My alpha woke me up again. I was so goddamn tired, but my alpha kept asking me to stay awake. It was... surprisingly civil with me this time. It didn't show a lot of hate toward me. It wasn't angry or anything. It was simply asking me to wake up. Because of that, I fought my way back to consciousness. I was curious to see why it needed me up.
I wrinkled my nose when I remembered the looters, but I didn't really notice anything wrong. It was quiet in the basement.
But then I heard a little sniff right next to me. I moved my head in that direction. I was too tired to feel anything when I saw Kieran in my bed, curled up with his baby in his arms, his back pressed against the wall. A silent tear was running down his cheek as he stared at the kid. He was still afraid... Not in panic, but scared enough.
How was this a SOU soldier...?
No... Something was wrong in him. And it had something to do with his baby. Without the child, he was dominant and fierce, but every time the kid was threatened, he broke down. But why...? It should've been quite the opposite, right? It was in the omegas' instinct to fight until the very last breath to protect their children, but this one turned into a panicky mess. A SOU soldier at that.
Kieran's eyes suddenly met mine, and he froze. I could tell he'd been crying for a while now. He said nothing. He didn't look away. Didn't even hide his tears.
Broken, my alpha told me. Like I needed it to tell me what I saw.
I didn't fucking care.
Man, my alpha got mad... It got so fucking mad I was sure it would steal the body and never let me back in charge, but for some reason, it didn't. But its anger wasn't calming down, either.
I was so goddamn tired...
My alpha and I had never seen eye to eye. Even when it still was awake, it had refused to see my point. It refused to understand how much better our life would be if True Order was back in power. We'd have peace. The war would end. Things would go back to how they used to be. True Order would make sure we'd have rich lives. No alphas would have to hide in fucking sewers anymore. Neither would omegas. They'd be able to continue with their simple little lives without having to use their simple little heads because us alphas would take care of everything.
Why did they have to ruin the good life we all had, huh...? Omegas destroyed our beautiful country by standing up against the true, natural order of life. They had good things, too, so why the fuck did they want to throw it all away? Now we had no other choice but to fight in this endless war because they wanted jobs too? The fuck was wrong with them?
My alpha finally got mad enough at me to take control of the body and turned its attention to Kieran. It let out soft breaths to calm the omega, and tentatively moved closer to him. Kieran, in return, smiled a little and carefully took in our scent.
"I'm guessing you're not Trouble," he murmured.
My alpha didn't understand the question, but it was happy to see him smiling. It continued soothing the omega, who relaxed little by little, and eventually wiped away his tears with one last sniff.
"It's been a rough night, huh...?" Kieran whispered, his smile fading. "I still can't believe... This was always such a peaceful little neighborhood... But The Boss is gone now... So... I don't know..."
It was clear that thought scared him, but my alpha noticed it and quickly calmed him down by gentle breaths and quiet purrs.
"You're right... Not tonight... Everything will be better in the morning..." Kieran whispered, hugging his baby. "If only I could sleep..."
My alpha tried to move even closer to him, but the pain in our stomach stopped it. The pain annoyed it, and it looked down to see what it was. It was probably the first time the damn idiot noticed we were deadly injured... The covers hid the bandages, so my alpha tried to reach for it, but Kieran stopped it.
"Better not touch it," the omega gently scolded us.
My alpha forgot the wound and turned its attention back to the omega, then to the baby sleeping between us. Kieran tensed and pulled his child tighter against his chest.
What was it about the baby that made him so scared...?
"Ares is asleep," Kieran said quietly. "You don't mind... right? It's fine if we sleep here? I don't want to go up there yet... I mean... If you don't want us here, then I guess..."
"You're staying here," I grunted.
We both kind of froze. I recovered first and wrinkled my nose at him.
"Your house is fucked, that's why," I added in a mutter, quickly turning away from him.
Kieran stayed silent for a small moment longer, but then he let out a sad sigh.
"It sounded like that, yeah..."
I could feel my alpha glaring at me inside my head. I could feel how lowly it felt about me. It couldn't understand how I could be so cold, especially since the omega was so broken. Especially after such a scary night. Especially since his nest was now ruined.
I let out a quiet groan. "What it's worth, I don't think they stole much."
"I didn't have much to steal, I suppose..." he murmured.
Except for the baby...
With my alpha still demanding more, I let out a breath and turned back to Kieran. He was watching his baby, slowly caressing his little cheek. He was tense. Even his eyes were tense, like he was fighting against tears.
And he was shivering...
"Get over here," I said, lifting the covers.
He looked up at me. He seemed a little shocked.
"You're cold, right? If you get sick, I get sick, and that's a shitshow neither of us wants," I said, keeping my voice harsh.
He still only stared at me, unsure of what to do.
"Your baby is freezing his butt off," I noted, though Ares looked comfortable wrapped in his little blanket.
But it was the only way to get this omega to think.
And he finally shifted closer to me. He was careful when he moved, and he kept a close eye on me, so I stayed still. Once he was as close to me as he could get without touching me, I pulled the covers over him. The duvet wasn't large enough for both of us to get comfortable, but at least it would keep us warm.
"Your basement is fucking cold, by the way," I muttered and looked away.
"Yeah... It's a bit chilly..." he said, but with less sadness in his voice.
I glanced at him, and our eyes met. He gave me a small, tentative smile. His scent grew stronger and surrounded me completely. I couldn't tell what he smelled like, though...
I felt my face getting a little hotter...
"I'm only doing this because you'll make a nice little private bitch," I grunted at him.
"Right, right..." he said with a short chuckle.
"I mean it," I said as coldly as I could.
"Okay," he only said, curled up around his child, and closed his eyes.
And for some reason, I couldn't close mine.
"You're just brainwashed..."
I bared my teeth at the memory of him telling me that. This little... omega... didn't know what he was talking about.
In minutes, he was finally sleeping. My alpha wasn't exactly happy with me, but it was less angry. It was mostly paying attention to the omega. To Kieran.
I was too tired to turn my head away, so I just let my alpha watch him sleep.
*****
Again, I was woken up way too soon, but not by my alpha this time. I snapped awake and froze to listen to the sounds coming from upstairs. There were people in the house. People I didn't recognize. The next thing I noticed was the door. It was left open by an inch or so. Daylight was coming behind it.
Then I realized Kieran was gone, but I still wasn't alone in the bed. I turned to stare at the tiny version of him. Ares, tucked safely under my arm, stared up at me in the same confusion I felt.
And lastly, I heard Kieran's voice. He was calm when he spoke to the people with him.
"You know anything about this?" I asked the baby.
The baby only stared at me with a serious expression on his face.
Protect, was my alpha's demand.
"Yeah, yeah..." I muttered.
I turned to watch the door, trying to listen to what was going on, but the voices stayed calm and too soft for me to hear. My alpha was suspicious and very uncomfortable with Kieran out of its sight, but for now, it settled with listening closely.
I was probably better off staying where I was at that moment. I still wasn't chained, so I could easily get up and go see what was going on if Kieran's voice had even a small shift in its calm sound.
I had a feeling... Terrible feeling... After a night like we had, and two bodies just outside my door... Now who could possibly be visiting Kieran...?
I wrinkled my nose.
The army.
And not too long after that realization, I heard footsteps on the stairs. It agitated my alpha, but we stayed still.
"They're down here..." Kieran said. "They tried to get to my child... My friend had no other choice..."
Friend, huh...? Not a terrorist he'd kept captive for the past few weeks?
"And your friend is where exactly?" asked a stern voice in a way only an army cunt could speak.
"Still in the basement... He's resting with my child..." Kieran explained when they reached the bottom of the stairs.
"You mind if we ask him a couple of questions?" the stranger asked.
Fuck...
"I, uh... Let me ask..." Kieran said in an avoiding manner, and carefully pushed the door open.
He didn't say anything, only gave me an apologetic look.
Fuck me...
I carefully sat up, making sure my covers were hiding my injury.
"I can answer questions," I said, trying to stay calm and composed.
I should've fucking left this fucking place when I had the chance.
Kieran entered the room and stepped aside when two very large army cunts stepped in. My instincts told me to get the fuck away from there, while my alpha immediately decided it didn't like these strangers, but I forced a smile on my face while I picked up the baby and made him sit in my lap.
Kieran immediately tensed.
"Rough night, huh?" the older soldier asked, peering at me while his comrade glanced around the room.
Both had guns holstered on their hips, and rifles hanging off their backs...
"You could say that," I said as confidently as I could.
"This is my former captain," Kieran told me, his eyes never leaving his child. "Captain Garcia. He came to make sure we're all right."
"Kind of you," I said. "You had questions for me?"
They were fucking better get to the point... My alpha was growing more agitated now that Kieran was worried. It didn't want these soldiers around him.
"What's your name, son?" the captain asked.
I faked another smile, hating every fucking second of this. "Sam."
Kieran glanced at me with a frown.
"Sam...?" the captain insisted.
"Sam Taylor, sir," I said.
I was so fucked...
The captain nodded. "And you're the one who shot the two invaders outside the door?"
"Yes sir. Tried to give them a chance to leave, but they were going rabid after little Ares," I said, glancing at the baby, who was staring at the soldiers with wide eyes. "I had no choice. There were more people upstairs after me, so... Had to end it quickly."
The captain nodded again, looking at me like everything about me screamed suspiciousness. I tried to maintain my cool, but fuck, things were going to shit. I just knew it.
The captain stepped closer. "You did good, son. I'm grateful you were here to protect Kieran and Ares."
No way...
"Right place at the right time, I guess," I said.
"You injured?"
"Nah, I'm good. Just a little exhausted," I said, hoping my wound was still hidden.
"What's with the chains? And the camera?" the captain's comrade asked.
"That's private information," Kieran said, pushing a lock of hair behind his ear in a shy manner.
The soldiers glanced at each other, then at Kieran. I wanted to gag. But the omega was good. It was very clear he was trying to imply we had kinky sex and liked to film it. And neither of these soldiers questioned it.
"You don't happen to have any footage from last night we could use as evidence?" the captain asked him.
"No, sir. It wasn't on last night," Kieran said.
"Got it," the captain said, and left it at that. But not before he gave me an up and down look with more curiosity in his eyes.
"Can you say how many intruders there were last night?" he then asked me.
"Uh..." I trailed off with a shrug. "At least five, maybe more."
"Any information you can give us about who they were or what they looked like?"
"They had guns and baseball bats. That's about all I remember about them," I said. "Sorry, but I don't think I have anything useful to tell you. Except that they were definitely looters. Very desperate, too."
"Right," the captain said with a sigh. "Well, you can rest now. If you can remember anything we should know about, contact us."
I nodded. "Of course," I said, and faked another smile.
Was I actually getting away with this...?
The captain gestured for his comrade to leave the room, then turned to give me a nod before he turned his back to us. I glanced past him and saw more soldiers studying the bodies. I didn't dare to open my mouth anymore, so I turned my attention to Ares and turned him around to face me.
Didn't feel right to let the kid see the bodies...
"Weird stuff, huh?" I muttered to him. "They're just taking a nap. Don't worry..."
Ares ogled at me for a moment, then laughed at my face.
"Yes, I know I look like shit. No need to point it out," I muttered.
Kieran came to sit down next to us with a small smile on his face. His long hair was untied and a mess, his lightly bloodshot eyes had dark circles around them, and his cheeks were pale again.
"You look like shit, too," I told him.
"I don't really care right now," he said softly, then wiggled his nose at his child, who giggled harder.
My alpha finally calmed down now that the omega was within our reach, and the soldiers were backing off. It still kept an eye on them, though.
I peered past Kieran when the soldiers started hauling the bodies away. I had questions, but I chose to keep my mouth shut until we were alone. I hoped they'd fuck off soon. My stomach was burning again, and I wasn't sure how long I could stay seated up.
"Who's a good little baby?" Kieran whispered to his giggling child. "We're having fun, huh?"
I was surprised he still let me hold the kid. He didn't even pay attention to me, like he already trusted me. A big fucking mistake, but no one was asking me. He got even more comfortable than that, and leaned against the mattress, his hand on the other side of my legs while he playfully tickled Ares. He was practically in my lap already and had completely lost his focus on anything else but the baby.
Like he didn't want to know about anything else at that moment.
And I let him have his moment. He was acting brave, but it was clear he was still shaken. If I'd not been here, they both would now be heading to the closest slave trader, where they would've been separated. For good.
"What does this cute little button do?" Kieran asked, gently pressing Ares' nose. The baby kept laughing and clapping and bouncing around.
I felt something heavy in my chest...
These two would never have seen each other again if I'd not been here...
My alpha's attention was on me. It was silent, but that silence let me feel how deep its hatred toward me truly was... How it loathed me... It didn't want me anywhere near this omega and its child.
Kieran said that I still had a chance to make things right, that my alpha was still able to forgive me, but I couldn't see how.
"Daddy got your nose," Kieran murmured to his child.
I watched him. I watched his smile. I watched him when he chuckled at his laughing child. And as I watched their happiness, unable to look away...
I began to understand why my alpha hated me.