Chapter 17
JUDGE
My fingers curl with an incessant need to grip a throat so tightly I can feel the air leaving a body.
Challenging my fucking authority like that, placing Diana in a situation that makes her seem available. And then Colt looking at my omega like that? The rationality of my mind knows that he has no idea, but I don’t care. It’s all wrong.
It’s all fucking wrong.
And I can’t let it show. Not here. Not now. Too many loose ends in Dominion for me to flash teeth over an omega. Every look, every order is another set of eyes on me. Diana needs to be hidden without appearing hidden.
I stalk toward Ravina, the cunt who thinks that just because the Witch Doctor is involved, she has any authority over me. When I’m on her, she presents with that dim-witted smile that is more fucking creepy than anything else. “Why was Diana here?” I ask.
“The omegas are mine to dictate,” she quips, like she’s not even concerned. “That’s the arrangement. You still want your security from the Witch Doctor, correct?”
I gnash my teeth together, even snarling like I want to bite her head off. “You are given an unusual amount of control over Dominion’s omegas in exchange for a deal that I made,” I correct. “But there are always exceptions, and Diana is one.”
She raises a brow, those eyes of hers hungry for information. She’s so unlike the brotherhood we have at Dominion. Ravina has no idea how much her safety means nothing to me once Titan is dealt with.
“And why is she an exception?”
Whatever expression I give her must be terrifying because the cocky cunt looks down immediately. She’s always pushing the boundaries, and with Diana here, my patience is nonexistent. “Sorry, sir. What would you prefer for me to do with Diana?”
“She stays with the scraps, and any time she leaves, it must be approved by me. Absolutely no alpha is to go near her that’s unmated. Mated ones are only to be near her for emergencies related to protection.”
It’s a miracle she keeps her fucking mouth shut when she presses her lips tightly together, nodding deeply.
The energy of the bonfire shifts to excitement, and I glance over to see a cake brought out, decorated with little gears and a small motorcycle on top, placed before the omega and alpha who are expecting.
When a few glance my way, no doubt curious why I confronted the new scrap and why Ravina is being scolded, I look away, glaring at Ravina one more time before removing myself from her.
I know I seem out of the ordinary, which means I must get my shit together. Leaning against a wall, my thoughts are blazing. At this rate, I might as well leave and blame my absence on worrying about the upcoming winter.
Keeping Diana as a scrap makes her appear as if I’m using her as a road doll, and I haven’t corrected any of those rumors because the situation itself is odd—around here, you don’t fuck an omega unless you want to bite her neck.
You don’t have to do both at once, but the intention has to be there.
Without suppressants, it’s a recipe for disaster.
And we ban those to be freely used because it’s necessary to ensure an omega truly feels safe with the alpha she’s paired to, and any chemicals have the potential to cloud that judgment.
So, if people find out I’m not just fucking her, but actively tending to her… well, there goes her safety.
And what the fuck is Diana doing looking at other alphas?
The thought is beyond enraging, a side of me burning with a life I have never experienced.
I need to tell her she’s my scent match, and I’m hers, whether she likes it or not.
Tell her that my scent match has always been the exception to taking on a mate, and I just need her compliance until this is all figured out.
Beast enters the space, one of the few alphas whose scent doesn’t bother me.
Probably because we share similar backgrounds, both being echoes.
Wouldn’t shock me if we’re related in some manner.
The omega named Mira immediately moves to hide.
Beast is not subtle in keeping his eyes on her; no other alpha is willing to go near her just because of his brutality alone.
He’s one of our top enforcers and carries the same weight as I do.
I breathe in slowly, trying to calm my body.
Compartmentalization is the only way anyone survives in this world. I know there’s a weakness in our internal walls, but that’s not important right now.
I’m in charge here because these men and women have given me their trust. This fear of Diana being found out is what’s undoing me.
I know what to do.
I always do.
I’ll give Diana her space, then I’ll do what needs to be done.