The Orphaned Omega

Chapter 16

[Dorothea’s POV]

I couldn’t look away from Kelsey in her cousin’s arms. Her head lolled over the side of Emma’s forearm, her arms trailing in the dirt. My breath came in hard and fast pants, and I looked around at the dark forest wildly. My mind was racing. What was I going to do?! I may very well have just killed a higher ranked member of the pack. A member that was beloved, with a fierce family – a gamma’s daughter! I was as good as dead now. I considered taking off right now while Emma was distracted, but I had no idea where that would get me. I probably wouldn’t make it two days in the forest on my own. Just as I was about to beg Emma for mercy, I heard her gasp.

My head whipped back to Kelsey, and I took a tentative step forward. “She’s breathing? She’s breathing! Oh, thank the Goddess.”

Emma turned her face up to me, her expression poisonous. “No thanks to you! You just tried to kill my cousin!”

“No…I…no, Emma, please, I didn’t mean to hurt her,” I said, collapsing to my knees.

“That is the biggest lie I have ever heard,” Emma spat. She looked toward the trees to the east, where we had come from. Her lips curved into a wicked smile as she looked back at me. “Good riddance, Dork-thea.”

I watched as Emma scooped Kelsey into her grasp more firmly and stood up. As she began to head toward the pack grounds, two large figures came from the shadows. It was Emma’s father, and Kelsey’s father. I swallowed hard, my limbs starting to tremble. This was not good. This was not good at all. Emma spoke briefly to the two men, but there was a ringing in my ears all of a sudden and I had no idea what she said. I saw her nod and then rush off into the night with Kelsey in her arms. My gaze traveled slowly to the two members of the Thorpe family as they closed in on me.

“Pl-l-p-please,” I stammered, my brain short-circuiting and forgetting how to form words. “Please let me explain!”

“You can explain to the Alpha,” Kelsey’s father, Mike, snarled. He snagged me harshly by my upper arm at the same time that Emma’s father did. They hauled me off the ground and started to drag me through the forest. I had no hope of walking with them on my own, they seemed to keep my feet just far enough from the ground so I couldn’t stand upright. My feet and legs caught on all manner of things, from rocks to roots to thorny vines. By the time we were back on clearer ground, my legs were bleeding and bruised below the knee. They didn’t stop until we were in the packhouse. Mike went ahead to alert the Alpha, while his brother, Jacobi, kept a firm hold on me. All I did was sag in his arms.

Mike came back a few minutes later, gesturing from the top of the stairs. “Take her to his office.”

Jacobi nodded, beginning to drag me again. I tried to find my footing, but he was moving so fast I could do nothing but allow myself to be moved along. I heard Mike’s footsteps behind us. He swung open the Alpha’s office door, shoving me inside. I stumbled and staggered right into the desk. My hip struck the edge, and I bit my tongue to keep from crying out. I straightened up and took a few steps back. Mike grabbed me by the shoulders and shoved me into a seat across from the desk. He kept a firm grip on my shoulder, not allowing me to move. The office door opened again, and I braced myself for having to see Ian again, for his scent, for his eyes. I was surprised when that cinnamon apple fragrance didn’t immediate hit my nose. I looked up at the figure moving around the desk and found Alpha Harry settling into the seat instead. Ice cold fear sluiced through me. Dealing with Alpha Ian had been a scary enough thought, but I knew for a fact that Alpha Harry hated me. He would probably be disappointed to hear that Kelsey hadn’t succeeded in her murder attempt.

He steepled his fingers and rest his chin on them. “What is the meaning of this? It’s the middle of the night. Ian is away at the Academy, so I am acting Alpha until his return. Ian may allow this sort of…frivolity, but you know damn well that I do not. You better hope you have a good explanation for this.”

“Sir, I—”

I was cut off by Alpha Harry growling. “I was not speaking to you, insolent girl.”

I hung my head, looking at my dirty hands in my lap. I bit the inside of my cheek to try to keep myself from quaking in fear.

“We’re sorry, Alpha, for the intrusion. We would not have awoken you if it were not important,” Mike said, dipping his head. “But this girl here tried to kill my daughter tonight. Emma took her straight to the hospital for treatment – she was bleeding from a wound on her head and knocked out cold. Emma said she saw her hit her with a rock straight to the temple.”

Alpha Harry’s dark eyes flashed to me, displeasure and anger alighting his features. He seemed to almost grow with the rage that was coming from him, making him look even more imposing and menacing than usual. “You, a stupid werewolf omega, tried to kill the gamma’s daughter?”

“N-no, it was an accident, I swear!” I managed to get out.

“Accident?” Alpha Harry snorted. “How do you figure? Did you or did you not hit Kelsey Thorpe with a rock?”

I cast my gaze down to my lap once more. “She was trying to choke me. She was trying to kill me. I…I was just trying to get her off of me!”

Alpha Harry slammed his fist down on the table. I jumped and flicked my gaze up to him through my eyelashes. The look he gave me told me that I should have just let Kelsey kill me. “How dare you lie to me. I have half a mind to kill you on the spot for your impudence. But I shall wait until Kelsey awakens to speak to her and speak to Emma. Mike, you may take her to the dungeons.”

Mike pulled me up out of the chair and started to drag me toward the door. I turned in his grip and opened my mouth to speak, but nothing came out. I was hit with the realization that it didn’t matter what I said. No one in this room would believe a word I said, no one would care what I said. I had just confirmed everyone’s fear of me. I was a traitor to the pack, just like my father. I allowed Mike to pull me down the stairs and into the dark cellar below the packhouse. There was a massive iron door at the end of the hallway standing ajar. We didn’t have any other prisoners right now, and no one else was down here.

Mike hauled me through the door and into the first cell. He slammed it shut behind me and locked it. His eyes met mine and he sneered at me. “I hope you rot,” he spat.

He turned and walked away from me, closing the heavy door behind him, and locking that too. I turned on shaky legs to look at where I was now. It was a small area with a dirty concrete floor with…were those blood stains? I shuddered, moving my gaze along and trying not to dwell on that too long. A small wooden board hung from rope against the wall, with just a dingy sheet and paper-thin bed roll on it. The only other thing was a stainless-steel toilet along the wall. The whole area was maybe ten or twelve paces long and half that wide. Large, thick metal bars caged me in, too narrowly spaced for me to try to slip through.

I sighed, trudging over to the makeshift bed, and sitting on it. There was a cracking sound and before I knew what had happened, I was on the floor. I looked behind me, frowning. The whole thing had just snapped off the wall! I picked up one of the ropes and realized how old and worn it was. I doubted it would have held up under the weight of even a pillow, let alone a full human. I just shook my head and curled up on the board, anyway, pulling the sheet over me for some semblance of comfort. It reeked of mildew and mothballs and made me gag. I felt tears trying to well in my eyes for the first time all night, but I turned onto my back and stared up at the ceiling and fought them off. I would not cry. I would not cry.

I lay there staring up at the ceiling for quite a while, reliving the entire night. As the adrenaline wore off and I lay in this cold, dank place, I began to shiver uncontrollably. I was still soaking wet and covered in mud, and I was terrified of what was to come next for me. I yearned for the comforting warmth of Lori and Fran right about now. My throat still burned from Kelsey trying to suffocate me, and my entire body (especially my legs) ached from the exertion of the night. The longer I lay there though, the angrier I got and the less pitiful I felt. I was the victim here, not Kelsey! It was Kelsey and Emma that had attacked me first, drawing me out of my home and running me off into the forest. I had been defending myself against them both and I was pretty sure I had the handprints on my neck to prove it. Kelsey should be dead after trying to kill me! Here I was feeling sorry for myself, feeling riddled with guilt for hurting her, when she had been relishing the idea of killing me.

I let out a scream of frustration. The truth did not matter. Not to Alpha Harry, not to Mike Thorpe, and certainly not to Kelsey. I knew as soon as she woke up, she would spin some lie to make me out to be even worse than I was now. There would be no clever way out of this. My only hope of living now was that Alpha Harry felt he could still use me in some way. Then again…what kind of life would I even be living if I was even further under his thumb? Maybe I would be better off dead.

-x-

I hardly slept, continuing to toss and turn and get up to pace and pace. This went on for a long, long time. I kept glancing at the door, straining to hear if anyone may be coming to sentence me to death, but more time passed uneventfully. I had no way of keeping record of time down here. The dungeons had no windows, and the only light came from a flickering bulb in the hallway behind the iron door. That light never turned off. I sometimes heard the changing of the guard at the end of the hall, but it was too irregular for me to keep up with.

After what was probably a day, judging by my increasing hunger, there was a commotion at the end of the hall. I heard Lori’s voice and a flicker of hope flared within me. Maybe she would be able to help me!

“What is the meaning of this?!” Lori snapped. “I can’t visit her? She has done nothing wrong! Let her out of there this instant!”

“My orders were to let no one in that was not approved by the Alpha himself,” the guard said, his voice flat and void of emotion.

“She is a minor and I am her guardian! Allow me to speak to her!” Lori argued again.

“According to the record, she is emancipated and in charge of herself,” the male responded. “I cannot allow you past me. You may speak to her at her trial.”

Lori said some choice words to the guy and then things went quiet. I groaned, leaning my head against the wall. There went any chance I had of getting out of here. One thing did stick out to me though – the guard had mentioned a trial. Would I really get the luxury of telling my side of the story? Would I even be able to sway a single person to agree with me?

After Lori’s visit, I think several days passed. I grew hungrier and thirstier by the second, and I felt myself growing weaker and weaker from lack of any kind of nutrition. The first few days, I kept myself busy with sit-ups and push-ups and running in place. After a while, I barely had the energy to stand up. When I did, I felt my head swim and my vision would get dark along the edges. My throat was parched, every swallow feeling like sandpaper scratched along the inside of my esophagus. Even breathing felt like hot coals were lodged in my throat. My hands seemed to constantly shake, and I felt both nauseous and outrageously hungry. No one came down the hall, no meals were dropped off, not even a water bottle. I think they mean to dehydrate me to death, I thought to myself just before I drifted off to sleep.

I was awoken sometime later by a loud metal clatter. I jolted, weakly lifting my head to look at what had made the sound. A metal tray sat just inside of my cell with….food!? I lunged for it, dragging the tray over to my little nest. I looked at it and found a pile of bread crusts and a bowl of some kind of watery, mushy-looking soup. It didn’t matter. I would probably have eaten anything right about now. I began to cram the breadcrusts into my mouth and followed it with a big swig of the soup. The soup was salty and didn’t taste like much, but it gave my throat much-needed moisture so I could choke down the bread. I could feel the life returning to my bones even with one bite, like my body had been poised and ready for this moment.

A haughty laugh sounded in front of me, and I looked up slowly to see who had made the noise. In front of me was my worst nightmare – Kelsey Thorpe herself. She looked no worse for wear, not even a bruise or a scratch on her head where I had smacked her with the rock. She smirked at me, her eyes glittering with malice in the semi-darkness. “Oh, Dory, you look so…feral,” she said, feigning concern with a hand placed over her heart.

I snarled at her, picking up more bread and going back to my measly meal. The last thing I needed was to deal with her right now.

She growled right back, dropping her innocent act and taking a step toward the bars. “Oh, you f*****g brat. You tried to kill me, and you will pay for it.”

I looked up at her again, the bars between us and the thought that any day down here could very well be my last making me brave. What did I have to lose? “You were trying to kill me. What did you think I would do? Lie down and take it?”

“That is exactly what you were supposed to do!” she shrieked.

I rolled my eyes, slurping the last of the soup from the bowl and using a wad of breadcrusts to soak up whatever didn’t dribble out into my mouth. “Then you are even stupider than I took you for.”

She snarled, launching herself at the bars. A few days ago, I know I would have cowered to the back. But today…I just sighed heavily and didn’t bother to look up. She gave the bars a shake to try to get my attention, to no avail. “I hope you enjoyed that food, you t**t. That will be your last meal. When you go to trial in the morning, I’m going to make sure they kill you for what you did.”

I looked up at her finally and I just smiled. “Goddess, I f*****g hope so.”

I watched her leave, her whole body vibrating with anger. I chuckled to myself. It felt nice to stand up to her for once. To not cower or submit, to let myself speak exactly what I meant or thought. I pushed the tray to the edge of the cell and went back to the mildewy bedroll. I knew what Kelsey had said should chill me to the core, but after time down here I couldn’t really bring myself to care. I had decided after Lori had tried to see me that maybe I was really better off dead. At least then I could be re-united with Rosie and my father. I could meet Hank and Travis! I wouldn’t be a burden to Lori and Fran anymore. I wouldn’t have to feel all of this pain all of the time. I slipped off into the first comfortable sleep down here with a smile on my face, nearly wishing the night would pass quickly to get on with it.

-x-

I was awoken again not long after I had fallen asleep. I heard the door at the end of the hall creak open and then my cell door opened. I looked up with bleary, sleep-ridden eyes. Was it morning already? It sure didn’t feel like I had slept for long. I was surprised that I didn’t see a warrior or the Alpha at my cell. Instead, there was a feminine figure clad in black leggings and a black hoodie. She pulled her hoodie back just slightly so I could see her face, but it remained hidden mostly in shadow.

“Bailey?” I said, sitting up with surprise.

“Shhh,” she hissed, coming in close to me and squatting down. “Don’t talk too loudly. Look, we don’t have much time.”

She shoved a bundle of clothes into my arms – black leggings, a black hoodie, fresh undergarments, and a pair of black running shoes. Identical to what she was wearing. “Put these on and give me your clothes.”

“What?” I frowned, but I began pulling off the hoodie I was wearing. I was completely confused, but I felt compelled to follow her direction.

“I’m getting you out of here, Thea,” Bailey said, stripping out of her own clothes. As I shed my clothes, she put them on herself. “I’m going to get you to the forest, and I’m going to spread your scent all over. You’re going to get the f**k out of Dark Pine, do you understand me?”

I nodded slowly. “Yes…but…Bailey—”

She flashed me a look that told me not to argue with her. “They are going to kill you as soon as dawn comes. You need to run.”

We both stood up fully, dressed now. She was in my mud-covered, gross pajamas and oversized hoodie. “I know, I—”

“Don’t you dare say you were just going to let it happen. You were protecting yourself, Thea, and I’ll be damned if I let my father kill you for something that Kelsey started. It should be her down here, not you.”

I shook my head, my survival instinct flooding back full force, despite all I had told myself a few hours before. An idea suddenly flashed in my head. “Bailey, I have a backpack stored at my house. I need to grab it and some money before I can run.”

She nodded. “Fine, okay. I’ll get you there and then to the woods.”

I launched myself at her and embraced her in a tight hug. She startled but hugged me back. “If I don’t ever see you again…thank you. For everything.”

She leaned back, gripping my upper arms. “C’mon. We can say our goodbyes later.”

With that, we ducked out of the cell and ran on tiptoes down the hall. I saw the guard at the end of the hall knocked out cold. I looked at Bailey and she smirked. “Wolfsbane powder. A few whiffs and lights out. Don’t worry, he’ll wake up in a couple hours.”

I chuckled softly and kept going. She took the lead, continuing to make sure the coast was clear. We made it out of the packhouse seamlessly and took off at a dead sprint to my house. The door was still wide open, leaves and water crowding the floor in the entry. I looked over my shoulder at her, and she waved me inside. “Hurry it up in there!”

I ducked inside and ran to my bedroom, yanking out the backpack I had packed that first day after Ian rejected me. I flung my mattress off my bed and grabbed the Ziploc full of cash, shoving it into my bag. I ran into the kitchen and filled my water bottle, putting that in the outside pocket, and then shoved as much non-refrigerated food like granola bars as I could into the rest of the bag. I took an extra moment to run into Rosie’s room and grab a scarf from her closet. I tucked that into its own Ziploc bag then zipped up the backpack and ran back outside to meet Bailey.

“Ready?” she asked, and I nodded. “The coast has been clear the whole time. Not a peep. Let’s get moving.”

I didn’t say anything, just followed behind her. I kept my head on a swivel, ears straining to hear anything that may be coming toward us. We reached the edge of the woods and I turned to face Bailey. We were both catching our breath.

“Bailey, I need you to do something for me. I know you have already done so much for me already, but just one final thing. Please?” I practically begged. This was the most important thing to me, and I couldn’t leave until she said yes.

The blonde nodded. “Yeah, of course. What is it?”

“Can you tell Lori and Fran what happened to me? Let them know that I had to leave, and I don’t want them coming to try to find me. Let them know that…if it ever seems safe, I’ll get word to them that I’m okay.”

Bailey let out a slow sigh and then nodded. “I will. I promise. I can’t guarantee they won’t look for you.”

“I know, but you have to try to convince them,” I said.

“I will,” she nodded. This time, she was the one to step in and hug me tight. I gave her a bone-crushing squeeze back.

We stepped away from each other, and I saw her wipe a tear from the corner of her eye. “I’ll miss you, T,” she said.

I smiled softly. “I’ll miss you too.”

“Take care of yourself.”

“Back at ya,” I said. We watched each other for another brief moment before she pushed me forward.

“Get going,” she said. “I’ll buy you time. Head for the river to drown out your scent. Keep your eyes peeled for patrol near the border. When its clear, cross and keep running. Don’t look back, Thea. If they get their hands on you…”

I didn’t need her to finish the sentence. I knew what would happen. I nodded again. “Bye. Thank you.”

She just smiled before she took off the opposite direction as me. “What are friends for?”

I watched her disappear through the underbrush before turning and beginning to run for my life.