Page 14 of Storm
I shower quickly, scrubbing away the evidence of my morning activities, the water running down my body in rivulets. Steam fills the small bathroom, curling around me like a cocoon. The water is always hot in the Omega House—one of the few luxuries they provide in this gilded cage I’d never had before. I let the heat wash over me, trying to calm the racing thoughts in my mind since I turned twenty last month.
Choosing Day.
The words echo in my brain, a promise and a threat all at once. It means a chance to get out. But it also means a leash if I can’t get away. No way in hell I’m letting that happen. I dry off and wrap the towel around me, my skin flushed from more than just the shower.
Just as I step out, Veronica takes that moment to burst into my room, her sharp eyes scanning the space like she’s searching for contraband. She hasn’t figured out where I stash my gum. I have no idea why that’s banned in the Omega House.
The house mother is a total bitch, and she hates me. The feeling is mutual. She stands there, thin lips pursed, her arms crossed like she’s got me all figured out.
“Storm.” My name comes out with disdain. Her voice clipped and cold. “You recently had your birthday. You are now to be the next omega in the Choosing Day along with Harley.”
“The fuck?” I don’t mean to say it out loud, but the words slip past my lips before I can stop them. Veronica’s face turns red.
“Storm,” she snaps, her eyes narrowing like she’s trying to bore holes into my skull. I’d laugh if it wasn’t all so damn amusing.
I just smirk and walk over to my bed where she has placed my clothes for the day. A dress. Pale and soft and nothing like what I would choose to wear. No doubt she’s thinking about the way it matches my omega designation. I scoff, picking up the offending garment like it might bite me.
“What do you want me to say?” I ask, my tone mocking. “Oh gee, thanks Veronica! Sounds like a fucking dream!” I’m not sure what she expected, but from the way her jaw clenches, this isn’t it. Honestly, this beta is clueless if she thinks I want to jump up and down and throw a party.
Inside, I am. I am because I haven’t forgotten that address. I know exactly where I need to be. I know exactly who I need to find. Hopefully, Rook is still waiting there for me.
The only thing that’s confusing is Harley. Why are we going up together? The thought gnaws at me. I try to make sense of the unexpected timing, the way this round of Choosing Day breaks from the perfect order they usually have.
They only ever put up one omega per month. That's the way it's supposed to be, a steady rotation where every omega knows when their day is coming. But putting us both up at once is more than strange. It’s unheard of. What are they playing at? They’re changing all the rules. The more I think about it, the more questions bloom, each one twisting tighter than the last.
Only lately, they've been a little longer between Choosing Day’s. Six weeks was the last. Dahlia is up today. She’s an elite omega. Marigold went before her, and she cried so intensely that they turned off the TV. It was the only real thing we have seen from the outside world in months.
They haven’t let us watch the news for the past three months. I have a feeling the fact Harley and I are both beta-born omegas has got something to do with this double Choosing Day. The tension makes me question what’s happening outside these walls.
There aren’t many of us here. Even elite omegas are rare here. Maybe fifteen tops. Not enough for all the alpha packs out there. There are six of us beta-born here. Even less for the beta-born packs. And there are more of them than the elites.
I seemy best friend standing at the end of the hallway, her expression a mix of excitement and dread. Harley. Her brown hair falls softly around her face, giving her a sweet omega look, but with an attitude that makes everyone look twice. We’re both born only weeks apart. The day I confronted Jonathan about Rook and he showed me that image of him safe, was the day I met her. I swear she was sent here to save my sanity.
Because I might have tried to go through the wall of the Omega House. But my girl Harley. She prefers to go over. Not that she has been trying to escape since they installed a permanent guard house out there in the garden. Plus, I’m sure it has nothing to do with the very cute beta guard in there most nights.
I head towards her, and she catches my eye, raising her eyebrows in a silent question. We move out into the main area of the house.
"We are going together on Choosing Day," she says as I get near, her words a mixture of disbelief and worry.
She glances around cautiously, lowering her voice like Veronica will jump out from behind a corner. We have to expect that everyone is watching and listening at all times in this place. They usually are, and they have a way of making sure we know it.
But Harley is the one person I trust enough to talk to, the only one who really gets me and this place.
“This makes no sense. They've never had two omegas do a Choosing Day together. Do you think that's why we can't watch the news anymore? There’s something going on, and I think we might be caught up in it.” I whisper as softly as I can.
She leans forward, and I do the same, making sure that no one else can hear us. "Something's going on," she murmurs in my ear. "Something that they don't want us to know about." The more I think about it, the more I’m sure of it.
Fuck. I stand back a little. I have to fight the urge to look over my shoulder, to check if any cameras are pointed directly at us.
Harley’s nose scrunches up at my scent, and I can almost see a teasing smile on her face, mixed with her omegas need to scratch my eyes out. The air is thick with the rich scent of dark chocolate. I haven’t taken my blockers for days again, and I know she can tell. All the omegas can. They complain about me a lot. The only thing that makes sense is something big is happening. Something like a rebellion, a war.
“Think there's going to be a war?” I ask, so low that I can barely hear myself.
“I hope they overturn the government and stop this Omega House bullshit.” The rage inside me is building at this bullshit Choosing day.
Both of us fall silent, the weight of my words pressing down like a physical thing. Even whispering about it feels dangerous, but there’s a spark in the air that wasn’t there before.
“Let's talk about this later.”
