Chapter Nine
Twelve hours later
The Lodge
Chase
He slept in, which he never did. Not being in a familiar bed or even room, he’d expected to have trouble sleeping, but maybe Ford had been right that the rush of emotions, the stress and chaos of everything that had happened with Lucky, had been enough to knock him out.
He checked on Lucky after he dressed, not long before ten in the morning, but he was sleeping soundly.
“His pulse is normal.”
Chase almost jumped at the soft nearness of Ford’s voice behind him. “I wasn’t checking his pulse. I want to make sure he’s sleeping without pain or nightmares.”
They were looking for different indicators, which just showcased how different they were.
Ford was an ORTa who thought about the basic, obvious signs of discomfort, but Chase was more worried about Lucky’s mind.
This whole thing had probably fucked him up and Lucky would be the last person to admit it, because he hated being considered a burden.
Despite his propensity for becoming the centre of attention, it was never something he actively sought out.
The last thing Chase wanted was for Lucky to sleep fitfully, sweating and shaking from nightmares or bad memories, just because nobody had taken his mental well-being into account.
Ford eased a hand onto Chase’s waist, which was such an unfamiliar contact that he instinctively stepped aside. Ford tucked the hand into his pocket instead. “Trust me. I’ve been on enough rescue teams to recognise the signs.”
He walked away before Chase could ask more. Guessing he was right, having rescued more omegas than Chase had met, he followed Ford into the living room and quietly shut the double doors to the main suite.
Sinking onto the sofa, Chase grabbed his phone from the coffee table to check for messages. There was nothing, but enough time had passed that he should contact Grant.
Long story. I’m @ theLodge. Lucky is sick; safe, but will be NC for a few days. Can u tell his friends?
Will do. Sm guy, Sykes, said he’d cleared U& Lucky time off campus, told L’s parents and asked me 2 keep my mouth shut.
Typical. Will call when it’s ovr.
Good luck.
He huffed a laugh he didn’t have the energy for. “Who is Sykes?”
Ford looked up from where he was lighting a cigarette, dumping the lighter onto the coffee table to sit back and peruse the hotel menu. “ORT. Why?”
“He’s taken care of things with Lucky’s friends and family,” he explained, surprised the ORT dealt with those things. He’d always expected there to be an administrator who intervened whenever the ORT needed to get involved with a business or the college.
Ford took a deep drag and picked at a nail. “Jesi or your mam arranged it last night.”
“My mother.” Chase had almost forgotten that his mother was involved.
“Why didn’t she tell me she runs the entire ORT?
” Of all the secrets she’d kept, this was the most devastating.
Chase had applied to the ORT under an assumed name, because he didn’t want anyone accepting or rejecting him just because he was part of the infamous Walker clan.
Surely she’d recognised the details. Yet she still hadn’t told him?
“Don’t ask me. I’m just a lowly gopher at her beck and call.” Ford winked, which he did a lot, even when the timing wasn’t at all appropriate.
Chase didn’t ask if it was an unconscious tic or if he used the act to disguise his discomfort. It wasn’t worth the risk of whatever answer he’d give to deflect the question. “Since we’re stuck here until Lucky wakes up, can you tell me what OX is?”
Ford tapped the ash from his cigarette into the ashtray on the coffee table. “The Omega Market took Euphoria and combined it with other drugs. For years, they tested on the omegas they trafficked until they created what is known as OX, or Omega Xposure.”
“Exposure?”
He nodded, a far-off look in his eye that said he was considering the question.
“OX takes the core elements of Euphoria, which gives a natural heat to an omega who has trouble regulating their heats, and mixes everything else that’s supposed to protect omegas,” Ford explained, warming to the role of lecturer.
Chase was surprised to find that it was oddly charming.
It was the first time he’d seen Ford being serious and it suited him.
“Hints of Undermine act as a contraceptive, Bittersweet provides a calming agent, shutting off any fear or doubts they might have, and a heavy dose of Mania is there to intensify the heat so it can be given to underage omegas. Instead of their first heat being two weeks, they suffer the first heat intensity with only four days to cope.”
Chase swallowed, his heart racing at the dangers of OX. Now he understood why Ford and Rafe were willing to do anything to get the drug off the streets. “Why don’t we learn about OX, if it was created by the Market?”
Introductory College taught them about the dangers of Mania, which had become a recreational drug in certain circles, where alphas wanted the high of feeling an omega’s heat without the actual heat, but he’d never heard of OX until now.
Ford took another drag of his cigarette.
“Fear. The government’s aware the drug is dangerous and set a non-negotiable lifelong prison sentence.
Even possession of OX will have an alpha arrested, and no amount of mitigating circumstances will save them from being placed on the Containment listing, having all rights to a mate revoked, and serving the first three years of their sentence in complete isolation. ”
Vaguely gesturing with his cigarette hand, Ford caught Chase’s eye.
“Not even the Omega Market uses OX, though they still produce it for those with the money to take the risk. Slipping an omega Mania is less dangerous than dealing with OX. The Market has seen the side effects first-hand—omegas dying from the intensity of a flash heat, the pain they suffer. Some omegas have killed themselves after realising what they’ve been given, because they find that better than the alternative. ”
“Being stuck in a four-day heat with strangers who can and will do anything to you.”
With a faint huff, like he wasn’t sure whether to speak, Ford took another drag. “That’s why I nearly shot Lucky yesterday.” Chase looked up, and was stunned by the fact that Ford smiled.
“That boy is blessed by Omha, and it’s a fucking good job. I knew the risks of OX, the fate of omegas who had been in his shoes, and I figured it were better to end his suffering than to let him face the worst.”
While Jesi had spoken privately with Lucky at the clinic, Ford had filled Chase in about how the crew of thugs had been in the next room, twenty alphas who worked for the Market and had no conscience or care for an omega’s suffering.
Chase could only imagine what had gone through Ford’s head, knowing what they’d do to Lucky if he couldn’t stop them.
Ford laughed, capturing his attention again.
“Fucking Lucky. I pulled the fucking trigger and nothing happened.” He looked Chase in the eye and explained the story of how the gun had misfired, then he’d shot into the corner.
Chase couldn’t believe how shocking that must have been, almost shooting Lucky then getting the call that had given them hope.
Chase would have been bricking himself in Ford’s shoes. “How do you do it?”
“Of all the shit I’ve seen in the ORT, I ain’t never been more grateful for being wrong,” he replied, tapping the ash off his cigarette. “That ain’t even the strangest shit I ever seen.”
He shook his head, not surprised that Ford had a catalogue of ‘strange shit’ he’d seen on the job. He leaned over and slipped the cigarette from Ford’s fingers. “How about finding out you’re the second alpha mate to an omega who is both the victim and witness in your latest case?”
“Definitely a turn-up for the books.”
Chase could only imagine. Hearing Lucky claim him as a second alpha mate must have been as big a mind fuck as the moment Chase had recognised the mate bond.
Honestly, he wasn’t sure he was ready for any of this, but he didn’t have a choice.
He wanted Lucky to be happy. Resisting just because Ford was an alpha was ridiculous.
Even if he wanted to, Chase couldn’t think of any reason not to accept this bond.
Lucky was everything he’d ever wanted in an omega mate, right down to feeling an attraction and being fascinated by his mind long before he’d felt the bond.
And Ford was… Well, as unexpected as he was, Ford was a revelation, because Chase had never imagined himself capable of lusting over another alpha.
Yet, here he was, barely able to explain how badly he wanted to treat Ford in all the same ways he would treat Lucky—to protect him, to kiss and hold him, to flirt and fuck, to spend days just talking to him and exploring all the ways they fit together like they’d been made for each other.
Because they had been. Omha or Azrah had created these three souls to fit together like a jigsaw where no other piece fit.
And whether anyone else accepted it, understood the draw, or thought he’d lost his mind, he didn’t care.
For once in his life, Chase wanted to take control of his fate, to be carefree, to let his instincts take over, and not live up to the expectations laid at perfect bloody Chauncey Walker’s feet.
If he wanted to be a true mate worth waiting for, he needed to be Chase Walker, the self-made, independent alpha he’d always wanted to be.
And that meant growing a pair and doing what felt right.
* * * *
Fourteen hours later
Ford
Hanging up on Sykes, after a progress report that told him nothing useful, Ford found Chase hovering in the doorway to his private bathroom. “What are you doing here?”
Holding eye contact, probably to avoid getting an eyeful, Chase cleared his throat. “Feeling restless. Want to order food and have a beer?”