Page 84 of Into the Fire: After
I gathered her into my arms, kissing her temple and smoothing her hair back from her face before laying my forehead against hers. “But there is no quantity of anger that could ever exist inside me that would ever, for a moment, outweigh how much love there is.” I couldn’t staunch my own tears anymore.
Toffee and cream exploded around me, salty and sweet “I’m sorry, Brooks,” she whispered, her words brushing across my lips. “I’m sorry about the pills, and the video.”
Sniffling, I nodded once. “But you’re not sorry about Greysmoke.”
She nodded back to me.
My voice was fragile, high and cracked as I said, “You shouldn’t be. But I still get to be moody about it.”
Taryn gave a single wet chuckle before pecking my lips with a gentle kiss. “Fine.”
Brea put a hand on each of our necks, making me jump. I’d forgotten she was in the room. “We’re gonna figure this out,” she said, steady surety behind her words. “I love you both, you know. Harebrained schemes and all.”
Thirty-five
Taryn
Hello,you’vereachedCongressmanCorinth Wainwright’s office. Please leave your name, phone number, and a brief message, and someone will return your call promptly. Thank you.
"Hi there, my name is Taryn Lennox. My address is 73 Amethyst Way, Suite 213, in Farendale, Remington State. I am calling to urge Congressman Wainwright to voteYESon HB25-17 on Tuesday to de-regulate the Omega Census. Mandatory Registration is a holdover from an alpha-led social hierarchy that has no place in a designation-neutral society, and should therefore be abolished, and resources and funding allocated to omega-forward organizations.
"Thank you for your time."
Hello,you’vereachedCongressmanCorinth Wainwright’s office. Please leave your name, phone number, and a brief message, and someone will return your call promptly. Thank you.
"Hi, my name is Brooks Arceneaux, residing at 73 Amethyst Way, Suite 230 in Farendale, Rem. I am a beta calling in support of HB25-17 to de-regulate the Omega Census and end the long history of designation oppression. Thank you."
Cainehadbeeninholding for six days. Our lives had, once again, screeched to a halt as Lin worked endlessly to get him out. Gail had finally gotten in touch. Being with the district attorney’s office—as in, the ones pressing charges—she’d delegated Caine’s case to a trusted colleague.
Though, considering Caine was still behind bars, none of us were breathing freely just yet.
Today, though, my mind wasn’t on my wrongly incarcerated alpha or my incredible but fucking struggling pack.
I sat on the couch, eyes glued to the TV as I awaited news on the one thing that could distract me from the current shitstorm that was my life.
The vote was today.
All of the struggle, the fear and pain and having to be brave when I felt like hiding, came down to this vote.
Would we finally de-regulate the Omega Census? Would we tear down this last bastion of alpha-centric hierarchy?
I’d been watching the livestream all day. Mostly boring procedural stuff that was dry to watch. Yet I sat riveted, my mind tripping over imaginary outcome after imaginary outcome.
Option one: The vote passes, everyone cheers and throws their papers in the air like at the end of corny high school movies.
Option two: The vote fails, and all the omegas immediately set upon the state house in a frenzy, tearing the building apart with our bare, rabid hands.
Option three: The vote ends in a dead tie, which somehow breaks the delicate balance that has kept our universe intact, thereby opening a wormhole to an alien time and space, sucking all of us in and we start fresh on a new planet where the main source of sustenance is giant shrimp.
Honestly, I’d be fine with either option one or three.
Finally, as the afternoon grew into evening, the house leader called the room to order.
“I’m gonna fucking puke,” I said as I stared unblinking at the screen.
“Not ‘til they announce it,” Brea said from the kitchen. “Then you can puke.”
The house leader read out a handful of other matters that had also been on the ballot, before finally getting to HB25-17.
