Chapter 4 #2
“Oh, little gremlin, I’ve missed you so.
” My voice shakes as I whisper in her ear.
I don’t want to let her go, but I do when I feel Kaitlin’s hands dig into my skin as we squish her between us.
“Sarah-” Her dead name slips out, and I silently reprimand myself.
I will have to avoid calling her by the name our parents chose in the future.
“Well, I guess you prefer to go by Omen now, don’t you? ”
Her cheeks flush with color as she nods.
“I like it. It suits you. Very dark and moody.” I wink, shifting slightly to get some of the weight off my lower back. Shepherd frowns, taking half a step toward me, but I ignore him. “Omen, this is my daughter Kaitlin. Little Bug, this is your Aunt Omen.”
Kait peeks up at Omen, eyes flickering briefly to me. I know she is confused because I’ve never mentioned my sister before, nor have my parents. One day soon, I will explain everything. She deserves to know why we left and the truth about how awful our family is.
“Hi Kaitlin, it’s nice to meet you,” Omen whispers lightly, grinning at her niece. My lips twitch into a small smile of my own. It feels good having her here. Knowing she can finally get to know my children and be part of our lives.
“I’m thrilled to see you here, away from that awful place, but why are you here?”
Glancing at Donovan, I release a heavy breath when he ushers us all into the living room.
Sitting sounds heavenly. “Your sister has been working undercover with the DAU since she was nineteen. She’s done well hiding her connection to our organization.
Her role has primarily been feeding us information about the Omegas and Alphas who present within the state and are reported to your father. ”
“That’s how you could get me out of the state so quickly.
” Omen sounds exhausted; her voice monotone as she looks at me.
With the dark circles beneath her eyes, I start to worry.
Is she not sleeping? I can’t imagine being an Omega forced into a safe house is easy.
They need nests, safe places to exist wrapped in their own scents.
Does she not have that here? Even temporarily?
Slipping Kaitlin onto the cushion beside me, I nod. “I reached out to my contact within the DAU, and they sent someone undercover nearby to pick you up. We knew it might blow their cover, but your safety was the priority. It still is.”
Shepherd scoffs from his spot standing behind Foster’s chair. “Your safety is a priority too.”
Fates, these two need to chill. The anger and possession in Shepherd’s tone are enough to send sparks of longing through my body, and I can sense how hard the distance between us is for Foster. His knee hasn’t stopped bouncing since we sat down. I honestly expected him to take the spot next to me.
Shifting away from both men, I try not to let my discomfort show.
That would only make their reaction worse.
Thankfully, Donovan cuts in, redirecting our conversation.
“We are preparing to move Hannah and her children to a much deeper safe house, separate from your location, Omen.” When my sister’s face falls, her lips pushing into a pout, he gives her a tight smile.
“I know this isn’t what you want to hear, but having you both in one location increases the risk of your being discovered. ”
The other Alpha in the room, a broad-shouldered, grumpy-looking blonde man, nudges Omen. “If we were to be discovered by your birth family, it’s better they only get eyes on one of you. Especially with children in the mix.”
I would do anything to protect my sister.
I have. For years. But if the choice is between protecting her and protecting my children?
The choice is obvious. Omen has the full weight of the DAU to protect her; my kids only have me.
I know she would agree with my choice, something that she immediately proves when she deflates.
“For tonight, they’re staying here. Hannah has the information we need about your father’s plans. But that can wait until the morning. It’s late, and this little sweetheart looks seconds away from passing out on the couch.”
Everyone glances at Kaitlin, who is barely awake, as she slumps against me.
This trip has been a lot for her. From the disrupted sleep schedule to meeting so many strangers, I imagine her tiny body is in overdrive, trying to make sense of things.
As much as I wish I could promise her a break soon, I don’t know how long we will have to be in a DAU safe house.
Omen leads Foster and me upstairs, the latter scowling and refusing to allow me to carry Kaitlin despite her being half-asleep.
He sweeps her into his arms instead, whispering reassurances when she realizes it isn’t me holding her.
My heart aches when she settles easily, falling right back to sleep against his chest. If I weren’t already pregnant, seeing how these men treat my daughter would make my ovaries weep.
The bedroom we’re given for the night is plain and bare-bones, a lot like Kaitlin’s room at our house in Whitlan. I hate it, but it is only temporary. Tucking her into bed, I kiss her tiny cheek. My precious girl is so strong. She’s been through so much in her short life. Too much.
Brushing my regret aside, I slip back into the hallway where Foster and Omen wait. We hurry into the next room, which I assume is my sister’s, given the pile of blankets on the bed. Crowding into the room, I can’t help but study Omen. Noting how awful she looks.
When Foster bluntly mentions it, I almost elbow him.
Just because she looks like a hot mess doesn’t mean we can tell her she is a hot mess!
When she shrugs but doesn’t refute Foster’s statement, I start to worry. Fates, please don’t let me have stayed in New Hampshire to protect her, only for me to lose her when I finally escape. “Are you… sick?”
“It’s a long story…” Omen glances down at her feet. Whatever is going on clearly makes her uncomfortable.
“We have time,” Foster tells her. “So spill. I’ll get Shepherd up here if I have to.”
We both turn in alarm. I would laugh if I weren’t thirty seconds away from crawling out of my skin.
I spent almost the whole day trapped in a car with these two.
I do not need that sexy Alpha stomping up here and going all growly and protective over my sister.
Whatever fight I am managing against the pull between us will not survive!
Thankfully, Omen must not want him to make an appearance either, because she quickly blurts out an explanation that leaves me reeling.
“I met a pack. My Fate-matched pack. Only they didn’t know that because I didn’t tell them.
I couldn’t tell them because then I’d have to tell them who I am.
About our family. We still got close since I was working with them.
I was actually going to confess everything, but then I got drugged at one of their concerts and spent a week in heat, alone.
My best friend Bea had to be the one to tell them who I am, which would have been whatever except one of my Alphas had a sister who was Fate-matched to Ben, and he hates our family because the rejection killed her.
So now they want nothing to do with me.”
It takes several long seconds before either Foster or I can speak. That is a lot of information to sort through, and there are obviously a lot of details missing.
“They rejected you?” Foster shouts, his expression morphing to outrage.
“Hush,” I remind him, pointing to the thin walls. As angering as this news is, I don’t want our out-of-control emotions to wake Kaitlin. He gives me an apologetic glance before turning back to Omen.
“They didn’t technically reject me. Not with words. But my body is reacting as if they did. It’s called a chemical rejection. My brain basically tricked itself into believing I’ve been rejected.”
“That’s… confusing. And honestly, even if they didn’t say the words, their actions spoke loudly enough.
Who is this pack again? You mentioned a concert?
” If this room weren’t so small, I would be pacing to release some of the anger burning inside of me.
Some pack of jerks rejected my sister? All because she was born a Montgomery?
Like she had a choice about what family she was born into?
“It doesn’t matter. They made their choice, and now we all have to live with it. I’ll be fine; I just need time to work through the messed-up brain chemicals.”
Part of me doesn’t believe it will be as simple as she makes it sound, but there is a hopefulness in her eyes that keeps my mouth shut. If she’s been rejected, I don’t want to risk fraying her tether to the future.
“We can talk more tomorrow,” she promises, ushering us out into the hall when I yawn.
Pausing at the door to my room, I pull her into a tight hug.
Without words, I try to convey how happy I am to see her.
Only when things feel awkward, do I pull away.
With a whispered ‘good night,’ I slip into the room and carefully climb onto the bed, tucking Kaitlin against my side.
Exhaustion has my eyes slipping shut before worry can send my brain into overdrive.