Revenge at Omega House

"OMEGA! OMEGA! OMEGA!". The brothers massed together, their voices thundering against the brick face of the house, drowning out the music and voices from inside. Now faces peeked out of windows, to see what the hell was going on out of the front lawn.

It took a full minute before the Zeta brothers assembled and walked into the night, to confront whatever threat loomed in front of their house. Sean could tell from their body language that they were nervous, and afraid. They had good reason-while Omega and Zeta had roughly the same number of active brothers, nearly the entire Omega brotherhood was mustered here tonight, while more than three-quarters of the Zetas were in their apartments, or with their girlfriends, or, hard as it might be to believe, studying in the library. Sean took several pictures of their pitiful stand.

"Get the fuck off our lawn," one of the Zeta's shouted, and was immediately drowned out by the relentless blare of "OMEGA! OMEGA!". Sean let his brothers exercise their lungs a few seconds more, and then he put two fingers in his mouth and whistled sharply. The chanting stopped. "Forward!" Sean said, and the mass of Omega's marched in step up the lawn to the front door.

The Zeta's spread out, but the Omega front was much too wide for them to cover. Sean watched as the Zeta brothers slowly backed up, obviously frightened, and he smiled with satisfaction. Now it was time to give them something to be afraid of.

Ten feet before the front door the Omega's stopped. The six brothers holding the girl went to work on her with scissors, slicing the duct tape that bound her wrists and ankles. Sean waited long enough for them to cut her free, then said, "Zetas fuck the trash Omega throws away!" The six brothers marched forward, one of them tore the tape from her mouth, and they threw the girl, still nude, into the tall snowdrift that bordered the walkway.

"FUCKING CUNT BITCH! FUCKING CUNT BITCH!" the brothers screamed, their voices not so disciplined now, the fury in their pulsating shrieks. The girl looked like she wanted to bury herself in the drift, but the ice and cold finally grew too painful, and she leapt to her feet and struggled through hip-deep snow like a fawn trying to sneak away from a looming wolf. Sean and several other brothers snapped pictures of her pathetic struggles.

One Zeta found the courage to say, "This isn't over, Cavendish. We'll get you. Not tonight, but eventually."

Sean, standing in the middle of the pack so the Zetas couldn't identify him from his voice, said, "Oh, we're not done with YOU yet, believe me. This was just the beginning. And," he said, laughing loud enough for all to here, "if you cowardly sons-of-bitches are any indication, then we have nothing to fear."

He let his brothers laugh at this, then bellowed, "OMEGA!", and seventy other voices boomed, "OMEGA! OMEGA! OMEGA!" They left the Zeta House grounds at an even pace, not running away, but moving quickly. They kept up the chanting as they walked back to their house, a gloating shout of victory.

Back at the house the brothers quickly stripped off their masks and took off their sweatshirts, handing their gear to pledges who gave them mugs of coffee and hot chocolate in exchange. The mood was exuberant, but still controlled. As Sean had warned, Omega House had only taken a partial revenge tonight. There was still much work to do, but it could wait until after Finals Week. Now the brothers took a moment to enjoy tonight's success, laugh at the cowardice of the Zetas, and appreciate what they'd accomplished.

Sean walked into the house's big dining room, where three brothers sat at the long oak table working on desktop computers. He stood behind them and watched as they used video editing software to turn the raw footage they'd shot with the three cameras into a most interesting movie. "Did you get it all?" he asked.

A young brother named Steven grinned. "Oh, we got a lot of great shots. Good picture quality, perfect sound, and some fantastic close-ups."

"How long will it take for you to get the final edit?"

"Maybe three, four hours. We have to digitally remove Franco's face, that'll take some time. We'll put about fifteen seconds of generic footage at the start, just shots of campus, stock video we have on file. Then we cut right to the good stuff. "

Sean nodded. "Don't spend more than three hours on it. It doesn't have to be perfect." He moved down the table to Larry, a brother addressing FedEx envelopes. "Where are we sending it?"

Larry checked his list. "Well, one tape to her parents, of course. Eli said her grandparents pay the bulk of her tuition, so they get a copy. She used to be a singer in her church back home, if you can believe that, so her priest gets one. We have the addresses for three of her best high-school friends and three girls who hated her, so they each get a copy. We're also sending copies to the head of her high-school cheerleading squad and the captain of the football team, to make sure it gets lots of play all over town."

"Good idea. Who else?"

He checked his list again. "We found the address for that high-school teacher on the 'Net, so one goes to his wife. Another two go to teachers her mother is friends with. Her professor isn't married, we know, so we'll send one to the President of the University and one to the dean of the mathematics department."

"No," Sean said. "Don't send one there. We'll blackmail the professor, threaten to expose him if he doesn't give us straight A's. We can also use it against the University in case something pops up in the future, threaten to release the tape to the local newspapers and expose one of their teachers trading sex for grades."

"I hadn't thought of that," Larry said, nodding with admiration. Then he went back to his list and said, "I think that's it. Do you want us to post clips on the 'Net, we could set up a website, post stills on the usual Usenet porn groups..."

"No, not yet. Later we might, but I think for now this will do." He clapped each young brother on the shoulder. "Good work. Get them out tonight for Monday delivery."

"Yes, sir," Larry said. "We'll finish in time."

Sean thanked them again and walked back into the big front room. He found the man he was looking for, and extended a hand. "You live up to your reputation, sir," he said, shaking Franco's hand.

"And so did you," Franco said. "It all went perfectly. You're planning and execution was flawless."

"The hard part was getting her here, and we accomplished that thanks to you."

Franco accepted this compliment with a nod. "To be honest, it didn't take much to get that girl on her knees. I'm surprised she's so thin, with all the come she swallows."

Sean laughed. "Indeed, indeed." He kept the jovial smile on his face as he asked, "So, was it as good as it looked?"

Franco grinned and showed his perfect teeth. "Better. She was one of the best I've ever had. She'll never go hungry with a body and a mouth like that. She's better than the pros I've fucked."

Sean nodded and extended his hand again. "I thought you were enjoying yourself." The two men shook, and as he took his leave Sean turned and said, "Oh, I heard you and your wife are expecting again?"

The handsome man beamed with delight. "That's right, we're due in March. We already have a boy and a girl, so I don't care what flavor we get this time. We can't wait."

"Congratulations, and be sure to let us know when the baby's born."

"I will, I will. I'm going back home tomorrow, I told my wife my business trip would take ten days, so she'll be happy to get me back a few days early."

"It's a testament to your skills," Sean said. "She's a very lucky woman."

"No, I'm a very lucky man. If you met my wife, you'd understand what I mean. You'll have to come visit us, we'll show you around San Francisco."

"That sounds great. I'll try to clear my calendar...maybe next October? Give you enough time to get settled with the baby."

They shook hands again, and Sean took his leave and cut across the room. The house was clearing out, brothers heading back to their apartments to study or turn in. Sean found Clay lecturing a group of young brothers and interrupted. "We need to be on high alert for the rest of the week."

"Yes, sir. I was just telling these gentlemen that we need to be careful. Always travel in groups of three, at least. Let your girlfriends know that there's a problem, and we'll arrange for escorts for them too."

"Excellent. Security here at the house has to be airtight. They'll make a move on us here, eventually."

"Yes, I know. I'll be in touch with our moles inside Zeta, they should be able to give us advance warning. When they come, we'll be ready."

"I know we will," Sean said. "Carry on."

The house was slowly clearing out, and Sean paced back and forth, talking to everyone, gauging each brother's mood. Standing near the door was a freshman brother named Brad, a tall, athletic boy who was in the last pledge class. He stood alone, a smile frozen on his face. Sean took his time wondering over to him, not spooking him. When he suddenly appeared at Brad's side the young man blinked with surprise. "Oh, hello, sir" he said.

"Good evening, Brad. Could you help me move some chairs from the dining room to the kitchen?"

"Of course, sir." He followed Sean to the dining room and carried two of the heavy wooden chairs to the kitchen.

"Have a seat," Sean said.

"What?" the boy asked, wary, suddenly afraid.

Sean sat down and crossed his legs. "Sit, please." Brad folded his lanky frame in the chair and sat with his hands on his knees. "Relax!" Sean laughed. "This isn't an interrogation."

Brad eased back a bit. Sean said, "What happened today, with the girl-it bothered you, didn't it?"

"No, sir, not at all," Brad protested.

"Yes, it did. It's written all over your face. And I know what to look for because the first time I saw something like this I had the same expression frozen in place. That look of disbelief and horror."

Brad looked at his shoes. "We're going to destroy that girl's life. I don't know if its right to do that."

"You're correct, it's not right," Sean said. "What we're doing is harsh, and absolutely ruthless."

"Then why send the tapes? Why not stop right now and leave her alone?"

Sean recrossed his legs. "The Romans had a word that they often used, dignitas. It's like the word dignity, but the meaning was more intense, more important. Roman nobility drew their dignitas from their families, their honored ancestors. Every important decision they made was first examined through the lens of dignitas. Would a marriage enhance their dignitas? Would allowing an insult from a man of lesser family to pass without comment diminish their dignitas?"

Sean paused to make sure he had Brad's full attention. He did, and so continued. "Your dignitas was not just a reflection of your own status. It affected your ancestors, and your future progeny. Once gained, dignitas was the most precious gift of all. Once lost, it was almost impossible to regain."

Sean leaned forward. "The fact that Eli's girlfriend dumped him is of no consequence. It's his problem, to deal with as he sees fit. But when she fucked that scum from Zeta, when she let him ejaculate on our letters, she insulted every Omega. You, me, Franco, the brothers who lived in this house fifty years ago, the brothers who will live here fifty years from now."

The boy was nodding, and Sean said, "You want to be a lawyer, is that right?" Brad nodded, and Sean said, "When you graduate, Omega alumni will help you get into the law school of your choice. When you pass the bar, the best firms in the nation will outdo themselves trying to hire you, because you are an Omega. Men you don't know, whom you've never met, will bend over backwards to help you realize your dreams. Because you are their brother. Because you are an Omega."

Sean's eyes locked on Brad's. "When someone insults us, it affects the dignitas of every Omega. You, me, the men who will help your career, the little boys starting first grade next year who will come to you someday for help. We have to defend the dignitas of our brotherhood, each of us, every single day."

Brad was nodding now. "So, what we're doing to her, it's not because of what she did to Eli."

"Exactly, Brad. Exactly. The punishment is so severe because she has to pay for the injury she did to all of us."

Brad's nodding became more animated. "That fucking bitch," he said.

The lesson learned, Sean stood and Brad leapt to his feet. "Thank you, sir."

Sean shook his hand. "No, thank you, brother."

One more duty to perform. Sean waited until the house was nearly empty before he approached Derek, who was Eli's big brother, his sponsor within the fraternity. Eli was Brad's sponsor, and Sean saw a thread of weakness in this line that he wanted to draw out before it became a more serious problem.

"A pleasant diversion before finals?" Derek asked when Sean got his attention.

"Not so pleasant," Sean snapped. "A waste of our valuable time. And I hold you responsible."

"Me? Why?"

Sean felt his face flush. "Stand at attention before me! And when I put a question to you, you say 'Yes sir!'."

The smile instantly left Derek's face. "I'm sorry, sir."

"You're supposed to mentor Eli, to be a firm guiding hand. Wouldn't you say that tonight's exhibition was a poor reflection on your leadership?"

"Yes, sir."

"Add to that the fact that I just had a conversation with Brad and had to explain why our destruction of that bitch wasn't a despicable act, and you can understand why we're having this conversation. Because I shouldn't be having conversations with Eli and Brad. You should," Sean said, driving his index finger hard into Derek's chest. "And if you don't start pulling your weight, the next time we have one of this exhibitions you'll be the star."

Derek swallowed hard. "I understand, sir. I'll be more proactive."

"Good. Good. That's what I want to hear. And what I'll be looking for." He leaned close. "I'll be looking very, very closely."

Twenty minutes later the house was quiet. Only the brothers who lived there stayed behind, and most of them were in their rooms, studying. A call had been placed to the police to keep an eye on the Zetas, and since the Omega's paid the local constabulary a tidy yearly stipend their own house was well-protected. There would be no trouble tonight.

Sean couldn't concentrate. He was blocked, he sat before his laptop and the words wouldn't come. He knew the symptoms, knew what he had to do to shake off this malaise. He grabbed his coat and knocked on the bedroom door of the Master of the House.

"I'm going out."

Clay looked up from his physics textbook. "I don't think that's wise, sir."

"I'll be careful."

"I'll pick two brothers to go with you."

"Not necessary. If I'm not back in 2 hours call the Marines."

"I have to ask, where are you going?"

"To see Lindsay. And then to visit our friends."

An almost imperceptible smile flashed for a second across Clay's lips. "Very good, sir."

"No needs to know about this," Sean said, grinning despite himself.

"No one will," Clay said, and turned back to his book.

Sean drove his Ford Explorer into town, checking his rear-view mirror every ten seconds and finding no tailing headlights. He stopped in a convenience store and bought two pints of ice-cream, one butter pecan, the other mint chocolate chip. He drove down College Avenue and stopped at a large, L-shaped apartment building. Before Sean got out of the truck he dialed a number and waited. A soft, dreamy voice said, "Hello?"

"It's me," Sean said, trying to keep the excitement from his voice. "Is it OK if I come over?"

"You know it is, always."

"I'll be there in twenty minutes. Be ready." He hung up without waiting for a reply, aware that his brusqueness masked a towering desire. He tried to put it out of his mind as we walked into the apartment building

The girl who opened the door to Apartment 201 was tall, dark-haired, and lovely. She wore a gray sweatshirt and jeans and her silky hair was pulled back in a ponytail, but she was still a knockout. She leaned against the door, resting her forehead against a raised arm.

"I thought you had a paper to write."

"Maybe I missed you too much to concentrate." He held up the bag. "Got time for a snack?"

She peeked inside the bag. "For butter pecan? Oh yes."

Sean sat on the leather sofa and watched Lindsay scoop ice cream into two small glass bowls. He observed her carefully, critically, and tried again to decide if he should marry her. They'd dated for almost two years and he knew he couldn't find a better woman to be his wife. Lindsay was beautiful, intelligent, ambitious, and of good family. She wanted to be a college professor, an acceptable occupation for the spouse of a man like him. She would be a good mother to his children. And he knew she loved him very much.

She looked in the bag and pulled out the second pint. "You know I don't like mint chocolate chip."

"It's not for you," he said. "It's for a friend."

"Oh," she said, and without further comment put it back in the bag. And that was the moment when he decided that he would marry Lindsay. Because she knew not to ask questions. She didn't ask him what friend. She didn't ask if he was going to see this friend tonight. She didn't ask because she already knew the answers to her questions. And she knew not to ask them. She knew the rules of the game, and was content to play her role.

And as he watched her bring him his ice cream, he decided that the role she would play the rest of her life would be that of Lindsay Cavendish, wife.

She frowned at him with mock concern. "Such a serious expression."

He smiled. "Just tired. And we had some trouble with the Zetas tonight."

"Oh, them," she said, rolling her eyes. "Nothing serious, I hope."

"We took care of it."

That was the extent of her curiosity. When he finished his ice cream Sean kissed his future wife and took the mint chocolate chip with him. He drove up Shortledge Road into campus, to the low, three-story dorms that dotted the west side. He parked in front of the building at the far left and strode into the lobby. Greek Alphas painted on the walls marked this dorm as the home of the school's most prestigious "face" sorority, where one hundred striking young women set the campus standard for beauty, fashion, and haughtiness.

Male students were not permitted to enter female dorms without an escort, but Sean was not an ordinary student. The girl sitting at the desk in the lobby recognized him, and a slow smile illuminating her gorgeous face. "Sean, I'm surprised to see you out tonight."

He pressed the elevator button and sat on the desk, crossing his legs, smiling down at the girl. "What's your name again?" Putting the girl in her place.

The wattage of her smile dropped by half. "Kelly."

Sean nodded, smiling patiently. "Is that with an I or a Y?"

Her cheeks reddened. "With a y."

"Oh, yes, that's right," Sean said. He waited a beat, then he said. "We've had sex, right? I'm pretty sure I remember..."

She flushed crimson. "Yes, we did. It was after the Texas game, there was a big party at the house, you invited me to your room..."

He smiled and nodded. "That's right, I remember now. That's the night you lost your virginity, right?"

"Yes, Sean."

The elevator dinged. "Kelly, when you address me, you say, 'Yes, sir'."

When he walked in the lobby the woman sitting at the desk had been a sexy, confident seductress. Now she was a trembling little girl close to tears. As he walked in the elevator, his eyes boring into hers, she said, "I'm sorry, sir," and thankfully the steel doors slid shut before he lost control of his face and started laughing. "Girls," he sighed.