Briar
The alphas threw Briar down on the floor of a dark hut, sending new throbs of pain through his skull. He was dizzy from dehydration, but his only fear was for his child.
“Please be okay.” He pressed his hands to his stomach, squeezing his eyes shut. He had to escape and get back to Rohan before their pup started to suffer.
Tears stung in his eyes at the thought of anything happening to the little life inside of him. He would have done anything to protect his child, but how was he supposed to find his way back to Rohan in time to save their pup? He resisted the sadness growing in his chest. He wouldn’t give up hope. No matter what it took, he had to escape.
He shifted and nosed around the hut, searching for a way out. The building was made of dried mud, with a thick wooden door, and seemed more like an empty storehouse than anything else. Rain dripped from the thatched roof, making the earthen floor damp. There was a strong scent of alpha pheromones by the door, telling him he was being guarded. For one impulsive moment, he wondered if he could fight his way out. Of course he couldn’t. And he wouldn’t endanger his child by risking getting injured.
He wrapped his arms around his belly. He’d never felt so vulnerable. He didn’t know what to do to protect the tiny life inside of him. If he didn’t get free, the pup would surely die without Rohan. But if he tried to escape, he would likely get them both killed.
He touched his fingers to the necklace around his neck. He would have to trust his alpha. He had no other choice.
His head still ached and his body was exhausted. The best thing he could do for his pup right now was keep his strength up. He put his head between his paws and tried to keep his thoughts on Rohan, imagining him running to rescue him.
His heart sank.
The last he’d seen of his mate he’d been battling for his life. Briar pictured him worn out and wounded—or worse.
No.
He wouldn’t think that way. He pressed the crystal necklace to his cheek. His alpha was out there searching for him. He could feel it with every beat of his heart. Fate had connected them since the day Briar came into this world, and he knew this couldn’t be the end.
***
It was hours later when the door was thrust open. Brair couldn’t be sure if he’d slept, or if he’d just been laying awake in the dark. He was groggy from thirst, and for one moment, he envisioned that the hulking body filling the door was Rohan. He shrunk back when he realized it wasn’t.
“Pack master said someone oughta feed you before you starve to death.” He chuckled as he threw a slab of cured meat at Briar’s feet. “I told ‘im I like ‘em small, but he said you’re not for me anyway unless I win you at the auction.” He was still laughing when he closed the door behind him.
Briar closed his eyes, letting those words wash over him. So he was going back to the auction. He would be tied up and teased, and given away to the most savage alpha. If he ever did conceive again, it wouldn’t be a child born of tender love like the one he had cradled inside his body. His future would be bleak suffering, devoid of all the tenderness he’d experienced with Rohan.
No.
He would escape before then. Rohan would come for him and they would fight their way out. He just had to stay strong until then.
He grabbed at the meat and ate hungrily, grateful for the protein to nourish his pup. The salty food only intensified his thirst, though, and he resorted to standing under one of the drips in the roof with his mouth open to catch some water. It tasted earthy, but he could feel the liquid slowly reviving him. His head became clearer, some of the pain subsiding.
With his energy somewhat restored, he began scratching at the dirt by the wall of the hut, frowning when he saw that the wall was imbedded in the earth, probably for a foot or two, so it would be impossible to dig under it without someone noticing before he got out. He paced the small room, sniffing and rooting, picking up the scent of the Bloody Fang pack. So he was back in Bloody Fang territory. It was about a nights run from where he’d been taken, though he wondered what kind of shape Rohan would be in to run after fighting a half-dozen wolves. It would be slow going for sure, probably taking him twice as long if he made it at all. Briar’s heart ached at the thought of the wounds his mate must be carrying, and he wished he were with him so he could treat them.
If Rohan were wounded, it might take him three or more days to make the trip, and then he’d have to find Briar without drawing the attention of the rest of the pack. Could his mate really manage it? Briar felt in his heart, with savage certainty, that Rohan would come for him and their pup.
He lay his head down again, trying to stay calm for the sake of the child inside of him. He rubbed his belly, already feeling that it had become larger, a round swell protruding from what used to be flat muscle. His body was changing quickly for the rapidly growing pup. How far had his child come in his development? Would it have little fingers and toes already? Briar pictured holding the baby in his arms, kissing it’s sweet little cheeks. Back in his old pack, some parents were adamant that they only wanted alpha pups, but he didn’t care whether their child was alpha or omega. He just wanted to care for the life that his and Rohan’s love had brought into the world.
He held his hands protectively over his stomach as he let his tired eyes droop closed, murmuring, “Just hang in there. Your daddy’s coming to rescue you.”
***
He woke with a start when the door opened again. Briar bolted up, the hair on his neck bristling, but when he took in the small shape standing in the doorway, he knew immediately that it wasn’t an alpha. In fact, when the omega stepped into the hut, Briar realized that he knew him.
“Peregwin!” he exclaimed. He wanted to leap up and hug the friendly face, but Peregwin help up a hand.
“You don’t know me,” he hissed under his breath.
Of course, Peregwin had sheltered Briar and Rohan in secret. If anyone standing guard were to hear Briar being familiar with him, it would raise questions.
Briar nodded.
“I’m here to put you to work until you’re taken to the auction,” he said.
“When—”
“I don’t know.” Peregwin shook his head. “They can’t have an auction with just one omega. They’re planning to raid another pack to get some fresh prizes for the fighters.”
Briar shuddered. More children torn from their parents arms. More omegas sold off to cruel alphas. When would it end?
“Sorry, I have to put this on you before I can lead you out.” Peregwin held up a collar identical to the one he wore. Cold chills ran down his spine as he felt the metal close around his throat. He was sure Peregwin had worked hard to get Klaw to agree to let him out of the hut, but how was Briar supposed to escape with weights around his neck preventing him from swimming across the river? He felt owned by the Bloody Fang as the lock clicked into place.
Peregwin led the way clumsily as he was even heavier with child now, and every movement was clearly a struggle for him due to his large belly.
“Good moon, how big are you going to get before that thing pops out of you?” Briar shook his head.
“Should be any day now!” Peregwin grinned. “It’s been three full moons since I conceived, but it seems this little one has grown too comfortable inside of me and doesn’t want to come out.”
“Are you nervous?” he asked. He didn’t know much about reproduction, but he’d learned enough from his interest in healing to know that it wasn’t at all uncommon for an omega to die in childbirth. At the very least, it was never a comfortable experience, though advances in medicine had minimized the risk of death at least somewhat.
“I’m sure the moon will protect me.” Peregwin took Briar by the hand and began leading him out. “And besides, I see no benefit in worrying over something I can’t change.”
“Smart.”
Briar blinked as he was led out into the daylight. The sun was clouded over and fog blanketed the air, but it was still more light than he’d seen in over a day. He couldn’t help scenting the air for his mate, but couldn’t pick up any sign that he was close. He tried not to let that worry him.
The Bloody Fang lived in village much like the one of Briar’s own pack. The only difference was the size. Where his old village had been little more than a dirt road meandering through a smattering of wooden huts, here the tight clusters of dwellings stretched as far as he could see. Every omega they passed looked thin and pale, and wore an identical metal collar.
“The pack master said you’ll need to be put to work if we’re going through the trouble of feeding you until the auction.” Peregwin shook his head. “There are too many hungry mouths to feed around here as it is.”
“I’ll do anything to get out of that dark hovel.”
“You might change your mind when you see what we’re doing.”
Dread washed over Briar, but Peregwin laughed. “It’s not that bad, just takes some getting used to.”
He finally reached a square wooden hut with a large smokestack jutting from the roof. A savory smell permeated the air even before Peregwin opened the door. Inside, an enormous fire burnt beneath a smoker, surrounded by vats of salt. Briar’s stomach growled hungrily as he eyed the strips of meat drying by the fire. Peregwin laughed and pulled down a strip, handing it to Briar.
“Thanks,” he said, taking the food and stuffing it into his starving face.
“I’ll do all the cutting and carving. You can salt the meats.” Peregwin said, demonstrating how to roll sliced venison in salt to help preserve it.
Briar marveled at the rows and rows of venison and other wild game hanging from the rafters. Was this what it took to fuel the destructive force of the Bloody Fang? Back in Brair’s old pack, each household was typically responsible for their own food, and families only preserved enough to see them through a particularly harsh winter. But this… this was enough meat to feed an army.
Briar frowned as he tied a cord around a strip of salted meat, preparing it to hang. He hated that his work would contribute to another massacre by the Bloody Fang. His hands would prepare the fuel that drove the Bloody Fang to destroy lives, shed innocent blood, tear babes from their parents arms.
He pressed a hand to his growing belly, trying not to think of what his own future held.
“So… how did the pregnancy test go?” Peregwin asked like he already knew the answer.
It doesn’t matter.” Briar let out a long sigh. “If I don’t get back to my alpha, this little one doesn’t stand a chance.”
Peregwin’s eyes turned sad, but his face remained strong. “Maybe we’ll think of something.”
Briar couldn’t help smiling. There was something under Peregwin’s cheerful demeanor, an incurable hope and resilient strength. It radiated from him so strongly that it was contagious, and looking into Peregwin’s glowing eyes, he couldn’t help feel that everything would be okay.
Suddenly, Peregwin dropped the knife he’d been using to carve up strips of meat, and bent over clutching his stomach.
“Are you all right?” Briar put his hands to Peregwin’s shoulders, trying to help him stay steady.
Peregwin let out a gasp of pain before nodding. “I need you to help me get to the healer’s hut.” He let out another groan. “I think the baby’s coming.”