AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“If you want to go after the people behind the Palace, we need allies.” I knew it was the only way to truly keep Ava and Cary safe, but I also knew we couldn’t do it alone.
“We have allies,” Nick said, surprising me. I’d expected it from River and Ryder, but not Nick. I made a mental note not to underestimate the plucky beta. “The people we were with last night will help. They’ve figured out a lot of what is going on, even what caused the crash. I don’t know the specifics, but they’ve gathered tons of intel.”
My body suddenly tensed. The people behind the Palace were manipulative and had spies everywhere.Were our enemies closer than I’d thought?
“Could they be working undercover for the Palace?” I asked, my arms tightening around Ava.
“No way.” Cary jumped in. He put his hand on my arm in an instinctive, conciliatory gesture, and my body responded instantly, relaxing into his touch. “Max and his pack left the military because they couldn’t condone the corruption. They’ve been trying to figure this thing out to protect Maia. Lexie’s mates, Sam, Dio, and Pala, are part of the Network. They’re helping them now, too.”
“Do you trust them?” If Nick and Cary trusted them, I’d trust them, too.
“Yes.” Nick said, without hesitation. “I’ve known Damon my whole life, and his pack members for years. They’re good men. I don’t know Sam and his team well, but I know Lexie and she doesn’t trust easily.”
“Me too,” Cary said. “Damon and his pack risked their lives and compromised the security of their safehold, just to get Ava and I out of the Palace when they’d never met us. They treated me with nothing but respect and consideration while I was at the farm. More than anyone ever had in my life, even my family. Nick is right, they’re good guys.”
That was more than enough for me, but River jumped in too.
“We’re aware of Sam and his unit by reputation. We’ve known for a while he and his mates were undercover for the Network. Pala was in training with us when we first joined up, and we kept in touch. Pala is one of the best operatives we’ve ever worked with, and an amazing guy. We know Damon by reputation, too. He’s formidable, but loyal and honorable.”
“Are you part of the Network?” I asked River and Ryder. I’d heard of Damon and Sam from the guards’ chatter, and made a note of them, but I’d never heard of Pala. He must be an exceptional undercover operative. I’d noted the guards gossiping about the Network, as well.
“No. We helped them smuggle an omega occasionally, in exchange for their help if we ever got Ava out. But we’re not a part of them. We preferred to work alone. Our focus has always been on Ava.”
“We need to arrange a meeting with Sam, Damon, and their packs as soon as possible. Can that be done?” I asked Nick. Hearing about these packs coming together had me feeling hopeful for the first time. I’d been trying to figure out our next move, fearing we wouldn’t be able to stay here long.
“Lexie and Maia check in on Ava at eight every morning and night, through a satellite phone they gave her. I have it,” he said as he pulled it out from his hoodie pocket. He tapped it and looked at the time on the display. “They should call in about half an hour. I’ll talk to them instead of waking her up and organize a meeting. Their farm isn’t a long drive from here, but if they can’t get here, we can maybe do a video hook up if I can get the systems here sorted. They’re still online at the farm.”
“Okay. Thank you, Nick.”
Everyone suddenly went quiet. Our conversation about the Palace felt done. For now. But Nick, River, Ryder and Cary seemed on edge suddenly. As if there was a question hanging over them all, and nobody wanted to ask it.
“What do you think this means?” Nick finally asked, proving he was the bravest of us all. “I don’t mean about the Palace, I mean about the way we all gravitate to Ava?”
He was trying to get us to talk about something specific, but I wasn’t sure what. I noticed River’s eyes flick to Nick as he smirked at him.
“What do you think it means?” River asked him.
“It means you’re her pack. In the same way we saw happen with Maia and Lexie,” Cary answered for him. He’d pulled his legs up and was hugging his knees to his chest. His voice was even, but the way he was staring at the leaf he was fiddling with and not making eye contact with us betrayed his emotions.
“We’re your pack too,” I growled.
Cary stiffened, the leaf going still in his hands, and both Ryder and River tensed. The idea Cary may reject our pack had my stomach feeling twisted up. I didn’t even question the idea we were a pack. It seemed instinctive and natural to me. I wanted this more than I could express. The idea of a pack had always filled me with a painful longing. Despite the twisted example I’d been shown as a child. I knew things could be different, would be different, with my pack.
“I’ve had enough alphas forced on me. I’m not your typical omega, and I don’t need protecting,” Cary countered. He seemed defiant, and a little resentful, yet the fine shake in his hands made him seem intensely vulnerable. I got the impression he hadn’t reconciled himself to being an omega and if we pushed him, he would push back like a trapped creature.
“I would never force you into anything you’re uncomfortable with, Cary.” My growl tried to force its way through my words, and I tried to soften it, not wanting to intimidate him right now. “I will be your alpha in whatever way you need. If you need me to stand back and watch over you from a distance, I will do that. If you need me to stand with you and help fight your battles, I will have your back. If you decide you need me to fuck you so hard you scream my name as I knot you, I am more than happy to oblige. But make no mistake. I am your alpha and this is your pack, too.”
If it took him time to find his truth, I would wait. The only thing I would never do now that I’d found him, found them both, was leave them.
I waited a heartbeat to let my words wash over him, as my dick throbbed painfully in my pants. He’d closed his eyes when I mentioned fucking him and he’d crushed the leaf in his hand as he’d started breathing hard. I waited until he opened his eyes and I saw the desire shining within them.
“I scented you, as well as Ava. Not at first, a few months later. I hid it better. They never knew. But I did. I knew you weremine.”
thirteen
Ifeltfrozeninplace as I stared at Wolf. Everything was changing so quickly. Yesterday it had just been Ava and me, navigating our way through the unexpected freedom of farm life and a tentative new friendship with Nick. Yet still keeping each other at arm’s length. Now, barely a day later, we’d broken our barriers down and we were sitting with a group of people who felt like home, along with an alpha who wanted to claim us both.
I could feel wariness and hope warring within me. Each emotion battling to cancel the other out, and neither winning. Life had fed me too many barbed promises.
