Chapter Seven
Ronan was used to clients being happy when he got results. Frederick was no exception, insisting he stay for dinner and drinks and introducing him to a few very beautiful women and men from the pack. Ronan was able to politely decline their company for the night by strongly hinting he had someone waiting. But he also knew the importance of making nice with the clients, both for repeat business and because their work largely relied on word of mouth. So, he stayed, ate and drank, and took up Frederick’s offer of a bed for the night.
It meant, by the time he got back on the road, that it was late on day five when he finally returned to the fringes and the boarding house. Parking Preston’s car at the rest stop, he walked toward the house collecting his motorbike from the garage on the way and parking it outside the front door.
The house was in darkness, which surprised him since it wasn’t all that late. Knocking, he waited, anticipating a surprised, and maybe angry, Noah. Instead, he got nothing, no footsteps, no one coming to see what all the knocking was about. The door was locked when he checked it, so he wandered around back and in through the kitchen. The place was a mess, dishes strewn everywhere, half-eaten food, empty wine bottles, and beer cans abandoned on the table.
He couldn’t see Noah going off the rails like this, not because he was a little on the late side. The sound of heavy breathing drew him into the living room, and he spotted a stranger lying on the couch, a near-empty bottle of beer dangling from his fingers as he slept. Definitely not Noah.
Quietly, he searched the rest of the house, finding no sign of the omega and no hint as to where he’d gone. He’d even checked the notepad in the kitchen. There’d been something written on it but a liberal spillage of wine across it had obliterated the message. There was only one place left to seek information. Arming himself with a glass of water, he strode back to the living room.
Ronan tried to be nice at first, calling and then shaking the beta to wake him. When neither worked, he didn’t hesitate to empty the glass of water over his head.
It did the trick, the beta surfaced, angry and sputtering, followed by a jolt of shock as he dropped the beer bottle and it smashed across the floor.
“Wakey-wakey,” Ronan said loudly, drawing reddened and confused eyes toward him. “You’ve got some explaining to do.”
Leslie had the radio on, and the noise made it hard to think. No one seemed too concerned with explaining to Noah what was going on, but it didn’t take long for him to realize that they weren’t going the direction he’d expected.
“We’re not going home?” he asked.
Maurice’s eyes met his through the rearview mirror. “Home? What use would you be there? We’re going somewhere much better. Much more suited to your… talents.”
Bert snickered and even Leslie looked amused. Noah sank lower into his seat, his voice small when he spoke again.
“Has Alpha Gregory found me an alpha?”
It was the only reason Noah could think that they’d uproot him. But even then, there was the question of compatibility and Noah’s obvious… limitations.
“In a way,” Maurice said, and Noah could almost hear the smirk he knew adorned the alpha’s face. The others broke into laughter again, the sound ugly and cruel. Noah curled tighter into himself and tried to hold it together. Tears or panic would only amuse them.
They traveled for almost four hours, Noah watching each minute tick by on the dashboard clock, growing more anxious by the hour. Maurice started giving directions, and he knew they were close. But close to where? The view outside his window didn’t give many clues. He could see dry, desert-like scrubland with houses dotted here and there. Every car that passed was covered in the dust, reminding him of the fringes. How he wished he was still there, bored to tears cleaning the windows, waiting for Ronan to return. Even if the alpha returned now, Noah was gone. Why would an alpha like that come looking for an omega like him?
“Turn left here,” Maurice said sharply.
“Is this it?” Bert asked, leaning forward, and craning his neck to see. Noah tried to see what he was looking at, but it was just some old rundown building.
“This is it,” Maurice said. “The back entrance.”
It wasn’t anywhere Noah had been before, and it wasn’t somewhere that looked welcoming. But there was nothing for it except to get out and follow the alpha as he strode across to a metal door, flanked by Bert and Leslie. Even though he’d given them no reason to think he’d run, they clearly weren’t taking chances. Which meant whatever was behind this door was bad.
Maurice rapped on the door and waited, kicking impatiently at the dusty ground beneath his feet.
There was a grinding sound, like a bolt being drawn back, before the door swung outward. A man stood there, an alpha. Despite their surroundings, he looked clean, and yet there was something about him that made Noah want to shudder.
“Bobby,” Maurice greeted. “You were expecting us.”
“Gregory said lunchtime. It’s almost three.”
“Traffic, you know how it is. We had a long way to travel.”
Bobby grunted in acknowledgment, his eyes drifting past Maurice and falling upon Noah. It took everything Noah had not to move as the alpha’s eyes swept across him. There was something so cold and calculating in Bobby’s gaze like he was looking at an object, not a person.
“This him?”
“This is Noah,” Maurice said, reaching back to grab at Noah’s arm and yank him forward.
“Well, you’d better come inside.”
Bobby stepped backward, disappearing from view through the doorway. Noah didn’t want to follow, but Maurice didn’t give him a choice, shoving him forward ahead of him. Noah tripped over a shallow step at the door, catching himself just before he wound up on the ground.
“Clumsy fool,” Maurice snapped, dragging him upright.
“I’m sorry, Alpha,” Noah said on reflex.
Bobby brought them to a room with some chairs and couches. Maurice sat in a chair and Noah stood beside him, the alpha’s hand resting possessively on his arm.
“Something to drink?” Bobby offered, and Maurice graciously accepted. Bobby called out and a woman appeared, taking their drinks orders before hurrying away. Leslie and Bert sat down, Bert near the doorway leading back outside, eying Noah suspiciously. What was he expecting Noah to do? Cut and run? Run where? He’d gotten a look around the place as they’d arrived, there was nothing nearby except road and dust. How far would he get before he was hunted down and dragged back?
“Gregory made all the arrangements ahead of time,” Maurice was saying as the woman returned with drinks. They paused as she set them down, then resumed.
“That’s right. Just the matter of payment and then we’re done.”
Payment? For what? Alarmed, Noah twisted to look at Maurice, but the alpha’s attention was all on Bobby.
“I believe ten thousand was the agreed figure,” Maurice said. Noah swallowed hard. They weren’t a well-off pack. Ten thousand dollars was a lot of money.
“If you have what you say you have,” Bobby replied.
“See for yourself,” Maurice said, getting to his feet. Noah found himself yanked around to face Maurice, the alpha’s hands gripping his arms tightly enough to bruise.
“The alpha needs to see your scars, Noah.”
With a heavy heart, Noah shut his eyes and bent his head forward, exposing his neck. A hand brushed the hair away before fingers felt along the scar tissues.
“Haven’t seen ones quite this bad before.”
“Yes. When it happened, we didn’t think he’d survive. Some thought it would have been better if he hadn’t.”
“Good thing for me and you that he did,” Bobby said simply. He let go and moved back. Maurice released Noah, Noah’s arms throbbing where the alpha had held him.
“I’ll organize your payment.” Bobby left the room quickly.
Noah still didn’t understand what was happening. Why would this Bobby be paying money for him? He wasn’t anything special, and he certainly wasn’t worth ten thousand dollars, a small fortune to his pack.
“Alpha Maurice, I don’t understand why I’m here.”
The alpha glanced up at him, distracted.
“What? Oh, haven’t worked it out yet, no? You never were the quickest off the mark, were you? Alpha Gregory knows that you’ve always wanted an alpha. Every omega wants an alpha, it’s your biological imperative. But with your… condition, that was never going to happen, not the traditional way.”
Maurice patted Noah on the arm.
“But that doesn’t mean you can’t be of use and, in the process, be useful to your pack. Bobby here runs a very fine establishment. High-class entertainment. The only sticking point of a business like his though, is, well, the trouble omegas cause. His alpha clients can’t always control themselves, and he ends up with all sorts of issues; bond marks, accidental matings, pregnancy. With you, there’s none of the risks. And he’s willing to pay handsomely to take you off our hands.”
Noah put it all together, swallowing hard.
“This… this is a brothel?”
“One of the best in this part of the country. It’s no high-end escort agency, but it’s got a good reputation,” Maurice said smoothly.
“But I… I don’t… I have to stay here?” Noah felt tears brimming in his eyes, his thoughts drowned out by the horror of what they were saying.
“Of course, you’re his newest employee. This is a good thing for you, Noah. Think of it as a promotion, a chance to do something with your life. And you won’t be in want of alpha company.”
“Yes,” Leslie agreed, smiling at him. “You won’t just have one alpha, Noah. You’ll have dozens a day. Hundreds in a month. The omega everyone wants a piece of.”
Stomach heaving, Noah ran for the door, but Bert was there, arms folded, grinning. Noah spun around, just in time to see Bobby return with an envelope in his hands. “Count it, if you like, it’s all there—”
“Noah’s just a little anxious about his new situation,” Maurice said smoothly, taking the money from Bobby. “Perhaps there’s somewhere you could put him to cool down?”
Bert grabbed one arm and Leslie the other, Noah unmoving between them. When they started to lead him after Bobby, he began to struggle, kicking and shouting and begging.
“Alpha Maurice, please, don’t do this. Let me go home, I just want to go home. I’ll go back to the fringes, I’ll take care of the boarding house. I’ll do anything, anything but this.”
A door opened, and he was thrown inside, landing hard on the ground. Behind him, the door shut and locked. Scrambling to his feet, he launched himself at it, shouting and banging, calling to the people he could hear just outside. But the voices moved away until he couldn’t hear them anymore. Defeated, he sank slowly to the ground, curling up against the door. They couldn’t do this to him, they couldn’t. But they had.