Page 77 of Bullied Forced Omega
I nod, squinting at her. “Did they find him?”
Avery bites at her lower lip. “I came to call you. The elders are demanding a meeting, and they want you there. They told me to tell you it’s urgent,” she explains.
My heart sinks.They want to question me. They want to hear exactly what happened.
They already don’t trust me or my system. They’re angry I’m in charge of the security systems. I imagine they might even suspect I had something to do with this.
I let out a soft breath and slip off the bed. “I’m just going to splash cold water on my face, then I’ll be right there,” I tell Avery.
“I’ll wait outside the door and walk with you.” She says. Then she reaches out and touches my arm. “It’s going to be ok, Mira,” she tries to smile, but her face is lined with worry.
I smile, “It is. It’sgoingto be ok,” I say with more confidence. Confidence, I definitely don’t feel.
In the bathroom, I stand at the basin and look at myself in the mirror. The girl staring back at me looks drained. She has dark shadows beneath her eyes and lines around her mouth. I lick my lips and force myself to relax so that I don’t look as stressed as I do.
The lines around my mouth disappear. I swallow hard and lift my chin. Strength. My pack needs the strength of their Luna. Not a quivering weak woman.
Leaning over the marble basin, I splash cold water against my cheeks and eyes.
It’s refreshing and soothing.
Dabbing my skin with a soft white towel, I look in the mirror again.
The cold water has brought a glow to my cheeks, and my eyes look brighter and more focused. I’m ready. As ready as I’ll ever be.
Avery is waiting as promised, and she walks with me toward the dining room where the elders are waiting. She stops at the door, smiles tightly, and whispers. “I’m right outside.”
I step into the room, and a somber weight hits me immediately.
“Sit,” Marcus snaps.
Jeremy stands and pulls a chair out for me.
“What is going on?” I demand with a clear voice, despite my racing heart.
Marcus opens his mouth to speak, but Jeremy holds up his hand to silence him. He shakes his head and glares at Marcus coldly.
When Jeremy turns to me again, his eyes are soft.
“Mira, we’ve hunted everywhere. We can’t find him. Jace is missing,” he says gently, pausing and waiting for me to take in the information.
“Missing?” I stammer in disbelief. “He can’t be…he can’t just disappear. There must be a trail. A scent…”
“Mira, there is a trail. It was easy to find. But…”
“But what!” I demand, unable to take the tension a second longer.
“The trail suggests that Jace is very badly injured… if not dead.”
I stare at his father in disbelief, refusing to accept the news.
“No,” I gasp, barely a whisper. “He can’t be.”
Jeremy is still talking, telling me what needs to happen now, how we need to proceed in the best interest of the pack. But I can barely hear anything.
It’s as though I’m deep underwater. Sounds are blurring, distorting around me. Words don’t make sense, and nothing I look at seems real.
This can’t be real.
