Omega

Chapter 2

Shelly took the drink from me and tipped it down the drain, giving the barman her best evil eye.

"Stop drinking. You've got to face the elders in a couple of minutes." she hissed softly.

Then she turned her anger to Alec.

"No more until after the meeting."

He gave her a disinterested shrug and wandered down to the other end of the bar.

"I am so lucky he didn't knock me up." I groaned.

"It would be a bit hard to, given that you were both in your shifted state. Are you going to tell them? Because I wouldn't."

"And if I don't and he tells them?"

"As if. He's probably just as freaked out as you are."

I seriously doubted that. Konrad oozed confidence, probably more than the carnality that came in bucketloads.

Shelly looked at me, her eyes narrowing with a twitch of her lips.

"You still want him."

"Please don't swear at me."

"I can't say that I blame you, Megs. He's beyond gorgeous. You know what they say about hot wolves, right?"

"Yeah, they've had half the females in their pack, and the other half are lining up at the door. I've got bigger problems than Konrad Marlowe."

And those problems appeared at the doorway. Well, one of them.

Sliding off the stool, I gave Shelly a begrudging smile when she offered her good wishes.

Entering the meeting room, I closed the door and sat on the solitary chair. In front of me was the panel of elders. If it wasn't bad enough that I'd just endured a double funeral, these jokers thought that it was necessary to subject me to an alpha meeting. This was where they would tell me that I was not good enough to be the new alpha.

"We'll cut straight to the point, Megan. Anders always said that if something happened to him and Stephen, we should look to you for our new leader. We have no issues with appointing a female to the role of alpha. Our issue is that you have no training. Your father, despite his words, never prepared you for the life of leading a wolf pack. We are at a crossroads here as we know what is right and wrong. Our belief is that your father showed his true thoughts when he called you an omega. The last person he would consider."

This was where they ousted me for someone that they thought could do a better job. A few contenders might stand a chance, but they were nothing compared to Stephen. Not even I was enough, but at least I was a Nolan by blood.

"West River is Nolan land," I said as I stood. "It is the clan of the Nolan family. I am the last of that family. You might say that it is not enough. You can tell me that I am nothing more than an omega, but you don't have the time. Not for this arguing, not for a discussion of who might be a better alpha, not for any of the trials that you would insist upon. Konrad Marlowe stepped into West River land today. He was at the funeral with one clear intention. He made it known that he intends to take over."

Murmuring broke out between them with an array of frowns as they leaned into each other to discuss the statement.

"You need me for stability because we all know that Konrad is going to lead the Black Ridge Clan into West River territory to take over. When that happens, all of you will be dead because it is widely believed that elders are a threat to any pack, regardless of the situation. He won't want you around, he already has his own elders breathing down his neck, and even though you won't have any say in the new pack, you'll still be considered elders. He will kill each and every one of you. Any young males will be taken down to ensure that he does not lose control and to maintain dominance over the leadership that he has within his own pack."

I inhaled deeply, trying desperately to focus. To call my father's memories back to me with the hope that they'd offer a little guidance.

"You don't have the hours left in this life to discuss this. Name me as the alpha and show the world that you believe in me. Instil confidence into your pack by doing this without days and nights of arguing."

"What do you offer to make us think that you will be as good as Anders or even what Stephen was becoming? We can see the difference between you and your brother. You cannot live up to his legacy."

"What difference is that?" I challenged.

The elder raised an eyebrow at me. I guess he didn't expect me to demand an explanation.

"You are weak."

"Do you mean physically? Because I used to train in the gym with Stephen. I'm not as built as he was, but that is standard for the male wolf physique."

"So, if we demanded that you enter a trial against one of our contenders?"

"Then I would accept that demand."

Even if I just said that our time was running out. I disliked bureaucratic idiots like these. Even my father had mentioned his disdain for these meetings. They held no real power but liked to think that they did. This was ridiculous, and I'd had enough.

"But you won't do that because you understand the threat that was levelled at us today. So under the succession rights, I will take the placement of alpha of the West River pack. If any of you don't like that, you know where the door is."

With that bold statement, I turned and walked out of the meeting room. My legs felt like they were made of jelly. I felt like I was about to be sick, but I'd done it. I'd silenced the haters.

Now all I had to do was prove them wrong.