Page 1 of Fall of the Alpha

1

THROUGH THE GATE

Alek

You are entering Alpha Territory. You will no longer be protected by the Zone Laws. You agree to enter Alpha Territory at your own risk. Do not forget to take your suppressors while you are in the Territories.

“I can’t believe we’re really doing this,” Liana squealed as they walked through the thick gateway from Zone One that led through the streets of Alpha Territory. She squeezed Alek’s hand, her blue eyes gleaming brightly as she looked up at him, her other hand on his bicep, fingers digging into the muscle.

He didn’t share her excitement, but this was what she’d wanted to do to celebrate her birthing day, and he’d been unable to deny her. On the other side of her were Liana’s best friend, Kenet, and Kenet’s girlfriend, Bella. He didn’t know either of them very well, though he’d spent more time with Kenet than Bella… and he spent as little time as possible with Kenet. The other male was not someone he would have chosen as a friend, but he was Liana’s long-time friend and had to occasionally be tolerated.

“Only for a few nights,” he reminded her. “Your mom is expecting us back for the big party at the end of the week.”

Liana rolled her eyes, but Kenet nodded in agreement. Tall for a Beta, with light brown hair and hazel eyes, he was still several inches shorter than Alek. Alek tended to stand taller than most, no matter what company he was in. Also tall for a Beta, Liana came up to his shoulder, which suited him perfectly. Kenet’s girlfriend barely reached Alek’s chest, and he couldn’t help but keep an eye out for her in the press of Betas heading into Alpha Territory.

If she somehow lost her grip on Kenet’s hand, they might never be able to find her again. Kenet didn’t seem worried, but then, Kenet never did. He was the one who had egged Liana on to take this trip, despite the dangers.

“Of course, we wouldn’t want to miss theparty.” The party wasn’t really for Liana. It was a chance for her parents to show off, and they all knew it, so Alek understood why she was being so snide. They were among the upper echelon of Zone residents, and in many ways, their parents were more about appearances than substance. His father had been thrilled when he’d started dating Liana. He always talked about how he’d worked his way up from nothing, and now here was his son, going with one of the daughters of the most influential families in the Zone.

His father would have preferred it if Alek had managed to court the daughter oftheZone’s leader, Paldon, but her identity was a carefully guarded secret. No one knew what she looked like, much less her name or who she truly was. Some people even thought her existence was a lie.

“We’ll have fun on our trip and fun at the party, too,” Kenet said, leaning over to wrap his arm around Liana’s shoulders. A wave of annoyance swept over Alek, and he batted it aside. Liana and Kenet had been friends for far longer than he’d been courting Liana, and Kenet had a girlfriend.

There was no reason to be jealous.

Though he wished he could see Bella’s face, to see how she was taking the affection from her partner to another female, she was too short and too far away on the other side of Kenet.

“This is amazing!” Liana said, bouncing between him and Kenet as they walked out into the street on the other side of the archway. Alek didn’t see it. So far, it looked almost the exact same as inside the Zone, though he knew there were rougher areas.

Everyone knew the rules.

Take your suppressors.

Don’t provoke an Alpha.

Don’t touch an Omega.

If something happens to you, you’re on your own.

Zone laws did not extend into the territories. It was that very lawlessness that appealed to so many Betas—the chance to run a little wild, to make bad choices, to court dangers that never really touched them. Even Alek felt a little thrill as he realized that even though things might look the same, they weren’t at all.

His father’s eyes didn’t extend out here.

Alek found himself standing a little taller, his shoulders no longer hunching inward to try to hide his height, and lifted his chin. The air smelled the same.

“Come on! Let’s get to our stayplace and drop off our bags, then we can go exploring,” Liana said, her eyes shining with excitement. “I want to see everything! I hope we see an Alpha!”

“Good luck with that,” Kenet chuckled. “Even if you did, he wouldn’t want anything to do with you.”

“Ooooh, we should skip our suppressors while we’re here! Find out if any of us aren’t actually Betas!”

“What?” Alek bristled. Sometimes Liana could have foolish, impulsive ideas, but that one was beyond her usual. Going into Alpha Territory was bad enough, but not taking theirsuppressors? Being an Omega or an Alpha was no laughing matter, especially not out in the territories.

There was a reason life was better in the Zones, where no one was subject to murderous or oversexed impulses. Alphas were dangerous anyway, but around the sick lusts of an Omega, they became murderous lunatics, and Omegas were gang-raped to death. That was why they had the suppressors.

“Just think about it, Alek, please,” Liana begged. “I know Cecily did it during her trip, and nothing happened! She said it was so fun waiting to see.” Cecily was Liana’s older sister by several years, and of course, she had. For some reason, Cecily wished she was an Omega. She’d even tried to seduce Alek, saying they could play Alpha and Omega because he was so big. Alek hadn’t told Liana because she worshiped her big sister, and he hadn’t wanted her to know that Cecily clearly didn’t feel the same way about her.

“Absolutely not. We’re not taking risks that way.”

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