I look at her confused, plan to what? “I’m sorry?” I say with a confused smile.
“Your plan with the world? Just come out of the shadows and claim your right as the savior?” She acts like I can just walk out into the streets, claiming to be some person that was written about years and years ago. I can’t just do that, right?
“Mom!” Colson shouts from behind me. “Seriously? I told you to take it easy.”
“Hush your mouth, Colson Michael, let me talk to her without your commentary.” I watch Mrs. Winslow turn back toward me after scolding her son. “Now, come on. Do you have a plan?”
“Not really, Ma’am. Right now, I’m just trying to learn as much as I can. I know I don’t like the way a lot of Omegas are treated. But aside from that, I don’t know much about the world. But,” I turn to look over at my guys who all just stand in the hallway by the door, “they’re teaching me what they can.”
“Pish posh, no Alpha man can teach you about being an Omega. You got yourself some questions, you just come right over here, and I’ll answer anything you can throw at me.” She uses her palm to push her curls up with a smug nod of her head.
“I’ve gotten all the answers I need though. I know what I go through; I know what I need; I know how to prevent pregnancy, not to mention, I have four of them, which no offense, it’s going to be different than normal.”
“None taken, doll, but it's all the same, you just have more knots than others. The need to nest, the blinding need to be with them. I may only have one man, but if you have questions, I’ll have answers.” She presses her lips together and kind of upturns her nose at me. Almost like I did actually insult her.
I’ve eaten so much at this point I feel like I’m gonna explode. I lean back in the chair and rub my aching belly. The grilled chicken, mashed potatoes, green beans, and rolls were so damn good that I couldn’t stop myself from eating seconds. They were well prepared for a houseful of Alphas and made plenty of food. I watch as Colson and his parents interact, they have full conversations at the table, whenmy mom and I sat with the guysat the table as a family it was quiet. My mom just wanted to eat and go back to her room.
Now that I know all of this, I feel bad for how my mother lived. Yes, she had everything she could have ever wanted, but was she happy? She seemed happy, so maybe just knowing that I was safe was enough for her.
Did she love Neill? I’ll never know the answer because she was taken from me, but I can take joy in knowing that she raised me to be myself. Even if I didn’t know what that meant until recently. But now I have more questions than answers, and Mrs. Winslow isn’t going to have the answer I seek.
Dash and Colson start gathering plates and disappear into the kitchen. We’ve talked about so many things since I walked through the door, but I still haven’t answered her question from earlier. What is my plan?
I know I want a better life for the Omegas. Watching David be tossed around like last week's trash, seeing the way Holland was handled and hearing about what she went through was enough to curl my stomach. Why do people think they have the right to own someone, the stealing, selling, and trading of Omegas needs to stop. I have this urge to protect the Omegas, to make sure that they’re safe and taken care of. I only know about the small town I live in, so maybe it’s time to step out of my comfort zone and see what the rest of the country is like.
“Veronica.” Darrell’s voice is stern, pulling my attention to him.
“Hmm,” I say, blinking a couple times as my vision comes into focus.
“Jane was talking to you, and you were ignoring her.” He raises an eyebrow at me, like he’s curious as to what I was thinking about.
“Sorry. I was just thinking about,” I pause. “Well, about how I don’t know enough outside of the city limits. I don’t know what the rest of the country is like.” I look from Darrell to Mrs. Winslow. “So that’s where my plan will start. Venturing out into the wild with my Alphas, learning more about the country. Seeing everything with my own eyes. Visiting other Alphas in different parts of the country, seeing how they handle things.”
“That sounds wonderful, dear. You should start in Verden up North. It's a beautiful area, and we know the Alpha up there,” Mrs. Winslow says with a fake smile. I remember watching a movie once, where the people in the entire neighborhood were, like, brainwashed or something, and she kind of reminds me of that. The perfect wife and mother, being very…dutiful. I never want to be like this. I’m not sure how Colson turned out to be so different from his parents, but thank fuck, cause I couldn’t imagine being mated to someone so stiff and perfect to the eye.
Don’t get me wrong, he’s perfect for me, but not in the creepy way his parents are. His father even has the perfect slicked back haircut with his tucked in button down with a sweater over it. I just couldn’t even. I shiver at the thought.
But then again, I put on a show for everyone. I was the good girl, even though I wanted to do nothing but scream on the inside. The former good girl, the one who wanted to please everyone. So, maybe this is an act, putting on a show. She thinks I’m some savior coming down to shake up the whole world. You can never know what happens behind closed doors.
“I think I’m gonna take her up to visit Merle before too much longer, especially with his position,” Darrell says with a laugh.
“Oh, he’ll love the company,” Mr. Winslow says. “He’s been asking about Colson, and I haven’t had the time to get back to him. This’ll be a surprise.”
“Who’s Merle?” I ask.
“The boy's, well, grandfather?” Darrell almost sounds like he doesn't actually know how to answer it.
“So, like. Your father?” I gulp, I’ve already met Colson’s parents. I’ve never even heard of the boys having a grandfather, and I don’t know if I can take twenty questions from another mate’s parents.
“No, he’s the Alpha who, if anything ever happened to me or the Winslows before the boys came of age, they were meant to go live with him. He’s older than Evan and I, but he’s not actually their grandfather.”
“So like a Godfather?” I lift an eyebrow.
“Yes. I suppose.” Darrell shrugs. The room goes silent, like that awkward kind of silent. The one where, whoever talks first might startle the room.
So we all sit there, in the quiet. Slowly I move my hands down into my lap and begin fidgeting with my dress again. I really hate wearing this thing.
“So,” Dash says, coming out of the kitchen with a smile. I jump at the sound of his voice. “We gonna hit the road? I’d hate to eat and run, but I’d like to get Ronni back home.”