Chapter Eight
There was a constant dull ache in Max’s head. It made the world around him too bright, too loud. Only when he shifted did it ease.
The omega’s hands had been gentle as they cleaned the crusted blood from his scalp. But now it was growing late, the fire was dying down, and the omega was settling down to sleep under the blanket Max had found for him. The alpha saw him shiver a little and wondered why he didn’t shift form. He changed to his bear form, moved closer to the omega, and nudged him. Sleep would come easier with a coat of fur than with that tattered piece of cloth over him.
When his nose nudged against the omega, the other shifter jerked upright, eyes wide. Max tugged the blanket off with his teeth and nudged him again, sitting back and waiting for the omega to change form.
He went to nudge him a third time, getting a little impatient, when the omega spoke, twisting around so Max could see the shiny metal band on his ankle. He had seen it when he’d cleaned the omega’s feet but he hadn’t fully grasped what it meant.
“I can’t,” the omega said to him. “Not with this on. And this.” His hand went to his neck and the collar there.
Max’s bear eyes weren’t right for what the omega was showing him, so he changed back to human form, his body protesting the back and forth.
The collar looked like an easy fix; it was only part-metal, the rest was leather. But the ankle band was two pieces of metal joined together. He spent a long time looking at it before deciding there may be something he could do after all.
The omega’s eyes followed him as he searched around the floor of the cabin. He found what he was looking for eventually, an old piece of rusted metal that had at some point had a use. Kneeling by the fire, he pushed one end into the smoldering embers, heating it until it glowed orange. He carried it carefully back toward the crouched omega, only for him to shy away, curling up against the wall. Frowning, Max reached out, snagging the omega’s ankle and drawing out his leg until he could reach the cuff easily. Feeling with his fingers, he searched for the join, the weakest part, before pressing the heated metal against it.
The omega made a quiet sound under his breath but held still, his eyes staring at the glowing metal as if mesmerized. As it cooled, Max pulled it away then used both hands to tug hard at the metal, hoping the heat had loosened it. There was some give there where there had been none before and he was able to separate the two pieces. But it wasn’t enough to get the tight metal cuff off. He’d need to break the second join. Back to the fire he went, heating the length of metal. When he returned to the omega, he found him sitting exactly as he’d left him, his leg outstretched. He flinched only a little when Max took his ankle in hand, turning the band so he could reach the second join. He held the metal there for as long as it stayed hot before setting it aside. This time, the cuff pulled free with a little encouragement, the two sides of the band breaking apart and freeing the omega’s ankle. There, done. Except… there was still the collar.
When Max reached for it, the omega pressed back, wrists crossing in front of his neck as if to ward him off. But the omega needed to shift. Shifting meant survival. It was easy to brush the omega’s hands away and tug him from the wall. He ran his hands all around the collar, finding the weakest point where the leather attached to the metal. Brute strength was enough to tear the leather away, and he flung the collar across the room. He sat back, expecting gratefulness from the omega or at the very least relief at being freed. But there were tears in the omega’s eyes and his whole body shook with fear. Had Max hurt him taking the collar off?
Tugging him toward the light of the fire, he moved the omega’s head this way and that, getting a good look at the skin of his neck that had been hidden beneath the collar. He couldn’t see much of anything except what’d he’d expected, the skin abraded from the constant rub of the collar. When he ran his hand along the omega’s neck, the other shifter shuddered, pleading with him.
“Please, Max. Please no. Don’t.”
He didn’t understand, not the tears, not the words. There was fear. The omega was afraid. Casting his gaze around, he looked for the source. But they were alone, there was no noise from outside to suggest danger was approaching. He moved back, trying to see what he was missing. But all he could see was the omega, shaking, tears on his face. He’d gone quiet now, but Max could hear the rapid beat of his heart in his chest, could smell his fear.
The urge to protect went hand in hand with the urge to comfort, so it was nothing to pick the omega up into his arms and settle him down in front of the fire. Max settled down right behind him, drawing the omega into the warmth of his body. The other shifter tried to push away, crying and panicked, but Max could feel how cold he was. Tugging him closer, he wrapped his arms around him, stilling the omega’s frantic movements.
“Sleep,” he rumbled. “Rest.”
He didn’t touch the omega’s neck, seeing as that seemed to be the source of his fears, but he did set one hand on the omega’s back, rubbing it in slow circles. The omega’s quiet cries grew louder but he was no longer pushing Max away. Instead, he was clinging tighter. Max felt gratified the omega was taking comfort from him. It was only right. Alpha and omega.
The omega was still in his arms the next morning but squirmed and twisted in the minutes before he woke. A pair of shocked blue eyes stared at him before the omega lowered his gaze. Max didn’t like that. An omega should never be scared to look at his alpha. Slipping a hand beneath the omega’s chin, he gently tipped his head back up.
“Morning,” the omega mumbled, giving him a small smile.
Max returned the smile, sitting up and helping the omega up with him. The fire was out but it wouldn’t take much to get it going again. The omega yawned, and he pressed him back down to lie on the ground, covering him back up with the blanket. He was still tired, he needed to rest.
Max took the bucket down to the river, gathering water before shifting to catch some fish. He caught half a dozen in less than an hour, tossing them up onto the bank each time. Then he shifted back, washing quickly in the fast-moving water, and carried his bounty back to the cabin.
His head throbbed a little less that morning, his mind clearer. But there was still a mist of confusion. He remembered this place. He’d been here before. But when had he left, and how had he come back? And why was there an omega with him?
The omega was up and about when he reached the cabin. He’d collected more wood for the fire which he was stacking in a neat pile beside the fireplace. Max set his bucket of water and the fish next to it and got the fire going again. He cooked the fish, handing the first two to the omega to make sure he ate his fill. When he offered him a third, the omega refused. Max ate three, offering his companion the last. He shook his head again but a little hesitantly so Max divided the fish in two, giving the omega the bigger piece. He got a bright smile in return.
Once the food was finished, he decided to tackle something else that was bothering him. Pouring more water into the pot, he set it in the fire to heat the water, rescuing one of the unused strips of cloth from the previous day. The omega was watching him carefully. Max didn’t want the fear from the night before to return, so he moved cautiously, reaching for the omega’s foot. He held it lightly in his hand while he cleaned the skin of the ankle where the band had been. The skin looked a little red and sore. The sole of his foot looked as bad as it had the previous night, so he washed that too for good measure before moving to the second foot. The omega tolerated his ministrations until Max got a fresh strip of cloth and tried to clean his neck.
Just like before, the omega pulled away, curling up against the wall, his eyes flashing with fear, his body shaking. It wasn’t right. Max could tell from his scent that they were compatible. Why was he afraid?
Holding out a hand, he spoke one word. “Come.”
After a long moment, the omega reached out and took his hand, letting the alpha pull him away from the wall and over to kneel in front of the fire. Max settled himself behind the omega, the basin of water and cloth next to him. He wet it, wrung it out, then gently started to clean the excoriated skin. The collar and the cuff had clearly been on the omega for a long time. He would need time to heal.
The omega stayed tense beneath his hands, shuddering again when the cloth brushed the back of his neck. Max almost pulled back, thinking he was causing pain, but the omega pushed into the touch, just a little. It was enough to tell Max that he was helping, that maybe the fear was ebbing away.
Putting his hands on the omega’s torn shirt, he gently lifted it up and over his head, baring his back. The omega grew tenser at this, his body bowing forward, his hands clenched tightly on his knees. When Max ran the cloth down along his back, he sagged with relief. He’d been expecting pain, the alpha realized. That was why all the fear, the tears. He didn’t know that Max wouldn’t hurt him.
He kept going, gently washing every inch of the omega’s back. There were faint marks that might have been healing bruises and certainly the omega tensed when he touched them, but otherwise, the omega’s skin was beautifully smooth. It felt warm beneath his hand as he stroked it. How had this omega ended up with him? It was like he’d fallen from the sky, and Max had just woken up with him by his side. It felt right yet wrong at the same time.
The dull ache in his head made its presence known again. Max let the cloth sink back into the bowl and moved away toward the door, shifting and stomping outside. He heard rather than saw the omega move, turning to see him crouched by the doorway, watching him with curious eyes. In some ways, he seemed just as lost as Max was.