Fuck.Fuck!
***
Jasmine sat in the middle of our group along our side of the table in the council room. We had called our three closest neighbors: Burgess and Hammond, our allies, and Drumheller, with whom our relationship was tentative, but not hostile.
We all sat at the table, and I glanced around at the gathered alphas.
From Burgess, there were Mads, Franco, Hunter, and Xavi with their mate, Penny. All five of them looked happy but tired, and there was a distinctive scent of milk around them, indicative of their infant daughter. They didn’t bring the baby with them, of course.
From Hammond were Julian, Quentin, Chip, and Zachary. They didn’t seem too pleased to have Penny and Jasmine attending, but kept their expressions neutral.
And finally, Bridge, Paxton, Nick, and Samson came from Drumheller. They were more distinctly uncomfortable and avoided looking at our omega wives entirely.
Jace, Mads, Julian, and Bridge were the ones who spoke for each of their towns. Jace explained what I’d found and our subsequent investigation of the grasslands. That space had long been considered neutral territory, a sanctuary for the grassland ecosystems, since other grassland spaces were converted into crop fields.
“We haven’t had any concerns like that near Drumheller,” Bridge said, a heavy frown on his face. “How extensively did you investigate the blackened area?”
“It seems to extend in a semi-circle around our border,” Jace answered. “But we did not investigate close to any of your territories. We took samples of the dead grass and the soil and took them into the city to run some tests. We’re hoping to get results back tomorrow.”
Bridge nodded once. “We will investigate our side soon. We have had a few strange incidents that may be connected to this dark energy, but”—he glanced at Penny briefly—“I am not sure what you expect us to do about it.”
“If Tyrell has the same pattern as Burgess, you should expect more manifestations of the dark energy soon,” Mads said. “Pack members becoming violent, more animal deaths.”
At this, Julian tapped his fingers against the table. “Isn’t your marriage to the omega meant to solve these problems?”
I tensed as Jasmine flinched next to me. I put an arm around her instinctively, fighting the urge to growl. My wolf paced in my chest, agitated by the sudden negative attention on her.
“Burgess’s problems didn’t resolve instantly, either,” Owen said between clenched teeth. “We are working on what Jasmine’s special purpose is in our pack. So far our research hasn’t turned up much.” He paused, then tilted his head. “You know, if the pattern holds, then both of your towns will be facing similar problems soon. You should start researching your own omega histories and begin making changes.”
“You assume that it’s going to be a problem,” Julian replied. “Maybe if your omega fulfills her purpose properly, it will take care of this dark energy in its entirety.”
Owen pushed himself to his feet as the rest of us gritted our teeth. “And what’s that supposed to mean?”
Julian gave him a cold look. “Just what I said. It’s not us that the Goddess has visited, and Burgess has been free of all its dark energy. If Tyrell is having so much difficulty, one can only assume it’s the fault of your own omega.”
“This is not her fault,” Owen said sharply.
I tightened my arm around Jasmine. From the corner of my eye, I saw the Burgess alphas gathering closer around Penny. Of course. Julian’s remarks might not be directed at Penny, but by slinging mud at omegas, some was bound to land on her.
“Casting blame on omegas is what got this whole nonsense started in the first place,” Jace said.
Julian’s fingers kept drumming. “They are the ones that laid this curse down in the first place.”
“Not a curse,” Mads interrupted. “A warning. One that we all had best heed. The Goddess may very well come to Hammond next and assign an omega for your marriage. I believe that these marriages are largely meant to force a perspective change in our packs. If we all treated our omegas the way they deserve, with respect, then it wouldn’t be necessary to force marriages.”
It occurred to me that I wasn’t mad about the forced marriage anymore. If anything, I was happy that Jasmine was in our lives now. Would we have ended up with her regardless, if we hadn’t been such bullies and idiots?
Julian dropped the discussion, though he didn’t seem convinced. I hoped that the other alphas took our words to heart. It would certainly cause a lot less turmoil if they could change their omegas’ social position before the darkness started to attack them.
The conversation didn’t last much longer after that. It was agreed that each pack would check out the areas closest to them outside of their territory for any of the blackened vegetation, then the alphas of Hammond and Drumheller both left.
Jasmine leaned into me as she let out a tense breath. “That was more intense than I thought it would be.”
Burgess’s four alphas had stayed behind with Penny. She headed toward us, and her four alphas tensed, glaring specifically at me. I kept my arm around Jasmine, attempting to keep my expression smooth.
I didn’t blame them, really. Last year, when Penny was still new to everything, I had the bright idea that I was going to test just how solid their relationship was, so I’d flirted with her. Penny had been completely oblivious to my flirtations, but the four alphas hadn’t been. They’d been so jealous that it convinced me their bond wasn’t just because of a Goddess-forced marriage.
Penny pulled Jasmine into a tight hug. “How are you holding up?”
