Chapter 27
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Halley
The Alphas eventually follow us down the hill, their boots thudding against the dirt track as they effortlessly overtake us.
Knox takes the lead and storms ahead. Blaze walks to the beat of his own drum, randomly darting off into the undergrowth like an excited puppy, emerging with a victorious shout and waving a stick above his head.
“Behold! The perfect walking stick!” And proceeds to use it as a bo-staff, swinging it around with intimidating skill. The gnarled stick is far too big and heavy for anyone other than an Alpha to hold, let alone to wield it like a weapon.
He makes childish whooshing sounds with each swipe of the stick, battling an unseen force with outrageous moves.
I laugh, looking beside me to share the absurd moment with Shade.
My boots slip on a loose rock.
It’s not the Beta walking beside me anymore, but Viper. Shade has silently slipped away, catching up with Knox with a serious expression on his handsome, clean-shaven face.
The silent lieutenant steadies me with a grip on my elbow. We both stiffen as his touch fizzles with energy.
So that’s still a thing.
He walks at my pace, despite his naturally longer strides. He isn’t acknowledging my presence, but neither is he leaving my side. It’s as if his instincts are telling him to protect me, but his brain wants to keep his distance.
I vaguely remember, in my state of exhaustion, pleading with him to look after me.
Apparently, my request doesn’t have an expiration date.
Knox isn’t as accommodating. He waits with impatience for me to catch up before disappearing around a bend or making a turn.
“Where are we going?” I eventually ask.
The sun is high in the sky, the mid-morning heat sapping my flagging energy.
“Nowhere,” Viper grunts, sounding barely out of breath, almost like he’s on a pleasant stroll.
Me? I’m gasping for each lungful.
We stopped going downhill an hour ago, and have been traversing rolling hills since.
The forest has thinned and the terrain is less hazardous.
The green layer of moss melts away, and the ever-present mountain moisture leaves the air.
It’s hotter. The dry humidity causes beads of sweat to roll down my back.
The backpack feels heavier, and the straps dig into my shoulders with each step.
I blink the sweat out of my eyes and fix Viper with a glare. “That’s not helpful.”
“Not trying to be.”
That’s a lie. He’s being very helpful, bracing me whenever I stumble and pushing a canteen of water into my hands often.
I watch him out of the corner of my eye and flush when I realize he’s doing the same.
I huff and try a different tactic. “Do you know if we’ll be going back to camp soon?”
“Depends.”
“On what?”
“You.”
I slow my steps, frowning at the upcoming hill. We’re walking over a small stream snaking between two inclines, and I have the urge to throw my pack to the ground and dive into the cool water.
“What do you mean?” I finally ask, frustration leaking into my tone.
He clears his throat and looks around like he’s trying to find someone to pass the question off to. It’s almost comical. The others are too far ahead, but I swear I can hear Blaze snickering at Viper’s discomfort.
He opens and closes his mouth as he searches for the right words.
“We’ll stop when you start purring,” he blurts, the words tumbling over each other in his rush to get them out.
I stare up at him. The apples of his cheeks peeking above his beard are red, but it’s not from exertion. He’s blushing.
“And why do you think I’ll purr?”
“Because you did yesterday… and that day in the hospital.” He’s not meeting my eyes, and I find myself feeling a shred of power in this situation. He’s entirely out of his depths. Me too, but I’m not about to surrender my first taste of an upper hand.
“Well, I refuse to do it,” I scowl and charge onwards with renewed determination.
I’ve taken three steps when a firm hand grasps my biceps gently.
The sparks skitter across my skin. Every time we touch, no matter how innocent, it feels like magic.
I hold still.
“I don’t think you can help it, Omega,” he says, his voice low. The presence of his giant body behind me makes my gland ache. His size and dominance has my hindbrain pushing my Omega nature to the fore.
I huff and tilt my head back so he can see the frown on my face. “What do you mean?”
I watch him in profile as he glances up the hill, at where Knox and Shade are. The others have stopped in their tracks, their posture stiff as they wait.
“Shade did some research about this sort of thing,” he mutters, almost as though he’s embarrassed about the fact. “And we think it’s the same response Omegas get when they’re overstimulated, overwhelmed, during their… er…”
He rubs the back of his neck, scrunching up his nose as he fights to finish his sentence.
“…heat?” I provide, taking mercy on him.
“Yeah.”
I pause and glance at the others down the path. They can hear our conversation loud and clear, so I nod at them. “I agree.”
“You do?”
“Yeah, it makes sense. Biologically, it’s a way of encouraging an Alpha to take care of an Omega when she’s vulnerable.”
“Yeah.” Viper swallows and takes a deep breath before saying in a rush, “I feel it. It’s instinct, like you’re calling to me. I can’t help but want to care for you. Treat you like a queen. Satisfy any desire you have.”
My eyelids flutter, and a breathy “oh” slips from my mouth.
Viper is a quiet person, brooding even, so it’s a shock to hear his raw voice spewing out his deepest desire, almost like he can’t help himself.
He turns away from me and starts walking towards the others, hands raking through his hair and tugging at the dark locks.
“Come on,” he calls back to me, and I scamper behind him.
We catch up to the waiting team, and I smile wanly at the others. “So, you’re trying to tire me out, huh?”
“Doing our best, baby girl,” Shade smiles, like he’s proud of me for discovering their plan. My eyebrow twitches at the nickname. “We gotta figure out what triggers it and how to stop you from slipping under, or at least bring you out of it fast.”
I hum and nod, my eyes darting over to Knox. He’s studying me intently.
Frustration rises and settles in my chest. It rankles me that they’ve been secretive, keeping me out of the discussion and plans. I get they’re used to following orders without knowing the finer details, but this feels unfair.
“You feeling close to slippin’, Omega Sparks?” Knox asks with a raised brow, almost like he can see my simmering anger and is waiting for me to lash out. I bet he can’t wait to put me in my place again.
I shake my head and cross my arms over my chest. I’m tired and there’s a blister threatening to form on my right heel, but I don’t feel the vulnerability from yesterday looming.
“Alright then, let’s kick it up a notch.”
In my opinion, they kick it up five notches.
Viper doesn’t keep pace with me. Instead, he walks behind me and pushes me to move faster than is comfortable.
So much for my caring giant.
It’s hard, sweaty work and I constantly adjust my pack, roll my neck, and shift my sore feet in my boots. We don’t stop for lunch, and they only let me drink enough to stay hydrated, but still, the brain fog doesn’t roll in.
By mid-afternoon, and after hours of walking in what feels like circles, Shade brings us to a halt.
He takes careful measurements of my health status.
His fingers hold my wrist while he looks at his watch, calculating my pulse rate.
He checks my eyes, commenting that they appear their normal ‘pretty purple.’
I’m so tired that I can’t even appreciate the compliment.
“We’re not getting anywhere with this,” Knox grunts, frustration evident in his voice.
I feel the need to apologize, but swallow it down. I don’t have anything to apologize for.
The three Alphas and one Beta surround me and stare, as though I have the answer. I lower my eyes, my chest heaving as I catch my breath. At some point, we’d spun around and begun walking uphill again. The muscles in my ass are burning from the uphill slog.
“We’re getting plenty of data,” Shade disagrees, gesturing with his tablet.
“Anything useful?”
Shade drops the tablet to his side with a sigh. “Nothing conclusive.”
“So, what’s different from yesterday?” Knox asks, his brow furrowed as he gazes off into the distance. “Omega Sparks? Gonna give us a clue?”
I flinch. I didn’t expect him to bring me into the conversation so abruptly, and I squirm under his red gaze. It’s such a harsh color, and on anyone else, I’d say it’d make them look demonic. On Knox, it only adds to his striking good looks.
I clear my throat and glance down the steep hill.
“Well, I guess, yesterday I felt pressure from… you.” I shrug, uncomfortable under their full attention.
They exchange a look before Blaze speaks up, “What’cha mean, Sparkles?”
I tilt my head and fight against my shyness. “You were all… there.”
“We’re here now.” Knox exhales in exasperation, those thick eyebrows bunching further. If he frowns any harder, his face might flip in on itself.
I lick my lips. “No, I mean, yesterday, you were applying pressure and pushing me to work harder. I wanted to please you and I felt…”
Blaze is the first to clue into what I’m poorly communicating. His scarred face lights up with amusement. “Sparkles, were you turned on?”
I look at my boots and nod.
Shade immediately begins tapping at his tablet and Knox huffs. “You were training. It wasn’t the time or place for feelings. Sit-ups do it for you, Omega Sparks?”
Frack, he’s such an ass.
“No,” I spit, glaring up at him from under my lashes. “I’m trying to say that it wasn’t just the exertion that pushed me off the edge. I felt close to you all, like I was part of the squad.”
He clucks his tongue and rolls his eyes.
My anger rises fast and hot. I unclip my backpack and it thuds heavily onto the ground, the sound echoing through the silence.
I poke his chest in accusation. “I can’t help how my body reacts!”
“And how would you quantify this element?” Shade asks clinically, his focus on his tablet and his stupid data. He doesn’t even look at me while in full science mode.
I turn my irritation to him.
“I’m right here, Shade. Can you talk to me like I’m a person, not an experiment?”
He looks up at me, blinking, and his mouth drops open.
I raise an eyebrow at him, and he lowers the tablet with an apologetic grimace.
Blaze has slipped in beside me, his face close to mine as he studies my face like it holds clues he can uncover. “And you’re not turned on now?”
I shove his chest and push him back. He lets me, but continues his inspection from afar. “No, Blaze. I’m annoyed.”
“And yesterday, you weren’t annoyed?”
I throw my hands up in exasperation. Apparently, I need to spell this out to them. For super soldiers with supposedly enhanced senses and interrogation skills, they really suck at reading me.
“Yesterday, Viper, and Blaze were touching me all morning, helping me through the obstacle course and looking out for me. Caring for me. Then Knox and Shade gave me their undivided attention. You pushed me to the limit, ordered me around, and encouraged me. You made me submissive and praised me for it.”
I wait for them to make the connection. They don’t, and I sigh.
“My Omega got confused. She saw you as her mates.”
It’s as if I’ve slapped them.
Viper coughs and turns away, a hand scrubbing over his dark hair.
Shade taps his lips in thought and addresses me. “What you’re saying is, the circumstances emulated a scenario in which you were in the midst of a physically exhausting heat cycle with a pack tending to your needs.”
I nod, my anger deflating as quickly as it rose.
I rub at my chest, relieving the sudden hollow feeling in my chest. Agreeing with his assessment feels hollow. I’ve never spent a heat with an Alpha, so I wouldn’t know. Reality of my loneliness is on full display and makes me want to curl into a ball.
Knox inhales and exhales, his nostrils flaring. The frown eases, and the deep scar puckered across the bridge of his nose relaxes back into his features. He turns to Shade and they begin a rapid, low discussion in the background.
“I smell sadness. Halley? Why are you upset?” Blaze asks from my side, and I blink up at him with watering eyes.
My first instinct is to tell him ‘I’m fine.’ It’s my go-to response, as I never want to be a burden to another. Yet, the genuinely confused and boyish expression on Blaze’s face makes me reply truthfully.
I sigh. “I feel stupid because my Omega thinks you are my… that we’re more than teammates.”
“You’re not stupid, Sparkles,” Blaze says earnestly. He reaches for my hand and gently entwines it with his own, squeezing softly to show his support. A warmth that I’ve come to associate with Blaze’s touch floods through me.
My heart melts a little for Blaze.