Chapter 23
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Saint Hall Estate, Haven
I ignore the shocked, horrified gasps.
Sunlight streams across my face. The Saint Estate’s garden is still bright with stalls and tents of delicious smelling cheeses, sweet strawberries, and succulent roasted chicken.
The violet wisteria and clematis still clings prettily around the manor’s entrance doors, under the banner:
THE SAINT PACK HOSTS HAVEN’S FIRST ANNUAL FOOD FESTIVAL!
Raylan is still standing on the steps, where he’s holding court to a ring of press and cameramen. The sunlight gleams off his neat copper moustach and sideburns. He’s dressed in an elegant, designer black suit.
Raylan’s arm is slung around Richard, who’s dressed in his usual preppy outfit and sneakers. Richard looks more like he’s being held hostage than in a loving embrace.
Yet nobody in the crowd is merrily chatting or browsing the festival any longer.
The air is soured by the scent of scared Omegas and their horrified Alphas, who are hurriedly pulling them out of Thomas’ path.
Of course, that’s because Thomas looks like a beaten angel.
Thomas’ cheekbone has swollen up, and his eye is purple. Crimson mats his temple, staining one side of his face. His shirt hangs raggedly torn, revealing his chest.
Vito squeezes my hand, giving me courage.
Vito and I walk beside Thomas. I know that we must look just as pale and shaken as he does.
Of course, most of the shocked gasps come from the fact that Thomas is hauling behind him, by ropes that are slung over his shoulders, an unconscious Alpha.
My dad.
Cesare.
Head Alpha of the Snakes.
The most feared mafia boss in Virginia.
Thomas drags him like caught prey.
It makes my lips quirk that trussed up like this and slithering over the grass, Dad looks more like a worm than a snake.
Thomas is thrumming with an intense dominance. It’s coming off him in waves.
I can tell that even the Alphas in the crowd are struggling not to fall to their knees.
No one dares to step forward to stop us.
Pride rises in my chest that this is my Alpha.
Lincoln slinks from beside a cheese stall. I see a flash of furry white and realize that he’s left Sugar to eat the wares. Lincoln’s dragging Ghost beside him.
They slip next to me in our strange procession through the town folk.
My cheeks prickle with warmth.
I’m used to being in the shadows, unseen. So is Ghost.
This must be hard for him.
We’re both stepping into the light here, in the most controversial way possible.
I hope that this works.
“I can’t leave you alone for a minute.” Lincoln nudges me with his shoulder.
“Shut up,” I mutter. “You knew about this.”
He doesn’t deny it. “Are you okay, fated?”
“Tom isn’t.”
Lincoln stiffens. “But you should see the other guy, right? Still, it was agonizing to feel…all that…through the bond and not be able to come and protect you both. But I made a promise to—”
“Tom, I know.”
“Not Tom.”
Confused, I glance at Lincoln.
Then Ghost growls and quirks his brow.
“This whole thing…take down…plot…was orchestrated on the order of an Omega,” Lincoln explains. My eyes are wide with wonder. If Dad knew that he hadn’t only been outwitted by an Alpha who he respected like Thomas but also by a Reject Omega like Ghost, then it’d blow his Traditional Alpha mind. I never knew that an Omega could have this power. “You’re a dangerous, dangerous Omega.”
Ghost smirks, chirping in delight like it’s the best compliment that he’s ever heard.
He winds his arm around my waist.
“If you love,” Lincoln rumbles, his gaze piercing, “then you should love dangerously.”
Fuck, I adore these men.
Vito glances between them in amazement. “Wow, Dy, you’ve found the most badass male Omega and claimed him for yourself. Greedy. To think that I worried about Lincoln and you finding a pack who could look after you together.”
Ghost reaches out, pressing his palm against Vito’s chest over his heart.
Vito’s gaze softens. “I believe that you’ll forever love her, and Dy’s the most loyal person in the world. You deserve each other.”
Ghost taps Vito’s chest: You too .
Vito ducks his head. “I’m too busy being a baker and saving the fucking world. Oh yeah, I’m badass too. Look at me now, taking on both Snakes and Saints in front of the whole of Haven.”
Yet Vito’s loneliness radiates from him.
It hurts.
Vito’s dedication to the resistance takes up much of his time. But I can’t bear to leave him living alone in the small rooms above the bakery.
When will he discover the life changing joy of a pack bond himself?
“Get ready,” Lincoln mutters, on the alert. He moves forward in a loose stance that I know is his trained bodyguard one. “Only a couple more steps.”
I swallow, looking at the journalists who are watching us eagerly. Their cameras are trained on us, sending this out live across America.
Richard is shaking.
He raises his hand to his mouth and heaves several times like he’s about to vomit.
He looks suddenly very young next to Raylan.
If he hadn’t hurt both Ghost and Thomas, then I’d feel sorry for him.
Raylan appears anything but comforting, as he tightens his arm enough to make Richard whimper.
A gang of Beta enforcers in navy suits stand behind them.
Raylan stares around at the town folk and his business associates who are watching, then at the journalists who are recording.
He takes a deep breath, trying to calm himself.
Thomas is making a spectacle.
April Lavere, the hack Beta journalist, elbows her way to the front of the press pack, yanking her cameraman with her.
Her eyes gleam with the excitement of a journalist who knows that this is going to be a huge story.
It’s not clear, however, which way this will fall.
Anticipation and nerves flow through me in equal measure.
This could either be the moment of our victory or destruction.
Yet I have my men surrounding me.
My pack.
Family.
Omega, Beta, and Alpha, we’re united as equals, dragging behind us in ropes my ex-head Alpha, who has threatened and brutalized many of the people who are watching us.
As the other Alphas take in the scene, their fear is turning to admiration.
People have wanted to take on the Snakes for a long time, but nobody has had the bravery to do it until now.
“What’s happened, son?” Raylan asks through gritted teeth, trying for authoritative concern. “I imagine that you have a good reason for causing this scene…?”
Interesting.
Raylan wants to distance himself, in case Thomas and his bonded are implicated in a crime.
Raylan is ruthless.
Thomas abruptly stops at the bottom of the steps, dropping the rope. It coils snake-like in a pile at his feet. He doesn’t bother to look behind him at the unconscious, bound man, as if he’s beneath his contempt.
Lincoln and Ghost move to stand at one side of Thomas.
Vito and I boldly stand at his other.
Raylan scans over us, his lip curling.
“Your parental concern for me is overwhelming.” Thomas makes sure to turn his head so that the cameras can zoom in on his shattered cheekbone. Some of the Omegas in the crowd wince and coo in sympathy. Thomas is still the most desired Alpha in Haven, after all. “I imagine that you wish to know I am safe and what medical care I need. Right?”
I don’t know how he can say that with a straight face.
Raylan side-eyes the cameras, and his fists clench. “Do you need a doctor?”
“Of course I do,” Thomas says, icily. “I have been attacked in my own home by Cesare, Head Alpha of the Snakes. We opened up our home to the town for this festival, and he used that as a cover to tie me up, abuse my Omega, pistol whip and beat me. Look at my face, Dad .”
Now, the gasps from the crowd are fully sympathetic to Thomas.
The scents and pheromones that the other Omegas are putting out to soothe my Alpha would make some Omegas jealous.
Except, I know that Thomas and I are both wearing Soul Marks on our chests.
Plus, it’s reassuring to have the support of the town’s Omegas.
People forget how powerful Omegas are. We can use our pheromones to calm or manipulate just like they are now en masse.
It’s overwhelming.
Ghost tilts his head thoughtfully like he’s thinking the same thing. Except, I bet that he’s assessing how to use that in the future.
Ghost’s eyes look as blue and clear as the sky above.
The sun makes his hair appear soft and white just like the wings of the doves that I loved to see nesting in the summer garden. I knew that it would.
My throat tightens.
Ghost looks glorious in the light. He was never made to be shut in the dark.
Raylan’s expression becomes stormy.
He pushes Richard to the side like a used toy.
Richard bangs his shoulder against a column and winces. He ducks his head, hugging his arms around himself.
“How dare that trash come into my pack’s territory? I’m the mayor. This is criminal and a challenge to my authority.” Raylan’s eyes flash.
Of course, he’s not going to care that Thomas was hurt. His status is what matters.
“It’s more than that.” Thomas steels himself. “This man intended to kidnap your Alpha son and force him into a bond.”
This time the ripple of horror through the crowd is from fellow Alphas, especially the elites.
Illegal forced bonds with Omegas isn’t spoken about publicly but are well-known.
But forced bonds between Alphas are shocking.
Yet they still happen.
Raylan pales. “Arrest him. Sheriff, did you hear what my son said? Everybody can see his wounds. I won’t stand for this shame on my family name. A mayor’s own home is private property and must be safe. This is a serious crime. I want the bastard locked up, permanently.”
Thomas remains silent, but I don’t miss the look that he exchanges with a man in the crowd, who steps forward.
I can’t help nuzzling against Lincoln because apart from Thomas, this new Alpha is the fiercest man here.
Sheriff Dante Marshal, a sheriff who’s also an English Duke.
Yet despite the way that he’s scowling, I’m not scared of him.
Partly, because he’s well known for being part of a unit who rescues Omegas from abusive packs or keeps them safe, once they’ve escaped.
But also because I know that he’s secretly part of the resistance like us.
This is all part of the plan.
Ghost winks at me.
Smart Omega.
Dante is tall with ebony skin and startlingly ice-blue eyes. He’s in his thirties with a severe expression. His black hair is cut military short, but he’s wearing the most expensive suit in the room (which says something, when the wealthiest packs are here).
Dante stalks forward, crouching beside Dad to check his pulse. Then he runs his hands over the knots in the rope, before giving an approving nod.
“This is professional work.” Dante wipes his hands together. “But we have rather the conundrum. How did Cesare get through security into this event? It implies that there’s an inside man.”
“Huh, it does,” Thomas takes up like this is scripted, and I have a feeling that it is. “What’s your professional opinion, Mr. West?”
“It needs to be someone who could have told Cesare the layout of Saint Cage,” Lincoln answers. “Not many people within the pack know that, along with our planned movements, during this festival. Then it had to be someone who was in charge of the security teams.”
Ghost lifts his head and looks directly at Richard, before pointing at him.
Silence.
“What is this b-b-bullshit?” Richard splutters. “I haven’t d-d-done anything. Why w-w-would I…? Tommy, don’t let them—”
“Motive,” Thomas says, frostily. “You wanted to bond with me, and I rejected you. You’ve been punishing me for that ever since. Love that’s an obsession — stalking and this red flag era bullshit — this is where it leads. You thought that marrying my dad would get you your revenge and fairy tale rolled into one, while you could still stalk and obsess over me, but it backfired. Has it brought you everything that you hoped it would?”
Richard’s face screws up like he’s going to cry. “Don’t.”
“Come here, Mr. Saint.” Dante commands, beckoning to Richard. “I’m taking you in for questioning.”
Richard looks frantically around at the contemptuous faces in the crowd and the condemnation from his peers and friends.
Only minutes ago, he’d been preening on Raylan’s arm.
Now, he’s ruined.
He’s not only wrecked his reputation in Haven, this humiliation is being filmed and will be splashed across social media and the national news.
It’s social suicide.
There’s no coming back from this.
Frantically, Richard turns to Raylan, stumbling toward him. “I’m sorry, Raylan, this is all a m-m-mistake. Please, help me . Don’t let them take me to the Alpha Center. I’ll do anything. You’re my Alpha. I’ve done everything that you’ve asked, even—”
I wince, as Raylan backhands Richard.
Richard holds his hand to his bruised cheek.
“Don’t hit him again, bastard, or I’ll arrest you for abuse,” Dante growls. Then he says more gently, looking at Richard. “Lord, don’t look so terrified. I’m not about to twist off your knot. Pity I don’t get to do that to your Head Alpha though. Look, I won’t even put you in handcuffs, if you come willingly. It won’t be as bad as you think. You can survive this and become a better Alpha for it. I swear that I’ll support you. I have a feeling that you’ve already survived a lot in this house.”
“Richard,” Thomas says, and his use of our childhood enemy’s real name hits me hard, “will going with the sheriff truly be worse than being trapped on the Saint Estate with my dad? I’m not going to press charges that send you to the Alpha Center. That’s my choice. I know what it’s like there, and despite the ass kicking that you deserve, I don’t think you should suffer what would be done to you. But you are going to live with the sheriff and his pack for a while as a foster member and learn to be a better man, okay?”
Richard’s eyes widen. “Why would you…? After everything that I’ve done?”
Thomas glances at Ghost and me, asking permission.
We both nod.
I remember what Thomas told me about the Alpha Center. I don’t want him to send someone who we went to school with to that brutal place.
It almost broke Thomas.
I know that Dad deserves to be there.
Richard, on the other hand, is an asshole.
But he’s a young asshole.
If I believe in redemption, then I have to hope that it’s better to offer that to Richard, rather than throwing him away.
After all, that’s what society does to defective Omegas.
I don’t want to do the same to bad Alphas.
Richard has already lost everything. It’s enough.
Richard sobs as he staggers down the steps. “I’m sorry…”
Thomas shakes his head. “Save it, until you’re sorry for what you did, rather than being sorry for getting caught.”
Dante grabs hold of Richard and pushes him to the side into the hold of a Beta from his pack, who is younger than Dante, in his early twenties. The new Beta is wearing a Rat Pack style suit and hat. His black curls tumble around his face, and his large silver eyes are breathtaking.
“Make sure that our new fostered pack member doesn’t decide to run off and get lost now, Deputy,” Dante says.
The deputy salutes like a flirtation. “Yes, Your Grace.”
Raylan doesn’t look bothered that his Second Alpha has just been fostered into a different pack.
I get the feeling that as much as Thomas likes to appear to be cold blooded, what he’s just arranged has been a rescue out of kindness, which I hope Richard repays someday.
Raylan puffs out his chest, glancing at the cameras like he’s about to put on a show. “Congratulations, son, on catching the bad apple who seduced his way into our pack. The whore. I hope that disgraceful, weak Alpha learns a hard lesson, along with the trash who you have tied up there. That Snake should have been locked up a long time ago. Well, folks, show is over. Why don’t we get back to…?”
“Not quite.” Thomas stalks up the steps toward Raylan, who looks startled, before he can shutter his expression. “ That Snake only went after me because you made me try to shut down the Dough Knot. If you hadn’t forced me to intimidate your enemies in order to steal their property, then this wouldn’t have happened.”
Raylan reddens.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. The blow to your head must have you confused.” He turns curtly to the Betas who are standing behind him. “Help my son back to his room in the Saint Cage. Make sure that he gets medical attention and rest. Don’t let him come out again. It’s for his own good.”
The Betas don’t move, only standing looking impassive.
Raylan narrows his eyes. “I gave you an order.”
Thomas smirks. “Now, now, where are your manners?”
“If you insist,” Raylan says with a rumbling growl. “I gave you a fucking order.”
The hairs on the back of my neck stand up.
I scrunch my nose at the scent of burned coffee. Ghost whines, licking at my scent gland.
The Betas glance nervously at each other but stand firm. They don’t move.
Raylan looks like he’s been punched in the dick. Perhaps, he’s never been openly disobeyed before and definitely never in public like this.
The crowd are watching his humiliation with fascination.
Lincoln prowls up the steps to stand next to Thomas, attempting to make the move look casual. I notice the subtle way that he always loosens his stance, however, just before he fights.
“Funny,” Thomas smiles at the Beta enforcers reassuringly, before his cold gaze returns to his dad’s, “but when you mistreat people, using them as tools, then they don’t tend to have much loyalty to you. Do you even remember their names?” Thomas points at the closest Beta. “What about him? Hmm? No? Or her? See, I know every single pack member by name. I remember their birthdays, organize for them to have time off if their family are sick, and buy them a gift every Christmas. Have you done that for any Beta, ever? They’re not my servants. I fucking care that my pack are happy. That’s why they’re backing me and not you. How does it feel that you’re going to lose this pack because I’m more warm hearted than you?”
“Yes,” I hiss.
Raylan stares at his son like he’s never seen him before.
Then he snorts and shakes his head.
“You little idiot. You’ve just challenged me in front of the entire town and everyone else who’s watching.” He waves at the cameras. “I didn’t know that you enjoyed the Alpha Center so much the first two times.” Thomas can’t hold back the flinch. “You’ve given me the grounds to send you back for a third visit. And this time, I don’t know when I’ll be letting you home. I want you broken.”
My heart speeds up. My lungs ache.
This is it.
The moment.
Hell, what if this doesn’t work?
Thomas bares his canines. “Except, you don’t have the grounds because I’m suing for emancipation. No court is going to give you control over this pack, when you’re as much a criminal as he is.”
He jerks his thumb at my dad, who’s lying on the ground.
“Good luck proving that with no evidence,” Raylan growls.
When Thomas gives a slow smile, I know that we’ve finally got Raylan.
Thomas turns his back on Raylan dismissively and walks to the front of the steps. When he faces the ring of townsfolk, he’s never looked so leader-like.
Fuck, I’d vote for him as the next President.
“This isn’t about me.” Thomas looks over the crowds who appear as mesmerized by him, as I am. Somehow, beaten and bloodied, he looks even more beautiful. “It never has been. I’d go back to the Alpha Center, if it meant saving this town. I was born into privilege but I’ve never had freedom. I haven’t been able to save the people who I love, my family and friends. It’s killed me to be powerless. I refuse to be that anymore. So, I’ve been working undercover to expose the abuses of the Mayor’s office, political system, and big corporations against people like you. I’m no hero but I’m what you’ve got. Someone has to be prepared to step up. But will you stand now with me?”
Thomas is talking to the people who are watching on their televisions, over their computers, and phones.
He’s trying to shake their blind obedience to authority.
Will it work?
Can we truly change the world?
A sudden wave of shouts and rallying support spreads across the festival.
My eyes widen.
The people look like they’d go to war for Thomas.
“Settle down.” Raylan looks scared. “Stop this nonsense. My son is a liar—”
“Let them judge for themselves.” Thomas beckons to Ghost, Vito, and me. Grinning at each other, we bound up the steps to join him. “There’s no need to fear the mayor’s retribution any longer. I control his enforcers. So, raise your hands if the Mayor’s office has harassed, intimidated, or tried to shut down your business?”
At least fifty hands in the audience go up.
April LaVere looks giddy with excitement, as she elbows her cameraman to pan the camera over the sea of determined looking small business owners with their hands raised.
“Lord, it looks like I’ll have a lot of witness statements to take.” Dante quirks his brow. “Interestingly, I was also forwarded a computer file this morning, which contained scanned paperwork from the Mayor’s office. Paperwork signed by you , Raylan St Clair, which breaks ten different laws.”
“ You did this ,” Raylan snarls, turning furiously to Thomas.
Thomas links his hands behind his back. “It turns out that boring busy work given to me as a punishment can actually destroy the Alphahole who thought that he’d rule us as the future President.”
Ghost laughs.
Raylan explodes in a burst of Alpha fury.
He launches himself at Thomas with murderous intent, raising his arm to punch him.
Before Thomas can move, however, Lincoln steps in front of him, catching Raylan easily by the arm. In one efficient move, he pulls Raylan toward him and then down, at the same time as using his leg to trip him.
Raylan yells out in surprise as he slams to the ground.
Lincoln grinds Raylan’s face into the marble step, kneeling on him.
“Stay down.” Lincoln presses his hand to the back of Raylan’s neck.
It’s breathtaking to see Lincoln in action.
Ghost bounces up and down in excitement, and Vito whoops.
I catch Thomas’ expression. I understand why he’s conflicted.
This is his victory, but it’s complex.
Just like Thomas is.
“Nicely done.” Dante saunters up the steps. He crouches beside Lincoln. “We’re going to be taking a trip to the Alpha Center now, ex -Mayor, and it’s for you and not your son. And yes, I will be using handcuffs for you, unlike your ex -Second Alpha.”
Lincoln pushes himself up, moving to rest his hand on Thomas’ shoulder in silent support.
Dante slips metal handcuffs off his belt and wrenches Raylan’s hands behind his back, before clicking them on. “Stand up.”
Raylan struggles to his knees, before pushing himself to stand with Dante’s hand firmly on his elbow.
“Thomas…” Raylan starts.
“I have nothing left to say to you.” Thomas blinks like the words have settled deep inside him, both a revelation and a final permission.
A permission to move on.
Be free.
Raylan appears so shocked by this dismissal that he sags and doesn’t resist as Dante drags him down the steps and away through the crowds.
Suddenly, it’s like he was never even here.
Now, Thomas is Head Alpha of the Saint pack.
After all these years, he’s done it.
Ghost and I can’t hold ourselves back any longer. We both dive to our Alpha.
Thomas holds open his arms, and we nuzzle against his neck.
“I love you,” I whisper.
Thomas kisses the top of my head.
“We did it.” Lincoln grins. “Fuck, we did it.”
Unexpectedly, an Alpha in his thirties with gleaming brunette hair and fierce jade green eyes that look out of a gorgeous pale face marches out of the crowd. He’s dressed in a well-tailored charcoal gray suit and tie.
Vito whistles. “Fuck, Senator Knight’s hot.”
By the way that Falcon’s brow rises, I’m sure that he’s heard.
I try to hush Vito.
Yet Vito bites his lip. “Intimidatingly like he could break me in half, but as long as it’s with his knot, I wouldn’t—”
I slam by hand over my brother’s mouth.
Okay, I need to find him an older, dominant Alpha to match with as soon as possible.
Falcon looks like he’s struggling not to laugh. “Now that the serious business is out of the way, there’s still the business of my quarter of a million dollars. I’ve judged the cake contest.”
I suck in my breath.
How could I have forgotten that?
Quarter of a million dollars is serious business.
But then, maybe not to someone who’s as wealthy as the Senator is.
Vito rocks on his heels, vibrating with nerves.
“ The Dough Knot, the Dough Knot, the Dough Knot… ” He chants underneath his breath.
Falcon reaches into his pocket and pulls out a gleaming gold medal. It is shaped like a cake and dangles on a red ribbon.
“I was honored to be chosen to judge this contest.” Falcon looks at the crowd with piercing eyes. “I love Haven. I travel to Washington and fight for every single one of you in the Senate each week. The way that you stood up today together as a community makes me proud to call myself part of Haven. I can fight for laws that protect Omegas and against inter-pack abuse, but things will only change if every person thinks hard for themselves and chooses to challenge what feels wrong or stands with what feels right. Now, talking of that…” Falcon turns toward Vito and winks, which is almost enough to make Vito swoon like an Omega in Bridgerton . “My treasured Omega loves two things in this town: birds and cakes from the Dough Knot. When I saw that his two things were cleverly combined in an astonishing cake, then it was obvious who the winner of Haven Festival’s first ever cake contest was.”
I hold my breath.
Falcon strides to Vito and loops the medal over his head like he’s the winner of the cake Olympics.
Then he firmly shakes Vito’s hand. “Congratulations to the Dough Knot.”
The cameras flash.
A senator has just shaken the hand of a Snake.
I never thought that I’d see that.
It’s going to be all over the news. It will set Vito up as reputable for life.
Does Falcon know what he’s done? How much it could damage his reputation to be seen with us?
Then it hits me.
Falcon’s part of the resistance. This is his contribution, as much as the quarter of a million dollars.
I feel giddy.
Vito smiles but he firmly removes the medal. “This doesn’t belong to me. It should hang around the neck of the genius baker who created the winning cake. In fact, the person who’s always been behind the best luxury cakes and pastries in our bakery.”
I’m frozen, as Vito gently slides the medal over my head.
Shocked whispers start up around us.
I blush, suddenly unsure if I can do this.
I’ve never done public speaking, unlike Thomas or Falcon. I’m not an Alpha who’s allowed to stand in front of other Alphas.
My OHS has meant that I’ve struggled to be around this many people, needing to hide myself away.
I’ve been taught that an Omega should be neither seen nor heard.
Vito appears to understand, pulling me into a tight hug.
“Finally, this is your turn in the spotlight,” he whispers. “You deserve it. We’re free, Dy. The cage door is open. Fly out of it and take every Omega with you. Finally, fly. ”
My eyes gleam with determination, as I pull back from him.
I’m trembling but I hold my head high, as I turn to face the crowd and the cameras.
I can do this.
I can fly out of the cage.
The journalists lean closer, waiting to hear what an Omega could possibly say.
“My name is Candy,” I raise my voice, and it carries over the Saint Estate, “the only Omega baker. I run it with my Alpha brother but I was forced to hide because the government decided that I deserved a steel Rej bracelet locked around my wrist. I don’t. Nobody does. And Omegas…? We can do anything that we want. We can be heard , win contests, and run businesses. We can do anything that we dream.”
The Omegas in the crowd burst into cheers.
A bunch of Omega teenagers at the front jump up and down with an unrestrained joy, recording me on their phones.
I can’t stop grinning, as Ghost snatches me around the waist and kisses me breathless.
“This is your moment,” Thomas murmurs, suffused with pride. “This is what we’re fighting for: An America in which every Omega is heard.”
Wild joy surges through the bond from my gorgeous pack, and I kiss Ghost harder because this is what flying feels like.