Your Omegas Are Mine 1| Euodia's Sun | Omegaverse Apocalyptic Reverse Harem

24-Beginning of Chapter 8

Quinn

Life was good for a while, or at least pleasant enough when placed into perspective. Quinn lived like a king compared to the slum dwelling Alphas that squat beneath the crooked elbows of disjointed halls, collapsed roofs and destruction. The Alphas that were not privy to clean running water, sewage systems and a warm bed.

Last she'd heard, some had fleas in their pubes and drank sludge still pink from chemicals.

But with the memories of her past, she'd say that her quality of life was only up to the standard of a low-income city home owner. One with five kids and the tiniest of flats shared with three smoking bums, and a hundred mewling cats that lived along the street. And worst still, was the emptiness of her new home. It echoed with the loneliness of her solitude, and with the years spent alone, the moment of companionship had her heart clenching with need that was far beyond one that merely searched for a new friend.

No, Helios was different, and it was not simply because Quinn had social and sexual needs.

Her eyes closed to the memory of him clinging to her moments before she let him go just for coin. The flutter of his hair as he sailed towards his mate, ruby in the darkness, his lips an adorable little pout. Solar had stood so far from her she could barely see the fey, and she liked it that way, had kept her distance, easing back when he took a step forward. But his eyes had been a pretty rose in the velveteen darkness, glowing as they tore into her, and then had never left Helios's frame like a good, devoted husband.

He'd been far too occupied with the fey to care about her, but within her mind the memories had burst forth in painful spurts. She'd been almost crippled by the rush of guilt that swept through, clamping up deep in her throat and making her knees week. It took everything for her to turn and leave.

The apology at the tip of her tongue for something she did not do, and God, it was so much heavier with Solar who'd done her no wrong. And even at the end had been quick with his revenge, a simple stab of his sword to her chest. Then he'd stared at Euodia with so much disappointment in his eyes that it faded to a cold, hard acceptance of the truth.

The father of Euodia's only child.

She'd betrayed his trust for an experiment, had used him the way abusers did with their pets. She didn't care if he was hurt, had called him a waste of space when he'd arrived limping and half dead from a battle with the Lonely. His impregnation had been repulsive to Euodia, and an hour in the cold with the lack of a reciprocal mark had killed the child. To which all Euodia had done was giggle and leave.

She'd trust that Helios wouldn't come back, no sane Omega would, believed that the sleeping drugs would surely cloud his mind from memories of her. But Quinn continued with her packing, spent days cleaning up her space to move to another home. It was time for her to leave the dreary deposits of a falling city after all. And Quinn had enough to afford a tall, stilted home in town where she'd have neighbours and perhaps, friends. Accepting jobs would be easier in town, she decided quickly.

Her heart was hopeless nonetheless, because at night her dreams were drenched with crimson locks and golden eyes, the sweet caramel waft that reached— treacherous and deadly— straight to her soul. Helios, it sang, cursed and unforgivable. Helios, Helios, Helios. She didn't understand her obsession, not with memories that she had of this world.

There were mates, bitten marks to tie another to oneself. And the Omegas had cultivated bond far stronger than the ones that resulted from an Alpha's teeth sunk into their nape. But a destined lover marked by the stars, foretold to be together? The concept of people mated from birth, fated to be one; the idea of having another that shared one's soul? It was not a seriously considered phenomenon, and all attraction was merely deemed a convenient result of biology.