Teal gnashed his teeth together as the pain hit him just below his belly button. He sank down into a squat, face contorted inagony as he pointed wanly at the messenger bag he’d dropped on the floor. “My…bag.”
“Stars, Teal. You’re really in pain. You need to get to a hospital.” Mikel ran a hand through his hair.
“No. The antacids help…for a while.” Teal reached into the bag and opened the nearly empty bottle, taking out six and chewing them down. The relief that came wasn’t enough where he could honestly say he felt okay, but he’d be able to function until High Court ended for the day. He uncapped his water bottle, taking several healthy sips. Then he unzipped a banana and brought it to his mouth.
“You’re okay to eat?” Mikel asked, grabbing the bottle from Teal’s hand and assisting him to a standing position.
“Yeah. Whatever this is, it doesn’t seem to affect me that way. For the first few days, I tried to starve it out of my system, but that seemed to make it worse.”
“It’s not what they say on TV? Heat stuff?”
If Teal could have managed it, he would have snorted. Mikel was typical of younger alphas, so confounded by omegas and their heats.
“No. It’s just regular old illness, I think. Maybe flu or something. I’ll go to the doctor after High Court. For now, I’m just trying to make it through.”
Mikel nodded, helping Teal dampen a wad of paper towels from the dispenser and wipe off his flushed skin. It was bizarre for Teal, accepting help from Mikel. But he had a fundamental belief that people could change, and it didn’t surprise him that falling for a strong omega like Dayson had given Mikel a better worldview.
Teal wondered if he could finally have a true friend at work. Or at least less of an adversary. He’d settle for that. Stars knew he would have enough trouble after High Court dealing with the type of alphas who painted AINO on trucks and threw brickswith no regard for Teal’s children. More enlightened alphas in his life would be welcome.
“Thank you, Mikel. I appreciate that you came in after me.”
The state’s last witness was a current heat service owner whose major objection to having omegas own them was that he “worried omegas would be better at it and put the alpha-owned services out of business.”
Good grief. The state wasn’t even trying.
As High Court wrapped up for the day, Teal chomped two more antacids. He’d asked Dayson to have dinner with his family that night, so they left the courthouse together.
The crowd of alphas on the steps seemed to have dwindled since the first week of the tribunal, although Teal guessed the others would be back later in the week, when the judges issued their decision. But the protestors who remained, the ones who had attended each day without fail, seemed to be the most vicious.
One of them spat at Dayson’s feet as the two omegas walked to the waiting car, followed by their security teams. As usual, Teal kept his head high and didn’t dignify their vitriol with a response.
“Why do you keep excusing yourself from court, you omega fucker?” an incredibly large alpha shouted at Teal. He cupped his groin lewdly. “Do you need a good stuffing from a real alpha cock to make you right?”
Teal’s lips curled in disgust.
Dayson tapped him on the shoulder. “Don’t let it get to you. He’s just mad they’re gonna lose.”
Teal nodded, but after getting into the car, he peered back at the alpha. The man looked sideways to make sure the police officers nearby weren’t watching before he glared at Teal and made a slit-across-the-throat-motion with his index finger.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Sorcha
Sorcha turned up the TV in the living room when the newscaster said the closing proses were about to begin. He and Niall had set the boys up in the main bedroom. The prospect of being allowed to watch cartoons in the middle of a weekday was enough to keep them from asking too many questions about the tribunal. They understood the basics of what their daddy was doing, especially the twins, but the adults had worked hard to create a sense of normalcy over the past few weeks, and that meant not inundating the boys with the details of High Court.
For the past twenty minutes, reporters outside the courthouse had been interviewing demonstrators on both sides of the street, as well as local law enforcement. The police captain mentioned that there would be extra officers on duty until the judges made their decision, and he expressed concerns that someone could get hurt.
Jax came into the living room just as the cameras switched to the courtroom.
“He looks good,” Jax said, crossing his arms and standing stiffly behind the couch where Sorcha and Niall huddled together. “You’d never know how poorly he was feeling yesterday.”
The three men shared concerned glances. Last night, Teal had been doubled over in agony. He’d also run a temperature, the first real sign his symptoms might be an indicator of issues with his heat. But he seemed to have improved upon waking that morning.
“He always looks good,” Sorcha said. “But you can see the toll it’s taking in his eyes.”
“Agreed.” Niall patted Sorcha’s knee as he scrutinized the TV. “He always gets that little line over his nose when he’s trying to mask his pain.”
“But he was firm this morning that he was good to go for the closing,” Jax said. “I see that little line too, and I’ll admit it concerns me, but I’m choosing to focus on the fact that he’s sitting up straight and his cheeks don’t look as red as yesterday.”
