by P. Jameson
Charolet
“Can you believe this?” Hours later I was still seething, pacing in my brand-new room in the castle. Ugh. I was sleeping with the enemy and reaping none of the rewards. “They knocked down our house. Tavia would never do that. They mean to punish us, to send a message to the rest of the omegas not to get too uppity. Don’t ask for too much. You’re equal, but we’re still better than you.”
“The house was a dump and Tavia totally would’ve knocked it down if for no other reason than to make Dagger build us another one.” Rielle smiled up at me from her settee. We’d taken off the gowns and changed into soft loungewear. That was nice too, but I worried the alphas planned to replace our fight with comfort. And not in a good way. “Please talk to her before you make things worse.”
Rielle was always the voice of reason when Zelene and Tavia came up with radical ideas and I cheered them on. Didn’t mean she talked us out of them. She made us think them through until they were absolutely bulletproof. I credited her with Zelene snagging His Majesty. If it hadn’t been for her attention to detail, it was possible all five of us could’ve been sitting in that house when it got knocked down.
“What do you want from the alphas, Charolet?” Ashla asked. Even though she never stirred up trouble on her own, she fully supported ours.
It was a good, frustrating question because there was no scenario in my mind where I gave the alphas a chance to appease me. “I don’t want anything from them. I’m done letting them get the best of me.”
“I think you should talk to Tavia. She probably has no idea you’re this upset.” Ashla sighed. She hated conflict. She’d been our peacekeeper, the final safety net when Rielle wasn’t able to talk us out of something with reason. “She needs to know. It’s not fair to hold knocking down the house against her. She probably sees it as a show of strength.”
“Or she got talked into something she doesn’t want by Dagger.” I looked out the window. The sun was going down, and the city looked beautiful as it basked in the glow of its twinkling lights. Beyond that, there was darkness. The residents of the Badlands didn’t enjoy the same lullaby.
And beyond that were so many questions. The Human Keep. The captured omegas, happy with the humans. Who had lied to us, the humans, or the alphas who slept under this roof?
I turned to the ladies. In the Badlands, I would’ve done anything to keep them safe. That didn’t change when we got a new address. “I know what I want to do. And I need your help.”
Rielle furrowed her brow. “What do you need?”
“I want to go back to the Human Keep. I know, Tavia’s doing her best to improve the Badlands. But I need to know what’s making the omegas who left not want to come back.” I took a deep breath, and turned to Ashla. She’d worked in the armory, and she’d have the information I needed. “But to get there, we’re going to have to steal a truck.”
***
“You can’t do this,” Ashla whispered through gritted teeth. She led us down the narrow, dark hallway. The part of the castle the alphas wanted others to see were opulent and glowing, but they’d wasted no such glory on the places only the omegas were meant to see. “They’ll throw us into the dungeon and there won’t be anything Zelene or Tavia can do to stop them.”
I pursed my lips. My heart pounded, this close to freedom. Even though we were technically equal with the alphas now, I didn’t know what my life was without them lording over us, and the fear and adrenaline they produced in my body. I’d worked in the castle as soon as I was old enough to perform the easiest tasks, and the royals had closely supervised our independence ever since His Majesty claimed Zelene as his mate. We got claimed too, and kept in the gilded cage of the castle.
There was more to life than this. The royals were counting on us being grateful for what we were given so they didn’t have to show their whole hand.
I insisted on seeing it all.
“They’re too busy trying to appease the omegas. They won’t notice we’re gone.”
“Cassian will definitely notice you’re gone,” Rielle said, chuckling when I groaned. “He can’t take his eyes off you. What happened in the desert? Are you sure you’ve told us everything?”
“He thinks he owns me.” We reached the end of the hallway, slowing our pace to a tiptoe. Albert, the old omega in charge of keeping threats away from the military garage, was snoring softly. He sat with his arms crossed over his chest, and his head bobbing with each breath. He wasn’t totally out. Omegas were skilled in never totally relaxing.
“We’re not their property,” I added in a whisper. “So what do we have to do?”
“If we screw this up, the alphas will use it as an excuse to cut off all improvements in the Badlands,” Rielle whispered. “We’ll be the poster girls for why omegas can’t have nice things. It’s not just us anymore. It’s all the omegas who will have to suffer the consequences of our bad decisions.”
A camera trained at us. Wires protruded from the unfinished wall. Going up on my tiptoes, I examined the tangle of colorful wires and found the one that made the little green light on the camera go out with a tug.
We jumped when Albert’s snore intensified. It was a warning. He wasn’t really asleep, but he wasn’t stopping us, either.
“What’s the code?” I asked.
“They usually change it once a month, but with the uproar in the Badlands, I’m betting they forgot.” Ashla frowned at Albert. “We need his fingerprint.”
My breath caught in my throat. His hands were tightly knotted under each armpit. The snoring had quieted, and his body stilled.
Ashla steeled herself and put her hand on the old man’s shoulder. “Albert,” she said softly into his ear. The old man jumped as he peeled an eye open. “His Majesty wants us to check the vehicles.”
He furrowed his brow as he looked up at her, still groggy. She nodded, and smiled at him. Out of all of us, Ashla was probably most suited for royal life. We’d all worked together to make the Badlands tolerable, but Ashla was the softest, the kindest. The irony that she was the one with the access to the heavy artillery was not lost on me.
Albert’s gaze warmed as the pretty omega dressed as a royal urged him to risk everything. He held his hand up to the keypad, and it glowed green.
Rielle and I exhaled in unison.
Ashla punched a code into the keypad, and it buzzed, denying her access.
“Shit.” Rielle tensed. “Is anyone watching this on the other end?”
“Maybe, but they’ll see us. I do work down here, it’s not that unusual.” She punched another code into the pad, grinning when the light turned green and the lock tumbled on the massive steel door. “They only change a number each month. There’s a pattern.”
The alphas had grown lazy when it came to the omegas. If they thought we were capable of revolution, they didn’t take the threat seriously. Is that what I was doing? Revolting? There were plenty of whispers of such a thing on the perimeter of the Badlands, places I wouldn’t dare venture, especially not in this pretty dress. The Weren there were too raw, too feral, and they never let any opportunity slip by.
But so many of us weren’t happy. I was grateful for this new chance, but even with Tavia at the helm, it didn’t feel like freedom. Especially after going to the Human Keep.
I needed to know what my options were before making a decision.
The enormous garage housed many Humvees like we’d taken across the desert to the keep, tanks, and vehicles that looked like they were built for no other reason than destruction. I hiked up my long skirt and climbed into one of the Humvees.
“Anyone teach you how to drive that thing on your last adventure?” Rielle circled the truck with an eyebrow cocked, inspecting the vehicle as I made myself comfortable in the driver’s seat.
“How hard can it be?” My bravado would not be denied. I wasn’t sure what I hoped to find in the Human Keep, but I wanted to prove to these alphas that the omegas did not need them. We were strong and independent. I turned to Ashla,
who’d climbed into the passenger seat. I wondered how long she’d wanted to do that. “Any idea how to turn this thing on?”
“Rielle, pull the plug out of the generator and get in the backseat,” she instructed, and then frowned at the screen on the dashboard between us. She waved her hand over it, and a password protected screen flashed before us. The code she punched in ignited the engine.
“Lazy,” she said under her breath. “It’s the same code as the door.”
“So, what’s the plan? We drive through the Badlands and assemble an army?”
I shook my head. It was time for all my jumbled visions of glory to come together. “We’re headed straight to the Human Keep.”
I pushed my foot down on one of the pedals, and the truck bucked forward but didn’t move.
“That’s the brake. The other one is the accelerator,” Ashla said.
Rielle’s head popped between us. “Do you know how to drive this thing?”
“Little bit.” Ashla was a total badass, because no one expected it from her. She’d make them all sorry. I should’ve scooted over and let her take the wheel, but I really wanted to drive. It was best that we all learned.
“This place is full of cameras,” Rielle added, like it was a bad thing, but she waved at the ceiling…was that her middle finger extended?
“It takes a little finesse. Put your foot on the brake and shift the gear into drive.” She tapped the shaft between us. “Then take your foot off the brake and move it to the accelerator pedal. Gently,” she added as we lurched forward.
Holy shit. It was moving. The girls whooped as I swerved to avoid the first row of tanks, and we were rolling straight for the door. My heart pounded, and I had very little control over this thing, but I’d never felt more free.
“We need to open the gate,” I yelled over the engine.
“Stop the car and I’ll get out and enter the code.” Ashla said.
I tried to follow her instructions, but my foot hit the wrong pedal, and we crashed into the wall.
My head hit the windshield and everything went black. Eventually, I was aware of a flashing red light, and a siren. When I opened my eyes, I found Cassian standing over me.
Chapter Five
Cassian
My heart pounded with adrenaline as I pulled open the driver side door of the wrecked Humvee. Rielle and Ashla had already climbed from the vehicle and were unharmed, but Charolet…
Don’t let her be hurt.
Smoke filled the cab and when it cleared, I could see her slumped over the steering wheel, blond hair scattered across the dash. A trickle of blood marred her left temple and she coughed, trying to open her eyes. I brushed back her hair and the touch was enough to rouse her. Her head came up and she blinked, trying to focus.
“Be still. You’re hurt.” My voice was rough with emotion I hadn’t expected.
She put her hand weakly on my shoulder and gave it a pitiful shove. “I’m fine… mister alpha, sir…”
I pushed her hand away. “Let me see.” She frowned and I noticed a bruise already forming under her eye. Tipping her chin up, I looked for other injuries. “Are you hurt anywhere else?”
She attempted a sarcastic laugh. “Hurt. Alpha, this isn’t hurt. This is a bump. A nick. Hurt is being beaten for not making it out of the city by curfew because your master wouldn’t let you leave.”
I went still. Was that a true story, something that had happened to her? The mere idea of anyone harming her filled me with rage. Made my throat ache with the desire for vengeance. Yet, I had enforced those rules once upon a time. Maybe I hadn’t beaten a female as punishment, but as a general, I was permitted to discipline as I saw fit.
“Can you walk?” I grated.
She straightened, jutting her chin in that defiant way that both angered and intrigued me. “Of course I can walk. I’m omega. I don’t break easily.” But the way she wobbled on her feet as she exited the vehicle told me she was more delicate than she wanted to admit.
She was a soap bubble pretending to be a piece of buckshot. Or maybe I had that all wrong, and she was both. Soft, but hardened.
“Where are the others?” she asked, looking around.
“With the guards.” I pointed to where Ashla and Rielle stood, wringing their hands and looking like worried little pigeons. I knew they were putting on a show for the soldiers, hoping the law would go easy on them for what they’d done.
Charolet hobbled over to them, wearing a brave face.
“What should we do with them?” one of the guards asked. He seemed completely stumped. What was the protocol for omegas breaking the law these days? No one knew. And these weren’t just any omegas. These were the queen’s court.
“Whose idea was this?” I asked, but I already knew the answer.
“Mine,” Charolet spoke up. “They had nothing to do with it.”
“Char, don’t.” Rielle stepped forward, ready to take the blame for her part.
“It was all three of us,” Ashla said. “We did it together.”
Charolet shook her head. “This was all me.”
I stared at her, trying to figure out her plan. Seeing her break into the armory on the surveillance video only told me what she’d done. I wanted to know why.
Why steal an armored vehicle that has tracking technology? She couldn’t have gone very far without someone finding her.
“Take them to the castle. Let the queen deal with them,” I instructed the guards before grabbing Charolet by the arm. “This one is coming with me.”
“Sir?” the soldier in charge questioned.
“I’ll tend to her wounds before bringing her to the king.” This was enough of an explanation to satisfy both him and the omega ladies, even if their suspicion was palpable.
“This way, uh… ladies,” the soldier murmured, leading them back to the castle. They were damn lucky they weren’t in cuffs. How Queen Zelene would smooth this over would no doubt be a lesson in how a man can be manipulated by the short hairs.
I pulled Charolet in the opposite direction, heading for the western borders of Luxoria.
“What the hell were you thinking?” I hissed when we were clear of the sirens and soldiers. “Breaking into the armory. Stealing royal property.”
“Does it matter? Does any of this even matter?”
I twisted to glare at her. “Of course it matters. You put yourself in danger. Don’t you have any self-respect?”
“Self-respect? That’s exactly why I don’t just bow to all His Majesty’s bullshit. It’s exactly why I want as far away from here as I can get.” She swayed on her feet and I brought her arm around my waist to steady her.
“Where are you taking me?”
“To my outpost. I’ve got to figure out what to tell King Adalai.”
“Why don’t you tell him the truth? That I took a vehicle so I could get the hell out of this city.”
“I knew you would try to ruin this for your people. I should throw your conniving ass in prison. That’s what I should do.”
Charolet laughed. The sound was too loose, not weighed down with sarcasm like her humor usually was.
“What’s so funny?”
“Prison.” She laughed again, and leaned into me. She really was more hurt than she could admit if she was willing to let me help her. “What sort of prison do you imagine putting me in, mister alpha, sir?”
“The castle dungeons. Where there are lots of guards to watch over your dangerous ass.”
“First it’s conniving then it’s dangerous. Which is it?”
“Both.” There was a whole list of qualities I could apply to her ass, but right now I wanted to apply my palm, in a hard snapping fashion that would teach her a lesson. “Why is a prison funny to you?”
We were nearing my outpost. We’d be alone there, and there were medical supplies.
“Prison…” Charolet mused.
“The dungeons are very cold at night. Not funny at all.”
She grew serious as we a
pproached the electric fence that guarded the outpost. When we stopped just outside the entrance, she waited for me to use my fingerprint and access code before facing me.
Her gaze was hard as flint as she said, “There’s no prison in this city that could possibly compare to the hardships I endured in the Badlands. I dare you to put me in prison, alpha. Dare. You.”
I watched her walk through the gate and into the building, and her words were like a punch to the gut because I knew she was right. The unfairness of what the omegas went through was heavier than I ever realized. The worst part was I wondered if I ever would have cared had a feisty female not captured my attention in the desert.
What did that say for me? What kind of man was I, when my sense of right and wrong depended on a set of rules laid out by a long-gone king who lived for bitterness.
We don’t make the rules, son. We follow them and we enforce them. Again, the words of my father banged around in my mind. Except this time, they didn’t ring true.
This time, they felt like a warning. If following the rules is what got us here, then… what would happen if we broke them?
Chapter Six
Charolet
My head was killing me, but there was no way I’d tell Cassian I’d seen two of him. And there was definitely no way I could let him think I needed him.
I didn’t need any alpha for survival, not now, not ever.
“Where are we?” I hated not knowing. Worse, no one else knew where I was. Had we succeeded in getting the Humvee to the Human Keep, Rielle and Ashla would have been with me. That had been our mantra in the Badlands. Stick together, as much as possible. They couldn’t do bad things to us if we stuck together. If there were witnesses. But now, I was at Cassian’s mercy. I hated that it excited me a little bit.
I’d definitely bumped my head.
“This is my outpost.” I swear his chest puffed when he said it, like he was proud to bring me here. “I have medical supplies here.”
“Are you a doctor, mister alpha, sir?” I had to sit down. I leaned against a stool and closed my eyes for a long blink.
