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“Hey, don’t say that,” Iris says, gripping my shoulder. “You’re braver than any of us, including our mates. I doubt we could’ve survived what you went through. Don’t belittle your courage, Rory.”
“Iris and I grew up in different environments,” says Julian. “My parents sold me to omega traffickers when I was barely five years old.”
“What?!”
“Caleb’s dad rescued me from them,” he continues. “There was a time when I felt like a burden to this pack too. But none of that was true, though, you know? Your mates truly love you and care for you. Otherwise, they’d never go to such lengths to keep you by their side.”
“Julian’s right,” Iris insists. “Seth, Oliver, and Simon love you.”
“I feel so weak, though,” I say in a bitter tone as tears prick my eyes. “This isn’t the first time Seth got hurt while protecting me. I wish I could get strong enough to protect him too.”
“It’s never too late to start,” Iris says with a warm smile.
“Are you sure?” I say in a small voice. “I’m just an omega.”
Julian glances at Iris. “You should show her what an omega can do. It’s the only way to prove she can be strong too.”
“You’re right.” Unzipping her hoodie, she takes it off.
Julian grabs the jacket and gestures for me to follow him to a corner of the gym.
“What’s going on?” I ask as Iris moves further away from us.
“Just watch,” Julian tells me, his gaze fixed on his mate.
Staring ahead, I see Rory positioning herself into an impressive fighting stance. With a cry, she executes a series of strikes that remind me of the martial arts movies I’ve watched in the past.
Suddenly, I’m reminded of my friend, Kaida. She’d started taking private lessons in martial arts when we were both studying at the omega academy.
Back then, I thought she was crazy for learning defensive techniques. It’s only now that I realize she was the smartest of us all. She realized early on that omegas need to be strong too.
Her fiery speeches about omega self-empowerment echo in my mind as I watch Iris.
“Wow,” I breathe as Iris’s moves get faster. “My eyes can barely keep up with her.”
“Yep! She’s a pro in taekwondo,” Julian says with a grin. “Isn’t she impressive?”
“Yeah...”
“I watched her fight off a dozen betas the first time I met her,” he says with a nostalgic look in his violet eyes. “I fell in love with her that very moment.”
“It’s amazing how you accepted her,” I say. “It’s rare for two omegas to be in the same pack. I could never imagine sharing Seth, Oliver, and Simon with anyone else.”
“I’m the one who chose her,” Julian says as we continue to watch Iris’s lethal dance. “I was the first one to welcome her into my home. Iris is the most special person in my life. She’s as important to me as Caleb, Damon, and Raiden.”
It’s a while before Iris comes to an elegant stop and looks toward us. “What’d you think?”
“Oh, you’re like a Kung Fu master!” I say, grinning in awe.
Chuckling, she jogs toward us. “I’ve been training in Taekwondo for years now,” she says, blowing away a stray strand of her golden hair.
“I doubt I can ever move like that,” I say, feeling thoroughly hopeless.
“I’ve been training since I was ten years old,” Iris says in a grim tone. “Of course, you can’t move like that. No one can.”
“True,” says Julian. “It’d take years even for an alpha to become as fast and powerful as her.”
“I don’t even know where to start,” I say, unable to suppress my frustration with myself.
