Page 16 of Mindeater

“He’s an omega,” Lilah sneered. “What did you all expect? He’ll never amount to anything. Look at how he’s behaving. Crying like an infant.”

Horris didn’t disagree. “That little friend of yours might not garner such protection if you’re dead, boy. Do you want an innocent human’s blood on your hands when he could be of use to the community? Who knows, he might become something great.”

He should be here protecting me! Why isn’t he here? I’m scared!

Saren struggled to breathe. It was too much. He was so tired, angry, and alone. Always alone. The council clearly didn’t know about Ryx. They hadn’t seen his odd ears, strange glowing veins, or bizarre tremors. He was Other, and Saren was the only thing keeping him alive. All he had was his guardian and his friend. They were all that mattered to him.

It was…a mercy, he decided. Killing the traitors would spare countless lives, including his only friend’s.

He had to do this.

“Start with the little one.” Matthias let him go.

Sending a prayer to the first seer for forgiveness, Saren shook out his hands once more. Rebels were a threat to the sanctuary Telex had built—he knew that. Those people wanted to destroy it all and watch the world burn. He knew that too. But he couldn’t get the sweet thoughts of young Hugo out of his mind. Nor could he shake the sensation of Matthias’s creepy eyes on him or how he squirmed excitedly behind him, his breath a phantom touch on his neck, fingers like acid on his skin.

They wanted an example of his mastery? To see firsthand whether or not he was worthy of being the Maven? Fine. Saren would show them. He’d give them a spectacle. One to never forget. His right arm extended, palm out. Violet energy manifested, circled each finger like smoke, and rippled the more he summoned it. His left hand mirrored it. The sniffles wouldn’t stop, though. His chest ached and ached. He’d hardly ever killed an insect, let alone anything, with conscious thought. The monster clawed mercilessly at his navel, shrieking at him to kill, kill, kill them all. This is what they deserved, after all.

A threat to the community.

Harbingers of death and mayhem.

Destined to spread filthy lies, to make everyone hate him.

The council had taken from him, rearranged him, pushed all their horrible prejudices onto his shoulders, knowing he couldn’t bear the weight. Years of judging eyes, mocking voices, sneers in his direction just for being who he was. The pain, the loneliness, the constant fear of rejection, the isolation had finally come to a raging eruption inside him.

He hated.

By the first seer, he hated.

He craved.

And most of all, he was so tired of being the weak, broken omega no one wanted.

Lip curled, eyes focused on the subdued victims, Saren lashed out with his mastery, encircling each body and crushing their skulls in one fatal blow.

They didn’t make a single sound.

5

Saren

Saren killed someone.

He’d killed three people.

By the first seer, he couldn’t take it.

“Where were you?!” Saren screamed at the top of his lungs, sending a plate flying through the air with his mastery.

Patryn ducked just in time.

He couldn’t stop shouting, hurling every object within reach at his guardian. Tears flooded his cheeks. He couldn’t breathe. All that rage he’d manifested into a murderous tantrum was eating him alive. No matter what he did, he couldn’t erase the images of that family dead in a crumpled heap at his feet. Someone had to pay for this. Someone had to make it stop.

“Did you know?! Did you know what they would make me do?! Why! Why, why, why!?” The dinner table lifted next, and he was two seconds from throwing it into the wall, but Patryn rushed him.

Gathered in his guardian’s arms, held so tightly in such a warm embrace, anguish overtook all else. He fisted Patryn’s shirt, snot smearing over the navy. “Patryn,” he whimpered, burying his face into Patryn’s chest.

“Shhh.” His alpha scent quickly pumped into the air, a soothing balm for all his internal wounds. And while he could scent it, it didn’t help.