Forbidden by Liliana Carlisle
CHAPTER 24
AMELIA
I float in a drugged-out haze.
The pain is my stomach has disappeared, replaced by an uncomfortable pressure.
The place where Jakob bit my neck tingles, and my eyes snap awake when I feel gentle fingertips run over it.
“We’re going to have to transport her,” a woman in a white jacket announces. “The sedative won’t hold her long. I’ve injected her with emergency suppressants, but it will only prolong the inevitable.”
Her brown eyes meet mine, relief etched on her face. “Miss Walker, I’m Doctor Travers. We’re going to need to send you to a different hospital. You’re showing signs of presenting.”
WHAT.
It doesn’t make sense. Presenting as an Omega?
I try to protest, but I can’t speak. The doctor smooths my hair from my face. Her hand is cool against my forehead, and suddenly I realize how hot it is.
The air is too heavy and thick, and the tingling in my lower stomach increases.
“It’s not unheard of, but it’s very rare,” she continues. “It may be why you’ve had your continuous symptoms all these years. We’ve injected you with powerful suppressants, so your Heat doesn’t start just yet.”
Oh my God. Oh my God. Oh my God.
“We’re unable to chip you here, so we’ll be taking you to an Omega clinic.”
They’re going to chip me.
I’m going to be matched to an Alpha.
An Alpha that isn’t Jakob.
No. No. No.
A nightmare is brewing in my mind, and panic overtakes everything else. I fight to stay awake and not slip back under the influence of the sedatives.
“Lucy,” I slur out, and the doctor’s eyes narrow for a moment. Then her kind smile is back.
“I’ve informed her, and she’s on her way there as we speak,” she says, but her tone isn’t convincing.
“I want to see her,” I mumble, but she ignores me.
“Go back to sleep, Miss Walker,” she says simply. “We’ll wake you up when we’ve arrived.”
She presses the I.V. attached to me, and I sink under.
* * *Omega hospitals differ greatly from Beta hospitals.
The air smells of bleach, so strong it burns my nostrils. Screams and moans echo throughout the halls, along with the sounds of thrashing bodies against beds.
The building is modern, with obvious state-of-the-art equipment, but the atmosphere is something out of a horror movie.
The tingle in my lower body has turned into a full-blown ache, and I shift uncomfortably in the bed as I sit up.
There’s a Beta nurse in the room, holding what looks to be a small electronic gun. There’s a bored expression on his face and he handles the contraption carelessly, as if he’s done what he’s about to do a thousand times.
He probably has.
“Alright, Miss Walker,” he sighs. “Blood results came back. Congratulations, you’re an Omega. The doctor has ordered your chip.”
No. No. No.
“That can’t be right,” I choke out. “I’m a Beta.”
“I have your information right here.” He turns the contraption over, showing a small screen with my picture. “You presented late. We need to chip you immediately, by law.”
He sees my worried face, and he scoffs, irritated.
“If you don’t agree, I’ll need to restrain you. It’s happening either way, Amelia.”
I shiver, and my eyes fall to the bed, focusing intently on the cheap fabric of the cot. “What happens after?” I mutter, already knowing the answer.
Dreading it.
“The chip determines which Alpha you match with. Their blood is already in the system. We let them know as soon as possible.”
I shake my head, biting my lip to keep from screaming.
“And there’s no point in trying to run away. They have people that will come after you.”
Collectors.
I let out a bitter laugh, and the nurse frowns.
“I’m well aware,” I spit, and he raises his eyebrows, unamused.
“Okay, great. Lean your head forward and pull your hair away from your neck.”
Fighting angry tears, I move my hair as he presses the nozzle of the contraption to the back of my neck.
“One, two, three.”
There’s a sting, painful enough that I yelp, and he presses a bandage against the wound. A cooling sensation races through my spine all the way to the top of my head.
“It will be sore for a few hours,” he explains. “And don’t try to remove it. It will render a deadly toxin.”
“What?” I gasp.
“If you try to remove it, it can kill you,” he says slowly. “It will paralyze your organs.”
My mouth falls open in horror. “So, I’m basically cattle,” I spit. “Tagged for my owner.”
The nurse exhales. “I don’t make the rules, Miss Walker,” he says.
“No, you just follow them blindly.” I hiss out between the cramps that build in my stomach.
My temper flares and I want to scream, but the pressure between my legs has me doubling over and gasping for air.
“The doctor will be with you shortly,” he says before leaving the room and shutting the door behind him.
My cramps intensify.
The tingling has turned to a burning, an ache that is barely satisfied when I apply pressure to my core. My clit throbs embarrassingly and sweat gathers at my forehead.
Jakob’s face flashes in my mind, and suddenly I’m…
Desperate.
There’s wetness between my legs, but it’s not from blood.
It’s clear and slightly sticky.
Doctor Travers walks in and her eyes take in my hunched over form. “Miss Walker. It looks like your Heat is starting faster than we thought. I’ll administer more suppressants, but it will only take the edge off. The first Heat is usually the most intense.”
She walks over to me as I whimper, my body rocking back and forth. Her fingers lightly touch the back of my neck, and I jump. “They chipped you already?” She asks.
“The nurse did,” I grit out.
“Idiot,” she hisses underneath her breath. But aren’t they supposed to chip an Omega the moment they present?
“Please help me,” I gasp out, the pressure in my core intensifying. “It hurts.”
“This was supposed to be easier,” she sighs. “Now it complicates things.”
“What?” I cry. “Help me, please. Make it stop.”
Her mouth is close to my ear, smoothing my hair back, and I shiver.
Something’s wrong.
“Don’t worry, Omega,” she whispers, and nausea rolls in my stomach. “We’ll take care of you.”
We?
A violent cramp hits me, so intense that I thrash on the bed. She lays me back down, and there’s a sharp sting in my arms as she injects something into me.
“Sleep now. We have a long flight ahead of us.”
I struggle to keep my eyes open. I fight it as long as I can, staring at her smirking face, struggling to speak.
But the drugs win again, and I float in darkness.