Beginning of Chapter 8

Quinn

Life was good for a while, or at least pleasant enough when placed into perspective. Quinn lived like a king compared to the slum dwelling Alphas that squat beneath the crooked elbows of disjointed halls, collapsed roofs and destruction. The Alphas that were not privy to clean running water, sewage systems and a warm bed.

Last she'd heard, some had fleas in their pubes and drank sludge still pink from chemicals.

But with the memories of her past, she'd say that her quality of life was only up to the standard of a low-income city home owner. One with five kids and the tiniest of flats shared with three smoking bums, and a hundred mewling cats that lived along the street. And worst still, was the emptiness of her new home. It echoed with the loneliness of her solitude, and with the years spent alone, the moment of companionship had her heart clenching with need that was far beyond one that merely searched for a new friend.

No, Helios was different, and it was not simply because Quinn had social and sexual needs.

Her eyes closed to the memory of him clinging to her moments before she let him go just for coin. The flutter of his hair as he sailed towards his mate, ruby in the darkness, his lips an adorable little pout. Solar had stood so far from her she could barely see the fey, and she liked it that way, had kept her distance, easing back when he took a step forward. But his eyes had been a pretty rose in the velveteen darkness, glowing as they tore into her, and then had never left Helios's frame like a good, devoted husband.

He'd been far too occupied with the fey to care about her, but within her mind the memories had burst forth in painful spurts. She'd been almost crippled by the rush of guilt that swept through, clamping up deep in her throat and making her knees week. It took everything for her to turn and leave.

The apology at the tip of her tongue for something she did not do, and God, it was so much heavier with Solar who'd done her no wrong. And even at the end had been quick with his revenge, a simple stab of his sword to her chest. Then he'd stared at Euodia with so much disappointment in his eyes that it faded to a cold, hard acceptance of the truth.

The father of Euodia's only child.

She'd betrayed his trust for an experiment, had used him the way abusers did with their pets. She didn't care if he was hurt, had called him a waste of space when he'd arrived limping and half dead from a battle with the Lonely. His impregnation had been repulsive to Euodia, and an hour in the cold with the lack of a reciprocal mark had killed the child. To which all Euodia had done was giggle and leave.

She'd trust that Helios wouldn't come back, no sane Omega would, believed that the sleeping drugs would surely cloud his mind from memories of her. But Quinn continued with her packing, spent days cleaning up her space to move to another home. It was time for her to leave the dreary deposits of a falling city after all. And Quinn had enough to afford a tall, stilted home in town where she'd have neighbours and perhaps, friends. Accepting jobs would be easier in town, she decided quickly.

Her heart was hopeless nonetheless, because at night her dreams were drenched with crimson locks and golden eyes, the sweet caramel waft that reached— treacherous and deadly— straight to her soul. Helios, it sang, cursed and unforgivable. Helios, Helios, Helios. She didn't understand her obsession, not with memories that she had of this world.

There were mates, bitten marks to tie another to oneself. And the Omegas had cultivated bond far stronger than the ones that resulted from an Alpha's teeth sunk into their nape. But a destined lover marked by the stars, foretold to be together? The concept of people mated from birth, fated to be one; the idea of having another that shared one's soul? It was not a seriously considered phenomenon, and all attraction was merely deemed a convenient result of biology.

But in her world…Quinn's lips had twisted, fingers sunk deep into the flesh as she considered. Her lips curled, felt the sorrow grow in her belly. Helios's need for her had simply been coming from a starving fey who'd not had a meal in days. He'd do it to any other female, and she had simply been the unlucky one that had caught his nose.

Quinn had simply been convenient; she was not his soulmate.

The town was quieter than usual, and when she stepped upon the sagging platform there was no life to greet her eyes. Her gaze had swept over the yard, searched for signs in the flanks of rotting corpses swinging from the eaves and the frozen pieces of manure dripping from the recent swift fall of temperature.

There should be women battering for goods and offering new work, always a couple of girls giggling at the corner over pretty trinkets and art. But the streets were empty, the pathways lacking in lounging Alphas and the laughter of a community, and all that approached her was the rush of a viscous wind that rippled through her coat.

Noise erupted from the main inn—cast in a thick veil of smog and noisy with darting shadows and light from the figures that danced within the panelled glass. A push of the swinging doors showcased her answer, the waft of Alpha pheromones drenching her in disgusting fumes so thick that she gagged and choked on its perfume. Quinn shouldered through the crowded space, twitching her nose at the disgusting display and hid under the broken hoodie that shielded the blue of her mask.

Upon the screen of crackling static, placed over the bounties and the jobs in large, glowing font was a single post from the New Kingdom.

We welcome the return of Alphas as official citizens of the New Kingdom. Under the Mating Laws, all Alphas will be mated to a pack of Omegas. During the search for the perfect pack, Alphas will undergo a series of selections and trials. They will be educated to fit the needs of society, in which their behaviour will be monitored and graded.

A job will be provided, with Alphas working in the community in which a monthly stipend will be paid by the government. This will continue until a perfect match is made. Only when deemed a moral, responsible citizen will the Alpha become a true part of the kingdom.

And under it all was a heavy list of matrimonial advertisement coming from Omegas, already eager to search for an Alpha that would fit the bill. Quinn's eyes swept through the pictures of Omega packs, skipping over the adverts of doctors looking for a kind Alpha with a genuine love for medicine, and the ability to give a good massage.

And others who wanted a strong women of fine character no more than thirty, to provide them with at least ten children, two for each member of the family. Another asked for an Omega of dark hair and dark eyes and would not be a talkative bother. Her jaw fell open as they flickered and changed, revealed another set of Omegas pretty in their pictures with some of their outrageous, chauvinistic demands for a slave and not a partner.

"Fucking hell," Quinn exhaled, gawked at the signboard that no sane person could ever agree to. But she knew what the Alphas were looking at beyond the fine print that detailed their unreasonable needs that she knew for a fact they'd written just to make clear that the Alphas weren't welcomed. The Alphas by her side didn't care, pouring over the images of the men, chatting with one another over the ways they could ruin them.

Disgusting, Quinn sneered. The order was too good to be true, coming from a city of sexist men, mentally scarred from a century of war and hardship. And she felt colour drain from her cheeks, her mind cycling through the dystopian novels she'd read about what people did during a population crisis. She turned her head to an Alpha, gaunt and thin, reed-like from malnutrition with hair so thin the tips of her head were balding.

"It's a trap, right?" she asked, felt the need to tug at her sleeve. The Alpha turned to look at her with a grunt, a cigarette perched on her lip. Quinn had seen her roaming the wastelands, and the Alpha was a veteran in these parts, was good at her job and could salvage some of the best machinery. "They only want to get rid of the last of us."

"It's a good deal, that's what it is," was the Alpha's answer, a nasal scoff, "we haven't had an Omega in years". She made a face, stubbed the burning ends of her cig upon wood. "My Rut's been a pain in the ass. And I'm tired of struggling in the wastelands, love to work at somewhere safe with free access to tampons and menstrual cups that work."

"What about the thing about 'wanting a woman that can cook and clean' or 'massage'?" Quinn pointed to the board. She couldn't refute the need to be protected as someone who had a cheat ability that could essentially give her everything. "You don't want to do that—"

"Who cares?" Another retorted back to her, shoving through. "We're barely surviving here. Do anything to get out of this hellhole. I'll cook and clean if they're feeding me. And who knows? A clit in the arse and they might just change their mind." There was a bark of laughter from the group, a chorus that was disgusting to Quinn's ears. "They'll be the ones massaging our feet."

"Get a grip!" was the answer from the Alpha by her side, tossing the cig to the side. "They'll kill you in seconds with that attitude," she snorted, hands on her hips. "Just be thankful we'll be going back to civilization."