Pack Fever: Omegaverse Romance

Chapter 27

Twenty-Seven

I’m on the phone again, desperation clawing at me as Reed’s voicemail kicks in for the umpteenth time. The penthouse phone rings endlessly, with no answer. Panic tightens its grip as I call the reception from the stadium, urging them to check the room. The news comes back like a punch to the gut—the room’s empty, no sign of Reed or Danica.

Two hours ago, Reed had left our meeting at the stadium and said he’d be back in a flash, that he was just grabbing something from the hotel. But now, silence. Danica’s unreachable, and I’m pacing a trench into the floor, the phone feeling like a boulder weight in my hand.

Jasper’s in my face, his expression mirroring the storm growing inside me. “Well?” he presses, his voice tight with concern.

“Nothing,” I bark out, the frustration boiling over. “Where the hell is he?”

“Did she go into heat again? And they’re going at it?” His question hangs heavy, and there’s not a smirk on his face.

“If they are, it’s not in the penthouse. So, where did he take her?” The words leave me in a rush.

Jasper pauses, a thoughtful look crossing his face. His gaze drifts to the backstage lot, lost in thought. When he turns back, his jaw is set, determination etched in every line of his face.

Grabbing his phone, Jasper dials Reed, leaving a message that’s more a barrage of frustration and worry than words. “You better answer, Reed, and not be pulling some fucking prank, or I swear I’ll kick you so hard, you’ll never see the sun again,” he growls into the phone.

With no response and time ticking away, I declare, “We leave… now.”

Jasper doesn’t hesitate, his movements swift as we navigate the backstage, a blur of guards helping fans out of our path before us as we make our way to the car.

Behind the wheel, my fingers drum in an anxious rhythm. Jasper’s on the phone again, his voice a constant in the background as he pleads with the hotel to check the room again and to ask around for any sign of Danica or Reed.

The call back from the hotel comes moments later, and Jasper has his phone on speaker.

“Sir, my colleague at our cafe just advised me that he spoke with Reed. He then witnessed them both rushing frantically to the parking area of the hotel about an hour ago. They haven’t been seen since. Sorry I can’t be of more help.”

“No, that’s fine. Thanks.”

Then he hangs up.

“Why would they rush?” I blurt. My mind races, piecing together fragments of possibilities of where they were hurrying to, but nothing makes sense in my head.

But Jasper’s frantically tapping away on his phone.

“What did you find?” I ask, my grip on the steering wheel tightening as we weave through traffic, the urgency to get back to the hotel gnawing at me.

Jasper doesn’t glance up from his phone, his fingers flying over the screen. “New photos are popping up on social media of Reed and Danica in the hotel cafe lobby. Someone spotted them this morning, and now the media’s buzzing, asking if she’s your mystery girl,” he explains with frustration in his words.

My blood runs cold. “Fuck! What if Nexus sees that and spots her?” The thought of Danica caught by them, taken, sends a wave of dread through me.

“This is so fucked! Something bad’s happened to them,” he says with panic in his voice. “What if Nexus took them after seeing those photos from the hotel?”

My throat goes dry, and I feel like I’m going to be sick. Jasper’s back to tapping on his phone. My guess is he’s trying to track them down, to piece together their whereabouts from any other sightings mentioned online.

Desperation claws at me as I’m desperate for answers, for any sign of hope.

As I navigate the congested city streets, my patience wears thin. Each stop and start chipping away at my frayed nerves. The traffic has slowed to a crawl, a field of brake lights stretching out before us. I attempt to cut through, my knee bouncing with barely contained anxiety, desperate to find any gap in the traffic that might get us moving faster.

“Fucking rubberneckers,” Jasper growls beside me. “They need to watch the road, not every fucking accident that happens.”

His comment barely registers as my focus narrows on the road ahead, on finding a way through this snarl of cars. But as we inch closer to the accident, the sight grabs my attention. Police lights flash around a car that strikes a chord of dread in me.

It’s a black sports car, banged up and isolated in the opposite lane. My heart stutters—the car is identical to the one Reed hired for our stay in the city. A cold wave of fear washes over me, my blood turning to ice as Jasper gasps beside me.

Without a second thought, Jasper flings open his door and sprints toward the accident site, his urgency thumping similar to the one inside me. Thoughts of Reed and Danica, of what might have happened to them, race through my mind, each more horrifying than the last.

I slam the car into park, the handbrake cranked to its limit, and I’m out in an instant, my feet carrying me faster than I thought possible. The clusterfuck of traffic, the blare of horns, and the shouts of frustration fade into the background as I weave through the cars, my only focus on the wrecked vehicle and the scene unfolding around it.

Catching up to Jasper, I find him speaking with a thin police officer with a mustache, his body language tense. Jasper’s questions are rapid. My heart pounds in my throat, a drumbeat of fear as I wait for any word, any sign that might tell us what happened.

It’s a weight that threatens to crush me, leaving me struggling for breath.

“Are they your friends?” the cop asks firmly.

“Yes. What happened here? Where are they?” I reply, my voice strained.

It’s only when the officer glances at me that he seems to recognize me, his eyes widening as a flicker of reality passes over his face of who’s standing in front of him. For a moment, he appears almost starstruck, but he quickly regains his composure with a cough.

“We arrived on the scene to find the car smashed up and abandoned.”

“And the driver? The passenger?” Jasper interjects, demanding answers. “These are our friends, our family.”

The cop hesitates, his expression tight. “We don’t have any information on who’s responsible yet, but I will need you both to answer some questions about your friends.”

“Of course,” Jasper responds while I’m tensing up.

“Come on, man, please,” I plead, reaching out to touch his arm. “Just tell us what happened here. What do you know?”

The cop’s demeanor softens slightly, though conflict plays in his expression. Leaning in, he lowers his voice.

“Look, all I can say is what witnesses reported. They crashed into an SUV that jutted out right into their path. Then, the male driver and female passenger were dragged out by hooded men and thrown into the SUV before driving away. It happened in a matter of seconds, in broad daylight.”

My blood turns to ice. “Was it a silver SUV?”

He nods. “Do you know something about who could be responsible?” he demands.

I give him a fast rendition of us being chased the other night by a silver SUV in another state. The cop nods as if he’s storing the information away for the case.

I blink at him while Jasper’s peppering him with questions about what else witnesses saw. A cold dread washes over me, my gut churning with fear and terror.

“Who the fuck would do this?” I blurt out.

“Do you know anyone who might want to hurt them?” the officer asks, his gaze searching my face.

Nexus comes to mind.

“Maybe super obsessed fans?” the officer continues.

Jasper gives him a noncommittal response, then takes the time to provide our contact details, saying he’s ready to answer any questions he has about Danica and Reed, anything to find them. The officer admits the SUV had no number plate.

Meanwhile, I’m staring at the beaten-up sports car, ignoring the passersby honking, calling out my name, the flash of cameras going off. I don’t give a fuck about any of that, not when someone’s kidnapped my Omega and one of my best friends.

That silver SUV from back at her mom’s place ripples over my thoughts. And now I can’t ignore the obvious clues that we did have Nexus on our tails this whole time.

Danica

As consciousness slowly creeps back, the world around me seems to sway and spin, a disorienting tilt that makes my head throb with a dull ache. My eyes flutter open, only to be greeted by the dim, murky confines of a dingy room. The scant light filters through the cracks in the crudely boarded-up windows, casting shadows that dance across the peeling paint of the walls.

I’m on a cold, hard floor, the chill seeping into my bones. Panic surges as I realize my hands are bound behind my back, the sharp grip of plastic ties cutting into my wrists. My ankles are similarly restrained. Fear claws at my throat, urging me to scream, but I clamp down on the instinct, refusing to give in to despair or to let my captors know I’m awake. The last thing I remember is being dragged from the car and having something shot into my neck. It explains why it’s sore there.

Gathering my wits, I scan the room, my gaze skittering over the barren space until it lands on Reed. He’s a shadowy figure slumped in the corner, bound and motionless. A deep pang of fear thumps through me.

“Reed,” I call out in a hushed whisper, desperate for some sign of life from him. My heart pounds against my ribcage, each beat loud in my ears. I cast a wary glance toward the shut door, contemplating who exactly we’re dealing with.

Would Nexus go to such extremes? And why kidnap Reed as well?

If I can somehow manage to stand, to find something sharp to sever these ties, there might be a chance of escape. But I need Reed—awake, alert, and by my side.

When he doesn’t stir, his chin resting heavily on his chest, the sight of him so defeated, so vulnerable, twists something deep inside me.

“Hey, Reed,” I try again, more insistent this time, as I begin to inch my way across the grimy floor toward him on my ass. The rough surface scrapes against my skin, but I push through the discomfort, driven by the need to reach him, to wake him.

The last thing I remember before the darkness claimed me was the chaos of the crash and the menacing figures from the silver SUV descending upon us like doom. Now, here we are, captured and confined. What do they want with us?

As I draw closer, my resolve hardens. We’re in this together, but I’m not about to let it end here, not without a damn fight. My whole life, I’ve been told where to go, how to behave, and lived with fear. Well, I’d gone and broken so many rules by escaping Nexus’ capture, so I sure as hell am not going to stop now. Not after discovering how incredible life can be again, how I’ve found my extended family, how I crave these Alphas like I do oxygen.

“Reed, please,” I whisper a bit louder. “We need to get out of here.”

Reed’s groan of awakening cuts through the silence of the dimly lit room, his voice groggy and disoriented. “Danica, baby, don’t be shy. You know you want it,” he mumbles, his eyes still closed. He’s clearly still caught in the remnants of his dream. I can’t help but raise an eyebrow at his confused state, nudging him harder with my side to snap him back to reality.

He jolts awake, his eyes snapping open as he takes in our grim surroundings, the realization dawning on him that this is no dream. “W-Wait... this isn’t…” he stammers, a flush of embarrassment crossing his face.

“Sorry, this isn’t your fantasy,” I quip, slightly impressed that he’s dreaming of me now.

It takes him only a moment to shake off his hazy state, his expression turning serious as he assesses our predicament.

“Where the hell are we? And who were those asses who attacked us in the car?” he asks, his expression twisting with confusion and anger. He faces me. “Are you hurt?”

I shake my head, the discomfort of our situation pressing in on me. “I’m okay, but have no idea what’s going on,” I admit. “We need to get out before they come back for us.”

Reed wastes no time, shuffling against the wall to leverage himself up to his feet. He steadies himself before turning his attention to me. “I have a blade in my pants. I need you to grab it,” he instructs, his tone urgent.

Relief washes over me because that’s exactly what I need to hear. We have a weapon for a fast escape.

Mimicking his actions, I use the wall for support, managing to stand despite the awkward angle of my bound hands. I turn my back to him, allowing me access to his pocket, my fingers fumbling for his pocket as I attempt to locate the knife.

“Not there,” Reed hisses softly, a hint of urgency in his voice. “The pocket’s on the inside of my pants; you gotta go in from the top.”

I pause, casting a dubious glance over my shoulder at him. “Why do you have a pocket there?”

“For such situations,” he remarks sarcastically.

The tension in the air grows thick as I roll my eyes.

I press my bound hands against the top of his pants, searching for the inner pocket he mentioned. My fingers trembling slightly, I finally slip inside, grazing the heat of his skin. He’s making small moaning sounds, which only distracts me.

“You’re enjoying this too much,” I say.

“Not at all. I hate you having your hand down my pants.” His sarcasm is in overdrive today.

I fumble for a moment before my fingertips brush against the small, cool metal of the pocketknife. A wave of relief washes over me as I grasp it, ready to cut us free from our bindings and face whatever comes next.

Reed’s hands are free first, and he quickly takes the small blade from me, his movements precise and efficient as he slices through the plastic ties binding my wrists. I’m shaking and constantly glancing at the door, scared that we’ll get busted.

“It’s going to be okay,” he whispers in my ear, his breath on my neck sending tingles down my spine.

Of course, it’s the wrong time to be turned on by Reed. Things between us are still confusing. He’s there for me and all my Omega needs, but the closeness between us is still evolving into what I have with Jasper and Seth.

Free of his ties, Reed is kneeling in front of me, cutting me free at my ankle, then glances up with that ridiculous smile that melts me. Short, dark blond hair is messy around his face.

Finally, he gets to his feet, towering over me. Then he checks his pockets.

“Of fucking course. They took my phone. Motherfuckers.” He sighs.

“I’m glad you’re with me,” I say softly.

He turns to me, pushing a stray lock off my face. “Me, too. I’d be beside myself if you vanished, and I had no idea where you were.”

Wait. Did he just admit to missing me?

Blade in hand, Reed cautiously approaches the door, his body tense, ready for whatever might lie beyond. I stay close, my heart pounding in my chest as he peers out into the dark hallway. The air is heavy with the scent of decay, the narrow corridor barely lit by the faint, flickering light bulb hanging from the ceiling.

We move out in silence, Reed taking my hand in his, our steps light as we navigate the shadowy passage. Every creak underfoot has me cringing. I strain my ears, certain I can hear the low murmur of voices, the occasional whimper that might be someone else caught in this nightmare. The uncertainty is maddening, the fear of the unknown a constant weight pressing down on us.

The house is a maze of dark, narrow hallways, each turn revealing nothing but more peeling wallpaper and the stench of rot. And no one around but those murmuring sounds I keep hearing now and then. Where in the world are we?

I keep glancing over my shoulder, my heart in my throat. I don’t even care at this stage to know who kidnapped us or why. I just want out of here.

As we round a corner, a figure looms out of the darkness, the sudden appearance so shocking, I barely have time to register the guard before the barrel of a gun smashes into Reed’s face. The sound is sickening, a brutal crack that echoes in the cramped space, and Reed crumples to the ground without a sound.

A scream tears from my throat, raw and filled with terror.

“You aren’t going anywhere, bitch!” the guard barks, coming for me.

It takes me two seconds to notice he’s not wearing a Nexus uniform. Seeing the scars on his face, the torn T-shirt, the location… nothing rings of a government institute.

“Don’t touch me,” I snap, retreating. “Who the fuck are you?”

He lunges for me, and all I see is darkness swallowing me.