Page 38 of Mating the Omega
But all too soon, we had passed the city limits and were weaving through traffic. Duke pulled up in front of a large building made of red brick, pierced by dark tinted windows. “This is it.” He looked over at the Alpha. “I’ll find a parking garage and meet you inside.”
Abel nodded, and we stepped out onto the crowded sidewalk.
I pulled my coat closer around me. People walked past, some paying us no attention at all, some taking note of the bright yellow tabs on our collars and giving us a wide berth. I’d never felt as unsafe in human company as I did that day. I huddled closer to Mac, who put his arm around me again.
Abel started walking toward the building, and Mac led me after him. I avoided eye contact with everyone around us, but watched carefully for my old pack, just in case. The humans around us whispered and pointed, the three shifters walking into the courthouse, and I heard a child ask, “Why is he so fat?” I just put my head down and hurried along in Abel’s wake, practically dragging Mac with me. Seven months ago, I’d walked among them, unnoticed, pretending to be human. But I was glad to trade my anonymity if it meant I got to keep Mac.
Inside the building was quieter and more crowded. People walked through the corridors with purpose, carrying briefcases or folders full of papers. Abel stopped just inside the doors, scanning the space for any sign of Laine.
“There you are.” Laine came in the doors behind us, looking sharply professional in a suit that probably cost more than our house did. Abel turned around with a jerk, and Mac pushed me behind him as if to protect me. I don’t know if the humans around us understood what was going on, but the two alphas were close to shifting. In my own discomfort, I hadn’t noticed how on edge the two of them were, and I wanted them to not be so badly.
I put my hand on Mac’s back and thought calm at him and the Alpha, wanting it so hard I shook. Sometimes, when I really wanted something, I could make people feel calm, or happy, or make them like me. It was beyond the way people just seemed to like omegas, almost like I could influence their feelings.
They settled slowly and I was able to relax. Mac wrapped his arm around me again and the four of us huddled just inside the door. No one mentioned the near disaster.
Laine spoke first. “We’ve drawn a male judge, but he’s got grandkids, so it could go either way for us. I know their lawyer—he’s good. Not as good as I am, but that’s only to be expected. Abel, you’ll sit with me and Garrick, the rest of you will sit in the seats behind the bar and you’ll be called up when we need you to answer questions. I’m surprised they didn’t ask for you all to be sequestered, but it could be good. They might not be as sure of this case as they appear.”
We already knew this. Maybe Laine was nervous too? I tried to perform my little trick on him as well, but I don’t know if it worked or not.
“I don’t think Jason should have to testify,” Mac rumbled. He was still on edge and I rubbed my chin against his shoulder, pretending to scent mark him. He smiled down at me, but his eyes were still serious.
I sighed. “I want to. This is all about me, and if Orvin sees me going up to talk to the judge, he’ll flip his lid.” Laine and I had planned this all out yesterday, while Mac was working and I was making a last tour of my gardens to check on the harvest. The idea of losing those gardens didn’t bother me nearly as much as the thought of losing Mac did, but it still stung. If I didn’t want give all this up, I was going to have to play my part exactly right.
Duke came in then, and we headed for the courtroom in a group. Just in case, I grabbed Laine’s arm and pulled his head down to mine. “Promise me, even if it goes against us, you’ll get me time to have the baby before they take me. Do you understand?” And I let a little of my own wolf creep out, a low growl and a sense of invisible fur brushing against his skin.
He shivered, but looked me dead in the eye. “My word of honor.” He smiled fiercely and if I hadn’t known he was human, I would have thought he was a shifter.
But hewasa hunter, and this was his game.
CHAPTER THIRTY
“All rise. The Honorable Mitchell Wilson presiding.” Everyone in the room stood as the judge entered.
“Be seated,” he said, and began to read off a whole bunch of information that I wasn’t the least bit interested in. Instead, I studied him, trying to get a feel for the man that would soon decide my fate. If he’d been a shifter it would have been easy, but he wasn’t, so it was harder for me to decide what kind of person he was. Definitely alpha, or the human version of it, but there was a hint of kindness in the way his features came together on his face. I could only hope that his appearance reflected his personality.
Orvin sat at the other little table, next to his lawyer, a narrow-faced man with dark hair in almost a brush cut. He wore a nice suit, though, so he must have been a decent lawyer. Orvin had turned to stare at me when we first came in, but after that, he’d completely ignored me. I wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or not.
“It’ll be fine,” Mac whispered to me.
I hoped so. Little Mac twitched, and I ran my hands over my belly, soothing him.
The judge looked down at the two lawyers, nodding to Orvin’s, then focusing on Laine. “Mr. Montague, I’ve heard a lot about you. I’m surprised to see you in my courtroom—you know this isn’t a criminal trial.”
Laine stood and nodded. “I was curious. And I wouldn’t discount a criminal element just yet.”
Wilson raised his eyebrows and gave Laine a measuring look. “I’d be interested to see how you make that work.”
The two lawyers gave their opening speeches. I wasn’t terribly impressed with Orvin’s lawyer, who could have made an action movie sound boring. Laine, on the other hand, was brilliant, though I worried a bit when the judge reminded him that there was no jury to impress, so he could cut out his criminal court theatrics.
They called Orvin up to the stand first. He walked up, straight-backed, looking every inch the Alpha in his expensive suit with shiny new tabs on his collar. His eyes met mine when he sat down and I froze as memory overwhelmed me. I huddled against Mac, and knew in that moment that I’d rather die than go back to Orvin. Not after everything I’d had and learned in Mercy Hills.
The story he told was that same as the one I’d tell, in the general events. But it was in the details where it changed. I don’t remember hearing about my parents asking for money for me, or demanding that they be supported by whoever I was mated to.
My confusion and anger must have communicated itself to Mac, because he put his arm around me and hugged me gently. It was hard to sit there and watch Orvin shred my father’s reputation, until Mac pointed out that Laine was making notes on a pad of paper, which reassured me.
Finally, it was Laine’s turn to ask Orvin questions. His smile was genial as he approached Orvin’s seat, and his body language was so relaxed for a moment I worried that we’d been had, that Garrick had somehow found a lawyer that would argue for Orvin’s side.
I should have known better.
