Chapter 40 Service
Lyanna
I should have forgotten it.
The way he had looked at me, the ease with which my hands had answered his. The quiet rhythm we had fallen into without effort.
It should have been nothing.
And yet it lingered.
It followed me back to the wagon, settled beside me on the hard wooden bench, pressed in close with every jolt of the wheels. Even now, as the caravan crawled through the thinning trees and the air grew cooler with the coming evening, my thoughts kept circling back to him.
To the small smile that had threatened to brighten his usually severe face.
I flexed my fingers against my skirts, as though I could shake the memory out of them.
Across from me, the other omegas had grown quiet. Fatigue had settled into the group like a second skin. No one had the energy left for whispering.
That should have been a relief.
It wasn’t.
Because without their noise, there was nothing to drown out the echo of that brief, dangerous familiarity.
The caravan slowed again.
Voices rose ahead—sharper this time.
Not the usual irritation of a difficult road.
I lifted my head slightly, careful to keep my expression blank.
“Stop him.”
The command carried clearly through the trees.
The wagon rolled to a halt.
Boots struck the ground. Metal shifted. The air changed, tightening as though the entire line had drawn a breath and held it. The other omegas looked at each other in confusion before slowly making their way down.
Curiosity pulled at me, but I waited.
Counted to three.
Then I climbed down.
The scene had already formed by the time I reached the edge of the clearing.
A guard stood at the centre, flanked by two others. His face had gone pale beneath the dirt, his posture stiff with fear.
Elias stood opposite him.
“What were you assigned this morning?” He asked.
The guard swallowed. “Ration distribution, Commander.”
“And what did you distribute?”
“Standard portions.”
Elias’s gaze didn’t shift.
“Say it again.”
A flicker of unease crossed the man’s face.
“Standard portions.”
Silence followed.
Long enough that the tension began to crawl under my skin.
Then Elias moved.
He stepped forward, reached for the guard’s satchel, and opened it.
Inside—
Food.
More than there should have been.
Elias didn’t look at it for long.
His atteniton returned to the man.
“Explain.”
The guard’s throat worked. “I—there was extra—some went missing—I was going to return it—”
“You were going to return it,” Elias repeated.
The guard nodded too quickly. “Yes, Commander.”
Another pause.
Then Elias turned slightly, addressing the men around them.
“Rations are counted before and after distribution,” he said. “Every portion is accounted for. Every shortage is investigated.”
No one spoke.
No one moved.
“Do you know why I know you're lying?”
The guard said nothing.
Elias’s gaze flicked back to him.
“Because you’re not one of mine.”
The man stilled.
Around him, a few guards exchanged quick, uncertain glances.
Elias’s gaze dropped to the satchel. “Those rations aren’t from this caravan.”
A flicker of panic.
Then he ran.
Elias moved faster.
He caught him by the collar, drove him into the ground, and pinned him there with a blade at his neck.
Silence snapped tight around them.
The omegas scrambled back at the commotion.
Elias finally looked up, sweeping his men.
“You missed this,” he said, coldly. “All of you.”
No one answered.
“Bind him.”
This time, they moved fast.
Elias stepped back as if the matter was already beneath his notice.
The formation loosened almost immediately. Men returned to their posts, conversations resuming in low murmurs.
I turned away before anyone could notice me watching too closely.
~~~~~
I had barely settled back into the wagon when a shadow fell across the opening.
A guard.
“You,” he said, pointing at me. “Commander wants you.”