Chapter 25
25
Hazel
My teeth were chattering as we parked the SUV in a reserved space near the front doors of Dutton Laboratories.
Once again, I’d had a heat flare that left me feeling like a slice of cheese on the asphalt in the middle of August.
Part of me wanted to cry because this legit sucked. I couldn’t take these mood swings that were giving me—and my pack—whiplash. The warm fuzzy feelings from when I’d bonded with my pack were gone, replaced by a cold sort of detachment as it registered that my body was still rebelling.
At what point would they realize I wasn’t worth the hassle?
We exited the car, and I wrapped my arms around my waist as my pack crowded around me. I ached to reach for them, to sink into the comfort they provided, but at the same time, I felt like such a burden. An inconvenience.
Through the newly forged bonds, I could feel their own worry and frustration.
I was so sick of being the broken omega.
Joel was once again waiting at the front steps, his forehead creased with concern as we approached.
Ducking my head, I didn’t have the energy to meet his gaze.
Rhett’s hand brushed the small of my back, and I sidestepped his touch. The low pulse of unhappiness from his bond brought tears to my eyes, but he didn’t try to reach for me again.
“Hazel, how are you?” Joel’s voice was so kind that I tumbled back into a childhood memory of when I’d fallen while roller skating with Calla. Joel had cleaned up my skinned knees and palms, his touch and demeanor soothing away my tears.
“Tell me you have answers,” Crew demanded, sounding a breath away from losing his control.
“Dr. Abernathy and Dr. Calder are waiting for us in the conference room,” Joel replied.
“Then let’s go,” Kellan snapped, taking a step forward.
Joel stepped into his path, easily blocking him. “Wait. Before we go in, I need Hazel’s consent.”
My head jerked up. “What?”
Joel gave me a kind smile. “We’re discussing your medical history, Hazel. While technically I know your pack has a legal right to all of your medical information since you’re their bonded omega, your dad was one of my best friends. Pack or not,” he glanced at Crew before his gaze came back to rest on me, “son or not, your privacy matters. If you want to speak with my colleagues alone first, then we’ll make that happen.”
Rhett cleared his throat. “He’s right, love. It’s your decision.”
I took my time looking at each of my men. “I want all of you with me. This affects all of us.”
The relief in all their eyes gave me the courage to straighten my shoulders and shore up what was left of my strength. “Lead the way.”
Smiling, Joel nodded and ushered us all inside. Once again, we were taken to the front desk and ushered through security before stepping into a private elevator. I tucked myself into the back corner as my pack surrounded me.
No one spoke, but when the doors opened with a chime, I didn’t flinch away from the hand Rhett pressed to the small of my back. When Jude wrapped his hand around one of mine, I gave him a reassuring squeeze.
But all of my inner strength went out the window when I stepped into the conference room and saw the seriousness reflected in Dr. Abernathy and Dr. Calder’s expressions.
Well, shit. This didn’t give me good vibes at all.
Both doctors stood, and when the door closed behind me with a snick, I felt the echo of it in my bones.
“Please, sit down,” Joel invited, sweeping a hand out toward the large table with twelve boardroom style chairs. Bottles of water awaited at each spot and there was even a screen with the Dutton Laboratories logo illuminated on the far wall. Like they were about to launch into a presentation.
I sat down first, taking the seat directly across from Dr. Abernathy. Crew sat to my left and Kellan next to him. Jude sat on my right with Rhett on his other side. Joel sat at the head of the table and cracked open his water.
Crew rolled his chair closer to mine and rested a hand on my thigh. “Tell us.” That was Crew—to the point. He didn’t need all the pleasantries; he needed the facts, and I appreciated his straight-forward way of dealing with stuff now more than ever.
Dr. Abernathy cleared her throat as she met my gaze over the table. “How are you, Hazel?”
A scoff slipped free before I could stop myself. “I just flew off the handle at my pack, I feel like my body is spiraling out of control, and… I’m freaking tired of this.”
Dr. Calder shifted in his seat. “That’s because your body is adjusting to something it was never meant to be.”
It was like someone sucked all the air out of the room.
“What?” Jude finally managed.
Dr. Calder exhaled slowly and opened the folder in front of him before selecting a paper and sliding it across the table.
I grabbed it and frowned, not sure why I was looking at a picture of my implant and a whole bunch of medical jargon that read like an eye chart. I lifted my eyes. “English, please?”
“When Dr. Abernathy removed the device from your arm, we ran a few tests and found high levels of a synthetic hormone that appears to mimic omega enzymes,” he explained.
I blinked slowly as Rhett leaned forward. “Synthetic?”
Dr. Calder looked decidedly uncomfortable.
“Tell them, Michael,” Joel murmured. “They need to know.”
My heart dropped like a stone as I realized whatever he was about to say was going to upend everything.
Guess it was a good thing I was getting used to my world exploding.
Maybe I should consider looking into a career with a local bomb squad.
“Without getting into the mechanics—because we’re still trying to figure that out—it would appear that the birth control implant Hazel was given as a teen was actually loaded with a cataclysmic amount of omega hormones that essentially altered her DNA,” Dr. Calder said.
“Altered her DNA?” Kellan practically spat. “What the fuck does that even mean?”
Joel traced the edge of his water bottle. “Honestly? We’re not sure how they did it. We’re trying to reverse engineer their tech, but it’s almost like they found a way to hack a beta’s genetic code.”
“You keep saying they ,” Crew gritted out, the hand on my thigh hard and possessive.
The three doctors shared a look, but it was Dr. Calder that answered. “Truthfully, we have no concrete way of proving who made the implant, but we have our suspicions. I know a few doctors on the east coast who I was able to discreetly discuss this case with, and they’ve seen it before.”
“The other beta born omegas,” I murmured. “They had this same thing?”
He nodded. “Yes, but the difference between them and you, other than location, is their care is all being overseen by the same doctor.”
“And that is?” Rhett demanded.
“Julian Anders,” Joel supplied.
Kellan’s fist slammed on the table, shaking the wood and sending a few water bottles toppling over. His growl was sharp and vicious, his anger spilling over in palpable waves.
I frowned, trying to remember why I knew that name. “Anders…”
“President Anders’s cousin and packmate,” Crew told me. “Julian runs Infinity Solutions, the lab that found the vaccine for Variant O. It was his father, actually, who made the vaccine and stopped the spread of the virus before it could kill more omegas.”
I nodded and pushed my seat back from the table as I felt Kellan’s fury sweep through me like a maelstrom. I walked over to him, waiting until he pushed back from the table and gave me space to crawl into his lap.
His arms banded around me as I curled against his chest, his hot breath puffing across the top of my head. “Sorry, sugar.”
I shook my head as I felt some of the tension leach from his frame. “It’s fine, big guy.” I peeked over at Dr. Calder. “You took the implant out. Does that mean… Will I go back to being a beta?”
Dr. Abernathy shook her head. “No, Hazel. The shift in your genetic composition from beta to omega isn’t one that can be reversed. In fact, if anything, you’re more omega than most omegas are.”
My nose wrinkled. “What does that mean?”
Her blue eyes softened as she watched me. “Omegas are such delicate creatures. Their genetic makeup is complex and multifaceted. Their instincts, drives, and urges transcend anything that can be accurately medically pinpointed.”
I snorted. “Great. So I’m basically a delicate flower that needs to be coddled.”
The laugh that Dr. Abernathy released was startling. “No, my dear. Not fragile like a flower. More like… fragile like a bomb. As in the power an omega has is incomparable. It can’t be quantified or explained, and you have higher than the usual levels of hormones in your system.”
Jude’s jaw flexed. “Explains the heat flares.”
“And the crazy mood swings,” I muttered. “Bet you guys didn’t know you were signing up for a lifetime of crazy omega drama.”
Crew turned his chair to face me. “Wouldn’t have changed a thing, baby girl. Not then, not now. You’re ours, and we’ll take you anyway we can get you.”
Jude and Rhett nodded in agreement and Kellan kissed the top of my head, confirming Crew’s statement.
“After speaking with a friend on the east coast who treated an omega in a similar situation,” Dr. Calder spoke up, “it would appear that your hormone levels will level out.”
Hope unfurled in my chest as I lifted my head. “They will?”
He nodded. “Yes. Obviously he’s no longer treating the omega in question, but he said that after her first heat, she had a secondary one within two weeks. After that, her body found a normal cycle as most omegas do.”
“Whatever triggered your first heat essentially kick-started your omega system,” Dr. Abernathy added. “Your body is being flooded with hormones right now, so give yourself the grace and time to adjust. It won’t always be like this.”
I exhaled in relief. “Thank god.”
But when Dr. Abernathy and Dr. Calder exchanged glances, I knew there was more.
“What?” Jude asked, looking like he was bracing for bad news.
“While we obviously cannot see the medical records of the current beta born omegas, they are members of quite prominent packs, so there is one thing we can conclusively assume,” Dr. Calder began.
Dr. Abernathy blushed a little. “They all have children.”
I blinked slowly. “Okay.”
Joel shook his head. “What they’re trying to say is that it appears omegas who started as betas have an increased likelihood of pregnancy during heats, and many of those pregnancies resulted in multiple births. Twins, triplets, even a set of quadruplets were born last year to one of the packs.”
My eyes rounded as I sat up. “So you’re saying my uterus has been turned into a baby factory?”
Dr. Abernathy’s lips pressed together. “Possibly? We don’t know if any of those omegas were on birth control methods, though we suspect they weren’t.”
Joel sighed. “Truth is, we don’t have all the answers. It’s like we’re trying to put a puzzle together and every time we find a piece, we realize the puzzle is bigger than we thought.”
“And without understanding how they’ve done this, we’re broadly in the dark. Honestly, we wouldn’t have even known this was happening if you hadn’t found Hazel,” Dr. Calder said, steepling his fingers.
“But this was intentionally done.” Crew’s tone was hard, flat. His expression was stony as a muscle in his jaw fluttered. “Someone implanted that thing in Hazel to intentionally make her an omega.”
“Yes,” Dr. Abernathy confirmed with a tight nod. “We suspect the reason she was given the implant was because it worked with her rare blood type.”
I leaned on Kellan’s chest, absorbing his warmth and strength. “My mom took me to get the implant when I was a teenager. She… I mean, there’s no way she would’ve known, right?” My voice was so tiny I wasn’t sure anyone had heard me.
Joel’s eyes flashed as he looked at me. “Your parents absolutely adored you, Hazel. There wasn’t a thing they wouldn’t have done to see you happy and thriving, and I know neither one of your parents would have done something as drastic or reckless as this.”
“Reckless?” Rhett echoed.
Joel’s lips pressed into a grim line. “Absolutely. This device is not approved or regulated by the government. There’s no patent filed on its design that we could find. For all intents and purposes, it shouldn’t exist, let alone be put in humans without their express consent and knowledge.”
“One of our lab techs extracted some of the hormone left over in the device,” Dr. Calder chimed in. “We tested the hormones against other blood types and the results were astounding.”
“How so?” Jude asked.
“The flood of hormones overwhelmed the cells, causing them to break down and deteriorate,” he explained before his gaze caught mine. “The only reason this worked on Hazel is because of her extraordinary blood type and its lack of antigens. If Hazel would’ve had any other type of blood and this implant was used, she likely would’ve hemorrhaged to death as her veins and organs collapsed.”
I flinched back with a whimper, definitely not liking the sound of that.
“Rachel and David never would have risked your life,” Joel emphasized. “You were their entire world, Hazel. We suspected Calla would be an omega years before she officially presented, and your parents almost seemed relieved that you were a beta. Even then, the world was changing for omegas, and not for the better.”
I rolled my bottom lip between my teeth, my heart aching for my parents. God, I’d give anything for one of my dad’s bear hugs or a couch cuddling session with my mom while we binged trashy reality TV.
Like a hot air balloon with the flame snuffed out, I wilted against Kellan. “Is there anything else?”
Dr. Abernathy shot me a tender look. “Your current hormone levels showed that you’ll likely have another heat soon. After that, it would stand to reason that your system will regulate. Of course, we’d like to keep monitoring you just to be sure.”
I nodded. “Of course.”
Crew pushed back and stood. “Thanks, Papa. We’re going to take our omega home now.”
Rhett and Jude got up, too. When Kellan rose to his feet, he lifted me with him, cradling me in his arms.
I pressed my face against his chest, inhaling his minty fresh scent as everyone said their goodbyes and we left the facility.
I had answers. But I also had so many questions.
As if reading my mind, Rhett’s silver gaze landed on me. “We’ll figure this out, love.”
I nodded because, yeah. If anyone could sort this out, I’d put money on my pack.