Alpha, Beta, Omega

Chapter Sixteen

Kali sat in the cab of Samson's truck, staring up at the house she had grown up in, the only home she had ever really known. Her fingers gripped the steering wheel so tightly that her knuckles were turning white. Part of her wished that she'd accepted Samson's offer to come with her. But this was something she had to do alone.

She was afraid, really afraid, of what would happen when she confronted her parents and she wished she had someone beside her for this. When she'd told Samson what she'd realized, that she was an Omega, he'd been surprised and confused, saying something about she should have known. That, unlike other wolves whose ranks typically manifested at birth, an Omega's rank was known the moment they were born. That her parents should have told her.

She'd been both enraged and confused.

Her parents had never told her anything about her rank and when she hadn't presented as a Beta like Chloe she'd always assumed it meant she was a Gamma. Most packs didn't have an Omega, only one in a thousand wolves was born Omega, so it never occurred to her that she was one. Even with all the traits that she had always thought made her a poor she-wolf she never guessed her true rank. She'd been so beaten down, by the pack and by her sister that she had just accepted that something was wrong with her.

Drawing a deep breath she slowly climbed from the truck, pulling the borrowed jacket from Samson tighter around her. She had no idea what to expect when she went inside but she knew she had to face it head on. Because after today she would never be coming back.

She was no longer part of the Henson Pack.

She had finally accepted that.

Walking up the driveway she took in the sight of the house, the yard, every inch of this place had a memory. Happy and sad. Good and bad. Entering the house she drew a deep breath, looking around, taking in the scents one last time before calling out. "Mom? Dad?"

There was no reply and, after a heartbeat of listening, she realized that she was alone in the house.

Sighing softly she walked up the stairs, remembering how as a child she'd run down them countless times, remembered how she'd sat at the top once and cried because Chloe was going to the prom and she wasn't. As she walked down the hallway she was surprised to see her bedroom door was open and, as she got closer, she realized it had been forced open because part of the doorframe was broken and another part was missing. Stepping into the doorway she was even more surprised to find her mother sitting on the bed amidst boxes.

Renee was clearly crying and, in one hand, she held a framed photograph of the two of them. It had been taken during a family vacation to New York City. They had been in Central Park and her mother had swept her up into her arms next to the horse drawn carriage they'd ridden around in all afternoon, hugging and kissing her and calling her my special baby. It was one of the only times Kali remembered feeling normal. All because her mother hadn't treated her any different than Chloe.

"I've always loved this picture," Renee said suddenly, running her hand over the glass before looking up at Kali, tears shimmering in her eyes but a small smile graced her face. "You were so happy that day. Laughing and smiling. It was wonderful."

"You mean besides the fact that you lied to me for my entire life?"

It was a crap thing to do, a Chloe thing to do, but she couldn't take the words back.

"What? Kali, I don't..."

"I'm an Omega."

In any other situation the look on Renee's face would have made her laugh. But it just made her want to throw something, made her want to scream and rage, because it was clear that her knowledge of her rank was the last thing her mother had been expecting.

"Kali..."

"Would you ever have told me?"

"Of course," Renee said as she stood, still clutching the photograph, tears spilling down her face. "Of course I would have. It was just...we decided you deserved to grow up as a normal wolf, without the...the pressure of being an Omega hanging over you."

Kali's hands clenched at her sides and she resisted the urge to growl.

"Normal? Normal?!" She knew she was all but screaming but she honestly couldn't bring herself to care. "You think the way I grew up was normal?! I thought I was a goddamn freak! I thought there was something wrong with me because I wasn't like you or Chloe or any other she-wolf!

I grew up tormented because I was different! And you knew the whole time that I was suffering! And the kicker, mother, is that you could have stopped it by just telling me...by telling everyone...that I'm an Omega!"

"Kali..."

"And another thing," Kali couldn't help but growl as she gestured towards the boxes. "What the hell is all this?!"

"Well," Renee said, reaching up to wipe tears away. "Your mate called and told us you'd been shot and that it made him realize that your place was with him and his pack and so you would staying with his pack and, I know this day was going to come but I..."

"Wait, wait, wait!" Kali shook her head, certain she'd misheard her mother. "My what called?"

Renee gave a watery smile as she set the photograph down, crossed the room and pulled the collar of the jacket aside, easily revealing one of Kali's mating bites.

"Your mate, sweetheart."