Chapter 5 Archer
Archer
The cottage door slams open with a bang that nearly makes me slice my damn finger off. I twirl the combat knife, annoyed that Elias has interrupted my perfectly good brooding.
He’s still running his mouth about the omega. “Did you see how she moved? Like a wildcat. I bet she—”
I tune him out. I’ve been hearing the same shit on repeat since we got back. That feral omega. That fierce little she-wolf who gave us the slip.
Darius storms in behind him, looking like he just went ten rounds with a bear and lost. Eyes wild, hair a mess.
“Pack meeting. Now.” His alpha command hits hard, reverberating through my bones. I straighten up.
Fuck, I hate it when he does that.
The floorboards creak as Silas ducks through the doorway, his frame filling the space. The guy hasn’t said a word since… well, we all know when. We’re all damaged goods. Silas just wears his scars for everyone to see.
Darius whirls to face us. “We’re going after the omega at first light.”
Elias lets out a whoop that makes me want to jam the knife into my eardrums. “Fuck yeah! It’s about time we had some fun around here.”
I kick his shin. “Shut it, dickhead.”
But Elias is too far gone. “I can’t wait to get my hands on that mouth.”
This time, my boot connects with his nuts. He doubles over, wheezing. “Show some respect,” I say.
I can’t shake the image of that omega, though. I’m as hooked as the rest of them. After the show she put on yesterday, it’s all any of us have been able to think about. Those blue eyes that promise violence to anyone stupid enough to try caging her.
I’ve got a sinking feeling she’s going to be more trouble than our pack can handle. But with Darius on the warpath, there’s no talking him down.
He clears his throat, drawing our attention. “Listen up. I’ve got a plan.”
I lean back, crossing my arms. This ought to be good.
“We’re gonna cook her a steak,” he announces, like it’s the most ingenious idea ever conceived. “Make ourselves look non-threatening.”
A bark of laughter escapes me. “Yeah, ‘cause nothing says ‘trust us’ like chasing someone through the woods like psychos, then offering them dinner.”
Darius glares at me. “You got a better idea, Archer?”
I shrug. “Just saying, might be a little late for the charm offensive.”
Elias, apparently recovered from his nut shot, pipes up. “I’ve got it!” He’s practically vibrating. “We wear masks!”
We all stare at him.
“Think about it,” he continues, grinning. “It’s Halloween, right? So we wear masks, and she won’t recognize us!”
I pinch the bridge of my nose. “Fuck, Elias, you really do think with your dick, don’t you?”
But Darius is nodding, a manic look in his eye. “It’s not the worst idea. Might catch her off guard.”
I look around at my packmates. A bunch of alphas, drunk on the scent of an omega, ready to do something monumentally stupid.
Darius’ obsessive need to control everything.
Elias can’t keep it in his pants for five minutes.
And Silas hasn’t taken his eyes off the treeline, like she might come walking out at any second.
But fuck it.
Maybe we need this. Maybe I need this. We’ve been stuck in survival mode for years, holding the pack together through sheer stubbornness and the fact that none of us have anywhere else to go. Something about that omega cut through the fog. I knew it the moment I caught her scent.
She’s not what any of us expected, which is probably exactly why none of us can let this go.
I should probably be the voice of reason. Talk Darius down from this insane plan and point out all the ways it could go sideways. But the truth is, the image of her has gotten hold of me, too. And the guys are so amped up right now that reason wouldn’t land, anyway.
“Fine,” I say. “But when she cuts our balls off and feeds them to us, don’t say I didn’t warn you.”