Chapter 15 #2
The door to her room creaks open, and I tear my eyes away from where Bea is curled in her pile of scented blankets and clothes.
Lex peeks his head in, returning for the first time since his earlier departure.
He slips inside, moving to stand on the opposite side of the bed.
A pained look flashes through his eyes when he looks down at her.
He slips a fluffy coffeepot-shaped stuffed animal into the pile beside her.
When his eyes meet mine, his scowl returns. Grumpy asshole. His head jerks toward the door. I reluctantly follow him into the hall.
“Porter wants to debrief you.”
Growling, I glance back into the dark, quiet hospital room.
Being away from Bea has my instincts automatically stirring to life.
After everything we’ve been through, leaving her side won’t be easy.
The last time she was out of my sight, she wound up beneath Harrison’s scalpel, and my inner Alpha is still raging from the pain we felt in our connection.
“No one will get to her here. Not with so many agents in the building, and not with Ridley glued to her side,” Lex promises.
“I’m sure you thought the same before she was taken.”
He looks away, jaw clenching, as my words hit their mark. “A mistake that won’t happen again,” he grits out. “The sooner you talk to Porter, the sooner you get back here.”
Sighing in defeat, I scrub a hand over my head and nod. “Fine. Let’s go.”
Riding down to the hospital lobby, I break our shared silence. “You planning on telling me what’s going on between you and Bea? Don’t think I’m going to forget your slip of the tongue earlier.”
He crosses his arms over his chest, refusing to answer.
“You’re clinging to the same old excuses, aren’t you?
Trying to protect her from you?” I shake my head as the elevator comes to a stop.
“Self-sacrificing won’t save her; it’s only going to hurt you both.
Go to therapy, Lex. The DAU pays for gold-tier health insurance for a reason.
Learn to cope with your trauma and stop believing the worst of yourself. ”
Putting one hand on the door frame, I pause and look back at him, ignoring the piercing glare he has leveled at me. “That voice in your head isn’t yours. It’s your father’s.”
I leave him to ruminate on his determination to self-destruct and head outside.
The FCDA and DAU have set up a temporary headquarters nearby.
After the raid on the breeding camp the night before last, both agencies compiled the evidence they gathered and presented it to a judge.
As soon as a warrant was granted, subsequent raids hit the Wexern anti-designation compound and Senator Brown’s properties.
It’s been nearly forty-eight-hours of nonstop movement to dismantle this ring.
News stations camp outside, reporting on the rescue of so many missing Alphas and Omegas. Thankfully, my face is unknown, so I can slip by them without being hounded for updates. I’ll leave all the publicity to Porter and the FCDA’s press secretary.
Security calls Porter when I arrive at the building. Since the Eternals kidnapped me off the streets, any form of identification I had on hand is now missing. I don’t have my personal ID or agency badge to verify who I am.
“Did you have the tech team invalidate my ID?” I ask Porter when he escorts me inside.
“As soon as we realized you were missing, yes.” He grunts and waves me through a second door, leading into a small office. “But you don’t have to worry about it being misused, because it was mixed in with the evidence Ferguson secured.”
Letting out a relieved breath, I take one of the empty seats.
Losing your government-issued identification is risky.
Whoever finds it can’t use it to access government buildings, but they can use it to impersonate you and commit crimes.
Which is a terrifying thought. I do not want anyone using my name or likeness to harm others.
“First, I owe you an apology,” Porter says as he sits across from me.
He leans his elbows on his knees and meets my eyes.
“It took too long for the agency to realize you were missing. If the follow-up to your temporary suspension had occurred on schedule, we may have been able to track you down sooner.”
Blowing out a breath, I admit it isn’t entirely his fault. I share the blame for acting recklessly and getting taken.
“Even so, I’m sorry.”
“Let’s just move on. I would like to get back to the hospital before my Omega wakes.”
With a nod, he dives right in. He has me recount the night I was kidnapped and everything I can remember afterward. It’s obvious some of what he hears makes him uncomfortable, but he doesn’t comment until I get to the day Bea arrived.
“Fates, Creed! I do not understand how you could maintain control of your Alpha after that.”
“Sheer willpower. If Marcus figured out who she was to me, what they did to her would have been a thousand times worse.” Honestly, after seeing them toss her back in that cage, blood-soaked and missing her scent glands, I don’t know if it wouldn’t have been better to fight for her earlier.
Shaking my head, I rid myself of those thoughts. We can’t rewind time, so I have to accept that I did all I could in those moments to get us both out alive.
When the debrief winds down, someone knocks on the door. Porter gets up to open it, so I take a moment to stretch my legs. I’m feeling a little jittery after sitting for so long. A remnant of being caged for a long period. My mind doesn’t like this stretch of inactivity.
Donovan Griffith, one of the DAU’s leaders, walks in, with Lex following behind him. I raise an eyebrow at my friend, but he just gives me a bland look and remains silent. McBroody has returned, apparently.
“Mister Barrett,” Donovan greets, offering me a hand to shake before claiming one of the spare seats.
“You both share a Fated connection to Miss Powell, correct?” Porter asks, aiming his question at Lex.
“Yeah.”
“And you intend to claim her as your Omega?” Donovan speaks this time, glancing at us with narrowed eyes.
“She’s mine,” I tell him.
Lex is quiet for several seconds before he jerks his head. I’m oddly relieved to know he isn’t running from our mate. She’s been through enough. She doesn’t need one of her Alphas being an asshole to her.
“To continue this conversation, it will go on record that you are announcing your intention to bond with her.” Porter’s serious expression raises the hair on my arms, my instincts pushing to the surface as my inner Alpha senses something is wrong.