Nicholas’s POV
"You don’t understand... They’ll find him. And they’ll take him. He’s in danger."
Even though I was too little to understand what she meant, the look of fear on her face was enough to tell me everything I needed to know. I was in danger.
"Mr Nicholas."
I jolted up from my sleep, blinking as my eyes adjusted to the hall I was in. I had fallen asleep in class without realizing and ended up having that same dream that haunted me every night.
"Is my class so boring that you decided to take a nap right in the middle of a test?" The professor’s voice rang in my head as I glanced down in horror to see that I truly had a paper in front of me.
Whispers surrounded the large hall as I wiped my lips and hurriedly muttered words of apologies as I sat up straight.
"It won’t happen again." I muttered, my eyes fixed on my empty test sheet and the professor simply scoffed as he walked away.
"You have ten minutes left."
Shit.
I hurriedly wrote as much as I could in the span of ten minutes and the moment time was up, he grabbed my papers first, a look of contempt on his face.
With a sigh, I draped my bag over my shoulder and walked out of the class with my head hung low. Avoid eye contact. Avoid any interaction with anyone. That was my mantra.
However, the moment I made it outside, I spotted someone odd standing by the gate, staring right at me. Not in the normal way someone would stare at you, but in the creepiest way ever.
When I raised my head to meet his gaze, he walked away almost immediately when he saw that he had been caught. My legs moved before I could think and I wanted to see where he went.
But by the time I made it to the gate, he was gone. Almost like he disappeared into thin air. I frowned in suspicion, wondering what he wanted from me but before I could think about it, my phone buzzed in my pocket.
Taking it out to see it was a call from mom, I picked up almost immediately, placing the phone to my ear.
"I’ll be home in a moment, Mom." I muttered as I walked down the street and she was silent for a moment, making me frown.
"Mom?"
"Come home soon, I have something important to tell you." She replied and before I could respond, the call ended.
My stomach dropped as I stared at the screen for a moment. Something was probably wrong and knowing that she could be in danger, I started to run down the road.
By the time I arrived home, I was panting heavily as I rushed into the apartment without hesitation. Mom was sitting on the chair like she had been waiting for me. Seeing that she was okay made me relieved as I collapsed against the couch, trying to catch my breath.
"I thought you were in danger." I muttered through sharp breaths but she remained silent, making me worried. "What’s wrong, Mom?"
"I’m not in danger. But you..." She started and my heart stopped. "I’m getting married again, Nicholas."
It felt like my head rang as I tried to process her words.
Married again?
"I’m sorry, what?" I asked before I could stop myself. "Why are you getting married again? To whom? Why now?"
I never knew who my father was, she always avoided every single conversation about him. And now she’s getting married again?
"Take it easy, Nicholas." She said as she took a seat beside me but I couldn’t take it easy. "I know this is new and a bit dangerous. Especially for you. But I really want this."
"You love him? This man you want to marry, does he treat you right?" I asked, a resigned sigh escaping my lips and she nodded.
"He’s wealthy too. And powerful. Listen to me, as long as he’s your father, no one will be able to hurt you." She explained but I scoffed, shaking my head.
"If anyone finds out my true identity, it’ll only take seconds to abduct me." I replied with slumped shoulders but she looked confident.
"You don’t understand, Nicholas. The Blackthornes are powerful and influential. They are—"
"Hold on." I was horrified as I stared at her. "Did you say Blackthornes?"
With a smile, she nodded. "I’m getting married to the head of the Blackthornes. Gareth."
Hearing her repeat it literally made me choke on my spit as I coughed violently until she handed me a glass of water.
I finally understood why she hesitated to tell me for a moment. The Blackthornes weren’t just random people, that was the most powerful Alpha bloodline in the whole country.
And me? I was just an omega. One who had to hide my identity so that I would not be captured and taken away like other omegas.
"Mom, do you have to?" I asked, feeling uneasy. "What if they discover that I’m not a beta but an omega? They’re alphas. My life is literally in their hands. What if—"
"We’ve managed to hide your true identity for nineteen years now, Nicholas. Nothing will go wrong." She whispered, taking my hands. "You need a real family anyway. And even if your identity is revealed, your new father will protect you."
Goddess knew I wanted to say no. I didn’t want to agree to this. Alphas were backbiting, power-stricken creatures and trampling on omegas was their favorite hobby.
"Besides, I already said yes." She added with a sheepish grin and I could see how happy she was. She looked elated for the first time in years.
Maybe she was right. Maybe it would actually be for my good to have a family to rely on. But aside from knowing that Gareth Blackthorne was a powerful man, I knew nothing else about him.
"My advice would mean nothing anyway, won’t it?" I said in resignation as I heaved out a sigh. "When are you getting married to him?"
"In a week." She said and I choked once again, my head beginning to hurt hard from everything I’ve heard in the span of twenty minutes.
"One week?"
"We’ve been planning this for a while. The earlier the better." That was all she said before placing a kiss on my forehead, and then she walked away.
One week. That was all I had till my freedom would be taken away. A new family meant a new environment. New faces. And nowhere to hide.
That thought tormented me until I returned to my room, took out my laptop and typed in one keyword: Blackthorne.
I sat there for as long as I could, researching everything Blackthorne was and was not, making sure I knew what I was getting into.
And then I saw a headline that made me pause, my finger hovering over the button. The moment I clicked enter, my blood ran cold. I scrolled all the way down, reading every single word on the screen and by the time I was done, I knew one thing.
I was undeniably fucked.