ChapterOne
Josie
Absolutely nothing was going my way today. It wasn’t as if that was anything new, but hiding between a dirty brick wall and a dumpster was a special level of hell. The garbage stench burned my nose and made my eyes water, but at least it masked the scents of the four alphas currently blocking my exit from the alley.
My heartbeat pulsed in my ears so loudly I was worried one of them would somehow hear me and track me down, trapping me here and… I clenched my fists tightly, allowing the biting pain from my fingernails to keep me from descending into a full-blown panic attack. A few years ago, doing something illegal and rebellious would have filled me with the kind of heart-pumping adrenaline that made me feel alive. Now I just wanted to hide away.
One of the alphas started yelling, and I suppressed a whimper.
“How fucking dare that bitch choose another pack?” he snarled.
“She was a total prude. Bet she would be frigid in bed,” another responded.
“Why the fuck do we even let omegas choose packs? They should be grateful alphas like us want to bond with them. They’re all whores,” a third alpha growled.
Despite my fear, I rolled my eyes at their lack of logic. Which was it—were we omegas all whores or prudes? My guess was this pack had just been turned down by an omega who was doing her pre-heat interviews. My stomach clenched with anxiety. I needed to call Sam, needed to make sure that wouldn’t be my fate soon.
The alphas continued to yell drunkenly, spewing unoriginal anti-omega insults at higher and higher decibel levels. The bar, whose dumpster I was currently pressed against, was typically quiet early on a Tuesday night, but these alphas had clearly gotten a head start on their drinking. My inner omega cringed at their rage, and I wedged myself more deeply into the crevice I’d contorted my body into.
My watch told me it was 9:56 p.m., just a few minutes until the nightly omega curfew took effect. Even though the police might not stop and harass me for the next four minutes, the same couldn’t be said for these alphas.
The breeze wafted the stench of mold and stale cigarettes over me, and I froze as my skin burned with phantom touches. I gripped my upper arm, feeling pinpricks of pain that lingered almost a full year later.
My breathing evened out as the alphas moved further away, their voices fading into the distance, but I didn’t feel safe enough to emerge yet. I couldn’t see my destination from my hiding spot, but I knew the gym was there, waiting to embrace me. Even though my nightly journey to the gym was filled with the terror of being caught, the gym itself had become a safe space for me over the past year. Usually, I didn’t arrive until well after midnight to start my cleaning job. The streets were deserted in the early morning hours, most of the government patrollers having cleared the area. But on self-defense class nights, I had to be extra cautious.
A yellow taxi van finally pulled up to the curb, and the asshole alphas piled in. I shivered as I waited to make sure they were really gone. The night air was still warm, summer not yet giving way to fall, but I hadn’t been able to regulate my temperature all day. I finally squeezed myself out of my hiding spot, my bones and muscles protesting the movement. I burrowed more deeply into my oversized sweatshirt as I watched a silver SUV pull out of the alley beside the gym. I was pretty sure that car belonged to Poppy’s alphas. They must have just dropped her off.
My footsteps fell quietly as I made my way across the street, theAlpha Gainzsign drawing me like a beacon to safety. Months after I started working for Luc, when I finally stopped flinching every time he spoke or walked near me, I got up the courage to tease him about his gym name.Why would you put a z at the end?He mumbled something about it being cool and omegas just not getting it. With enough pestering, I finally got him to admit that his bonded omega also thought the name was stupid. I’d never met Charlie, but I loved imagining her rolling her eyes at her alpha’s ridiculous name choice. Or rather, rolling hereyez.
I kept my face downcast as I entered the alley by the gym. I was almost to the stairs that led down to the basement entrance when three enormous alphas turned into the alley from the other end. Fear shot through me, freezing me for a second before I realized they hadn’t seen me yet. They were talking furtively to each other, giving me enough time to execute the least graceful stop, drop, and roll I could imagine, leaping over the crates blocking the entrance and practically falling into the concrete stairwell.Fuck, that hurt.I would be covered in bruises by tomorrow.
I didn’t dare open the basement door while they were so close. I held my breath, curling up behind the crates and praying my de-scenter held. The alphas took painfully slow steps down the alley as they continued their conversation.Don’t mind me, take your sweet, sweet time. Alphas had free rein to move around wherever they wanted, do whatever they wanted, abuse whoever they wanted. I couldn’t let myself think about what would happen if they caught me here.
“He said to come in the main entrance and start using the free weights. A guy wearing a green shirt will come over and do the handoff,” one of the alphas said quietly in a British accent.
“I don’t want to work out again,” another one responded, sounding disgruntled.
“Ben, we’re not here to fucking work out,” a gruff voice bit out.
“How do we even know this hacker is any good? I bet I’m better,” the disgruntled one—Ben—said.
“Shh, do you hear something?” the British one hissed.
The three of them stopped right at the top of the fucking stairs. I held my breath, wishing I could freeze my heart for a moment. A breeze stirred and wafted a warm cinnamon roll scent my way. My inner omega automatically relaxed at the yummy-smelling alphas and I clenched my jaw in irritation. Biology was a bitch—these alphas were not safe, no matter how tempting they smelled. But I had to admit, they did smell unusually good.
“Let’s go,” the gruff one muttered, sounding like he was further away. I caught a glimpse of two other sets of feet turning to follow him.
Once I was sure they weren’t doubling back, I eased open the gym door behind me and slipped in, finally allowing myself a deep exhale.
“Josie!” Poppy squealed as she launched herself towards me, pulling me in for a hug. I stiffened automatically. “You’re usually here early. We were worried about you.”
Poppy pulled away, and I could see genuine concern in her bright blue eyes, her blonde hair haloing her face in angelic curls. Everyone in our small self-defense class was already gathered—Luc, Anna, and Westin were setting mats up on the other side of the room.
“I had to hide from some alphas for a bit, but I’m okay,” I managed to say, proud of how steady my voice sounded. Poppy’s concern made me want to simultaneously burst into tears and run away. I wasn’t used to anyone besides my childhood best friend, Sam, caring about me.
“Glad you made it safely,” Luc grunted as he walked over to us.
Effusive was not a word I would use to describe the grumpy gym owner, but he cared in his own way. He was dressed in his typical all-black uniform (Poppy told him repeatedly that it was boring and he should wear something with morepizazzto attract customers), and his dark brown eyes looked me over to make sure I was okay. The only times I had seen Luc show emotion were on the rare occasions he talked about Charlie. The slightest blush would make its way onto his dark olive skin, and a small smile would tug at his lips as if he couldn’t help but melt when thinking about his omega. It made my heart hurt and reminded me of the fantasies I’d had as a child, wishing that one day a pack of alphas would whisk me away to a better life.
