"I had five days and a kitchen full of high-end appliances. I got creative." She pulled out a chair. "Sit. Eat. You need to rebuild your strength."
I sat, and the Alphas settled on either side of me. It felt natural. Right. Which should have terrified me.
But after days of them taking care of me, of proving over and over how wonderful they are, I couldn't find fear anymore. Weate in comfortable silence for several minutes. Too busy stuffing delicious food into our mouths. Then Kellan spoke.
"Naomi. We need to talk to you about something."
The tone of his voice made my stomach drop. "Okay."
He exchanged a look with Rowan, then continued. "When you came here in heat, when your scent broke free from the blockers, we recognized it."
"Recognized it how?"
"We've been searching for our Omega for twenty-nine years. Our scent-matched mate. She was stolen as a baby on her first birthday, which is on Valentine's Day."
My heart stopped. My birthday.
"What are you saying?" I dropped my fork.
"We think you're her," Rowan said quietly. "We think you're the Omega who was stolen from us."
I laughed. It came out harsh, disbelieving. "That's impossible. My mother raised me until she was murdered."
"Was never pregnant," Rowan interrupted. He pulled out his phone, showing me documents. "I had my sources look into her. Birth records, medical records, everything. The woman who raised you, the woman you called mother, never had children. All the documentation claiming you as hers was forged."
The room tilted.
"No. That's—you're lying. You have to be lying."
"We're not." Kellan's voice was gentle but firm. "Look at the documents. Look at the birth records. Your biological parents are powerful Alphas from a prominent pack. You were taken from them when you were one year old. On Valentine's Day. They’ve been searching for you all this time. We’ve also been searching for you."
"Why?" The word came out broken. "Why would someone take me?"
"Ransom. Inheritance. Power. You’re an Omega." Rowan set his phone on the table. "Your bloodline is worth millions. You're the heir to one of the oldest Alpha families in the country. Mating you would make them just as wealthy as you are. Especially, if you were in heat and your body forced you to accept even someone you didn’t want."
Alpha. He was always so careful with me. No matter how he abused my mother, he always treated me with so much care that it was off putting. I never thought he wanted me sexually, but it was always like he was biding his time in our house. Gone for long periods, but when he came back, he always made sure that I was well. Was I truly his cash cow?
I stared at the documents. At the dates. At the names I didn't recognize.
"I don't understand."
"We can have DNA tests done," Rowan continued. "Compare your DNA to your biological parents. Confirm what we already know."
"And the scent match?"
"That's on record too. Witnessed by three pack elders when you were born. You were matched to us before you were stolen."
I pushed back from the table, my chair scraping loudly. "This is insane. You're telling me my entire life is a lie? That the woman I called mother wasn't my mother? That I'm some heir to people I've never met?"
"Yes. But you have met them." Kellan said simply. “They love and raised you until you were taken.”
"Why didn't you tell me?" I was shouting now. "Why didn't you say something? Why did you wait until now?"
"Because we didn't know for sure," Rowan said. "Not until you came here in heat. Not until your scent broke free. And then," He paused. "Then your heat took priority. We couldn't tellyou while you were vulnerable. We had to wait until you were clearheaded."
"So you're telling me now. Immediately after."
"Yes."
