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“I don’t want to fucking hear any of your speeches right now,” I growl, leaning my fists onto his desk. “We get that we fucked up and should’ve come immediately after we found her, but you didn’t—you didn’t see her.”

He didn’t see how terrified she was, naked and trembling on Madden’s bedroom floor. None of them did.

None of them understand why we couldn’t just bring her to get registered yet. Opening up the possibility of her getting auctioned off to other alpha packs when she could barely stand the sight of an alpha would’ve traumatized her even more.

“Regardless,” he sighs. “I can’t make an exception for this omega. She should have been registered, and she must go through the proper processes.”

“But—“

“Do you know why this system was put in place, Archer?” he says, leaning back into his chair and sighing. “Because people were killed without it. Omegas. Their alphas. Families.” He glances at Kane. “Your pack knows intimately well why things are the way they are. With this system, as many alphas and betas as possible get the opportunity to have an omega.”

“So just because she’s a Southside omega without the same protections as a Northside omega, she has to basically be auctioned off?” Madden growls.

“She’s not going to be auctioned off,” My father sighs. “Yes, finances is a factor in pack eligibility, but the final choice of which pack she chooses to be with, whether it’s just for a heat or as her bonded mates, is up to her. She has to meet more packs than just yours.”

He must see that his words aren’t quite having the effect he wants on us, given how we’re all still fuming, because he switches tactics.

“Think of it this way, son. From the sound of things, she’s had a very difficult life. Would you want her to be stuck with you without knowing what her options are?”

Yes.

“She’s our scent match,” Madden says softly.

Madden never talks to my father. He rarely talks to anyone other than our pack. The fact that he’s actually speaking up now is a big deal.

“Really,” My father says, sitting up straighter in his chair. He seems genuinely surprised, which is quite rare. “That wasn’t in any of the police reports.”

“We suspect it’s because of a hormonal imbalance because of the way she was abused during her heats,” I answer. “We can all tell she’s our scent match, but she doesn’t seem to feel the same pull just yet.”

“What if she never feels that pull?” My father asks, deep in thought. “There’s no guarantee that she’ll ever recover that sense if she’s spent the majority of her heats deprived.”

My fists clench at my sides. I don’t have an answer to that. Even if she can’t feel the pull, we can. And we can offer her a wonderful life.

“My sister is doing research,” Chase cuts in. “She’s saying it’s possible that after Luna’s next heat, if she spends it with us that that could help her recover.”

“Ah yes, the only omega doctor,” My father nods. “There’s still no guarantee that plan will work. Isn’t this more reason for her to go through the courting process with other packs so she can tell that she’s the most drawn to you four?”

“So what you’re saying is there’s nothing you can do,” I growl.

“The only thing I can do is advise you to take the courting process seriously if you’re actually interested in this omega. You never have before.”

Fuck him. Sure, the process we have in place is there for a reason, but he has the power to grant us an exception.

“There are other powers at play, son,” My father says, standing from his desk. “There seems to be an unusual amount of interestin this omega, considering she’s from the Southside. My hands are tied.”

I nod, turning towards the door, the rest of my packmates following behind me.

“Other powers?” Kane asks after we all climb into the car. “Who do you think could be interested in Luna? No one should really know about her other than us and the police.”

“Could it be Brandy? Or someone Brandy knows?” Chase asks, leaning forward over the center console.

“No.” We all turn to look at Madden, whose fingers are white-knuckling the steering wheel. “We all heard Luna. She was—she was going to be fucking sold off. To an alpha. An alpha that presumably has enough money to buy an omega off the black market. That requires money.”

“You think it’s a Northside alpha who wanted to buy Luna?” Kane asks.

“Yes. Especially if the Director is mentioning other powers at play strong enough to influence him,” Madden confirms.

“He’s the director, but my father answers to the board and the councilmembers,” I say, thinking out loud. “It could be any one of them.”