Page 46 of Marked Omega

I scream and spin away, but immediately bump against another hideous Alpha. His face is also familiar. It is Chappel, though transformed now with far lander features—a heavy brow and ridged nose.

The Alphas continue to chant, and now I can understand them, though just barely. They are growling my name over and over.

Lily…Lily…Lily…

Chappel snarls and spins me around, and I find myself facing Bishop now. His wiry black beard and eyebrows are wild with the Alpha mutation. He looks like a monster.

I’m pushed backward one more time, and I am faced with the most terrifying creature of them all. His face is a misshapen horror, and his eyes are shining balls of blood.

It is Dr. Lucian in Alpha form.

“Lily,” he hisses.

I scream from deep in my soul. So loud that the illusion shatters. I scream the entire forest away. It disappears in a burst of blinding light.

“Lily. Lily, it’s all right. You are safe.”

Strong hands are pinning me down against a firm cushion. At first I struggle, but then I realize those hands are protecting me from my own thrashing terror. And the face gazing down into mine is no twisted horror. It is handsome. Sculptural. Nearly angelic in the dim light.

It is Addom.

“You’re safe,” he says again.

That rolling, rumbling purr of his voice soothes me. The warm firmness of his hands fills me with a sense of security. I exhale a sigh of relief, as I realize that the dream is over.

But as I glance around, I can’t help wondering where the heck we are.

This place is dark and cavernous, a circular room with a high dome reaching overhead. The walls are covered in metal paneling. There are other people here too. Alphas and omegas. They are milling around quietly, carefully stepping over the thick cables and conduits running along the floor.

I also notice a strange humming noise. It’s not a sound so much as it is a feeling. A vibration deep in the very marrow of my bones.

I’m lying on a simple pallet with my head propped on a pile of pillows. Hasker and Kadmon are squatting by my feet, watching me intently.

Even in the darkness of this shadowy place, Kadmon’s face is bright with happiness to see me. Surprisingly, even gruff Hasker is unable to hide the fact that he is glad I’m okay.

But what happened? The last thing I remember, Kadmon was bathing me at the waterfall and we were kissing.

I rub my tender wrists, realizing that those annoying iron shackles have finally been removed. I try to rise from the bed, but Addom places his hand over my naked chest and pins me firmly but gently in place.

“Be still, little one. We need to consult the healer.”

That’s when I realize that there is a metal pole with a clear bag of fluid hanging beside me. A narrow tube runs to my arm where it is wrapped in white bandages.

They’ve got me on a fluid drip, and Addom is talking about healers. Is this place a hospital? If so, it’s the strangest hospital I’ve ever seen. Hospitals are normally white and brightly lit. This place feels more like a dark cathedral or temple.

Addom turns and nods to Kadmon, who quickly departs somewhere behind me. I can hear voices back there, and soon he returns with a woman following close behind.

I am shocked at first to see that she is naked except for a few strips of fur covering her loins. I don’t know why that should be so shocking to me at this point, considering all the nudity I’ve experienced first hand over the past couple of days. In fact, I’m nude myself at the moment. But seeing a naked woman—or nearly naked at least—is a new experience for me.

What’s even more surprising about her appearance, however, are her piercings. She has several metal rings adorning her face—one through her eyebrow, another through the wing of her nostril, and yet one more in the middle of her bottom lip. And that’s not to mention the multiple rings in the lobes and cartilage of her ears.

However, the one that catches my eye is the glinting ring pierced through her left nipple. The woman catches me looking at it, and even in the dimness of this place I can tell that she blushes slightly. That’s unusual. I wouldn’t have expected a woman inside the zone to be bashful. Especially not one clothed—or rather unclothed—the way that she is.

But my biggest shock of all comes when she opens her mouth to speak.

“Hello, Lily,” she says. “My name is Hannah.”

It’s not what she says that surprises me. Her name certainly doesn’t ring any bells. But what I’m not expecting is her crystal clear accent that I have no trouble understanding.