His Defiant Omega (The Royal Omegas Book 2) Page 3

  “I don’t trust you,” she said, and I felt that all the way to my bones. She didn’t trust me, but I wanted her to. My animal wanted her to. So we could bring the omegas home, that’s what I told myself. But there was a part of me that knew I wanted her trust for other reasons.

  “You don’t have a choice out here.”

  Her eyes narrowed. “I always have a choice. Now. Before, maybe that was true, but not anymore. Remember that, Dagger.” The way she said my name, like a weapon off the tip of her tongue, made my cock hard behind my groin cloak.

  Mine, my wolf declared, but I wouldn’t give it even an ounce of authority right now. Tavia wasn’t mine. Couldn’t be. Especially not like this.

  I always have a choice.

  Fine. She wanted choices? I’d make it real clear for her. “If you want to save the omegas, you will have to submit to me. Let me do my job.”

  She shared a glance with Charolet.

  “Submit to you?” she spat, her eyes going wild with the evidence of a wolf that could shift. A wolf so unlike mine. “Haven’t I submitted enough to you for one lifetime? I’ve worked my fingers to the bone in your castle. I’ve walked in torn shoes that I could barely mend anymore, while your boots were polished and shined by people I love. You want submission, alpha? You’ve had it for too long. You won’t get it now.”

  The alpha in me bucked at the defiance. My wolf rippled under my skin, wanting closer to Tavia. If we were alone, I would show her that submitting to me didn’t have to be a bad thing. She would learn that submission could be liberating. Pleasurable. Fulfilling. Yes, I’d change her mind about a lot.

  Except we weren’t alone. And we were wasting time.

  “What’s holding you back?” I asked, impatient.

  “I told you. I don’t trust you. I don’t believe you’ll do what’s best for my people.”

  There was only one way to prove it to her, and it would take time. Time for her to get to know me. The real me. Who I was underneath the royal façade. And time for me to gain her trust.

  A lot of fucking time we didn’t have.

  “Come with me.” I turned, expecting her to follow, but she didn’t. “Tavia.”

  She frowned, clearly trying to make sense of my demand. After several tense moments, she stepped forward… still clinging to Charolet.

  “No. Just you.”

  “I’m going with her,” Charolet insisted. “Where she goes, I go.”

  I scowled, growing more agitated. “That’s great in theory, but it won’t work out here. You’ll slow each other down like this. Besides, we’re just going beyond that boulder.” I pointed to a spot far enough away no one would hear what I was going to tell Tavia.

  “No. I don’t know what you’ll do to her—”

  “It’s okay,” Tavia interrupted. “I’ll go.”

  “Tav, no. It isn’t safe.”

  She turned to face her friend. “We’re never safe. Remember? But he’s right about one thing. We won’t make it through this fighting each other.” She glanced at me. “If I don’t return, go back to Luxoria. Get Zelene.”

  If I don’t return. What, did she expect me to drag her beyond the rock and murder her? Shit, either my omega had a wild imagination or she was batshit crazy. Killing her wouldn’t earn my place back. It wouldn’t earn anyone’s respect. Besides, I didn’t want another drop of omega blood on my hands.

  I headed once again for the stack of boulders we’d passed earlier. It was several hundred feet away from the main caravan. I knew Tavia followed because the dust she kicked up swirled between us.

  “What is this about, Dagger?”

  As soon as we were hidden behind the rock, I wasted no time getting to the point.

  “I’m going to tell you something no one else knows. I’ll tell you because I don’t have time to gain your trust any other way. But before I do, I need your word that you won’t tell another soul. Not even your sister.”

  “Fine.”

  “No, not fucking fine, Tavia. Telling anyone could put others in danger. I don’t need any more of that shit on my shoulders. I want your word, and goddamn it, I hope your word actually means something.”

  She lifted that stubborn chin once more. “Would an omega’s word mean anything to you anyway?”

  “I wouldn’t ask for it if it didn’t,” I pushed through clenched teeth.

  Her skeptical gaze searched my face for lies, but she wouldn’t find any.

  “All right, Dagger. You have my word. I’ll keep your secret, but I won’t guarantee it will make us friends.”

  We’d never be friends, her and me, and I didn’t want to be. “Agreed.” I sighed, searching the horizon for any sign of trouble. It was instinctual to keep watch. Like swallowing or taking a breath. “You think I won’t bring home the missing omegas. That I don’t give a shit about what happens to your people.”

  Tavia nodded, confirming what she’d already said.

  “You’re wrong about that.”

  “Right.” She crossed her arms over her chest. “Alphas don’t care about omegas. Period. Our current king aside. And still, he only cares about one. I’ve been wrong about a lot of things in my life, but not this.”

  I raised an eyebrow. “Oh? Are you the expert on my feelings then?”

  She frowned and I stepped closer, inching into her space. I didn’t mean to, but she was like gravity pulling me forward.

  “Because if so, maybe you can explain to me how the hell I have an omega for a mate.”

  Tavia went still. “What?”

  “My mate is omega.” There. I’d said it out loud. The truth I’d been denying for so many months. And fuck if the words didn’t scald my chest on the way out.

  “You’ve mated one of us? That’s against the law,” she breathed.

  “Was against the law. But no, I’ve never acted on it.” I was a good goddamned General. Never broke the king’s laws, never betrayed his trust. Never betrayed my kind.

  Look where it got me.

  “Your mate is omega?” She squinted at the information, her expression going from skeptical to shocked and back again.

  “Yes. And now that you know, I want this shit to stop. No more questioning me or my loyalties. You’ll let me do my job. Let me find the missing and return them so I can make things right.”

  Tavia blinked, moving her head in a half-hearted nod.

  Good enough.

  “Let’s go.” Charolet was probably pacing a gully in the sand waiting for us to return.

  “Dagger, wait.”

  I found Tavia’s wide eyes, ignoring the grim set of her mouth. She didn’t say anything for several breaths. “Does… does she know? Your omega. Does she know that she’s yours?”

  “No.” My answer was firm. “And she never will if I have anything to say about it.”

  Chapter Six

  Tavia

  One omega was all it took to make King Adalai see the need for change. Maybe that’s all it would take for Dagger too.

  Why was I wasting precious time wondering which omega was his mate? We were behind enemy lines, and omegas’ lives were at stake.

  My wolf was restless inside me, wanting to challenge him. There was no way I would let him off the hook, but I had to show him he could trust me. Lead by example.

  “What’s our next move?” I asked.

  He had the eyes of a warrior. Bright and sharp and never missing a detail. His gaze was on me. It had been since he’d made his declaration. He’ll fight for one omega...my wolf reminded me. That’s all it takes to change everything.

  “The men in the caravan, those are beta soldiers,” he said. Since I ambushed him with my arrival right before departure, this was my first explanation on how things worked in the army. I’d been fighting for years in a war that had no official rules. “They’re canvassing the city now. They’ll report to Cassian, and once we have the intelligence, we’ll strike if we need to.”

  “Tavia!” Charolet came around the wall of boulders and
skidded to a stop. “Oh good, you’re safe.”

  “What the fuck,” Dagger muttered under his breath and walked away.

  I shook my head at her, and she raised her arms. “You were gone for so long. And it was too quiet. I’m sorry. If that had happened in the Badlands, you would’ve wanted me to come for you.”

  “I know. You did the right thing. But…” I put my hand on her shoulder, surprised how frustrated I was with her, and conflicted, because if I could share Dagger’s secret, she’d understand. “The rules are changing fast.”

  Her mouth dropped. “What did he threaten you with back here?”

  “Nothing.” My heart was skipping beats in my chest. “Come, we have to get to work. There are omegas to rescue.”

  She squinted at me, knowing she wasn’t getting the whole story. “The reason I’m here is to make sure your life isn’t at risk, Tavia. Some of those omegas...the kindest thing we could do is let them go. Put them out of their misery. Their brains have been altered. They’re not Weren anymore. They’re machine, and they’re controlled by humans.”

  Her words sent waves of chills down my spine. “I fight for the Badlands. That doesn’t change. I’m…” I glanced at Dagger, who’d stormed over to Cassian. Back in full warrior mode. I wondered what he’d look like as a wolf. Probably fucking magnificent, with those dark eyes and endless muscles. His gaze snapped back to me. I met it, not in challenge, but in solidarity before I turned back to a stunned Charolet. “We have to work with him—”

  “He’s the one who got us into this mess.”

  “Was he, though? He was following the king’s orders, Char. If he’d broken ranks, he would’ve been punished. And we would’ve suffered even more.”

  “Why would he break ranks with the king?” She eyed Dagger suspiciously.

  Shit, I’d said too much. I wished I could just tell her. Nothing would ever chink our armor. We’d been through too much for that. But if she knew he had an omega mate, she’d be willing to put more trust in him.

  “You’re totally right. We’re probably too late for the omegas that were already captured. Even if they haven’t gone full mutant, the humans would’ve tainted their minds.” I hoped that wasn’t true. That we could save some of them. Jacoby, my friend who’d only been captured days before. I knew that some of the things I’d have to do on this trip would keep me up at night for years. But so would the image of his sweet face being tortured by the humans. I knew which one I could live with. “We save who we can, and we make sure that the humans never treat the Badlands like their own personal science experiment ever again.”

  “That was always the mission. You’re not answering my question.”

  “What question?”

  “What the hell did Dagger do to you back there to make you submit to his will?”

  Submit. There was that word again, and my wolf liked it even less this time. “He didn’t do anything to me,” I whispered. “And I’m not submitting. He asked me to stop fighting him. To work with him.”

  “And just like that, you will?”

  “The old way hasn’t worked. It did for Zelene, but we’re still omegas, Char. We have a chance to prove to him what we’re capable of. This is what we’ve been waiting for. Do you want to waste it pissing Dagger off or do you want to see our friends come home safe?”

  She sighed. “You’re right. But I have my eye on him.”

  “So do I.” My wolf twisted uncomfortably inside me, and my temperature rose. Shit, no. I could not go into heat while we were out here. Wait, I begged my wolf. We had no idea how long this mission would last. There was only so long I could keep my animal’s needs at bay.

  “Tavia.” Dagger’s voice was sharp, snapping me into action.

  “And she just goes,” Charolet grumbled only loud enough for me to hear. “Like he’s got her wrapped around his finger.”

  He heard her too. At one time, his amused expression would’ve sent me into a fit of rage. But now, a weight lifted off my shoulders, not having that kind of anger standing in the way of progress. For the first time, I thought we really could work together.

  Submit. I had to get that word out of my head.

  I crossed my arms in front of my chest and widened my stance when I stood before him. I was much smaller than the alpha wolves. Yes, I’d come when called, but I wasn’t submitting. I was just as fierce as these huge men, and ready to fight.

  “What’s our plan?” I asked, ignoring the snickers. Normally, they would’ve been laughing at me, but I convinced myself they were laughing with me. Not one soldier in our army missed the power shift that happened before our conversation. I hadn’t given up an inch. Agreeing to work with Dagger meant we could move forward. It made us all stronger.

  “Ready to meet the human leaders?”

  “Are we ready for battle?” If we were, I was woefully unprepared for the official fight. To this point, I’d only fought with my bare hands and claws and any weapons I’d managed to...find. Didn’t need to say how. The Badlands was about the survival. So was war. But they traded currency, in nuance, I wasn’t familiar with.

  “Not yet. The goal is to avoid that at all cost,” he said. “We’ve come uninvited. It’s time to negotiate. I’m bringing you as my omega ambassador.”

  Wow. Okay, that was a huge change. “Do they know…” I had to choose my words so much more carefully than I would have just moments before. “About your change in status?”

  “All they need to know is that I’m the leader of this mission. Are you ready to represent your people?”

  I’d been waiting for this chance my entire life. “I was born ready.”

  Chapter Seven

  Dagger

  The human stronghold had no name, but once upon an ancient time, it was a city of bright lights and thriving economy. A place where people came to delight their more sinful natures. It had no wall to keep it safe from intruders like Luxoria did. No castle with lush green gardens. Only an old hotel that was shaped like one. No abundant food and water. No beauty except the old broken down buildings and giant unusable signage that long ago lit up the night.

  And there was a certain beauty about that.

  It felt somewhat like a museum in the way that it failed to preserve the honesty of things ancient. It held them, encapsulated, as they continued to deteriorate with time. It was like looking at the past through a filter of grime and dirt and hard living and death.

  I led half of the betas through the crumbling streets, with Tavia at my side. It was stupid to bring her here, an omega so close to the people who would turn her into a slobbering half-formed beast at the first opportunity. But leaving her behind would have threatened our fragile truce. The only thing keeping my inner animal calm was knowing that she was able to shift into her wolf at will. She could protect herself better than most of my men.

  I glanced at her as we marched closer to the tattered keep where we’d meet the human leaders. Chin forward as always, eyes steady, unafraid. Why was she so damn brave? Why wasn’t she shaking in her boots like any other untrained person would be?

  But I already knew the answer. She was omega. The lowest had become the toughest through circumstance. The fire had forged strong steel. Once, not long ago, that fact had made me proud.

  Maybe it still did.

  To have a mate as brave as Tavia at my side…

  No. I meant what I said to her behind the boulders. She would never know who she was to me. I never intended to claim her.

  As we approached the keep several mutants came into view. They stood guard around the perimeter, on their human looking hind legs. Tails twitched in warning as their glowing eyes watched our every move.

  “They look different,” Cassian whispered at my right. I agreed. Less crazed expressions. Less violent even, than the mutants we’d encountered at the castle walls. These beasts, who stood head and shoulders above my men, looked the same but were calculated and calm.

  Comfortable. As if this was their home turf.
<
br />   My band of betas stopped at the entrance of the keep.

  “We have come to negotiate with the human leaders,” I declared loud enough for them all to hear.

  There was a beat of silence before the mutant closest to the entrance began a hearty chuckle. “Negotiate?” he growled through his wolf snout, teeth bared, ears twitching. “You must be as stupid as you look.”

  The doors of the keep swung open on an electric powered arm, creaking ominously.

  I turned to my betas. “You remain here. Cassian, Tavia, and Charolet, you’re with me.” I didn’t wait to see what anyone thought of my orders. I strolled into the keep, letting my resonance as an alpha lead the way. The humans wouldn’t be immune to my dominance.

  In the center of the room stood three human males, each adorned in modern armor. The sort that looked thin and cloth-like but was stronger than steel. Bulletproof. They wore weapons, the same as my men did. Blades a plenty, guns strapped to their back and waist, and probably some more hidden somewhere on their bodies. But they wouldn’t need any of those with the number of mutants who crowded the room.

  Tavia let off a small gasp as the entire space came into view.

  “Welcome, soldiers of Luxoria,” one male spoke as he stepped forward. I could tell by the way he held himself that he was the main dick in charge. His eyes gleamed with challenge as his gaze swept over the four of us, settling heavy on Tavia. “Or should I say… Luxoria and the Badlands?”

  “We are one people now,” I said, forcing his attention back to me. “United.”

  “Ah, yes. We’ve heard about the king’s marriage to an omega. I have to admit, that move took us by surprise. We were forced to act quickly.” He turned back to Tavia. “We so regretted what we had to do to your homeland.”

  She glared at the man, and I could feel anger rolling off of her. No doubt, the human could too.

  “I am Renaldo, the Supreme Commander of the Human Forces.” He gestured to the other two. “These are my officers. Davidoff and Ezekiel.” Dual nods of acknowledgement was the only movement the other two made.

  “I am Dagger, King’s General of the Southern Borders,” I lied. “This is Cassian, General of the West. Charolet of the Queen’s court.” I could almost feel her scoff at the title as I continued. “And this is Tavia, Ambassador to the Omegas.” My voice curled protectively around her name. And if I could hear it, so could they.