Now that I have asked him the question, I need more thananythingto know. To hear a story that doesn’t end in misery. To give hope to this situation. Most omegas can’t mentally take the loss of their pack. Can’t survive their first heat without them. It is too painful. They allow their bodies to deteriorate and never truly recover, but there are others who choose a different route. A quick and painless death on their own terms.
“She… Shedied. But—they were mated. It was different.”
I don’t answer, instead my fingers go up to my mark. The one Tony left on me that bound us together. “Sure,” I say weakly as my vision clouds.
The tears fall freely as I wrap myself into a tighter ball on the floor. I want desperately for this to just go away. To return to Tony’s arms. To wake up and come to from this year-long nightmare.
It istoomuch. Unbearable. I decide to tell this poor alpha the truth. He deserves to truly understand what he is getting into.
“I was mated too.”
He curses under his breath before I feel his aura shift. “That doesn’t matter. You are not the same.”
“How are we any different?” My voice cracks as my mind deteriorates around the pain that is quickly evolving into something else entirely.
“You have me.”
five
Xenia
One Month Later
This isn’t possible.
“What do you mean?” I ask again, cocking my head. My senses are filled with unpleasant scents. Sterile, chemical, with a touch of iron and copper.
The doctor in front of me furrows her eyebrows. “Perhaps you want to call your pack to come? It appears you are in shock.”
My anger ramps up and mixes with my confusion. “I’m unmated.”
Her eyes flick to the mark on my neck. Her mouth opens, but then she shuts it, mulling for a few moments before speaking. “Sure. MissRossi.”
The name alone is a stab at my psyche. “You need to check again.”
The doctor's lips flatten into a line. She stands from her desk and even though she is a beta, her scent wafts to me. Strong, sweet, and slightly bitter.Licorice.It’s nearly as unpleasant as the rest of this office, and my nose crinkles in disgust.
The doctor pauses. “If not a pack. Is there someone else you want to call?”
An unrelenting stomachache had brought me to this urgent care clinic. Nearly an hour and numerous tests later, this crock was trying to convince me of the impossible.
“Yes.” Digging through my bag, I retrieve my phone and dial Serena.
“Xenia, what’s going on?” Her voice is off, but I push that aside, focusing on the task at hand.
“I went to urgent care with a stomach bug. Thisdoctoris trying to convince me of the impossible. Can you please talk to her?”
“Wait Xen—”
I don’t listen, pushing the phone into the doctor’s hands before me. She steps back with it and turns around, speaking in a hushed tone.
I don’t like that.
Fidgeting, I pluck at a stray piece of wool on my sweater. The material is not my favorite, but I didn’t have many options. Florida decided to have one of its rare cold days, and my winter clothes are lacking.
“Here, she’s going to speak to you.” The doctor’s voice is kinder this time, her eyes filled with a familiar emotion that I hate.
Serena told her about Tony.
