Page 6 of Going Down Smooth: Part One

If there is ever a time that one would consider me anything other than an Omega, it would be moments like this. I don’t back down easily, never have, never will. The look of utter devastation on my sister’s face has me seeing red. “Get your hands off her,” I practically growl as I take a step toward them both. I keep my voice low but there are so many people in the church that some are close enough to hear our exchange. I mentally throw up an apology to my father, but if he was here, he would understand.

“I don’t have to do a damn thing, Mercy. Faith is mine, and I do with her what I want.” Derrick yanks my sister back into his chest and wraps his other arm around her waist. My sister whimpers, her eyes downcast as the other Alphas of her pack approach Derrick from behind.

“Is there a problem?” Chasson asks from behind Derrick. Her other mate Mal stays silent but the look he gives me would have anyone else in my position rolling over and presenting to him. Fuck that, I eyeball his ass right back.

“Yes, there is a problem! You Alpha assholes!” I don’t like the way he is grabbing my sister. “It’s obvious he is hurting you,” I reply, saying the last part as I gesture to my sister. Fuck it, I don’t care who hears me now. They deserve to be seen for what they are, abusive, possessive dicks. “Tell him, Faith,” I implore her. She should be able to express her feelings but she doesn’t. She keeps her eyes down on the floor, and her reaction makes me so sad it brings tears to my eyes.

“You see, unlike you, our Faith knows her place. We don’t need you here putting ideas in her head. Everyone knows you are def—”

“Say it, Derrick, and we are going to have a problem.” A voice as smooth as silk comes from behind me, and the scent of hot chocolate and marshmallows reaches me. He places his hands gently on my shoulder, there but barely, the heat from his body and his heavenly aroma already calms me more than I want to admit.

I glance over my shoulder to acknowledge Trey. His dark-brown eyes look at me with a twinkle of amusement. His black rimmed glasses and grey flat cap make me sway on my feet. My God, those dimples make me forget why I’m standing.

Trey was always the more polished of the four of my Alphas, with dark chocolate-brown skin, tall, lean, and with a panty tossing voice. For a moment it’s just us, lost, swimming in memories of sitting at the piano, singing my favorite songs while he accompanied me. Focus. Mercy. I remove my hands from his chest, not realizing I had placed them there. I quickly turn around. Trey’s hands go back to my shoulders once more as I glare at the three big-ass beasts in front of me.

“Trey, your pack is just as defective as she is. She rejected you and yet you still come to her defense. Weak. No pussy is worth the shame you face on the daily,” Derrick says as he backs away with my sister in tow.

I blanch at his words and immediately go on the defensive. “I only see one weak bitch in front of me, and it isn’t my sister,” I say as Trey’s grip on my shoulders tightens. I might not be as big as Derrick or the other Alphas at his back, but I am not afraid of a fight. Church or no church.

“What did you say to him, Omega?” Chasson steps in front of my sister and tries to throw his weight around, his eyes fixed on me in an attempt to bring me to my knees. I show my belly to no man, especially not a piece of shit like him. I shrug out of Trey’s hold and square up to his six feet five, burly beast of an Alpha, and hold his gaze. Everyone in the church seems to hold their breath. I don’t relent and I can see surprise in his eyes before he gives me a nervous smile and steps back. Yeah, I don’t scare easily you big bastard.

“Defective. No wonder she’s not mated. Trash. Nothing but trash, Mercy Smooth.” He chuckles and Trey grabs me again as Nate comes into view by my side, his fingers brush against mine as I struggle to breathe.

I’m temporarily caught off guard by Nate’s baby face. Unlike his brother, Nate is clean shaven, with thick black, curly hair, light-brown skin, and juicy pink lips, his sad brown eyes find mine, rendering me speechless. I want to reach up and straighten the pained crease between his brows, but my attention returns to my sister just as quickly.

I watch Faith’s pack drag her away from me, all three of them shooting daggers in my direction. If it wasn’t for Trey and Nate, I would pull her away from them. My fathers both stare at me with so much disappointment, I almost feel sorry for the outburst. But then I think about Faith and how no one sees the pain she is hiding or acknowledges how badly they are treating her. Can’t they see she’s unhappy and broken or is it they just don’t care? Fuck their disappointment. I will find a way to help my sister.

“Merce, let’s get you out of here. I think you need some air,” I nod absentmindedly at what Nate says as Trey turns me around. I automatically begin to move down the center aisle, into the foyer before I’m out into the sunshine and fresh air.

I should be resisting them, their scents are sending my hormones into overdrive, my emotions are all over the place. But their quiet calm and reassurance slows my heart rate, and I can finally think through my rage haze. I didn’t mean to make a scene. I am sure that just adds fuel to a fire that’s been raging for years. I sigh as Trey lets his hand fall from mine, and for a moment, I almost stop him. His hand in mine, it felt right.No Mercy. Trey and Nate have always been easy to be around, and as they stand beside me like two pillars of strength, my gut clenches with the pain I know I’ve caused them.

“What happened?” I glance up as Knight and Lox walk toward us with concerned looks on their faces. Knight doesn’t even question why I am with Trey and Nate, he just goes with it. The urge to run to them and bury my face in both of their chests, inhale their scents and beg them to take me away from— Wait, what?

I panic and immediately become a flight risk once more. Backing away from the four of them, I turn on my heels without a backward glance and rush to my car. Not one of them says a word, but I can feel their heavy gazes on me as I trip over my feet to get away. I only need to get through the will reading and then I can escape the scrutiny of everyone’s eyes on me. I thought I had more time. I could go into heat here. I could cope on my own through the beginnings of it, right? A few more hours and I am on a plane out of here. I hope. I have a feeling that coming back here was a big mistake, but I am too damn stubborn to turn around and run for the hills.

THREE

LOX

Ihate this shit. I hate watching her run from us again. I hate that her scent is so delectable, drawing me into her orbit and making me drool. I hate that I haven’t fucked Mercy Smooth out of my system. Seeing her here today makes it painfully clear that I am a fool. I have a rock-hard cock to prove it. I look around the parking lot at my brothers as they pick their jaws off the ground watching Mercy speed away. Is it just me or is my Little Mouse about to go into heat? Does she not realize? Does no one else pick up on her scent? Usually, Trey’s the intuitive one. I swear his mother is a soothsayer; his ability to read the room borders on supernatural. I consider myself the enforcer of our pack as I bash heads together, I don’t have time for details. I’m more punch a motherfucker in the face and never ask questions. But my nose never lies. She’s maybe days away from full on knotting extravaganza. She needs to be either underneath me when that happens or thousands of miles away. Her scent is tantalizing.

“What happened? Where is she going? She really stirred up some shit in there. Her sister’s pack are in an uproar,” Stefan says as he joins us outside.

I honestly hate his Beta ass as well. Stefan is shorter than all of us, with skin as dark as midnight and gleaming white teeth, brown eyes, and a cunning smirk plastered on his face; he appears more boy than man. I mean, I am not criticizing his height, but he definitely fits the stereotype. Always overcompensating for his small stature, with muscles that don’t fit his frame. As if bulking up his body would make him taller somehow. It made him appear comical. Why Knight keeps him around is—wait, oh yeah, he is Nate’s friend. I guess he helps out at the bar so that’s something, but he annoys me.

Everybody annoys me, honestly. Ever since my Little Mouse abandoned us for greener pastures, I’ve felt adrift, with no real purpose. She was my purpose, her goals and inspiration for us were all I dreamed about. When she left, I felt as if my dreams left right along with her. I am not one for all the mushy emotions, but neither is Mercy. That’s what I loved, no, love about her. I’m not going to lie and say that my feelings have dried up like the Sahara Desert, that would be false. Mercy was perfection, is perfection, meant for us in every way. I wish she had given us a chance to show her just how much she fits into our lives. Fuck designation. Alpha, Beta, Omega, that shit doesn’t matter. My love. My devotion. Real talk.

“No one cares what Derrick has to say. Mercy saw the state of Faith and lost it. I mean, what are they doing to their Omega? She seems scared and jumpy,” Trey says, finally responding to Stefan’s need for gossip. I’m sure he gets off on conflict. Stefan loves drama, and none of us have time for that shit. I tsk at the Alphas name. Derrick, like half of the families in Frankfort, follow the old ways and treat Faith like property. The fact that she is yet to be pregnant after all these years is probably why she looks like she’s been put through the ringer. I am sure there is a lot happening behind closed doors, and it is more than just too much fucking.

“Merce is not going to let it go. Once she gets it in her head to do something, she won’t stop. Especially if the person who needs to be saved is her own sister. I see her determination to protect those she feels need it hasn’t changed. So maybe it’s good that she won’t be here long.”

Nate hangs his head and blows out a breath. Knight and his brother are like literally the sun and moon personality wise, although Nate hasn’t been his happy, shiny, sunshine self in five years. Knight is as dark and broody as ever; that hasn’t changed much, but who am I to judge his level of grumpiness. I’m a poor model to follow myself.

“Yes, she will be gone again, and for good this time. Faith is mated, and there’s nothing any of us, including Mercy, can do for her unfortunately,” Knight states solemnly, making me roll my eyes at his dramatics.

Knight turns away from us, pulling his keys out of his pocket and walks across the lot to where we parked our SUV. I guess we are done here. I think the only reason we came to the funeral today was to possibly catch a glimpse of Mercy. Or maybe that was my reasoning. Either way, now that she is here, we need to do something. A last-ditch effort, the fact that it’s me ready to rally the troops is surprising, even to me. It’s like the lights have come on after years of flailing and failing in the dark. Yes, we have a successful bar and club that we run on the other side of town. Our business is booming. Trey with his angelic voice packs out the house every night, but despite that we are missing something. We are missing her. I’m not going to let her walk away without a fight this time. Even if it’s only me bleeding out on the ground before her, I will happily take one for the team. That’s how much I love my brothers, how much I love my pack. I want us to finally be happy. We all deserve happiness, even Mercy.

I clear my throat, getting everyone’s attention, except Knight, who continues on, lost in his own thoughts. “So, are we not going to address her scent? Are we going to ignore it? I guarantee Mercy wouldn’t have walked into that church without drenching herself in de-scenting spray, in fact, she probably bathes in the stuff,” I say matter-of-factly.

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