The Stained Omega by Elle T Jefferson
Chapter 56

Agony Beta.

(James)

eyes

“Who else knows about this?” I ask my rather drunk Alpha. His are glassy and he can barely focus on me. I knew he had been drinking more lately but I had no idea it was this bad. I don’t even think he realises how out of control it’s become, each day he seems to be more and more drunk and buried within himself.

“Just you. I can’t tell Anna, if she replaces out…” he doesn’t finish his sentence, he puts his head in his hands instead.

“You think she will leave?” I guess.

“If Anna thought she was keeping me from my true fated mate she wouldn’t hesitate, she would leave so that I can be happy with Faye. And she would take Thomas with her. If I lost even one of them I don’t know what I’d do but losing two?” He shakes his head at me, “I can’t lose them.”

“I know, don’t worry. Neither are going away, if you had told me sooner I could have helped. This ignoring Anna thing has to stop though, it’s affecting both of you. How much have you even drunk today?” I ask him as I get up and start collecting the empty bottles.

“Not enough.” He whispers as he picks up the now empty bottle.

“You realise while you have buried your head in the sand, your mate thinks she has done something wrong and your pack is whispering about their Alpha.” I tell him, I’m kind of hoping the truth of the matter will shock him.

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“Good. It’s better if she hates me, it will fuel the rage and get her strong enough to beat Faye.” I don’t think it’s even registered that I mentioned the pack.

“Right well, some of us have pack duties to attend to. I will be back in the morning, and try to be sober.” I say with an rm full of whiskey bottles.

“Yes, mother.” He says bringing the whiskey bottle up to his mouth. I leave the room with my glass hoa rd and leave the Alpha to his whiskey. There is no reasoning with him right now, I understand why he’s feeling the way he is but the drinking is making him worse.

Heading down to the kitchen I try to be quiet so I don’t wake people, it’s still fairly early but Thomas is probably asleep and maybe even Momma Beth. I make it all the way to the kitchen without seeing another person, which is another testament to how much the Alphas mood is affecting the pack. The pack house had become the ‘it’ hang out place after Thom a s’s birth and now it’s empty and feels cold. It’s like the wolves in the pack can sense something is wrong between them Alpha and Luna, they are putting distance between them and themselves.

Walking into the kitchen I stop short when I see Anna sat at the kitchen table, she looks terrible. Her hair is in a messy bun on her head with little whisks hanging all over, her eyes once shiny and bright are now dull and surrounded by deep grey bags. Anna is someone who always looks put together but dressed in one of Fraction’s band shirts and a pair of plaid pants she looks any but put together. She’s sat drinking a cup of what smells like hot coco. She is so busy staring off into space that she doesn’t even realise I’m in the kitchen until I pop the bottles down on the kitchen side. They make a clunking noise on the marble worktop.

“Are they all his?” She asks me in a low voice.

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“All from Fraction’s office, yeah.” I tell her, I can’t lie to her.

Something I will keep from her for her own good but I won’t lie. She’s my Luna and I refuse to be disrespectful.

“He’s drinking so much lately. I don’t know what’s wrong, he won’t talk to me. Hell he won’t even look at me.” I go to sit at the table with her and I take her hand in mine. I’m trying to give her some comfort but I don’t think there is much I can do for her. “What did I do? I keep going over and over everything in my head and I just don’t know what I’ve done.” She is openly weeping now, I can sense Fraction and I turn around to see him in the doorway to the kitchen. I look straight at him and widen my eyes at him, the universal sign of fix this, you broke it.” Instead he just hangs his head and slinks off back to where he came from. I turn back to Anna and watch as the stream of tears runs down

her face.

“I don’t know what’s wrong with him right now, he’s acting very un- Fraction like.” Not a total lie but I still feel sh it for having said it. I take the hot cocoa from her, “go to bed Anna, things will look better in the morning.” She gives me a sad smile that tells me she doesn’t believe me even a little.

I watch as she leaves the kitchen, shoulders slump and head low. I can feel the depression coming off her like waves, this level of emotion can’t be good for an Omega. They feel emotions much stronger than the average wolf. I don’t know much about Omega’s but I think it’s time I try to replace out more. Pulling out my phone I pull up the number of the one person I know will be able to answer all kinds of questions on Omegas.

(Leon

‘You awake?’ My phone chimes with a text just as I close the door to Lizzie’s bedroom, she woke up thanks to a nightmare again. The wolfsbane poisoning really upset her and has caused some nighttime

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regression.

“Of course. It’s only just past 9pm.’ I smile at my phone as I type, James has this way of bringing out the gooly teenager in me.

‘Can I come over? I need to talk to you.’ My smile grows at the thought of James in my space. Looking down at myself I grimace at the scrubs I have been wearing all day. I smell like medicine and sick people, very

not S** y.

‘Sure but give me 20 minutes, please? Sliding my phone back into my pocket I rush down the stairs to my room.

I take the fastest shower in the world and then throw on some jeans and Van Halen t-shirt. I am just running a comb through my black hair when I hear the knock at the door. I force myself to wait a whole minute beforel leave my bedroom and head for the front door. Opening it James is standing there looking as se xy as ever, he always has this lumberjack vibe going on and tonight is no different. He’s wearing faded Levi’s that hang off his hips, a grey wife beater all brought together with a red and black plaid shirt. On his feet he’s wearing doc martens that I swear will have steel toe caps. He always looks like he’s about to start some heavy duty work on a farm but I don’t think the man has ever seen a hay bale in his life.

“James.” I say in the way of a greeting and stand to the side so he can come into

my home. As he walks past me I catch a scent of him, he smells like freshly cut grass, whiskey and something that is all him. Honestly, I could swoon at the smell of him.

“Leon, lounge?” He asks, he doesn’t wait for an answer he just walks through the house and makes himself at home in the lounge. I smile closing the door and follow him, by the time I arrive he’s already taken his boots off and settled into the armchair.

“So what can I do for you?” I ask him as I take a seat in the sofa across

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from him, one day I would like nothing more than for us to be snuggled on this sofa together. It won’t happen though, wolves are not g ay, everyone knows this. We probably both have a female mate out there somewhere.

“I have some stuff I need to talk to you about but I need it to stay between us.” I nod at him.

“Of course, I would never share anything we do together.” I watch as his eyes twi nkle at my double meaning.

“It’s a sensitive matter about the Alpha and Luna.” He says licking his l*ps, it’s like he’s trying to stay serious while also fighting the urge to jump me. It’s thrilling to watch.

“The Alpha and Luna? I’ve heard whispers but I don’t think I know what’s really going on, I tend to keep my head out of gossip to be honest.” I tell him honestly.

“It isn’t gossip I need,” he says after a long pause. “Fraction has come across a second mate, his fated true mate.” I feel like someone has dropped an ice bucket over my head, any S**ual tension I was feeling

just is suddenly gone.

“Oh no. Anna, poor Anna.” I truly feel sorry for her, I know first hand the damage this can do to a person, to an Omega.

“I was wondering if you could shed some light into what this will do to Anna, I don’t know much about Omegas. But you…” He doesn’t finish the sentence, we both know my knowledge of an Omega vastly outweighs what other wolves know.

“What do you want to know?” I ask him looking at my hands, there isn’ t anything I would tell this man but honestly this is not easy for me to talk about.

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“Everything.” He says in a low voice.

I look up to him and we lock eyes, for a long time I just stare at him. I try to steal strength from him, the strength I know I will need to get

through this night.

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