Bariloche Sector by Lexi C. Foss
Kari
My wolf yawnedand stretched inside me, her contentment radiating through my foggy thoughts. I felt rested, yet weak.
An odd sensation. Not the weak part, but the rested part.
And safe, I realized, my body tingling with foreign warmth.
A hum of sound reverberated through me, heating my veins and causing my wolf to rumble back in kind. She liked that repetitive sound, the soothing tranquility of it appealing to her baser senses.
What is it?I wondered, searching my clouded mind for a source. Where am I?
I often woke in this state of confusion, unaware of my surroundings and the horrors that had just been unleashed upon me. But I couldn’t recall ever feeling this satisfied, like I’d slept peacefully for hours.
After a few seconds of contemplation, I pulled up my last tangible memory—the one of Alpha Sven forcing me to shift.
I shivered, the horror of the moment prickling goose bumps over my arms.
Except that vibration heightened, causing my skin to smooth out in the next breath. I really do like that noise, I thought with a mental sigh. Such a hypnotic, beautiful rumble.
My lips almost curled.
But that memory lingered in my mind, the one of Alpha Sven demanding I return to human form. I’d pushed him too far, which had been the point. I wanted him to hurt me. To provoke his Alpha out to play so we could just get this dance over with.
Examine me.
Present me to the other Alphas.
Or just kill me.
Wait…I frowned. Is that why I feel so good?Am I finally dead?
My eyes were too heavy to lift, my body too relaxed to move.
Oh, and that gentle purr had me wanting to bury myself deeper into the warmth around me rather than roll away from it.
I definitely didn’t feel examined or used. In fact, I wasn’t sore at all. Just hungry. Something my stomach confirmed by growling with need.
Do stomachs do that when you’re dead?I wondered, my brow furrowing.
Something soft drifted over my skin, smoothing out the wrinkles of my forehead before skating down along the edge of my face to my chin. “You need to eat,” a deep voice murmured, his words underlined with that addictive rumble.
Alpha Sven.
“We’ve been in this bed for almost a day, little wolf,” he continued. “That’s three days without food, and who knows how long before that. And your stomach tells me that not only do you know that, but you’re also aware of it. So open those pretty eyes, and we’ll solve the problem together.”
The gentle touch stroked the space beneath my eyes as a band of steel tightened around my torso. His finger drifted back into my hair, combing through the strands in a knowing manner that sent tingles down my spine.
How…?I trailed off, unsure of what I even wanted to ask. I couldn’t remember anything that had happened after he’d made me shift. I’d shut down, anticipating the worst. But the clean scent and warmth on my skin weren’t signs of a rut.
I felt… clean.
And safe, I thought again. Very safe.
But that didn’t make any sense. He’d been so angry and demanding, his growl one I’d heard so many times before. Shift so I can fuck you. Shift so I can knot you. Shift so I can own you.
However, my thighs weren’t bruised. My insides weren’t aching, apart from my stomach cramping from a lack of sustenance. And my skin felt refreshed and unblemished.
No part of me hurt except for the pangs of hunger.
“I don’t…” My voice came out raspy, my throat unbelievably dry.
Alpha Sven moved, jostling me from my haven of comfort and eliciting a soft protest from my wolf. I tried to hide it, to banish my inner animal’s sounds, but the Alpha must have heard me because he softly hushed in my ear as he moved around me.
My eyelids refused to rise, leaving me blind to whatever he was doing.
Then a plastic bottle met my lips. “Drink,” he ordered, sending a shiver down my spine.
I complied because I needed the water. It burned down my throat, causing me to wince. He purred in response, clearly pleased with my acquiescence.
What the hell happened?
Alphas didn’t do this. They didn’t care for me after fucking me. They left me drenched in their seed for the next male to find.
But the blankets beneath me were so soft.
And this male was hot. He reminded me of the sun, his heat soaking into my skin and swathing me in a sea of protection that threatened to overwhelm my wolf. She wanted to lose herself in him, accept his strength, and beg him to never leave.
This has to be a trick, I thought. Some sort of game.
The plastic left my mouth, his thumb catching a droplet from my lip along the way. Then he moved again, and this time my eyes opened to allow me to watch him reach across me to set the bottle on the nightstand beside us.
He was shirtless, and his blond hair was messy and sticking out at odd ends. His purr rolled over me as he went back to his position in front of me, his head sharing the same pillow as mine. He had one arm beneath me, his forearm a band of fire along my lower back.
I was naked—a fact that didn’t surprise me, considering what we’d probably done in this bed.
Except I didn’t smell my slick or his seed. The sheets were clean with a subtle underlay of soap and water. Alpha Sven’s masculine aroma surrounded me as well, his mark upon my skin one of sweat and man.
But not in the way I usually experienced.
He’d branded me in a foreign manner, his touch oddly tender.
His thumb stroked my chin, drawing my gaze up to his. “Are you ready to eat something?”
My wolf nodded inside me, begging me to accept his offer. However, I knew what would come after food, and just because I couldn’t remember our first rutting session didn’t mean I wouldn’t remember the second one. Especially if he made me eat. It was hard to escape into my mind when my body demanded I expel the contents from my stomach.
His blue eyes flared, his expression darkening. “Hmm, I see.” He pulled away, his purr leaving me as he rolled off the bed to the balls of his feet.
The animal inside me mewled at the loss of contact while my mind fought to find another escape before we started whatever this was again.
“I guess we’re doing this the hard way,” Alpha Sven said, walking toward the door.
Shit, I need to hiii—
Hold on. Why isn’t he naked?
His muscular back tapered into a lean waist, his skin smooth and pale all the way down to his black boxer shorts.
I gaped at his firm backside, confused.
Then he disappeared through the doorway without another word.
I grappled for the sheets, my hand moving slower than I wanted, thanks to a lack of energy, and eventually lifted the fabric to reveal what I already knew. I’m naked.
But he wasn’t.
He’d been holding me while wearing underwear.
What Alpha does that?
I dropped the blankets and rotated onto my back to stare up at the ceiling. Did he not…? What did he…? The unfinished questions revolved in my head, my mind unable to ascertain an appropriate response.
For once in my life, I tried to remember what an Alpha had done to me. But my brain refused to cooperate. I’d shut down as soon as I’d completed my shift. Then I’d woken up warm, comfortable, and safe, in his arms. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d felt that way.
Maybe before my first estrus. When my mom had been allowed to spend time with me and my sister. I’d felt complete then. Innocent. Happy.
My sister had just found her mate, and my mother had been so hopeful.
Until my father had killed Savi’s Alpha.
And taken me from my mother to introduce me to my new purpose and life as an Omega.
My stomach twisted as I recalled the pain of being stolen from my safe place and tossed into the dungeon to be broken and used and spiritually gutted.
Maybe that was the purpose of this game—to show me a glimpse of safety, just to rip it away. But to what end? What did Alpha Sven win by placating me one moment, only to break me in the next?
I was already shattered.
Beaten.
Owned.
He could do anything to me, and I’d allow it. He could kill me, and I wouldn’t even fight back. Why bother with the purring or the baths or the—my nose twitched at the blossoming scents in the air—food?
Unless he knew that it would keep me awake afterward. To experience whatever darkness he possessed.
I considered shifting into my animal form, to hide from whatever he intended, but his footsteps reverberated through the suite, alerting me of his approach.
My heart skipped a beat. If I call my wolf, then—
“Don’t,” he said, entering the room. “I don’t want to hurt you, Kari. But I will force you right back into this state and make you eat.”
I blinked at him, alarmed. How did he know my plan?
“I could feel your energy humming along my skin,” he explained, again reading my expression or thought or energy and addressing my unspoken question.
I wasn’t sure how I felt about him being so in tune with me that he could pull words out of my head.
He set a tray down on the bed, the plates on top of it holding enough food to feed an army of pups. My stomach growled in excitement, my wolf pacing eagerly inside me, dying for something to eat.
But we both knew what would come next.
Which meant I could only have a little bit, or I’d seriously regret it later.
It was always this way, leaving me in a perpetually weakened state. However, I preferred to starve over regurgitating all my meals during or after sex.
“It’s dark more hours than light this time of year, so breakfast always feels appropriate.” He started pointing to items on the tray, describing each dish.
There were eggs, smoked salmon, various cheeses, and a plate of sliced vegetables. None of it sounded appetizing when I considered the intended outcome of this experience.
Alpha Sven noted my reluctance with a raised brow. “I will start feeding you if you don’t pick up a fork and do it yourself.”
My jaw clenched, some part of me wanting to deny him on principle alone.
It was an inane reaction, one that would absolutely earn me a death sentence, and a painful one at that. But I couldn’t help it. I knew what would come next, and I didn’t really want to spoil my previously content mood.
Part of me wanted to ask him to purr again and to fall back asleep in his arms, just for a few more minutes of peace.
Assuming that was all we’d done. But given how I felt, it seemed the only likely scenario. A male the size of Alpha Sven would leave bruises and marks all over my much smaller form. If he’d fucked me, I’d be able to feel it. Particularly as he’d said I’d only been asleep for a day or so.
Three days here, I thought, recalling what he’d said. Yeah, I would—
“Kari.” My name came out on a warning growl.
Slowly, I pushed myself upright to a seated position against the headboard. Then I reached for a celery stick and chewed on it.
His jaw ticked, but he didn’t say anything. Just watched.
After swallowing, I picked up another one, and his eyes narrowed.
The motions continued for three more rounds before he caught my wrist. “I don’t know what game you’re playing, Omega, but you need more than rabbit food.”
“You brought the plate of vegetables,” I pointed out under my breath.
His brows rose at my comment. “They’re a side garnishment. Eat the salmon.”
“Then just give me the salmon instead of a tray of options,” I replied, uncertain of where my backbone had suddenly come from. It was the kind of tone I used to give my sister when we were younger and more comfortable. It definitely wasn’t the sort of response I’d ever given an Alpha before.
I shifted backward on instinct, only then remembering the plank of wood at my back. Shit. My eyes lowered as I mumbled an apology, but it was too little, too late. Alphas didn’t appreciate disobedience. They killed Omegas for less.
Alpha Sven caught my chin, and I closed my eyes, accepting my fate.
“Look at me,” he said sternly.
So it’ll be like that, then, I thought, resigned. Forced to watch my punishment. And now that I had a little food in my stomach, I’d probably stay coherent through all of it.
Of course, it was what I deserved. I knew better than to speak my mind.
“Kari,” he snapped, impatience underlining my name and jolting my eyelids upright.
Twin storms of blue blazed down at me as he knelt beside me on the bed, his expression fierce. “I’m not going to hurt you.” The words were a punch to my senses, his irritation stirring goosebumps along my skin. “But I also won’t let you hurt yourself. So you will eat until I am satisfied.”
He released me, only to take over the space beside me and settle the tray across his massive thighs. I felt so small in his presence, his size dwarfing mine at least two to one.
That wasn’t anything new for me, but his handsome features had a gentleness to them that other Alphas lacked. It didn’t make him any less masculine so much as easier to look at. He didn’t have the barbaric sternness many of the Bariloche Sector Alphas possessed. He appeared almost regal. Godly. Otherworldly.
“Staring at me like that isn’t going to get you out of this, sweetheart,” he murmured, his full lips quirking up on one side. “Although, I don’t mind having your eyes on me.”
I blinked, confused. Then I realized I’d been admiring him for an unknown amount of time, just studying the planes of his face and appreciating the elegant square cut of his jaw. Rather than stop, I continued my perusal, noting the strong tendons of his neck and the bulk of his shoulders.
Most Alphas were solid muscle. Sven was no exception. But his veins didn’t protrude like the others’, his arms sleeker and more athletic rather than harsh and intimidating.
He interrupted my perusal by bringing a fork to my mouth. I opened for him because there was no other choice. A smoky flavor touched my tongue, my wolf growling in approval at the obvious high quality of the meat.
It’d been a long time since I’d indulged in more than table scraps. This sort of cuisine would probably upset my inner balance, making me sicker than usual when he took me later. But I couldn’t help the groan of approval as I swallowed, because it really did taste decadent.
He purred in response, that sound a hypnotic caress that lulled me into a passive state. I stopped worrying about being sick later, choosing to enjoy the moment for however long it lasted instead. I’ll just need to make sure this is worth it, I thought, savoring the flavors. Eventually, my stomach began to protest, my appetite small and unrefined due to years of barely eating.
Alpha Sven didn’t push me, instead finishing off the food himself while maintaining that soothing rumble in his chest. Then he set the tray on the floor and studied me.
My heart sank, my body already aware of what would come next.
I wanted to ask for more time, to at least have a few minutes to digest the food before we began, but I knew better than to make a request.
So I lay down instead and spread my legs the way I’d been taught to do, and waited.
Alpha Sven took in the view before stretching out alongside me and propping himself up on his elbow. “I’m not fucking you in this state, Omega,” he said. “You can’t handle me yet. So you can relax.”
My brow crinkled. What?
He stroked his fingers along my jaw, his purr intensifying as he gently brushed the slope of my neck down to my sternum to trace a line between my breasts.
“I won’t lie to you, Kari,” he murmured, his fingertips drifting down to my stomach to circle my belly button. “My wolf has already staked his claim on you. Therefore, I intend to make you mine. But I won’t do it until you’re strong enough to take me.”
I shivered, unsure of how to reply to that. There wasn’t a choice here. He wanted me, so he would have me. Just like all Alphas. And when he tired of me, he’d give me to someone else.
I used to dream of escape. Of running. Finding my own life somewhere else. Or just dying in the woods on my own.
Maybe I could revisit those desires here. He’d given me a rather large cage to stay in, plus food that might actually allow me to build some strength to run.
What would happen if I broke the windows on the balcony and jumped into the ocean? Would it kill me on impact? Or would my wolf be able to heal me? In my current state, I’d die. But if I kept eating and regained some of my natural shifter tendencies, I might be able to survive.
And do what?I wondered, thinking of the cold air outside. Become an ice cube?
Alpha Sven’s touch drew lower to my shaved mound and over to my hip. Such a feather-soft stroke, his hands exploring a body he’d already decided belonged to him for however long he desired it.
The realization twisted my gut, reigniting my hatred of all wolf-kind and the cruel hand fate had dealt me.
But I couldn’t deny that his fingertips evoked a certain warmth beneath my skin, one that paired nicely with the deep reverberations coming from his chest.
He was lulling me into a submissive state, one meant to bend to his will. I wasn’t strong enough to fight him, so I absorbed the strength he offered instead and allowed my mind to dream of alternatives. To consider another way out.
Alphas had used me all my life.
What would be the harm of using this one now?
It seemed only fair, considering everything I’d endured. If he wanted to strengthen me to take him, then I’d allow it. When the opportunity presented itself, I’d use that renewed power to my advantage.
And run.
