An Omega's Duty

[Tatiana’s POV]

Pain shoots through me as Knight’s words hit me like a ton of bricks. Biting back the sob that wants to escape, I scramble up and quickly pull on my clothes, then head to the door. As I reach, Knight appears behind me, yanking it open and shoving me out into the hall.

As I gasp in shock and turn to ask him once again why he was doing this, he slams the door in my face, and I’m left with no answers and a giant hole in my heart.

Collecting myself, I turn and begin to move, heading for my room so that I can shower before the madam finds me and smells Knight’s scent on my skin.

When I arrive, I rush inside and quickly strip my clothes, then jump under the freezing water and begin to scrub as hard as I can, trying to remove the marks that remain on me, showing that what just happened was real and not a figment of my imagination, but even when my skin is raw and bleeding they remain.

Once I’m finished, I stumble out and wrap a towel around my body, then head out into my room to find Irene and Tabitha, the madam's personal maids, waiting for me.

"Tatiana," Tabitha beams, her golden eyes flashing with excitement. "We were just about to go in there and get you out."

"Why?" I ask, immediately going on alert. "Is there something the madam needs?"

"Of course not," Irene giggles. "We’re here for the young master."

Knight? Why would they be doing Knight’s bidding? Wouldn’t Yancy be responsible for that?

Something about this situation didn’t sit right, and the urge to run suddenly hit, but I continued to stand strong.

"And what is it that the young master needs?" I ask slowly, trying to keep the pain out of my voice. "Please do tell me so that I can…"

"For you to come to the banquet hall," Tabitha announces. "He and the others are waiting for you there."

"Others?"

Now I knew that something was up.

"That’s right," Irene giggles. "The bidders!"

"B-bidders?"

Fear begins to claw at me as that single word begins to dredge up memories of the past and when I was brought to Hunters Moon.

All those disgusting faces and the pleas of all who were bought and used for goddess knew what. They were still so fresh even after ten years and they caused a cold sweat to break out on my skin while my heart began to beat erratically.

"Why?" I gasp, looking around until my gaze comes to rest on the window behind me. "Why would there be bidders?"

"Didn’t you know?" Tabitha sighs. "When an omega turns eighteen, it is customary for them to be auctioned off to the highest bidder so that they can fulfill their role of being a breeder for whatever man decides to buy them. Did you truly think that you would be above that rule?"

Breeder? Auctioned? I never heard of such a thing! Was this some type of made-up thing to get rid of me? And they said the young master was the one there. Did that mean that this was all Knight’s doing? After sleeping with me and rejecting me, he was selling me off so that someone else could use me as they saw fit.

"No," I whisper, unwilling to go through that again. "I’ll die before I…"

Before I can finish my sentence, Tabitha and Irene surge forward and grab me while I begin to fight madly in an attempt to break free and end my suffering.

"Let go!" I yell, kicking out. "LET GO RIGHT NOW!"

"Cesear!" Irene yells, looking toward the door, where a large man enters with a broad smile on his face. "Do something about her, will you?"

Nodding, the man moves forward, and as he stops in front of me, he lifts a hand and then connects it with the back of my neck, turning my whole world dark.

I don’t know how long I was out before I was roused by a bucket of water being thrown on me, but when my eyes fly open, I find that I’m in a cage that is similar to the one I was in so long ago, and many men stare at me with the same looks of hunger on their faces.

"No," I whimper, slowly getting to my feet while my eyes scan the men until they come to rest on the one that I so desperately hoped wouldn’t be there. "Was this your plan all along?" I demand, surging forward only to be sent flying backwards as electricity zips through me from where I touched the bars of the cage.

"Begin the bidding," Knight announces, looking bored. "So that we can end this quickly and I can go and do something worth my time."

Worth his time... Ha! Of course I wasn’t ever worth his time; he proved it again and again as we grew up, but I was a fool to hope that would change since he was my mate.

As the bids begin, I keep my gaze fixed on Knight’s while willing the tears that wanted to fall to stay put.

When I finally tear them away, it seems that the bidding is over and there is a winner.

"For one million, she is yours, Giovani Petrov!" The auctioneer announces.

Tearing my gaze away from Knight's, I watch as a large man with silver hair and red eyes begins to make his way toward me.

When he stops, he fixes his gaze on me and takes me in as if he can’t quite believe that he is seeing me.

"Finally," he murmurs, letting a smile spread across his face. "I’ve found you."

Frowning, I try to make sense of what he means, but before I can think too hard on it, Knight is coming forward and unlocking the cage, then stepping inside.

"Giovani, do you have your seal with you?" He asks as two guards enter and grab me. "If so, please go ahead and mark her as yours."

Nodding, the man pulls out a small, round object that has what looks like a raven on it.

"Lift her shirt," Knight orders the guards who hold me. "And make sure that she doesn’t move."

Gasping, I find myself being pulled around as the guards do as instructed and then pin me against the ground while Giovani kneels beside me.

"Bear with it," he murmurs, once again causing confusion to rush through me. "This is strictly for formalities."

Not understanding what he meant, I attempt to move, only to stop as he places what he is holding against my skin and fiery pain shoots through me.

Once it is over, I’m too exhausted to fight and find myself being led out of the room and then out of the packhouse to a waiting black car. Once I’m inside, I turn to find Knight standing on the grounds watching me with an unreadable expression.

Silently cursing him, I lean my head against the glass of the car and close my eyes, wishing to never have to see Knight or Hunters Moon ever again.