Page 32 of Shattered Omega

ELEVEN

RANSOM

My wife, it turned out, could hold one hell of a grudge, which made me wildly proud. She was taking the marriage thing in her stride, celebrating her new status and her husbands—all except Dusk, whom she was entirely ignoring.

And I couldn’t begrudge her that, not when it had taken Umbra and I so off guard.

I was someone who always tried to avoid giving my upbringing too much thought. From the moment my life had collided with Umbra and Dusk, everything changed. Not just because of my illness, which made me wonder if I would ever have a normal life again—but because my pack brothers were so different from everything I’d ever known.

But I’d been raised in a home that assumed any pack I joined or omega I chose would be for political gain or alliance. A world in which things like scent matches were the enemy for how erratic and unpredictable they were.

And because of that, I had always hated the idea of partnerships like marriage or betrothals.

At least, I thought I had until I saw the papers naming Shatter my wife. Nothing had changed, and yet everything had all at the same time.

No matter where she was in the room, I couldn’t take my eyes off her. Whether she was napping in my arms on the couch, or peering into a bowl of dough Umbra was mixing, with flour dusting her nose and honey brown locks.

Surviving this with our pack intact suddenly felt… possible. I couldn’t explain it. It wasn’t a want—it was a need, as if the life waiting for us on the other end of this nightmare had skipped the queue and found us already.

It was something I knew every member of this pack was anxious about because there wasn’t a single one of us who believed we were destined for good. For something like a complete family, wife, and… future.

And yet, good had found us amidst all of this, and that was an unavoidable truth. Now, it was tangible. In reach.

On Saturday afternoon, Roxy came over to visit. She helped me get one of my hair masks properly through all of Shatter’s thick curls, and they spent the next few hours letting Umbra show them how to play his favourite aura boxing video game.

Dusk left for the afternoon, and I thought I knew exactly why. Sure enough, he sent a slew of texts throughout the day, all with pictures attached.

Dusk: Do you think these are close?

Dusk: I’m getting an idea of the options.

Dusk: Or if you want to come too, I can wait.

I hid my phone from Shatter as I scrolled through the photos of rings he was looking at.

Dusk: I can’t find any that seem right. Trying another shop.

It wasn’t for another hour that I got a text with a photo that I knew was the perfect ring.

Dusk: This is the one. I can even get the placement of the diamonds changed.

Dusk: I’m worried. It's not as expensive as the others, but they can do it in a pack set, so I can get it in three parts.

Me: It’s perfect.

I don’t think Shatter cared about the price at all. She deserved the right ring.

And besides, I knew Dusk and Umbra had never quite settled into that reality of my family wealth: money didn’t matter. I grew up with so much that expensive gifts lost meaning. Dusk could buy her the most expensive ring in the shop, and that number didn’t make a dent in our bank account.

Umbra: Agree. Last one.

Umbra: I think you should be the one to give it to her.

Me: Yup.

Dusk: I’m not rushing it. She deserves everything to be perfect.

Somehow, despite the circumstances, we found a semblance of normalcy.

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