Chapter 3 3

POV LOIS

Emmanuel was the one with the fast hands—I had already noticed that. In less than five minutes he had touched my ass about ten times.

Yes, I counted them, because every time he did, a sharp jolt shot down my legs, weakening them.

Ezequiel was… how could I explain it? My steps couldn’t drift far from him. He followed every one of my movements, danced the closest to me, and demanded constant eye contact. Of course it was obvious these two Alphas were cornering me, but I don’t know if it was the alcohol, the adrenaline of the place, not wanting to act cowardly, or something else—but being between the two of them stirred something inside me. Aside from all the heat flooding through my body.

Emmanuel, who was behind me, placed his hands on my waist after slipping a drink into my hand. He drew me back until I brushed against his chest, then leaned in to whisper in my ear. Ezequiel took only a second to follow us.

“What’s an Omega going to do at our university? They’re going to eat you alive, you know that?”

“What are you going to study, Lois?” Ezequiel took my empty glass and returned a second later with another one. He drank first, then handed it to his brother, and I was the last to drink.

“I’m not going to study,” I confessed.

“I knew it!” Emmanuel exclaimed behind me. “They don’t accept Omegas. And with how expensive that university is…”

“There were other options,” Ezequiel said, tapping my upturned nose. “Like becoming the first Omega to get a scholarship—everyone would throw a fit, but it wouldn’t be that crazy.”

“I’m sure you don’t even know what you’re getting yourself into. Why don’t we sit and talk?”

“Let’s go to the restaurant. There will be less noise.” Ezequiel grabbed my hand first and guided us forward, cutting through the crowd.

They opened a door to cross into the next car, and everything changed. It was silent, many empty tables, and no one—no one at all.

Ezequiel kept walking almost to the other end of the car, but before reaching the last door, he found a sort of semi-private section—part of the restaurant but more secluded, with a table in the center and comfortable chairs arranged around it.

Behind them there was a small sofa.

Emmanuel got ahead of us, taking a seat. Ezequiel followed and sat down next, leaving only the middle spot open—for me.

“We could have talked at the party,” said my cowardly side. I wasn’t feeling intimidated or anything, but being alone with them shifted the atmosphere—the temperature rose, and my legs felt a little weak.

“There was too much noise.” Ezequiel pulled a cigarette from his shirt and put it between his lips. Then he checked his pockets, but he didn’t seem to have a lighter. “Find me a lighter,” he ordered, his tone changing.

My body straightened immediately, and I started thinking about where I could find a lighter. The kitchen?

When I reached the door, Emmanuel said my name.

“Lois. Wait.” He walked up to me and brought me back to the sofa.

“You see? That’s why Omegas can’t be in our university. Everyone else would take advantage of them. That’s why the policy is Alphas and Betas only. Even though a lot of people criticize it, saying it’s too exclusionary. It really isn’t. There are other universities for Omegas that allow them to learn without constant harassment. It’s nature that works against them, not us.”

“Liberty University, in the last few decades, has gathered the sons of all the great Alphas and Betas. It has a very high acceptance rate. Only the best come out of there.”

“Then… what are you doing here, Lois? You’re the only Omega on this entire train, except for the staff. A stowaway? I don’t think so.”

“She’s from the same pack as Viviana, so they must be very good friends if she treats her as an equal.”

“We are friends. I’ll be her companion during this time. As you already guessed, I’m not a student.” Not only could I never afford a place like that—they wouldn’t accept me anyway. “You two… where are you from?”

“The Colony District,” they said at the same time.

“The Colony District?! That’s on the other side of the country!”

“As we told you, it’s the best university. That’s why we travel all the way there.”

“Can I ask you something?” It would be the typical question asked by someone who had never been there. Maybe everyone asked them the same thing once they knew where they were from—but I had to ask!

“Is it true that… the Black Wolf existed?”

“We usually find it offensive to call her the Black Wolf, when she has such a beautiful name. And yes, she existed. When the veil was lifted and we were exposed to humans, regulating everything was extremely difficult, but the leader, Amaris, managed to create a good organization together with Alpha Brais and the witch Artemis, while Jara was the key to peace among the different species.”

“You’re the only district that borders the humans. Is it hard?”

“Sometimes we forget they even exist. It’s not important,” Emmanuel replied calmly.

There was a long history behind our perfect world where only wolves coexisted; wars, sacrifices, and losses had to happen before we could finally have our own place in this vast world. But that was long before I—or even my parents’ parents—were born.

This was a new era.

“I know your friend might have told you this already, but she won’t be able to protect you from everyone. So stay away from the university.”

Ezequiel’s words sent a wave of fear through me.

“The party will end soon. We’d better take you to your room. And don’t come out.”

“We’ll stay with her now.”

We left the restaurant car and stepped back into the chaos of the party.

A few girls approached us, but Ezequiel brushed them aside. We pushed through the crowd until we escaped the noise again.

Back in the hallway of the sleeping cars, we entered our room.

“There are only two,” I warned once inside. “You two can take that one.” I pointed at the bed meant for Lois. “If you try hard enough, I know you can make it work.”

“I think we should throw the mattresses on the floor and sleep there.”

“Good idea,” I said—though I didn’t understand what difference it made whether the mattress was on the floor or in its place, until they removed theirs, then mine, and tried to arrange them together.

“Not mine!” I protested, trying to grab it.

“But you said it was a good idea.”