Chapter 2
Gus
I woke up with this strange feeling in my stomach. Almost like a craving. No matter what I did, I couldn’t seem to shake it. I ate breakfast twice before I went to work in the fields, but by midmorning, it felt like my stomach was trying to eat itself from the inside.
It was harvest season, and we had a full day ahead of us.
The other alphas and I would be working until sundown, side by side in the fields, to bring the harvest home before fall.
I tried my best to focus on anything but the weird churning sensation in my stomach, but it was pointless.
Dinner at the Wild Willow Farm, where I lived with the other farmhands, seemed light-years away.
We always enjoyed a really nice, hearty meal after a long day in the fields.
Lord Willoughby, the old omega who owned the farm, always provided for us, and most evenings he even sat down with us to eat, asking us for advice on crops for the next season, or telling us about a new horse he was set on buying.
Like the other alphas, I’d been sent to the countryside to work when I reached my middle adolescence.
This November, it would be eight years. Eight years since I’d seen my omega father and my omega siblings.
Most days, I tried not to think too much about them, because then it just felt like my heart was being ripped from my chest. It wasn’t that I didn’t understand why I had to be sent away.
It was, after all, for their protection.
I knew I could potentially be dangerous to them—all alphas could if the magic failed for some reason.
I didn’t feel dangerous, but I knew I had it in me—the potential to hurt my omega family.
The thought of that alone was enough to make bile rise in my throat.
I didn’t want to hurt anyone—didn’t think I could—but I’d heard the tales about the ruthlessness of past alphas, and I understood why I had to be sent away.
“What’s wrong with you?” Hal, my closest friend, asked, frowning at me as he stacked another hay bale on the cart. “You look like your eyes are gonna pop out of your face.”
I rubbed my stomach as it rumbled ominously. Hal had come to stay at the farm six months after I’d arrived, and we had become instant friends. By now, I saw him as a brother, a substitute for the family I’d lost, and I knew I meant the same to him.
“I don’t know. I just woke up hungry,” I winced, then dug my pitchfork into a stack of hay.
“You always wake up hungry,” Hal laughed. “You’re an alpha.”
“So are you,” I countered, wiping my forehead with the back of my hand.
“I know, but there are alphas, and then there are… giants.” Hal gave me a pointed look, and I couldn’t help laughing too.
He was right. Even for an alpha, I was huge.
I’d always been, I guess, compared to my omega family, but in my teens, I’d hit a growth spurt that was through the roof even for an alpha.
“I don’t know. It just feels different. Like I could eat my way through a fruit orchard and still be hungry.” It did. It felt like a hunger for something I couldn’t name. Like I needed something sweet. Like… “Honey!” I blurted. “I need honey.”
“Are you serious right now?!” Hal stared at me, his expression wondrous.
“I think so.” I rubbed the back of my head.
I did that sometimes when I thought really hard about something.
Mostly, I tried not to think too hard about life in general and just let things happen.
It was easier that way. If I wished for something, I’d only end up getting disappointed.
Like in those early days at the Wild Willow Farm, where I’d hoped and prayed for my omega father to come get me, but he never did.
Then Hal arrived, and things got better, thankfully.
“Well, then get going.” Hal grinned at me. “I’ve got you covered.”
“Yeah?”
“Sure.”
“Thank you, Hal.” I winked at him. I loved Hal, and sometimes I wished he were my real brother.
“Whatever.” He waved me off. “Don’t go all mushy on me, big guy.” He bumped my shoulder, and I pulled him in against my side, hugging him tight. Then my stomach growled angrily again. Right. Mission honey, here we go!
“Damn bees,” I gritted through my teeth, rubbing the sting on my elbow.
I had no idea what was up with these bees, but they were feisty as hell.
Usually, I’d be able to climb a tree and just poke a little honey from the hive with a stick and then be on my merry way.
But these bees were something else, and when I’d been stung for the fifth time, I decided to give up on mission honey and climb down again.
Only, when I began my descent, I accidentally bumped the hive with my shoulder. The bees did not like that. They went feral, shooting out of the hive like bullets, swarming around me angrily. I almost fell down the tree, scraping my arms on the way down and tearing a gigantic hole in my overalls.
Shit. They were my favorite pair. I’d have to repair them tonight.
Maybe Kenneth, the old alpha who took care of stuff around the farm, had a sewing kit.
Kenneth, who was now too old to work the fields, spent most of his time with Lord Willoughby, helping him with his paperwork in his office.
It was rare that you saw one without the other, and they even had adjoining bedrooms while most of the other alphas slept in bunk beds in a large barn next to the main estate.
Hal and I were lucky enough to share a small, worn-down cabin close to the farm.
It had been deserted for a long time, but some years ago when I’d asked about it, Lord Willoughby had allowed Hal and me to move into it.
That had been such a relief because the other farmhands didn’t seem to like me very much, often calling me dumb or stupid just because it took me a little longer to learn new things.
Hal wasn’t like that. He would defend me, saying I was exactly how I was supposed to be, which was why he liked me so much.
As soon as I hit the ground, I started running through the clearing, back toward the open field.
Only the damn bees decided to chase me. A sting tore through the back of my neck, and I couldn’t contain the scream bursting from my lips.
Waving my arms around, I tried to shoo them away, but they continued to come at me.
“Arrggghhh,” I yelled as I burst through the undergrowth, the open field just before me.
“Leave me alone!” As I reached the open field, only a few bees were still chasing me, but I continued to run in Hal’s direction, hoping they’d eventually give up.
I hurried across the field, keeping my head down, and it wasn’t until my heart felt like it was going to explode that I lowered my pace.
Bending over, I rested my elbows on my knees as I panted for my next breath.
My body ached where the skin was swelling from the bee stings.
Shit, maybe they weren’t bees after all.
Maybe they were wasps. I never did learn how to tell the difference, although my omega father had tried on numerous occasions, while my omega siblings had caught on right away.
Maybe the other alphas were right. Maybe I was dumb after all.
When it felt like I could breathe again, I looked up only to notice the ruckus around me.
The outskirts of the field were lined with fancy carriages.
I squinted and could just make out the royal emblem on the doors of one of them.
It was King Sebastian’s. I’d never seen him, only heard the tales of his otherworldly beauty and enormous wisdom.
He was our Omega King and the one who held the magic that kept our world in order.
Without King Sebastian and his magic, chaos would take over, and we alphas would return to our old, destructive ways and hurt the omegas.
My heart clenched at the thought of someone, or even myself, harming my omega family. As always, it felt like I was going to die. I shook my head. The magic was in place thanks to King Sebastian.
Like his father and his grandfather before him, King Sebastian was the most powerful omega, and I often heard alphas talk around town of how they’d give their right arm to be with him through his heat, or perhaps even breed him.
As I walked closer, I noticed other alphas were gathering in front of the carriages.
I usually avoided most of them, me and Hal keeping to ourselves.
What looked like royal advisors were lining up the alphas, inspecting them, measuring their chests and shoulders with measuring tapes.
More alphas arrived, abandoning their work, to see what all the fuss was about.
I’d heard the rumors, of course. Everyone in the village had.
That King Sebastian was getting older, and that the people were eager for him to secure the kingdom with a powerful omega heir.
It was a little strange that he hadn’t found a worthy alpha yet.
Everyone spoke of it. The kingdom was restless, some even speculating that King Sebastian would never take an alpha and produce an heir.
I tried searching for Hal, but he was nowhere to be seen.
I kept to the outskirts of the field, making myself as small as possible.
I kept my eyes on a group of alphas from the neighboring farm who gave me a hard time whenever I came to the village.
I didn’t know why they didn’t like me, but they would always whisper behind my back, ‘accidentally’ bumping into me, calling me a freak or stupid.
An airhead. I never talked back, just kept my head down, my gaze fixed on my worn boots, and ran the errand Kenneth had sent me on, then got out of their way.
The royal advisors reached another group of alphas, and they started puffing out their chests and flexing their muscles.
The advisors took down something on their notepads, then moved down the line, inspecting more eager alphas on the way.
I still couldn’t see Hal. Maybe he’d gone into hiding.
I thought I might just do the same. If they took me away from Hal and the farm, I think I might just die.
Backing toward the woods, I was so focused on avoiding the royal advisors that I didn’t hear the buzzing sound until it was too late. Something ripped through my skin, a burning sensation spreading across my naked shoulder.
Screaming, I blindly took swipes left and right, while the buzzing increased around me. I stormed back toward the open field, still screaming, waving my arms around.
As I neared the gathering of people in front of the royal carriages, everyone turned, their gazes zeroing in on me. The royal advisors quickly abandoned the group of alphas lined up in front of them, and with eager looks on their faces, they started toward… me. And the bees. The killer bees. Oh no.
Waving my arms in the air, I yelled at the group of people. “Stop! Don’t come any closer. Danger! Danger!” I screamed as the bees, wasps, whatever, continued to come at me like angry arrows.
The royal advisors didn’t seem to hear me, though, because they came closer, whispering amongst themselves, excited expressions painted across their faces. The other alphas trailed after them, shooting daggers my way, disbelief in their eyes.
“Don’t come any closer!” I started zigzagging as I ran, trying to dodge the killer bees.
Wouldn’t it just be my luck if the bees started attacking King Sebastian’s advisors?
I had to avoid it at all costs. Kicking in the air, I tried to hit as many bees as possible while trying to signal to the advisors not to come any closer.
They still didn’t seem to hear me, though, or maybe they didn’t care, because they kept approaching me, their faces beaming at me while they patted each other’s shoulders, almost congratulating themselves. What was happening?
“He’s the one,” I heard one of them say. “Look at him.” Another one nodded in agreement. “Definitely the one. He’s… simple. Harmless.”
“What is he even doing?” Someone chuckled.
“No idea,” another advisor snickered, then noted something on his notepad, before pulling out a measuring tape from his coat pocket. “He’s huge, that’s for sure.”
“He’s too big,” someone quipped. “His Majesty won’t like it. Shouldn’t we take one of the ot—”
“Shut up! He’s perfect. A breeder for sure. Look at his thighs. He’s like… a horse. An ox. A prime breeder.”
A breeder? I turned, looking over my shoulder desperately. They must surely be pointing at someone else, speaking of someone else. But I was alone in the field. The other alphas stared at me from behind the royal advisors, shaking their heads at me, mumbling something under their breath.
I swallowed. The buzzing was now inside my head. Nausea built in my stomach, but no longer from hunger. The ‘perfect’ rang through my head. I wasn’t perfect. I was an alpha, imperfect from the day I was born. A breeder, yes, but not meant for the king. That was ridiculous.
“Come with us,” someone said to my left, but the words didn’t register.
“Careful of the bees,” I whispered. Where was Hal? Shit, where was Hal? I needed to get to him.
“Bees?” someone said. “What is he talking about? Bees.”
“Where’s Hal?” I mumbled, my chest squeezing. “Where’s Hal?”
“Like I said. Simpleminded. Harmless. He’s perfect.”
“Come with us, Alpha,” a distant voice said. “King Sebastian is eager to meet his perfect breeder.”
Perfect. Right.