Chapter 28 Rickon
Chapter twenty-eight
Rickon
I pull my shivering omega onto my lap, and she buries her face in my shoulder.
I don’t need an explanation to know she’s seeing herself in those poor, caged alphas.
Callisto jumps to his feet and strides around the table, lodging himself at her back so we can sandwich her between us as we watch the sick nightmare playing out soundlessly at the head of the table.
Satisfied the captive alphas aren’t a threat for the moment, the agents on-screen sweep the room, revealing a laboratory complete with big refrigerators, science gear, and banks of computer towers.
Tears swim in my vision as they uncover a fourth alpha’s unconscious body hanging by the arms, his jaw and chest riddled with needle pricks. Callisto groans and swivels to stand between Red and the screens, in case she suddenly looks up.
My stomach lurches, and bile burns my throat.
How can people be so cruel and selfish to treat other human beings like animals?
The wars going on in the Isles, trafficking omegas, stripping alphas of their sanity.
All of it. All disgusting. How does a person’s heart grow so stony?
I dig my hands into Red protectively as my anger surges.
Callisto touches my hair lightly, and I flinch.
The room burns with a mix of dark scents, including my own. Guess I’m not the only pissed-off alpha in here. Red rubs her nose along my neck, and her tongue darts out, tasting my temper.
Leroy growls softly and slips his headset down onto his neck. “Well, that’s a factory for sure.” He points. “Well done, team.”
On the screen, an agent pries open a wooden crate, revealing five palm-sized clay balls just like the one that hit us on the courthouse steps. Another ball sits in two open halves on the workbench.
“If we’re lucky, that’s the first batch,” Leroy says, rubbing his chin.
Hopefully that’s the case and the answer to why the alpha bomb hasn’t been seen before . . . but that kind of “luck” does nothing for those poor men locked in tiny cages. My vision swims with tears and I stroke Red’s hair, trying to soothe both of us.
The head agent eyes my omega. “Will she be all right? Need a separate room or anything?”
I shake my head. “We’re fine for now.” How am I so sure? Because Red Jones is the most fucking resilient person I know. The faint bond between us quivers with her grief, but she hasn’t lost herself. No, I’m the one most likely to tip over the edge right now.
But as if he understands, Callisto slides the hand in my hair down to the back of my neck, holding me firmly.
“What happens now?” my best friend asks.
Leroy circles his shoulders, releasing tension.
“We transfer the prisoners to OCB holdings and catalogue everything.” He rises and shoves his empty coffee mugs to the middle of the table.
“I’ve gotta make a call to the military.
They’ll likely take over this scene, since we’ve confirmed these alpha bombs.
” He excuses himself and strides out the door.
We found both a haze distribution center and the lab for the experimental pheromone attack, but I don’t feel any satisfaction. Who knows if anything here will tie back to the man who abused my omega, let alone get Zack out of prison.
“Callisto?” I ask, hating the emotional whine in my tone.
“It’s okay, Ricky,” he says, fingers squeezing my neck. “This proves we were attacked. I can get Zack out.”
I nod and turn back to the screen. If he’s sure, then I have nothing to worry about.
The feeds show the agents getting the captured men into transport vans and more agents coming in to photograph all the evidence. Paramedics arrive for the agent who fell earlier, and I’m relieved to see he’s still breathing.
One camera peeks into the trunk of the city cab up on ramps for maintenance. The agent unzips a suitcase, revealing a collection of haze bottles inside.
“Son of a bitch,” Callisto hisses. “They’re using the taxi service to move the haze to their dealers.”
An agent at the far end of the table nods. “We noticed in our investigation last night that this place is one of the recommended garages for the Laversham Taxi Service. But the volume of cars coming through meant some jobs were far too quick to actually fix anything. Now we know why.”
I can’t peel my gaze away from those deceptively harmless-looking bottles as the agent counts them.
Twelve vials. It might be Red’s haze, about to circulate through the market.
I want to march over there and snatch it all away so no one can even look at it.
Not that Red would want it anywhere near her, but no one else should have it.
Callisto’s hand on my neck quivers, and his alpha aura rises. The two agents sneak glances at us, feeling the spreading wrath.
“We’ll find everything he took,” Calli promises me darkly. “I didn’t get a chance to tell you this yet, but we traced Ray’s money all the way to Alpha Cash.”
“Shit! Really?”
“Yeah. And Lector’s initiating a takeover. The board already agreed.”
The shock grips my nerves, making me spasm. Wren might be a household name for luxury department stores, but to branch into finance? That’s massive.
When my mouth drops open but no words come out, Callisto laughs hollowly.
“Right? It scares me too, but we’re cutting off his legs.
” He looks down and notices his grip on my neck.
Instantly he releases me and pulls a chair closer to sit by us, keeping his other hand on Red’s back.
“That bastard has nowhere to go but down.”
The dangerous glint in his black eyes promises vengeance and my soul stirs. Calli’s worked tirelessly for us, and it has nothing to do with his career win streak. “Thank you,” I murmur.
The smile he flashes me promises more to come. The OCB will seize whatever they find, and the Wrens will take control of the rest, squeezing Ray’s options one by one.
I turn back to the screen, and one angle catches my attention. The camera trails across a shelf full of folders until the agent pulls one out to flip through, revealing small photos of people and personal information. The agent leafs through with gloved hands, revealing hundreds of profiles.
My heart skids to a halt.
Agent Leroy throws open the door with a bang. “All right, the military are officially taking over the site, so shut down the recording.”
“Wait!” I cry. I surge to my feet, shoving Red into Callisto’s arms and running forward to point to the feed. “This one. Ask him to flip through the book once more, please.”
Leroy frowns.
Callisto’s voice rings out behind me. “Please, Leroy. Ricky’s good with details.”
Leroy covers his irritation and picks up the headset, giving an order and citing the small number shown in the feed’s corner. A moment later, the gloved hands open the book once more and flick through the pages slowly.
A leaf falls, showing a glossy photo of a handsome man with wavy brown hair and bright green eyes. The agent on the other end pauses, recognizing the picture. Everyone in the country would recognize Bradley Jacks.
“Holy shit,” Callisto breathes out.
A gong rings in my head as I stare, echoing as flashbacks of my time in the movie industry play behind my eyes. “Is this a client book?” I grind out.
“We don’t know yet,” Leroy says tightly. “But I can’t imagine another reason for having a list like this.”
I turn away, feeling the strength drain from my body.
Red struggles upright and glares at the photo on the screen, hands curling into fists. “He always said I smelled good and asked if we’d met before.”
Leroy snaps his fingers at his agents, and they shut down the projector. He talks into his headset in a voice too low to hear, and then rips it off his head. “Sorry, but I’m going to have to ask the three of you to stay in the office for a while.”
“Can I use my laptop?” Callisto asks.
Leroy shakes his head. “No, just stay here and do nothing while I figure this out.” He breezes out of the room, shouting orders to mobilize another OCB team.
Winded, I lean on the table.
“I’m so fucking sick of this!” Red snaps, vibrating with rage.
Yeah, I know exactly what she means. Every day we fall deeper into the rabbit hole of human depravity.
And if we’re stranded in here, who’s going to save Zack?