"Quit being so dramatic. You tease me all the time simply because you have nothing to do," she said, smacking the back of my head. I let out a dramatic gasp and turned to look at her.

"Excuse me, I do have better things to do! I'm fresh out of high school and self-employed." Claire just snickered.

"Fancy way of saying you got kicked out in your senior year and that no one will hire you." I scowled.

"It's not my fault that the teachers and those high-ranking lupines don't have a sense of humor. And we both know I would've been easily let off the hook if I wasn't an omega," I said gloomily.

Her face darkened. We didn't speak again during the walk to the Pack Hall. We both started to slow our pace as soon as the gates came into view.

The Pack Hall was more of a giant cement structure that could hold many people. It was not as fancy as the Pack House, which would take a whole day to describe. I heard Claire stop walking suddenly. I stopped too and turned to look at her. She was looking at me with tears in her emerald green eyes.

My eyes widened.

"Ah hell, don't tell me you're not ready for a lifelong commitment to that Rylan guy. He looks hot enough, and I was looking forward to being your maid of honor," I said jokingly, not knowing what to do. I knew very well what she was crying for, but I couldn't bring myself to acknowledge it, because that made it much more real.

"It's not that, it's just- you might-" She broke off crying and buried her head in her hands. I took a step near her to make her stop. People gathered around and looked at us curiously.

"Mind your own business!" I yelled. That did the trick. Claire had somewhat composed herself by the time people moved on. Looking at Claire cry reminded me of the seriousness of what I was about to do. I had one chance to escape this godforsaken pack. If I missed it, my life would be over.

"It's okay. Nothing will happen to me. I'm the most awesome person in this world, remember?" I asked, trying to lighten the mood.

It did not work.

Claire was an omega and had suffered even more than I had before I met her. After meeting her, anyone who wanted to harm her had to go through me, which usually meant me getting beaten up while she ran away to bring the authorities.

But eh, such was life. We did work as a team, however. Her adorable face worked more often than not in convincing the officers to take action, rather than mine.

The Pack Hall was just a few minutes away from the apartment where I lived. It was situated right beside the Pack House, or as I liked to call it, the 'Rank House,' as only the high-ranking lupines such as the Alphas, Betas, Gammas, and a few influential deltas lived there.

We didn't have any lycans in our pack. The Alpha had a bit of lycan blood, but it was so diluted that you couldn't sense it if you tried.

Deltas always occupied the apartments near the Pack House, like my apartment. Of course, Omegas had the option to occupy them, but they typically chose not to, probably because they were afraid of getting robbed and because the presence of the lupines of higher ranks made them want to drop to their knees.

I didn't really face that problem. And the rents were super low in those places, and my financial difficulties were more problematic than that stuff. Plus, it's not like I had anything worth robbing.

"What if he chooses you, Ash? If he chooses you, you'll get..." She trailed off with a whimper, breaking into my train of thought again.

"I'll probably get killed," I said, finishing the sentence. She started to cry again.

"But you don't have to worry about that because even if he tries to kill me, do you think I'll be sitting there with my neck held out for him to tear it apart? I don't care if I break laws, I'll go into hiding the next second he chooses me. Trust me when I say they'll never be able to track me down," I said, snickering.

She looked at me with disbelieving eyes. I reached into my pocket to take out my little escape plan, and her eyes widened.

"You little-"

"Shit? Yeah, that would be accurate," I said with a smirk as I looked at the vial full of the smell-depriving concoction, which was enough to numb a whole army, and three stink bombs made by yours truly. Lycans and lupines relied on their sense of smell as much as their heart.

Once deprived of that sense, it would confuse them long enough to give me time to escape, no matter how high-ranked the wolves were. After all, the one I'd made was fifty times more concentrated and effective than the recipe given on the illegal website, tried and tested.

Claire's face grew sad again.

"I wouldn't be able to find you either," she stated, her voice barely above a whisper. My heart ached at the thought of not being able to see her again.

"Hey, it would only be for a few months at most. It would blow over soon. I'm just an omega, right? No one would pay that much attention to me, even if I did that. And anyway, I don't think that asshole would take it that far and lose his chance to pick a mate for a year simply to ruin my life," I lied smoothly.

Of course, it was a total lie. I'd probably have to be on the run for the rest of my life, and he was going to take it that far. The note saying "You will be mine tomorrow" that I got yesterday proved it. But it seemed to reassure Claire, so the lie was worth it.

"I can't even hug you 'cause I'm afraid of getting that smelly stuff on me," Claire complained. I just smiled as we walked to the gate together.

2| My Devious Plans

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