I gather the dishes and make my way back into the kitchen. Sarah has gone for the night, and it’s just me by myself. I take care of the rest of the mess and walk along the hallway to my tiny room in the back of the main house. As an omega, I have no property. Nothing of my own. I have a bed and a dresser in a room no bigger than a closet, but it’s warm in the winter months and I don’t have to worry about sleeping in the rain.
Getting undressed, I put on a nightshirt and curl up under the covers. I’m going to have to find another source of food. There is always hunting, but I won’t have enough time for that every day. The last thought I have before I drift off to sleep is of a life without Bruno in it.
Chapter Two
Shredded to Pieces
I wake up with the sun. My internal alarm clock makes sure I’m up before everyone else. My stiff sheets tangle around me, as I place my legs on the floor. There’s a chill in the air, and my threadbare nightshirt does nothing to help. I quickly dress and head for the bathroom. I need to be in the kitchen before anyone else is awake. Rushing down the hall I smack right into a wall of muscle. I put my hands out to brace from the impact and feel nothing but ridges and valleys.
Nile, Bruno’s gamma is wrapped in nothing but a towel. Standing at 6’2” he towers over my small frame. His blond hair is still wet, matted to his head. A bead of water slowly makes its way down his cheek, and I want to reach out and lick it. His scent surrounds me, heated ginger and musk, and my wolf whines a bit. I’ve seen Nile naked many times before, but I’ve never been in his personal space or felt his skin.
“You really shouldn’t sniff me like that, Clara. It could get you into a lot of trouble,” he says, pushing me up against the wall a little too hard. Nile has never taken liberties with me, but a rush of fear crawls through me as I try to not look him in the eye. The only thing worse than taking a punishment is for them to know my secret.
“I’m...I’m sorry. I didn’t do it on purpose. You were just there, and you’re naked, so I couldn’t help it,” I stumble out. He’s so close now that our bodies are practically melded to the wall.
“You really should remember your place. Omegas never get to fuck the top three. You’re not worthy of our cocks. You do make me hard though. Can you feel it pressed against you?” He growls, into my ear. A rush of excitement thrums through me. My wolf is ready to give her neck, but the human in me is repulsed that he’s speaking to me this way.
“Please, get off of me,” I say. A tear slips down my face and catches between us. He looks down at it, and a snarl escapes his lips. He pushes away from me and continues walking down the hall. I take a deep breath and close my eyes, giving myself a brief moment to collect my emotions.
When I’m done, I head toward the bathroom and clean up before I make breakfast for the whole house. Feeding twenty people takes some time, and I don’t want to be late again.
After breakfast is served, I make my way back into the kitchen. Sarah only works during dinner time, so I’m all alone. She has kids of her own, and the children come first. The only honorable thing about Bruno is he cares for all the pack children. Makes sure they are fed, clothed, and taken care of. There’s no abuse, and punishment is severe if he catches someone disobeying him. The children are revered in Blackclaw; too bad I’ll never have any.
“Clara, can you come in here for a moment?” Ralph yells.
Walking as quickly as my legs will take me, I reach him in seconds. He’s standing in the frame of Bruno’s office door. He’s a bit taller than Nile, around 6’3” and his skin is a deep olive. His long black hair is tussled all over, curling just at the ends. His emerald eyes stare into me as I stand before him waiting for instruction. The beta of the pack is the second in command. He takes care of inter-pack business and is the leader if something should happen to Bruno. He’s also the reason why Bruno isn’t out of control. He balances out Bruno's crazy. An alpha can get too hyper-focused on the hunt, and it’s the beta’s job to remind him that there are other things worth doing besides killing. All betas have an omega parent. Ralph’s powers are the closest to mine, except he’s dominate.
He opens up the door to Bruno’s office. Bruno and Nile are already seated and seem to be waiting for me. All three of these shifters in one room is making my wolf howl so loudly in my head. I close my eyes for a second to try to ground myself, but it’s not working.
"Did I... did I do something wrong?" I ask, shakily, opening up my eyes again. I have no idea why they would all call me in here. It's not like we’re friends. It's not like I’m important.
"No, not this time. We need to discuss something with you. Sit," Bruno commands. It flows through the air and when it hits me, my wolf rolls over. I take a seat in the nearest chair, opposite the huge desk in the room. It’s a small office with papers thrown about. There’s a small couch, where Nile and Ralph are sitting, and a few filing cabinets on the opposite side of the room. Having never been in here, it’s a bit weird to think that Bruno does paperwork.
"It’s come to our attention that the Ridgeback pack wants a truce. They want a bargaining chip, something that is important to us, and then they will submit their lands and businesses. The alpha knows he can’t win another battle, so this is the best offer he’s getting,” Bruno says, following my body language. I’m rigid in this chair. My hands are fisted at my sides, and I know that they can smell my fear.
“Why are you telling me this?” I ask, sounding a bit stronger than before.
“They don’t have an omega. It makes them out of control, and it’s the reason why we were able to overtake them with such ease. They’ll need one going forward, in order to be a satellite pack of ours. We’re giving them you. You’re to marry the alpha in three days,” he says, his gaze never leaving my face.
“You what! You can’t do that!” I say, standing up and leaning over the desk to get close to him. My eyes shoot to his, and our power radiates through the air. I just did the one thing that could get me killed, and I don’t even care.
“Clara, what do you think you’re doing?” Bruno growls out. The wolf comes out, and his eyes shine such a bright yellow, I get lost for a second thinking it’s the sun.
“I’m finally putting my foot down, you fucking asshole. I won’t marry into another pack just to help you gain some land or businesses!” I scream.
My body is pushed with such force, that I have no idea what’s happening until I’m a crumpled mess on the floor across the room. An immense pain radiates from my head all the way to my toes. I look up to see three angry wolves staring down at me. Bruno is going to shift soon, and Ralph and Nile are ready to smash me into the floor.
“You will never speak to your alpha that way. You will do as you are told, and you will not argue,” Ralph threatens, getting down to look into my eyes. I know what he’s doing, but I’m fucking done. I’ve held on for ten years. I’ve let them use me, scold me, embarrass me, all because I had nothing, but I did have something. Now they’re trying to sell me like a stock mule. Fuck this.
“Kill me then, because I’m not going to marry that fucking alpha,” I say, my eyes glowing with my wolf, staring right into Ralph’s eyes. She’s pissed they would try to give her away. She knows who she belongs to. Who her alpha is.
A look of pure shock comes over his face. I guess he thought it was a fluke that I could stare down the alpha and not flinch. Well, it’s not. I rise to my feet, as they back up and give me room. Pain screams through me, and I have to grip the wall to help. None of them reach for me.
“How are you doing this?” Nile asks, searching my face for some tell.
“I’m a fucking omega you, assholes. Omega’s weren’t meant to be servants or discarded. Once an omega was something that was special to the pack, but you disgraced it. We’re what makes the pack wolf shifters and not fucking actual wolves. If I wasn’t around, think about what your wolf would be doing. You saw it with Ridgeback,” I say, staring at all three of them. The pressure in the room increases. There i
s so much magic swirling around us, that time seems to stand still. Our wolves are all out, and they are...excited.
“How do you know this?” Ralph asks, watching me like I could grow seven heads at any moment.
“My mother. Before that fucking bitch left me here, she told me about the omega history. She wanted to rub it in my face that it would never happen, that I would always be worthless. No one would remember that I’m supposed to be important,” I say, wincing and gripping my side tighter. I think I broke a rib or two.
“It’s true,” Bruno whispers. His tone has changed. Something I’ve never heard before.
“What? How can this be? Bruno, what are you talking about?” Ralph flounders.
“It’s just what she said. Omegas were supposed to be special to the pack, but they were taken advantage of for so long, that no one ever thought to question. Although it isn’t the reason why she can look into our eyes. Omegas are still submissive. Clara is different,” he explains. This shocks me. I thought that my omega powers went hand in hand with our little secret.
“This doesn’t change anything,” Ralph carries on. “She needs to go with the Ridgeback pack or there will be consequences. We’d have to go to war. We already have that other omega coming. We don’t need two.”
The last sentence is a smack in the face. They are replacing me. I’m being traded like cattle. One in and one out. I mean nothing to them. The tears form in my eyes before I can stop them. I push off the wall and shove right through them. No one tries to stop me. Once I get to the doorway, I turn around and stare at the three men who I’ve hated for so long. Their faces are forlorn and weak. Something that will get me through these next few days. A tear slips from my eye as I turn around and walk out. Nothing can save me now.
Chapter Three
A different Reality
My ribs begin to heal as I walk over to the school house. Four days a week I teach at the school. I’m the only one who grew up outside of the pack, so I went to a traditional school. Most of the shifters here only know the basics, reading and some math.
The kids all file in as I approach the building. They range from four years old to sixteen. I try my best to teach them all I know, but I wasn’t educated for this. One of the things I hate about this pack is the antiquated system they have here. There is a town about five miles away that the children could go to.
“Morning, kids,” I say, walking over to the little desk I have set up in the corner.
“Morning, Ms. Clara,” they say, in unison. All their happy faces looking at me. I can’t help but get a bit emotional. I’m going to miss them all.
“Let’s pick up where we left off yesterday. Big kids get started on your English essay and little kids, please work in your workbook,” I instruct. I take a seat at the desk and let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding. My chest and side hurt less, and my headache is clearing. The one thing about being a shifter I love is we’re durable.
Time ticks by slowly, and most of the day I’m lost in thought about what I’m going to do about this marriage thing. I weigh the pros and cons and try to convince myself it won’t be so bad. There’s nothing for me here. Bruno doesn’t want me. Neither do Ralph and Nile. They couldn’t care less what happens to me. This new alpha might be a little more welcoming. Maybe we could even fall in love eventually.
“Ms. Clara, it’s two o’clock,” Thomas says, from his seat in the back.
“Oh, is it?” I ask, looking up to see the clock on the wall. “Seems so, ok class, you are all dismissed. I’ll see you next week.” I don’t have the heart to tell them I won’t be here, and I don’t know what will happen to their lessons.
Filing out of the building, I’m soon left alone. I clean up the little mess that they left behind and make my way over to the cabins to start cleaning. My jobs don’t end until after dinner is over, and now that there is no rush to get to my garden, I take my time.
The day is beautiful, the sun making its descent into the night. It’s warm with a bit of a brisk autumn chill in the air. Summer will end soon, and then the harvest will begin, or it would have if my garden wasn’t destroyed.
Today, I’m to clean the main house. I walk through the kitchen and gather the cleaning supplies to take them to the upstairs bedrooms, stopping at the linen closet to grab new sheets for the beds.
Ralph’s room is first. I knock tentatively just in case he’s inside. When I don’t hear anything, I make my way into the room. A dusky glow covers everything. The bed is unmade, as per usual and there are clothes spread all over the floor. Ralph is a bit of a slob.
I open up the drapes to let some light in. Streams of dust streak the air as the sunlight peers through the window. I move to the bed to start to remove the dirty sheets when something moves below them.
“What are you doing in my room,” a male voice croaks out. Ralph removes the covers from his head and shows off the delicious bedhead he has going on. He cracks an eye toward me and gives me a scowl.
“It’s three in the afternoon on Wednesday. I’m here to clean your room,” I say. My schedule is always the same so this shouldn’t be a shock to him.
“I had a rough night last night. Come back later,” he says, rolling over and dismissing me. My blood starts to boil as anger takes over me. If I come back later, I’ll be late for dinner again.
“No,” I whisper. It’s so low that at first, I don’t think he hears me, but then he turns back around and sits up.
“No? You do realize who you’re speaking to,” he says, eyebrow notched up in question.
The blankets have pooled around his waist exposing an expanse of muscle and a dusting of hair. He’s so large and perfect that I swallow trying to gain composure. My wolf wants to reach out and lick him, claim him.
“I don’t give a shit. In three days, I’m out of here. Either you want your room cleaned or you can wait for the next slave to do it,” I say, standing my ground.
“Growing balls are we, Clara?” He asks, rising from the bed. My eyes immediately go to his naked form and a whimper escapes my lips. He stalks over to me, measuring me up like the hunter he is. His closeness causes the air to stifle and get thick. My wolf howls and peaks out a bit.
Standing in my personal space, he raises his hand and places a piece of my hair behind my ear, caressing my skin as he does. A shiver of excitement runs through me, as I curse my treacherous body for betraying me.
“Do you want it clean or not?” I repeat. His closeness is starting to unravel my resolve. I need to get away from him.
“Not now, maybe a bit later. I still feel the need to stay in bed,” he says while leaning into my ear to whisper his words. I place my hands in front of me, and they press against his chest. He looks down between us and pushes more into my hand. There is no more room between us, and I can feel the heat of his body fold around mine. This is starting to get to be too much.
“Fine,” I say, pushing away from him and walking toward the door. He reaches out to grab me, but I evade his grasp. I rush out of the room like my ass is on fire.
Chapter Four
Meeting the Enemy
It took me all day to get Ralph out of my system. His heat lingered on my skin for hours. I could still smell him, picture his full lips, and hear the way his breath whispered in my ear. I can’t believe that I allowed it to get as far as it did. What if I would have stayed? Would he really have taken me to bed?
“Clara, get your head out of the clouds,” Sarah yells, pushing a bowl of potatoes to me. After cleaning, I came into the kitchen early to start the evening meal prep -- roast and potatoes. The roasting meat is making my mouth water, the smell encapsulating the whole room. I hope that there will be leftovers, so I can try some.
Now that my garden is gone, I haven’t eaten since the bowl of oatmeal this morning. Normally, I’d have a vegetable or fruit depending on what was ripe while I sat and watched the horizon hoping for a better life, but that’s ruined now. My only hope is that this new alpha won’t
abuse me as my current alpha does.
“It’s finished. Grab the plates, so we can serve. The alpha will be pleased we are ahead of schedule. Whatever happened after yesterday to make you on time today was worth it,” Sarah says. Always the opportunist. She never helps anyone except herself. Not even her children.
I plate all the meals and start to bring them into the dining hall. There is a bunch of new people seated at the table with Bruno, Ralph, and Nile. Two men and one woman. They all look like they just stepped out of the woods and came to dinner. The one man, seated on the right of Bruno, has long blond hair down to his shoulders. His face is riddled with a five-o’clock shadow, and there is dirt under his nails. He looks like he hasn’t washed in days. The woman has a look of pure hatred. I don’t know what happened before I walked in, but I’m glad I wasn’t a part of it.
I place each dish in front of the wolves, starting with my alpha and going by pack rank. I don’t know who these people are, so I plate them according to the seating arrangement. No one seems to notice, and I take a deep breath and send up a thank you to the universe. Just as I’m about to leave the room and start on the cleaning, Bruno speaks up.
“Clara, come here for a moment,” he says. I freeze and think of all the things I could have done wrong. A pang of fear shoots through my system, and one of the wolves makes a low growl. I hate being prey.
I turn around and face the alpha, not looking into his eyes, as I don’t know who these people are. I can feel the tension in the room start to build, and my curiosity gets the better of me. “Yes, Alpha.”
“I would like you to meet Colt from the Ridgeback pack. He’s the former alpha, and soon to be your new husband. Colt, this is Clara,” he says, and my whole body goes numb. A part of me didn’t think that he would actually go through with it. I was hoping that yesterday was all a dream, and I could live out this shitty existence in peace, but it’s not and here is the proof.
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