Page 22 of Shattered Omega

“What?” he asked, having half turned from me, but he glanced back, one scarred eyebrow cocked.

I noticed his subtle scent, clearly muted with dampeners. I caught the edges of… I cocked my head, unsure what was in the air. A dark wood… ebony? Maybe, but there was something else with it—something burned or charred that I couldn’t identify.

That was strange. I could usually identify scents. Most omegas and alphas could, even without being told. It was like… instinct or something. But I already knew my instincts were very odd.

“My pack doesn’t like me going anywhere alone,” I told him.

“Not to meet with faculty?”

“I’ve never seen you before,” I said.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out an ID that read ‘Mord Sato. Assistant to the Dean.’ It did look like the ones I’d seen from the teachers.

“There’s an empty classroom here.” He nodded to a nearby door. “If that makes you more comfortable.”

I glanced between him and the door. Something unsettled in my stomach. “I think I should make an appointment. Then my pack can?—”

“This isn’t about their admission,” he said coolly.

“They helped me with it.” I cupped the back of my neck, glancing again at my Omega Studies class. What was it, maybe… twenty steps away?

That mattered, all of a sudden, even if I couldn’t place why.

“I’m not good with the online—” I cut off. I’d taken half a step back in the middle of my words, and the alpha tensed. For just the briefest second, his aura flared in the air.

It was overpowering and frightening, an invisible energy that smothered me.

As strong as Umbra’s.

A threat.

My heart jumped to my throat, and goosebumps rose on my skin, but then the aura was gone as quickly as it had come.

I stared up at him, knowing I must be pale.

No faculty would let their auras out around a student like that. He hadn’t moved, not even a flinch, and he hadn’t said anything either.

He didn’t have to.

With the smallest movement, he nodded his head toward the room he’d pointed out. His eyes were lightless and unblinking as they fixed on me.

I weighed my options carefully.

This had to have something to do with the Lincoln pack.

But if he really wanted to talk in a classroom, how bad could it be?

And did I really have a choice?

There was no way I could get two steps without him catching me. Even without his aura, he was made of solid muscle beneath the suit.

I clasped my fingers, stepping past him into the empty room, trying to keep my cool. My scent was muted like his was, but it wasn’t gone, and he’d sense if I was scared. But that ship might have sailed. I’d left the bathroom on edge. If this was to do with the Lincoln pack, I shouldn’t give anything away. The less I gave away, the more cards I had to play later.

The door latched shut behind me, and I balled my fists in my skirt. Just answer whatever questions he had, and then I could go straight to Dusk. But I heard the lock click and I spun instantly, gaze darting from the door then back to him. His expression was frighteningly impassive, yet his eyes were drinking in every single one of my movements.

Again, I tried to stifle my fear. He knew how scared I was. From my expression to my scent. But last time I’d heard a lock click like that, I’d been in Eric’s room.

Nothing like that was going to happen.

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