Jo
“Could you be a doll and change the channel?” I ask the beta woman staring off into space next to me.
She doesn’t answer.
Typical.
You know, last time I was here, I jumped at every little noise and motion, but now that I’m sitting on a couch in front of a staticky black and white TV next to a catatonic, middle aged woman I’ve nicknamed Susan?
It’s just…sad.
Susan doesn’t answer me. She hasn’t, not one time since the asshole orderlies sat me here two hours ago and left everyoneunattended. How irresponsible of them. I could be a serial killer who takes people out using only my feet.
Huffing, I look around the room. It’s pretty much the exact same as it was when I came here last week. The alpha that had started screaming at me is scribbling away with a crayon, there’s one staring at a puzzle. What do these people do all day? What if they have to pee? How do they eat? This can’t be sustainable.
I sigh. “Susan. Listen, I know you’re goin’ through a rough time right now, but if I have to listen to some cowboy wannabe say ‘howdy’ one more time, I might break out of this straitjacket and shank someone.”
It’s obvious she’s never going to answer me, but I’m doing my best to not crawl out of my skin. If I don’t talk to someone, then I think about how my hands are bound and I can’t move. And if that happens for too long, I might start screaming, and that might make them actually sedate me, bond sickness research be damned.
“Maybe your name isn’t Susan.” I muse, twisting to look around the room again. Still no orderlies. Not that I want to see them, but it’s always good to know where the enemy is. “Could it be you’re more of a…Sarah?”
Nothing.
I try again. “Or a…Jane?” Her head whips towards me so fast I shriek, nearly jumping a foot in the air. “Holy fuck. Jane?”
The woman tilts her head, her eyes unfocused, but it’s like she’s trying to figure out who I am.
My heart is racing as I look into her hazy brown eyes. “Jane, can you hear me?”
Her face screws up like she’s in pain. “Who…” Her voice is hoarse from disuse, and I’m so intent on her next words, I don’t see anything but opportunity. “Who are you?” she asks, her brows furrowing, like she’s waking up for the first time.
Maybe this is it. Maybe I can wake them up one at a time and slowly gather my own army of mentally unhinged people to sneak out Mabel. Given, I’d have to magically guess everyone’s names first, which might be a problem.
“I’m Jo, I—”
“Who are you?” she asks again, her voice growing slightly louder.
“Jane,” I huff, annoyed that she cut me off. “I’m Jo—”
“Who are you?!” She’s yelling now, getting to her feet and pointing a shaky finger in my direction. My body goes cold with dread. “Who are you?!” She starts screaming the words, and then there are angry footsteps rushing into the room.
“What did you do?” Steve snaps, grabbing Jane by the arms while Jones snags me up from the couch. He has a pretty nasty bump on his head, but what was he expecting, calling me “Josie”?
“I didn’tdoanythin’” I bite back, fighting against Jones’ hold. “She just started screamin’ for no reason!”
“Gods, you’re fucking trouble aren’t you?” Steve shouts over Jane’s continued screaming. My omega revolts at the sound of Sam’s nickname for me coming out of this alpha’s mouth. “Maybe you just need to stay in solitary permanently!”
“You can’t do that!” I snarl, pulling against Jones again. The beta yanks me back, making me stumble.
“Just shut up! You’re sending fucking distress pheromones everywhere.” Steve manages to shove a syringe of something into Jane, and he lets her fall against the couch. At least nobody ended up on the floor this time. “You’re going to have to go back to your room if you can’t get that stench under control.”
As if on cue, I become aware of another body approaching us.
An alpha. His scent of burnt rubber might have been different at one point, less offensive, but now it’s all I can scent as he approaches.
It’s the same alpha who ten minutes ago was absent-mindedly picking puzzle pieces off the table and putting them back.
“Omega.” I stiffen at the words, looking up at a giant of a man. Not as big as Kole, but pretty damn close.
