The Alpha's Claim

4

"Twelve," Jody snapped. I stood there silently. I had removed my shoulder sling, imagining that Jody wouldn't let me work with it. She would probably have burned it. I had also overslept. The pills had done their magic a little too well. "Twelve minutes late!" she yelled and snapped a finger in front of my face.

She had been heating a knife for twelve minutes. The blade was bright orange. She pulled my sleeve up as high as it would go and yanked my hand so it was gripping the fridge handle. She smiled cruelly. "If you move your hand an inch, I will cut it off. You can't get that much more incompetent. A stripe for each minute you wasted my time."

Panic coursed through me. I wasn't sure if she was exaggerating for effect or had actually turned into a psychopath. As the days to the Hunt would down, my life became increasingly worthless in the eyes of the pack.

Be with the trees. Be with the—

The pain hit me first. Then, the scent and then the sound. She burned for a few seconds then moved up my arm and burned another line. Every instinct in my body was telling me to pull away, but I had to stay still. Almost a minute later, she yanked my sleeve back down and huffed. "Go."

I slowly extirpated myself from the fridge, noting that I should clean my fingerprints off the shiny metal after my shift before Jody saw it. She loved her fridge. I quickly walked out.

The room was quiet. The trees seemed to be holding their breath in silence. Soft light was just beginning to filter through the windows, rivaling the soft yellow of the artificial lamps on the wall.

My body ached. At least it was going to be a beautiful sunrise.

I spent a few hours preparing the line and getting ready for the first shift. I was restocking teh napkins when a voice made me jump.

"Excuse me?" I forced myself to relax. It had to be an omega. They were the only polite ones. "Is breakfast open now?" I turned and met his eyes, frantically hoping my own were not red rimmed from tears, pain, or exhaustion. I don't think I could handle any more punishment.

He was not from our pack.

Cedar.

I quickly readjusted my posture and nodded quickly. His entire presence radiated with power and dignity. He was wearing slacks and a button-down shirt, but he may as well have been in tuxedo.

I gestured to the food, hand shaking. If my pack was vicious, how vicious would this guy be? This must be the Cedar beta. He nodded once and began to serve himself. He picked a fork out of the bin and glanced over at me curiously.

"Where is the rest of the pack?" His eyes were coolly curious. They were a bright green that reminded me of summer foliage. Don't be fooled. His pack was ruthless. If Jody would cut off your hand, he would cut off your head. 

I froze, scrambling to remember what question he had asked me. 

"Your pack must have a different schedule. By sunrise our pack would have been all halfway through the meal. I arrived late to ensure your alpha would be here." I nodded. Was he going to punish me because the alpha wasn't here yet? "Beautiful view," he commented and glanced at me again. I was uncomfortable with how confidently his eyes roved over my body. It wasn't a romantic interest, nor was it a medical one. It was just curious. It was terrifying. "What happened to your wrist?" he asked.

Ice cold panic flooded my veins, and I quickly tugged my sleeve the rest of the way down. His eyebrows raised intriguingly. It was a curiosity that could eat me alive. I waited, but no anger followed. My chest began to tighten in panic.