11. Zoe
Zoe
My stomach is so twisted in knots about seeing Dominic tonight that I can’t eat. I’m watching Warren chew on some rice dish, chatting with Viv and Cliff, when I stand up, my plate untouched.
“I’m going to head over to the library early. I have other studying to do.”
I don’t wait for a response, clearing my plate and heading upstairs. I’ve got time to read more about the Gods before my first study group with Dominic. Maybe that will keep my mind off the fact that I'll have to see him again soon.
I find the corner I was in last week, sliding to the floor once I have Fate of the Fire in my hands again. I know I should be researching the Gods that are still Blessing people, especially Kashmyre, since he’s Dominic’s patron, but I am drawn to Ilota’s book.
And it has nothing to do with the fact that I think I felt something when I touched the garnet.
I’ve barely finished scanning the table of contents when the book is ripped from my hands, startling me so badly I squeak.
“How did I know I’d find you hiding in here like a scared little bunny?” The pet name should make Dominic’s words sound seductive, but instead, it’s got a cruel lilt to it. “What are you doing in a Beta class?”
“I’m a Beta,” I say through gritted teeth. “I’ve told you that.”
I attempt to grab my book out of his hands, and he holds it away from me. “And I’ve told you that isn’t true. I don't like being lied to. I don't know how you've fooled them, but I'm going to find out. And unless you come clean, you won't like what happens when I do."
“I haven’t fooled anyone. I’m not an Omega.
How could I get away with hiding something like that?
" Why is this so important to him? Why won't he let this go? "Do you think I’m the first Omega ever that didn’t shift when touching the stone? How would I conceal the fact that I was Blessed with the rarest designation?”
“I don’t know.” He squats in front of me, bringing our eyes to the same level. His hair is slicked back today, the pomade giving him a woody, masculine scent, and up close, I can see that his canine teeth are slightly larger than normal and pointed at the tips.
It’s like his beast is right beneath the surface, ready to break through.
“But I'm not going to let you get away with it. Do you think you’re better than the Blessed, Zoe Ansell? That you’re too good to be an Omega?"
It’s impossible for me not to roll my eyes. “I don’t think I’m better than the Blessed, but there is not a plane of existence where I want to be a coddled Omega.”
“Bullshit. Everyone wants to be Blessed until they are. Now you’re realizing that it’s not everything they said it would be, and you’re trying to hide it?
It won’t work, Zoe. Sooner or later, everyone is going to know what you are.
How do you think you'll be punished when the truth comes out?
There is a reason they don't allow Omegas to fraternize with the regular population.
" He leans forward, lips so close to my ear that I shudder.
"It sure would be a shame if your pheromones caused me to lose control of my beast."
He’s got me cornered against the wall. I don't want to touch him, but I can’t get up without pushing him away, and he’s significantly larger than me. Plus, he has his beast on his side.
I'm stuck here at his whim, and I have never felt so vulnerable in my life.
This is why the Menagerie Management class exists. If I knew how to calm an Alpha, I could maybe get him relaxed enough to let me slip past. Instead, I’m stuck in his heavy gaze.
“I don’t know how many times I have to tell you.
I’m not an Omega, Dominic. You can believe what you want, but there is no beast inside me.
I didn’t shift when I touched the stones.
Hell, my period is due in two weeks. Do you want me to bring you bloody panties to prove to you that I’m a Beta?
Is that what it will take to finally convince you that I’m not lying about this? ”
A rumbling sound low in his chest has me squishing myself as flat against the wall as possible, but it still isn't enough space between us. “Why would I need you to bring me your panties when I can just take them and blame it on a rut? When you go into heat, bunny, you won’t be able to hide it anymore, because you’ll be at my door, begging for me.
” He grabs my chin, and my entire body shudders.
I’m unable to take my eyes off of him, but I can't tell if it's fear or something else pinning me in place.
“And since I don't fuck liars, I’ll turn you away. You can take your chances with whatever Alpha finds you first.”
He drops me as quickly as he grabbed me and walks away, leaving my chest heaving and head spinning.
Dominic didn’t look at me during the entire study group.
We spent the hour mapping out how he would be involved in each section of the course.
Next week, we’ll start learning how to determine which God Blessed an Alpha without asking them.
He says that the way we approach Alphas in need of soothing differs between them, so knowing that will give us a starting point when approaching a feral or rutting Alpha.
When we’re done and walking back, Warren shakes his head. “I can’t believe he’s the one who chased you down in the woods. He seems so normal.”
I exhale so sharply I snort unattractively. “He’s not. Something is wrong with him. Maybe it’s his beast or something, but he’s dangerous. Don’t you feel it?”
Warren hums before he shrugs. “Not really, no. He just seems like an Alpha.”
What would be the harm in telling Warren the truth about my interactions with Dominic? He’d believe me when I say I'm not an Omega. It’s not like he’d turn me in to go through the ceremony again. He was there. He saw me.
“He thinks I’m an Omega.” I feel lighter as soon as the words rush out of me. “He’s convinced that I’m pretending to be a Beta, and that’s why he chased me in the woods. He said it again when he cornered me in the library before the study session.”
“He cornered you? Why?"
"To berate me for lying about being a Beta. He's acting like it's a personal insult that I won't admit to being an Omega."
"But you’re not an Omega.” Warren sounds more sure of it than I am. “I watched your ceremony. You didn’t shift.”
“That’s what I told him!”
“So he’s hot, dumb, and he shifted into his sabertooth form and chased you in the woods because he’s convinced you’re an Omega?
” My best friend grabs my hand, pulling it to his chest. “We should request a new Alpha Aide. I don’t want you to have to be around him.
There’s clearly something wrong with him, and I'm worried he'll target you.”
I want to agree with him. It makes the most sense, and my affection for Warren blooms in my chest that he's so worried about me.
I don’t want to spend any time more time around Dominic, either, but I don’t want to tell the professor that. She'd ask why, and I'd have nothing to say.
My gut tells me that I need to keep the number of people who know about this as low as possible. The less doubt planted in their heads, the better. If the voice isn't a hallucination, there is a reason why I wasn't forced to shift in front of everyone.
The voice wasn't real.
It didn't tell me to grab my robe.
Or call me an Omega.
And it certainly never told me to tell no one about it.
That was all in my head. My stressed-out mind was playing tricks on me.
Right?
The more I try to convince myself, the farther away I get from succeeding.
I messed up by telling Warren if the voice was anything other than my subconscious.
Which it wasn't.
So I'm fine.
“No, we don’t need a switch. Just don’t leave me alone with him. He's unstable, and I'm afraid to think of what he might do to me to convince me I am an Omega."
Warren wraps his arm around my waist and pulls me against his side. I breathe a sigh of relief as I sink into his familiar hold.
“I’ll always protect you, Zoe. We have moved on from knee scrapes to delusional Alphas, but it stays the same, okay? You can rely on me.”
And I know I can, because Warren has never lied to me before.