Page 47 of Freeing My Alpha

My heart flips. This Alpha is a Rogue?

No, the Omega is a Rogue, seeking refuge in Greenfield, and the Alpha wants her back. So now this is another dominance challenge—an extra violent one because Noah is threatening to take this Alpha’s mate from him. Judging by what he just did to her, it’s no wonder she went Rogue.

This poor Omega, burrowing into my side until her blood seeps into my fur, is the Alpha’s mate? I want to vomit, but my whole body shakes hard instead, having to watch my mate get bit just as much as he bites.

I underestimated how disturbing Noah’s life must be. How can he find the strength to still fight, day after day of witnessing something this horrific? I’m too scared to even help this hurt Omega. My lungs tighten until I can hardly breathe, my frantic whines competing with Noah’s angry snarls. All I can do is cover the injured Omega’s eyes with my snout, the two of us shaking together like terrified baby birds.

This Alpha smells different than the one who attacked Noah at my Welcoming Ceremony, so I’m not concerned they’re connected. I’m not sure that matters; I don’t want Alphas to keep showing up to hurt Noah, regardless. I don’t want anyone to.

But this attack feels different. Fiercer. It’s enough to not only terrify my mate, but also to enrage him to a level I’ve never witnessed before. I’m shocked by the way he treats this Alpha, using his massive body weight to slam them into the ground harder than I think the Alpha could survive. The challenger wolf yelps in pain, no longer snarling back. But Noah isn’t done. His anger only rises, forcing me to cower in a shaking heap.

I know this is necessary. The Omega beneath me should never have been treated this way, and we can’t allow wolves to get away with abuse on Greenfield territory.

Seeing Noah like this scares me, nonetheless. He tears into the Alpha, not stopping even when it reeks of iron. It’s an animalistic justice system, Noah’s rapid decision-making giving the Alpha a direct consequence.

When the abusive Alpha curls into a petrified ball beneath my mate, unwilling to move, Noah finally stops. I feel like I could pass out from stress, wobbling on my paws.

Yasmine and Dave finally arrive as backup muscle, but Noah already downed this massive Alpha, alone, in minutes. His Betas tug the black, limp wolf deeper into the forest, and Rainn gets to work licking the Omega’s wounds. Noah hasn’t looked at me yet. He’s pacing in circles, only stopping to shake out his fur. It’s only a few more seconds before more Lycans arrive, helping the injured Omega towards safety in the Greenfield territory.

But when Noah approaches me in the dark forest, his eyes are still wild with adrenaline. I can only see the blood in his black fur by how it glistens in the moonlight.

His shadowy form towering above me sets my brain off, an old, familiar horror creeping to the forefront of my mind. Before it’s too late, I try to stave it off. To dissociate, or anything else instead. But I can’t stop it.

My whines turn into terrified, screeching cries as a memory plays out before me. I try to scramble away from it, but my paws slip in the leaves.

But before I can escape, Noah stands over me on all fours, his eyes tracking mine. Omega?! What’s wrong? He didn’t hurt you, did he?!

Noah whines with me, nudging my cheeks as I live in two places at once, the past consuming most of my focus.

When he nips the back of my neck, jolting me back to the present, I find my claws digging deep into Noah’s fur. Fear strikes my heart.

I hurt my mate.

My wolf shrieks again. S-sorry! I didn’t mean to—

Shh, Omega. It’s okay. You’re safe. He wraps his wolf body around me, burrowing his nose against my neck as I whine in exhaustion. You’re right here with us. Rainn and I are here to protect you.

My body still violently trembles as the two wolves cuddle into me, licking away my stress. It takes me ages to feel like I can breathe. When I come up to the surface, soaking in the cool breeze through my fur, I realize what just happened.

I hardly have energy to even mindlink. I’m sorry, Noah. I haven’t had a flashback that bad in so long.

It’s not your fault. I’m sure this was incredibly shocking for you.

I don’t know how you can come home to me fine after that. How do you handle all of this?

I don’t, I just mask it all. But this is also healing for me. It’s so fucking hard, but all I know is that I can’t just sit here and let it all happen. I need to do something. His wolf nibbles his mark on my neck with a frantic, affectionate whine. It’s never been this bad, and it’s been getting worse. I didn’t want to scare you because I wanted to believe I had it under control, but I don’t. There are more and more Alphas I’ve found who believe in total domination, and they hate me for saying their entire belief system is bullshit. I’m so fucking sorry you have to now see the consequences.

For a moment, I don’t know what to say. I feel horrible this is all resting on Noah, especially when there are also Lycans in our pack who disagree with him. How can they look at bleeding Omegas like this one and not see what’s wrong here?

I let out an uncontrollable whine. I still feel safe, just with the fact that you’re aware that this is a problem. On top of that, you’re actually trying to change it, rather than buddying up to other Alphas just because they’re Alphas. I can’t even tell you how much your refuge must mean to Omegas like this one. You just risked your life for her. For all Omegas. You’re irreplaceable, Noah.

Noah shuffles his snout deeper into my coat, gratitude seeping through the aching sadness in his scent. It’s a long while before he mindlinks again. I’m protecting Alphas too, they just don’t realize they’re hurting themselves. I wish I could show them they’re enough, just as they are.

I wish too. But I don’t want them to hurt you in the meantime.

I don’t want them to hurt you either, which is why I’m not backing down. These fights are worth it to me.

I whimper, knowing this is how the pack lives. And no matter how impossible it feels to get used to witnessing fights, I know I have to eventually.

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