Page 29 of Riley's Storm

Chapter22

Riley

Cold sweat dripped down my back. My hand gripped Storm’s tightly, but I was so clammy. What was going to happen to us? Why were they being so unsympathetic? I chewed mercilessly on my lower lip, my body shivering with fear.

“It’s alright, Riley. They can’t do anything to us. We didn’t do anything wrong,” Storm whispered beside me from the corner of her mouth.

“I’m scared, Storm.”

“It’s alright. I promise. It’s fine.”

Weonly had three days. Three glorious, amazing,fantasticdays where we had not left the nest for anything except bathroom breaks. We didn’t shower, didn’t eat. We barely remembered to drink water. But damn, did we get good use out of that inflatable knotted dildo of Storm’s.

Then it all went to hell.

Staff members from the school swarmed our room this morning before the sun had even risen. They dragged us out of our nest, tossed clothes at us, marched us down here to the headmistress’s office, and shoved us into these chairs.

No one said a word to us, but their looks spoke volumes. What Storm and I had done together disgusted them. But that didn’t give them the right to soil what should have been a private, special moment between the two of us.

The door slammed open, and I squeaked and jumped. Storm squeezed my hand reassuringly. Stomping footsteps made their way over to where we sat. The headmistress of the ORA crossed her arms and glared down at us. Beside her, several teachers had gathered, all with similar appalled expressions on their faces.

“How dare you?” the headmistress roared. “How dare you disgrace this academy? When students from your floor ran down to tell me what was going on in your room, I scarcely dared to believe it! There was no way that twoomegaswould be so disrespectful to their designations. I cannot believe the two of you!”

I swallowed thickly past the lump lodged in my throat. I opened my mouth to apologize, but Storm’s voice cut me off.

“We didnothingwrong. She is my scent match and I hers. We belong together. Evenyou,with your close-minded opinion, should know that.”

“Pah. You’re confusing your friendship with something more. You can’t be scent matches for each other. You aren’t even twenty-five. The ability to match doesn’t start until then. You would know that if you paid attention during class instead of daydreaming, Ms. Vareth,” the teacher from Pack Dynamics spoke up.

“I know what’s taught to us. And I also know it’swrong! I’ve known Riley was mine for months, even before spring break. I spent the entire time pining over her, wanting her to be with me. That isn’t normal behavior forfriends,but it certainly is for unbonded matches. I have an unquenchable desire to be with her, and I’m almost one hundred percent positive she feels the same for me.” Storm looked over at me and I subtly nodded. “Riley is my pack.”

“Pack?!” The headmistress recoiled. “No. That’s not happening. Omegas do not form packs together. One omega per pack. That’s the rule.”

“Rule? Says who? Show me something that says that,” Storm demanded, her eyes blazing with fury.

“Well, I mean, it’s not an official rule per se . . .,” the headmistress floundered. “But it certainly isn’t done. Omegas are precious commodities. There aren’t enough of us to go around. That’s why we have packs with multiple alphas. Alphas need us just as much as we need them. It is extremely selfish to assume that the two of you can remain together. What will your future packs think? Think of them.”

“Think ofthem? These imaginary alphas should have more say in my relationship than Riley and I do? Are you even listening to yourself? I have told you, multiple times, that Riley and I are matched and as far as I am concerned, we are a pack already. Anyone who wants us to claim them will have to accept that. Not just one, butbothof us. We belong together and that’s the way it’s going to be.”

Storm sat back in her chair, crossing her arms over her chest. She glared at each person standing across from us, daring them to contradict her. My hands were wringing in my lap, I was so nervous. However, Storm’s speech gave me hope. She was so strong to stand up to these people and claim me so publicly. It overfilled my heart with love for her.

The headmistress’s upper lip curled into a sneer. “Accept you both? You dare to think you can dictate that?”

“Dare? No. I demand. Omegas claim their alphas, isn’t that right? Isn't it our choice to give that claim to someone?” When the staff begrudgingly nodded in acknowledgement, Storm continued, “Then I won’t be giving my bite to anyone that isn’t willing to accept the other half of my soul as well.”

The headmistress’s eyes flared, and she crowded into Storm’s space, practically touching her nose to Storm’s. “You will not mess with this school’s perfect bonding rate, Ms. Vareth. Not forher, a scholarship student, of all things. You will stop thisthingbetween the two of you immediately. At the pregrad mixer, you will both find your own packs and move on from this academy . . . separately.”

Storm gripped the front of the arms of the chair and leaned forward, taking back her own space and pressing into the headmistress’s, forcing her to back up. “No.”

One word. One simple word and I fell head over heels in love with her. Even if I hadn’t been already falling hard, this would have done the trick. No matter what they yelled at us, how they threatened us, what they demanded of us, Storm stood her ground, and I was so proud to call her mine. For the first time since we had been so rudely awakened this morning, I felt a tiny smile tug at my lips.

“No? Fine. Have it your way.”

The headmistress rose to her full height and flicked a finger toward someone waiting in the shadows along the side of the office. Storm’s eyes widened and my nose crinkled with the sharp scent of her fear. Something was terribly wrong.

Suddenly, heavy hands clamped down on my shoulders and someone physically started pulling me from my chair. I shrieked and kicked out, trying to dislodge whoever was touching me. I screamed out Storm’s name. She couldn’t help me.

Someone was tugging her out of her chair as well, to the opposite side of the room. She thrashed and snarled in their hold, desperate to break free and get to me. I tried to dig my heels into the thick carpet, to slow my captor down, but it was to no avail. They wrenched me away from my packmate, my Storm, my love. Our cries and pleas fell on deaf ears as they bodily removed us from being with each other.

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