Chapter 12 #2
Client 4: "I appreciate you telling me before I heard it elsewhere. Watching tonight."
Client 5: "Can we schedule a call? I have questions but I'm not jumping ship yet."
"Four supportive, one uncertain," Michelle summarized. "That's... better than I expected."
"Because you're brilliant at your job," I said. "Pack bond doesn't change that."
"I hope the industry agrees with you."
Her phone buzzed again. Callie Cross.
Callie: "Got your email. I'm watching tonight and I'm bringing backup. Other omega creators want to support you publicly. I’m rallying the coalition that supported me and Kara. You're not alone in this. "
Michelle's eyes filled with tears. "Callie's recruiting other creators to support us publicly."
"Because you're not just fighting for yourself," Ro observed. "You're fighting for every omega who comes after you. They know that."
"I didn't ask to be a trailblazer."
"No one asks to be a trailblazer. But here you are anyway." Lucas squeezed her hand. "And you're going to be amazing."
Through the bond, I felt her fear and determination in equal measure.
My omega was terrified. But she was going to do this anyway.
That was courage.
By 6 PM, we were running final checks.
The living room was set up perfectly. The lighting was professional but warm. The camera angles, of which there were three, gave us options for visual variety. And the audio was crystal clear.
Everything was ready.
Except Michelle, who was pacing in the kitchen, talking herself through the messaging one more time.
"You're going to wear a hole in the floor," I observed from the doorway.
She jumped. "How long have you been standing there?"
"Long enough to see you've gone over those talking points fifteen times. You know them, Michelle. You're ready."
"What if I freeze? What if I say the wrong thing? What if—"
"Then we adapt. But you won't freeze. You're a professional. You've handled crisis communications before."
"Not for myself. Not when everything I've built is on the line."
I moved closer, gently stopping her pacing. "Michelle. Look at me."
She did, her brown eyes wide with fear.
"You are the most capable person I know. You built a company from nothing. You navigate impossible situations daily. You fought for your pack even when you were terrified." I cupped her face gently. "Tonight is just another battle. And you're going to win because that's what you do. You win."
"What if I don't?"
"Then we regroup and fight again. But Michelle?
You're not alone in this. I'm monitoring for threats.
Ro's handling the visual narrative. Lucas is beside you on camera.
Your family's waiting for you to be done and ready to celebrate.
Callie and other omega creators are already in the chat ready to support you.
" I held her gaze. "You have an army. Use it. "
Through the bond, I felt her fear shift. Not disappearing, but becoming manageable.
"Okay," she breathed. "Okay. I can do this."
"You can do this."
"We can do this."
"That's better."
To my surprise she strode over and hugged me before pulling me down for a kiss. It was brief but fierce, claiming comfort and strength. Everything I wanted to give my omega. Well, not everything, but we’d get to the rest when she was ready.
"Thank you," she whispered against my lips. "For being my anchor. For protecting me even when the threats aren't physical. For believing I can do this."
"Always."
Lucas appeared in the doorway. "It's time. You ready?"
Michelle took a deep breath, straightened her blazer, and transformed before my eyes. Professional mask settling into place. Manager Michelle was ready to face the industry.
"I'm ready."
We headed to the living room where everything waited. Michelle and Lucas settled on the couch. Ro took his position behind the main camera. I manned the laptop, ready to monitor chat and handle any technical issues.
"Remember," Ro said, "we've got three camera angles. If you need a break, I can cut to the wide shot. If things get overwhelming, we have transition points planned. You're in control here."
"Got it."
I pulled up the streaming platform, chat already filling with eager viewers even though we hadn't gone live yet.
CozyFan22: is this about what we think it's about???
HolidayVibes: I'M SO READY
StreamSniper: whatever this is I'm here for it
"Chat's already buzzing with speculation," I reported. "Current viewer count: two thousand waiting. That'll spike when we go live."
"No pressure," Michelle muttered.
"You've got this," Lucas said, taking her hand.
Through the bond, I felt the pack's unified support flowing toward her. We were all here. All with her. All ready to fight.
"Going live in thirty seconds," I announced. "Tech is green. Audio is green. Video is green. All systems go."
Michelle nodded, squeezing Lucas's hand.
"Twenty seconds."
She took a breath, and I watched her center herself. Professional competence settling over the fear.
"Ten seconds."
Lucas smiled at her, and through the bond I felt his absolute faith in her.
"Five... four... three... two... one..."
We went live.
And my omega changed the industry.
I'd seen Michelle handle tricky situations before in the few days we’d been at the farm house. Everything from angry clients to PR disasters to contract disputes. I'd watched her navigate what were clearly difficult negotiations with calm proficiency.
But watching her announce our pack bond to seventy thousand viewers while her entire career hung in the balance?
That was courage on a different level.
She was perfect.
Professional without being cold. Transparent without being defensive. Acknowledging concerns while maintaining confidence. Every talking point delivered with clarity. Every question answered thoughtfully.
And when she explained their protocols for handling conflicts of interest, I watched the chat shift from curiosity to respect.
RegularViewer: this is so professional
CozyFan22: she thought of EVERYTHING
HolidayVibes: other managers should take notes
I monitored chat continuously, ready to ban trolls, but the expected harassment never materialized. Yes, there were skeptical comments. Yes, there were a few omega-phobic remarks that I removed immediately.
But overwhelmingly? Support.
When Callie appeared in chat with her public endorsement, I watched the sentiment shift even further positive.
CalliesCrossed: Omega creator here - went public with my pack 6 months ago. Michelle is doing this PERFECTLY. Transparency wins. So proud of you!
Other omega creators followed. A coalition forming in real-time, publicly supporting Michelle's decision.
OmegaVlogger: Thank you for being brave enough to go first. This helps all of us.
LifestyleOmega: You're changing the conversation. Grateful.
PackContentPro: As a pack-bonded creator, THANK YOU for normalizing this.
When Ro stepped into frame to add his professional endorsement, I watched Lucas's subscriber count tick up. People weren't leaving, they were joining. Wanting to be part of this story.
And when Michelle answered the question about potentially losing clients with unwavering professionalism, I felt pride surge through the pack bond.
She wasn't backing down. Wasn't apologizing. Wasn't diminishing herself.
She was standing her ground and forcing the industry to meet her standards.
That was my omega.
The stream lasted fifty-three minutes. Every minute was perfect.
When we finally signed off, Michelle collapsed against Lucas, and I immediately checked my monitoring systems.
"Initial social media sentiment analysis is ninety-two percent positive," I reported. "Viewer retention was around ninety-eight percent. Chat engagement was the highest on record for the channel. Troll infiltration was minimal, handled quickly."
"Translation? We won," Ro said, setting down his camera.
"The ethics committee sent an email," I added, pulling it up. "They were watching."
Michelle's head snapped up, fear spiking through the bond.
I handed her my phone, and watched her read.
The relief that flooded through the bond made my chest tight.
"They closed the inquiry," she whispered. "They said we set a positive example."
Lucas let out a whoop and pulled her into his arms. Ro was smiling, actually smiling, which was rare. And I felt my own satisfaction settle deep.
We'd protected her. Not from physical threats, but from the kind of danger that could have destroyed everything she'd built.
We'd stood beside her while she fought.
And she'd won.
"Your phone's exploding," I observed as messages started flooding in.
Michelle looked at the screen, her eyes widening.
Client after client sent supportive messages, respect, and requests for continued partnership.
Industry colleagues sent congratulations, admiration, requests for advice.
Other omega managers sent gratitude for blazing the trail.
And then, predictably, Matthew Malone.
You got ahead of me. Well played. But this isn't over, Rodriguez.
I felt anger spike through the bond, not just mine, but the entire pack's.
"Forward that to me," I said. "I want documentation of his harassment."
"Dex—"
"If he tries anything else, we need a paper trail. Send it to me."
Michelle did, and I immediately backed it up to secure storage.
"Matthew Malone can try whatever he wants," I said. "We beat him once. We'll beat him again."
"Together," Ro added.
"As pack," Lucas finished.
Through the bond, I felt Michelle's exhaustion, her relief, her lingering fear, but also her hope.
She'd done it. We'd done it.
Janet appeared in the doorway with champagne. "I'm assuming from the emotions I'm sensing that it went well?"
"The ethics committee closed the inquiry," Michelle said, her voice slightly dazed. "The industry response so far is overwhelmingly positive. We... we actually pulled this off."
"Of course you did. Because you're brilliant and you had your pack beside you." Janet started pouring champagne into glasses Bill had brought. "To Michelle. Who changed the industry and protected her pack and refused to let fear win."
"To Michelle," we echoed, raising our glasses.
She looked at us, her pack, her family, all celebrating her courage, and I watched through the bond as her fear finally, fully transformed into something else.
Pride. In herself. In what she'd accomplished. In what we'd accomplished together.
"Thank you," she said quietly. "All of you. For standing with me. For believing this could work. For not letting me give up when I was scared."
"Always," I said simply.
Because that was pack. Standing together. Fighting together. Winning together.
And tonight, we'd won.
Two hours later, after celebration dinner and family chaos and approximately seven thousand text messages, I found Michelle on the back porch.
She was wrapped in the blanket I'd given her as a courting gift, looking out at the snow-dusted yard, her breath pluming in the cold air.
I joined her silently, and for a moment we just stood together.
"You should be inside celebrating," I finally said.
"I needed air. Space to process." She glanced at me. "How are you doing? I've been so focused on my own panic that I haven't checked on you."
"I'm fine."
"Dex. Really."
I considered the question. How was I?
"Proud," I admitted. "Of you. Of how you handled tonight. Of your courage." I paused. "And relieved. I knew you were capable, but watching you actually do it? Watching you stand your ground and refuse to back down? That was something else."
"I was terrified."
"I know. I felt it through the bond. But you did it anyway."
"Because I had you all beside me. Because I knew you were monitoring for threats, Ro was controlling the visual narrative, Lucas was supporting me on camera." She turned to face me fully. "Because I knew my pack had my back."
"Always."
She moved closer, and I wrapped my arms around her, pulling her against my chest. Through the bond, I felt her exhaustion, her relief, her love.
"Thank you," she murmured into my shirt. "For being my protector. Not just from physical threats, but from everything. For making me feel safe even when I was terrified. For believing I could do this when I didn't believe in myself."
"You've always been capable of this. You just needed to believe it."
"I'm starting to." She pulled back enough to look up at me. "Dex, I meant what I said in the stream. About our protocols, about Lucas's career coming first, about maintaining professional standards. I'm committed to doing this right."
"I know."
"But I'm also committed to us. To pack. To not sacrificing our bond to save my career." Her eyes were fierce. "If I have to choose, I choose pack. Every time. I need you to know that."
My chest tightened. "Michelle—"
"I mean it. Tonight was about proving we can have both. But if the industry forces my hand, if I have to choose between career and pack?" She held my gaze. "I choose you. All of you. Without hesitation."
Through the bond, I felt her absolute certainty.
"You won't have to choose," I said firmly. "Because we proved tonight that both can work. That transparency and professionalism and pack bonds can coexist. You changed the conversation, Michelle. You made it possible."
"We made it possible. Together."
"Together," I agreed.
She stretched up and kissed me, deeper than the brief kiss in the kitchen, full of gratitude and love and relief.
When we finally pulled apart, she was smiling.
"Come inside," I said. "Your family wants to celebrate more. Lucas is telling embarrassing stories about me. Ro is actually laughing. You should be there."
"In a minute. I just need one more moment of quiet before I go back to chaos."
So we stood together on the porch, my omega wrapped in my arms, the cold Oregon night around us and the warm house at our backs.
She'd fought today. Had been brave when she was terrified. Had stood her ground and changed the industry.
And tomorrow, we'd do it all again. Would keep proving that pack and profession could coexist. Would keep fighting against anyone who threatened what we'd built.
But tonight, we'd celebrate.
Because tonight, we'd won.
And I'd watched my omega become the trailblazer she'd never wanted to be, but was always meant to be.