The Omega Queen

10. Caleb

A few hours before Kevin returned to Jordan with Rain’s phone

Tatiana had been so insistent that I should be patrolling the border—which I already do every single night—that I ended up running along trees and thickets that mark the end of my territory for almost twelve hours now. Usually, I would be exhausted by now, but the potions Tatiana gave me not long ago helped me sleep a few hours during the night. I forgot when I last felt so rested.

I let Raven take control for a while, and I enjoy seeing the world through his eyes. His senses and night vision are much stronger than mine, and even without the light coming from the moon, he would still be able to see perfectly.

Normally, Andrew, my ex, would accompany me during the patrol, but since he found his mate, I am alone. I should get used to it because I don’t plan to let another male into my life only to have my heart broken again. Conon and Conrad have tried to set me up with several single males from the pack, but I am done with dating, even if this means the pack will never be recognized by the Elders because there is no Luna. Unless, by some miracle, I find the male fated to me, I am done with being in a relationship.

The wind runs through the trees, carrying a scent that makes Raven stop in his tracks.

Apples and caramel.

‘The scent,’ Raven growls.

‘I know.’

Raven runs fast, following the scent, until we reach a tree that has fallen over some rocks. There, tucked between the ground and the fallen trunk, is some… red hair? Raven approaches the source of the apples and caramel. Leaves and twigs are stuck in the hair. After dropping the backpack he is carrying in his mouth, Raven tries to remove the twigs and the leaves. Frustrated that he can’t quite reach as he wants, Raven starts digging into the ground.

‘Let me,’ I say.

‘She is hurt,’ Raven growls in anger.

She?

I have been so captivated by that beautiful mass of red waves and curls, wondering why twigs and leaves are stuck in it, that I did not see the one beneath the fallen tree. Of course, the hair has to belong to someone less it is a wig. And mixed with the scent of apples and caramel, there are many more scents, but it is only one that awakes my anger.

‘Raven, you need to let me shift now!’

Reluctantly Raven lets me take control. As fast as possible, I yank the backpack open, put on a pair of jeans and sneakers, and with care, I pull to me the female that’s under the fallen tree.

An Omega. Naked.

An Omega that has been beaten so badly, her eyes are swollen shut, I doubt she can open them. Cuts and bruises cover not only her face but her entire body. And between her legs, there is more blood and… semen. Anger like I never felt before rises inside me. It takes me a few moments of deep breaths to calm myself so I can continue to examine her. The sign of the Betrayer is on her right shoulder. Only a mate can give that mark to another werewolf. Regardless of what she did, no one should be so cruel to their mate.

On her stomach, I notice stab wounds. I inhale deeply, trying to catch the scent of the metal of the weapon used to stab her.

Silver.

Her lips are pale, and I can’t hear her heart beating.

A growl so vicious, so evil sounds around me, for a moment, I am startled before I realize it is coming from me.

‘We were too late,’ Raven whines.

I clench my jaw so hard I think I am going to break it while I try to memorize all the male scents I smell on her. I will find each and every one and kill them slowly and painfully.

I put an arm beneath her back and the other under her knees and lift her. I have been patrolling all night long. How the f**k did I miss her and her attackers? I look ahead of me, toward Crescent Moon Pack. Unless it did not happen on my land but on that of Alpha Ben. A quick scan of her palms and knees lets me know she dragged herself here until she found a hiding place to die in peace.

While spells protect my territory from any possible attack, the wards are designed to let in anyone that needs help. But for her, help came too late.

I am thinking about a final resting place for her when I see it—a small movement of her chest. My knees give in, hitting the ground hard as I fall. She is alive. Not dead as I originally thought, but alive. I put my ear against her chest. A sigh of relief escapes my lips as I hear her heartbeat.

She might be alive, but if I don’t act fast, she will die.

I mind-link Conon. He should be in bed by now, but sometimes he stays up late, working or doing other stuff online.

‘Caleminator! How is patrolling?’ Conon yells.

Thank the gods he is awake.

‘See if Hector is awake and have him get ready to save the life of an Omega. She has been beaten, stabbed with silver, and… raped.’ My blood boils when I think of the horror this poor female must have endured.

Through our Alpha-Beta mind-link, I feel Conon’s entire demeanor change.

‘On it!’ he tells me.

I grab my t-shirt from the backpack and put it over her, covering her nakedness, and then I stand. I run faster than ever toward the Rogue Village. It will take me at least half an hour to get there. A small whimper comes from the Omega.

She will live. She has too.

While I don’t know if she can hear me, I try to reassure her. “You are safe. No one will ever harm you again,” I vow to her.

More whimpers come from her. I even think I hear her say, ‘hurts.’

“I know it hurts, but you will feel better soon.” A sob so broken comes from her, it makes my anger return with more force than before. “You are safe,” I say more for me than for her.

‘We will hunt down each and everyone responsible for her attack and… rape… and kill them.’

‘We will,’ I promise Raven.

It does not take long to see the outskirts of the village. Hector and Conon are waiting for me and… the Omega. I realize I don’t know her name.

Red.

I decide to call her Red—the color of her hair—until she is well enough to tell me her name.

“How is she?” Hector asks.

“Alive, but barely,” I reply while I keep running until I reach the clinic. Hector and Conon follow me.

I place Red on an examination bed and watch how Hector puts on latex gloves before coming to inspect her wounds. The moment his fingers touch her skin, I growl so loudly, Hector takes a few steps back, and Red lets out a few whimpers. Conon frowns.

I run my fingers through my hair. “Seeing her like this….”

I don’t need to finish my sentence, as Hector and Conon understand what I mean.

“Maybe you should leave,” Hector suggests.

‘But we can’t leave! She was brutally beaten and… raped!’ Raven growls.

I take a deep breath. ‘We should go and prepare her room and leave Hector to tend to her wounds. Us here will only make things worse.’ I give Hector a curt nod and walk away from the bed. “I will go and prepare Red a room in the Main House.”

“Red?” Hector asks as he examines Red’s stabbing wounds.

“I am yet to know her name, so I gave her one,” I say before stepping outside the clinic. Conon comes after me.

“Are you well?” he asks.

I clench my fists. “I will be.”

Conon looks behind him at the clinic. “I have never seen an Omega beaten so badly in my entire life.”

I let out a choked laugh. “I have seen worse. Much, much worse.”

We walk in silence until we enter the Main House. “I bet you have,” Conon mumbles as we climb the stairs to the first floor.

My room is there, and knowing what Red will go through the next weeks, months, even years, having her room close to me seems like the logical option. I try to keep my mind occupied, not thinking of Red while trying to remember if there are any free rooms on this floor or if I have to ask someone to move to one of the houses or to another floor. To my relief, I find one for Red, two doors away from mine—the rooms between being occupied by two females that came seeking help around nine days ago and Holgar. Having an Enforcer close makes me feel… safe.

“Is there anything I can do?” Conon asks.

I shake my head. “You can retire to your room. I will prepare this one for Red and then return to the clinic,” I say while jerking my head toward the free room.

“Do you want me to stay with you?”

“I am not a pup, Conon. I am fine.”

“You don’t look fine.”

I clasp his right shoulder. “I need to be alone while I sort out my thoughts.”

Conon looks towards the staircase—his room is a floor above. “If you need me, mind-link me. I will be awake until late morning. Some opportunity to gain some Bitcoin arose, and I want to see how much I can make.”

I chuckle. Conon is a total nerd. He is only missing the glasses. “I will,” I assure him before I open the door to the room and enter.

It is smaller than I would have liked, but it has a bathroom with a bathtub and a decent walk-in closet. The bed is a queen size, with two nightstands on either side of it. A few books and an alarm clock are on the bookcase headboard. It was Viki, one of the two females that joined the pack nine days ago, that made it. Berserkers are obsessed with wood, and Viki also has a deep love for books.

‘Smut books with monsters and aliens,’ Raven groans, remembering the book Viki gave me two days ago.

’Reading about Krakens mating with a human male was—’

Raven interrupts me before I can finish. ‘Traumatic, that’s what it was.’

I snort before going to look inside the closet for a new set of sheets and a blanket. While there, I make a mental note of things Red might need once she can leave the clinic—from clothes to towels and other things females need.

‘Add pads to the list,’ Raven tells me when I look at the hygiene products.

I roll my eyes. ‘Omegas don’t have monthly cycles like the other females. Or did you forget?’

Raven narrows his eyes. ‘Then how many times a year, smartass?’

‘Four or five times, depending on her heat cycle, and I am so not having this discussion with you. And I doubt Red had her first heat.’

Raven huffs but drops the subject.

Once the room is prepared, I go to the training room and spend many hours lost in my thoughts while I subject my body to all kinds of exercises. It is when the pain from my right leg is too much that I stop.

Stupid wound that refuses to properly heal, I mutter as I head to my room and take a shower. Once I am dressed, I grab my phone and return to the clinic. Hector is sitting at his desk, writing something on a chart, but once he sees me, he stands and takes me to where Red is staying.

An IV is connected to Red’s left arm, a transparent liquid slowly flowing into her body. She is wearing one of those medical gowns that cover almost nothing, a blanket draped over her legs. Next to the bed is an Ekg heart monitor, her heartbeats showing on the screen. Her eyes are closed, and she appears to be sleeping, her breathing even.

“How is she?” I ask Hector, careful to keep my voice low, not wanting to wake her up.

“She is lucky you found her in time.” Sensing that’s not what I want to know, Hector adds quickly, “The stab wounds were not deep enough to affect any vital organs, and she has no internal bleeding. I gave her two shots to speed up her healing, but even so, it might take a while. As for her rape, from what I could scent, only one male was involved.”

I nod, Hector confirming my suspicions. “If you don’t mind, I will stay with her. You know that the nightmares will start soon.”

Hector glances at Red. “Are you sure? She will most likely be scared of being alone in a room with a male after her brutal attack. Maybe we should have Lyla wait for her to wake up.”

Lyla is the pack’s therapist.

“Red will know I won’t harm her.” Or at least that’s what I hope.

Hector’s gaze lingers on Red for a few seconds before looking back at me and shrugging. “I will let Lyla know we have a new Omega in the pack. I am sure… Red… will need someone to talk to.”

“Fine,” I agree. “And, Hector, we should establish a mind-link. Not being able to contact you when I need you… it’s inconvenient.”

Hector stiffens, blood draining from his face. “I will think about it.”

“I am sorry to ask this of you, but I wouldn’t if it weren’t important. It doesn’t have to be now, but sometime in the near future when you feel ready to take that step.”

Hector still looks sick when he gets out of the room.

I grab the chair that sits in the corner and bring it close to the bed, and after adjusting the blanket over Red, not wanting her to be cold, I sit down. Pulling out the phone from my pocket, I mentally start to prepare myself for the agony that is about to start.

As I suspected, it does not take long for Red to start thrashing and screaming in her sleep. Closing the k****e app and putting my phone in the back pocket of my jeans, I sit on the bed.

“You are safe,” I say as I pull her in my arms.

Immediately she starts fighting me. “Don’t touch me!” she screams, her voice raw, probably from screaming during her attack.

I jerk my hands away from her and using my Alpha voice, I say, “Stop! You are hurting yourself!”

Red goes limp. Her right eye opens, revealing a beautiful green iris—fear and pain, and betrayal reflecting in it.

“You are safe,” I say again.

She shakes her head.

“I am Caleb, and you are in the Black Ruby Rogue Pack, and no one will ever lay a hand on you. Ever again!” I vow.

Her scent changes, telling me she is terrified.

“I won’t harm you, Red. Now, be a good little Omega and take a few deep breaths for me,” I suggest, still using my Alpha Voice.

I can see on her face that she knows I am using my abilities as an Alpha on her, and she tries to fight my order. “I know it is hard, but it will get better in time. Just start with a deep breath, and we will take it from here.”

She finally gives in and does as I ask. I feel like a piece of s**t for forcing her to listen to me. Normally, I would never use my Alpha Voice to force Omegas to obey me. Omegas are to be loved and cherished, not… abused.

When she is a bit calmer, I give her a small smile. “Good. Are you hungry? Thirsty? But I should first ask Hector if you can eat anything.”

“I don’t want to eat, I want to die,” she whimpers as tears roll down her cheeks, her right eye closing.

“Red, look at me.” I wait until she opens her eye before continuing, “I know how you are feeling. I understand, but it will get better. I promise.”

She shakes her head. “You don’t know. He rejected me and made me a rogue, and then he raped me.”

Raven growls loudly in my head.

I grit my teeth. “Your mate was the one to rape you?”

She shakes her head. “I want to die.” I reach my hand to stroke her hair. Her breath hitches. “Don’t touch me!”

My hand drops. “I won’t.”

“Why didn’t you leave me there to die?” she whimpers.

“Do you think dying will resolve anything? I am going to tell you what will happen. You are going to live. And not only that. One day, all those that harmed you will be at your feet, begging for forgiveness.”

“I want to sleep,” she says. She sounds so broken, so defeated.

“Of course. I will be right here in case you need me.”

I sit back in the chair and resume reading my book when Jeremy mind-links me.

‘Caleb, Jordan Reed is at our border, demanding to know if an Omega called Rain Stillwater is on our territory.’

I glance at Red.

Rain Stillwater.

Rain.

‘I like her name. Rain.’

I chuckle. ‘I bet you do, but she is still Red.’ Then to Jeremy, I say, ‘Who is Jordan Reed?’

‘The new Alpha of Crescent Moon Pack.’

The anger returns, and I have to take a few deep breaths to keep myself calm. ‘Jordan Reed, what does he smell like?’ I ask Jeremy.

‘Oranges.’

Oranges.

He is not the one that raped or beat Red, but if my nose is correct, he is the one that gave her the mark of the Betrayer. Her mate. The one who rejected her.

‘Tell him there is no Omega with that name in our pack,’ I tell Jeremy.

A few moments later, Jeremy mind-links me again. ‘He is adamant about searching our territory. He thinks his mate is here.’

The fucker rejected her and now claims she is his mate? Where the f**k was he when she was beaten and raped? If he had loved her, he would not have rejected her, he would have taken care of her.

‘His mate is not here. And he has no business stepping inside my territory, less he wants to start a fight between our packs,’ I snarl.

Jeremy sighs. ‘Fine. I will make sure he stops bothering us.’

‘Thanks!’

Red remains in the clinic for the following three days, and my ass is glued to the chair, not wanting to leave her alone for more than a few minutes, afraid she will have a nightmare or a panic attack, and I won’t be by her side when she needs me.

When she is allowed to move to her new room, I am right next to her door, day after day, night after night, always rushing to help her each time she wakes up screaming. She refuses to get out of bed and eats only if I use my Alpha Voice and force her to take a few bites of food and drink water or milk. Some nights her panic attacks are so bad I don’t dare to leave her room, afraid she would harm herself. Each time I try to calm her, she fights me, hitting me. I let her. I even had Lyla come to talk to her but to no use.

Weeks pass, Summer giving way to Autumn.

Since I found Red, Conon and Conrad had to step in and take care of my Alpha duties. I am not sure what I would have done without them.

With each new day, I see Red dying a little more. I don’t know how to help her to get out of her depression.

One chilly September morning, I sit on the rooftop of the Main House, my elbows on the edge of the railing, drinking a beer while I watch the pups play in the middle of the village, when I catch Tatiana’s scent.

“What do you want?” I snarl, not in the mood to talk to anyone.

Tatiana comes to where I am and grabs the bottle of beer from my hand. “We are losing her.”

“You think I don’t know? But I don’t know what else to do. She won’t let me help her!” I take all my frustrations out on Tatiana.

“Make her get out of bed. Give her something to do.”

I sigh. “You think I haven’t tried that already?”

“Caleb, you are doing the best you can, but Rain is still suffering a lot. While her mate rejected her, she did not do the same. She can still feel the pain of the broken bond.”

I rub my face with my palm. I haven’t even considered that. No wonder she is so depressed. “How do I fix that?”

“She has to reject Jordan.”

Of course, she has to do that, but over my dead body will Jordan be allowed inside my pack.

“For the past six weeks, day after day, Jordan has come to the border, demanding to speak to me. I am yet to see him, not wanting to be away from Red for more than a few minutes.” Even if I am on the rooftop, I am still able to hear her in case she screams. I only left a few minutes to drink a beer because she was still asleep. “But the moment my eyes see Jordan, I am going to f*****g kill him! You know what that fucker did?”

Tatiana shakes her head.

I take back my bottle of beer from her and take a long sip.

“The other day, Elder Rhicard called, saying Jordan Reed is accusing me of killing his mate,” I snort. “Jordan demands I let the Special Enforcers inside my territory to search for Red. While the Council is yet to give a reply to Jordan, Elder Adam is convinced I either killed Red or that I have her as a s*x slave.”

“Why does that not surprise me? Elder Adam will come to regret his wrongdoings sooner or later.”

I grit my teeth. “Elder Adam can go to hell!”

Tatiana sighs. “Regarding Rain and Jordan, a meeting between them is bound to happen.” I stiffen when I understand what Tatiana is suggesting. “But not right now. Once Rain is better and ready to face her past, she will be able to accept her future.”

“Red is never going to see Jordan again. He failed to protect her! He threw her out of his territory like she was some piece of trash, not listening to what she had to say!” I snarl.

While I don’t know the entire truth of what happened to Red on the night I found her, and I could only piece together a few things she said during her nightmares, one thing I do know—no one will ever hurt Red again! That is my vow to her.

‘Our vow!’