Page 120 of Hard Knot

Omega.

The word echoes in my mind like a death sentence.

I'm an Omega.

All this time, all these years of thinking I was normal, of planning my future, of competing with James...and I'm an Omega.

A hysterical laugh bubbles up from my chest, quickly dissolving into another sob.

How did I not know?

How did no one tell me?

The questions spin through my mind like leaves in a storm, each one bringing fresh waves of panic and confusion. My body feels foreign, like I'm trapped in someone else's skin, someone else's need.

A sound — the creak of floorboards, the shuffle of feet — cuts through my spiral.

Hope flares briefly in my chest.

"James?" I call out, my voice small and desperate.

But the figure that appears in the doorway isn't James.

As my vision clears, focusing through the haze of heat and fear, I see them.

Three men.

The leader stands slightly ahead of the others, his dark red hair catching what little light filters through the unfinished windows. His grin is wide, predatory, as his nostrils flare.

Taking in my scent.

"Well, well, well…" he says, his voice carrying an edge that makes my skin crawl. "Look what we have here. A helpless little Omega who needs to find her way."

I try to press myself further into the wall as if I can somehow sink through the concrete and disappear. My heart pounds so hard I can feel it in my teeth, taste it on my tongue.

This isn't happening.

This can't be happening.

He steps closer, his movements slow and deliberate, like a cat stalking a cornered mouse.

"Don't worry, little one." His voice drops lower, softer, but there's nothing gentle in it. "We'll help you inch into this world without much dismay."

Another step closer.

I want to scream, to run, to fight --- but my body won't cooperate. The heat has left me weak, and pliant, my limbs heavy and unresponsive.

His finger presses against his lips, the gesture almost playful.

"Just be silent."

The memory fractures there, splintering into fragments of sensation and fear. But before I can fall deeper into the nightmare, a cool touch on my forehead drags me back to consciousness.

My eyes snap open as I gasp for air, my heart racing as reality slowly filters back in. The room is unfamiliar at first— all soft lighting and expensive furnishings — but then I remember.

The suite James brought me to…

Safe.

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