Page 65 of Your Wild Omega (The Feral Actress #2)

Chapter fifty-one

Red

I sit on the bed, my legs crossed as I stare out the window at a band of shredded clouds in the gray sky. Torn, like I am. I have a court case to attend, but every time I try to stand, my body refuses to obey my command.

Hale told me that in cases like mine, the victim never usually appears in the same room as the defendant.

We’d video link in on a screen and I’d only see the judge.

But to set that up, Hale would have brought attention to the fact I plan to testify, a fact which he’s somehow buried in the witness list to fool the defending lawyer.

And if Hale hadn’t hidden it, they would have had time to bring me in for a deposition, and I just know deep in my heart that I’ll only be able to face Ray and his lawyers once.

If I get in my head about this, I’ll lose my sanity again.

Which is precisely why I’m sitting here, watching cloud wisps.

I talked things over with my therapist, Leanne, and honestly it helped.

She didn’t have any expectations, just let me talk as I used jumbo crayons on rough canvas, the bumpy fabric as therapeutic as the words flowing out.

She laughed when I admitted I keep hearing her fucked-up voice in my head telling me I’m doing great, and for the first time, testifying didn’t feel like some unconquerable monster.

But therapy a week ago and getting my ass out of the house today are two different things.

The bed bounces as someone sits down beside me. “There must be a strong wind up there to slice them up so much,” Rickon muses, staring at the clouds.

I drop my head onto his shoulder, breathing in his gentle vanilla aroma. “Will they ever get put back together?” I ask softly.

Rickon tilts his head until it touches mine, comfortingly solid. “That’s the thing about clouds. Doesn’t matter what happens to their shape, they’re still clouds. Even if they completely vanish, they find their way back.”

A smile plays across my lips. “Is the same true for omegas?”

He wraps an arm around my shoulders and snuggles me close. “When they’ve got a pack and a home to return to, yes.”

My eyes slide shut. No more hesitating. I’m going, even if someone has to carry me out of here. “Then let’s go,” I say.

Rickon kisses my hair, a comforting move I adore. “I made you some armor. Want to see it?”

I twitch and rise to study his handsome face. “You what?”

Rickon nods and draws me off the bed, excitement shining in his green eyes. “Come. Take a look.”

He’s set up his mannequin In Callisto’s vacant bedroom, and a gorgeous corset in peppermint green with delicate bows, boning, and silver-embroidered edges wraps around the bust.

I clap my hands over my mouth. “Shit, Rickon. This is for me?” I’d seen the foundation when he first brought me home, but I’d forgotten all about it in the chaos that’s followed.

Plus, it was barely a few strips of fabric then. Now it’s a masterpiece.

He fiddles with the long sleeves of a white satin blouse underneath the corset. “I’ve been working on it here and there, but I really wanted to finish it for today. I won’t be able to hold you during the entire court case, but this way, maybe you’ll feel wrapped up in me.”

Squealing with joy, I throw my arms around him. “It’s exactly what I need, Rickon!” With this, I won’t feel alone, even on the stand.

“Quick, help me put it on,” I beg, stripping my sweatpants.

He chuckles. “Slow down. Corsets aren’t something you throw on in a hurry.” He’s right, of course, but I jiggle with excitement while he gets it on me and adjusts the lacing.

“Damn, it really feels like a hug,” I murmur in wonder as I examine my reflection in the mirror.

The undershirt Rickon chose covers my skin demurely, softening any kind of sexualization the fitted clothing might otherwise suggest. I feel like an aristocratic woman from a fantasy world who knows her way around both a sword and a ballroom. Someone powerful enough to face the coming war.

In that spirit, I pair the ensemble with fitted pants and tall boots, and add my spinning silver earrings. It’s armor for sure. Even Red Hawk the spy never looked so fabulous.

“Thanks, alpha,” I tell Rickon, resting my hands on his chest. His heart beats strongly under my palms and his happiness flushes through our third-party bond.

“No matter what happens, I’m proud of you,” he says, kissing both my cheeks.

I nod. Yeah, I’m proud of myself too. Despite all the fucked-up shit, I survived, and now I’m carving out the life I want. “I wanna make sure he can’t do the same thing to anyone else,” I murmur.

Rickon strokes my cheeks. “Agreed. Hold on to that thought today.”

My alpha helps me with my makeup, giving me soft, smoky eyes, and once he’s finished, we head downstairs, where Zack’s hoovering up a bowl of cereal. With no OCB agents in sight, I conclude he must have served his own food.

“Our baby’s all grown up and independent now,” I say, squeezing Rickon’s hand.

He laughs but bleaker thoughts quickly drain our amusement away.

“Ricky, do you think we should leave Zack here today?”

Rickon freezes. “In the library?” he asks, glancing toward the barred doorway.

I nod, my throat closing up. “Didn’t you say he asked you about the process of law recently, and got upset about what Hudson did to you? If he understands what we talk about, he might attack Ray.”

Rickon nods thoughtfully, watching Zack navigate another mouthful of cereal.

“Yeah, he’s really piecing things together these days.

” He sighs and turns to take both my hands, standing on the step below me.

“I don’t know, Red. That might be something you have to decide as his omega.

But what I do know is you’ve always refused to put him back in a cell.

He’s going to feel everything you go through today, and if he’s here, he’ll be going through it alone, not knowing why. ”

My shoulders slump. Yeah, he’s right. I’d forgotten about the effect of the bond. Either choice won’t be good news for Zack.

Someone clears their throat behind me and I turn to find Agent Josef on the stairs.

Of the two agents, he’s the more serious one, but he smiles kindly.

“Pardon me. I didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but don’t forget, even if Zack stays here, one of us will come with you today. You’re not doing this alone.”

An emotional prickle darts through my throat as I smile. “I appreciate that. He’s coming, so please stay alert. It could be a real difficult week for us all.”

He nods. “Of course. Leave Zack to Rickon and us. You focus on what you need to do.”

Zack cocks his head, listening in. He turns reproachful eyes to me, his thick brows folding a little as if to ask why on earth I’d consider leaving him behind.

I chuckle and lean in to kiss him. Like Josef said, I’m not alone anymore. I can face anything with my alphas at my side.

Hale paces the courthouse foyer like an angry cat as we arrive. I can almost see a tail twitching in annoyance behind him. He spins at the sound of our footsteps, scanning me up and down. “You’re late,” he snaps, but the tension drains out of his body immediately.

I flash him a half smile, not that he can see it through the face mask I wore to cut body scents. “Better late than never, right?”

He grins, losing the last traces of stiffness.

“Yes, of course. I’m grateful you came. Both parties have made their opening comments, and Callisto just finished with his expert witnesses from forensics and the omega health specialist. The defense have called a different medical expert.

So far, they’re saying it’s a coincidence Ray was in the trafficking center at all that day.

” He glances at me, worry creasing his brow.

“The defendant sits in there on the right-hand side.”

I nod, staring at the double doors ahead of me. Inside that room waits the man behind all my nightmares, both the ones in my sleep and the ones while I’m still awake. It feels like I’m volunteering to morph into my heat-corrupted self. Will the other Red consume me?

A zephyr of licorice scent wraps around me, promising to overwhelm my mind.

I look from Zack to Rickon, the nauseating flutter in my stomach turning into a storm. Good thing I skipped breakfast today. “If I, ah, lose myself in there, do you guys know any secret alpha techniques that can make me pass out?”

Pain shows in Rickon’s eyes as he grasps my upper arms. “None that I know of, Biscuit, but Zack always manages to surprise us.”

Despite my paralyzing fears, I chuckle, and Rickon grins with me. He offers me a scent-neutralizing bracelet to put on my arm. “We can feel what you feel. If I think you’re beyond your limits, I’ll step in, okay?”

When I force out a reply, it comes as a thin, shaky whisper. “Promise?”

He wraps me in a solid hug. “Promise.”

After him, I hug Zack, soaking in his powerful strength. “Love Ohm,” he mutters, rocking me gently.

The last time I faced Ray, these two men were nothing more than a hum in my head. Now they’re here, in the flesh.

I turn and walk through the doors.

A tall man stands near the judge’s box, his back to me as he talks to a woman in the witness box. “And in your expert opinion, does an omega need an alpha’s sexual intervention in order to survive her heats?”

As if pulled by an industrial magnet, my gaze tracks to the right. Ray sits at the table, leaning back in his chair, his mop of dark-brown hair neater than I’ve ever seen it. Traces of his disgusting scent hit me, torturing my already queasy stomach.

The faceless mass from my nightmares takes shape.

Graying beard trimmed short, prominent eyebrows that shadow his eye sockets.

The slight extra width of features that most alphas possess.

Other than that, I can’t assign him a status as handsome or ordinary; the being sitting in front of me exists in a category different to humans. He’s a monster.

“Yes,” the lady on the stand with a severe bob hairstyle answers, dragging my attention back to the question about heats.

“That’s right. Without the pheromones and hormones produced by an alpha and shared through their sexual releases, an omega cannot survive her heat.

That’s precisely the reason our society has emergency omega-intervention licenses, after all.

Omegas need alphas to survive their heats. ”

“That’s a lie.” My voice drops like a bomb blast into a quiet pause between her sentences. Everyone turns to pin me with their curious gazes. “I’ve lived through two heats without an alpha in the room.”

“Quiet in the court,” the judge demands. His face shutters as he scans me. “Who are you?”

I swallow hard as the broad-shouldered defendant turns slowly to stare at me, his faint smile morphing into an expression I can’t interpret. Hatred, desire, shock. Maybe it’s all there in one big ever-changing mural.

The same sticky morass of emotions slides through me, staining my soul. But I didn’t come here to keep silent. “I’m the omega he brutalized and raped for ten years.”

“Objection!” shouts the tall, distinguished-looking lawyer, jumping to his feet.

The judge holds up his hand. “Sustained. Members of the jury, disregard those remarks as they didn’t come from the witness stand.”

I tear my gaze away from the scowling monster. “I’m here to testify, Your Honor. My name is Red Jones and I’m a survivor of the Laversham omega trafficking center.”

Lawyers on both sides of the room scramble across their desks, searching for something. Callisto jumps up and stalks through the swinging gate right up the aisle, face pale as a sheet.

His coal-black eyes glisten as he reaches for my hand. “How? Why are you here?” he chokes out.

“I’m here to testify,” I tell him, resting my other hand on top of his.

Callisto trembles, and a desperate noise slides through his throat. “Red, I’m sorry, but you can’t. You’re not on the witness list.”

I jut my chin over his shoulder to where his partner lawyer hurries down the aisle, flapping a piece of paper. He shows it to Callisto, a fingernail lined up under my name.

“Wait,” Callisto gasps, blinking furiously. “How?” His gaze jumps behind me to the man who ushered us into the courtroom. “Hale?” he murmurs in shock.

I nod. “Yes. Hale.”

Callisto shifts his grip until he holds both my hands in his. “I thought you wouldn’t . . . The case—” His mouth tightens, and he shakes his head. “No, I mean, are you all right to be here? You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do.” He shifts his body to block my view of the defense team.

I stare up at him, touched by the compassion burning in his gaze. He’s not worried about his court case going down in flames. This time, he came straight to me.

“I can do this,” I murmur. “I need to.”

He nods, thumbs massaging the back of my hands. “If it helps, they do not look happy to see you.”

I peek over his shoulder to see Ray and his lawyer in a whispered conference, the lawyer making agitated motions with his hands. “Is that a good thing?”

Callisto grins and nods. “I don’t know how Hale pulled it off, but they didn’t see you coming at all.” He bends until his lips just about brush my ear. “They’ll have to change their story in a hurry. Do not let them trip you into saying you requested, asked, or begged for sex, okay?”

I nod. Strangely enough, I knew all along that was a big issue, even when Ray was raping me. “It’s okay,” I reassure him. “Hale’s already coached me.”

“Damn. I’ll have to buy him a private island as thanks.” Callisto squeezes my hands, dragging my thoughts back to the present. “We have the element of surprise, so I’d like to put you on the stand as soon as the current witness finishes. Think you can handle that?”

“Yes.” That’s why I came here, and frankly I’d rather not have a thousand gory case details chip away my confidence before I get up there. “Let’s do this.”