Page 31 of Omega's Breed

“Sure, I’ve got her.” Bless the omega. Joey plucked Annie from Finn without delay or questions.

Finn held his hand out to Will. “Come on, baby. We need to talk.”

Cold fingers curled around his as Will lurched up from the couch and into Finn’s embrace. At Lorcan’s nod, Finn guided his mate down to the alpha’s office. By the time he had Will seated in one of the chairs, Lorcan, Caleb and Andrea had filed in behind them. Will gripped the arms of the chair as if that were the only thing keeping him in place. Finn wanted to pick him up and hold him tight, but figured the problem needed to be faced with as clear a head as possible. Holding his mate muddled his mind.

He opened his mouth and found that he couldn’t manage to figure out the right words to speak. Where did he even start with the horror that Henry had laid at their doorstep? Fortunately, Lorcan stepped in like the leader he was.

Placing a comforting hand on Finn’s shoulder, the alpha peered down at Will. “Our visitors are from your old pack, Will.” The omega’s face turned ashen and his eyes widened. “A beta named Henry, his mate and a gamma. Not sure of his name, though.”

“Maurice.” This from Caleb, who stood next to Andrea behind Will.

Lorcan blew out a breath. “Anyway, they’re here because they want to take Annie back. Back to Magnus. Her sire, they say.”

Finn was grateful that the alpha had the strength to cut to the chase. He wasn’t sure he would have been able to say those words out loud, especially given Will’s instant reaction. The poor boy gave an almost muted cry, and he folded in on himself as if he’d been punched in the gut.

Now, Finn needed to be strong. Dropping to his knees, he pulled his mate into a tight hug. “It’s okay, baby. We won’t let them have her.” He hoped he could keep that promise, then resolved that he would or die trying. First, though, they needed answers.

He pulled back a fraction and taking Will’s face in his hands, stared into eyes wet with tears. “Before anything else, we need to know the truth. Is Magnus Annie’s sire?”

Will gazed up at him with all his emotions on full display. He nodded briefly before uttering a sob that tore at Finn’s heart. He pulled the boy in for another hug. “It’s okay. I’m here for you. We all are.” He took a minute to simply rub Will’s back with slow circles to help him calm down. He might have stayed that way forever, except Lorcan intervened.

“Will? Can you tell us how this happened? I thought lots of shifters serviced you during your first heat.” The alpha’s voice was soft, yet unyielding. He was demanding answers.

With another shudder, the omega pulled out of the safety of Finn’s arms and looked up at the alpha. The strength it took to do that made Finn proud of his mate. He sat back on his heels, remaining close should Will need him, and kept his palm cupping the back of Will’s neck to give him support.

Will sniffed back his tears. “They did. All of the betas and gammas except Caleb.”

Lorcan looked past Will at the gamma. “Even this Henry and Maurice?”

“Yes.” Caleb gave the bitter answer before Will could.

“And, Magnus, too? Even though you’d been fostered by him since you were a young pup?” Lorcan sent this question back to Will, and while the alpha’s tone hadn’t changed, Finn could detect the anger behind it. The idea of a male mounting someone, even one who wasn’t a blooded offspring, while they lived under his roof was a taboo shifters shared with humans.

Will sniffed again and nodded. “He was the first. And…” His voice hitched, but he kept going after a second. “He kept mounting me until his seed took.”

Even though this fact supported what they all thought to be true already, they were shocked into silence. Finn’s wolf snapped and snarled with such force that Finn had to stand and take a step back from his mate in order to rein it under control. As soon as he did, though, Will shot him a look of pure grief. Shit. He hadn’t meant to imply he was disgusted by his mate, or rejecting him. Only Magnus was to blame.

“It’s okay, baby.” He ran his hand down Will’s braid in what had become his go-to gesture of affection. “No one’s blaming you for anything.” Will didn’t look convinced, so Finn’s wolf yipped at Will’s to show support. After a few seconds, Will’s wolf answered with a piteous whine.

Once more, Lorcan took control. “Will, help me understand. If Magnus bred you, why did he let the others mount you? And, how is it that they didn’t sense you were already breeding?”

“I can answer the second question.” Caleb had come around the table, along with Andrea, to stand near Lorcan. “Magnus told all of us that Will was in heat and wanted everyone to service him. That’s what our alpha told us, so that was the truth, no matter what.” He scowled. “Of course each of them could tell Will’s heat was over, but no way any of them would have gainsaid him. I’m sure it came as no surprise to Henry when Magnus told him Annie was his pup.”

Finn heaved with the effort it took to keep himself and his wolf under control. “So, this asshole covered his tracks by forcing all those other shifters on Will?”

“His new mate hated me.” Will’s voice was barely audible, but it caught everyone’s attention immediately. “His first one didn’t like me much, either, but she was sickly by then from losing a pup. She had no sway over him. After she died, I think he felt relief. When his last living pup died in a fight, he took another mate. She had more power, and she didn’t like having a stray living in her home.”

“That’s because she was the daughter of another pack’s alpha,” Caleb interjected. “She came with some goods and a trade treaty that benefited the pack. She knew her worth and held it over Magnus’s head, although Magnus stayed firm on keeping Will in his house,” he added with a frown.

Lorcan nodded once. “Okay, except that makes what Magnus did even less understandable. Why would he service an omega who lived in his household when he already had a mate?”

“She kept miscarrying pups, I know,” Caleb replied.

Finn’s head swam with the pieces of information floating around it. Magnus’ behavior made no sense. “So, what? He bred Will because he didn’t think his new mate could give him another pup? But, why cover his tracks with the others, then? I still don’t get what loose screw inside his head led him to mount a boy raised like a son.”

“Because he’d been doing it for years!” Will’s confession stunned everyone.

In a kind of slow motion, Finn saw the shock crossing Lorcan, Caleb and Andrea’s faces. He felt his own form the same expression of horror as he once more dropped down to his knees and took his mate by the shoulders. He tried to get the boy to look at him, but with tears streaming down his face, Will kept his gaze on the floor.

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