Bariloche Sector by Lexi C. Foss
Sven
Norse Sector
Kari curled into me, her petite form wearing more scars than any Omega should ever possess. Not that the marks were visible. No. These were internal wounds, ones I saw etched into her pale blue irises and forever darkening her black pupils.
This female had suffered in a way no woman ever should. And especially not an Omega. They were too rare to torture, even one in her condition.
Sterile, Alpha Vanessa had said. Kari is sterile.
It was why she’d been relegated to the service class, her existence only useful for one act.
While that might be true, that didn’t mean she deserved to live inside a cage and be used to inspire ruts and violence and whatever else had been done to her.
Bariloche Sector had sent her to Alpha Enrique as a wedding gift.
How charming.
Yet, rather than use her as intended, Alpha Vanessa had stripped the Omega and forced her arousal with a bunch of sensual toys.
Fucking bitch, I seethed. Kari would have been ripped apart by those volatile and inept Alphas in attendance. Which I suspected had been the entire point. The infamous Queen of Mirrors was known for her bloody proclivities. She’d probably wanted to watch Omega Kari suffer before Alpha Enrique finished the job.
And he would have, too. Even though he’d probably been the only other Alpha in the room who’d had enough strength—both mentally and physically—to help the girl. He would have been lost to the rut after watching everyone play.
I shook my head, annoyed all over again.
Kari stirred in my arms, her wolf reacting to my agitation.
I hushed her and strengthened my purr once more. It was a sound reserved for mates. Yet it came so naturally to me now, my wolf content and pleased with the female in my arms. He didn’t care that she was supposedly sterile. He wanted her anyway. And so did I.
It was a feeling I’d never experienced before. Some might assume it was just an Alpha reacting to the potent presence of an Omega, but Kari wasn’t the first Omega of my acquaintance.
As I was the son of a powerful Alpha, several sector leaders had reached out with offers to arrange a mating for alliance purposes. But none of the Omegas I’d met had ever spoken to my wolf.
At least, not until I’d seen the petite little blonde in the glass cage. And when her scent had hit me? I knew I had to have her.
She wasn’t meant to be a servant in Norse Sector. She was meant to be mine. I felt the truth of it deep within my soul. And my wolf wholeheartedly agreed.
Sterile, I thought again, frowning. If she’s sterile, then why am I reacting so strongly to her?
Because this wasn’t just about knotting her. I wanted to save her to keep her as mine.
An asinine reaction, honestly. I didn’t know her. But her natural perfume served as a beacon to my inner animal.
Even as we entered the heart of Norse Sector, where the pack scents warmed the air, all I could smell was the female in my arms.
“Sven,” Joel said as I approached the central building amid the corporate corridor. He stood outside at his usual post, the Enforcer one of my least favorite on the staff.
“Joel,” I returned, pausing as he blocked my entry.
“What have you got there?”
I merely looked at him. Kari’s scent provided a sufficient answer. He knew I held an Omega, and I wasn’t about to explain why.
“Where’d you find her?” he added before inhaling deeply. His nostrils flared with interest, stirring a growl from my wolf.
Kari stiffened in response, making me instantly regret the warning sound I’d released. I reignited my purr for her, which had Joel’s eyebrows rising in surprise.
Yeah, you and me both, buddy, I thought. But I didn’t give him the satisfaction of that reply out loud, instead telling him, “I don’t have time to chat. Open the door and tell Alpha Ludvig to meet me in the guest suite.”
“You want me to give him an order?” Joel sounded incredulous.
“No. I want you to give him my order,” I countered. “Is that a problem?”
Joel’s teeth gnashed together as he roughly opened the door. “Not at all,” he muttered through his clenched jaw. As I moved by him, he grumbled, “Cocky fucker.”
“With good reason,” I tossed back at him without a glance. “Have a good night.”
I couldn’t help the sarcastic twinge in my tone. He was my superior in age but my inferior as far as the wolf hierarchy went. Not because of my father’s leadership role, either. But because I’d fought and challenged my way up the ranks. The only two above me—other than my dad—were Kaz and Alana.
I didn’t challenge them out of respect.
But that didn’t mean I couldn’t beat them.
I readjusted Kari in my arms as I called the elevator down with a swipe of my thumb. She didn’t make a sound or any attempt to move as we entered.
After keying in the special code that would allow us to ascend, I shifted her in my arms again and repeated, “I’m not going to hurt you.”
She didn’t scoff this time. I decided that was an improvement.
“You’re no longer a slave,” I added for good measure, my thumb brushing the raw skin around her throat. It had taken some effort to remove her collar, and the damage around her neck suggested it hadn’t been taken off in a very long time. It was likely programmed to shift with her, therefore functioning as a tracker of sorts. That was why we’d destroyed it.
And also because it was just wrong to collar such an exquisite creature.
Her hand lifted tentatively to her throat, her eyes widening upon feeling her skin. “Why…?”
“Because you’re no longer a slave,” I said again as the doors opened into the penthouse of this building.
The long corridor ahead of us had a door at each end, both leading to a protected space of sorts that was meant for guests who needed a little added security. Only those with security codes could access this floor. It also meant Kari wouldn’t be able to leave, but the spacious apartments and outdoor living space should satisfy her while I worked out all the particulars with my father.
I stepped into the hallway and went left, then used my watch to open the door.
Kari didn’t take in her surroundings at all, her focus on her neck. I caught the slight tremble in her fingertips as she continued to touch the base of her throat.
“Does it hurt?” I asked her.
“It always hurts,” she whispered.
I glanced at her throat. “Your neck?”
“Everything.” It came out so soft that a human probably would have missed the reply. But my wolf ears had picked it up, along with the broken way she’d said it.
“Are you hungry?” I started toward the kitchen area inside as I voiced the question.
She didn’t reply.
“Kari? Are you hungry?” I tried again. I wasn’t sure how stocked the pantry and fridge were since this guest area was rarely used. I would likely need to go grab her some supplies and bring them back.
She slowly shook her head.
“Thirsty?” I offered.
This time she started to shake her head but ended up nodding.
Balancing her with one arm, I opened the fridge with my opposite hand and found a pack of water bottles inside with little else. “Here,” I said, retrieving a bottle and handing it to her.
Small fingers twisted off the cap before tipping the contents toward her full lips. She didn’t look at me while she did it, instead choosing to focus on the wall. After a few sips, she stopped. But she clutched the water like a lifeline, so I didn’t try to take it away from her. Instead, I carried her through the living area to the bedroom and showed her how to access the outdoor area.
“In case you want to stretch out your wolf,” I explained before turning back into the room. “The bathroom through there should have everything you need. I’ll see what I can do about finding you some clothes as well.”
“Why?”
“For your comfort,” I replied.
“Oh.”
I walked her over to the bed and set her on the mattress. Her eyes rounded, her pulse skipping a beat as she began to squirm. It took me a moment to understand the cause of her sudden terror, and I nearly growled in response. “I’m not going to fuck you, Kari. Not like this, anyway.”
Oh, I fully intended to take her. But not in this state.
While her sweet slick definitely appealed to my wolf, the undercurrent of fear destroyed the mood. I wanted her to be pliant and aroused. Not terrified and sensitive from erotic sensors.
“I don’t… I don’t…” She swallowed, her gaze falling to the floor. “I don’t understand.”
I ran my fingers through my hair and considered her situation. She’d gone from being forcibly stimulated in a glass cage to a rather lavish bedroom in the span of a few hours. I could understand some of her confusion, given what Vanessa had clearly intended to accomplish with that initial stunt of dangling a sensually excited Omega in front of a crowd of hungry Alphas.
Kari had expected to be fought over and fucked.
And I’d taken her straight to a bedroom upon arrival.
So her mind had gone directly to her purpose, and now she didn’t understand my annoyance.
I crouched to the ground before her, placing my palms on the mattress on either side of her dangling legs. She sat up a little straighter, alertness flaring in her gaze as I purposely forced her to stare down at me rather than up.
“Norse Sector isn’t like Winter Sector or Bariloche Sector,” I promised her. “You’re not a slave here. You’re…” I couldn’t find the right word. My wolf said mine, while my brain wanted to call her a guest. But neither was truly right. “Well, we’ll figure out what you are. But you belong here now.”
A buzzing on my wrist kept me from saying anything more. With a rotation of my arm, I pulled up the message from my father and stood once more.
“I need to meet with Alpha Ludvig to inform him of your sector transfer,” I told her softly, using my dad’s name and title out of habit. I almost always referred to him in that manner around others. Kaz was one of the few exceptions to that rule, mostly because he felt like family to me more than a usual packmate.
“Try to wash up and get some rest,” I suggested. “I’ll be back to check on you in a bit. And I’ll bring food, too.”
She didn’t reply, so I glanced down to where she still clutched the water bottle like a lifeline.
“No one will enter these rooms except me. And maybe Alpha Ludvig, depending on what he needs. Very few have the access codes. You’re safe here, Kari.”
Her expression told me she didn’t believe that for a second.
I sighed and shook my head. “You’ll see I’m right,” I promised her. “Go take a shower and sleep. I’ll be back soon.”
She didn’t reply.
Rather than stand around and wait, I left, deciding again to prove myself through actions instead of words. I couldn’t even pretend to know everything she’d been through, but I had a pretty reasonable idea for some of it.
The Alpha of Bariloche Sector wasn’t known for his kindness.
And that collar around her neck just proved that point further.
With a low growl, I stepped into the hall to find my father waiting for me beside the elevator. “I smell an unmated Omega and an overabundance of fish,” he said by way of greeting. “Why?”
