33. Mila

Chapter 33

Mila

A nother heat spike lances my stomach like a spear, and I grit my teeth, trying my damn hardest not to wail like a dying animal.

It's hard. So hard not to want to cry, and for a moment when I close my eyes, I can see myself there in the woods again, stumbling for water, anything, to quench the heat, the pain of having my guts ripped inside out.

I can even smell the earthy scent of that squelching mud, the thick carpeted moss, and I almost hurl up my lunch.

Why is this happening again? It's only been a few weeks. Omegas have up to three or four heats a year on average, but am I an exception to the rule?

Lucky me, I guess, getting to be so special.

The Academy never once mentioned what happens when we don't receive a knot the first time. It seemed they wanted to avoid telling us something that could have one day been the difference between life and death.

Yet, they indoctrinated us enough into believing that we needed a knot to survive, and I'm starting to expect that we were being led astray.

But then why am I in pain again? I think Mother Nature really is pissed with me, and thus my body has gone into heat yet again.

My Omega won't rest until she gets what she was denied.

A big, fat, pulsating cock with a knot attached.

Fuck my body.

The pain subsides, and now my mind slowly bleeds back into awareness again.

When I open my eyes, I find his paint-splattered face gazing back at me, a worry line etched between his brows, and I just want to reach across and smooth that line away with my finger.

I hate making him look like that. Scared out of his wits.

"Mila," he whispers, palming my cheek with his soft hand.

I nestle into his touch like a pet cat, and I'm pretty sure I purr just like one too. He responds with a purr of his own, and a preternatural quiet befalls the room.

All three Alphas still, silently waiting, observing, this magical moment between two Omegas.

It's not every day Omegas seek comfort in each other, and it only further proves what I already knew deep in my bones.

Oliver is mine.

"I'm… okay now, Oliver. Just a little scare."

The worry line vanishes between his brows, and now all is right with the world again.

"Still," he reassures, never taking his hand away from my face. "We will be here for you when it hits again, Mila. You will not be alone this time, I swear…"

Tears burn in my eyes, and I suck in a trembling breath, finally gazing around the room.

All three Alphas look at me. Even Gryphon can't tear his gaze away from me.

Not even Oliver can divert his attention now.

It's like I'm the only person in the room.

I may be out of the woods for now, but my pain isn't over yet. I can feel another spike just bubbling beneath the surface, and it looks as if my heat is only a mere few days away.

It's just too soon. I don't think I can go through that agony again.

But… I won't be alone this time. I hope.

Oliver's words still ring around my head, and I try to swallow the ball of anxiety that has lodged in my throat, telling myself that they won't abandon me and that they'll stay by my side.

They are here with me now.

I am not alone anymore.

Oliver wipes away a stray tear that escaped my eyeline with his thumb, and I thought I had managed to keep the tears at bay.

Again, I blame this stupid, traitorous body of mine. My Omega is nothing but a ball of explosive hormones.

I noticed it's worse since my last heat. I am way more explosive than I was. I always knew how to school my emotions.

You have to be that way in the military. Or it's three hundred press-ups before dawn.

Now I am smashing the teeth from other Omega's skulls, and I am simply dangerous now.

One trigger, and I will attack.

Maybe that's what the government isn't telling us. They want to instill fear in us because they are afraid of what we may become when our needs are not met.

They want to keep us in check, basically.

I saw it in Felicia's eyes whenever I showed any sign of rebellion. She genuinely looked perturbed when I didn't tell her right away that I wanted to marry a pack and have lots and lots of little Alpha babies.

Not only does the government want to create a strong army of future Alphas, but they also want to keep us Omegas in line, too.

We are simply unpredictable. Volatile in nature.

No wonder they don't give us any military training.

Without warning, Oliver scoops me up in his arms, and my stomach loops when I become airborne.

It's good to see that the strength is returning in his arm. The cast has gone, but there's no missing the visible strain on his face. Sweat beads his forehead, and I reach across, wiping it away.

"Oliver…" I gasp.

He breathes through gritted teeth. "It's… fine, Mila… You don't weigh a thing… I got this…"

I worry my lip, my eyes flitting over to Gryphon.

His eyes are still trained on me. His face is a mask of stone, as usual, but I only spy pain and longing inside those blackened eyes.

I can hardly see the burgundy now.

Barret and Lachlan are just as still. I never thought that the latter's eyes could look so big, but his pupils are huge.

Oliver huddles me close to his chest, and now he carries me through the house toward my bedroom.

The nest isn't done yet.

But I wouldn't care either way.

I just want to be locked in a room with Oliver for a while.

I'm not sure where the others will factor in. I'm pretty sure my omega will cry out for them at some point, but I know they will come to my aid.

Lachlan especially.

That Alpha is as devoted as a knight, and I'm pretty sure he has taken an oath of some kind to a higher power.

Oliver nestles me down gently onto my bed, and then he holds me close, playing big spoon, and we remain that way for a while.

When another spike hits, he kisses the sensitive spot just below my neck, the one that makes my toes curl and my back shudder in delight.

While his anatomy will differ slightly from mine, he's still an Omega, and he knows exactly where to touch me, all my weakest, most tender spots.

His hot breath wets my ear as he nips the lobe, then whispers, "Where does it hurt?"

He knows exactly where it hurts. But he still teases me, tempting me with that deep, sensual tone.

I take his fingers in mine, guiding him down between my legs, and he finds that tender spot.

"Right here."

His answering purr makes my heart stutter, and then he slips his finger inside.

My eyelashes flicker when he rubs the pad of his finger against my clit, and I bite my lip to stop from moaning.

He whispers into my ear again, "Don't. Let them hear you moan, Mila…"

My heart stops beating for just a moment. Before I can blink, he slips another finger inside, stretching me wide, and the lights flicker in the corners of my eyes.

I moan, arching into him as I grind my ass against his cock, and he's hard.

He scissors me with his fingers, and another orgasm tears through me. Those lights appear yet again, bigger, brighter, almost blinding.

"Don't stop screaming. Lachlan is going feral out there… can't you hear him?"

I can't. Not with the blood rushing through my head, but then I hear that growling and snarling, and I can only imagine what Gryphon and Barret have to do to pin him back.

Oliver pinches my clitoris, and again, I cry out.

The feral sounds become more distant now, and it looks as if Gryphon and Barret have had to drag Lachlan somewhere far away.

Oliver purrs, kissing my jaw. "Well done, Mila. Torture them until it hurts."

He wants me to torture his Alphas?

"Torture us all… until we finally earn back your trust and forgiveness…"

My head falls back on the pillow as his words ring through my head.

Torture them?

It doesn't feel right. I know I was hurt badly by them all, but I have never been a petty creature.

But there's no missing the pain in their eyes, the guilt, whenever they look at me, and I know they want to do everything they can to make it up to me.

So, if I have to torture them until they feel they have done everything they can to earn back my trust, I will do it.

And then maybe we can finally move on and put the past behind us.