Page 85 of Consider The Lilies

“Jack,” I whisper, unable to concentrate with the door open. “Please, alpha.” I look at him over my shoulder.

Jack stops what he’s doing. His lust-filled gaze holds mine, and for a second, I think he might strip me down and fuck me stupid right here and now. But then he lets out an annoyed huff and releases me.

“Fine.” He slips out from under me, moving to his office door.

Victory twice in one day? That’s got to be a record.

I sit in Jack’s big chair, loving how warm it is. “Sex in your office isn’t very professional, Mr. Stanley,” I tease my alpha as he shuts the door. “Are you going to take me right here?” I pat the top of his desk, and a bright green flier catches my eye. I squint at it, recognizing the wordMorder.

Unable to help myself, I pull the flier out from under the pile of paperwork. It’s an advertisement for the omega black market. It lists the date of the next auction along with the bold words,Purveyor of fine omegas.

A flood of memories slams into me, and suddenly all I can think about is that horrible day—the two alphas who chased me and Mari. I see her body flying through the air, followed by foggy memories of the auction. The drugs and the lights, followed by the mob of terrifying alphas who yelled insults at me.

I know it all worked out for me in the end—I have the most amazing pack—but there are probably a lot of omegas who were forced into that auction who weren’t as lucky.

“Where were we?” Jack grabs my hips, forcing me up then back into his lap. His hands roam my body, but I can’t think about anything other than the flier in my hand. “Stefan?” Jack grabs my chin, forcing me to look at him over my shoulder. “What's wrong?” Our bond tingles as he feels me out. “Why are you upset?”

I open my mouth, ready to tell him I’m fine, but there’s no point. He’ll know if I lie.

“Why do you do this?” I hold up the flier.

His dark eyes narrow at the paper, then his face scrunches up as if confused. “Do what?”

“Sell omegas?”

“Because it’s lucrative,” he says simply, and shock slams into me.

“Lucrative?” I repeat his horrible explanation, struggling to believe he’d actually say that to me. “Is that all you care about? Making money?”

Jack’s expression quickly changes, and a hardness fills his eyes. “Calm down,” he says firmly. But it’s not a command. He’s not using his alpha voice, letting me react and say whatever I want.

“How?” My voice starts to rise. “The omegas in the black market are mistreated and abused, and all you care about is profit?” My emotions are quickly getting out of control, pure rage gripping me. “How do you know those alphas aren’t hurting their omegas the second they get them home?”

“They could be,” he says, and my mouth falls open. “Just like we don’t know about the alphas who pursue omegas through an academy. For all we know, they beat the shit out of them the second they get home.” His voice drops, deadly serious. “The Morder is my business, Stefan.”

“A business where omegas are abused just so you can make a quick buck,” I yell, but I can’t help it.

“No one is abused,” Jack’s voice rises, and he’s suddenly twice as loud as me. “Not a single member of my staff hurts those omegas,” he says with way too much confidence.

Flashes of Mari’s last moments fill my mind. “Is that what you think?” I suck in a harsh breath, praying I won’t cry. “The men who kidnapped me threatened to rape me and my sister. And then they killed her,” I snarl, trying like crazy not to cry. “They just threw her over the edge of a cliff like she was trash.”

The rage in Jack’s eyes builds, and his grip on my waist tightens, but I know he’s not upsetwithme. I can feel it in our bond. My alpha is furiousfor me.

“Who the fuck hurt you?” he barks, making me flinch.

“I don’t know.” Honestly, it doesn't really matter. Not anymore. “They captured me for the sole purpose of selling meto the Morder.” I speak slowly, making sure Jack understands that his people hurt me. He might not have given them permission to hurt omegas, but they did. “Theyabusedme before taking me to your business.”

Jack pulls in a sharp, scary breath. He looks like he wants to murder someone, but it only makes me angrier.

“Everything about that auction was horrible,” my voice cracks. “Horrible.”

Jack’s nose twitches, and he shakes his head. “It’snotthat bad.” He glares at me as if I’m being ridiculous. “Dr. Plume is a complete professional. I am providing a service to lost omegas and lonely alphas,” he says firmly. “It benefits everyone.”

Rage bubbles in my gut, and I turn in his lap, facing the alpha the best I can. “Itisthat bad!” I growl, shocking even myself. “You have no idea what it’s like to be drugged, stripped down, and examined like that. How awful it is.”

Jack lets out a bitter laugh. “Youhave no clue how bad it is out there, little omega.” His tone is so ugly. It feels like he’s mocking me.

“Get off me!” I snarl then move to stand up, but Jack won’t let me. He grabs my upper arms, keeping me firmly in his lap.

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