Page 5 of Bad Omega

“Now!”

The word is a bark, and it sets the young alphas running, almost as fast as the Farlanders before them. Renn watches them go with a smirk. Bjor just shakes his bearded head and laughs.

And Knar… Knar just scowls.

“If you’re going to hang around with alphas,” he says, “you could at least pick some who are capable of protecting you.”

“That’s why I have you.”

The sugar in my voice has no effect.

“Don’t be cute, Eri. That could have turned out very badly. You’re lucky we showed up when we did.”

“I can explain—oh!”

Before I have a chance to spout off an excuse, my pack leader lifts me off the ground and slings me over one massive shoulder. He growls.

“Oh, you’ve got some explaining to do, young lady, but we’re gonna save the excuses for a safer location. I suggest you use this time to think long and hard about what you’re going to say.”

But all I can think about is what’s going on in my tummy.

The butterflies are back, and it feels like they’re breeding.

CHAPTER 3

The tower rises high above the treetops, a glass-walled cabin perched atop a skeletal framework of weathered timber and cross-braced legs. It is an old structure, built in the times before the Great Cataclysm. In those days it was used as a fire lookout tower, where people called rangers would watch for wildfires.

These days, it’s our home.

I’m sitting on a stool in the middle of the cabin, still wearing the ridiculous little outfit I put on this morning to lure the boys with. I’ve managed to tie the top shut where the Farlander cut it, but the laces keep trying to give, so I have to hold it closed with one hand. I would like to change into something less revealing, but I’m not about to do that in front of the alphas. I could tell them to avert their eyes, but I’m too nervous to say anything. It’s not Bjor I’m worried about. Or Renn.

It’s Knar.

I’ve never seen him like this before.

Oh, I’ve seen him angry plenty of times. Roaring mad. But this is different. A cold, quiet fire that makes me too afraid to speak. He is standing at one end of the cabin, looking out across the forest. His powerful muscles are limned in golden sunshine streaming in through the windows.

Big Bjor is sitting on a bunk by the wall, idly whittling a piece of wood. He’s always carving away at something. He used to carve toys for me when I was little.

Renn is on the other side of the cabin, lounging on his own bunk. I catch him smirking at me, and I stick out my tongue. His green eyes roll.

“Eri…?”

Knar’s voice is thunder on the horizon. I sit up a little straighter on my stool.

“Yes, Daddy?”

“How long have you been living with us?”

It’s a question I’m not expected to answer. Knar is fond of asking questions like that. The truth is, I don’t remember exactly how long it’s been. I just know I was still little when my parents were killed by Outsiders from beyond the Wall. Knar was a friend of theirs, and he promised he would take care of me if anything happened to them. Ever since, he and his pack brethren have raised me like their own.

Knar remains at the window, unmoving. You can see a long way from up here. All the way to the Wall, on a clear day. On the other side, the towers of the Central Ruins are visible in the distance, their glass windows gleaming in the afternoon sun.

Knar isn’t looking at either of those landmarks. He doesn’t seem to be looking at anything in particular. The room is quiet. The loudest sound is the scrape-scrape-scrape of Bjor’s knife, though my thumping heart is giving it some stiff competition.

At last, Knar continues.

“Haven’t we always tried to keep you safe, Eri? Haven’t we impressed upon you just how dangerous the Zone can be? And haven’t we told you… not to hang around with alphas?”