9
Hector
The earth disappearedunder my feet as I made massive strides towards the town. I ran hard and fast, putting every inch of determination into my muscles. A storm of emotions raged inside me. Anger, sadness, disgust - they fuelled me in mymission.
I’ll show him,I thoughtbitterly.
Virgil not believing the fact that I was pregnant was a massive blow to my confidence and mood. I knew he was stressed out, but howdarehe insinuate I was lying? Telling him was a mistake, and sitting around not doing anything about the Gunner situation was a mistake, too - both things that I would rectify bymyself.
It was an unexpectedly warm evening and my fur felt heavy on my skin. I slowed for a bit, letting my muscles catch up with my breath. I was close to town already and could afford to take a short break before I went throughwiththis.
I wasn’t afraid or nervous. Only a sense of duty and determinationfilledme.
Since nobody else would do this, Ihadto.
Gunner had to be lured out of his defensive hole, no matter what. That was the only way we could accomplish anything. Not by sitting around safely in our camp and just hoping that he would go away. No, he was as ugly and tenacious as a roach, and I knew for a fact he would hold onto his life for as long as possible, even if it meant hiding behind his meatshields.
He’s a coward, I thought angrily.Just likeVirgil.
I didn’t want to think about Virgil right now, but of course my brain had other opinions. All the images in my mind’s eye were of him snapping at me in front of everyone, calling me a liar. That might have been what pissed me off the most - not the fact that he denied our baby, but the fact that he didn’t believe me. The one person in my life I trusted more than anybody, and he called mealiar.
That was fine,I thought bitterly. He could believe whatever he wanted. He’d be more embarrassed that way when a few months later I popped ababyout.
What would even happen, then? Would hewantto be a father to our child after he vehemently denied it? Everything about the baby’s existence was a mess - the conceiving that neither of us thought would happen, the lie about it, Virgil’s reaction to the truth - it was all the total opposite of Virgil’s way of being. Calm, cool, smart, always thinking ahead. Always making good choices. The oppositeofme.
Growling, I started to run again. The sooner I got this over with, the better. Maybe then I could go back to being miserable - alone. I didn't need Virgil in my life anyway. Plenty of omegas were single dads. I could do the same damn thing. I didn’t need a fuckingalpha.
I reached the small cliff that overlooked the town. Quiet, as usual. It was the eerily, unnaturally quiet that occurs when a place is on lockdown. Ever since the escape of the first omega - Charlie - Gunner had been slowly losing his mind with power, instating curfews and strict rules, controlling everyone’s lives. It was aghosttown.
But tonight, there was an extra chill in the air. Gunner wasexpectingus.
Well, he’s not gonna get us. But he sure as hell is gonnagetme.
I changed into human form and began making my way down the slope to the town. The eerie silence made my skin crawl, but I wasn’t going to let that stop me. Unlike everyone else, I was determined to see thisthrough.
It felt strange to be back. I hadn’t walked these streets since I returned from my failed mission in Indigo Mountain and Gunner had wanted to kill me. I frowned and quickly stopped thinking about that because it would just lead me to Virgilagain.
I stopped in the middle of thestreet.
It really wastooquiet.
The hairs on the back of my neck stood. Even though the air was warm, goosebumps ran across my skin. There wasn’t a soul to be seen, but I felt like I was beingwatched.
Suddenly this didn’t seem like such a good ideaanymore.
I was pregnant and alone in the middle of hostile enemyterritory.
That realization dawned on me, cold anddreadful.
I’d made a hugemistake.
In my rashness to escape from Virgil and my frustrations, I’d run straight into the depths of hell, and I was completelyalone.
Slowly, I turned around. I felt like I was stuck in a spider’s web and one wrong move would be the end of me. I needed to get outofhere.
I felt eyes on the back ofmyhead.
Gritting my teeth, I walkedfaster.
