Page 6 of Knot for Me
Omegas learn to listen.
Dammit. I pull at the handcuffs again, making a weak attempt to pull them free. Why didn’t I stop and think before I grabbed Teddy? I was so hell-bent on avoiding the ceremony that I got myself into an even worse situation. The metal bites into my skin as a tear slips down my cheek.
Goddammit.
While I want to rage and scream, I sit and watch as an unnamed beta with sunglasses on climbs in and starts the car. Camila probably wants me to break. I refuse to give her any more satisfaction than she already got when she told me my fate. I won’t break. I’ll figure it out. There are worse things than being sold off. She could have shunned me with a snap of her fingers.
I watch the city pass by, chewing on my cheek to keep from falling apart. I made my choice when I grabbed Teddy and pulled him into the closet. I’m sure Camila will tell everyone how I turned out to be a truly bad omega. I scoff and get angry all over again. Almost everyone I know has told me I don’t listen well enough, that I’m not good enough. Not my parents though. They always tried to protect me from that. But the older I got, the less they were able to shield me from the world. The only thing I really regret about tonight is that Camila will be the one to call my mom and tell her what happened.
The drive isn’t long; the convention center where the Compatibility Ceremony is held is in downtown Dolin, and the warehouse where the auctions are held is only a few miles away. The auctions aren’t some secret thing people don’t talk about. If anything, they’re the reason for scandalous gossip.
Eduardo, one of Camila’s mates, runs the auctions and helps make sure the transition from Omega Council prisoner to pack slave goes smoothly. I scoff and glare at the city as it whizzes by. We were all taught about the auctions and how degrading it is. The Omega Council uses it as a scare tactic to keep omegas in line.
They did a good job. Dread coils in my stomach when the beta pulls into a deserted gravel parking lot outside of an old warehouse. The metal building is cold and imposing, large enough to house rows of shipping containers. The side of the building readsTri-State Logistics. I wonder how much the Omega Council paid for this warehouse. They’d spend a fortune if it meant keeping the royals happy. Nothing makes the royals more happy than obedient omegas.
“Come on,” the beta says when he opens my door. He undoes the clip from the bar and grabs my cuffs, tugging me out of the car. “Don’t try anything stupid. I’ve seen it all. No one will accept sexual favors in exchange for your freedom. No amount of money you can offer will get you out of these cuffs.”
My mouth is part of the reason I’m not good. It always works faster than my brain. So before I can think better of it, I say, “Damn, here I was about to offer to suck your toe.” I grimace when he glares at me. “Relax, I’m not going to try to bargain for my freedom.”
Running crossed my mind, but I know it’s a lost cause. Unless I want to be shunned, this is my fate. Being shunned from pack society will hurt worse than swallowing my pride. At some point, I’ll have to watch the pack with their omega… and while I don’t want to have mates, I don’t like that one bit. My omega side really doesn’t approve of that, but I ignore those instincts. I can live with another omega. I can’t live without T.V. and my cell phone.
He starts to drag me toward the warehouse, going faster than I can in my heels. He doesn’t give a shit about me though and doesn’t notice when my ankle rolls on the gravel. I briefly consider trying to fight the guy to get free, but quickly decide that’s a bad idea. I’ve already fucked up enough for one day.
The other bad thing about being an omega is we’re not very strong. I’m not saying that because omegas are women; it’s a simple matter of fact: deltas, betas, and alphas have superior strength. The only thing omegas are super at is making babies. So here I am, being dragged around like a fucking rag doll, and I can’t do anything about it. He’s way stronger than I am. I wish I were a beta female. They’re so strong and free.
The inside of the warehouse is basically empty. There’s a large, temporary stage at the far end of the room and several rows of metal folding chairs placed in front of it. I’m led over to a small group of women who all look just as pissed as I do. None of them are wearing the white dress required for the Compatibility Ceremony, so they must have gotten in trouble before tonight. I’m not surprised to find them handcuffed and chained to a bar that runs the length of the warehouse. I guess we’re all flight risks. The beta hooks me to the bar behind the last woman in the line and tells me not to scream.
My natural reaction is to open my mouth and shout, but I don’t do that. The taser attached to his belt is begging to be rammed into my side. His fingers even twitch toward it, like he expects me to yell. I press my lips together and look over his shoulder.
He scoffs. “Good girl.” His voice drips with condescension. If I weren’t handcuffed, I’d slap him for being a prick. His footsteps echo through the large space as he heads toward the exit, and the door closes behind him with a solid thud that reverberates in my chest.
“What’d you do to get in here?” the woman in front of me asks.
I sigh. “Fucked a beta at the Compatibility Ceremony and got caught.”
She laughs. “Oh my god. So scandalous.”
I tip my head to the side and study her face. She didn’t shame me like I expected her to. “What did you do?”
She shrugs. “I kicked an alpha in the nuts when he tried to grab my ass.”
Talk about scandalous, attacking an alpha before you’re even assigned. That’s gotta take balls. Then again, most alphas assume that we like to be treated like objects. I give her a nod of approval and lean against the wall. There are only six of us, which means out of around one hundred omegas ready to be matched tonight, only six dissented.
The other women chat quietly, but I tune out, wondering what it would have been like to be paired with a pack. I could have had a really great life. If I wanted to be a breeder. I could have been matched with one of the royal packs that have millions of dollars, posh mansions, and nursemaids to help me raise all of my kids. I shudder at the thought of poopy diapers.
The clock on the far wall reads four-thirty in the afternoon. The Compatibility Ceremony starts at five and ends around seven, which means we have at least three hours until the auction starts. Plenty of time to regret every decision I’ve made leading up to this point. If I’m being honest, I can’t say I entirely regret it.
At least I went out with a bang.
ChapterThree
REAGAN
At about seven-thirty, the first people begin to arrive. Alphas from various packs filter into the warehouse. I don’t know why any of these men would be at a place like this, but I’m not going to dive into the psyche of alphas who want to buy an omega to try and understand them.
My feet ache. I kicked my heels off after twenty minutes of standing in them, but now I slip them back on, wincing when the cuffs dig into the skin around my wrist as I shift. The men head toward their seats, craning their necks to get a good look at us. The leering appraisals make my stomach knot.
There’s no guarantee of safety.
