Page 5 of Sold to the Alphas

August stopped walking, turning to face me fully. “You’re alive, aren’t you?” His voice was low, almost cruel. “That’s more than most omegas who defy their alphas can say.”

His words hit their mark, and I looked away, swallowing the lump in my throat. I hated how much sense they made. It didn’t take much for an omega to be “sent away” or sold at auctionto humans and wolves alike. Most humans may fear and hunt us, but a few were corrupted by their own sense of power over omegas.

My fate could have easily been chains and a wooden carriage carting me away. Raol only brought me before the council to humiliate me before I died. If he had known the alphas would take me instead, he would have killed me himself.

When we stepped inside the stone fortress, the atmosphere shifted. The air was warmer and thick with the scent of alphas. It wasn’t unpleasant, but it was overwhelming—like being wrapped in something too tight to breathe.

Two figures emerged from deeper in the house. I shifted between my feet as I looked up at their familiar faces—the only faces that mattered in my world anymore.

Finnley was the first to speak. “Well, look who’s here,” he drawled, his grin sharp enough to draw blood. “Our little rebellion in the flesh. Welcome to our home.”

I stiffened under his gaze, unsure whether he was mocking me or simply enjoying my discomfort. Probably both. “Finnley,” I said, greeting him.

His grin widened. “Call me Finn,” he said.

“Finn,” I stated mechanically.

Marshall followed behind, his presence quieter but imposing. His dark eyes met mine briefly before flicking to August. “She’s hurt. Who did it?”

“It’s handled,” August said evenly, stepping aside to give them a better view of me.

“Handled isn’t enough,” Marshall stepped closer, his voice quiet but intense. “She’s ours now. We can’t have anyone thinking they can touch what belongs to us.”

Finn leaned against the mantle. “Don’t worry, Omega. You’ll find we’re not as forgiving as your last alpha.”

“Charming,” I muttered under my breath, though the words barely had any bite. My exhaustion was catching up to me. It was hard to muster up my strength now that it was just my life on the line, not my sister’s.

“Tell me,” Finn continued, “Did your family put up a fight when they handed you over?”

My cheeks burned. “They didn’t hand me over. I had no choice.”

“No choice?” His grin widened, the scar over his lip tugging his smile into something feral. “I think you’ve had plenty of choices. You’re just terrible at picking the safe ones.”

I opened my mouth to retaliate, but Marshall spoke before I could. “She’s here now,” he said. “That’s all that matters.” His gaze was fixed on me, and I felt pinned beneath it.

Was he this intense all the time?

My thoughts churned as they spoke, the reality of my situation settling like a stone in my gut. These men weren’t just alphas—they were council alphas who dictated how the rest of us lived. They had the power to crush me, yet they’d claimed me instead.

Butwhy?

Finn had said something aboutguidingme in the right direction and using me for the council, but it made no sense. What could I ever provide to them?

I glanced at each of them in turn. August, with his calculated indifference. Finn, with his unpredictable wildness. Marshall, with his unreadable coldness.

I was an omega with a defective wolf. I couldn’t shift when my alpha commanded it, and I refused to submit as an omega. I worked at our pack’s store because Raol couldn’t find any use for me. I attacked my alpha, not just with a punch for self-defense, but with a knife to the throat.

So what did they see in me?

I shook myself from my thoughts. Marshall looked at me disapprovingly, and August stared straight ahead, but Finn gave me a cheeky grin.

“Welcome to your new home,” he said. “We’re all going to have so muchfun.”

I glanced around the massive, unfamiliar space, my heart sinking. This wasn’t home—not even close. But there was no going back now.

3

Elisabed

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