Three Alpha Princes for an Unwanted Omega

AYLA

The man was led outside.

I moved with the crowd because there was nowhere else to go. Bodies pressed against me on all sides, carrying me forward through the great hall doors and into the square.

The platform had been erected at the center of the square. Wooden planks raised off the ground, and above it, a beam stretched across two upright posts. The noose hung from the center, swaying gently in the breeze.

Alpha Kieran stood at the edge of the platform, his voice carrying across the crowd.

”Let this serve as a warning” He began, his eyes taking in everyone. ”To anyone who would dare to collude with the rogue. This pack will no sooner see you hang than offer any plea for mercy. Only swift death awaits whoever is found abetting the enemy.”

A few voices rose in cheers.

I could not tear my eyes away from the man on the platform.

He was a stranger. I had never seen his face before in my life and he was about to die for something I had done.

My father, stood at the edge of the crowd, watching the proceedings with a grim expression.

The Alpha signaled to the executioner who lowered the noose over the stranger’s head and pulled tight, adjusting the knot so it sat against the curve of his neck.

The man closed his eyes, his lips began to move silently.

I felt my own throat close.

My hands flew to my neck, pressing against the skin as if I could feel the rope tightening around it. My breath came in short, shallow gasps that did not seem to reach my lungs.

This should be me.

That noose should be around my neck and these people should be watching me swing.

The man standing in my place had done nothing. He had been either been paid or threatened or tricked into taking the blame for a crime he did not commit, and Alistair had arranged it all.

The executioner stepped back, the trapdoor fell open and the man dropped.

The crack of his neck breaking echoed through the square. His body swung once as he fought against death before it stilled and began swaying gently in the breeze.

The crowd cheered and my knees buckled.

Before I could fall, an arm slipped around my waist.

I turned my head, my vision blurry with tears I had not realized I was crying to see Damon.

He did not look at me or say anything but his hand moved until they wrapped around my palm, squeezing gently.

He pulled me closer, his shoulder taking my weight, and I leaned into him because I did not have the strength to stand on my own.

His thumb traced a slow circle against my knuckles which calmed me a bit.

After what seemed like the longest moment of my life, Alpha Kieran signaled for the body to be cut down.

The crowd began to disperse after this.

”Ayla.”

My mother’s voice cut through the fog that was my mind.

She appeared at my side, her hand closing around my arm, her face arranged in an expression of maternal concern that did not reach her eyes.

”Ayla, dear.” She tugged at my arm gently, trying to pull me away from Damon. ”You know how you get at the sight of these things. Come with me. I will take you back to your room.”

”I will take care of her, Brenna.” Damon’s voice cut in, ”Do not worry. Come with me, Ayla.”

He did not wait for my mother’s response before he turned me away, guiding me from the square, away from the crowd.

We walked past Ares whose green eyes looked at me with concern... or was it confusion at being with Damon?

I did not have the energy to figure it out.

Damon led me through the corridors and he did not slow down until we reached his room. He pushed the door open, guided me inside, and closed it behind us, the lock clicking into place.

Then he helped me to the edge of his bed where I sank down on, my hands trembling.

Damon did not sit. He stood by the door, his arms crossed over his chest, his amber eyes fixed on me.

We stayed like that for a long moment, the silence stretching between us.

”Are you okay?” He finally asked.

I nodded my head.

”Thank you” I muttered. ”You must be wondering why I am like this.” I tried to explain, partly because I did not like the way he was looking at me like he knew there was something I wasn’t telling him.

”It is like my mother said. Things like this put me in a bad mood as you can see.”

”Hmm” He muttered.

I looked around away from him and around me.

I had been in his room once and did not have the opportunity to see what it looked like but now that I did, it surprised me how different it was to his personality. While this room showed great care had been put into it, his personality was the direct opposite.

”Seen something you like?” he murmured, amusement in his eyes.

I rose to my feet instead not taking his bait.

”I should leave. I have to meet up for etiquette classes later today and...other things.” I finished lamely.

”Of course” He agreed.

I began walking to the door where he remained reclining on. He did not move as I approached.

”Do you mind?” I shot him a glare.

”How about when you tell me what is with you and Alistair then I will let you go. Sounds like a fair trade?”

I froze. My pulse picked up again and my heart hammered like a caged bird in my throat.

”What are you talking about?” I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.

”Ayla” Damon’s voice was no longer amused now.

If anything, he sounded downright terrifying.

”Tell me what you have been doing with Alistair right this minute, Ayla or I swear...”