Corrupted (Alpha's Claim Book 5) by Addison Cain (read more books txt) 📕

“Done.” That had all been prepared, needed only a flick of a key to display the poor girl’s shoulder and neck. “See? He practically ripped her throat in half.”

“I want a full dossier prepared on Brenya Perin. I want to know everything about that female.”

“I’ve already looked.” Maryanne scrambled to change the screens to the little data she’d scrounged up. “They must have scrubbed her file from the census. The only reason I know her full name is because it is mentioned in conversation.”

“You have observed her for days, so answer this. Would Claire feel an affinity for this Omega?”

Maryanne had to snort at that. “Oh Gods, yes, Claire would go full savior mode at one glance of this socially awkward weirdo.”

“I would suggest you speak more kindly of Jules’ mate.”

It had to be a joke. It had to be! After all, Maryanne was cackling at the idea of Jules with a woman. Not only that. “Jules is a Beta.”

Shepherd’s silence was heavy with annoyance and something that almost tasted like grief.

Why on earth Maryanne felt the need to assure him, she didn’t know. “Betas cannot pair-bond. After the Commodore gets his panties out of a twist, they will send him home.”

But Shepherd just kept staring at her.

Stuttering, Maryanne said, “It’s… it’s not possible.”

“Had you spent your time in the Undercroft gathering wisdom, listening to the stories of the men suffering, instead of pissing yourself every time someone screamed, you would have learned that there were a multitude of sordid reasons a man was disposed of instead of murdered.”

The very concept was extremely upsetting, and Maryanne didn’t quite understand why. “Betas cannot initiate pair-bonds. It’s basic biology.”

“His name was Keriman. There was another called Wess. Two men with the same tale. Two men who had never met one another, Keriman long dead before Wess was thrown into the dark. Both Alpha, both having claimed they had been used by powerful Betas who coveted and were tricked into sharing their bond. Their new mates were stolen, and each man was thrown into the Undercroft to suffer until they went mad from separation.”

“I checked the registries after Thólos fell. The Beta named by Keriman married an Omega. She had been institutionalized and died within a year of Keriman’s incarceration. The Omega Wess claimed to have bonded to, a Beta Senator, had set herself on fire… one year after he had been thrown underground.”

“If such a thing were possible, people would know. Everyone would know!”

Except they wouldn’t. No Alpha would submit to such a thing willingly. Nor would powerful Betas be allowed to retain a taboo bond should their Alpha brethren discover what they had done.

Standing tall, Shepherd gave his final order of the day. “Brenya Perin. You will find the traces of her erased registry. I want to know everything.”

The strangest wave of sadness came over her. “If it’s true, Jules won’t ever be able to come home.”

The man had already begun merging with the shadows, yet he hesitated for a simple moment. And that was confirmation enough.

10

Her husband was a total bastard.

Every feather had been picked from the floor by hand, collected in a bin to be repurposed. Claire’s morning spent on her hands and knees chasing fluff as it shifted around the room each time she moved.

At midday, Dr. Osin invaded—as the psychiatrist did any time Claire attempted to miss a session—and she found the Omega still plucking feathers, one at a time, from the carpet.

“You were to meet with me at two.” Ever the Alpha, the no-nonsense statement fell without sympathy for the mess.

Wiping her hair from her sweaty forehead, Claire sat back on her heels and let out a breath. Unsure if she was more annoyed by the task at hand or the interruption, she cut a glare over her shoulder. “Yeah, well, Shepherd decided to be Shepherd.”

Still standing on the threshold of the room, Dr. Osin sniffed the air. “It smells as if you recently mated.”

“He calls it making love.” Sarcasm thick, Claire reached for another feather. “Making love as he destroys my nests and disregards my feelings.”

“The only thing Shepherd regards is your feelings. Therefore, one might assume your assumption is incorrect.”

Tossing her hair and turning back to her work, Claire gave the Alpha her back. “I am not in the mood for your Shepherd ass-kissing propaganda today. Either help me clean up this mess or leave.”

“I have brought lunch. Your mess can wait until after you have eaten. Shepherd informed me that you had forgotten. He also informed me your breakfast was cut short.”

Of course he was checking in on her, the man couldn’t seem to go a day without stalking his wife in every possible way. “Cut short is one way to phrase it. Or one might say I made a reasonable request, was manhandled, tossed into my nest, and fucked so hard I’m sore. Then in a show of complete insanity, he tore my favorite pillow in half and scattered feathers that I now have the honor of cleaning up.”

Unmoved by the agitation of the Omega, Dr. Osin said, “We were discussing your eating habits. We’ll save your sex life for another session.”

Three more feathers gathered, Claire brushed off the old woman’s usual abruptness. “I didn’t forget lunch. I prefer not to eat when I’m anxious.”

As if anything Dr. Osin might offer could possibly tempt her, the Follower said, “I brought a popular local dish from the Dome’s best Omega restaurant.”

Picking another feather from the rug, Claire swiveled to her hip, staring down the intruder again as she spun the feather between her thumb and fingers. “Greth has Omega restaurants?”

Unabashedly observing the state of her charge, the old woman nodded. “Omegas are plentiful in this Dome and catered to. Spoiled. My mate would have swanned around and smirked at me quite a bit had he seen the life here. You’d know that if you ever went outside these grounds.”

The dig wasn’t missed, but it also wasn’t effective.

Even if she were