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Valor greeted our Alpha and Beta with a tilt of his chin.
Wynn waved us in, and Valor and I sat in the two remaining chairs in front of his desk.
The Alpha of Hidden Creek was brilliant, but he had little patience for social niceties. It was one of the reasons we got along so well. While others thought me robotic, Wynn found my single-minded focus refreshing—necessary even. He was one of the only other people outside my unit I felt I didn’t have to wear a mask for.
He leveled his ice-blue eyes on us for a moment before he clasped his hands together. “Well?” he asked without preamble.
“We found our fated mate,” Valor answered, slipping into the familiar cadence of an Enforcer reporting to his superior.
“Congratulations,” Bishop said. “Why don’t you look happier?”
“Unfortunately, we ran into some complications,” I said.
“I don’t like the sound of that,” Wynn grunted.
“Whatever you’re imagining, it’s worse. This season, the Council presented the units with an image of an Omega who won the three previous Hunts. They taunted the room and spoke of how easily she bested the others.”
Bishop ran a hand over his face. “They singled her out.”
“Exactly. Then, they released her long after the other Omegas. She hardly had time to get out of sight.”
“Fuck,” Wynn muttered.
“That’s not all,” I continued. ”They also sent her out at the peak of her heat. She was concealing her scent, but no one can hide from Valor. We were forced to claim her in the woods to prevent a blood bath—one the Council undoubtedly instigated.”
“Why would they do that? And why would she continue to participate in the Hunt with those odds? I’m sure there were sanctioned packs willing to take her in. She could have easily found a unit that way,” Bishop said.
“That’s what we intend to find out,” Valor said. “There’s one more thing. Brielle—our fated mate—was more desperate to escape than the average Omega. When we claimed her, an overwhelming sense of failure poured through the bond. We’re not sure what that was about.”
“How is she now?” Wynn asked.
“Reserved, but more talkative than when we left the facility,” I replied.
Wynn nodded. I could see the gears turning in his head as his eyes met mine. “And the nano-hackers?”
“Successful. Once they’re activated, we can start gathering intel.”
There was a pregnant pause as Wynn mulled over the information. I figured we were thinking the same thing. Brielle had a history with the Council—that much was clear. She was a trove of information. Perhaps we could gain the upper hand if she told us what she knew.
Finally, Wynn spoke. “For now, make Brielle comfortable. Get to know your mate and prove yourselves trustworthy. We want her to understand that Hidden Creek is her home—her pack. The questions can wait. We don’t want her to think we’re using her the way the Council has and cause her to close herself off to us.”
He had a point. Asking too many questions this early would put her on alert, and she’d clam up in an instant. I already knew she was cunning and observant. I marked every careful expression that crossed her face and noted the precise way she chose her words.
She didn’t trust us—and for good reason. She would have been a fool to do so without proof of our loyalty.
It filled me with pleasure even as it sparked my annoyance.
In unison, Valor and I said, “Yes, Alpha.”
“I also want to set up a meeting with Brielle and Isolde. She’ll acclimate quicker if she’s around another Omega who can vouch for us.”
“I think that would be good for her,” Valor agreed. “I’ll talk to her about it when we go home.”
When we go home.
To our mate.
The words coursed through me like an electric current, and they only dug deeper as we said goodbye to our Alpha and Beta. We left the Alpha’s house and silently headed down the path, each of us lost in thought.
