Page 28 of The Omega

The crowd of Alphas and Lunas backed off as she pushed me like a freight train toward the elevators.

“I need medical,” I told her, trying to make sure I steered us in the right direction before I collapsed.

“You better not be trying to die on us again,” Cindy growled as she looped her arm under my shoulders, practically carrying me down the hall.

“I’m really trying not to.” I panted as we came to a stop outside the door with the red cross. “Thanks for… Why are you helping me?”

The pain was too intense to be as polite as I should’ve been and I winced as the words left my mouth.

Cindy didn’t seem to care. “Let’s just say I’ve had an attitude change since last year.” She threw a smile over her shoulder to the cameras who were rushing to catch up and then lowered her voice so only I could hear, “Also, you can tell Ranger and Aspen to back off. I’m not here for trouble. I just need to get through this season.”

Heat flushed my skin as I nodded. “Same.”

“And sorry about the, you know…” Cindy pushed open the door. “I’ll keep the cameras away.”

“Thank you,” I breathed as I hurried inside.

A human male with a clipboard and stethoscope rushed toward me, brow furrowing with concern as I slumped onto the chair. “What happened? Where are you hurt?”

“I can’t talk to you,” I mumbled as I rested my head back against the wall and crossed my legs, repeating the words I’d been taught to say if I ever had an emergency. And this was an emergency with a capital E. “Please call the Omega hotline and tell them Opal Morganton needs assistance.”

*

Once, when I was young and my mom wasn’t messed up—which takes a lot for a wolf but she had three times the reason to numb the pain—she took me to my first Omega doctor visit.

Come to think of it, maybe it was Alpha Journey who drove us. Mom wasn’t driving at that time, and it was a four-hour trip to the clinic in Pennsylvania. We went by a place called Hersheypark and I imagined it’d be just like Willa Wonka’s chocolate factory, but we sadly didn’t stop to check it out.

I remember getting a handful of almond chocolate kisses, though. And the Zen Garden with the waterfall in the middle of the hospital lobby. The rooms were so clean. The chairs were soft. Beautiful and gentle women spoke in singsong voices as they took me to the back rooms.

Alpha Journey wouldn’t have been allowed inside, so that’s probably why I didn’t have him in the memory.

Actually, my mom didn’t come inside either.

But I wasn’t scared. Who could be? Not with women as nice as this.

“Is she in here?”

I cracked one eye open at the voice intruding on my memories. I didn’t know her, but I didn’t have to. Our souls called to same.

Omega, my wolf sighed in relief.

“What’s going on?” Ken Damar stood behind the willowy, tall, and beautiful older Omega nurse whose golden hair was braided into a mane hanging down past her shoulder and stethoscope. She had kind eyes and a spattering of freckles across the cutest pert little nose.

I nodded to answer her, staring pointedly at the cameras until the door closed and blocked them out.

She seemed in no rush to talk, either.

It was Ken who panicked. “Someone tell me what is happening.”

“Everything is fine.” I smiled at him even as the pain cramped my belly again. “I just needed the nurse.”

I felt bad about enacting this part of my contract and requesting specialized medical care, but I couldn’t talk to a regular medic about these specific… troubles.

“Are you sure you’re okay? We don’t want a repeat of last season.” Ken hovered by the door, looking worriedly at the nurse. “She’s going to be fine. Right, Penelope?”

The Omega—Penelope—gave him a serene smile that even soothed some of the tension in my shoulders. I mirrored it, waiting until she guided the producer back out of the room, and the door shut again.

“It hurts,” I cried, bending at the waist to hug my knees.