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He looked toward me but continued without much pause at all.

“They are called alphas and omegas.” He gestured toward himself and then toward me. “They have been part of life here as far back as our histories exist, even when the children of the gods walked this world, long before the Great War’s end that led to the creation of the Grand Rite.”

My mind spun under all the names again. At least I didn’t have a nasty head wound this time. My eyes didn’t even ache thanks to the serum.

“The history doesn’t really matter at this point aside from how the creation of the tradition impacts you being sent back to your Arizona,” he said heavily.

“So why tell me?” The question was more disdainful than hesitant, thank goodness.

A corner of his lips twitched for a moment, like he nearly smiled.

“So you might feel less confused. Shelby said you were tired of not understanding what was happening.”

I swallowed. I had said that last night. It hadn’t occurred to me she might have relayed my frustration. Most of me wanted to be angry or even betrayed, but the reality was that I was glad someone had said something without me having to be even more vulnerable.

He seemed to want a response.

“All right.” It was little more than a croak.

Damn it.

“Alphas are…” He tilted his head, searching for the right explanation. “Overbearing and possessive, I suppose is the easiest way to put it. Many would say we are dominant—or dominating. We are incredibly protective, sometimes to an unhealthy degree.”

Unease tightened around my chest. I’d seen the violent assholes who were overbearing to the point of being abusive to their partners at the bar. I’d seen that flicker in Enoch’s eyes on Magefall, too.

Callum caught my reaction because he swallowed and then shook his head.

“Most are not dangerous. Not unless we fall into a true rut, and even then we are dangerous to interlopers and not to the omega whose heat caused the rut in the first place. Most alphas spend their lives wishing for an omega to care for and cherish even if they’ve built a life outside of being with one. Omegas are a treasure, and we revere them with every fiber of our being.”

Some of my trepidation faded.

“So then…” I licked my lips. “Omegas are the opposite?”

It made sense, in a macabre sort of way. Nearly biblical. Wasn’t that one of the titles the Christian God had? Something about beginning and end, at least. The details of my western religion class had faded over the last several years since graduating.

Callum nodded once.

“I’m not submissive.” There was fire in the words. I clung to it, let it build in me so there was something other than that roiling ache that seemed to be my new normal.

He shook his head, emphatic. “I never said you were.”

“You just said omegas are the opposite of alphas and that alphas are dominant.”

He sighed and tilted his head back.

“And horses are prey animals prone to spooking. That does not mean every single horse will do so. Omegas are often submissive, avoiding conflict and seeking out stability, but that does not preclude them from being willing and able to stand on their own.”

He raised that eyebrow again, his scars stretching taut.

“Omegas desire safety,” he continued when I said nothing. “They build places that feel like refuges, full of items and scents and colors that bring them happiness. Most call them nests, though not always. They’re also often overwhelmed in places with lots of sounds or people crowding them.”

For some reason, I thought of the small apartment Sloane and I shared. The cabinets she’d put contact paper on and the bookcases she’d decorated to coordinate and the mural of a fantasy forest she’d painted in her bedroom complete with a toadstool fairy home. Sloane built out every place we’d lived as adults with an intentionality many lacked—and a few found idiotic given none of those places were ours in truth. Even as teens, she’d clung to her small suitcase worth of items like they held the secrets of the universe. That desire had been there for me, too, but I’d shoved it so deep it only hurt with the worst transitions between foster homes.

Or when Brendon had invaded the apartment.

I shoved the memory away before it could cause a panic attack. I hadn’t dreamt of that moment overnight, and I wanted to keep it that way for as long as I could.

“Omegas…” Callum cleared his throat. “They often need an alpha’s scent and touch to keep them calm, especially in situations that are stressful or unsettling. Even if there isn’t an alpha near, they’ll seek physical affection and connection as a way to soothe themselves.”