15. Niles
15
NILES
The TV glowed in the dark room as we stared in shock. Some were happy and relieved. Others, like me, were terrified. My stomach twisted tighter every time I glanced at the words scrolling across the screen. “No survivors. Gas leak at Convention Center.”
Rigg hadn’t mentioned that part of the plan, but I’d heard about it from the other omegas I was with. We all knew the explosion wasn’t accidental or unplanned. It had been planned to the teeth. But the plan only called for staff and contractors of the labs to be in the facility when the gas was released and ignited.
Rigg’s last message played on repeat in my mind, as if that would somehow conjure him back into my arms. I think they’re on to me.
What the hell did that mean, anyway? Was he captured? Had he been locked in the convention center with all the evil people who got off on torturing others? I could barely breathe as hour after hour passed while we waited for news.
All the omegas were gathered at the house, silent except for gasps of breath and stifled sobs. The Omega Roundup was an annual event that brought in the leadership and grunts from across the globe. The timing couldn’t have been better for us to make our move, but that didn’t mean there would be no casualties.
There were always casualties. Please not Rigg. Please not Rigg.
“The rescue vans are almost here.” Otto jumped up from the couch and ran to the door. “Anyone not on babysitting duty can follow me to the infirmary. We don’t know what condition they’ll be in, so we’ll need all the hands we can get.”
On instinct, I stood up and followed him out. Several of the elders were entertaining the children by the river, so my entire focus was on the fact that my mate might not ever come home.
As the first van came to a stop, my heart broke as children of all ages climbed out and stretched their limbs like they hadn’t stretched in a long time. Maybe not ever. They stared up at the sky as if they’d never felt sunlight on their skin. And they looked around at us and each other as if they were still not sure they were free.
Free from the abuse bestowed on them by the lab. Many were designed in petri dishes to be used as biological weapons, but some were just regular omegas or shifters who had been in the wrong place at the wrong time when an asshole like Jim Robinson scooped them up and delivered them to those monsters.
This mission wasn’t supposed to be a long one. It was simple in theory, but no plan survived first contact with the enemy, so all we knew was that the rescues were in progress and expected to be successful. What we didn’t know was whether the team at the convention center who were eliminating the threats had all escaped unscathed.
The blast was big enough to knock out the local comms and every person in that building, so until I saw Rigg with my own two eyes, I wouldn’t know what to believe. Nothing in my heart allowed me to believe Rigg could be collateral damage, so I focused on what I knew.
He was smart and strategic. He would be back..
“They’ve got to be okay, right?” Otto’s voice wobbled as he watched the horizon for any sign of Willy, his husband.
No one responded.
There wasn’t a soul among us who wasn’t sick with worry about the possibility of them not being okay.
I hadn’t turned my phone’s volume off since the last message, and every minute that ticked by without a call from Rigg was another little death. Everyone sucked in a collective gasp when the first animals emerged from the tree line. There were cats and wolves, bears and bunnies. Even some of the rodents shifted into men as soon as they were close to their mates.
Rigg didn’t shift into an animal, so I waited to see him walk out, either in his own skin or someone else’s. No matter who he pretended to be, I always knew who he was. He was my heart. My other half.
“Please come back, alpha,” I whispered under my breath. “Please.”
My eyes watered when all the incoming shifters were reunited with their families and my mate was still unaccounted for. With my hands over my face, I dropped down to the ground where I was and sobbed, unable to consider living my life without Rigg.
The distant rumble of a loud engine made my breath hitch. As the sound grew louder, my dread began to retreat. I knew that engine. It was Rigg. He was coming back to us. Through teary eyes, I saw a single motorcycle heading down the road.
My hands flew to my mouth as if trying to quiet the sob in my throat.
The bike pulled to a stop in front of me, and I was in Rigg’s arms before he’d even pulled off his helmet.
Rigg’s face was a mess of bruises and scratches, but he was alive.
I felt my own life surge back as the vice in my chest finally released.
“Sorry I’m late. I was on the clean-up crew.” He grinned and then pulled me to his mouth, kissing me hard like he was as happy to see me as I was to see him.
I didn’t say anything. I couldn’t. I just crushed myself against him and cried like my whole world had crumbled and been rebuilt over the course of a day.
When people started moving inside, I dragged Rigg in with me, but I was too distracted to worry about the details of how it all went down. There would be plenty of time for a recap later. Walt handed Rigg a blanket, and he slumped onto the couch with me on his lap.
I was so glad to have him back and in my arms that I would have stayed there forever if I could have.
“Daddy! Daddy!” Connor and Lily came flying in and landed on top of us. “You’re back.”
Rigg finally broke down, crying against us as the reality of what had happened fully sank in.
We were free. The kids were safe. Our family didn’t have to be afraid ever again.
* * *
Alden gave an official speech later that afternoon, addressing the entire pack and thanking Rigg for all his help in getting inside their operation. He didn’t fully appreciate how special his gift was until he used it to save all the shifters from an evil corporation. We hung out for a little while, but as soon as enough time had passed that we could politely excuse ourselves, we did.
Our kids needed to be home.
My mate needed to rest.
And I needed to relax in our little cabin with the knowledge that my family was no longer being hunted.
We took the long route back to the cabin that felt even more like home after everything we had been through. The kids instantly fell asleep, worn out from playing with dozens of new friends.
The couch cushions were still laid out on the floor from the fort the kids had built before we left, so we all hunkered down there, cozy and together. Exactly as we always would be.