Alphas obedience, p.2
Alpha's Obedience, page 2
That last was a not-so-subtle barb at how Lidon and his men had found Lev when they'd raided the building he'd been protecting. Well, as it had turned out, the building he had not been protecting, because he'd been asleep. Lidon's team had easily overpowered him because he'd never seen them coming.
In his defense, the days before that had been absolutely crazy. All the guards had been concerned since they hadn't heard from their boss in days, and half their team had been missing. They’d had no idea why, so they'd all pulled double or even triple shifts to cover them. And no one even debated not doing that, since everyone knew Big Bennett's wrath was deadly when you incurred it. That night, after sleeping maybe ten, eleven hours in three nights, Lev had been too exhausted to stay awake. It didn't excuse his behavior, but he thought it sure as hell was a good reason.
He familiarized himself with the terrain as he walked the boundaries of pack land, his com crackling every few minutes with someone checking in. Bray's instructions were clear: everyone had to check in every fifteen minutes. Lev had set an alarm on his watch to remind himself. He had to do a good job on his first day. Bray wouldn't be the forgiving type, that Lev was sure of. This was his second chance. He wouldn’t get a third.
The weather was gorgeous, and Lev tilted his face toward the sun, breathing in the fresh air. It was relatively cold, the temperature hovering in the low sixties. That was to be expected this time of year, however. Only two more months till Christmas, and by then, frost would be nipping at the fields. They rarely got real frost here, though it had happened a few times that Lev could remember, but never for long.
He loved this time of year, appreciating that you could be outside for hours and not get sunburned or become all gross and sweaty. Besides, the air seemed different in the fall and winter. Fresher, more invigorating than the oppressive humid heat of the summer.
He was on his third loop when he heard something. He stopped walking, turning his ear toward the sound. A faint rustling, coming from his two o'clock. It was outside the boundary of pack land, if only by a little, but he should still check it out, right? He drew his gun, deciding to wait with alarming anyone else until he'd found the source of the noise. It could be an animal. A deer, perhaps?
Another sound. Definitely not rustling, this time. It was almost like…a sob? Was someone crying? It sounded too faint for that, and also, why would anyone go outside the boundaries? They all knew better, even men like him who had only heard the stories of the previous attacks on the ranch. Attacks that had been carried out by his coworkers and by Big Bennett, as he’d later found out.
He inched closer, making as little noise as possible with his boots. If there was someone, why didn't he see anything? Bushes rose up between the tall grass, so maybe someone was hiding behind one of those? But if they were hiding, they wouldn't make noise. It didn't make sense.
Lev tiptoed toward the sound. Yes, definitely a sob. But very soft. A child? None of the children on the ranch were old enough, though.
It took him two minutes before he saw it. Someone was lying on the ground, almost hidden by the tall grass, which is why Lev hadn't seen them sooner. The fact that they were wearing tan colored clothes didn't help either, as they provided excellent camouflage with the background. It was a small form, so a child after all? It would have to be a teenager then.
The form didn't move, though those faint crying sounds still rose up. He moved closer and closer, his weapon trained at whoever was in the grass. When he stood right next to the person, he stopped.
"Identify yourself," he said, hoping his voice sounded stern.
The form moved, jerking in what had to be surprise, turning his—because Lev realized now it was a young omega—face toward Lev. His eyes widened, and he let out a startled cry before he dropped to the ground again in a dead faint.
Lev crouched next to the still body, never lowering his weapon. He shook him gently with his left hand but got no response. With a little more effort, he turned the body toward him, almost dropping his gun when he spotted the omega's pregnant belly.
What the hell? How had a pregnant omega who looked like he was mere weeks away from giving birth ended up here? Plenty of questions circled around in Lev's brain, but the answers would have to wait. A rush of excitement flowed through him as he realized he'd be able to do good on his first day on the job.
He reached for his com. "Bray, we have a situation here. I need you to come have a look. Over.”
2
Sivney Jones woke up in full panic. One second, he'd been floating, feeling warm and safe, and the next he jolted awake, having no idea where he was. His eyes darted around the room, recognizing nothing. He was inside somewhere. A room. But he wasn't on a bed; it was too hard for that. It didn't smell like a home. More like…a hospital?
It had to be. Or an exam room of some kind. But he couldn't remember reaching the clinic. Had someone brought him in? What the hell had happened? His hands flew to his belly, and he let out a sigh of relief when he felt his baby. It was active, gently kicking him in his ribs. As annoying as it was, it had become a comfort for him the last weeks. A sign that no matter how bleak his situation looked, at least his baby was still alive. And so was he.
"Don't be scared," a deep, soft voice spoke, and Sivney swiveled his head around to his other side. An alpha stood in the corner, watching him. He was broad, tall, and with a pair of friendly blue eyes. How could he have missed him? He was an alpha, for fuck's sake. Not the type of person he should overlook.
His heart rate jumped into overdrive, and he scrambled to launch himself off the gurney or whatever he was lying on. But as soon as he pushed himself upward, a wave of dizziness engulfed him, and he dropped down again, his muscles powerless.
"Please don't hurt me," he heard himself say, his voice sounding muffled. Was he drugged? He was so slow, so weak. Oh god, was this alpha after his baby? Had William sent him? The thought of his ex-boyfriend made bile rise up in his throat.
"You’re safe here," the alpha said. "I promise I'm here to take care of you and your baby, not to hurt you."
Something washed over Sivney. A calmness. A strange peace that told him the man was speaking the truth. He was about to give in to his intuition that he could trust this man when something inside him itched. "Are you alpha compelling me?"
"A little, just enough to help you calm down. I'm not trying to manipulate you into anything. I just want to make sure you're okay, and panicking isn't good for you and your baby."
Sivney rolled onto his side, which took effort nowadays. Then again, everything took effort and energy when one was pregnant, he’d discovered. The alpha stood as far away from Sivney as he could in this confined space. He wasn't wearing any kind of uniform like scrubs, but he had a stethoscope around his neck and radiated this quiet confidence that Sivney had often spotted in doctors. It hadn't always been quiet. Some of the doctors he'd worked for had been more arrogant than words could describe, barely fitting through the door with their ego. Others had been more subtle about it but had radiated the same authority he sensed in this man.
"You're a doctor," he said, his voice clearer now.
"Yes, an ob-gyn, specialized in male omegas."
Out of all the doctors he could've run into, that was about the best he could have possibly picked. "Where am I?"
"You're in the Hayes clinic."
Sivney's eyes widened. "I made it here? I don't remember."
The alpha looked at him with nothing but kindness. "You were in pretty bad shape when you were brought in."
He gestured at Sivney's left arm, which was hooked up to an IV. He hadn't even noticed, which said a lot about his state. Sivney quickly checked the bags hanging from the IV pole, relieved when he saw it was normal saline with added dextrose.
"So you were trying to get to this clinic?" the alpha asked.
Sivney let out a deep sigh. He couldn't believe he'd managed to find it. He blinked a few times as he tried to remember how he'd gotten here but came up blank. "Word on the street was that this clinic was still open. Most of the hospitals are closed for nonemergency cases, and clearly, a pregnant omega isn't an emergency.”
The alpha nodded. "How is the situation in the city? We've seen news reports about riots and looting, but we're pretty isolated here."
Sivney had to swallow before he could answer. How did he describe the horrors he had seen? "It's bad. Really bad. Especially for omegas. The cops that are still doing their job and the soldiers that are trying to keep order are mostly focused on big crimes, monetary crimes. Looting, violence, destruction of property. Omegas aren't a priority, but then again, we never were."
He couldn't help the bitterness in his voice, but the alpha didn't seem to take offense. On the contrary, his eyes flashed with anger. Anger for Sivney, not at his words, that was clear. "I'm glad you were able to find us, then," he said. "I'm Enar Magnusson, and I run this clinic with the help of a few others. We’re still dedicated to helping omegas.”
"I'm Sivney."
"How are you feeling, Sivney? You were unconscious when you were brought in, and I gave you some fluids, since you seemed severely dehydrated. I also did a quick check, but your baby is okay. Her heart rate is perfectly within normal range, and she's active."
Sivney blinked, his throat closing as his eyes teared up. "She? It's a girl?"
Dr. Magnusson cringed. "I'm so sorry. I didn't know you wanted to keep the baby's gender a surprise."
Sivney shook his head. "No, that's not it. I…" He tried to form thoughts, but it kept swirling around in his head. It was a girl. His baby was a girl. In a few weeks, he would have a beautiful baby girl to take care of. He would do anything to keep her safe, even when he had no idea how to do that when the world had gone to shit in the last few weeks.
"I haven't had a chance to find out," he said when he finally composed himself enough to speak. "I'm on my own, and I didn't have the money to get checked out."
Dr. Magnusson nodded as if it was the most normal thing in the world, but considering he ran an omega clinic, it probably was. "With your permission, I'd like to do a full workup and make sure you and the baby are in good condition. Are you okay with that?"
An alpha asking for permission was an anomaly in itself, but the gentle tone he used wrapped around Sivney like a warm blanket. "I'd appreciate that."
"Your heart rate was low when we brought you in, and so was your blood pressure. As I said, you’re dehydrated, so our first priority is to get your fluids back to where they should be."
"What were my stats?” Sivney asked.
If Dr. Magnusson was surprised an omega dared to ask that, he didn't show it. "Your heart rate was fifty-six, and your blood pressure just eighty-five over fifty."
Sivney whistled between his teeth. "That is pretty damn low."
"Do you have a medical background?" Dr. Magnusson asked, and Sivney had to love him for even considering that as a possibility.
"I'm a nurse. I was fortunate to grow up with parents who believed in education for omegas. Sadly, they didn't believe in unconditional love, so when they found out I was pregnant and my boyfriend had broken up with me, they told me I was on my own. Something about disgracing the family name or some shit."
He worried for a second that he’d gone too far because this was not accepted language for an omega, and it also was far from the respectable way to address an alpha. But Dr. Magnusson rolled his eyes, a gesture so human and un-alpha-like that Sivney smiled. "No parent should ever kick their child out," the doctor said, and the force behind his words warmed Sivney's heart.
"Do you have kids, Doctor?" he asked.
The man's face lit up like the sun. "We have a son, me and my mates. His name is Hakon. He's almost five months old now."
"Mates?" The question came out of Sivney's mouth before he could stop it. It was quite an impertinent thing to ask, but the plural form had piqued his curiosity. He'd never heard of someone having more than one mate. And besides, even the word mate in itself was somewhat old-fashioned.
The doctor nodded. He stood up a little straighter as he said, "I have three mates: an alpha, another beta, and an omega."
Sivney let that statement sink in. He was in a relationship with another alpha? How did that work? Then it hit him. The man had said another beta, suggesting that he considered himself a beta. Was that even possible? He looked like an alpha, undeniably, and yet something in his behavior didn't gel with the usual alpha arrogance and dominance.
"You prefer being a beta?" he asked, unsure of how to word it differently but sensing it mattered that he got this right.
Dr. Magnusson hesitated for a second. "I know it's hard to understand, but I am a beta. I may not look like one, but it's how I feel on the inside. Also, please call me Enar. I have a strong aversion against formality."
Well, that was a new one for Sivney. An alpha who felt like a beta and wanted to be treated as such? He'd never heard of such a thing. Hell, he'd never even considered that was possible. Not that he minded. Why would he when it didn't impact him? If the man wanted to be treated like a beta, that was an easy thing to do.
"Okay, Enar," he said, sending him a friendly smile. It was the least he could do, considering the doctor had offered to examine him and make sure he and his baby were okay.
"Thank you for your understanding."
"I'm not sure that's something you should say thank you for. Feels like human decency to me."
That earned him a big smile from Enar. And how easy it was to call this man by his first name, something Sivney would've never dared to do with an alpha in his position. It hinted that there might be truth in the man's words, as he didn't act and feel like an alpha, even if he looked like one.
"Let's get you checked out," Enar said.
Half an hour later, Sivney had been poked and prodded everywhere, and he’d shed quite a few tears when Enar had done a more extensive ultrasound and he'd seen his baby girl for the first time. He'd counted two arms and two legs, a big head, and Enar had confirmed her heart and organs looked healthy.
Enar had given him some clean clothes, since the ones Sivney had been wearing had smelled, to put it delicately. That didn't change the fact that Sivney himself still stank like he'd been in intimate contact with a sewer, but it was an improvement to say the least.
There was a knock on the door, and Sivney called out, "Come in."
Enar stuck his head around the corner, then stepped into the room. It was more consideration than Sivney had ever received from a doctor.
"Okay, let's go over your initial results. The most important news is that your baby looks absolutely fine. Her heart rate is strong, her vitals are within normal range, and the ultrasound showed no abnormalities. From the baby's size, my estimate is that you’re twenty weeks pregnant, so about five weeks from giving birth.”
Sivney nodded. "That would fit with the date of conception."
It wasn't like he would forget that experience anytime soon, but as soon as that thought popped into his head, he shoved it down. He’d told himself when this whole nightmare started that he would not waste any more time thinking about William. The negative stuff didn't help him, and it might even influence his health, thus affecting his baby's growth.
"Now, as for you yourself, there are some areas of concern. Obviously, I don't have all your blood results back yet, but you are definitely a bit malnourished, and judging by your hair and nails, I would say you have a calcium deficiency. Maybe an iron deficiency as well, but we’ll have to wait for the blood results. They can take a while, since we have to send them to a different lab now."
Sivney sighed. It was the news he had expected, but that didn't make it any less of a problem. "I figured as much. Sadly, there is not a whole lot I can do about it. I had a job as a nurse, but they discovered I had lied on my application about being married, and they fired me. Then the riots started, and food has been hard to come by, aside from me having no money."
He tried to keep his voice as factual as possible. It wasn't his intention to make Enar feel sorry for him, but he did want to explain that he wasn't being irresponsible with his own life or with his baby's. He simply hadn’t had much of a choice.
Enar's face showed compassion. "I understand. That's why I took the liberty of talking to my mates while you were getting dressed, and I have a proposition for you. If you want to, you can stay here on the ranch indefinitely, or at least until the baby is born and you're both healthy enough and safe to move on."
Sivney blinked a few times. "What do you mean by ‘here on the ranch’? Are more people living here other than you and your family?"
Enar's smile was broad. "Oh yeah. Too many to explain to you, but let me assure you that you are not the first omega we've taken in, and you probably won't be the last either. We have plenty of land, and one of the visions for this ranch was to offer a safe haven for omegas who would need it. You certainly fit that bill."
As much as he liked Enar, Sivney couldn't help but wonder what the angle was here. There had to be a catch somewhere, right? “And what do you expect of me in return?”
Enar shrugged. "We'd love it if you could help out wherever you feel most comfortable. I could certainly use your help here in the clinic in the long run, since many omegas would feel much better with another omega present. But if there’s something else you'd rather do or if you need some time to rest and recover, that's fine with us as well. We’ll provide you with a safe place to stay and food as long as you need, and we'll even throw in good companionship. I'm sure you'll make new friends quickly here."
How he wanted to accept this proposal. Everything inside Sivney screamed that he should take it with both hands and not say anything that could endanger it. But he couldn't. He didn't want to repay this man's, this family’s generosity by lying to them.
