Page 57 of Daisy (Omega Chosen #3)

Daisy

O ur cabin smells like all of us now.

Dante's honey and clove. August's cedarwood and parchment.

Hawk's caramel and leather wrapping around Gunner's sandalwood and wild fig.

Cassian's dark amber and musk. My honeysuckle and vanilla wound through all of it like we belong here.

Like I was always supposed to be right here in the middle of them.

I'm basically plastered against Gunner's chest. His huge arms are wrapped around me like he thinks someone's gonna try to steal me. August is reading next to us, playing with my hair without even looking up from his book.

Hawk keeps glancing over from where he's messing with some camera equipment. Every few minutes he reaches out to touch my ankle or brush his fingers over my hand. He's been like this since my heat broke a month ago. Constantly checking on me. Touching me like I'm made of glass.

Which is ridiculous. I loved it when he completely lost control during my heat. The way he got rough with me, desperate and wild. Exactly what I needed. But now he's acting like I might break if he breathes on me wrong.

The rest of the guys are scattered around our little living room. All relaxed and bonded. It's perfect.

This is what being happy feels like. What actually choosing something feels like.

Two months ago, I would've been sitting in perfect posture on some delicate chair in the Omega House. Hands folded in my lap, speaking only when spoken to. Everything I said carefully measured to please whoever was listening.

Sometimes I look around at this cabin, at these men who love me exactly as I am, and it feels like those years of training were just a nightmare. Like maybe they happened to someone else.

But then I catch myself slouching against Gunner's chest. Or laughing too loud at something Hawk said. Or arguing back when Dante tries to be overprotective. And I remember—this is real. This is who I actually am when no one's trying to mold me into the perfect omega prize.

But the fear never really goes away.

Even here, even safe, I know Uncle is looking for me.

I know he's furious that his perfect omega pawn escaped.

He definitely wont care that we're scent matched.

Won't care that they love me or that I chose them.

He'll see four beta-born alphas who stole his property, he’ll see the forbidden love I have with my beta.

He'll want them dead.

And he has the resources to make that happen.

Every day we stay hidden, he gets closer to finding us. Every day I do nothing, he gets stronger. More omegas suffer. More families get torn apart.

We've been safe here for two months now. But safe isn't enough anymore. Not when I know what's still happening out there. Not when I could be doing something about it instead of just waiting for him to find us.

Through the bond, I can feel my guys' contentment with our little bubble of happiness. But underneath it there's something else, they sense my fears too.

I bite my lip. "I can't do this anymore."

August's fingers stop moving in my hair. Gunner's arms tighten around me. Dante's book snaps shut like a gunshot, those ice-blue eyes instantly focused on me. Even without looking, I can feel Hawk and Cassian's attention snap to me through the pack bond.

"Can't do what, princess?" Hawk asks. But his voice is careful now.

I sit up in Gunner's arms so I can see everyone.

My heart is hammering. Hawk immediately moves closer, his hand finding my knee in that careful, tender way he's been touching me since his rut broke.

Like he's afraid he was too rough with me.

Even though I've told him a million times how good it was.

"I can't keep hiding while other omegas are suffering." The words come out stronger than I expected. "I can't keep pretending that what we have is enough when I know what's happening out there. And I can't keep waiting for my uncle to find us and kill you for loving and bonding me."

Their emotions spike so hard I can feel it in my chest. Alarm. Protectiveness. Love. Fear. Everything crashing into me at once.

"Whoa, hold back," Gunner rumbles against my back. "You're overwhelming her."

They all consciously pull back, dampening their emotions until I can breathe again. This bond thing is still weird. Sometimes they all hit me at once and I feel like I'm drowning.

"Thanks," I whisper. August squeezes my hand.

"What exactly are you saying?" Dante asks.

The words want to stick in my throat. Old habits from being the perfect, quiet omega. But I push through. I'm done with all of that. "I'm saying I want my uncle in prison for what he's done. I want the Choosing Day system exposed for the auction it really is."

The words flow stronger now, fueled by the memory of who I used to be versus who I am now.

"I spent nineteen years being told my only value was making elite babies and keeping my mouth shut. I want every omega to be able to look at their potential packs and say yes or no based on what they actually want. I want them to have what I have. The right to choose."

Emotions spike again across the pack bond. Rage from Cassian and Dante. Fierce protectiveness from Gunner. Determination from August. Something wild and reckless from Hawk.

"Jesus, guys, dial it back," Hawk says, and he's suddenly right next to me, hands hovering like he wants to touch but doesn't know if he should. His own emotions are spiraling, but there's guilt there too. Like he thinks he's the reason I can't handle their intensity right now.

When they get themselves under control, the silence feels heavy.

"You're talking about revolution," Gunner says quietly.

The word should terrify me. A month ago it would've sent me running. But with them all here, loving me...

"Yeah," I say. "I am."

Dante gets up and starts pacing. He looks like he wants to punch something. "Do you understand what that means, Beautiful? What we'd be up against?"

"The entire system," Cassian says grimly. "Every elite bloodline. Every politician who's built their career on omega trading. Every alpha who thinks they're entitled to own us."

I know. God, I know. My chest feels tight thinking about it. "I can't ask you to follow me into this. I won't ask you to."

"You're not asking," Hawk says, standing up. "You're telling us you're going with or without us."

I want to deny it. But I can't. He's right. I've already made the choice. The question is whether they'll make it with me.

"Fuck." Dante runs his hands through his hair. "Beautiful, if you do this, there's no going back. Your uncle will use everything he has to destroy you. The media, the legal system, hired killers—everything."

"He's been trying to destroy me my whole life." The words come out steady. Old me would've whispered that. "The difference is now I'm not alone. And now I'm not that scared little girl anymore."

I can see it in their faces, they're starting to believe this could actually work.

"There's something else," Dante says. His voice is grim. "Something I figured out when I was working security. About your uncle."

My stomach drops. "What?"

"He's fifty-eight years old. Most beta-born alphas start going feral around forty. Dead by forty-five. He shouldn't be stable. Not unless..." He trails off.

The room goes dead quiet. I can see it clicking for everyone at different speeds.

"Unless what?" But even as I ask, my stomach is already dropping. I think I know where this is going.

Dante's jaw clenches. "Unless he's got access to an omega. Hidden somewhere. Someone he's been using to stay stable for years."

The words hit me like a physical blow.

I can't breathe. Can't think. The room starts spinning and I have to grip Gunner's arms to stay upright.

And then it hits me. The memory I've buried so deep I almost convinced myself it never happened.

I wake up from a nightmare. My heart is pounding, and I'm sweating even though my room is cold.

But there's something else. A sound.

Crying.

I slip out of bed and pad down the dark hallway in my nightgown. My bare feet are cold on the hardwood floor. The house is so quiet except for that sound. Someone is crying, and it makes my stomach feel funny.

I follow it down to the basement. Each step makes my heart beat faster. That door that's always locked. Uncle's special room that I'm never supposed to go near. My nanny told me that some rooms are private, that Uncle has important work down there.

But tonight, it's not locked. It's cracked open just a little, and that's where the crying is coming from.

I shouldn't look. I know I shouldn't. My hands are shaking as I reach for the door. But I'm seven and curious and someone sounds so hurt. What if they need help?

I push the door open just a crack. Just enough to see.

The smell hits me first. Something wrong. Fear and pain and something else I don't understand yet.

A young man is curled up on a thin mattress on the concrete floor. His wrists are chained to the wall, the metal raw and bloody against his skin. He's naked, bruised, broken. There are marks all over his body that make me want to throw up.

But he's beautiful. Delicate features, long dark hair matted with sweat and tears. And his scent—sweet omega, but different somehow. Different from the female omegas I've met at Uncle's parties.

A male omega.

The thing Uncle always says are abominations. Freaks. Unnatural. The thing he says should be destroyed.

But he looks so human. So hurt. So alone. He's shivering, and I want to give him my blanket.

I must make a sound because his head snaps up. Our eyes meet for just a second. His are green, terrified, pleading. Like he's begging me to help him. Tears are streaming down his face.

I want to help. I want to unlock those chains. But I'm just seven and I don't know how and I'm so scared.

Then Uncle's hand is on my shoulder, yanking me away so hard my arm hurts. I cry out, but he doesn't care. His fingers dig into my shoulder like claws.