Chapter 289,


    Chapter <b>289 </b>


    E’s POV


    +15 <b>BONUS </b><fna2ca> Follow current nov?ls on F?nd-Novel</fna2ca>


    “Anya!” I dropped to my knees beside her, eyes widening as I took in the sight of her ankle. It was already turning purple and swollen. “What happened?”


    “Someone” She hupped through her tears. “Someone shoved me from behind. I didn’t see who it was<b>.</b>”


    I nced around, but there was no one nearby. Whoever had done this was long gone, “Can you stand?”


    “I don’t think so.” Fresh tears spilled down Anya’s cheeks. “The event is starting in five minutes. I have to drop out. My family”


    “You’re not dropping out.”


    Anya blinked at me. “What?”


    I stood and shrugged off my jacket. The event rules didn’t say anything about contestants needing to be able to walk, did they? Just that they needed to participate.


    “What are you doing?” Anya asked as I started tying the sleeves of my jacket together.


    “Making a sling.” I tested the knot, pulling hard to make sure it would hold. “You’re going to ride on my back.


    “That’s insane. You can’t carry me through an entire capture the g game.‘


    “Watch me.” I looped the makeshift sling over my shoulders and adjusted it until it satfortably across my back. “Come on. Let’s get you up.”


    “<b>” </b>


    It took some maneuvering and a lot of wincing from Anya, but I managed to get her positioned in the sling with her injured ankle carefully tucked to the side. She wrapped her arms around my neck, and I stood slowly.


    Thankfully, Anya was petite and light. It still wouldn’t be easy, but it was better than not trying at all.


    “Ste, this is crazy-”


    “Probably.” I started walking toward the field where the rest of our team was gathered. “But you need this win for your family, and I’m not letting some coward who shoves people from behind ruin that for you.”


    The other contestants and onlookers stared as we emerged from behind the tent. A few of them startedughing and pointing in our direction<b>, </b>murmurs rippling across the crowd, but I ignored them and took my ce with


    our team.


    Across the way, I caught sight of Sophia and her team staring at me and whispering behind their hands. Sophia’s eyes were glimmering with malicious glee.


    I ignored her, too.


    Finally, after a quick round of announcements and a whole lot of strange looks–including from Alexander–the horn sounded and the game began. Each team had five gs to be protected or captured; whichever team captured the most gs within the timeframe would win, and if either team lost all five gs, the game would


    end early.


    The first few minutes were chaos. Considering the fact that Anya and I were the only two remaining Omegas, not to mention the part where she was crippled and hanging from a makeshift sling on my back, our teammates quickly decided we weren’t worth the effort and ditched us.


    But I couldn’t me them. We’d only been running for a few minutes and I was already out of breath. How was I supposed to keep this up for the entire match?


    “Iing!” Anya gasped. “Three o’clock!”


    I dodged right just as one of Sophia’s teammates came barreling toward us. The woman stumbled, thrown off by my sudden change in direction, and I kept running.


    Suddenly, I caught a glimpse of the color blue fluttering on a pole up ahead. One of the other team’s gs.


    “Go, Ste!” I heard voices shouting as I made a beeline for that g.


    “Show them what we’re made of!”


    “Omega power!”


    I couldn’t help but grin as I sprinted for the g, the Omegas‘ cheers echoing in my ears. The other contestant was growling and chasing after me, but the cheers gave me a second burst of energy. But the g was too high up, and with Anya on my back, I couldn’t jump to reach it.


    “Grab it when I circle back,” I hissed through my teeth just as the other contestant swatted at us. I circled around, avoiding her, then made for the g.


    X