Page 34 of Sweet Torment

“No.” I whisper the word.

“Maybe they’re trying to override her pull to us and make her choose someone else.” His voice is flat. “According to this, the trial date is today through next week. Location is Oakwood Preserve.”

“Where’s that?” Megan asks.

“About three hours north,” Tristan says. “Owned by Montgomery’s parent company.”

“Security?” I demand.

Tristan pulls up schematics. “Electric fences, armed guards, drones. A fucking fortress.”

“Who else is involved?” Megan asks.

Tristan’s jaw tightens. “The other test subjects are… the Haversham Pack. Three brothers. Two alphas, one beta.” He turns to Megan. “We’ve met them. They’re assholes.”

“They’re trapping her with them?” The question is a low growl from my own throat.

Mason’s voice cuts in. “I’m finding whispers on the dark web about TruScent. It’s meant to fake a scent match very realistically. Works on omegas, alphas, and betas.”

Megan sighs. “So it’s for men to trick women into choosing them.”

“Whitney,” Tristan points out. “There will be women out there that trap men too.”

“Fair.”

“What’s the play here though?” Tristan murmurs. “She’s already bonded to you. This wouldn’t solve that.”

“Maybe they just want to see if the drug draws her to different alphas even when she knows who her real scent matches are,” Megan suggests grimly with a shrug. “A good way to prove effectiveness.”

A possessive rumble builds in my chest. The thought of Bianca being chemically manipulated to desire anyone else makes me see red.

The door to our room slams open. Owen storms in, eyes wild, with Freddie and Ezra right behind him.

“Where the fuck is she?” Owen snarls, shouldering past me to lean over Tristan’s screen, his large frame blocking everything.

“Back the fuck up, Owen, I can’t see,” Tristan snaps without looking away from the monitor, shoving at his arm. “Based on what we’ve found, she’s headed to a preserve Montgomery owns. It’s three hours away.”

“They’re taking her to a preserve? Why?” Freddie asks. His face goes slack. “To hunt her?”

“It’s a trial for a new drug,” I say, my voice flat. “They’re testing her with another pack.”

Owen lets out a sound that’s pure, unrestrained fury. “Like hell they are.” He grabs a chair and hurls it against the wall. It splinters with a crack that makes Megan jump.

Ezra’s hand shoots out to press firmly against the center of Owen’s chest, halting his furious pacing. “Owen!” he says, his voice low and intense. “That doesn’t help her.”

“Neither does sitting on our asses,” Owen growls back, but he doesn’t react to Ezra’s correction as I would’ve suspected, and his shoulders drop slightly.

“We need a plan,” Freddie says, his usually easy tone gone. “We can’t just storm in there.”

“Why the fuck not?” Owen demands.

“Because they’ll either stop us or kill us before we reach her,” Tristan rolls his eyes at Owen.

Ezra cuts through the rising chaos by grabbing a duffel from the corner. The harsh rip of the zipper pulls everyone’s attention. Without looking up from his task, he issues the order, his voice a steady command. “Everybody pack up. Weapons, comms, medical. Everything.” He glances at his watch. “Every second we waste here is a second they have her.”

“Mason,” Tristan asks, already gathering gear, “can you cut the power to the preserve once we’re there?”

“Their system has backup generators, but I might be able to create a window.”