Page 55 of Knot the Alphas' Feral Omega

I swallowed. “It was that bad?”

“It haunts me,” Oliver said quietly. “I had to go and identify his body once Randall...was finished.”

I closed my eyes, the look of despair on Oliver’s face painful enough to make me squirm. And as the four of us sat there in silence, the pieces of the puzzle, the explanation as to why Oliver had hadsucha strong reaction to the letter that day became clear.

“So he was murdered by my...father,” I said, only stumbling over the word slightly. “Because he was out there trying to register your pack so that you could bond with an omega and be happy. And then...the letter came to the house the same day that you were going to bond withme...”

Oliver was nodding before I even finished. His eyes flicked up to mine, so blue, deep, and regretful, and he rasped out, “I overreacted. A lot. And I didn’t hear you out when I should have. And for that, Lilah, I am truly sorry.”

While necessary and something that I knew I would be grateful for later, the apology fell a little flat in the face of the horrifying story that he had just told me.

I stood up, pushing my chair back and releasing both Emmett and Killian so that I could walk around the edge of the table. I drew level with Oliver and ignored the way that my heartbeat jumped. My head grew light as I leaned down to wrap my arms around his neck and press my cheek to the top of his head.

“You did overreact,” I said quietly, just for him. He made a tiny sound deep in his throat, and his hand trembled as he pressed them a little more tightly together. I couldn’t tell if he wanted to shove me away or pull me closer, and I was grateful when he chose to stay still. It made it easier for me to continue. “And...it will take me some time to get over it, Oliver. I’m not going to sugarcoat things for you. Physically...and emotionally.” I swallowed, keeping my voice low, though I knew I wasn’t hiding anything from the other two wolves in the room. “But I understand your reasoning. I don’t...I’m not going to say that I forgive you, not right now. Not when my body reacts this way just to being around you.” I grimaced, another wave of lightheadedness making me clutch a little tighter to Oliver for his steadiness, if nothing else. “But...I think we’ll get there. Eventually.”

Oliver nodded, and before I could move, he turned his head to kiss the soft inside of my arm. His lips were tender where they pressed against my skin, making goosebumps rise even as myhead spun with dizziness. Was that from low blood pressure or high? I would have to do an internet search on all the symptoms I was experiencing so I knew what was what...

“I think we’ll get there, too,” he said softly. He pulled away just enough to look up at me, and I couldseehis desire to do better, to fix this, shining in his eyes. “I’m going to work on my issues. My trust issues,” he continued, his voice still slightly raspy. “It...it isn’t your fault where you came from or who your father is. And I shouldn’t blame you for it, no matter our personal history with Randall.”

It wasn’t quite the admission of guilt or apology that he had just given me, but I was grateful for it all the same. I nodded, pulling away and toying with the ends of my hair.

“Okay,” I finally said. “Then...we move forward?”

I bit the inside of my cheek. The second it took for Oliver to nod his assent felt like an eternity. When he did, my stomach swooped, and I ignored all the ugly physical symptoms I was dealing with as I smiled at him.

“We move forward,” he agreed.

I let out a slow breath, then turned around and returned to my seat. Killian smiled brightly at me when I did so, reaching out to link our fingers together again, and we all resumed eating. The atmosphere was a little lighter than it had been only a few moments before, and for the first time in days, I felt the faintest stirrings of hope low in my belly.

29

Killian

When I woke up with a gasp, it was pitch dark, and I could tell, even without looking at the time, that it was the middle of the night.

One of my hands flew out, feeling around in the sheets, and my heart rate spiked as I felt the cool fabric. Where was my omega?

The sheets were cold, meaning Lilah had been gone for a while.

Where the fuck was she?

I bolted up and nearly faceplanted as I scrambled out of bed. I only managed to keep myself upright by holding on to the footboard, taking a breath to regain my balance, and trying to slow my heart.

I took another deep breath, then closed my eyes against the darkness of the room, listening. It was more than obvious that Iwas alone in here, but I stretched my ears beyond just my room, listening for any hint that Lilah was still in the house.

A moment passed, and then I heard the thudding of a heartbeat that wasn’t the familiar thumps of Emmett or Oliver’s. I followed it out of my room and a few feet down the hallway.

I drew up short when I found Lilah sitting on the ground, her back against the wall and her knees drawn up to her chest. Her arms were wrapped around her legs, and she was staring at the closed door to her nest, her breathing rapid and shallow. Even in the dim light of the nightlight plugged into one of the hallway outlets, I could see the shining streaks of tears on her cheeks, and my heart tugged towards her, making me want to immediately attack the problem and do whatever was necessary to make my omega happy.

Unfortunately, this situation was a hell of a lot more complicated than that. I chewed on the inside of my cheek, then sat down next to her, leaning against the wall and staring at the offending closed door with her.

For a few long moments, neither of us spoke. I didn’t want to interrupt whatever thoughts she’d been having before I came upon her, and she seemed to have herself under control enough that I didn’t need to be immediately worried about her health. I was more than willing to wait as long as necessary to hear her out, whatever she needed.

It took almost five minutes before she finally let out a shuddering breath and reached out with one hand. Immediately, I gave her mine, and she linked our fingers together, making my heart pound slightly slower just from the feeling of her delicate fingers between mine.

“Doing okay?” I asked softly. I knew the answer to that, but I also knew that talking about it would be important in her healing process.

She shook her head, then leaned it against my shoulder. The spill of her dark hair against my bare skin made a low purr rumble through my chest, but I cut it off quickly, wanting to hear what she had to say.

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