When Elias is done with his questions, I’ll find her something to wear. She has to be cold. It might be summer in this part of the world, but it’s still chilly in the mountains.
“I’m Paige,” a petite X-Clan Omega says, her eyes lowered in deference. “I’m from Cusco Sector.”
“Guðrún,” the vampire beside her adds, her voice holding a tentative note to it. “Älva Nest.” She doesn’t look down like Paige does but instead stares at Elias cautiously, like she’s waiting for him to comment further.
He simply nods and looks at the female with Nordic features. She’s either an Ash wolf or an Ulv wolf, based on her scent. Her expression is borderline defiant as she introduces herself as “Hel.”
“And where are you from, Hel?” Elias presses.
“That depends,” she replies. “Why do you want to know?”
Elias considers her for a moment, his lips twitching despite her blatant rudeness.
Most Omegas bow to Alphas.
This one clearly does not.
Fortunately for her, Elias is pretty laid-back. I am, too.
If she attempts to speak to Ander or Kaz in this way, though, she will quickly be educated on X-Clan hierarchy and what it means to be an Omega in our world.
“We’re trying to determine where you came from and where you would like to go from here,” Elias informs her, his tone underlined with patience. “You’re welcome to join us in Andorra Sector, but we can also take you home, if that’s your preference.”
Hel narrows her gaze, suspicion clear in her expression. “That sounds too good to be true. And in my experience,gooddoesn’t really exist in this world.”
Guðrún nods in agreement, as does Paige.
But the Omega beside me stays quiet, her focus shifting from me to Elias.
“How did you end up here?” he asks, his attention on Hel. “Were you taken or traded?”
“Both,” she growls. “Taken as an unwilling bride, then traded for a more submissive model.” She folds her arms, her air of defiance returning with a vengeance. “Do you know Jarl?”
Elias frowns, glancing at me.
“I’ve never met anyone by that name,” I tell him.
“Same,” Elias says. “Who’s Jarl?”
Hel stares at him for a long moment, evaluating him and then me. “He’s a Balor wolf. From Wildborn Sector.”
Elias’s brow furrows even more.
But a bell goes off in my head, a face appearing in my memories. “Tall, crooked nose, pointy jaw, thinning blond hair? Smells like mold?”
Hel freezes, telling me I’ve not only described him appropriately, but she’s not his biggest fan. “You do know him.”
“I’ve seen him around here a few times,” I admit. “But no, I don’t know him. He’s also dead. One of the many Alpha casualties sustained today during our raid.” I shrug. “I hope he didn’t mean much to you.” Because I can’t exactly apologize for the loss. He, like many of the others, deserved their fates today.
“He… he’s dead?” she repeats, her bravado seeming to fail her. “Oh.” Her brow crinkles. “Oh.”
“Raid?” Paige asks, her gaze finally lifting up from the ground. “W-what do you mean?”
“We’ve shut down Carlos’s operations here,” Elias tells her. “Now we have the very difficult task of returning you all to yourhomes, if that’s where you want to go. So I’m going to ask again, where are you from? And if you don’t want to share that, then where would you like to go?”
Hel and Paige look at each other, then Hel clears her throat.
“Savage Sector,” she says. “My brother is Alpha Ragnar.”
