Therealomega black market. The one whispered about in courtrooms and prisons and back-alley bars. The one where unpolished alphas come back with what they never could’ve earned legally.An omega.
Holy fuck.
Alex notices the look on my face, and his eyes widen with worry. He straightens in his seat, his body tensing like a predator scenting something rare.
“What is it?” Tadeo stares intensely at my face.
I turn the phone so they can all see. “I think it’s actually the black market.”
“No way,” Alex breathes, eyes wide. His voice is half alaugh, half a whisper. “Holy shit.” He looks at Dakota. “This had better not be a fucking joke.”
Dakota holds up both hands, serious now. “I swear it’s not. I wouldn’t mess with something like this. I found it exactly how I said.”
“Orange markers?” Tadeo leans in closer, arms crossed tight over his chest. His gaze flickers over the screen, then back to me. His jaw ticks once. “They really expect people to find a bunch of random orange markers hidden in a giant forest?”
“Looks like it,” I say, trying to temper my expectations.
After all, this could be a prank of some kind or a trick…but what if it isn’t?
I’ve known so many alphas over the years, desperate to find the Morder, but it’s one of those things that you assume is a rumor. A pipe dream for sad fucks like me that would never qualify to get an omega any other way.
“We have to go,” Alex says, voice rising with excitement. “We have tofucking go.” He laughs like this is a dream come true. “We could actually get an omega, Knox. We could?—”
“It could be a trap.” Tadeo’s brow furrows, but his voice stays calm. “It’s not smart to blindly follow directions given to us by a QR code found taped behind a toilet. The governance board runs stings for this kind of thing all the time.”
“Not up north,” Dakota says with a snort. “Laws are more like suggestions up there.”
Alex smiles at the beta, then turns to Tadeo. “I get what you’re saying, Tad, but we gotta at least check it out.” He leans in, speaking softly, but firmly. “Because of Knox and I’s records, we willneverbe allowed to claim an omega through proper channels. Ever. But this,” his gaze flickersto the burner still in my hand, “this could be a real chance to complete our pack. Why not take it?”
Tadeo frowns, clearly not convinced.
Dakota finally speaks up, his voice soft and respectful, but not uncertain. “Look, I know I’ve only been with you guys for a little over a year, but I know forafactthat you all want an omega.” He looks right at Tadeo. “All three of you do.” His eyes narrow, as something silent passes between them. Maybe they had a private conversation about this?
Tadeo’s lips press into a tight line, and that’s all the confirmation I need to know Dakota’s telling the truth.
Of course Tadeo wants an omega—every alpha does.
But, because of me and Alex, Tadeo will never get to have one.
It’s a shame.
The young alpha’s got a clean record. A master’s degree in accounting and he’s a registered CPA. He has a real job as a CFO at a small startup, where he wears ties five days a week while he messes with spreadsheets. He could’ve had his pick of any omega at any academy. Hell, I even tried to talk him out of joining my pack. Told him he could do better and didn’t belong with me and Alex, and our rust-bucket, low-rent lifestyle.
He said he’d rather spend the rest of his life with us—and never have an omega—than leave for some fantasy that could end up being a disappointment anyway. He told us he’s met some awful omegas before, and there was no guarantee he’d get one that he could grow to love. He went on and on about how submission didn’t make up for a shitty personality.
At the time, I believed him.
And I guess I still do.
But it makes sense that he’d want an omega, too. Wealphas are wired to crave them. Our kind spends our whole lives seeking out the delicate creatures. The need to claim, mate, and breed is practically in our DNA.
And this might be my only chance to give my pack what they really want—what they deserve.
“Knox?” Dakota glances at the flyer on the kitchen table, then at me. “We have to at least check it out.” He looks so hopeful. “Right?”
I lean back in my chair, the burner phone still in my hand. “I think we’d be fools not to,” I say at last, tucking the phone into my pocket. “We can head up north a few days early and scope it out.”
“When is it?” Alex asks, already on his feet.
