply, already walking back inside to grab a gun. Fuck it, I’ll bring two. I am stealing another man’s omega, after all.

“Okay,” she says before the phone goes dead.

Fuck me.

“This could be a trap,” Callum reminds me as he grabs a holster and pulls it on. Two guns slide in like butter after he checks to make sure they’re both safe and loaded.

“What else are we supposed to do?” I ask, grabbing the keys and running toward the door.

“Exactly what we’re doing,” he admits as we leave the house.

Come on, Ayla. Don’t steer us wrong.