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Part 6. The Alphaspaining

Ava hated running, yet she was doing it to save the pack. The omega’s limbs were heavy, barely cooperating with her mind. She couldn't help it that her arms were aching from swivelling the sword from earlier. Her legs were complaining, too, as she was not used to the strenuous work of running through the forest grass.

The omega was gasping for air as she could hardly hold up anymore. Every single cell in her body was burning. Fat sweat drops were rolling down on the side of his face and his back. Her long sweaty hair matted to her flushed skin.

She whined pitifully, eyes focused on the brown lump of the body running in front of her. A blink later, it was gone, and she found herself in the middle of nowhere.

Her whole being was shaking with nerves and heat, dangerously losing focus, as the simple task of shifting got challenging for her. The omega was frustrated beyond comprehension, annoyed at herself for losing her way. She just wanted to lie down on the floor and cry to sleep. But her instincts and her inner wolf screamed at her tired body to keep on moving until she was safe. A much more significant threat was looming over her head.

The omega sighed in relief when she found an abandoned shed the very next day. The door of the shed cracked open under her fingers quickly.

The tiny shed was stuffy, so the caramel-haired girl left the door wide open as she started to clear the place out by throwing out the garbage. When Ava deemed the cramped up place to be decent, she tactically placed one piece of her clothing on the floor.

"What a fabulous place!” The omega muttered under her nose, mouth twisting at the stench. There was a lot of dust, spider webs on chipped plywood. Not the worst thing to find and seek a shelter in.

Under normal circumstances, she would have stayed longer outside to admire the sunset over the lake, but the need to get some sleep was high on her priority list.

Ava managed to find some candles and a matchbox dumped in one corner. She hurriedly rushed forward and lit a candle and placed it at the opposite corner of the shed to illuminate the room in a warm glow, then went to the door and closed it. The omega thought of lighting many of them but felt against it as she had to survive many nights ahead. At least until she managed to find a way back home; apart from that, there was nothing valuable inside. Broken woods pieces, papers burned in the corner and some torn sheets. That’s all. Not even a single bottle of water or food.

The omega had all the time to clean and make this shed a liveable place the following day. With that thought in her head, Ava stripped down her tight clothes, keeping them tucked under her head and collapsed on the rumpled shirt on the floor.

Ava woke up to the blinding sun rays shining in her face through the gap between the curtains. Her head felt heavy for the first few seconds, eyes squinting at the bright light. She mewled, stretching her muscles and rolled on her other side, away from the warm rays. The omega kept her eyes closed but listened carefully whether she could hear some noise indicating danger. After a few minutes of tense silence, she sighed in relief.

She’s safe. No more running in the forest barefoot and chasing a rogue. That made her sit up straight. Where did that rogue disappear? The omega followed him all the way only to have him zap out of there.

Something wasn’t right.

Once Ava threw the covers off her body, she got up from the bed she padded to the window to check on the view from the room. The omega stood in front of the glass panel, peering into the light. There was a time when everything was normal, happy, and she’s with her tribe. Now that seemed like a far away dream.

Ava couldn’t help but think back to what Janet said about her being a new pack member. The young omega was not wrong. Anyone who ends up in others territory belongs to them, but Alpha Zach made it clear he didn’t want her. A sigh escaped her lips. She will have to disappear without the council finding out, or they will pose a severe threat to her.

She smelled the thick scent before the omega could turn around. The hair on the back of her hair stood up, breath hitching in her throat. A whine almost escaped her lips as the scent got thicker, clouding her brain and making her knees weak.

“Ava?”

Exhaling, she slowly turned only to see Ares standing at the edge of the door, his mouth twisted. Frown settled over his features; brows pulled together. “May I come in?”

“Please, Alpha Ares!”

What was he doing here? Ava thought to herself, straightening her back. Her cheeks flushed as she remembered that her linen summer clothes did nothing to hide her bare shapely legs. Her mother would have had a proper fit if she saw her like that in front of an unmated Alpha. They were a lot more traditional like that.

He took a step in, closing the door behind him, which made her alert. What was he upto? She balled her hands in fists, ready to attack just in case.

“You are not a beta, are you?”

Her mask immediately slipped. No. He cannot know. The Alpha must be bluffing. Yeah, that must be it. She was not going to let him have the upper hand.

“Excuse me?”

“Your pheromones are not subtle at all. They don’t smell like anything, which is weird. I know that you belong to a pack. What are you?”

She frowned. “Alphas like you are the reason betas cannot exist in peace. I cannot believe that you automatically assumed that my scent is not floral like an omega or strong like Alphas; my existence should be questioned. Betas not incompetent or helpless creatures; we’re severely underestimated.”

“See these?" Ava turned her arm over, leaving no room for any interruption until she was finished. "Each of these cuts represents an unfortunate rogue whose heart stopped beating as a direct result of crossing my path. Do you think an omega can pull this off? Live in her wolf form, bear these kinds of marks and stay alive to tell the story?”

His gaze drifted down to the marks, and his eyes widened in surprise, “That’s not what I…”

“I'm not done," She snapped, taking a deep breath and running her hands through her shoulder-length hair, subsequently continuing a little more calmly. "It is a much bigger insult to me to insinuate I am not a beta. Would you be okay if others question your sister the same things? My nature is intact, and I don’t think I have to keep proving that to you, brothers!”

By the end of her little speech, she was shocked at herself but figured this was her inner Omega’s fury for disrespecting the very suitable and potential mate in front of her and forcing her to stop digging her own grave. She was two seconds from begging for the Alpha’s forgiveness when she felt a hand sneak under her chin; her face was lifted to meet the now softer expression of Ares. Her knees wobbled as his scent got intense, vision blurry at edges.

“Nobody in my life...has ever disrespected me in such a forward manner,” The Alpha noted, causing a shudder of regret to rocket down her spine. “I should be a lot angrier than I am, and believe me, I might get that way once the shock passes...but I understand how deeply I offended you, and I will not doubt your abilities again. What you said about the omegas…that’s not true. They are deeply underestimated creatures too. My sister is equally strong and can defeat a creature twice her size.”

His lips curled in amusement, pulling back from her. “You marvel at your own status but demean the omegas. There’s no difference between an Alpha and a beta after all, huh?”

Well, that was unexpected. She could do nothing except stare into the Alpha’s grey stormy eyes in wonderment and try to decipher if this was reality or not.

Firstly the Pack Alpha apologised to her and also countered her point against the omegas. She never met someone like him who defended her kind with so much passion and vigour. It made her question if she had been holding prejudice against all the Alphas who saw her kind as nothing but knotwhores.

“I guess not, Alpha Ares.” She gulped loudly.

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