31. Talya
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
TALYA
I barely managed to grab the bar in front of me as Emerald slammed on the gas and drove us over the median. It wasn’t high, but it was a pronounced enough mound that I was jostled roughly. I screamed again as we came down flat, though it was more from being startled by the unexpected impact than scared.
Oh, don’t get me wrong. I was scared, too. That man had nearly pulled me out of the UTV into his waiting car! Terror ripped through me, building higher and higher with each person that dove out of Emerald’s way.
“I’m going to have to send gift baskets,” he muttered and glanced back. I didn’t need to look to know we were being followed. His muttered curse said as much as soon as we hit the road again.
“Hang on, lovely,” he said. He shifted gear, and the UTV took off down the road, moving much faster than I’d ever ridden in one of these things.
I wanted to look back. I wanted to see if we were still being followed, but I didn’t have the courage to. My heart was in my throat. At this speed, the engine roared so loudly that I could barely hear myself think.
“It’s going to get rough,” Emerald said.
After those words, I couldn’t stop myself. I twisted in my seat. Sure enough, the car was right behind us. I didn’t recognize most of the men inside. Not as one of the betas who’d had me and Colby before. Not even one of the ones who’d stolen us in the night. They were strangers. Completely new.
The driver, however, was vaguely familiar. I’d seen him before.
“I’m going to need you to answer my phone,” Emerald said. He dropped the ringing phone in my lap then gripped the steering wheel with both hands again.
He shifted once more, and with a hard jerk, we turned off the smooth, straight road and broke into the trees. Here we slowed down as Emerald wove his way through the foliage. I yelped when the UTV skidded as he spun us around a large tree.
The phone started ringing again.
“Answer it, baby,” Emerald said.
I didn’t want to let go of the bar. It felt like I was on a roller coaster being thrown all over. But I did as he said and somehow managed to hit the speaker icon too.
“Where are you?” Ainsley’s voice said.
“In the woods,” Emerald answered.
“What happened?” someone else asked. Lohtus, I thought.
“I realized we were being followed. When they figured out that we were on to them, they tried to cut us off and pull Talya from the vehicle.”
Swearing. Growls. Snarls filled the air.
“Are you okay, Talya?” Ainsley asked.
“Yes,” I answered, then I screamed again when Emerald abruptly swerved to move us out of the path of a giant tree. “He’s a crazy driver. Just saying.”
Emerald snorted.
“Are you still being followed?”
Emerald glanced to his right. “I can’t tell. I’m not close enough to the driveway. I have to think they know where we’re going though.”
“How many?”
“They just tried for Talya?”
“Two at the moment, and yes,” Emerald answered.
I was awed that he was able to hold a conversation while also not slamming us into trees. My hand was throbbing from the strength of my white-knuckled grip on the handle.
“How far away are you?”
“I’ll be turning into the fields soon. I’m trying to keep us under cover as much as we can, which is practically pointless since the engine is so loud, but at least I know their car can’t get in here.”
As he finished his sentence, the trees broke open and we started driving through fields. I tried to orient myself, but I felt all turned around. Were we in with the horses? Oh. Nope, there was the fence. We were driving straight toward it.
I screamed again when Emerald made another abrupt turn. Our back wheels skidded sideways and fishtailed before we straightened out. Somehow, we barely lost any speed as he did so. If I wasn’t so damn terrified, I’d be really impressed with his ability to maneuver this thing.
“Keep a lookout, baby. You’re doing great. Let me know if you see the car or anyone. Okay?” Emerald asked, his voice smooth and soothing. I thought there was a hint of a purr, but it didn’t make much of a dent in the fear that had encased me.
I nodded.
“Where are you?” Ainsley asked again.
“Approaching the driveway by means of driving along the horses’ paddock.”
The house came into view, and I nearly swallowed my tongue in relief. Tears stung my eyes. It was almost over. I had to think that two men wouldn’t enter a house filled with alphas. Right? That would just be stupid. Then again, they had tried to take me in broad daylight in front of everyone!
“I hear the engine,” someone said on the phone.
“They’re here,” Kasen said right before we turned onto the driveway.
I twisted again so I could see behind us. This time, I didn’t see the car.
We approached the house quickly, and Emerald swung us around the fountain. The back tires skidded and slid until we came to a stop. My door was yanked open, and I was in Colby’s arms before I could catch my breath.
When the adrenaline that had been keeping me going dropped, I began to shake. My tears were dislodged as I trembled in his arms. For a long time, no one said anything. I clung to Colby, sobbing, as the fear of the last fifteen or so minutes caught up to me.
“Inside,” Lohtus said quietly after a few moments.
Colby lifted me up and headed for the house. The terror started to lessen as the familiar scents of my pack filled my lungs, surrounding me. I was safe. Everything was fine. We had made it home, and they didn’t take me.
Another hand rested on my head, gently brushing my hair back in a gesture of comfort. The scent told me it was Blakely, so I shifted in Colby’s arms to peek at him.
“You need anything, sweetheart?” Blakely asked.
I shook my head. “Thanks,” I whispered.
He nodded. Leaning forward, he pressed a kiss to my forehead. “You’re safe now.”
We were sitting on the couch. Now that I was peeking out, I found Kasen sitting in a chair across from me, curled up with his knees to his chest and his eyebrows knitted together. He looked spooked. Emerald and Ainsley were still on their feet, Ainsley holding Emerald tightly.
Lohtus was just walking into the room. “We need to call them.”
“Who?” Colby asked.
“Them . Whatever mysterious government agency oversees this protection program. Supposedly, there are agents on the island at all times, but if that’s the case, I think they’re slacking,” Lohtus deadpanned.
Colby nodded.
“You good to talk to them, Em?” Lohtus asked.
Emerald took a step back. He looked at me, offering me a smile. “Yes.” He held his hand out for the phone.
Lohtus dialed and put the phone on speaker as Emerald dropped his hand.
“Hello?” a woman on the other end answered. That could be anyone. She didn’t even identify herself.
“This is Lohtus on Cricket Island. A member of my pack was just attacked in an attempted abduction.”
Silence. “Please hold, Lohtus.”
Elevator music began to play while Emerald rolled his eyes.
“What if this had been an emergency?” Kasen asked. “We’d be stuck on hold until they located the necessary person?”
Lohtus shook his head.
“Lohtus?” This time it was a man with a deep and growly voice. Alpha.
“Yes. Can I assume you’re someone who won’t have to transfer me?” Lohtus asked.
The man snorted. “Everyone has a receptionist.”
“Our omega was the victim of a near-abduction twenty minutes ago. In broad daylight surrounded by the townsfolk,” Lohtus said.
“Someone is being dispatched to your location. In the meantime, tell me what happened.”
“Emerald was with our omega. He can tell you the details.”
There was a pause before the man said, “I don’t have an ‘Emerald’ down as being a resident of the house.”
“He is,” Ainsley snapped.
“All right. Proceed.”
Emerald took the phone, giving Ainsley an amused look. “We headed into town so…” Emerald trailed off as he looked at me, probably trying to remember the name I was supposed to be using. Giving me an apologetic look, he continued. “So I could take our omega shopping and to see the sights. We first saw the man in the bookstore, the first stop we made. I didn’t put together that we were being followed until we were leaving the fourth and I realized he was in every store we’d gone in. I took our omega and headed back for the vehicle. He followed until we rounded the corner, and I thought we’d either lost him or I was overreacting. Either way, I continued toward the vehicle. I got our omega in, and as I was starting the engine, a car blocked my path and a different man attempted to yank her out of my vehicle. I startled him and he backed off, allowing me a few seconds to get a head start.”
“How did you startle him?”
Emerald paused. He exchanged looks with Ainsley before saying, “I’m designation fluid. I barked at him, and he froze, confused.”
Another snort. “How many were there? Did you get a good look at them?”
“As far as I could tell, there were two. It was the same man from shop to shop. The man that came out of the car was different. While I didn’t look to see who was in the driver’s seat, I’m going to assume it was the man who’d been following us.”
Emerald went on to describe them both, and I was impressed with the amount of detail he was able to provide.
“Are you safe now?”
“We’re home,” Emerald said. “I would have thought being surrounded by people would have made us safe, but I’d been wrong.”
“Is it the same people?” Colby asked.
There was a pause before the answer came. “It’s difficult to say, but I’m inclined to say yes. Your omega’s bite is easily visible. Claimed omegas aren’t generally the target.”
“But their focus had been on Colby,” I said. “Why would they try to take me?”
“Taking you would force Colby out, and they'd get what they wanted.”
I shivered, tucking myself into Colby a little further. Blakely continued to gently rub my head and back, lending me comfort.
“Stay home and stay together,” the man said. “They tend to work in small groups of two to three—and no, as you learned, they don’t give a shit if they’re seen abducting their target. So don’t give them the opportunity to do so.”
“They wouldn’t have gotten far,” Emerald said. “This isn’t the mainland.”
“They were in a car,” I argued. “If they didn’t have any reservations about kidnapping with witnesses, would they have cared if they’d run a bunch of people over?”
“No. But they wouldn’t have gotten off the island,” Emerald said. “It doesn’t matter how many people they ran over. They wouldn’t have gotten far.”
I appreciated that he had a lot of confidence in his home, but I wasn’t so sure. They would have had a plan. I doubted they’d have even made the attempt if they weren’t guaranteed a route out, but I didn’t say this out loud. Now wasn’t the time.
“Just stay together. Someone will be there within a few hours.”
“We will,” Lohtus said, taking the phone back from Emerald as the call ended.
Ainsley gripped Emerald’s arm and spun him around. “You’re moving in. You’re going to be here where I know you’re safe.”
Emerald frowned. “They weren’t after me.”
“They will be now.”
The expression Emerald gave him was skeptical and a little derisive. “I’m a beta , Ainsley.”
“There were betas there,” I said quietly, causing the entire room to look at me. “In the place I was. When I was looking for Colby and opening doors, I found betas and alphas too. Not just omegas.”
Kasen was the only one who moved at my words. He shuddered violently and audibly swallowed. It didn't matter that he already knew. There were some things so terrible that you couldn't help but react each time.
“We’ll get your things. Your home is here,” Ainsley insisted.
“We never discussed that,” Emerald said. His voice was quiet, but his argument only seemed to irritate Ainsley more.
“What’s there to discuss? You’re pack. You’re?—”
“We didn’t discuss that,” Emerald interrupted. “We talked about me being here for Talya and Colby when they arrived because I was here a lot. We didn’t talk about anything else. We didn’t?—”
“Emerald,” Ainsley snapped, causing Emerald to stop talking. “I’m courting you, aren’t I? And you only court someone with intent. You’re pack. You belong here where I can keep you safe. Where we can all keep you safe.”
Emerald sighed. “I’m not arguing with you. I’m just saying that… we haven’t talked about it. Yes, we’re courting and I know what that means, but we’ve been courting for a long time and?—”
“Fuck’s sake, Em,” Ainsley growled. He grabbed Emerald, hauled him against his chest, and sank his teeth into Emerald’s neck, his growl filling the room.
Kasen sucked in a sharp breath. Emerald’s eyes went wide as his entire body went rigid.
“Fucking hell, Ainsley,” Lohtus muttered.
The room stilled completely for several minutes as Ainsley’s bond burst through Emerald almost visibly. He took a breath, pulling his teeth from Emerald’s skin. Blood glistened on his lips and the broken flesh on his beta’s neck, dripping until Ainsley licked it up and began tending to it. “Mine,” he growled. “Do you understand now? Is that what you needed, Em?”
Emerald took a deep breath and held it. “I can feel your fear,” he whispered.
Ainsley nodded without comment.
“I—”
Ainsley sighed. “I’m sorry. That was stupidly inappropriate, though I don’t regret it. I’ll make it up to you so you have a good memory and not one filled with stress and argument. But fuck’s sake, Em. You’re mine. I love you. If I thought you needed a bite to have confidence in that, in us , I’d have done so a long time ago.”
Emerald shook his head. “I guess I… I’m sorry.”
Ainsley rested his forehead against Emerald’s. “You don’t need to be. I just need you to understand that you’re part of this pack. You were being frustrating when right now is not the time to make an alpha freak out. You’d both just nearly been abducted!”
“They weren’t?—”
“They would have,” he insisted, “and now they certainly will, especially since they just figured out that you’re not an ordinary beta. Please, just trust me on that. I need you here. You need to be here. Don’t argue anymore. You were pack without the bite, but if that’s what you needed to understand that, then fine.”
Emerald shook his head.
“I can feel your anxiety,” Ainsley said with a smirk. “I can feel your self-doubt. And I can feel your fear. Don’t argue with me.”
Emerald scowled. “There aren’t any secrets anymore, are there?”
“No.”
“It’s better that way,” Kasen said quietly. “Trust.”
The front door opened, and we all shifted to look at who stepped inside. I hadn’t realized Ronan wasn’t here until I was staring at his imposing frame blocking the daylight. “I have them tied up. Can you identify them for me?”
“You have them?” Colby began as I sat up straight, chills skittering down my spine.