Page 3 of Nest Of Lies

“She’s an omega. She has to be an omega!” My mother shouts.

I stare at my mother, feeling the weight of failing her again. How bad is this going to be? Will we lose all the windows or just all the plates? My stomach drops out, and I wonder if I could survive on the streets. Is running away an option? Am I there yet?

“She is a beta, and that will allow her so much more freedom than she might ever experience as an omega. She will-”

“Do not tell me the merits of being a beta. It’s a death sentence.”

I roll my eyes at my mother’s dramatics. I understand her better now that I’m older. My life won’t be what Mama planned because I’m a beta, so my life is effectively over. For me, I don’t know what that means. Mama’s been pretty cold towards me for the last year.

My mother stands up. She grabs my wrist hard enough to bruise and drags me out of the tiny room and away from the concerned gaze of the young doctor.

The car ride back to our mansion is tense. She doesn’t say a word. I’m too scared to move. I just huddle into the car seat and pray she leaves me alone.

We get inside, and this is the scary part, the part where my mouth goes dry, and I wish I could undo time. She strips off her jacket and gloves methodically, and I know that, this time, things are going to be bad. My mother huffs. She paces and paces back; she growls and mutters darkly under her breath and runs her fingers through her hair. Mama swipes at her chin and casts me a dark look.

Then she stops. She goes still. The calm before the storm. I know the signs. She has never laid hands on me, but she’s thrown things at me. I don’t know what to expect, but I’m ready.

My fear twists with anger because I’m sick of this, and I can’t help being a beta. It’s not my fault. If I could scream the words and change her mind, I would. I stand there waiting for what I know is coming.

Her shoulders tense, and she turns her head to the side. I can just see her profile. My stomach spikes with fear.

“I’m sorry, Mama,” I whisper, hoping to head this episode off.

“I tried.” Mama speaks really slowly, enunciating the words. Her voice is low and full of rage, and I know this is going to be bad, really bad. “I tried so hard, but you have defied me at every single possible level.” She turns towards me, lifting her head to regard me with a look that I have never seen before. “I homeschooled you, I taught you music, which you refuse to learn, I looked after you when you were sick and ill, I protected you from those who would use you or hurt you, I hid your sickness from the world that would take advantage of you!”

She storms towards me, her hand lashing out. My head goes sideways under the force, but it takes a moment for the pain to register and a moment longer to realise Mama hit me. She hit me. She actually hit me.

“No- I-”

“Shut! Up!”

My mouth shuts with a snap. I stare at her back. Fear slithering up my body. She grips my shoulders, her nails digging into the flesh until I cry out, writhing under her. I try to shrug her off; I try to push her, but she’s still stronger than me, and she’s got me in a grip I can’t get out of.

“I told you that you were sick. I said you needed to do as I instructed so it didn’t make it worse. But you keep defying me. You keep going against me, even when I’m just trying to keep you safe. Selfish!” Mama hisses in my face. “You are ungrateful and selfish. Everything I’ve done was for you, and this is how you repay me?”

“Mama,” I whisper, it’s an almost inaudible sound. “I can’t help I'm a beta, I’m sorry-”

“I have to leave,” Mama says resolutely. She lets go of me as if I’ve burned her and stumbles back. “I’m going to go, a holiday or something. The staff will be here. You stay here and think about what you’ve done. Perhaps when I calm down, we can talk!”

She reaches for her hat and gloves and pulls them back on, refusing to look at me.

“Mama?”

“I just can’t with you. This betrayal is too much. I had such plans, such plans.” She shakes her head. “Everything is ruined.”

I’m crying. I don’t even know when I started. All I know is that I feel numb and like what she’s saying doesn’t make sense.

Francine, mama’s personal assistant, comes down with suitcases. Her soft brown eyes are crinkled at the side and her lips are a firm line as she avoids looking at me. Francine is a professional at heart, but sometimes, I think she struggles to witness my mama’s actions. My gaze travels to the suitcases.

My heart thunders, and I think maybe I will be sick or pass out. Is she really leaving me?

“But when are you coming back?” My voice breaks, and I let out a sob. I rush towards her, but she holds up a hand and sneers at me.

“I don’t know that I am. I can’t sit here and watch you self-destruct. It’s too much. My health can’t handle it. I have sacrificed my best years for you. No longer.”

“Mama!” I wail, uncaring about how pathetic I sound.

“Be a good girl and remember you are a broken beta,” she says the words mockingly while still looking pitying. “No one will understand you. They won’t love you. They don’t understand. Like Anderson. He didn’t understand what you were or how corrupt you really are. So don’t shame the family name more than you already have.”

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