Marked Omega (Quarantine Omega Book 1) Page 6

  When he sees the pained look in my eyes, he decides not to press the issue.

  He kneels beside the omega, and she clings to him. She sees him as the good one. Her protector. Meanwhile, I’m the enraged monster. That’s fine with me.

  At last I see what Kadmon is carrying in his hands.

  Berries.

  No wonder he was taking so long out there. He was out gathering berries for his new girlfriend. I can’t blame him, of course. He has never had a woman before, and he is understandably excited about it. I was once like him, I remind myself.

  I stalk off to the other side of the cave and settle against the wall, watching as the youngster gradually soothes the distraught omega. After a minute he gets her to sample some of the dark berries he picked for her. A few minutes later she is even smiling.

  They look like me and Talia when I was young and she was still alive.

  I leave the two young ones to enjoy each other’s company. They are whispering about something that seems to be important, but I don’t bother to listen in. Kadmon is well aware of his rank, and I know that I can trust him not to overstep.

  I go to check on Addom. Although he is still unconscious, his vital signs are still strong. Hopefully he will be awake and well enough to travel by the morning, and then we can return to the city. To the Source.

  A minute later, Kadmon crouches beside me.

  “How is he?” Kadmon asks.

  “He’s well,” I tell him. “Just sleeping. By tomorrow he should be right again.”

  Kadmon nods. I can feel him looking me over as if he is wondering how I am doing too. But he knows better than to ask.

  “I’m going out,” he says after a while.

  “These are the far lands,” I remind him. “The Alphas here don’t take kindly to visitors.”

  Kadmon nods again. He glances over my shoulder at the omega.

  “I know,” he says. “That’s why I’m going. I just want to scout the surrounding area. Make sure there are no enemy bands nearby. The omega’s scent has been repressed, at least for now, but I still want to make sure nobody is sneaking up on us.”

  Scouting is not a bad idea. But I remember his overly bold words from before about taking on the far-lander Alphas.

  “Be careful,” I warn him. “If you run into trouble, come straight back here. Don’t try to fight them all by yourself.”

  Kadmon claps a hand on my shoulder and grins.

  “I’m always careful, Hasker,” he beams.

  Then he sets off, moving swift and quiet toward the entrance of the cave. He’s a good stalker, that boy. He knows how to move without making a sound or leaving behind tracks for enemies to follow. He has learned well.

  The omega is curled up in her little nest of weeds and moss by the cave wall, her back toward me.

  I decide to lie down too. Soon it will be dark, and we’ll need our rest for tomorrow’s trek.

  But as I get comfortable, something catches my eye—it is the sundered stone that I used to break the omega’s chains. Once more my heart aches with pain. The old wound that has never healed.

  CHAPTER 9: LILY

  I wake from the deepest sleep of my life, feeling refreshed and alive in a way that I’ve never experienced before. My body feels charged with energy, but at the same time, I am totally calm, relaxed, and peaceful.

  This must be what people mean when they talk about serenity.

  But that good feeling immediately disappears into panic as I realize that I’m wedged between two snoring giants. That comfortable warmth that I’m experiencing? Yeah, that’s coming from their hot breath and half-naked bodies.

  Geez, these guys must have some kind of crazy metabolism because I know that the air in this cave is cool, but their bodies feel hot as a couple of furnaces.

  As my eyes gradually adjust to the low light, I start to get my bearings.

  The one lying in front of me is the leader. Addom. I can tell by the silhouette of his longish, curly hair. His muscular arm is draped over my shoulder, holding me like I’m his teddy bear. Does that mean he woke up at some point from his tranquilizer-induced coma?

  I remember how he charged me at the tree. How he ripped my bra to shreds and sucked my breasts so hard it hurt. The memory sends a shiver through my body. I tell myself it’s fear.

  A rough beard scrubs against the nape of my neck, and hot breath tickles the back of my ear. I guess the big body spooning me from behind must be Hasker.

  He’s not nearly as handsome as the other two Alphas, at least not in a conventional sense, but that obviously hasn’t hindered him with the ladies. Based on the explosive orgasm he gave me earlier, I’m sure it wasn’t his first time exploring a female’s anatomy.

  I shiver as my muscles remember the shameful way my climaxes rippled through me. My sex pulses and my nipples tighten as I recall the way that he and Kadmon put their rough hands on my most private and sensitive places.

  It was so freaking wrong.

  So why did it feel so good?

  I justify it by reminding myself that it had to be done. Now that I’m an omega, by no choice of my own, my scent would have brought an army of rabid Alphas down on us. And they wouldn’t have been nearly as gentle as Hasker and Kadmon were.

  Kadmon. The sensitive one. I wonder where he could be.

  Careful not to disturb the sleeping Alphas, I raise my head and peer over Addom’s thick shoulder. The cave is dark of course, but there’s enough moonlight filtering in for me to see a little bit. A quick scan shows no sign of the younger Alpha.

  I attune my ears, listening carefully to my surroundings. Two snoring Alphas. Water dripping somewhere, echoing through stoney chambers. A slight breeze rustling the leaves outside. I lie back down.

  I have to admit, I feel pretty safe like this. They’ve got me in a little Lily sandwich. I smirk and almost giggle, but then I get myself under control.

  This is no time for joking around.

  Fine, these guys saved me from the SynerGen security troopers. And Hasker took care of my “needs.” He and Kadmon even showed considerable restraint by not actually…penetrating me. But that wasn’t out of concern for me. They were acting in deference to their leader, Addom. And once he wakes up, all bets are off.

  They may have quelled my heat temporarily, but it will be back.

  I need to get out of here. I need to escape.

  But where will I go? I’ll just have to figure that out later. For now, I need to make my move while these two guys are snoozing.

  Although Hasker broke the chain, the metal shackles are still attached to my wrists, so I take care not to jangle them against the stones. Moving slowly and carefully, I start to wriggle my body out from under Addom’s big arm. In the process, my soft naked skin rubs against the hard muscles of their bare torsos, and I curse my traitorous body for the way it responds.

  Then something pokes my butt, and I freeze, barely able to stifle the involuntary squeal that wants to slip out of my throat.

  Oh. My. God.

  Is that what I think it is?

  In the course of our sleeping, Hasker’s fur loincloth as become scrunched up, and a certain part of his male anatomy has come free. I can’t see it, but I can sure feel it, like a blunt club nudging against the cleft of my bare tush.

  But there’s something else. Something harder even than his hard flesh. Slightly cool. It takes a moment for it to sink in.

  He’s pierced down below too.

  My sex clenches involuntarily as an unbidden thought streaks across my mind: How would that hard piercing feel inside me? How would it abrade my tender inner tissues?

  I can’t let such thoughts distract me. I’ve got to keep going.

  As I continue wiggling and squirming my way out of Addom’s hug, my tushy brushes more and more against Hasker’s impressive member. God it’s so hard and hot, and I can feel all of the little veins and ridges as it slides against my crack.

  My flesh heats, and my core clenches again as I realiz
e exactly how long and thick that damn thing is.

  I know from my studies that males typically get erections while they are sleeping, but I’ve never experienced it firsthand. I can only wonder what Hasker is dreaming about back there.

  Addom seems to be dreaming too. He mumbles softly in his sleep and adjusts his body. As he does so, his loincloth shifts too, and his stone-stiff cock comes swinging out like it’s spring loaded, smacking me hard right between the legs.

  I bite down on my bottom lip to stifle a gasp.

  Can’t a girl get a break around here?

  I stare down at it in amazement. Even though it’s dark in here, there is still just enough moonlight coming in from the mouth of the cave for me to see a little bit. Plus, I think my omega transformation may have improved my night vision because I can see much better than I ought to be able to.

  Hasker’s erection is still pressed against my butt from behind, and Addom’s is wedged between my legs. He rocks his hips, rubbing his cockhead against me, and sending wild tingles shooting through my core. His tip drizzles a few drops of hot, sticky fluid onto my thigh, the prelude to his seed.

  I choke back a whimper. My slit becomes slippery with arousal, and I struggle with a temptation to grind myself against that hard and drooling cock.

  Get it together, Lily. You’re supposed to be escaping, remember?

  Fortunately, in his nocturnal shifting, Addom has loosened his grip with his arm. With a bit of shuffling and shimmying, I’m able to work my head from underneath his hug and sit up. I glance at Addom’s face, which is blank with sleep. His piercings and hyper-masculine features give him the appearance of a slumbering demon. I turn to look at bearded Hasker, and he’s definitely sleeping like a log too.

  Good.

  I stand up, saying goodbye to those two rock hard penises. Part of me is thankful that I’ll never have to be penetrated by those beastly things.

  It suddenly occurs to me that although Hasker quenched my heat, at least temporarily, my omega scent is probably pretty strong in this cave. That gives me the oddest little tingle of pride knowing that I gave these guys that feeling.

  But it also reminds me what they plan to do to me with those terrifying members.

  Yeah, it’s time to get far away from here.

  Crouching to avoid the bumps and jagged bits of the cave ceiling, I tiptoe toward the blueish circle of moonlight that is the mouth of the cave.

  I still don’t know where Kadmon has gone, and it occurs to me that he may be keeping watch, so I move cautiously and quietly.

  Stepping out into the blue-tinged moonlit forest, I find myself surrounded by sounds that I have never heard before. I have only read about such things in scientific texts.

  The first sound I notice is a strange buzzing that seems to come from every direction, the noise rising to a crescendo and then falling away in waves. Those must be cicadas singing in the trees. How fascinating.

  There are other sounds too. The hooting of owls and the high pitched squeaking of bats, which I can see fluttering and swooping overhead. And there is also the rustling of the soft night wind whispering through the leaves in the treetops.

  These are sounds of nature that my hive-dwelling ears have never experienced.

  Part of me loves these notes. Not to mention the rich earthy scent of the forest or the way the cool night air ghosts over my naked skin. I’ve never felt so alive in all my days. Part of me feels as though it belongs here.

  But my rational mind knows that I belong back in the city hive. I have to run. My odds of making it back to the barrier wall on foot are slim to none, but I’ve got to at least try.

  And there is no sign of Kadmon. I seem to be in the clear.

  Suddenly, a dull ache pulses behind my eyes. My temples throb with pain, and nausea grips my stomach. I double over, expecting to vomit. If that happens, the Alphas will surely hear me, and my cover will be blown.

  My first thought is the berries that Kadmon gave me. Could they have been poisonous? Doubtful. The Alphas are surely knowledgeable about what is safe to eat in the forest since they get their sustenance from hunting and gathering.

  Then it hits me. The nihiloxin. It’s been nearly half a day since my last dose, and back in the city hive I would always take one tablet before bed to help me sleep.

  I’m having withdrawals.

  Panic grips me. I’ve never experienced withdrawals from nihiloxin before, but I’ve heard of the symptoms. In some very severe cases, people can have seizures and even go into a coma. If that were to happen to me here in the zone without access to medical technology, I would be finished.

  Fortunately, the nausea and headache pass as quickly as they started. A moment later, and I feel perfectly normal again. I breathe a sigh of relief.

  Still, I can’t deny, a nihiloxin tablet would certainly come in handy right about now.

  No time to think about that. I get my bearings and remember the way that the Alphas brought me. That’s south. If I run that way long enough, I’ll make it to the wall and beyond that, civilization.

  God, it will take days.

  But I’ll never get there if I just keep standing around. I start to run, moving in and out of the trees and trying my best to steer clear of any dense underbrush.

  I’ve barely gone a hundred yards, when I hear a distant sound echoing through the forest.

  A feral howl.

  My blood runs cold. Was that a wolf? Or perhaps it was Kadmon?

  Or was it something even worse?

  I pump my legs even faster, dodging in and out of the densely packed columns of enormous, old-growth tree trunks. I stumble over a gnarled root and go sprawling, scraping my knees and hands.

  Another howl. This time from the other side, but closer.

  There’s more than one.

  I pick myself up. My heart is pounding like a drum. I run as fast as my legs will carry me, going at a full sprint. My lungs burn. My thighs burn. Everything fucking burns.

  There are more howls now. They are coming from every direction, and they are getting closer by the second. And I’m starting to pick up other sounds too. Snorts and yelps and huffing breath.

  There’s no mistake that whatever is out there is coming straight for me.

  I do the only thing my panicked brain can think of.

  “Kadmon!” I scream at the top of my lungs. “Hasker! Help m—“

  Something hits me from behind, tackling me and roughly flinging my body to the ground. Every ounce of breath is knocked out of my lungs, and I feel a heart-clenching dread as it feels like I can’t breathe.

  My body skids on the slippery carpet of dead leaves until I slam into something sturdy. At first I think it is the trunk of a small tree. Then it kicks me, flipping me over on to my back.

  It’s an Alpha.

  But this monster doesn’t look like the guys who captured me earlier today. Even in the dim moonlight, I can tell that this Alpha is hideous. His nostrils are splayed like a wild beast. His brow is heavy and ridged. When he snarls at me, his lips curl back to reveal sharp fangs dripping with saliva. His red tongue lolls like a dog’s.

  Sitting up, I scramble backward across the leaf strewn ground, but I immediately bump into the legs of another Alpha. Before I have a chance to scream, he kicks me over onto my belly.

  Now there are more of them. At least a dozen, their heavy feet stomping and crunching through the twigs and underbrush. They are panting, and the air is thick with their overwhelming stench, like a wet dog crossed with the worst B.O. you can imagine.

  The smell is so strong it makes me gag.

  A clawed hand grabs my hair, jerking me upright. My scalp screams with pain as it feels like all of my hair is going to be torn out in a chunk. More nasty, bestial hands paw at me. tugging at my arms and legs. One of them sniffs the iron shackle on my wrist curiously, gnaws it briefly, then gives up.

  The Alphas surround me, closing in. They are snarling. Some of them start to fight, popping their jaws threate
ningly. Others begin to play tug-of-war with my body. My joints ache, and I feel like I’m going to be ripped apart.

  In the middle of this chaos, I make the mistake of glancing down at the Alphas’ lower bodies. They are all naked, and they are all sporting stiff erections. Their members are repulsive. Gnarled and crooked. Evil looking things.

  I scream in terror, my shrill voice echoing between the dark trees.

  My only hope is that these awful beasts kill me first before they do that other thing that I know they intend.

  Then something happens. The hideous Alphas raise their heads and sniff the air, their ears turning to pick up some sound that has caught their attention.

  A massive, dark blur charges through the crowd of Alphas sending them sprawling. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say they just got mowed down by an SUV.

  The Alphas who are holding me drop my body so they can fight, and I fall limply onto the forest floor.

  As I lift my head and brush back my hair tangled with leaves, I see my savior outlined in blueish moonlight. He flings one of the feral Alphas sideways into a tree trunk. Another one he fells with a savage, bone-crushing kick.

  There are winks of moonlit metal at his mouth and chest, and the swirl of his long hair as he fights gives him away.

  It’s Kadmon. He throws back his head and releases an incredible howl like a siren.

  My heart leaps with joy. I’m saved.

  But my happiness is short lived. While Kadmon is busy fighting off the horde of misshapen Alphas, a pair of gnarled hands clamp around my ankles and begin dragging me into the shadows.

  “Kadmon!” I scream. “Help me!”

  He whirls around, snarling with rage, his body glistening with the spilled blood of his enemies. But the other Alphas have him penned in. There are just too many of them, even for a warrior like Kadmon.

  “Kadmon!” I cry out desperately as I feel myself being dragged to my doom.

  Suddenly a roar, louder than any that I’ve heard so far rips through the forest. It sounds like how I would imagine a giant grizzly bear would sound. Or maybe King Kong. The sound is so loud and terrifying that all of the Alphas stop what they are doing and turn to look.