"Liam, wake up. Come on, wake up already. The Alpha and Alpha Mate are on their way up here," Cale whispered in my ear as he shook my shoulder.

"They're not supposed to be coming up here today. What's going on?" I jumped out of the nest of blankets that served as my bed and grabbed the sweats lying on the floor. Cale gave me a panicked look and darted out the door without answering, leaving me confused and scared to death.

Today was supposed to be the day that I broke free. I had finally turned twenty-two--the age shifters were allowed to be without guardians. For the past sixteen years, since the death of my parents, I'd been kept prisoner in the attic of the Alpha's home, barely able to breathe without someone watching me. Cale and I had started making plans for us both to run months ago and today was going to be our chance.

Footsteps and voices got closer to me as my grandparents made their way toward my prison.

"That fucking fag thinks he can come to my territory and demand entry. I'll kill him and whoever told him that the abomination is still alive."

Such a sweet nickname for a grandfather to give his grandson, I could just feel the love streaming through the metal door.

"Jerome, calm down, you're ranting like a lunatic and you know how much I hate that. We'll have to use him to get control of your wolf and I'd prefer as little contact with him as possible." My grandmother sounded her normal icy self as she unlocked my door. "Let's just do this so we can get to the pack meeting."

I hovered in the corner, trying to make myself as small as possible, knowing that it was never a good thing when they came up here to deal with me personally. My grandparents walked in, impeccably groomed and seriously angry.

"Move over here now," my grandfather ordered as he held up a thick chain with a wide, silver collar.

I hesitated but knew I had no choice but to do as the Alpha said. I walked over and stood in front of him with my head down, staring at my feet. The wolf inside me snarled at the act of submission but he knew as well as I did that we had no other choice. I wasn't a very big man or wolf and my grandfather was not only huge but bat-shit crazy, so both my wolf and I knew we didn't stand a chance in a fight against the Alpha of our pack.

"Jerome, just get it done. Lock him up while I get the slave for the meeting. We're running late enough." My grandmother calmly sauntered over to the door then down the hall to Cale's room.

"Omega, get on your knees and shift. Any movements and I will snap your neck."

I knew he wasn't kidding since he grabbed my neck in one hand and forced me to the floor. I quickly shifted, his hand still squeezing my throat. A moment later the silver collar locked into place and it was so tight around my neck that breathing became very difficult.

The silver burned through my fur and I knew it would only be a couple of hours before it ate though my skin and entered my bloodstream. This was a favorite punishment of my grandparents, but the order to shift was new. Jerome and Melinda McNally hated when I shifted because it provided further proof of what I was, an omega. My white fur and bright blue eyes, along with my smaller stature, were a disgrace and a humiliation that my grandparents loathed but, for now at least, they needed my omega abilities.

Melinda walked back into the room, Cale following meekly behind her, in human form and wearing his own collar. I could already see the bruise building up on his face from where I knew my grandmother had struck him. As a submissive wolf, Cale was often used as a whipping boy and I rarely saw him without bruises. A growl built in my throat, my wolf unable to hold back his anger at what he saw as the mistreatment of our only pack mate. A quick jerk of the chain my grandfather held ended the growl quickly enough, but the fury built swiftly inside me.

Cale gave me a quick look and shook his head, telling me silently to keep calm. I did my best to hold on to my temper, and as we marched from my small space and down the stairs my wolf eventually calmed down. I trailed behind the group, sniffing as we moved along. It had to have been a good six months since I'd been allowed out of my room so even though I was terrified, I couldn't help but feel a little excited. After going down a couple flights of stairs and through the kitchen, we stopped in front of another metal door and my grandfather yanked me up front and slammed me into it.

"This will be your home for the time being, abomination." My grandfather pulled the door open and threw me down steep stairs into a dark, musty basement. I lay there, trying to breathe through the pain radiating from where I landed on my right hip and shoulder. The door slammed, the lock slid shut and knew I was alone. They took Cale and our chance to escape with them.

I don't know how long I sprawled on the floor in a heap of depression and despair, but soon the pain from the collar began to really kick in. I didn't have too much longer before the silver began to weaken me. I rolled to my feet and started checking out my new surroundings. It was a much larger area than the attic but had a smell that offended my nose along with a dampness that clung to the air. I much preferred my small prison upstairs, with the skylight and the scent of plywood and shingles, to this smelly, wet basement.

After about a half-hour of pacing, the basement door opened and a small figure was tossed down the stairs. I raced over to Cale but froze when I saw what bad shape he was in. Blood pooled underneath him and stained the jeans he wore. His left arm bent in an impossible position. Across the front of his bare chest were whip marks deep enough to bleed. He whimpered and jerked me out of my stunned state. I slowly lowered my muzzle to his chest and lightly licked the open wound that ran from his left collarbone to his lower right ribs.

"The key to your collar is in my left hand. If you can move it to my right hand I can take the collar off you" Cale mumbled hoarsely. "Take the key. You need to get that thing off before it weakens you too much."

I crawled around and gently tried to nudge Cale's hand open but the fingers wouldn't budge.

"I can't feel anything right now, don't be gentle just get the key before I pass out and can't help you."

I was so scared to hurt him even worse than he already was, but he was right. I had to get not only my collar off but also his. I bit at his fingers until they loosened enough that I could get a grip on the blood-covered key. I moved to his other side as quickly as possible and placed the key in his right hand.

I lay down next to his hand and maneuvered my neck so the opening to the collar rested by his fingers. After a bit of fumbling the lock clicked open and the collar fell off. My relief was palpable and for the first time in hours I could take a deep breath. I quickly shifted, snatched the key from his hand and removed the silver collar from his neck.

"Shit, Cale, what the hell happened?" I had no idea what to do for him, I could feel his pain running though my body. Worse, I could feel him weakening, which terrified me.

"We have to get out of here now, Liam. Everybody is still at the pack meeting and I don't think we have much time. You'll have to carry me up the stairs but I think I can walk." Cale coughed and a bit of blood trickled from his mouth.

I raced up the stairs to check the door; it was locked but not as thick as the door to my room. I rammed it with my shoulder a few times before it finally popped open. I ran back to Cale and knelt next to him.

"I'm sorry friend, this is going to hurt." I lifted him gently into my arms, standing as he moaned in pain. "I am so sorry, I wish I could do something, anything, to change this."

Even though he wasn't much shorter than my five-seven, Cale barely weighed a hundred pounds. I carried him easily enough up the stairs and through the main floor of the large house. I moved as silently as possible but with Cale's raspy breathing it didn't matter; if anyone were in the house they'd hear us trying to sneak by, or smell Cale's bloody wounds. We finally made it out the back door and into the woods.

"Can you shift into your wolf, Cale?" I asked, scared I already knew the answer.

"No, not with my arm like this. It will have to be popped back into place first." The calmness of his voice worried me and I wondered if he was even worse off than I thought.

"You can't die. You're the only friend I've ever had, you can't leave me alone now, when we finally have a chance at freedom." Tears welled up in my eyes as I stared down at him.