Omega Mine

“Are you okay?” Josie asked, stepping forward. When she was close enough to the woman, she dropped down to one knee, giving her a cursory inspection to check for any major wounds. Luckily, she looked relatively uninjured, but the despair and pain radiating from the stranger was intense enough that Josie reached out, touching her shoulder in what she hoped was a comforting manner.

The woman looked up at Josie before she turned her head toward the others, shuddering in relief when she spotted Grayson and Gemma, their bright red eyes standing out in the darkness. “I’m one of the Omegas that’s been in hiding,” the woman whispered, almost as if saying it out loud would cause the humans to descend upon them all in a matter of seconds.

Given how close they were to town, it might not be that much of a stretch to assume.

“I am too,” Josie admitted with a weak smile. “You’re among friends here. Can you tell me your name?”

“Raven.”

“Okay, Raven. Can you tell me who attacked Charleton? We were on our way there to seek refuge.”

Raven nodded, swallowing thickly. “Guards from the city showed up a few hours ago, demanding to search all of our homes. They’re looking for some escaped prisoners, and I guess they’re searching towns near the city.”

Shit. They were looking further away from the city already? And if they were looking in Charleton, then Hinkley must have already been searched. Her stomach clenched with worry.

Hopefully Sierra and the others were okay.

Jameson bit out a harsh curse and Raven’s head snapped to him, catching sight of his guard uniform. She gasped, shrinking back in fear. “You’re one of them!”

“No, it’s okay.” Raven stilled, her entire body trembling at Josie’s words. “Jameson’s like you and me. He’s a friend. He isn’t going to hurt you,” Josie assured her quietly.

She felt more than heard Grayson move behind her. His legs pressed against her back as he towered over both women like a silent sentinel. Raven relaxed under the weight of his stare, taking a deep, calming breath.

“Tell us what happened next.” Josie nodded in encouragement.

Raven’s lower lip trembled and she squeezed her eyes closed, taking another deep breath. Hiding the haunted look in her gaze, she seemed so much younger. Josie guessed maybe her early twenties, if that.

“They couldn’t find the prisoners, and a few of the guards thought we were hiding them. I don’t know why; we haven’t had visitors in weeks. Even the mayor couldn’t get them to see reason. The guards started burning everything to draw them out,” she continued with a small cry. “Our crops, our homes…” Her voice broke and she looked down, her hands clawing at the ground for something to hold on to.

“Holy shit,” Gemma whispered from somewhere behind Josie. “That’s fucked up, even for them.”

David uttered a quiet agreement.

“Then they started grabbing the women and putting chains on their wrists and ankles. They hit the ones that didn’t cooperate, and threatened the ones that did. Some of the husbands tried to stop them, but then the guards opened fire, and everyone started screaming. I just–I ran,” Raven sputtered, tears rolling down her face. “I didn’t know what to do. They’re going to kill my friends, my family. Please, you have to do something!” she cried.

Jameson shifted on the balls of his feet, releasing a ragged breath before he whipped around, storming off in the direction Raven had just come from. Josie jumped up, hurriedly instructing Gemma to watch the other woman while she went after the Omega.

Grayson was hot on her heels, a dark, comforting presence at her back.

“We can’t just rush in there unprepared,” Josie exclaimed, jogging after Jameson until she’d caught up to him. She grabbed his wrist, pulling hard until he turned around. “What are you doing? We need to talk this through.”

“My dad is there.” Jameson’s voice was shaky, his face pale as he shook free of her hold. “He’s just a human. He can’t heal from a bullet wound in seconds like we can.”

“We? Jameson, you haven’t even transitioned, have you?” Josie asked, though she already knew the answer.

Mated Omegas were known to have distinct differences than dormant ones. Aside from enhanced senses, Josie had noticed that since she’d mated Grayson, her canines had grown into sharp fangs and the tips of her ears felt pointy, but it wasn’t like she’d been around a mirror to verify the changes in her body.

Jameson had none of that, which made him so easy to blend in among humans, because he essentially was one.

“What does that matter?” Jameson spat, casting a wary glance at Grayson when he snarled at the Omega’s rude tone.

“Show my mate the proper respect,” Grayson warned, taking a menacing step forward. “Or you won’t live to worry about your father.”

Josie’s mouth dropped open, and she turned to Grayson, sending him a startled look. “Grayson, you can’t just threaten anyone who raises their voice to me.”

He furrowed his brow. “Why not?”

“Because he’s our ally.”

And she was honestly worried that he’d make good on his threat and murder Jameson for something so simple. She might calm the storm of emotions that lived inside of Grayson, but that didn’t mean that he wasn’t capable of slaughtering anyone he wished.

Her mate had spent decades honing the darkness inside of him. He’d lived a brutal life, and no matter how long they were together, that would always be a part of him, just waiting for a chance to resurface.

It made her nervous, but she could admit that a devious part of her enjoyed his blatant darkness. Like now. Hearing him willing to kill someone just for slighting her caused desire to pool low in her belly, a feeling that she struggled to tune out.

Now wasn’t the time to feel like this.

It made her feel depraved, but this wasn’t the first time she’d experienced a flare of lust in answer to his aggressive nature. She was drawn to every piece of him, like a moth to a flame.

Grayson looked at Jameson, oblivious to her wandering thoughts as his eyes narrowed. “Are we sure he’s our ally?”

Jameson scoffed in dismay, throwing his hands up in agitation. “Of course I am. I saved both of your lives!”

“After your organization put her in danger,” Grayson spat, his voice filled with rage. “My mate could have been killed. I could have hurt her if I’d been too far to save, and no one cared about her welfare.”

Josie’s heart clenched at his guttural words, and his hands tightened into fists as his body swelled in size. Usually, Alpha waves radiated from him right about now, but he was controlling it, his body thrumming with energy as he held back just enough.

Whether it was for her benefit or Jameson’s, she didn’t know and she didn’t care. She was just proud that he was keeping his anger firmly in check, allowing them all to discuss their current predicament, even if emotions were high.

“And I already told you that I had no idea she was deceived about her mission,” Jameson tossed in, running a hand through his hair. “That isn’t my fault, and I wouldn’t have been honest with you about it if I’d known otherwise. Not when you can tell if I’m lying.”

“There are ways to conceal the truth, even from an Alpha as powerful as me.”

Josie ran a hand down her face. “We can’t have this conversation right now. Not when we’ve got a frightened, crying Omega asking us for help.”

She didn’t have Grayson or Gemma’s ability to detect lies, but Jameson’s information cleared up the reservations she had about the Omega, which was honestly such a relief given how quickly her world had turned upside down in a matter of days.

She wanted to trust him, and now that some more pieces of this odd puzzle were falling into place, she felt like she finally could.

“You’re right. I’ll save this discussion for later,” Grayson murmured, wrapping his arm around her waist. Her body came to life at the simple touch, energy coursing through her as their minds briefly connected. His affection for her bled through their bond, as did his trust. Enough to make her eyes soften as she cupped his face tenderly.

Jameson frowned, and the connection between her and Grayson dissipated. “I didn’t realize my allegiance was in question. Everything I’ve done has been to help you.”

“Don’t act as if your actions were only in our best interests. You were worried about your own safety just as much as ours.” A muscle twitched in Grayson’s cheek. “But I do prefer you over most people I’ve known, so killing you would have been… irritating.”

“I can’t say I feel as positively about you right this second,” Jameson bit out through clenched teeth. He looked down at the watch on his wrist. “We’re wasting time. We need to get to Charleton. Now.”

“And what’s the plan?” Josie asked in exasperation. “Rushing into town like a bat out of hell will just get you killed. You can’t heal like we can, and I’m sorry, but sending any of us in there instead is a mistake, especially if it’s swimming with guards. They’ll spot us immediately.”

She didn’t know if they had surveillance footage of any of them, or photos, but if they were confident enough to search for them in nearby towns, then their small group needed to prepare for anything.

“We shouldn’t concern ourselves with this,” Grayson commented, his deep voice sliding over them both with an air of command. “We are putting ourselves at unnecessary risk to check on humans that may or may not be dead.”

Josie hesitated, biting her lower lip. Grayson noticed, nodding at her. “What do you want to say?”

“If there are Omegas hiding within Charleton, I think we owe it to them to see if they’re alright. Omegas are so rare now, Grayson. Stumbling upon Raven was a miracle, and if we can find more? We can’t let that opportunity slip through our fingers.”

Grayson’s upper lip curled into a snarl. “I should have thought about that.”

He looked away, his shoulders hunching. The mating bond opened between them once more, and from that alone she gleaned how worthless he felt as a leader, hating that he wasn’t looking at it from the viewpoint of anything but a concerned mate.

Hating that he felt like this, she leaned in, whispering in his ear. “You’re going to be a great leader. The fact that you’re willing to listen and take other opinions into consideration is no small thing. It means that you care, and that’s something everyone in power needs to possess.”

The rest would come in time with training and experience–something he hadn’t been able to get from being imprisoned. The bond remained open between them, so intense that it was like she could almost see it like a thread between them.

She was receiving his thoughts and emotions, but could she send hers to him? Deciding to try, Josie thought about filling him with reassurance and encouragement, the emotions building in her mind before she pushed them toward him.

He straightened immediately, shooting her a heated, thankful look that she felt all the way down to her toes.

“We need to go there anyway to get in contact with the rebellion,” Jameson stated with a shake of his head. He shrugged, his mouth dropping into a firm line. “Decide whatever you want, but do it quickly. I’m going with or without you.”

“You aren’t going alone,” Grayson informed him with a sigh. “We’ll speak with Raven, see how many Omegas she knew lived in her town. From there, we’ll get close enough to the town to remain undetected but still check for survivors. I’m sure if they’ve taken hostages and begun burning the town, that they’re not above killing indiscriminately.” He sent Jameson a pointed look. “You need to prepare for the worst when it comes to your father.”

Jameson stiffened, but nodded all the same.

Unease settled in Josie’s gut, a feeling of dread washing over her as they made their way back to the injured Omega.

Hopefully this wouldn’t get them all killed.