Page 4 of The Omega Switch: Part 2

Hunter didn't waste time, his body almost growing bigger as his alpha presence filled the room. I saw Clara flinch as she moved backward until Aaron wrapped his arms around her. "You don’t ask the questions here. I do. Now where is Ivy?" Hunter repeated, a threatening growl lacing his voice.

The question was met with a collection of puzzled expressions that immediately made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. Clara frowned as though she genuinely didn't understand what he was asking.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"Where is she?" Hunter repeated. “Give me an answer. Now!”

"She's at the house," Clara said, her pitch rising as she looked between us.

"No, she isn’t,” I said, dangerously close to losing my damn mind at these people. They left their own daughter alone to ride out a heat, a very dangerous one, and now they seemed to have no idea where she was. If she wasn’t located soon, I was going to start breaking things.

George exchanged a glance with the others before looking back at us. "What are you talking about?"

I resisted the urge to yell. "How long has it been since any of you have spoken to her?" I asked, my voice straining.

George shrugged dismissively. "A few days. Why does it matter? She didn’t bother Arabella again, did she?” he asked, and I felt my skin heat in anger. They didn’t even know she was missing.

Panic filled me so quickly that I nearly forgot to breathe. "You haven't spoken to your daughter in several days," I repeated slowly, struggling to comprehend what I was hearing, "and not one of you thought that might be a problem?"

Clara waved a hand as though brushing away an insignificant inconvenience. "She has to learn her lesson. She needed some time to cool down after the whole incident." Aaron tightened his hold on Clara and stepped in front of her.

“Now what’s this all about? What happened?” He asked. Ronan’s entire body tensed, his dark gaze drifting over each of them as his fists clenched. Hunter let out a low growl, and between the two of them, their alpha dominance was filling the room, an oppressive force that felt like it sucked the air out of your lungs. Pack Carrington at least had the decency to look worried.

“You left your daughter alone during her heat. That’s the problem.” Hunter said in a voice so cold that I could see the alphas flinch.

“Ah - how did you hear about that?” Phillip asked, his voice careful.

“We didn’t hear about it. We went to your house - where we smelled the scent of our match. Our real match.” Hunter said, each word heavier than the last. “Ivy. Not Arabella.”

Silence filled the room as panic flashed across the faces of every member of Pack Carrington.

“You have no proof of that. Ivy’s telling tall tales,” one of the men argued. I pulled out my phone and pulled up the Bond profile that supposedly belonged to Arabella. I looked at them. “What’s Arabella’s birthday?” I asked, and the pack looked at each other questioningly.

“We celebrated it a few weeks ago, you remember,” Aaron said with a forced chuckle. I fumed. Of course I remembered celebrating Arabella’s birthday. We’d gone all out on the celebration for her.

“Then why does our match’s profile have a different birthdate?” I asked, turning my phone to show them the profile that Arabella had submitted as her own - which was really Ivy’s profile. “This is Ivy’s birthday, isn’t it?” I asked, and their faces paled.

My mind went back to that date, which was Ivy’s birthday. I tried to remember what we’d done. We were with Arabella that weekend, and her family had just had meetings about the upcoming launches. Then I realized something that shook me to my core.

“You never told us it was Ivy’s birthday that day,” I said, and though I didn't realize it was possible, I managed to feel even sicker. “You didn’t even celebrate it, did you?” I asked, feeling my pack’s surprise and anger vibrate through our bond. Pack Carrington looked at each other, then Aaron stepped forward.

“Well, Ivy hates the spotlight, you know that,” Aaron said with a chuckle. “Anyway, I suppose Arabella got into some of the perfumes and had a mix-up. But Arabella is your match, not Ivy.” He said, a fake smile plastered on his face.

I could barely hold back the fury welling up inside of me. “Don’t you dare fucking insult us like that! We smelled Ivy's scent at your house.” I said through clenched teeth. “We know Arabella submitted false records. We know that Ivy wasn’t lying. We know everything.” I said, stepping forward as I fought to keep myself from lunging at them. “Your entire family lied to us. And worse, you put Ivy’s life at risk!” I was yelling now.

Clara moved forward slightly, trying her best to calm us with her omega presence. Aaron grabbed her arm, holding her back.

“Look, whatever happened, take some time to think it through. We never hurt Ivy. She just needed some time alone, and then her heat hit. After everything that happened, it was best to let her have time to think about her actions.

"...During her heat?" I asked incredulously.

Clara sighed, already sounding tired of the conversation. "It really wasn't that big of a deal."

Something inside me shattered. "It wasn't a big deal?" I heard myself repeat, my voice rising before I could stop it. Years of professional composure dissolved beneath a tidal wave of disbelief and fury that I could no longer contain.

"You left an unbonded omega completely alone during her heat after forcing her to suppress her natural cycles for Arabella’s convenience," I shouted, my voice echoing off the suite's walls. "Do you have any idea how dangerous that is? Do you understand what prolonged suppressant use does to an omega's body? The hormonal damage alone can take years to reverse, not to mention the increased risks of dehydration, cardiovascular stress, and worst of all, psychological trauma. A heat that intense would require monitoring and support, which you damn well know!” I shouted, and Clara’s eyes went wide. “And yet instead of ensuring she was safe, you abandoned her in your house as though she were nothing more than an inconvenience! With a beta guard! A lot of good that would do if a stray alpha decided to come searching for her!" I yelled, and Ronan growled threateningly.

Phillip stepped forward, his hands out. “Look, let’s not overstate things here. The guard was left for her protection. He would have notified us if she needed anything. You're making it sound dramatic." He said. My pack’s growls filled the room, and I knew they were close to losing it.