2. Weston

two

Weston

Three years and one month ago

S ilver

I sneak out of the cabin, my skin crawls. Despite the need to be safe, I have to do this. There has to be a way off this resort where I can just walk until I find a new life. I'll never get a chance like this again. I watch as Onyx makes her way to the resort, her uniform making her look like a million dollars.

I'm so proud of her. And jealous.

I tie my black hair in a bun and go in the opposite direction. An hour later, I find myself staring at the resort. It's all fenced in, and security is top-notch. If I'm getting out, it's through there.

I need to escape through the resort itself. Hysteria tugs at me, trying to pull me down into a useless fit that will see the day pass in a blur of tears. I don't have time.

I press my lips together and slink down towards the place Onyx made me promise to avoid.

I'm following a huge garden shrub when I turn the corner and bump into someone. He's tall and blonde and gorgeous, and when he smiles, I feel my heart flip because this is a man I could easily hand myself over to.

He could destroy me. He's perfect. And I'm shattered.

I run.

Present Day

She's wearing a black dress that doesn't fit her right, not that you would notice. She's as lovely now as she was the day we saw her. Perhaps more so. Silver Davies smiles and hands out another bag, and then another. The guests chat with her easily, but they don't really pay much attention. She's just another volunteer running the Refuge gift bag section.

Hazel and Jade are the big draws here. Those two have become powerhouses in our world, drawing in attention, donations, and cash for the refuge they love so much. Silver just hands out bags. I find it so hard to picture her like this.

Why does that bother me so much? But Silver is doing the work. Every time we see her, she's got her head down and quietly works like it's her only purpose in life. She's not behaving like the selfish woman we thought we knew.

Jenny Lathem, the CEO and director of the Omega Refuge, swans past Silver in a gown of ruby red. She doesn't look at Silver or acknowledge her, but Silver turns away after she leaves, breathing deeply. Something's wrong.

"Bro? Hey! West! What are you doing?"

I glance at Quint and shrug. "Watching."

He follows my stare, and his face transforms into a scowl. "Why?"

"She seems sad tonight. Look at her. There's desperation pulling at the edges of her."

"Ah, yes, well, that's because her three-year contract is up. The refuge has absorbed the money that Onyx donated for her to stay, and she's now out on her ass. After tonight, she's no longer got a roof over her head."

"She'll go to Onyx, though? Surely."

"I thought that, but Ian says Dylan and Onyx haven't been able to get close to her. She's refusing their help. She'll be fine. Don't worry about her. I'm sure she's got someone lined up who will help her."

That doesn't sit right with me. I sip the whiskey in my glass while I watch her. You'd have to know her to realise she was stressed. She hides it really well. She's sad, and she's scared. My shoulders tense, and there's this strange feeling in my stomach, almost like panic.

Onyx creeps up to stand beside me. I know because Quint murmurs her name when she gets ten feet away. It's an old habit that we both got into so we don't get startled. Silver catches sight of us and stiffens, turning away. I glance between the twins and the stiff posture Silver now has. What is the mystery surrounding her and this dislike of her own sister?

"I need to ask you a favour," Onyx says quietly. Her slate eyes look watery, and her hair is elegantly coiled. She looks like a million dollars and not at all like her twin.

"No," I snap before she can continue. "I'm sick of doing you favours, Onyx. Go away."

Quint casts me an amused look, knowing I have no intention of honoring that statement. I'll fold like a deck of cards, especially if it has anything to do with Silver.

"She's got no one else. You're the only people she interacts with outside of the Refuge."

I growl. I don't want to help Silver because Onyx asked. Instead, I want to help her because I want to help her.

"She had scent matches. Jenny told me in the report I got. She found her pack. I thought you should know that."

Strangely, that upsets me deeply. So, I'm short and rude when I say, "She did? Where are they? Didn't they want her?"

"They died." The bitter words slither through me, making me feel ill. "It was a car accident, years before the first Omega Meet. She found out two and a half years ago, and as far as we know, she hasn't told a soul. Silver won't get a pack or a happy ending, not like mine. I hate that for her."

I rock back on my heels. "We aren't her pack," I snarl defensively. "Our scent match has already found and rejected us."

"No, you aren't scent matches, but you could be friends. You, of all people, would understand how she's feeling. Silver's not a bad person. I can't explain it. When we were kids, we were like you two. Our family changed her, our neighbourhood changed her. She's got a good heart, she always has. She just got lost along the way."

"You're awfully kind to someone who is refusing to see you."

Onyx shrugs one shoulder. She is a pale reflection of her sister. I hate to admit that, but I've always felt it. Onyx is pretty, but Silver is beautiful. Even in her sadness, she exudes great beauty.

"She's got to have her reasons, and who am I to guide her life's journey? Have you met Jade? She was at the first Omega Meet. She had long hair and wore dresses that covered her from head to toes. Jade was too scared to speak out. She changed," Onyx says stubbornly.

"Jade is different," Quint growls.

"How so?"

"Because Jade is Jade. She was hurt, and she fought. Silver didn't fight. She tried to steal."

"How do you know she isn't fighting in the only way she knows how?" Onyx asks quietly.

I return my eyes to the omega, who forces a trembling smile to her lips and hands out another bag.

"She doesn't deserve you," Quint says to Onyx.

"Maybe. Or maybe the things I've heard, recently…maybe I didn't do as good a job protecting her as I intended."

I snap my head around to Onyx, but her eyes are filled with pain. I don't dare ask, not here.

"She's got no one and nowhere to go. I'm just asking you to reach out and make sure she's okay if you cross paths."

"Onyx-"

"Thanks, West. Quint."

She fades back, moving into the arms of her alpha. Falcon Treyfield gives us one of his trademark glares. I don't take it to heart. The dude has a stick up his ass.

I turn back in time to see Silver slip out from behind the table and walk towards the exit.

"Where are you going?" Quint snarls.

"I'm going to make sure she's okay," I say to my twin and lift my hand.

"Weston!"

I ignore my brother and push my way through the crowds. By the time I get onto the street, I can't see her anywhere.

A strange sense of disappointment crushes me. I stay out there longer than I mean to, but still she doesn't appear.

She doesn't return to the party, either.

She's just gone.

I try to go back in and enjoy the night, but I keep hearing Onyx's words in my head, and this unsettled feeling fills me.

"I'm going to find her," I say to Quint two hours later. I force myself to sit at the circular table. It's just the pack, reclining as the night passes, leading the roster of events to its conclusion and into the real reason most people are here; social drinking. People laugh louder, flirt with each other, and have in general a good time. Ian is annoyed, I can see it on his face, but Ross looks at least concerned. His tie has vanished, and Ian's jacket is gone. Quint looks meticulous still, but his eyes show his growing ire. I can't. The panic and urgency driving me won't let me let this go.

Ian looks up, his eyes cold and hard. Ross nods his head, agreeing with me. He's always had a soft spot for Silver. "We should try. If what Onyx says is true, we're judging her on-"

"On her behaviour, the way she treated us," Ian cuts off Ross, glaring at him and then me.

"If she had lied and picked us, we would have hurt Brandy, anyway. Our omega chose another pack, but we could have easily done that to her or Silver. For whatever reason, it worked out best for all of us," Ross says with a shrug of his shoulders.

"You call that working out, Ross?" Ian shakes his head. "I call our lives a dumpster fire."

"So, you'd punish her endlessly for it? Come on, she's an omega, our friend's sister, and we've been asked to help."

"She treated us like we weren't good enough, like we were nothing."

I roll my eyes. "I'm aware, I was there, you know."

"You seem to need a reminder!" Ian snaps. His fingers curl into his palms, and his eyes flash with temper. He's only mad because he fell hard and fast for Silver and his feelings got crushed. Logically, I understand that, but the emotional part of me wants to hit him.

"I don't need a reminder to see how desperately she tried to get attention. Just as I don't need a reminder to remember she barely ate. Her eyes had big black rings around them. I don't need to remember the times we found her crying. Or the nightmares she awoke screaming from," I hiss at him, stepping into his space. He has to look up at me, and I can tell it's driving him nuts right now.

Ross nods. "There was the alpha who grabbed her arm and swore because she vomited on herself. Someone touched her, and her reaction was to vomit. That never sat right with me."

"What are you talking about?" Ian snaps.

"I'm talking about red flags, Ian," Ross says quietly. "What if she was running from something? What if she was in danger? What if we were blind to it?"

"I don't believe it," Ian says after a long moment.

"Yeah, sorry, but I'm not buying it, either. Silver Davies is the most selfish and spoiled omega on the planet."

I roll my eyes. "Fine. Believe whatever you want, Quint, but I know you, and I know how you feel, and you don't hate her nearly as much as you want to."

With that, I leave my pack and stalk back out to the streets, praying that I find this mysterious, disappearing omega that still has a piece of my heart.