Chapter 20 – The Omega Project
The silence between them was louder than thunder.
Adrian stood at the door, his tall figure framed by the golden evening light pouring in from the hallway. His gaze swept over Ethan—quick, sharp, as though he could read every hidden thought without a word.
Ethan's pulse spiked. The notebook under his pillow felt like a burning brand, scorching through the fabric, screaming its existence. He forced himself to breathe normally, to keep his expression calm.
Adrian stepped closer, loosening his tie with a sharp tug. His shoulders were tense, his jaw rigid—the aftermath of his clash with Leon still clinging to him like smoke after fire.
"You've been pacing," Adrian said, voice low but certain.
Ethan froze. He hated how the man noticed everything. Every nervous twitch, every shift in mood—nothing escaped him.
"I was just…" Ethan gestured vaguely toward the desk, his voice too light. "Thinking."
Adrian's eyes narrowed, suspicion flickering before he turned away, pouring himself a glass of water from the carafe on the nightstand.
Good, Ethan thought, willing his racing heart to calm. Don't look. Don't ask.
But Adrian wasn't a man who ignored instincts.
"Ethan." His voice was quiet but commanding. "Something's wrong."
Ethan bit down on his lip. His mind spun with excuses, with the urge to ask everything—what the Omega Project was, why Adrian's name was tied to it, whether Leon was right about him. But fear rooted him to the spot.
Because if Adrian truly was hiding something monstrous, asking might expose that Ethan already knew too much.
So he smiled. A small, brittle smile. "Nothing's wrong. Just tired."
For a long moment, Adrian studied him. The air grew thick, heavy with unsaid words. Then, slowly, Adrian nodded. He didn't believe him, but he let it go—for now.
---
Later that night, when Adrian fell asleep beside him, Ethan lay wide awake. The steady rhythm of Adrian's breathing filled the room, grounding and suffocating all at once.
His fingers itched toward the notebook hidden under the pillow. He had only glimpsed fragments before Adrian came in. But even those fragments were enough to chill him.
The Omega Project.
The words wouldn't leave his head.
Carefully, silently, Ethan slid the notebook free. He inched off the bed, glancing back to ensure Adrian was still asleep. The Alpha looked peaceful, his usual hardened expression softened in slumber. Vulnerable, almost human.
Ethan's chest tightened painfully. He hated the conflict tearing through him. The part of him that wanted to believe Adrian was different warred with the part that whispered he was a monster waiting to be unmasked.
Settling at the desk with only the faint glow of the lamp, Ethan flipped through the pages again.
---
The entries were coded at first—numbers, abbreviations, names tied to dates. But as the notes unraveled, the truth began to form.
The Omega Project wasn't just a business deal. It was an initiative—a corporate and government-funded program designed to study Omegas. Not just their biology, but their behaviors, their bonding instincts.
Experiments. Trials. Data.
Ethan's stomach churned as he read phrases like compatibility testing, pheromone suppression trials, and controlled pair bonding experiments.
He saw lists of unnamed participants. He saw references to institutions he didn't recognize.
And worse—he saw Adrian's company stamped on nearly every page.
Zhou Corporation wasn't just involved. They were at the center of it.
Ethan's breath hitched. His fingers trembled on the paper. Was Adrian funding this? Running it? Benefitting from the exploitation of Omegas like him?
Tears pricked at the corners of his eyes.
He wanted to slam the notebook shut, to burn it, to forget he ever saw it. But he couldn't. The truth was here, undeniable and damning.
And it raised the most dangerous question of all—
Was he part of it?
---
The sound of movement behind him nearly made Ethan scream.
He whipped around, heart in his throat. Adrian stood there, awake, eyes burning with something unreadable.
"How long have you been standing there?" Ethan's voice was hoarse.
"Long enough." Adrian's tone was like steel, cutting through the fragile air.
Ethan's chest rose and fell rapidly. He wanted to shout, to accuse, but the words tangled in his throat.
Adrian stepped forward, slowly, deliberately, until he towered over Ethan at the desk. His gaze dropped to the open notebook. His jaw tightened.
"You shouldn't be looking at that," Adrian said finally, his voice low, dangerous.
Ethan's hands clenched into fists. "Why? Because it's the truth?"
Adrian's eyes snapped to his, sharp and unyielding. "Because you don't understand."
The fury Ethan had been suppressing all night surged forward. "Then make me understand!" His voice cracked, but his anger didn't waver. "I trusted you, Adrian. I thought—" He broke off, swallowing hard. "I thought you were different."
Adrian's face twisted, not in anger but in something darker. Regret? Pain?
He reached for Ethan, but Ethan shoved the notebook against his chest. "Tell me what this is. Tell me why your company is tied to a program that treats people like experiments!"
The silence that followed was suffocating. Adrian's grip tightened on the notebook, knuckles white.
Finally, he spoke.
"It's not what you think."
Ethan laughed bitterly, his voice shaking. "Then what is it? Because all I see are Omegas turned into lab rats. All I see is you profiting from their suffering. From my suffering."
Adrian's eyes softened, just slightly. "I've spent years trying to dismantle it from the inside."
The words hit Ethan like a blow. His breath caught.
"What?"
Adrian's voice dropped lower, weighted with something raw. "The Omega Project didn't start with me. It's been running for over a decade, controlled by men far more ruthless than Leon. I inherited its ties when I took over the company. If I cut it off openly, it would expose thousands of Omegas to retaliation. If I stayed silent, I could work my way into its core."
Ethan stared at him, torn between belief and doubt.
Adrian's eyes bored into his, unwavering. "Every step I've taken has been toward destroying it. But I couldn't tell you—not yet. Because if they knew you were involved with me, if they knew what you mean to me…" His voice broke, just for a moment. "You'd be their first target."
The silence stretched. Ethan's heart thundered in his ears.
He wanted to believe him. God, he wanted to. But Leon's words echoed in his mind. You're nothing but another ruthless Alpha who takes what he wants.
"Do you expect me to just… trust you?" Ethan whispered.
Adrian's gaze didn't falter. "No. I expect you to decide for yourself. But know this, Ethan—whatever else I am, I will never let them touch you."
Ethan's throat tightened. His vision blurred. The room tilted, suffocating with truths and half-truths.
He turned away, his voice breaking. "I don't know if I can believe you."
Adrian's jaw clenched, but he didn't move closer. He didn't force the choice. He simply stood there, silent, as Ethan's tears fell in the quiet.
The notebook lay between them like a loaded weapon.
And neither of them knew when it would finally explode.