The Alpha's Omega Mate-Chapter 60: Powerless.
~Zarek’s POV~
As soon as Pius’ deep blue eyes landed on me, I instantly felt all of my good mood fly out the large glazed windows. I snorted as I pushed myself deeper into my chair, not missing the way Orion eyes were fixated on me, his stupid smile still dancing across his stupid lips.
"Where are the refreshments?" Elder Sorina asked suddenly with wide expectant eyes and I frowned, turning to look at Orion.
"Refreshments?" I mused, "...is there an occasion today that I do not know of?"
Orion flashed me a wide grin as he nodded. "Yes, this is the first meeting you’re attending after your accident. Moreover, the Festival of Lights was postponed due to the unfortunate event, and the Elders here think that since you seem better, we can still make it hold."
I wanted to remind him that festivals are hardly rescheduled. That since the last one couldn’t hold, they would all just have to wait until next year, but as soon as I opened my mouth, I instantly decided against it. This may be another trap, another opportunity for Orion to see through my carefully constructed facade.
I nodded solemnly, forcing a smile on my face as I said; "That’s nice. What’s the Festival of Lights?"
And as soon as I asked that, Orion’s smile dropped. He turned away. "You’ve been reading a lot recently, haven’t you? Read about that next."
And with that, the room fell silent. I, on the other hand, smirked.
"I sure will, Beta."
Life only returned to the room when the heavy double doors were pushed open and a long line of maidservants with steaming plates of food trudged inside with frozen smiles on their faces. And as the smell of different fresh foods hit my nostrils, almost making me salivate at the thought of consuming them, something else struck.
A delicious smell... one better than these foods.
I slowly lifted my head just then to see the crown of fiery ginger hair I’ve grown to be obsessed with walking into the room with a tray of freshly baked sea food dipped in a sauce so tantalizing, I suppressed a moan.
Truth be told, the tantalizing thing wasn’t even the food, it was her.
She was clad in a simple blue dress that hugged her petite body like a glove at the top, and exposing a very little bit of cleavage—but enough to have me and Orion gawking. I shifted uncomfortably.
My eyes trailed down the length of the dress whose skirts were flayed out and so long, it stopped just underneath her ankle. It was decorated with intricate petal designs and floated around her like the hush of silk in candlelight.
She was beautiful.
Breathtakingly so.
The sight of her... the smell of her... momentarily made me forget where I was and I leaned expectantly towards her and her tray of food until a cough not so far away caught my attention. I blinked just then and shifted uncomfortably in my seat when I noticed how much I’d leaned away from my chair— and towards her. Even Dahlia smiled.
"Alpha, may they proceed to serve us?" This time, it was Elder Sorina who asked and I nodded quickly, unable to get the right words out of my mouth.
And they did. They began to set the trays of assorted mouthwatering dishes onto the table, but do you know what I found the most delicious?
Dahlia’s beautiful face... her plump pink lips and the way her wild hair seemed to have a life of its own on her head.
I admired her openly, carelessly, not caring if anyone else would notice me doing that. And not caring as Orion watched me with curious interest.
Maybe this way, he would learn to back off.
Maybe this way, he would realize I was marking my territory. 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂
Or would he?
A flashback of her sprawled underneath me, her blue eyes latched onto the ceiling, unseeing as I made sweet love to her fleeted past my mind, and I groaned as the memory stirred something so deep and so primal in me, my cock throbbed painfully within its constraints.
"Now, we eat." Someone said and I blinked again when I noticed everyone picking up their silverware.
While I ate, I imagined that it was Dahlia succulent lips in my mouth and not the roast swan that everyone around so greedily devoured. And by the time I was done with my food, I felt hungry, dissatisfied— a stark contrast to the eager satisfied faces all around me.
My body craved something different from this food. And my wolf, the beast, longed to be bathed in something more alluring than these grand dishes. I wanted a woman.
A specific woman.
One that was currently clearing the dirty dishes off the table while her ginger hair bobbed with a life of its own.
The satisfied Elders leaned into their chairs; even Orion now seemed preoccupied with a tiny bone with which he used to pick his teeth; And while my eyes trailed all of Dahlia’s movements, Pius’ trailed mine.
I frowned. "What is it, Hunter...?" I intentionally trailed off, acting like I had no idea who he was.
Maybe I shouldn’t have given him that attention. Maybe I should never have spoken to him because then he leaned even closer, his once bright eyes shining brighter with elation.
"I am Warrior Pius." He supplied quickly, "the head warrior and the protector of the pack’s territory. I also run royal errands in case you need me to run one for you, and I source for information on anything—"
"I think we all know what you do!" An annoyingly loud voice called from the doorway, and I have heard it so many times to know who it was without taking a glance.
Jennifer.
The day keeps getting worse.
"But what I do not know is why there was a grand feast and I wasn’t invited!" She finished, strolling into the room to plop into an empty chair beside Orion.
I noticed how there were two empty chairs— one by my left and the other across me— but she didn’t choose any of those. And then I finally realized. It all finally made sense to me.
She no longer wanted me.
She’d started the movement to get me out of power— the one that had Elder Samwell kicked out of the pack— because she’s deemed me useless... powerless.
Her new target was Orion.
And that was laughable.
