Page 8 of Claiming the Omega
Victor got out and opened Benjy’s door for him. Benjy slid out of the vehicle, a sense of finality snapping into place around his heart. If Victor used him and abandoned him like Greg had done, Benjy was sure that he would not remain whole. His wolf would pine and whither, and he would lose himself, just as his mother lost herself after their father died. True mates need each other down to a spiritual level.
Victor, being an Alpha wolf, would not suffer as much. Benjy had seen that to be true with his old Alpha. Greg's mother died about five years ago, and yet the Alpha was able to move onand mate with a young girl from the Pack almost immediately following the funeral. It had been a sad and awkward day.
There appeared to be very little concern shown by the Alpha as he watched his wife and mate being lowered into the ground. He moved his next mate into the Alpha house that very night. Greg blew it off as not important, but Benjy's heart broke for Greg's dead mother. He didn't know the woman, but she deserved more respect than she received.
"What's on your mind, Benjy?" Victor saw the tension on his face and the way his eyes darted around as if looking for an attacker. He knew that this was a man who had been looking over his shoulder for a long time. Victor moved up beside him and slipped his arm around his waist.
"This is a large pack." He stated the obvious. Victor nodded but did not comment. "My Pack was small, only about fifty members. It wasn't a good experience, even when my dad was alive, they still bullied Shane and me, just not when he was around. I hate those people, that Pack. I don't know if I can open myself to your people." He might as well be honest from the start.
"My people will surprise you, and I know you will come to love them just as they will come to love you." The solid confidence that the Alpha expressed made Benjy smile and hope that he was correct. "Come, let me introduce you to my betas who are home, and I will introduce you to my brothers when they arrive this evening." Benjy took a deep breath and steadiedhimself for meeting Beta wolves. Other than his father, the Beta's at his old Pack had been monsters.
Victor hugged him close. “Don’t be worried; you will love it here.”
The inside was large and spacious. Victor gave him a cursory tour and promised to show him everything later, but right now, he was taking him to the backroom. The backroom contained the working offices of the Pack. Victor stood in the main meeting room and yelled for his Betas, Cole, and Daniel. They came quickly and stood looking at the two of them, waiting for an explanation or an order.
“Cole, Danial, this is my mate Benjy Hammond. Benjy these are my two Betas, Cole Hewitt, and Danial O’Hare.” The understanding spread across their faces as they smiled and laughed.
"I’m very pleased to meet you, Benjy." It was Cole who moved first and held out his hand which Benjy grasped. The handshake was warm and friendly. "You will be happy here Benjy we’re a good bunch." The assurance caught Benjy by surprise because it sounded so much like what Victor had been saying for the past couple of hours. "I did a background check on you after you rabbited from the restaurant. I know about those assholes back in Concord." He explained.
"I'm pleased to meet you, too, Cole." He really meant it. Cole reminded him of his dad, just a big, warm, friendly guy.Daniel, on the other hand, looked suspicious and guarded, but gave Benjy the same pleasantry and shook his hand with a half smile.
Cole was slapping Victor’s back and congratulating him on finding his mate, which afforded a moment when Daniel believed he could speak his mind without repercussion, or so he thought. He leaned down close to Benjy’s ear and spoke. “You are nowhere near good enough for him.” He gave Benjy’s a hard look and then stepped back. Unfortunately, he didn’t take into consideration the powerful hearing of an Alpha wolf who happened to be acutely tuned into his fearful mate.
Just as Benjy was about to turn and leave the room, convinced that all the Betas were basically the same, Victor jumped and grabbed Daniel by the throat. He slammed him against the wall several times and then tossed him across the room. “Who the fuck do you think you are, speaking to my mate in such a way?” He didn’t give Daniel time to respond to that question before leaping on him and punching him square in the jaw before tossing him again across the room. Daniel was not fighting back and was apologizing through swollen and bloodied lips.
Cole had moved to stand in front of Benjy to protect him from the mayhem filling the room. He turned and looked down at him. "It will be okay, little one. Daniel doesn't speak for the rest of us. He's a good Beta, but a real asshole most of the time. Few in the Pack can tolerate him apart from the Alpha. Although I think his standing with Alpha Rios has just taken a serious hit."
Victor took Daniel by the throat and raised him off the ground. "You will never speak to my mate again. You will move to one of the adjacent cottages; I don't want you under the same roof as my mate. If you so much as criticize his hair color, I will have you thrown out of this Pack. If you can't show him the respect he deserves, then you can get the hell out. Do I make myself clear?" He was red-faced and shouting by the time he reached the end of his speech.
Daniel nodded in affirmation, unable to speak with his throat so constricted. Once again, Victor threw him across the room and then turned to find his mate. He rushed over to where Cole was shielding the man. Cole took a step to the side and shaking his head glanced over at Daniel who was attempting to pick himself up off the floor.
Victor immediately took Benjy into his arms and held him close to his chest. "Are you okay?" Benjy nodded against his chest. "I am so sorry; I had no idea he would say such a thing. I will banish him if you are more comfortable with him gone from the Pack."
"No, this is his home." Benjy wouldn't do that to someone just because they were an asshole. "I know how it feels to be run out of your home and I wouldn't want to put him through that."
"He does not deserve your pity." Victor was impressed with his mate's empathy. Victor looked at Cole silently telling him to get Daniel out of the room. His Beta's behavior shocked and saddened him. He'd just told his mate that his Pack was not prejudiced and that he would be easily accepted, and that wasfollowed by Daniel's ridiculous comment. Damn, could things have gone any worse?
Victor led Benjy out of the back room and into the kitchen, where he sat him on one of the stools in front of the island. He then prepared a cup of tea for himself. His research on Benjy had also revealed his affinity for tea. He set the cup in front of Benjy and sat down next to him. “That idiot does not represent my pack please believe me.”
Benjy was touched by Victor’s eagerness to make right the situation exacerbated by his Beta. “I’m okay, really. His words aren’t anything I haven’t heard before, and honestly I’ve heard a lot worse.” Benjy took a sip of his tea and gave his mate a small smile. Victor placed his hand on Benjy’s back and began to rub comforting circles.
Benjy decided at that moment to open up to him Victor was being honest and open, and Benjy needed to do the same if their relationship was to have a chance.
"As I told you before, I had a relationship, of sorts, with the Alpha's son, Greg. He started showing me attention a couple of years ago and then slowly it became a . . . sexual relationship. He wouldn't acknowledge me unless we were alone because his family and the Pack would not accept that he was gay. He and his friends would do terrible, hurtful things to Shane and me, and then he would sneak over later and tell me that he loved me, and this was just what we had to do for now."
Benjy took another sip of his tea appreciating the hot liquid as it soothed his throat. He was choking up at the memory of all the bullshit he believed and how he fell for every excuse so that he didn’t have to face up to the fact that Greg was simply using him as a piece of ass. His daydream he wove together had been one in which Greg loved him so much that they eventually mated and married. That daydream now brought him nothing but shame and regret.
"I believed him, every time. Finally, his father must have suspected something, because in due course, every time Greg came around, there was someone watching him. Greg told me that his father confronted him about a relationship with the Omega, and he freaked. Greg said that he wouldn't be seeing me again."
Benjy shook his head, ashamed at being such a fool and having some difficulty relating the details to this man, this Alpha, his mate. "I didn't realize that also meant that he was going to try to kill me. He put together a death squad at the orders of his father and came after not just me, but also Shane. If John Plummer, my dad's old friend, hadn't warned us..." His voice trailed off. Victor hugged Benjy to his side and placed a light kiss on the side of his head. It was appreciated, and it gave Benjy the strength to finish his story.
“We'd started keeping our car hidden in the woods, because if we had it in our driveway, it was always vandalized by morning." He turned his head and, for the first time since starting his story, looked at Victor. He saw thoughtfulconsideration in Victor's eyes; it was something he'd never witnessed with Greg or his old Alpha.
"After John warned us, we hid in the woods and waited, afraid to start the car for fear they would hear. We watched them destroy our home and set it on fire. This was the Pack we were born into our father was a Beta in this Pack, I knew these people my whole life, and yet they could do this to us." Benjy shook his head again, at a loss to understand how people could be so hurtful.
Victor needed to speak the information explained a lot regarding Benjy's distrust of wolves and their packs. He'd never had a positive experience with either. Victor had never heard of the Concord Pack before, which spoke to their isolation and rigidity. He was firm in his resolve that if any of those bigoted, abusive, bastards, ever came around Benjy or his brother again, Victor would end them.
"I will keep you safe, Benjy, you and your brother, I promise." He couldn't resist any longer and pulled Benjy from his chair and over onto his lap. He tucked him against his chest and held him tight. "You make me so happy, thrilled, agitated, distracted; I can't put a finger on the multitude of emotions flashing by as I hold you in my arms."
