Chapter 26
The Ravage Virus
Our attempts at finding the much-hidden exit have yielded no results, but every day, the Beta’s Path pushes further into the city, spreading like a plague. Four days feels like a lifetime. We come back and collapse exhausted and do it again.
Cadel hasn’t strayed far from my side, but we haven’t talked, and, to be honest, I’m not sure what there is to say.
We had sex; we could die tomorrow. I’m the most hunted omega in the history of omegas, which means the closer he gets to me, the shorter his lifespan is.
I am acutely aware of that, and my growing infatuation with these alphas is starting to feel toxic.
It’s hard to forget all the faces of the people I used to know and just plunge headlong into a happy affair while the man who covered me in these disgusting scars is actively seeking to remove me from my life.
I chew my food slowly, my head down. Jarek’s thigh is pressed to mine, and it’s making it hard to concentrate on anything else. He touches me a lot now. I don’t complain because I love it, but every touch is making it harder because I’m starving for it.
Things with Mordecai are even worse. I can’t speak to him, and he’s withdrawn into this duty-orientated mindset, driven like his success will fix everything. I can see the toll it’s taking on him. How exhausted he’s becoming, how lost.
Something is driving him, and I’m scared to ask what. It’s hard to acknowledge that I want him to choose me. I want him to throw away his duty and be mine. What if he says no? What if he won’t choose me? How do I face him then?
And where did these thoughts even come from? So, what if he chooses me, it won’t change anything.
The murmurs of the Resistance are a lull that I’ve grown used to. So, when I hear the cough, it yanks me out of my thoughts immediately.
Mia coughs again, a dry, heaving sound. I turn my head and stare at her. She’s got red flags on her cheeks, and she’s sweating. I lower my forkful of food to the plate and glance around.
Alarm skitters up my spine, and I jump up, my bowl falling to the floor as I really look around the room.
I spot five more sick people. A chill of ice rips all thoughts but one. The Ravage Virus has found the Resistance. I’d heard rumours that the illness was still in the city, lingering in the dust and soil. I’d speculated that’s what I had upon entering.
“Keres?” Jarek says quietly. “What’s going on?”
I turn and note his flushed face. I grab his arm and hoist him up. “Cadel, bring Mordecai and follow me.”
If he’s annoyed with my tone, he doesn’t say anything, just hoists the alpha up and follows me. Each step takes forever, and time seems to speed up. My urgency grows with each moment.
Mordecai has passed out by the time we get there, and Jarek is stumbling, but I get them in and lay them down.
“Stay with them,” I say to Cadel.
“No, I—”
“Please,” I say in a strained voice. “Look after them. I will be back.”
He growls but dips his head in agreement. I need to go back for supplies. It takes me an hour to get everything we need, then I track down Legion. He’s sitting on the roof, doing his shift on watch.
“Legion!” I hiss, trying to catch his attention.
“Hey, Keres, have you come to shout at the world with me?”
“No, but you're going to want to.”
He turns his whole attention to me. “What now?”
“I think the virus, the Ravage Virus, is now running rampant through the Resistance.”
Legion stands up and jogs to the hole in the roof. He drops, landing in a crouch before turning to grab my hips and help me down.
An alpha stumbles past, coughing, and passes out in front of us.
“What do we do?” he hisses.
“Hide them,” I say. “While they are sick, they are vulnerable. We need to get as many people hidden as we can,” I say urgently. “This is precisely the moment they will have waited for. How they get you,” I say to Legion.
We grab the alpha and drag him into a room, shoving him in a corner behind drywall.
“Don’t give up, Alpha. Just stay quiet,” I murmur.
“We need to find the council, Mia, Bear,” Legion hisses.
I follow him but split off when I see Mia. She’s collapsed on the ground.
“Go. I’ve got her.”
Legion hesitates, but then he disappears.
I get her to the room and lay her down beside Mordecai, then I go back, doing another sweep, moving who I can, directing others to hide.
I douse the fire and start moving the supplies into a section of the roof.
All the time, I’m searching, but the Resistance leaders aren’t easily found.
Legion appears and looks up at me in exhaustion. His cheeks are red, and his eyes are glazed.
“I couldn’t find Taryn, Marshall, or Bear.”
I catch him as he falls; we both go down in a pile. I drag him down to the room and lay him down beside Mordecai. Cadel is passed out, breathing in harsh rasps. My arms are screaming in pain, and my back hurts.
I take a step and collapse to one knee.
I’ll just have a little rest.
The sounds of laughter wake me up because it’s too loud; no one from the Resistance laughs with such abandon. I stand up and pull out my sword, holding it warily in front of me.
The night grows long, dark and full of screams, and there’s nothing I can do but stand and wait for them to find us. Sweat runs down my back, and my muscles get sore from standing so tense.
“Keres!”
I rush to the door. “Kendric?”
“You got them in there, right? Your alphas?”
“Yes, there’s room for you—”
“No. You have to stay hidden. Stay safe. There’s so many people counting on us, on you. Don’t let Mordecai falter,” he hisses.
I hear something heavy land in front of the door. I grab the handle and shove, but it doesn’t open.
“Kendric!” I hiss.
“It was worth it, fighting. Being free. Goodbye, Kaida Keres.”
He takes off running, and it’s followed by a shout that gives me chills. I move back into the room and stare into the gloom.
I’m imagining the worst, but I know it’s probably not even close. The screams go on and on, and I realise the Resistance were sitting ducks. They probably waited for this exact moment to strike, just like I’d predicted.
An alpha roars, but the sound is cut short with a gurgle. Cadel gets up, his eyes aflame with fury. I rush to him and put a hand over his mouth.
“Quiet, Alpha,” I murmur.
He looks up at me, his eyes enraged. Mordecai groans, and I rush to him, pouring some water into his mouth. I wet a cloth and wipe him over and then move to Jarek, Legion, and Mia.
Mia is the most restless, and I end up tying her up and shoving a wadded-up ball of fabric into her mouth to silence her.
Jarek never makes a sound. I keep checking to make sure he’s breathing and counting the seconds before his chest rises.
It’s an agonizing cycle of dread and then relief.
Mordecai moves a lot, lifting his arms and reaching for people.
Cadel ends up sitting with him, keeping his arms down and barking him into compliance.
It’s Legion who worries me the most. He curls up into a ball and cries silent tears that have his whole body shaking. I sit with him and stroke his hair.
He’s not my alpha or my omega. There’s no attraction, but I have never seen anyone carry the grief this alpha is holding in him. The stone-faced omega, the smart-assed second in command, is gone, and here is the raw truth; an omega almost broken by the things that have shadowed his life.
Who is he missing? Who is his heart broken over?
When he quietens, I turn away and sit down beside Cadel, who offers me a bottle of water. I drink half and rest my head up against the wall.
He doesn’t speak, just reaches out and puts a hand on my thigh, reassuring and comforting.
“As soon as they are on their feet, we’ll get out of here.”
Cadel rubs his thumb over my leg.
“I’ll go in and check for any survivors while you protect them.”
“No—”
I turn and glare at him. “They’ll be vulnerable and need someone strong. I can get in and out unseen. We need to know what happened to Bear, Taryn, and Kendric.”
Cadel grits his jaw, but he doesn’t remove his hand. The touch I would have balked at a few days ago is soothing and welcome now. But whenever I focus on it, I get a sense of dread, too.
Mia makes a noise, and I get up, rushing to her side and soothing her. She thrashes from side to side, but when I wipe down her face and neck, she settles. I place my hand on her forehead.
She doesn’t seem as hot.
Are the fevers breaking?
Time passes in the room. The lack of light means we have no idea whether it’s day or night, and we dare not open the door. Mordecai rises first, his eyes almost glowing in the dark.
“Kaida?”
With a grateful exhale of relief, I kneel beside him and help him drink. “You’re okay; you’ve been sick.”
He moans. “Feel it.”
“Shhh,” I whisper. “We can’t make any sounds.”
Mordecai’s faculties have returned despite being so sick, and he immediately goes tense.
“What happened?”
“The Beta’s Path came when everyone was sick. I hid as much as I could and got everyone I could find here.” I whisper the words straight into his ear.
Mordecai looks around the room. “Who?”
“Cadel, Jarek, Mia, and Legion.” I pause. “Kendric blocked the doorway and drew them away.”
Mordecai turns away, but I can see his jaw working. “Dumb bastard. Always playing the hero.”
I wait, giving him a moment to digest the news.
“Taryn?”
It’s telling that he asks for her first. I try to hide how unhappy his question makes me.
“I searched everywhere.”
“Bear?”
“I don’t think he’d come back from his scouting yet. I didn’t see him, Sophie, Willow, or Banks.”
“Good, I hope he didn’t come back. That will make things easier. Do you remember where the maps are hidden?”
I nod slowly. He grips my hand tightly.
“We need one. The location of the Resistance houses are in my head, but I don’t know the general neighbourhood.”
My stomach flutters. “All right. I can go get them.”
“Send Cadel.”
“No. Cadel needs to protect you; you’re all helpless in here.”
I stand up and grab my sword.
“I’ll be back.”
“Kaida!”
“I’ll be back,” I reassure them both.
Legion sits up and hisses in pain. “I have to go. He’s waiting for me.”
“He?” Mordecai asks.
I shake my head, feeling a deep well of pity for this lost alpha.
“Don’t let him go looking for the alpha,” I say. “It’s not safe out there, and I think…I think he’s lost in his memories.”
Mordecai gets up, stumbles, and kneels beside Legion, talking to him softly.
I turn toward the door, only to find Cadel blocking the way.
“I promise I will come back,” I say softly.
“You should wait.”
“We can’t wait any longer. We have no idea how much time has passed.”
“Omega, please.”
I shake my head. “No, this needs to be done. There are people who need us. I can’t stay here and be safe.”
“Why does it have to be you?”
I smile up at him and then leap forward, tripping him and leaving him in a heap on the floor. I dash past him and pull the door open. Before I can even get it open, it’s slammed shut, a heavy hand pinning it.
I stare at it and become aware of Cadel pressed against me.
“Let me do this,” I whisper.
“I don’t want to. I want you to stay here, and we can go tomorrow once Mordecai is better.”
I slide my hand up the door and wrap my fingers around his large wrist.
“I’m sorry that you’re here with me,” I murmur.
“I’d rather be here with you than anywhere else.”
“And don’t you think that’s weird? We hardly know each other.”
“I know you.”
“How?”
“I don’t know, but I know you, Omega.”
I press my lips together and try to silence my mind. He's too big and too much.
“Don’t go out there alone.”
If I turn around, I might very well give in. I might let this alpha who saved me from my nightmares save me from this, too, and then where will we be?
“I have to do this. Trust me.”
He pauses, leaning closer. His breath fans my hair, the air is thick with tension, and then he withdraws his hand and steps back.
“If you’re not back in a couple of hours, I’m coming to find you. I don’t care who I have to leave helpless.”
“I won’t be that long.”
“Make sure you aren’t,” Cadel says. “Go before I change my mind.”
I slip out of the door and into the dull grey light of day. The city is quiet, but the blood smell is in the air, and it smells stronger, more metallic.
I carefully climb up the side of the building using the vines and broken bits of the wall until I’m on the roof. I can’t see anything moving, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t inside.
After a while, I belly crawl my way across the roof and slither into the ceiling. I find a hole and peer into the school, but nothing moves, and I can’t hear a single sound that might indicate that there are people alive.
Did the Beta’s Path just wipe out the Resistance?
I drop into the school.
I have to find out.