CHAPTER 16: CHAPTER 16

Elara gave me a very tight hug.

"Thank you for saving me, Elie."

"That’s okay, Elara," I said, gently pushing her back. My lungs were screaming for oxygen. "Let me catch my breath before you break my ribs."

"Why are you running so much?" she asked, narrowing her eyes. "Who is chasing you?"

I looked at her, the same Elara who was still visibly trembling from the last time she saw Alpha Psycho. That maniac nearly broke her mind like a cheap teacup from the dollar store. I couldn’t tell her the truth. I didn’t want to see her panic again. I didn’t want to add more trauma to her already PTSD-level existence.

"I’m fine," I lied, brushing past her and going straight to my little corner behind the kitchen pantry. "Just needed some... air. That’s all."

Air? Who was I kidding?

I’d narrowly escaped the Alpha Psycho’s madness again today. One more second in that hallway and he might have decided to use my spine as a backscratcher.

I flopped on the floor, sighing into the broken tiles.

I couldn’t stay here much longer.

One day I might run out of luck, and that psycho Alpha would finally kill me. And not quickly either—no. He’d probably hang my entrails in his office like a macabre Christmas garland. The room was quiet now. It was just me and Elara. This might be the perfect time. To escape. To leave this forsaken pack behind. To find my way back to my old life. To my hospital. My lab coat. My stethoscope. My precious caffeine addiction. But how?

The borders were heavily guarded. Omegas like me weren’t allowed to go five feet near them without a written order from the Alpha or else get tackled like a rogue football.

And I don’t know if you’ve ever been tackled by a werewolf with anger issues and too much protein in his diet, but let me tell you it’s not a pleasant experience.

"Oh God," I muttered into the floor. "Help me. I need to get out of here. I miss being a doctor. I miss the ER, the blood, the screams... wait, not those screams... professional screams. The hospital screams. The normal kind." A gentle tap on my shoulder made me shriek like a dying seagull. I whipped around in terror, already imagining the Alpha’s face looming behind me.

"Relax," said Joan, raising her hands. "It’s me. Not the scary one."

"Don’t sneak up on me like that!" I clutched my chest. "I thought you were—"

"Alpha Zach? No, I checked. He’s still in a meeting. What’s wrong with you?"

I exhaled slowly.

"What are you thinking about?" she asked, her voice gentle.

"Escaping," I whispered like it was a swear word.

She blinked at me like I had just declared war on gravity.

"Elie," she said, dragging out my name like a disappointed mother. "You’re an Omega. You can’t escape from here."

"Why not?"

"Because if the Alpha finds out, he’ll kill you, grind your bones into powder, and probably use them as seasoning for his steak. That’s why." She poked me in the forehead, hard.

"Elie, do you want your skull hung on the gate like a decoration? No? Then stop thinking nonsense."

"I just—" I rubbed my temple, "I can’t survive another week here."

Joan gave me a look, like girl, we all dying inside, welcome to the party. Then she perked up.

"Anyway! I overheard something juicy!"

I stared at her. "Is it about the Alpha finally being thrown into an active volcano?"

"Nope," she chirped. "Even better. I heard Elizabeth talking to the Luna about the ancient dragon skull arriving at the pack today."

I blinked.

"Elara and I screamed together: "Dragon skull?!"

"Wait—dragons were real?" Elara asked, eyes wide. "I thought they were a myth."

"The last dragon was killed by our Alpha," Joan said proudly, as if that was supposed to be a good thing. "So now they’re bringing the skull back to the pack."

I stared at her like she’d grown three heads.

"The same Alpha who talks to himself, tried to force Elara to be sacrificed to ’test loyalty,’ and randomly fires arrows at butterflies?"

"That one!" Joan beamed.

I opened my mouth to ask how that skull would fit in the pack’s already cursed by the crazy psycho Alpha when BOOM! The door exploded open like it owed somebody money. One boot stomp.Two. Elara fainted on the spot. Joan dropped to her knees so fast she might’ve cracked the floor. My soul left my body temporarily, but I managed to join her in kneeling. He was here again. Alpha psycho! He scanned the room like he was picking ingredients for a potion. Then his finger shot up. He pointed at me. "Follow me." My stomach somersaulted. He turned without waiting. I had no choice. Because if you disobey Alpha Psycho, you might end up in his next "what-if-I-skinned-an-Omega" experiment or his usual strangle you I quickly ran after him without wasting anymore time. We walked down the long corridor in tense silence. I noticed he was walking faster than usual, probably trying to make my stubby Omega legs work overtime.

When we reached his office, I expected to be shoved into a pit or handed a contract to sign my soul over to Satan. But instead

A room full of people were already seated. High-ranking wolves. Advisors, The Luna.

All of them turned as we entered. I stopped dead in my tracks.

"WHAT?! Did this psycho leave a full council waiting just to come drag me here like a bag of potatoes?"

"Yes. Yes, I did. Let them wait. They’re all boring. I wanted to bring my pretty little toad to spice up the room."

He laughed in his inner voice. What is he up to again this time? I looked like I was about to pass out. He pulled out a chair for me and patted it. "Sit." Everyone stared at me. Even the Luna’s left eyebrow raised by one dramatic centimeter. I sat down obedientlyin silence. Then he turned to the table and clapped once.

"Let’s begin."

And just like that, the meeting resumed.

As one Elder droned on about border security, the Alpha’s thoughts kept popping into my brain like unwanted spam emails.

"Look at Elder Munroe. That mole on his nose is getting bigger. Probably plotting its own coup."

"Why does Luna wear so much perfume? I can smell her three towns away."

"Should I replace the advisors with raccoons? They’d probably make better decisions."

I was dying. I was literally wheezing from trying not to laugh. And then—oh no. He looked at me dead in the eyes.

"Why does she always wear that faded dress? Looks like she wrestled a tornado in it. Still... cute."

"Her lips twitch when she’s nervous. Like a toad. My beautiful little toad."

Oh God, Kill me, just Kill me now. I pressed my hands to my face, trying to hide my expression. Joan was right, I was going to die here. He kept taunting everyone. Out loud, he was calm and composed. But inside? He was a full-blown maniac.

"If this meeting goes on another minute, I’m going to yeet this table out the window."

Finally, after an hour of nonsense and absolute power-play madness, he dismissed the council. Everyone stood, bowed, and began to file out, Except me. Because the psycho held up one finger.

"You. Stay."

I swear, my kidneys tried to escape my body.

Everyone else was gone now. Just me and him. He walked over to his massive, ridiculous chair, sat down like a dark emperor, and stared at me.

"You tried to run," he said.

My mouth went dry, oh God not again "W-what?"

"You’re thinking about escaping . I can smell the thought on you."

How did he know that?

He didn’t know I could hear his thoughts. But he assumed he could read mine. Typical narcissist.

"You want to leave me, Elie?" he asked, voice soft.

I swallowed. "No, Alpha I swear I’m not trying to escape, I promise. I said shaking.

He leaned forward.

"You’re shaped like a tiny potato with anxiety issues. But cute. Very cute. I want to hang you on my wall. He stood.

I stood, too, instinctively, what is he talking about now? He walked around me in slow circles.

"Such tiny hands. Can they even hold a knife? Hmm. Should test that."

"Elie," he said out loud. "I’ve decided something."

braced myself for the worst.

"You will be in charge of guarding the dragon skull."

My brain exploded.

"WHAT?!"

"Yes," he smirked. "You’ll clean it. Polish it. Talk to it. I don’t care. It’s your new best friend."

"But—"

"No buts. Or I’ll cut yours off."

I nodded furiously. "Yes, Alpha."

He turned back to his desk and began writing. I took that as my cue to sprint out of the room like the floor was lava.

By the time I got back to the omegas quarters, Elara had recovered from her faint and Joan was eating burnt bread like it was gourmet. They both looked up.

"Elie, what happened?"

"I’m guarding a dragon skull now."

They blinked as I collapsed on the floor.

"Guys," I wheezed. "I think the Alpha’s in love with me." And Joan, bless her soul, started laughing so hard she nearly fell off the bench.

"Elie," she said through tears. "You’re screwed."