The male that spoke didn’t answer. Instead, he brought his glass to his lips. Clearly they were done with that conversation. The older male set down his glass and walked towards him. August felt himself pulling away from him until his back was pressed heavily into the back of the armchair. The older male either didn’t notice or didn’t care. 

“My name is Malakai.” He introduced himself. “Head of the Charlemagne family.” 

The familiarity flared. His and his family's faces were constantly on the screens all over the city; reminders of who “owned” them. But he didn’t say anything and let Malakai continue. 

“Our One God has given our priests a vision of you and we have been blessed with this knowledge. You see, our people aren’t able to properly reproduce without the existence of Alphas. When I discovered my second son was an Omega, I was furious. There hadn’t been an Alpha in years. And Cain over there refuses to copulate.”

The male who had brought him there reacted immediately and August realized he must be Cain. “And why should I be forced to breed when you have a second son?” Cain demanded but a single look from Malakai had him quieting down. 

He returned his attention to August. “You will belong to my son Merrik. Your job will be to feed him and mate with him. Even if you are an Alpha, I will dispose of you if you refuse or become useless. Do you understand?”

He wanted to argue but Malakai’s overpowering smell had him wanting the older male away from him. The Infected overpowered even the strongest pheromones and it made his skin crawl. But also, his rage boiled upwards and he glared at Malakai, overcoming his fear of Them by anger alone. 

“Belong?! I’m not a piece of meat! Dispose of me then! I know it’s all a farce! You even said it yourself; where else are you going to find an Alpha?” He stood up, preparing himself to leave but he was suddenly forced back into the chair so fast the air was knocked from his lungs. The chair had screeched across the floor as it moved a little bit. He felt like prey beneath the red gaze of the male above him. He was towering, forcing submission through his Infected scent alone. The fury on his face had August’s heart pounding and he honestly expected to be torn to pieces right there in the chair. His face paled.

“I don’t think you understand the situation you’re in.” Malakai’s voice was seething and dangerously low. August was paralyzed with fear. “I really don’t care about your choice in the matter. If I have to, I will pump you so full of rut inducers you won’t come out of it for weeks. Then I will feed you to the rest of my hungry family until there is nothing left of you. Do you understand now?”

August swallowed past the lump in his throat. If he agreed now, he likely wouldn’t go through what Malakai promised. And then, it would give him time to figure out how to get out of here. Being forced to breed and feed one of Them was certainly not on the top of his to-do list, Omega or not. He needed to get out of here and see if Collin and the rest of the refugees had survived. And yet… if he managed to escape from here, the AI would be able to track him by his ID chip. There was no guarantee Collin’s bands were untouched by the fire. He could cut it out like London had but she had almost died. 

Malakai took his silence as acceptance and straightened back up. “Bring Merrik to me.” He ordered and one of the other males on the couch let out a sigh of annoyance before standing and leaving the room. Malakai moved away from him and towards a cabinet on the other side of the room. Cain took this moment to turn an excited look onto August. He didn’t like the dangerous vibe that came from the male.

“Are you a virgin?” Cain asked bluntly, not at all shamed by his words.

August’s face however, bloomed bright red and he sputtered. “What?”

Cain snorted. “It’s not that hard of a question. Are you a virgin or not?” He laughed. “Because Merrik will tear you apart.”

He opened his mouth to question what he meant when the door opened and the male who had left returned, this time with someone with him.