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1
TRACY
“Do whatever you want, Tracy. Really.”
“Thank you.” I let out a breath, and my tight grip on the phone loosened.
Tiffany was the best fucking case manager I’d ever had at the Omega Matching Network. I hoped she’d never quit.
She never made me explain myself.
“So, I’ll talk to you in a year?”
The Network required that omegas check in regularly until they were bonded. Tiffany understood that, for me, it was just a formality. I was unbonded by choice. Maybe someday I’d change my mind, but for now I wasn’t looking for a pack.
It was hard to imagine I ever would.
“Yep, a year.” I allowed myself a little smile. “Talk to you then.”
“Oh! Before you go, I almost forgot. Have you talked to Kat lately?”
Weird question. Tiffany wasn’t Kat’s case manager anymore, but they’d stayed friends. So Tiffany probably already knew what I was going to say. I answered anyway.
“Not recently. The last time we spoke, she was doing well.”
Kat and I had gone to the same therapist for a while. We’d both survived a frightening abduction, and it was helpful to process it together.
After a few sessions, it became clear we were handling it differently. Kat had a pack. She embraced being an omega. I…did not. We started doing individual therapy. But we kept in touch, even though it reminded me of a week of my life I would’ve rather forgotten.
I knew this was Tiffany’s subtle way of asking whether I was taking care of my baggage. She didn’t respond right away, so I decided to cut the bullshit.
“I’m okay, Tiffany. Kat’s okay. Most days, I just don’t want to think about it.”
“Got it. I’m here if you ever want to talk.”
“Thanks. I appreciate it.” I really did. Tiffany was a good listener, with above-average empathy, even for an omega. If I ever decided to embrace that side of myself, she’d be my role model.
“Take care, Tracy.”
“You too.” I turned off my phone and silenced it.
The call hadn’t lasted more than five minutes, but it left me feeling exhausted. I wandered into my small kitchen and poured myself a cup of coffee, then stared out the window over the sink as I sipped.
It was late morning, according to the clock. The sky was so dark with clouds, it felt like evening. I shivered and wrapped my hands around the mug to warm my cold fingers. The single-pane window didn’t do much to keep out the early spring chill.
I gazed up at the mountain range in my backyard, and none of the rest of it mattered. It didn’t matter that I was freezing, or that it was gloomy out, or that I was struggling to push ugly memories back into a dark cave in my mind. It was just beautiful, and I was just me.
Out here, in my little house in the woods, I wasn’t a coveted omega. I was just Tracy. Here, I could breathe.
“Hey, Trace.”
I jolted as the screen door banged shut and my roommate, Maddie, walked in the living room. Her heavy boots thudded on the old, vinyl tile floor, leaving a faint trail of dirty prints.
Staff cottages weren’t fancy, but they were easy to clean.
“Shit, you startled me.” Thankfully, I didn’t spill any coffee. I might have cried if I had.
“Having one of your moments?” Maddie smiled. “Did you talk to your handler?”
