Page 66 of Marked Omega

“Let’s go home,” I say in a hushed voice when Addom finally takes his hand from my mouth.

I glance around at my three Alphas, to whom I am now permanently bound. They are smiling approvingly. I want to be with them again. I want to feel their strong hands and insistent mouths on my skin, playing with my new decorations and taking my pleasure to new heights.

I shouldn’t need it so soon after last night. But I’m already hungry for them again.

“Soon,” Addom says. “But we must stay here for a time so that the Source can complete your healing.”

He tenderly kisses the crook of my neck where he and his pack mates branded me with their teeth.

CHAPTER 28: HASKER

Whenever I sleep inside the chamber of the Source, I always dream about Talia and how she died. Today is no exception.

This time, however, the dream is different.

She is running through the forest, dappled sunlight rushing over her bare skin, piercings glinting. Her eyes are wide and her pupils dilated. Her breath comes in ragged gasps. She is not panicked, but she is afraid.

I cry out, as I always do, when I hear the crack of the outsider’s rifle, and I see the red wound blossom on her chest.

She is dead before she even hits the ground.

I rush to my fallen mate, gathering her limp body in my arms. I repeat her name over and over, but she doesn’t respond.

All of these details of the recurring dream are the same as they are every time. The part that is different is the end.

When I look down into the face of the dead omega cradled in my arms, I see that it’s not Talia at all.

It is Lily.

I wake with a start, cold sweat prickling along my brow and across my neck. My chest is tight, my breathing shallow and labored, my muscles tense.

I flinch as a hand touches my shoulder.

“Easy.” It’s Kadmon. He is crouching beside me. “No need to worry, Hasker. She’s right there.”

Kadmon gestures across the vast chamber toward the base of the Source where Lily is standing with Addom and the other omega, her friend, Hannah.

But how did Kadmon know that I was worried about her? It occurs to me that I may have been calling her name in my sleep.

I sit up and take a few deep breaths to calm my nerves and get my bearings.

“How’s your pecker?” I ask Kadmon.

The young Alpha shrugs. He got pierced today too. It’s customary for one his age to get his member enhanced with a piercing after he has shed his virginity. I remember how bad mine stung when I got it.

Kadmon took his like a man.

To my surprise, our little omega took hers well too. Much better than I expected. She is tough and courageous. Full of surprises.

With the ceremony complete, we remained here in the chamber to let the Source work its magic and heal their pierced skins. By tradition, we should use this time for meditation and prayer, but I’ve never been much good at either of those practices, and so I dozed off. Hence the dream.

With a grunt, I rise to my feet and stretch my back. Then I cross the floor to the base of the Source where Addom, Lily, and Hannah are standing.

As I get closer, I realize that they are gathered around a screen set into the base of the Source. Lily is tapping away at a small set of keys.

“I already tried that,” Hannah says. “But this thing’s operating system is ancient.”

Lily snorts.