“He’s touch-starved, Seath,” the omega said softly, looking to the Pack Alpha. “I hit a . . . barrier? Numbness? When I try to calm his senses, that is. Can I keep touching him?”
“Yes. Please do, as long as it is alright with him, of course. Thank you, Trav,” the Alpha said, looking directly at Lycan. “This is Trav. He is a gifted omega, able to sense the needs of others—a certain gift for empathy, really. We find that he helps others heal.”
Lycan nodded. He knew that some humans who were turned wolf were often gifted, the turn not only turning them from human to shifter—giving them the full slate of wolf abilities, but also enhanced any human abilities that carried over. Likely, as a human Trav had been an empath. As a shifter he could read what someone needed with accuracy and maybe even help manipulate the emotions of another. Lycan had met a similarly gifted omega before.
He knew those things, but nothowhe knew it.
“Yes, Alpha,” Lycan said, voice wobbling with pleasure at how good the affectionate touches felt. They were friendly and nice. Warm. Wolves were tactile animals, and too long without being held or even general affection could cause health problems.
As a strong Alpha in the Pack, Seath had often given Holdings to other members. It was nothing more than that. A quiet room, holding each other close for healing. But, it didn’t always have to be that formal. If a human looked at a normal gathering of shifters, or even the way the two Alphas in the room stood, it would seem too close, too encroaching on personal space. Wolves had very little personal space, though, and here in a Pack, that closeness was normal.
These touches were a version of play that Lycan would have with a friendly wolf, just in human form. Again, those weren’t memories, nothing that was hard or painful to search out in his mind. It was just something he knew.
“I’m Seath Rawson, the Pack Legate of the NorthWest Pack. This is Luke Cullen, our pack physician.”
Lycan merely nodded. Not Pack Alpha, then, but almost.
“We will do something about the touch-starvation going forward,” the smaller Alpha said, making a note on some sort of electronic tablet.
“Let’s,” the Pack Alpha agreed, seemingly more relaxed now that Lycan was leaning into Trav’s touch. The smaller Alpha put a hand on Lycan’s leg with a gentle pat, but the affection was overwhelming for the touch-starved omega and he quivered under the onslaught.
The smaller man pulled his hand away with a final pat. “Better ease back into that,” he said. “I don’t want to send you into shock.” The omega stayed close though, and that made Lycan feel as good as the drugs. Omegas needed one another and it must have been a long time since he had shared in any omega-bonding.
He tried not to whimper at the good feelings. The haze of feeling good took over his mind, clouded it, and made being afraid of these shifters seem like a far-away thing he didn’t need to worry about.
The smaller Alpha, Luke, looked at Seath and something passed between them. Lycan got a sense of pleasure from the Pack Legate at watching him and Trav interact.
“Yes, sir,” Lycan said.
“Do you know where you are? Are you familiar with our pack?” Seath asked.
“No, Alpha, I’m not sure what . . . I don’t know how I got here, or where here even is.” Lycan trailed off, remembering trees and lots of green, but that was mostly it.
“Your short term memory might not come back immediately. You have a concussion and it’s very normal,” Luke assured him.
“Do you know your name?” The Pack Legate asked.Seath.
“My name is Lycan. I mean, I have no other, and that’s what I’m called, sir.”
The two Alphas exchanged a glance. Lycan was the “John Doe” of the wolf world. It meant he was no one, anonymous. Seath felt a chill. Whomever had kept this omega had stripped him of everything. Even his name.
“Do you know your last name?”
Lycan stiffened at that request, but tried to pull the thought out for Alpha. Some thoughts were slippery, some memories were, too. But, some were sharp and seemed to cut when he reached for them. They were there—bits of knowledge stored in his brain, but getting it out was like walking through miles of razor wire.
He knew this was one of those pieces of information, so he drew in a deep breath, trying to catch the thought, trying to hold it, until the familiar ringing in his ears began. It was okay though, he controlled the pain in his mind and asked for it, the pain he was sure to receive for not answering Alpha would be something unknown. This pain he knew.
“Lycan!” Seath’s voice was strong, worried. Even though he was not Lycan’s Alpha, or a full Pack Alpha, it didn’t matter, the command cut through everything and the implied order to stop was obeyed.
“Sorry, Alpha, I . . .”
The Pack Legate studied him carefully and Trav continued the touches while Lycan’s mind swam from the sharp pain of reaching for that memory. But, before Lycan could try again, the world went dark one more time.
Chapter four
Seath Tries Again
“Italkedtothecoven last night,” Serepta said, balancing her teacup perfectly back into its saucer with an efficient click of china.
