“Why are you doing this?” the omega on the left cries.
“Because you are omegas. Scum. Whores. You corrupt with that scent, beguile the innocent, poison souls. You all carry the Ravage Virus.”
“I don’t have any diseases!” she shouts. “It was seven hundred years ago!”
“You destroyed the world, but we won’t let you destroy us!”
I finally manage to spot the beta. He’s lounging on the stairs, eating an apple, and looking completely calm and unaffected.
She sobs harder and then trails off. Her foot is facing the wrong direction, and she’s got all these strange marks on her. The beta gets up and pulls a metal rod from a small fire he’s got burning. I didn’t even see it.
With sudden clarity, I realise what those marks are. Every pledge and up carries one of these metal objects to brand the designation of omega on our skins so we can never hide. I reach down, sliding my fingers across my own brand.
The other woman wakes up and thrashes violently. She opens her mouth, and there’s nothing there. No tongue, no teeth.
He stole her voice.
Tears track down her cheeks.
“I think…hmmm, yes, I think we’re going to have to remove those eyes.”
Mordecai grabs my knee and stabs the air in the direction we came from. He holds up the crossbow and aims it down there. I hesitate and then nodslowly.
I get up and backtrack as fast as I can.
“Someone save us!” the omega screams.
My heart races, thuds, aches. ‘Someone save us’ echoes in my head. There is no one to save you. Everyone is already lost.
There’s silence, and then Mordecai bursts onto the street, grabbing my hand, and we run.
I don’t say anything, but I keep hearing those words. With every step and every heartbeat, I hear those words.
Mordecai helps me through the bushes and back into the school, where I find myself pulled into Jarek’s arms. He hisses and makes grumpy sounds as he squeezes me tightly. I cling to him, allowing myself this weakness.
“Don’t do that again, Keres.”
I bury my face in his shoulder, shaking and trying to push the memories of what I’d seen out of my head.
The memories of what they did to me is one I will never be able to get away from. I’ll never be able to recover from. Once they do that to us, is there any life we can live after?
Jarek clamps a hand around my wrist and tows me back to the school, ignoring Mordecai with a frigid, icy disdain. Bear approaches, pulling me into a hug before I can stop him. He’s ripped off me and, to everyone’s surprise, faces a growling Cadel.
“Hands off,” the half-feral alpha growls.
“Sure,” Bear says, still smiling. “You did well, Keres. You saved Taryn. We knew that you would.”
I stare at him, confused. “What?”
“You’re going to help us, aren’t you? Help the resistance? Oh, I can’t wait for you to hear everything.”
I glare at him, but he’s unaffected by my hostility. He’s like a child, all excitement, locked in his own bubble.
“Feed these people and set up a room for us. It’s time to tell Kaida Keres our story.”
“We’re not normally this dramatic,” Legion says. “Bear is just excited to have you on board.”
“I’m not on board,” I snap.
