Page 91 of This Fate That Guides Us
My cheeks heat as I tell her I do, slightly afraid she will judge me for the name I chose. I should have known better though because my sister only reassures me the name suits me.
“Omen, this is my daughter Kaitlin. little bug, this is your Aunt Omen.” My niece peeks up shyly from beneath her dark brown hair, the same color as her father.
“Hi Kaitlin, it’s so nice to meet you.” I keep my voice soft when I speak, not wanting to startle the small girl with my unfamiliarity. “I’m thrilled to see you here, away from that awful place, but why are you here?”
Hannah glances at Donovan who smiles and ushers us all into the living room. “Your sister has been working with the DAU undercover since she was nineteen.” I suck in a sharp breath, my mouth hanging open as I look between them both. “She’s done very well hiding her connection to our organization. Her role has primarily been feeding us information about omegas and female alphas who present within the state and are reported to your father.”
“That’s how you were able to get me out of the state so quickly,” I mutter numbly. So many things are beginning to make sense, but I can’t hide my disappointment about only being told about this now.
“Yes. I reached out to my contact within the DAU and they sent someone undercover nearby to pick you up. We knew it could potentially blow their cover, but your safety was the priority. It still is,” Hannah explains.
“Your safety is a priority too,” Shepherd scoffs at my sister. His usually gruff tone is filled with anger. I eye him warily, then tilt my head to study them when I see Foster’s knee bouncing and his eyes flicking toward Hannah every few seconds. The way Hannah carefully shifts herself away from the two men–something is going on there. I can’t quite put my finger on what.
“Both of their safety will be our focus, I promise,” Donovan brings everyone’s attention back to him. “We are preparing to move Hannah and her children to a much deeper safe house, separate from your location, Omen.”
A pout pushes at my lip in a way I haven’t felt since I was a child. I just got my sister back. I don't want to lose her again so quickly.
“I know this isn’t what you want to hear, but having you both in one location increases the risk of you being discovered.”
Lex nudges my knee with his and nods his agreement. “If we were to be discovered by your birth family, it’s betterthey only get eyes on one of you. Especially with children in the mix.”
I sigh but relent. They’re right and I know it. It’s selfish of me to keep them here.
“For tonight they’re staying here. Hannah has information we need about your father’s plans. But that can wait until the morning. It’s late and this little sweetheart looks seconds away from passing out on the couch.” Donovan gives Kaitlin a bright smile. He stays downstairs with Shepherd and Lex while Foster and I help Hannah up the stairs to one of the spare rooms.
I watch from the doorway as she gets her daughter settled into the big bed, a worn stuffed sloth held tight in her little hands. Foster leans beside me, his head on my shoulder andhearts in his eyes as he watches them. “Foster?” I breathe his name in question but he only shrugs. I guess he isn’t ready to share.
“I would offer you some of my clothes, but I doubt they’d fit,” I joke when Hannah rejoins us. She smiles wryly before mentioning she has extras packed if she needs them.
I guide them down one door to my room so we can talk without worrying about our voices waking the sleeping angel. I haven’t even fully sat on the bed before they both look at me with worried expressions on their faces. Foster’s arms are crossed over his chest and his aquamarine eyes narrowed. “Oms, I’m going to be blunt–you look like shit..” Hannah gasps in shock but I can tell she agrees.
I know what I look like. The dark circles and pale skin. I’ve lost a decent chunk of weight in the last week, much more than is necessarily safe, and it shows. My hair is a disaster I can’t bring myself to put the energy into washing.
“Are you sick?” Hannah asks hesitantly. Not in a way that suggests she’s concerned I might be contagious, but more so she’s hoping I won’t reveal some terminal prognosis. Which could potentially be true, though having Hannah in my life again eases the ache in my soul left by the chemical rejection I’m experiencing. Only a little bit, but it’s enough to ignite a sliver of hope in my chest.
“It’s a long story…”
“We have time. So spill. I’ll get Shepherd up here if I have to,” Foster threatens.
Hannah and I both look alarmed by the idea, so I quickly blurt out the basics. My lungs burn when the words finally stop flowing. I watch them cycle through emotions as I catch my breath. Shock, confusion, concern. They both settle on anger.
“They rejected you?!” Foster shouts. Hannah and I both remind him to keep his voice down before I explain that they didn’t verbally reject me, but my body is telling me they did.
“That’s… confusing. And honestly, even if they didn’t say the words, their actions speak loudly enough. Who is this pack again? You mentioned a concert?” Hannah looks livid as she asks her questions and I feel bad for adding to her stress.
“It doesn’t matter. They made their choice and now we all have to live with it. I’ll be fine, I just need time to work through the messed-up brain chemicals.” Neither of them is appeased by my promise. Which I kind of get since I can’t promise I’ll actually survive this. A lot of the time it certainly feels like I won’t see the other side of this sea of overwhelming agony.
“We can talk more in the morning.” I urge them both from the room and make sure Hannah is settled next door. Her door clicks shut and Foster turns to me from the top of the stairs. Once more I’m reminded how my omega friend always manages to see too much.
“You’ll tell me if it starts to be too much to handle alone,” he demands. “Shepherd and I will both go ballistic on Primordial Convenant’s asses if anything happens to you because of their stupidity.”
I offer him a weak smile. He knows my connection is to them, probably guessed it long before I admitted it tonight. And he’s got my back. Like Bea, I know he’ll always be there to support me when I need him. I collapse on my bed, both excited over the turn my night took, and apprehensive about what my sister’s arrival means for the future. All I can do is hope we find a solution to my father’s reign very soon.
Waking the next morning after a night of restless sleep, I find my sister’s room empty. I rush to the first floor worried she’s already left. Clatter in our small kitchen draws my attention andI’m relieved to see a small head of brunette hair peek over the back of a chair.
Hannah stands at the stove cooking breakfast. She looks as exhausted as I feel so I hurry over and take the spatula from her hands. “Sit,” I command.
“Kait and I would rather not eat charred eggs for breakfast, thanks.”
