Dim lighting, the smell of damp paper, the clickety-clack of a keyboard that's missing the letter e, this is her life now.
Sure, she helped a man and his son save their hole-in-the-wall diner, but she feels underwhelmed. She'd expected do-gooding to be more rewarding.
Well, she owes them.
The two took her in when no one else would. Who'd want a starving, pregnant, unmated omega, gaunt and waterlogged?
No one but these two saints.
They gave her a job, and when she proved herself, they gave her a better job. Finances are finances, whether they're for ruthless Pack Alphas or the son and parents duo that is the Walkers.
And so Ariadne went from a busgirl to their accountant in a manner of six days.
And now they are in the black, finally.
"Ariadne?" a timid voice sounds at the door.
It's Daniel Walker, the forenamed son of the pair.
"What's up?" Ariadne asks, not looking up from the laptop as she itemizes deductions fo
Daniel, who has four plates balanced on his arms, quickly sets them down, ordering one of the new guys to serve them instead.He shoots Ariadne a quizzical look like, 'What's so fun down there?'Ariadne doesn't respond, hoping that the look on her face is enough. The Omega silently begs before she crawls away into the back room, hoping the smell of the food offsets her own scent.Ariadne curls between the boxes and uses the lemon-soaked dishrag to cover her scent glands."-been here, I can smell it," Victor's voice travels.The sound of him makes Ariadne lonely."Hey kid," another voice speaks, a woman's. Ariadne thinks it could be Lisa's."Table for two?" Daniel responds. "Would you like to hear about our best selling?""Have you seen an Omega around, really pale and pretty?" Victor asks sternly."Maybe, I see many people every day," Daniel responds.Ariadne's gut seizes up. It's not good enough of a lie. Her pal
Ariadne splits for it, running up the stairs to the little room above the diner where she lives in.She slams the door and locks it. Then she settles on her bed, too scared and sad and lonely to fall asleep.But of course, when the world-weariness overtakes her mind, she eventually does.Then the nightmares come.Arthur is there, not the one that sticks Ariadne with knives to twist inside, nor the one who is always on fire but never burning.A young unblooded Arthur is there to witness Ariadne’s loss and tragedy.Her brother and her parents, hands bound, beaten to their knees, they speak only sorrows. And then it rains blood.Arthur tries to look away, but the man, ugly with scars, forces him to look. They make Ariadne look too. How had she forgotten?Arthur had been made that day, just the same as she was.She’d been too busy sobbing over their warm, dead bodies to notice that she was not the only one who ha
"I have no intention of harming you," Harry clarifies, face soured by the thought."I would never harm a pregnant Omega, much less you, carrying the last line of Black.""My child will never be part of your sick twisted shit," Ariadne hisses. "You can go f*ck yourself."Harry laughs, eyes sparkling as if Ariadne had just complimented his pinstripe suit."God, you're perfect. Like a lily, a perfect Madonna Lily," Harry says, and it causes Ariadne to nearly vomit."I need you to leave," the Omega hums. "You're making my baby sick.""Or it could be this shit hole you're living in," Harry spat distaste."You're beautiful. You should be living like royalty. Are you even taking prenatal vitamins? You need some f*cking vitamins."Ariadne stifles the fear, rising to throat level.She's this close to drowning. Sharks smell her blood in the water.Harry's gaze flickers to the two innocent bystanders. If they live or die, it
Ariadne tries her hardest to keep calm. It’s not good for her or the baby.But then the nausea hits. It could be the car, the smell of ink wafting from Harry’s glands, or the walls closing in.Yeah, it’s the last thing.It’s claustrophobia, and it is setting in, fast and heavy.Ariadne’s afraid suddenly, of small enclosed spaces, like the cage, like before, when the bars pressed pockets into her skin.She’d thought she’d gotten over it. But here it is again at the most inopportune moment.They’re speeding down the highway, and the only way out is a quick death by a tire. She almost wants to-.But her life is not her own anymore.“One,” Ariadne counts before taking a breath, “Two-”“Did Arthur teach you that?” Harry interrupts.He did.“You are disgusting,” Ariadne spits.The wolf inside grapples with the d
When Ariadne's finished, it's already late in the afternoon.The Omega's knees hurt, and her palms are red. When she finally found the last pill hidden in between two couch cushions, she nearly cried with relief.Harry appears in the doorway again, clothes smelling like cooking oil and something that makes the Omega's stomach growl.She's starved."I'm sorry that I had to do that," Harry says softly. "But I can't have you misbehaving. I made us lunch. Why don't you come and join me?""No," Ariadne spits. "I'm not hungry."Harry checks his fingernails. They're polished and perfect and sharp. "Think about the baby."
The Omega jumps out of bed and looks out the window. The dark glass conceals Ariadne on her side, but she can clearly see Victor.She prays that Victor's weaker nose can pick up her scent, but the Alpha doesn't look up.Suddenly, a powerful lemon scent assaults Victor's nose.Harry is trying to mask Ariadne's presence. Otherwise, Victor might be able to smell Ariadne.Damn it.Ariadne presses her ear to the cold tile floor. She can hear them below, voices muffled but distinguishable."Victor," Harry hums. "To what do I owe the pleasure?""I've looked everywhere," Victor answers. "She's gone. We couldn't catch her at the airport. I think she's gone.""We have eyes everywhere," Harry lies. "We'll find her."There's the sound of shuffling, the clinking of glasses."Why does it smell like lemon ass in here?" Victor complains.Harry laughs. "I spilled some floor polish. Getting old, I guess."That f*cking
It's mid-afternoon, a hazy, blood-orange sun pounding against a smoking, black road.Victor's frustrated as he burns through the highway, pressing hard on the gas and dodging lesser cars.Victor's losing patience, just as he's lost several kilos in the last three weeks.The Alpha is gaunt, with bony fingers and eyes too big for his now slim and sharp face. He's hungry. He knows he is, and yet, somehow, that doesn't matter.Everything Victor tries to eat tastes like shit rolled in the sand, deep-fried in hairy, grease trap oil."You wanna stop at a drive-through or something?" Lisa suggests. The Beta had been so quiet that Victor almost forgot she was there.She doesn't look up, seemingly immersed in her phone. Her irises reflect the ghost light of the screen as she swipes away at some numbers game.She wears a red-lipped pout and an expensive leather jacket, slumping in the passenger side seat."You hungry?" Victor asks before
"That's me," Victor answers, wishing he could shed his own name."This morning, something bad happened," Daniel sighs, guilt dripping from his pores."Some people came into the store, loan sharks. My father, he-he stupidly borrowed from them to pay back the banks and-"Victor can't eat anymore. He closes his container and prepares for whatever news the boy has.He imagines the worst. Ariadne is dead. And soon, he will be too because he's not strong enough to live in a world without her."They were going to kill us, but Ariadne traded herself," the boy whispers."It was Alpha Harry. He took Ariadne away. I-I couldn't do anything, but she-she said that you were her mate when- so you can help her. I know she doesn't want to see you, but I- you look so thin and- maybe you're not a bad guy. You could save her. Bring her back to me."Something doesn't add up. But what?Well, this boy is helplessly in love with Ariadne, that much Vict