11. Jorge
11
Jorge
We were lucky that the Hearts only sent two drivers and four more guards to transport the kids to the next location, expecting that Luca and the other three guards would share in the rest of the work. And, probably, the fewer people involved in these kinds of things, the better.
Because of the element of surprise, Vera, Caleb and Miles were able to take all the bastards out without too much of a hassle.
At which point the people I asked to help us arrived. They’re a security company that a couple of my clients sometimes use and I’ve built some report with them over the years. They were the only people I could think of at such short notice who would likely be nearby enough to be of any help and have the required skills.
We no longer needed their immediate protection, but it felt good to have them here, in case the Hearts sent more people. Either because they realised something was wrong or because of other reasons we might not be aware of.
The security team were able to get Luca and the kids out of the building without them seeing too much of the carnage in the room. We didn’t want to traumatise them more than they already were.
I have no idea how long these kids have been with the Hearts, where they came from or where they were going, but they’re safe now. They’re going to be okay. And that’s the thing that matters the most.
We found blankets in the vans that were supposed to bring the kids to their next destination. So we grabbed those and then made the kids comfortable in the cars that the security team arrived in. We didn’t want to put them into the Hearts vans, that didn’t feel right, but we also didn’t want them to wander around outside.
When Eli and the people from Mathew’s organisation who hadn’t joined in tonight’s mission arrived, things were starting to settle down.
Vera managed to clean herself up somewhat, so she’s less bloody now, but she’s still wearing my shirt. Her dress is in a pile in the middle of the room, as bloody as the floor around it. I don’t think she’ll be wearing that any time soon, if at all.
She looked so cute at the start of the evening. Now, not so much.
Actually, she still looks cute. But more like a feral rabbit covered in smears of blood. Cute, but clearly dangerous.
Eli brought along snacks and drinks for the kids, since we have no idea when they last had anything to eat or drink. And he also brought along more soft blankets for them, so they would be able to get as comfortable as possible in this otherwise very stressful situation.
I’m so glad that he decided to come too, as I have no idea how to deal with so many young kids and he seems to know exactly what to do. He’s now looking after them together with Luca.
Luca…
The Beta man is around Vera, Mathew and my age, in his mid to late twenties, skinny and full of fear. His caramel pheromones have a bitter note to them, a sign of trauma and long-term distress.
I have no idea how long he’s been under the Hearts’ control, but he clearly wasn’t there because he wanted to be. What happened that a man as soft and considerate as Luca ended up in a situation where he’s being ordered around by an organisation as vile as the Hearts?
Fuck.
Vera is leaning against the hood of a car, her eyes not leaving Luca. She so clearly wants to hold him, and the feeling seems to be mutual if I go by the glances he keeps shooting in her direction, but he’s also terrified of her.
“Jorge?!” Mathew’s distressed voice suddenly sounds in my ear and I jump. I’d totally forgotten I was wearing an earpiece.
“Fucking hell. I didn’t need another scare tonight.” I take deep breaths, trying to get my heart rate to go back down.
“What’s going on there? Is everyone safe? Is everyone okay?” His words are fast and full of worry.
“We’re all okay. Vera snuck off because she found something interesting. But we found her again.”
“She snuck off ?!” Mathew’s voice rises even higher.
The next moment, Vera jumps, frowning as she puts her hand to one of her ears, and then she laughs as she comes over to me. Caleb gave her an earpiece too, for easier communication until we’re all back home, and Mathew is all too happy to make use of it.
“Please don’t scare Mathew. Everything is fine and everyone is safe.” She leans against me, smiling, her voice light. “How did your mission go?”
I wrap my arm around her shoulders and keep her against me, anxiety shooting through my body. I was so focused on everything that was going on here that I didn’t have the time or energy to worry about Mathew and Riley. I guess there’s no better way to get your mind off bad things than to get into a stressful situation yourself…
“It didn’t go according to plan, but we’re also good.” Mathew lets out a humourless laugh. “Our feelings were right, there was something fishy going on with this place. I don’t think that Allen was aware of it, but the Hearts are definitely involved in this biotech research company. And not in a fun way.”
“What did you find out?” A lump forms in my throat.
I didn’t want to be right. I wanted to be wrong. I wanted all our anxieties and fears to be unfounded and that we were just too on edge and seeing things that weren’t there.
Mathew seems to think something over. “I think it’s easier to explain at home. We’re coming back with one extra person, found someone who didn’t belong in the lab. Let’s hope he’s got useful information for us.”
Vera lets out a laugh, a note of competitiveness in her voice. “Is your source of information at least conscious?”
“My… What?” Mathew sounds confused.
“Our two are knocked out. Haven’t woken up yet.” She looks at me sheepishly. Yeah, them being out for this long is generally not that good of a sign…
“T— Two?” This seems to confuse him even more.
“Yes, we’re bringing back two vans full of extra people. I guess it’s good timing that all the rooms are at least finished enough that people can sleep in them.” I can’t help my smile at Mathew’s confusion. “I thought that Timothy would have explained everything by now?”
Mathew lets out a frustrated sound. “No, he didn’t explain anything. He only told us you were safe and fine. He didn’t actually tell us what happened. He told me to call you so you could explain. So, what the fuck happened? You were supposed to go on a cute date, not face off against the Hearts.”
Vera’s eyes immediately drift off to Luca, her voice going quiet and low. “I caught the pheromones of a scent match. I followed the trail and found that he was taking care of some kids that the Hearts were transporting between locations. Two of the guards are unconscious, the third one is dead. The scent match is fine, though traumatised, and the kids are fine too.”
“Fuck…” Mathew’s voice seems to wander off as he takes in all the information. “Another scent match?”
“Yep.” Vera’s voice is soft.
“But he’s part of the Hearts?” Now his voice turns cold and hard.
Before either of them can say anything more, I jump in. “I don’t think it’s willingly. He became really distressed when he caught a sniff of Vera and Caleb’s pheromones. He seemed to know who they were and got really insistent that they had to get out of here, that the Hearts couldn’t catch them. I think he might be our missing link to explain what’s been happening with the Hearts and everything else lately. And I don’t think he even knows it.”
Mathew is quiet for a while. “I guess we’ve got a lot of people to question when we get home. How long until you get back?”
I look around. “I don’t know. I think we’ll be leaving soon. Your people will stay behind longer, clean up and everything, but we’ll be driving back with Eli and the kids as soon as possible. We don’t want to leave them here any longer than they have to be.” And we desperately need to get Luca to a safer location too. “What about you?”
“We’re about to leave. Most of the teams have already left, but Riley and I stayed behind with Timothy and some of the others to finish up some final things.” He lets out a long breath. “I wanted to call you first, but didn’t want to be driving while I did.”
“We’ll see you at home soon. Yeah?” My heart aches.
I want to hold Mathew so badly. So much has happened tonight, for both of us, and I really need to hold him right now. Make sure he’s really okay, make sure he’s really safe.
“See you soon.” Mathew seems to suddenly be really tired.
While I’d love to go to sleep with him in my arms as soon as we get back, I have a feeling that we won’t be going to sleep until the next time the sun goes down, or maybe even the day after that.
“Jorge?” Eli is standing not too far off. “Can I talk to you?” He nods to the side, away from the others.
“Sure.” I kiss the top of Vera’s head, pulling a face when her hair is sticky. I don’t want to think about what that could be. “I’ll be right back.”
She nods, wandering off to Caleb, who lifts her against his side and she hides her face in his neck. Caleb meets my eyes for a moment, giving me an exhausted smile. Yeah, we’re all tired and Vera is being very needy. Probably part of that is exhaustion, but the rest is because she can’t hug the one person she really wants to hold right now.
I follow Eli, not sure I want to hear what he’s got to say.
“I think it’s best if the two of us drive with Luca and some of the kids.” He glances back, not to Luca, but to Caleb and Vera, tense. “I don’t know what the Hearts did to him, but Vera and Caleb’s pheromones set off some trauma response. I would prefer not to have that happen on our way back.”
My heart tightens. Vera is already struggling because she can’t be near him right now, but to split them up for the trip back? That could lead to some bad consequences.
“Does he have something with his scent on it that we can give her until we’re home? If her exhaustion kicks in for real and she’s separated from him, I don’t know what might happen.” Separating an Omega from her scent matches, especially in stressful situations is bad enough, but while she’s pregnant? That could make things even worse.
“The blanket he’s been sitting under should work. I don’t know how he’ll react if we ask him for anything more than that.” Eli lets out a deep sigh. “With the state he’s in… Things might be tricky for a while. He’s broken in ways I’ve not seen often.”
Fuck.
Of course, between his bitter pheromones, the way he reacted when he caught Vera and Caleb’s scents and his general reaction to everything, it’s clear he’s been through hell.
A growl builds deep in my chest but I don’t let it slip out.
I’m going to make sure that Luca never has to worry like this again. That he’ll always feel safe and protected and loved.
I need to make sure.
Because I’ve never seen someone this broken and pained before and it hurts that I can’t fix it right this moment.
I need him to be okay.
I need the pack to be okay.
I want everyone to finally stop hurting, but I feel like it might take a long time until we get there. Not until we take down the Hearts for good.