AllFreeNovel
Share Us
They shifted their gazes from Ava to the alpha. “No,” Ryder replied.
“We infiltrated the Palace,” River said, shooting a glance at Pala, “we were tracking Ava, but the scent in her room had faded, as if she hadn’t been in there for days. We found a faint trace in the library, too, along with some hidden passages. When we reached their underground labs, we found his cell, and it reeked of her scent. Someone had stuffed Ava’s blankets and clothes into his air vents.”
Ava gasped, and her hand went over her heart, as she shot a confused look at the unconscious alpha.
“It looked like they were tormenting him, or maybe torturing him, with her scent. We felt drawn to him and we tried to get him out so we could figure out why, but we tripped some kind of silent alarm. We had to fight our way out and they tried to move him while they had us pinned down below ground. As soon as we got free, we tracked him here.”
Before anyone could say anything, Dave came running over and slid to a stop next to me. He was holding his satellite phone. “Sam’s surveillance team at the Palace just made contact again. The military and lab techs are abandoning the Palace. They’re bugging out right now.”
“What about the omegas?” Ava asked.
“They’ve turned off the security feeds, so we can’t tell for sure, but it doesn’t seem like they’re taking them. Now that we’ve cut off their supply of food from town, I don’t think they have enough left to feed everyone.” Cary growled lowly. He’d warned us not to cut off the omegas food supply.
“Plus, their lab just got breached, so they’re probably spooked,” Hunter said.
“Who breached their lab?” Sam asked as he strode over and wrapped his arms around me. He’d lasted over five minutes of me talking to strange alphas without stomping over here, I was impressed. Claudio, Damon and Leif followed close behind. I assumed they’d assigned others from the team to watch over the pub patrons.
Hunter just pointed to the twins, who looked unconcerned at the sudden spotlight.
Dave shook his head. “That’s a story for another day. We need to break up into groups. One questioning the people in the pub, another letting town residents out of the museum and making sure everyone gets home okay, and a group to head to the Palace in the PMV right now and check on the omegas.”
“We also need to figure out what Winston was trying to blow up and where those explosives are. We don’t want local kids finding them,” Hunter said. Dave just nodded, looking weary.
“What about tracking the unit fleeing the Palace with the lab techs? We need to know where they’re planning to regroup,” River asked. He seemed to be the chattier twin.
“We have a man tracking satellite feeds. He also has a long range drone. Max will follow them as best as he can,” Damon answered.
River glanced at Ryder, doing some kind of twin communication thing, but they didn’t object.
“I think Hunter and I should head to the museum with the Honey Badgers so we can reassure people everything is fine now. Hunter and I are both well known in town, and people will be more likely to listen to us.” I didn’t mention the safe house in front of the twins.
“Who the hell are the Honey Badgers?” Ryder asked, almost as if he couldn’t help himself.
“He’s one, but that’s a story for another day too,” I said as I pointed at Nick and watched him blush while the twins looked him over.
“I agree,” Dave jumped in, sounding impatient. “The alphas who defected from the Palace all want to go back and check on the omegas. They’ve been champing at the bit to get back there and protect them since they arrived at the farm.”
After a quick discussion, it was decided Pala and Claudio would help me at the museum, while Damon, Sam, and Dave sorted the pub, with the help of Matt and the rest of Sam’s team. Matt and a few of the guys were going to stay a few days, keep watch, and maintain a presence to help the townsfolk feel safe. They’d also organize a search for the explosives. Leif was heading back to the farm on one of the dirt bikes now, to help keep it secure and assist Max.
“I’m going to the Palace, too,” Ava announced. Before anyone could argue with her, she pushed ahead with a determined glint in her eyes. “I want to check on the omegas and I’m the only one who knows where all the secret passages are. We’ll need to make sure they’re all checked and there’s nothing and nobody left behind that can surprise us.”
“Me too,” Cary added, surprising no-one.
“We’ll go with them,” River said without hesitation, staring intently at Ava, daring her to object. He looked one bad decision away from picking her up and throwing her over his shoulder.
“I think we should take this alpha back there, too,” Cary said. “If he’s feral, we can’t risk taking him to the farm, or having him in town here. The Palace is the only place with secure facilities if we need it, and they should have more medical supplies too. I don’t think they would have had time to strip it on the way out.”
I could feel the nervousness of my guys in the bond, at having Ava and Cary head back to the Palace without us. I shot a look at Damon and he was clenching his jaw and looking at Hunter. They both clearly felt uncomfortable too, but they were needed elsewhere right now.
“I can come with you, Ava. Someone else can take the museum.” I knew if I went, at least one or two of my mates would go with me as well.
Ava smiled gratefully at me. “That’s very sweet, Lexie. But I’ll be okay. You were right. You need to be at the museum. People there are going to be frightened. You’ll be able to reassure them and figure out what they need. You’re good at that.”
I nodded reluctantly. I wasn’t happy, but Ava was a grown woman who could decide for herself what was best for her. She’d been denied any say in her own life for far too long. I wouldn’t deny her now.
“I think I should go to the Palace too,” Nick blurted suddenly. He’d been quietly standing on the edges of our group while we all talked, shifting nervously. “If their security cameras have been switched off I can get them back online, and see if I can find any tech they’ve overlooked in their rush to leave. Then I can let Max know what we need and can borrow from the farm, to get them secure and get electricity connected again.”
Dave patted him on the shoulder and dragged him forward into our circle at the same time. “Good man. I agree, they’ll need your tech skills at the Palace if you’re willing to go. You can coordinate with Max and get the two sites linked up.”
