Chapter 6
Chapter
Six
SHEP
Iwas hot on Rylan’s heels as he ran through rows of metal shelves and stacks on boxes toward the opposite side of the warehouse. It wasn’t a huge building but big enough that I could see it being the overflow for a chain of pawn shops like Trent owned.
It wasn’t easy getting my big bear body to take the turns as fast as Ry was taking them.
My flank hit a stack of boxes as I slid around a corner trying to keep up.
Behind me, Hux was having even more trouble.
The stack of boxes didn’t make it when the big man took the corner too sharp.
Under any other circumstance, I would have laughed, but not tonight.
Tonight, I wanted to save the Omegas trapped in here and get the hell out.
Rylan slid to a stop in front of a door with not only a deadbolt but also a chain hooked around the handle, then tethered to the wall to prevent the door from being pulled open even if someone was able to unlock it from the other side.
I moved up to Ry’s side and lifted one of my paws, getting a grip on the chain. After I nudged Ry back with my head, I yanked the chain loose from its anchor on the wall and it clanged uselessly to the ground.
The deadbolt was another matter. This door looked significantly more secure than the one Hux had ripped out of the wall on the outside.
Rylan laid a gentle hand on my side. “Let me.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a big silver key. A moment later, the door was swinging open. “I’ll go down first so we don’t scare them.”
Them being the five Omegas Ry told us were being held here.
I growled low. I didn’t like the thought of him being the first through the door. Didn’t want him in the line of fire in case there was a surprise waiting for us.
The decision was taken out of both our hands a moment later when Hux let out a whine, shouldered his way past us, and headed down the stairs at a run.
“Shit!” Rylan reached past the door, hit a light switch, and took off down the stairs after Hux. “Hux, wait!”
Chasing after my mate, I wished I could tell him there’d be no waiting.
There was only one thing that could have made Hux break rank and take off like that.
Somewhere in this basement was his mate, and Hux may have been one of the best men I knew, but I wasn’t about to let my mate get between him and his Omega.
***
RYLAN
“Hux, wait!” I yelled again when I reached the bottom of the stairs. Admittedly, the basement was at least nicer than the warehouse above it with its carpeted floor and cleanliness, but it was still a cage. A prison I’d been too happy to put behind me.
When I’d lifted the key from one of Trent’s new flunkies, I could barely believe it.
I’d been terrified, but I refused to let the chance to escape pass me by.
It hadn’t been as easy for the others. I’d been there long enough that I’d made Trent and his people believe I was docile.
That I wanted to be there and help the incoming Omegas learn the rules.
I knew Trent had decided to keep me for himself. It had taken months, but I’d finally convinced him that I didn’t need to be kept locked up at night. What if one of the other Omegas tried to escape? What if one of them needed something, and it was a night when there was no guard in the building?
How Trent ever truly believed I was on his side was beyond me.
In front of me, Hux ground to a halt facing the back wall. Each of the Omegas in residence had a sleeping area of their own, a mattress against the wall where we were chained up each night. Hux had stopped in front of Milo. He was the newest Omega here, and I’d never heard him utter a word.
Right now, Milo pressed his back against the wall, eyes wide and focused on the grizzly bear in front of him. Before I could take another step forward, Shep bumped into me and wrapped one of his huge bear arms around my middle, keeping me in place.
“Shep—” I started to protest, but at that moment, Hux dropped to the ground, belly flat to the floor, and scooted his way forward until his nose was pressed into the side of Milo’s mattress.
Then he made such a soft rumbling noise that if I hadn’t heard it myself, I never would have believed it came out of a bear.
Shep squeezed at my waist, and I nodded my head, letting him pull me back a step. Logically, I didn’t think Hux would hurt Milo, especially if Milo was his mate, but I also knew what it was like to be chained up with nowhere to go and no choice in who invaded my space.
Milo looked up from Hux and met my eyes.
“It’s okay, Milo. All of you. We’re here to get you out.” I swallowed, looking around the room at the others. “Get dressed and put on your shoes. You don’t have to spend another minute here.”