29. Alina

I'm notsure what to be stunned by more—my orgasmic morning, the information Orcus shared about the Elite families, or the magic unfolding before me right now.

Not only did Orcus create a mirrorlike doorway that led to another part of the world, but he's also currently renovating an old cabin.

When we arrived, it was basically a pile of wood.

Now… now it's… it's a home.

We're right on the water—a place called Lake Michigan, according to Flame. "It's a good home base while Reaper goes to scout the Elite City," he added. "We're close enough that Orcus can get there quickly if needed, yet far enough away to go undetected."

"In theory," Orcus inserted. "We're only about an hour north of the city, and the magic in this realm is… unique."

I suspected he said that last bit because of everything he learned from Helia. From what I gathered, she impressed him. And he wasn't sure how he felt about it yet.

Particularly as his Strigoi were taken during the meeting.

"She obviously knew what was happening, making me wonder if the whole meeting was just a distraction," he told Flame earlier after lunch.

"Maybe. However, why would someone want the Strigoi?" Flame asked again. "I realize they're royals, but that can't mean much of anything here."

"I don't know," Orcus grumbled.

"I'll find out," Reaper offered.

Which was how they devised the plan making Reaper the city scout.

"He's a literal shadow," Flame told me afterward when he picked up on my concern. While I knew these fae could take care of themselves, I didn't like the hint of danger involved in their Elite City espionage plan. "He'll just pop in, look around, and pop right back."

Well, he popped off about an hour ago, and none of us have heard a word from him.

I gaze up at the moon overhead, my lips twisting to the side.

It's pretty here. But that doesn't help soothe the pang of discomfort growing in my lower belly.

Reaper should be back by now, I think. Where is he?

That sense of unease merges with another emotion, one that has my heart skipping a beat. Hope.

I might find my sister soon.

Except my elation is paired with a troubling sensation, one driven by guilt.

Because these fae males are the only reason I'm here.

And they have no idea I even have a sister.

They've done everything to support me, to protect me, to teach me, and I've held myself back.

Why?

Why can't I just tell them?

It's not that hard. It's not even that big a secret, is it?

As soon as Reaper returns, I'm telling them, I decide.

They might be able to help me find her.

Orcus lands a few feet away from me, his massive wings unfurled to reveal thousands of silky black feathers. His long, dark hair is wild from the wind, and his red eyes are focused on his project ahead.

He places his hands on his lean hips, his muscular arms rippling with the movement.

Actually, every part of him is rippling.

Because he's shirtless.

Wearing just jeans.

Boots.

And wings, I marvel again. Fae, I just want to pet him…

He's gorgeous and completely oblivious to my ogling his stunning physique. Although, Flame notices the moment he walks out the door, his gaze knowing as he brings me a bottle of water.

"Enjoying the show?" he asks me.

I take a drink before I reply, "It's… it's impressive."

"Hmm," he hums, winking at me.

Orcus's attention, however, remains on the cabin.

"What's he doing?" I whisper, not wanting to disturb him. Of course, he doesn't even seem to realize I'm standing here.

"Manifesting," Flame drawls.

I glance at him. "Okay… And that means…?"

He grins. "Hey, Orcus, our girl wants you to explain your powers to her."

I gape at him.

He presses a kiss to my cheek. "I'll be inside playing in the new kitchen."

I'm not given a chance to reply. He just leaves.

And Orcus turns his red eyes my way.

I swallow, his presence even larger than usual with his giant wings and bulging muscles. He's been flying all around the area, doing whatever it is he's been doing.

Manifesting.

Right. Yeah. Makes total sense.

"I'm a Mythos Fae Alpha." He says it like that explains everything. "We specialize in creation."

He steps toward me, his palm reaching for my face. I stop breathing as he tucks a strand of hair behind my ear. Only, he smiles as he pulls his hand back to reveal a black rose with gold tips.

I gasp at it, shocked by its unnatural beauty. "How…?"

He hands it to me as he says, "I pictured it in my mind and brought it to life." He looks at the cabin again, his wing stretching as he makes a gesture with his hand.

My eyes widen as a set of three bushes sprout up from the ground, all of them blossoming before my eyes.

Several minutes pass as the buds turn into leaves and the stems morph into black rosebuds.

Black roses with gold tips.

He just created dozens of them on the bush.

"That's… amazing," I breathe.

He shrugs. "You won't be as impressed when your Omega talents come to fruition. You'll be able to bring new souls into the world; I can merely manifest soulless items."

I blink at him. "I'll be able to… what?"

A hint of black edges the crimson in his irises as he stares at me once more. "You'll create life, Alina. There is no greater gift."

Create life.

Like… like… "You mean children?" I ask, my brow furrowing.

"I mean powerful beings," he corrects me. "But yes, they will come to us in the form of children." His palm goes to my belly. "You'll grow them here. I can't imagine a greater gift."

My lips curl down. "You're saying my having a baby is a better gift than being able to build a cabin with my mind?" I ask, incredulous.

He matches my frown with one of his own.

"You have no idea how unique and beautiful a gift it is that you can bring more Mythos Fae into the world, Alina. We haven't experienced the birth of a faeling in over two thousand years." He lifts his hand away from my belly and clasps my nape, pulling me to him. "It's a miracle."

"So is creating a cabin in under an hour," I mutter.

He tilts his head. "Perhaps I wasn't clear." There's a hint of humor in his tone. "Manifestation magic applies to all Mythos Fae. Alphas, Omegas, Betas—everyone can create soulless objects. But only an Omega can birth a new soul."

My lips part, then close, and then part again. "So you're saying I'll be able to create a cabin?"

He chuckles. "Perhaps not at first, but one day, once you've honed your abilities, yes. I'll even teach you when you're ready, if you'd like."

I'm gaping again.

Primarily because he's telling me all of this like it's just… normal. As though humans become immortal beings with wicked powers every day.

Yet the part he's in awe of is me having a baby.

I palm my belly. Is it really that big a deal? I wonder.

Then I think about what he said, about how there haven't been any Mythos Fae faelings—which I assume are fae babies—in over two thousand years.

Except, I might be able to create one.

He's staring down at my hand with a reverence I can feel, his wings fluttering in the night breeze. "What if I'm not the Omega that you think I am?" I ask him. "What if…? What if I can't…?"

The question floats away on a breeze, my heart panging at the prospect of not being able to create a child. It's a pain unlike anything I've ever experienced, like my soul is crying from within.

I could lose my fae,I think. I… I could lose everything.

However, it's not just the thought of my fae abandoning me that leaves me feeling bereft. It's the thought of not creating a life.

I… I want this, I realize with a start. I well and truly want this.

Not just my fae, but everything we can experience together.

A future. A child. A family.

Orcus's hand cups my cheek, drawing me back to him. "If we can't produce a faeling, then we move forward as a mate-circle without children."

He utters the words with ease, but I sense the underlying longing in his tone. Mainly because my own soul is weeping at the prospect of failing. It's an unacceptable notion, one I don't want to embrace.

But I have to consider it.

Because there's a very real possibility that I won't be able to create a soul. This could all be a fluke.

"If I can't conceive, then I'm not a real Omega," I whisper to him. "Right?"

"If you can't conceive, it's not because of what you are or what you are not. It's because fate has not chosen us for that path," he tells me.

My stomach churns again, some part of me adamantly refusing to accept such a fate. I want this. I want them. I want a family.

"If that's our fate, then I accept that, Alina," Orcus goes on, oblivious to my inner turmoil. "Mythos Fae might not have true fated mates, but you're still mine. I can feel it in my soul. We were meant to find each other, to mate each other, and to create a powerful circle together—with Flame and Reaper."

I swallow, tears suddenly blurring my vision. "You really believe that." It's not a question but a statement.

"No, Alina. I don't believe anything; I know it." His thumb brushes my pulse, his opposite arm coming around my waist. "You're my Omega. You're Reaper's pet. You're Flame's little panther. And together, you're ours."

His wings come around me as he leans down to press his mouth to mine, his kiss so vastly different from any I could have anticipated.

It's soft.

Tender.

Borderline sweet.

Like he's sealing a promise with his mouth, vowing to keep me for eternity no matter what happens.

I'm his Omega. His other half. His soul mate.

My belly flutters with the realization, my heart thundering in my chest.

Orcus is mine.

I know it deep within my being, my insides burning with the knowledge.

It's like something is awakening within my soul. Something big. Something… overwhelming.

My mind spins, all the emotions of today swirling together to create an inferno of all-consuming confusion. I feel dizzy. Hot. Alive.

Orcus's mouth stills against mine, causing me to growl against him.

It's an unexpected sound, one born from somewhere deep inside. I don't understand it. But I embrace it.

And I bite his lower lip.

Because I want more. A stronger kiss. More passion. Dominance.

"Alina," he whispers, a hint of raw emotion underlining my name.

My eyes narrow. Speaking is not kissing.

I nip at him again. But he doesn't respond the way I desire, causing me to pull back and stare up into his crimson gaze.

My Alpha is playing hard to get.

A game,I realize, suddenly intrigued.

"Fuck," he says.

Mmm, the end reward of winning the game,I think, even more intrigued now.

"Is she…?" Flame's deep voice caresses my ears, causing me to glance at the male in the doorway. His violet gaze is tinged with black as his jaguar stares me down.

I stare right back, challenging him in a way I don't quite understand. Yet it feels natural. Will he join our game, too? I wonder.

Except I'm not sure what game we're actually playing.

Yet somewhere deep down, I'm determined to win.

To run. To hide. To make them hunt.

I blink. What?

My stomach twists again while Orcus says something I don't quite hear.

Flame's jaguar growls, the feral sound one that inspires excitement within me, not fear.

But Orcus's wing cuts off my view of Flame, his accented voice drawing my focus to his lips. "This is my game to win," he tells Flame.

If the Shifter Fae replies, I don't catch his response. I'm too focused on Orcus's intense jawline to hear him.

Game. Game. Game.

Run. Run. Run.

The words play through my mind, overshadowing whatever Orcus says next. I just see his mouth moving. His bottom lip is swollen from my bite, the sight hypnotic. I want to lick him. But I also want to make him work for it.

Such a strange urge.

But it's driven by that voice in my head, the one saying, Run. Hide. Make them hunt.

I shiver.

The impulse rolls over me, through me, heating my veins and causing me to take a step backward.

Orcus's nostrils flare, his gaze capturing and holding mine. "I'll give you a head start, little one," he tells me, his voice low and seductive. "Hide well. Make me work for it. Or I'll take you against a fucking tree."

My thighs clench at the visual his words paint in my head. Orcus hoisting me in the air, his hips pinning mine, his wings flared out behind him as he drives into me. Over and over again. Making me scream. Knotting me.

It's so vivid, so specific, that I'm frozen in place before him.

Because I have no idea where these urges are coming from.

Except… that's not true. I do know. My soul. My inner Omega.

Is it true? Am I really… a Mythos Fae?

It shouldn't be possible. It sounds insane. And yet, I can feel the truth of it in my core. The very knowledge that's driving me to know what to do next. The voice telling me to run.

On an intellectual level, I understand what's happening to me, what will happen once I'm caught.

Orcus will claim me.

Then Reaper and Flame will claim me, too.

All three of my fae.

And my heat will consume me.

Render me incapable of making sound decisions, just like Flame and Orcus have warned me it would do. I'll have to trust them to see me through it, to take care of me, to ensure my wishes are respected and met.

It's impossible for me to truly know what I want, especially with all the chaos boiling inside me. But I do know what I desire. These fae. These mates. A future with them.

If that includes a faeling… then yes, I want that.

A little miracle, I think.

No, I don't just want that. I need that.

Why do I keep fighting this? Who cares if it's moving fast? This is the right path for me. The only path.

These men are my destiny as much as I'm theirs.

I lock my gaze with Orcus once more, aware that he hasn't started to count yet. He's giving me time to comprehend our game, to welcome my Omega into my heart, to finally embrace who I am meant to be.

He's a good Alpha.

The kind of Alpha who will always take care of me.

And I want to be his Omega.

I want to be Flame's little panther.

Just as much as I want to be Reaper's pet.

I'm theirs and they are mine.

"You'd better find me, Alpha," I say to Orcus, my voice holding a sultry note to it that I've never heard before.

"Oh, I'll be doing more than simply finding you, Omega," he replies, his wings tucking behind his back but not disappearing. "Now… run."