Page 90 of Psycho Beasts

There was light muttering around the room.

Cobra muttered something under his breath, and I didn’t miss the fact that he and Jax shifted slightly in front of Xerxes.

Ascher’s fingers pressed harder against my lower back.

The don’s voice deepened an octave, and he spoke with a slight hiss. “There are confidential extenuating circumssstancesss ssssurrounding them. All you need to know isss they didn’t grow up in Ssserpentine City and are unaware of mossst of our culture. Anyone who hasss an isssue with the omega initiating can bring their complaintsss directly to me.”

Alphas stopped muttering and bowed their heads deeper.

I’d bet all my supposed money, which notably I had yet to see any of (and no one had told me how to claim my credits), that no one was going to bring a complaint to the don.

His massive white snake slithered lazily around his neck.

The don smiled and relaxed his shoulders, probably sensing that he was the most terrifying bastard in the room, and continued his speech.

“They will join the two alphas currently initiating.”

He gestured over to the only two people who stood in a fighting ring without guns tucked into their waists. It was a man and a female.

I’d been nervous because I’d only seen three women in the entire room, and I had a long, torrid love affair with toxic masculinity and alpha douche canoes.

What could I say? The small-dick men smelled my potent female stench and got all hot and bothered. “Hot” as in overheated by rage; “bothered” as in embarrassingly worried about how to detach my head from my body.

But now I was going through super-fun alpha-beast gang initiation, a truly once-in-a-lifetime experience, with another female alpha.

Thank the sun god.

The don gestured for us to join the other two initiates, slapped Cobra on his back, and marched out of the room.

As soon as the door shut behind him, the loud, screeching music turned back on.

Alphas resumed grunting and flexing.

Weights slammed down and shook the floor with vibrations.

Jax led us forward as we walked through the sea of sweaty half-naked men toward where the don had pointed.

Most of the alphas had cigarettes hanging from their lips as we navigated through the fighting rings.

A scary-looking alpha leaned forward and purposely blew his smoke into my face. His bald head was unnaturally shiny.

I coughed and gagged with disgust.

Before I could introduce my knee to his balls, Ascher guided me forward. He whispered in my ear, “He’s not worth it.”

The alpha grinned and muttered something under his breath as Ascher pushed me past him, and I mentally debated how bad it would be if I made the jerk my blood servant. Or maybe I’d shift and show off my massive canines.

That would teach him respect.

The other men said nothing, and I grumbled as we continued forward.

A week ago, Xerxes would have stabbed the jerk, and Cobra would have tried to rip off his eyelids to defend my honor.

Now they didn’t even blink, like they were fine with people treating me like shit.

My chest burned with disappointment.

It’s for the best.