Chapter 8
Kasey
The Alpha’s words echoed in my head long after he said them.
I’m taking you home.
Home. With him. Away from here.
My body stayed perfectly still, exactly the way it was supposed to be.
Outside, I probably looked calm. Composed. Trained.
But inside….
Inside everything scattered in every direction at once, slamming into each other so fast I couldn’t catch a single one. My chest tightened, my pulse thudding too hard, too loud, like it was trying to break free.
He couldn’t mean that. He couldn’t take me.
I didn’t know how to leave. I didn’t know anywhere else but here. Lockswell was – is – my home.
The idea of me leaving this place alive wasn’t something I had ever considered. Sure, it happened to a few Omegas, but it wasn’t in the cards for me.
I was bored. Nothing special to me.
Broken.
My mind tried to reach for rules, for commands, for something familiar to cling to. But there was nothing. No script. No protocol. No training for this.
My throat felt tight, but I didn’t make a sound. I didn’t dare move.
If I panicked outwardly, that would be wrong. It’d get a punishment.
If I questioned him, that would make me disobedient.
If I said the wrong thing, I’d get a cock shoved in my mouth in place of a gag.
So, I stayed quiet, even as my thoughts spiraled.
Why would he take me? What did he want from me? What was I supposed to do once we left?
A tremor ran through my fingers before I could stop it. I curled them into my palms, hiding the shake.
I didn’t understand what he was asking me. I didn’t understand why he wanted me to.
And the worst part, the part that made my stomach twist, was the fact that I wanted to leave this awful place.
I wanted to go. I wanted to go somewhere where there was no pain or rules or schedule.
But I knew that wasn’t something I’d ever get. I was here for the rest of my days.
Even if this Alpha, or any other, wanted to take me away, then they could. And then, I’d be theirs forever to be used however they saw fit.
“Let’s find you some clothes, or a blanket.” The Alpha stood, his hand disappearing from my knee. It left a cold chill on my skin, reminding me that I’m naked. Just like I had been with the very first Alpha to take what he wanted from my body without care in the world.
The moment the memory of that first Alpha surfaced, a shudder tore through me before I could stop it. He’d been…. anything but kind.
I remembered his voice. Sharp, cold and cut. I remembered the way every word felt like a blow. And the pain…there had been so much of it that I’m pretty sure I blacked out more than once.
No training to be the perfect Omega would be enough. Not when something so huge had been pushed into me without care. Not when I had a feeling that blood had trickled down my leg when he had finished with me.
I knew, despite how much I didn’t want any of it, I knew what was going to happen.
Yesterday’s clean out session was only the tip of the iceberg, a brief showing of what was to come.
But even then, I wasn’t able to handle the plastic tube and water filling me.
I wasn’t able to handle my insides being cleaned out.
I wasn’t able to see through the hazy marks across my back as tears felt unbidden.
Even thinking about him now made my stomach twist, my breath catch, my body wanting to fold in on itself the way it had been trained to do.
And it did.
I slid off the toilet, knees touching the cold tiled floor.
Omegas weren’t to sit there naked. I wasn’t to sit there with my own wants.
Omegas were to serve their Alpha, no matter how temporary they may be.
Omegas were to keep quiet, not making a single sound.
The rules flashed in my mind as though I was reading them from the booklet. The same booklet that each Omega was to memorize and keep in an assessable place at all times. The booklet I hated with every fiber of my being.
Each phrase, each rule, flickered through my mind like flashcards. I didn’t even know which one fits the situation. I didn’t know what he wanted from me. I didn’t know what I was supposed to want.
My throat tightened.
None of the scripts felt right. None of them matched the way he was treating me. None of them matched the word home.
But I didn’t have anything else.
So, I knelt there on the pure white tile, heart pounding, trying to choose the least wrong response, terrified I’d pick the wrong thing.
No matter what I did, I leaned towards the fact that it’d be the wrong choice.
Maybe I deserved more punishment. Maybe I was such a failure at being an Omega, and no Alpha could possibly want me.
I was nothing.
I was to be of service. Nothing more. Nothing less. Just…. a quiet Omega who would try their best to be perfect.
Even then, perfection wasn’t going to be good enough.
Tears slipped down my cheeks before I even realized I was crying.
The Alpha appeared in the doorway, his silhouette filling the frame, his shadow stretching long across the floor toward me.
My hands rested lightly on my thighs; fingers curled just enough to hide the tremble I couldn’t stop. My head stayed bowed, and my eyes fixed on the floor.
I could hear the Alpha. I could feel his presence. It pressed against the edges of my awareness.
“Clothes.” The word came out low, like he meant to say more but couldn’t force the rest out. ?
I lifted my eyes just in time to see him set the neatly folded pile on the sink. “Get dressed, sweetheart.”
An order.
My body moved before my mind caught up. I pushed myself to my feet, legs wobbling badly, I thought they may give out again. The Alpha stayed in the doorway, watching.
I reached for the white underwear first, slipping them on with slow, careful movement. Then the brown slacks. Then the dark blue polo shirt. The one with faint specks of dried blood on the collar.
I didn’t ask how it got there. I didn’t want to remember.
Thinking about it, I wasn’t even sure if I’d been wearing clothes when I came into the room. The memory blurred at the edges, slipping away every time I tried to grab ahold of it.
So, I didn’t try it. I just dressed like I was told, hoping my legs would hold. Hoping I wouldn’t mess up. Hoping he wouldn’t see how badly my hands were shaking.
Now what? I thought, standing there, barefooted and small. I felt ten times smaller than ever before as the Alpha’s gaze wandered over me.
Was I good enough for him now? Or was he finished with me, ready to hand me off, ready to choose someone else?
There were other Omegas. Better ones. Prettier ones. Ones who didn’t hesitate or freeze or question their purpose. They knew their roles. They knew how to behave without needing reminders. They didn’t falter the way I did.
“Follow me.” The Alpha turned, his steps slow and measured, and I fell into place behind him without thinking.
He led me out of the room, past the client check in desk, and then…outside.
I paused for half a second, instinct screaming about the rule Omega’s must wear shoes outdoors. Always. No expectations.
But if this Alpha wanted me barefoot, then that was what would happen.
The cement was warm, almost too warm, against the soles of my feet. It took me a few seconds to understand where we were going.
At first, I just followed the Alpha’s legs, two steps behind, eyes lowered, mind quieting itself the way it had been trained to. But as the path curved and the shadows shifted, something cold slid down my spine.
We were heading towards the main building. That was where the Alphas met with the owner of this place. Where were the decisions made? Where punishments were handed out if an Omega was more difficult than a handler wanted.
It's where Alpha Lockswell himself waited behind heavy doors and colder eyes.
My steps faulted for half a second, just enough for panic to spark in my chest. I forced myself back into rhythm, terrified he’d noticed, terrified he’d think I was disobeying.
Why were we going there? Did I do something wrong? Was he reporting to me?
My stomach twisted so hard I thought I might be sick.
The closer we got, the more the buildings seemed to loom. Tall and unforgiving. I could almost feel the weight of Alpha Lockswells' presence from outside, like the air itself grew heavier the nearer we came.
My feet kept moving. My body kept obeying. But inside, everything was shaking.
I stumbled over my own feet as we crossed the threshold, my balance slipping for a heartbeat before I caught myself.
The blast of cold air hit me full in the face, sharp enough to sting, but I welcomed it.
At least it cooled the heat of embarrassment burning under my skin, making it a little less obvious.
“Welcome, Alpha. How may I help you?”
As I was trained, I kept my eyes fixed on the porcelain white marble beneath my feet while the Alpha walked ahead of me. I followed the movement of his shoes, nothing else. When we approached the massive white desk that dominated the center of the room, I didn’t dare look up.
A Beta sat behind it, posture straight, expression cool like she held the authority over everyone who stepped into this place. And maybe she did. In buildings like this, even the air felt like it belonged to someone else.
“I need to speak to Alpha Lockswell. He should be expecting me about this Omega here.”
My stomach dropped further.
The name alone made my pulse spike, but I kept my head down, kept my breathing quiet, and kept every part of me still. Omegas weren’t supposed to react. Omegas weren’t supposed to draw attention. Omegas definitely weren’t supposed to be anywhere near the main building unless summoned.
The Beta’s gaze flickered towards me, just a quick glance, but sharp enough that I felt it like a pinprick along my spine. I fought the urge to shrink back.
“Of course, Sir. I’ll notify Alpha Lockswell that you’re here.”
I didn’t know why we were here. Omegas didn’t leave this place easily. Not unless they’d outlived their usefulness.