Page 50 of Wild Omega

After a lingering kiss, I lean my head back and close my eyes with a soft sigh, savoring this moment. I asked the universe for a sign, and she jumped right into my lap. I want to remember this for eternity—the exact moment I claimed my omega.

Chapter twenty-one

Zazu

The endless noise burrows into my ears like the tiny gray insects that bit our skin back in my old territory. I cover my head, but the sounds of angry alphas still dig into me, clawing at my mind. It got worse afterotherscame and took the territory superior away. Without him and the death one nearby, everyone feels uneasy. We don’t have any kind of order with them both missing.

I stalk to the front of my cage, glaring across the aisle at an intruder with red hair. He didn’t come from my territory, so he doesn’t belong here. He returns my snarl, foam frothing around his lips. Growling, I test the metal holding me in place. I broke through it once. Could I do it again alone?

The outer door buzzes and I swing around, snapping my teeth together at the three guards walking down the row. Their gazes lock on me, and I back away warily.

“Well, if this isn’t my favorite part of the day,” one man says, sighing heavily. “We’re so bloody overcrowded. Taking them out one by one sucks balls.”

I crouch down, wishing I understood the meaning of the sounds pouring between their lips. A challenge?

“The omega lady said this one’s name was Zazu.”

Zazu? Zazuuuuuuu. Same sound? Me? It must be a challenge, like back in the old cave. Thick brown pads that smell of dried fur protect the alphas’ soft spots: throats, wrists, hands. I swivel, assessing how I’ll deal with these threats.

“Well, a name’s better than an inmate number.” One rests his hand on my cell door. “Hey there, Zazu. It’s your day to get exercise. How about not trying to turn us into mincemeat today?”

They swing the door, and a violent thumping starts inside my chest. The only time my name gets called is when I go out to fight off a threat. But nothing’s the same and I don’t know what I’m supposed to do.

I bare my teeth.

One of the males groans. “Yeah, I knew we’d have to do this the hard way.”

Two of them leap forward while the third guards the exit. I lash out, fists striking faster than they can follow. But I can’t seem to connect with flesh. Everything I touch is padded and bounces under my blows. Roaring with rage, I spin, lashing my foot out with the one move that never fails me.

I connect and the intruder’s pained grunt slides right into my ears, soothing a little of the wild roaring in my head.

But he’s not alone. The second alpha grabs my leg before I can pull away, and I slip and crash to the floor. They both jump on me, pinning me in place.

“Wish these fuckers had an off button,” the first one growls under his breath, kneeling on my back. I scream and buck, but they’re unbearably heavy.

“Technically they do,” the other says, tapping his knuckles against the base of my head. I growl in response to the threat to my unprotected neck. A single blow there and I’d—lose.

I stop struggling for a moment. What happens when you lose? Where did all my opponents go when they stopped struggling? Everything I know says that’s a bad place.

“Would save the Lodgings a ton of money.”

“Yeah, but now the OCB is checking in on these fellows because of those two scent matches.”

“More fucking bullshit paperwork. Okay, I got the leg chains on. Roll him over.”

I snarl at them. I’m vulnerable, unable to part my legs more than a double hand span. They lock my hands together in front of my body, and then drag me upright.

“Let’s go, wild guy.” He shoves my shoulder, and I stumble out of the cell.

“Can you fucking imagine taking one of these into your pack? Gotta have a few screws loose to even consider it.”

“Yeah, for sure. But you know how it is with omegas.”

“Right. What they want, they get.” The other chuckles. “Gotta say, my pack spoils ours too.”

“How big’s your pack?”

“Nine.”

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