HUNTER

 

If there were one thing the slums did better than the rest of Dirge, it was the bars. There was no shortage of places to go if you wanted to get liquor.

It made sense.

Pandora was a miserable place. I couldn’t blame so many of the people living here for wanting to get drunk and forget about everything going on in their lives.

I didn’t live in Pandora but I could empathize at the moment. A long day of construction plus a street fight were the perfect recipe for a night of drinks. The alcohol would have been enough. Having York there with me was icing on the cake.

“Are you all right? You took a pretty nasty hit back there…”

York put a hand up to my temple. His soft touch was enough to ease the slight pain throbbing in my head. I smiled as he grazed his fingers over me.

“I’ll be just fine,” I said. “Nothing a night of relaxing won’t fix.”

I took a gulp of my beer and sighed as it gushed down my throat.

The bar was crowded but everybody kept to themselves. The lights were low with a brown tint to them, and the room seemed even darker from the tinge of cigarette smoke. The conversations weren’t loud enough for me to listen in on but that didn’t matter. It felt like York and I were the only ones in the room.

We sat at a table near the side of the bar. We had all the privacy we needed.

“That wasn’t a good idea,” York said.

“What wasn’t?”

“What do you think? Heading to Pandora is already bad enough. Getting into a fight with some random Alpha… Awful idea. That Alpha could have ripped your head off.”

“He didn’t though.”

I smiled at him and took another gulp of beer. York sighed and leaned back in his seat. I was happy to see him again though he wasn’t in the best mood at the moment.

York stared off into the distance. He crossed his arms. There was something clearly on his mind and I knew it was only a matter of time until he told me what it was.

“What’s going on?” I asked.

He didn’t respond.

“Did you have a long day? Something happen?”

“Every day in the slums is long,” York sighed again. “In all my years, things have never changed.”

“How long have you been here exactly?”

“I’ve been here all my life. More than 20 years.”

“That’s a long time,” I said with a nod.

“Now that you mention it, it is a long time. I’m surprised I’ve made it this far.”

“And that’s the key. You made it. Despite everything you’ve been through, you’re still here.”

He turned back to me. Seeing the smile form on his face was enough to get a grin out of me.

“Why don’t you have a drink?” I asked. “It’ll make you feel better.”

“I suppose…”

He finally took a sip of his beer. He seemed to relax just a little bit but the young Omega was always tense. Despite his good looks, there was always a bit of anxiety on his face that distracted me from noticing just how handsome he really was.

I didn’t let it get to me though. I enjoyed my beer then moved to my next one.

“You live in an orphanage,” I said. “An orphanage for Omegas?”

“Is there any other kind? Alphas and Betas don’t get shunned like Omegas do.”

“I never thought about it that way… I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. It’s not your fault. That’s just the way it is. In the old days, there was an abundance of Omegas. The Alphas weren’t interested in mating with the extra Omegas, so they were cast off. At least with Dirge established, there are orphanages to help abandoned Omegas like the others and me.”

It was easy to tell that York was an Omega. It wasn’t just his scent. It wasn’t just his demeanor. He had an aura about him that just exuded a sort of kindness despite his rough exterior.

“How did you end up in Dirge?” I asked.

“I don’t know,” he said with a shrug. “I suppose I got to Dirge and ended up in Pandora like most Omegas do. I didn’t have a pack. Not that I know of, anyway. I didn’t know my parents. I was just an orphan and I’ve been raised that way my entire life.”

“I see…”

“How about you?” he asked, his blue eyes filled with curiosity. “What brought you to Dirge?”

“My line has been here for several generations now. We’ve been in the city for a long time.”

“Your parents? Your pack?”

“No parents. No pack. My family left that behind them a long time ago when most of the others did.”

“Any siblings?”

“No,” I said, shaking my head. “Just me. I am alone. A lone wolf in Dirge, so to speak.”

I took another swig of beer and sighed. York kept his eyes locked on me. The curiosity on his face hadn’t gone away.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “I didn’t mean to ask you so many questions about your family.”

“There’s no need to apologize for that.”

“It’s just… I don’t know too many Alphas. And none of them I’ve ever met have been like you.”

“Like me?”

I raised an eyebrow. I was just as curious as he was.

The blond Omega’s cheeks started to redden with embarrassment for a reason I couldn’t figure out.

“It’s nothing,” he said, shaking his head. “I… I haven’t met anybody like you.”

“I know. You still haven’t explained what that means.”

“Yeah,” he scoffed and snickered softly to himself.

He shook his head to clear his thoughts. My ears perked up, curious as to what he was going to say.

“Are all Alphas like you?” he asked. “The Alphas you know. Do they act like you?”

“I… I don’t know what you mean by that. How do I act?”

“So brazen. So confident. Willing to come to Pandora and fight in the streets just to make a few extra silvers.”

“Considering there are others doing the same thing I just did, I would assume there are many Alphas just like me.”

“No,” he said, shaking his head. “You’re not like the other Alphas. You’re different. There’s something else…”

He narrowed his gaze at me, the smile disappearing from his lips. Deep blue eyes staring at me. It was as if York were trying to burn a hole through me.

I didn’t mind. He was a good-looking man and having his eyes on me was something I welcomed.

“What about you?” I asked. “Are all Omegas like you?”

“I would hope not,” he sighed.

York put his head down. He didn’t attempt to hide the sadness in his eyes.

“What’s wrong?” I said. “Why would you say something like that?”

“Because I’ve been in Pandora for 20 years,” he said. “I’ve been stuck here. I’ve been pushing my way through life, doing everything I could. And I don’t have a moment to relax. It’s like I have to put everything on the line and all I can do is survive. I’m beginning to wonder if there’s a point to it.”

“Hey…”

I moved my seat closer to his and put an arm around him. I did my best to console him but there was little I could do or say. I’d never been an around an Omega who was as down as York was now.

“…You’ll be all right,” I said. “Actually, that’s what I wanted to talk to you about…”

“What do you mean?”

York looked up at me, his brow furrowed in confusion. When I looked back into his eyes, I knew that I wasn’t making a mistake. It was an easy choice to make.

“I’m going to talk to Rip,” I said. “I’ll do what I can to get you out of that arrangement you have with him.”

York rolled his eyes and scoffed.

“What is it?” I asked.

“You weren’t listening to me. I can’t just get out of my arrangement with Rip. Nobody can. When you make a deal with him, you make it for good. If you were to ask him to end our deal, he would send someone to come looking for me. I would only end up hurt. You would end up hurt.”

“That might be true,” I said. “But there is another possibility.”

“There is?”

I tightened my arm around York and squeezed him closer to me.

“Rip is only a Beta. He’s taking advantage of you because he saw an opportunity to make some extra money. He’s not prideful like an Alpha. He only cares about his bottom line. He only wants money.”

“I still don’t see your solution. If you’re planning on paying him off, it’s going to take an awful lot of money.”

I put my hand on York’s chin. I raised his face up and leaned forward, kissing him softly on the lips. I let my tongue linger in his mouth. I tasted the alcohol he drank then gently pulled away, letting my lips tug on his for just a second.

York’s eyes remained closed even though our kiss had ended. A few seconds later, he sighed a deep breath through his nostrils and slowly opened his eyes.

“What was that for?” he asked.

“You looked like you needed it.”

His cheeks reddened with embarrassment. He turned away but it wasn’t enough for me to see him struggling to speak.

“I… I enjoy your company, Alpha.”

“I enjoy your company, too. I wouldn’t have paid Rip if that weren’t the case.”

“Is that all you planned for me tonight? Just to have a few drinks with me?”

“I didn’t have anything specific planned,” I said. “But if this were all we did tonight, would you object?”

York shook his head softly.

“I didn’t think so,” I said.

I leaned forward and gave him another kiss. The whole bar could have been watching us but I didn’t care. Feeling the Omega in my arms and his mouth on mine… It felt like we were the only two people in Dirge. That was worth more than anything to me at the moment.

York ended our kiss and quickly pulled away from me. There was a bit of concern on his face.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

“I was just thinking…”

He sighed again like he was so accustomed to doing at this point. He closed his eyes and appeared to be lost in thought.

“Just promise me something,” he said.

“Promise you something?”

“Please, Hunter. Just… Just promise me.”

“I can’t promise you something if I don’t know what it is.”

York opened his eyes and looked up at me.

“Don’t put yourself on the line,” he said. “If you’re planning on dealing with Rip, there’s no telling what he’s capable of. All I ask is that you don’t risk yourself for me. I’m… I’m just an Omega. There’s no need for an Alpha like you to—”

I put my mouth back on his. My tongue pushed between his lips. He stopped talking long enough to gasp. He didn’t protest. I let my hands run around his back. I felt the firm muscles underneath his shirt. The desire I had for the Omega burned even hotter inside of me, making me forget about everything else.

I pulled my lips away from his again. The concern on York’s face was no longer there. I couldn’t help but smile.

“A few more drinks,” I said. “Have a few more drinks with me. And then come back to my place. Would that be all right with you?”

He nodded softly.

“I would like nothing more than to be by your side tonight, Alpha. I am yours. I will do anything you ask of me.”

“Then let’s not speak any longer about Rip or anything else. Let’s just enjoy the time we have together.”