Eleven – Vail
The next morning, Omega House was vibrating with a frantic energy. It didn’t take much to work out it was because of the dinner dance that night, since all anyone could talk about was their dress and shoes, and which alpha they hoped would ask them to dance. Nadia and Jasmine were a little more low-key, since they were obviously concerned about where my head was at, but by the time we’d finished breakfast they’d morphed into a pair of omegazillas.
“You have to come, Vail!”
My plans to stop fighting the way things were had dissolved in the night. I could not face Jasper across a crowded dance floor and pretend like nothing was wrong. “I don’t have a dress. Or shoes.”
Jasmine made a rude sound as we headed across campus towards our morning classes. “Oh, please! Both completely fixable.”
I kept ticking the obstacles off on my fingers, toasty warm in a pair of crimson gloves I’d found in the dresser. “Zero table manners. Two left feet. The reason the Arras pack lost their last alpha.” I gave them both a cool look. “I’m not going.”
Nadia just shook her head at me. “This is one battle you won’t win, Vail. Can’t you just come along with us and try to have a good time?”
I stopped abruptly and really looked at the two girls. They were both pale, with dark circles under their eyes, and I suddenly felt like the biggest asshole in the world. They’d only been nice to me, even though I’d screwed with their alpha, and dragged them into endless drama. And now I was ruining what was obviously an important night for them. “Shit. I’m sorry. I don’t mean to be a drag.” I sighed and studied the building in front of us. I had to stop worrying that Jasper was going to appear around the next corner. Avoiding him was never going to work on a campus this size. So maybe it was best to rip the plaster off and see him tonight. He would be with his lieutenants, no doubt busy with pack duties, and looking as beautiful and remote as the moon. He’d probably completely ignore me, and my stupid heart would finally get the memo .
“Okay,” I said quietly. “But I’m not dancing.”
Jasmine squealed, while Nadia patted my arm. “Of course not. Who wants to dance at a dinner dance? Now, about your dress…”
I had a new schedule to go with my new omega status. I wasn’t sure how my previous month of grades would be tallied with this revised program of classes, but I was in no hurry to go back to the Councilor’s Office to find out. It was one of the few advantages of the academy – the academic excellence expected in other high schools didn’t really exist here. As long as you completed the courses that went with your rank, the teachers left you alone. Of course, I would have preferred a schedule packed with AP classes over scrapbooking and the culinary arts, but I’d decided not to fight the system, right?
“Cheer class?” I stared at Nadia in horror. It was bad enough the gym was the setting of my downfall on Hunter Moon, but now they expected me to leap around with pom-poms? “Have you any idea the damage I could do to a pyramid of omegas? Did you not hear me this morning? I wasn’t kidding when I said I had two left feet!”
“You’re overreacting,” Nadia told me as she slipped into her cheer outfit with the grace of an Olympic gymnast. “You’re obviously athletic. You’ll do fine.”
I pumped my bicep and pushed it in her face. “These are wrestling muscles. Not toss-me-in-the-air-so-I-can-flash-my-panties muscles.”
The locker room was busy with pre-practice primping and Nadia gave the other omegas a placid smile. But when she turned back to me, there was a bit of steel in her eyes. “Vail, this is a compulsory class for omegas. And it’s fun. If you don’t want to flash your panties, we’ll keep you at the bottom of the pyramid. How does that sound?”
I rolled my eyes at her. “Fine. But I’m not wearing the skirt.”
“Sweats will be fine for today, but you’ll have to wear the uniform when we’re performing.” She must have seen how fast the blood drained from my face, because she gave me another of her pats. “Just think. Cheer will help you with your rhythm and flexibility, which will let you enjoy all the future dinner dances a whole lot more. It’s a win-win.”
“That’s not the definition of a win-win, Nadia,” I told her through my teeth, but retreated into a cubicle to change into the sweats.
It was still the most painful hour of my life, but when we finished with the individual stretches and got into the group routines, I had to admire the other dancers. There were three guys in the group, and although there were sideways looks when I told them I’d be joining them on the bottom row, they didn’t complain. Ah, the beauty of omegas. Even the males didn’t bother with back-chat.
And the girls were good. In fact, they were sensational. Maybe it was their shifter blood. Or maybe they just practiced really hard. Watching them was no hardship at all, and a little part of me was wistful. Would I have grown up to be as cute and pretty as these girls if I’d been born into a shifter pack? It was stupid to obsess over what-ifs, but the more I learned about their world, the more I had to wonder why I’d been taken from it.
“Concentrate, Marrow. And lock your elbows.” I snapped back to attention, giving the gym teacher an apologetic glance. The girl I was balancing weighed less than a duffel bag, so it was easy to forget she was up there. But I had already lost Ms. Costa’s respect once before, and didn’t want to screw up again. I performed the rest of the routine without missing a beat, and she came over to pat my back at the end of the class. “Can you hang back a moment, Marrow?”
“Sure.” I waved to the other girls, who headed to the locker room to change. Ms. Costa finished writing notes on her clipboard, then waved me over to the bleachers. I took a seat, wondering what had put the tense look on her face. She blew out a breath as she sat beside me, her forearms propped on her knees. “I just wanted to say I was sorry about what happened after the musk test. Getting sent off to the pack labs was completely out of line. And I want to assure you, it wasn’t on my recommendation.”
I tried to suppress the shiver that arose every time I thought about the pack lab. Doctor Klein and his fucked-up dentist chair had been a fixture of my nightmares ever since. “Thanks. I’m not sure who did, but the other girls told me it wasn’t your style.”
She sighed. “You’ve not had the easiest introduction to life here. But there’s a lot about being a shifter that’s great. Your natural athleticism for one.”
I gave her a small smile. “I was wondering about that. The omegas are all so talented. Is that their shifter blood?”
“To a point, but they also drive themselves pretty hard. Being a low-rank in the pack means you want to shine where you can.” Her gaze grew thoughtful. “They really classified you an omega?”
I stiffened. “Yes. At the lab.”
“I’m not questioning it. Ranks come in all shapes and temperaments. It’s just that the Costas are distantly related to the Wests, and there have never been a lot of omegas in our family.”
I blinked at her. “We’re related?”
“Shifters are an in-bred bunch,” she smirked, “so we’re all related in some way. But yeah, we’re probably third cousins. Or maybe I’m your great aunt twice removed. Family trees aren’t really my forte.”
I searched her face, not sure I believed her. She had no reason to lie, but I’d been fooled too many times. “Really? It’s just… I’ve never had much family.” I felt a twinge of guilt about the Chances, but pushed it aside. They’d been the first to distance themselves, and I was over feeling like a packless nobody. “I mean, I just saw my real birth certificate, so I’m still trying to take it all in.”
“Fair enough. I don’t know a lot about your parents, but I’ll give my grandma a call. She’s ancient. And an old gossip. She probably has some info on your dad.”
I gulped. Part of me was overwhelmed by her kindness, but I was also uneasy about learning more about my history. It felt like as soon as I latched onto someone, they were torn away. Or told me the bond between us had never really existed. But I hated feeling rootless, too. Maybe the gym teacher sensed my conflicted emotions, because she patted my shoulder and gave me a friendly smile. “Take your time with all of it. We’re pack now. And you know what they say about family. Can’t live with ‘em, can’t drive ‘em out of town.”
I was still in a daze as I headed into the locker room to change. Everyone else had gone to their next class, leaving behind a haze of shower steam and body spray. As I rounded the bank of lockers, I was distracted by the sight of my backpack, upside down and sitting in a puddle of water. And that was my only excuse for letting Pearl and her pack of bitches encircle me. A rough hand hit me between the shoulder blades, but I caught myself on the edge of a bench and turned towards my assailant. Pink Tips, the worst of Pearl’s minions, flashed me a nasty grin. “On your knees, Omega.”
I glanced behind me, taking them all in. Pearl was watching me with a vicious glint in her eye, her arms folded over the front of her Arras blazer. Dana, the freshman from the Hunter Moon Formal was at her side, and although she was trying for a similar relaxed pose, I thought there might have been a vague quiver to her chin. But the other three girls who filled out the circle were cold-eyed, staring back at me with palatable dislike. That jittery feeling under my skin was back, but I squared my shoulders and affected a bored look. “ Really? Hazing in the locker room? Could you get more cliché?”
Pearl’s lip curled up. “You don’t deserve anything more creative, Void.” As if on a silent command, the circle tightened, and my heart slammed against my ribs. This was about to get very nasty.
Before they could make their move, I leaped up onto the bench, kicking out at the nearest girl. I nailed her in the arm and she cried out, but as I tried to jump through the gap I’d made, another girl grabbed me around the hips. I grimaced as I realized it was Pink Tips, but she just sneered and tossed me against the lockers. I was no lightweight, which meant she was strong . Shifter strong, but also muscular under her sleek appearance. Or just harboring a whole lot of spite. When I tried to get up off my knees, she grabbed my head and slammed it against the locker door.
I saw stars. Pain also bloomed in my neck. I’d taken that hit fighting the Black Denners, and now I’d wrenched it again. My whole spine throbbed and nausea crawled up the back of my throat, but I swallowed it down. As much as I wanted to puke on these bitches, it might have made me pass out. And that would just be an invitation for them to go to town on my limp ass.
Not that Pearl looked like she was going to hold back. As the other girls crowded around and held me down on my knees, the Arras alpha took a Sharpie from her pocket and thumbed off the lid. The glee was rolling off her as she stepped forward and began to write on my forehead. I tried to bite her hand, but one of the girls cuffed me hard against the side of my head.
I slumped onto the floor. Pearl stood over me and shook her head. “You’re like a runt that won’t curl up and die. But maybe now you’ll get the message.” She tossed the pen in my lap. “Leave this school, or I’ll send every student a copy of the picture I took of you panting for it under the Wolf Fire. Believe me, if they don’t see you for the desperate dud you are now, they will then.”
I waited until they’d all filed out before dragging myself over to the mirror. I’d expected a nasty message, but maybe not this nasty. Because she’d written Warning: Wolf Fire Whore across my forehead in bold black strokes.