Ugh, I knew this fucker was going to give us trouble. Today wouldn’t be the end of it.
“In the meantime, we’re taking our omega home. Millie?” Our sweet omega looked on the verge of tears. “Do you want to say goodbye to your father?”
She shook her head so hard, it gave me a bit of a headache.
“Then it’s settled. Come on, Millie. We’re going to take you home.”
She walked so slowly. Poor thing. She must’ve been starved, and we could probably only see a few of the bruises on the outside. Not to mention the ones on the inside.
We got her to the truck and Felix wrapped her up in a blanket after helping her with her seat belt. “Are you hungry?”
She didn’t shy away from him. I hoped she knew that we were here for her good, not to hurt her.
“Yes,” she said, no louder than a whisper.
“Let’s stop somewhere and get her something to eat before a wind gust takes her away from us,” Cannon offered. He hadn’t touched her yet. Her scent was faint, but all of us were already affected by it.
She was probably on suppressants and scent blockers, otherwise, all the alphas in the place would’ve fought over the omegas to the point of death. They were already evil and on the verge of being monsters. Their scents would’ve driven them over the edge.
“First, we have to get her far away from here,” I said.
Millie gave me a bit of a nod. We had things to share but first, there were her needs to take care of. I would have to tell her how we found her, and she would tell me how she spotted me in the crowd.
At least we got her out of the devil’s hands.
Chapter Nine
Millie
It wasn’t until I was in the vehicle and we were driving away that it hit me what I’d just done. I’d spent my whole life being compliant enough to be safe, and today, I just went for it. My heart was beating a thousand miles a minute.
I didn’t get to leave with my belongings, even though there was a suitcase packed, astarter kit for my new life. My father was pissed. He’d done everything he could to make sure that I was the omega who would get him the biggest price. And then today, he decided to act like I mattered in some way by asking for a bride price like in days of old. As if he had ever paid me any attention growing up, as if he hadn’t had others do his dirty work preparing me for my auction.
He couldn’t fool my mates. When the bride price came into play, they made it crystal clear they weren’t putting up with that. I wasn’t sure anyone ever told my father no before. It was glorious.
Now, here I was in their vehicle, looking like shit and doing what I could to not curl into a ball and sob. I was half naked, my body covered in bruises, and my hair... I caught a glimpse of it in the rearview mirror and it was the stuff of nightmares.
The alphas were mad, raging mad. I could feel their bears clawing to get out, but at no point was I scared they were going to hurt me. Their anger wasn’t directed at me. They were mad at what I’d been through. They were mad at my current state. They were mad at my father. They were mad at everything but me.
We didn’t talk for the first hour. I sat there with my eyes closed, not wanting to break down in front of them, and they gave me the respect and space to just be. But then they pulled into a little strip mall and the silence came to an end.
“Is this where we’re eating?”
They’d mentioned wanting me to eat, but also wanting to get away from the chaos.
“We’re gonna get you some clothes and let you get your hair done. Help you feel like yourself,” Cannon said.
I wasn’t sure how to respond, so all I did was give a little nod. In the past, if my hair had been anything close to this state, I’d have had to get it done for other people. But this wasn’t that. They were taking me to get my hair done for me.
“Can you get me something to wear first?”
“Yes,” Felix said. “Absolutely.”
He popped out of the car. I thought he was going to the store, but he just went to the back and grabbed a gym bag. It had a hat, a shirt that smelled like Cannon, and some sweats. I looked like I was wearing someone else’s clothes, or maybe I was on the run in some sort of suspense movie, but it would do.
“Don’t be nervous in here,” Tyrone said as we walked toward a salon. “They’re not gonna say anything. They’re good people.”
“I’ve never been to a salon before,” I confessed. “Not this kind, anyway.” But I knew how cruel people could be. And as great as the owners and workers might be, the customers? They could be the worst or the best. There was no telling.
