Chapter 25 #2
At my words, Irian pulled up hard, the unsuspecting beta staggering as he came to an abrupt halt.
Irian bit his lip – the sudden stop must have hurt his wrists, if he had any feeling left in them – and he glared at me, his face a kaleidoscope of emotions – outrage, shock, hurt – then his nose came up and his expression settled into a mask of cold dismissal. Zarbius laughed.
“Poor little omega,” he sneered. “Seems like everyone has deserted you. Your packmate has defected, and even your mate doesn’t want you back. Sadly for you, he hasn’t sent the ransom. Guess we’ve been keeping you safe for no good reason.”
The deep throaty rumble of a truck changing gears overrode his words for a moment, then…
“Lucky for you the truck’s already here or my men might have made up for lost time. Agelius must be right about you being useless in the sack – or else your mate would be falling over himself to get you back, eh?” he taunted, laughing harshly.
The muscles in Irian’s jaw tightened, but he said nothing. His expression didn’t change.
Zarbius snickered low and suggestive. He put a meaty finger under Irian’s jaw and forced his chin up so the reluctant omega was obliged to look at him. “Now how would he even know about that, eh? Has our little omega been putting out for the rest of the crew?”
A sickly choking sound erupted from my throat as his disgusting suggestion, but I hurriedly converted it into a spluttering laugh.
Zarbius was clearly enjoying making Irian uncomfortable and while every cell in my body wanted to object, I had to play along.
I hoped Irian would forgive me for allowing the disrespect, once we got everything sorted out.
I hoped we’d get the chance to sort things out - at the moment I wasn’t seeing how this could play out in our favor. Where the fuck was Talius?
The rattling of the truck as it bounced along the uneven dirt and pulled up at the gate interrupted Zarbius’ sadistic enjoyment of the situation.
“Hey, get that gate open and get those omegas ready!” he shouted to a couple of men lounging lazily around the sheds.
“Fuckers!” he swore. “Have to tell ’em everything.”
“That’s why you’ve got me,” I said, edging closer to Irian. I wasn’t sure what I was going to do here. My mind spun as it raced through my options. Could I grab Irian and make a run for it? But I couldn’t leave Tosca. I desperately hoped Talius was nearby, and that he planned to act soon.
The truck rattled its way onto the premises and pulled up close to the dinner hall.
The engine was cut and the ensuing silence was punctuated by the muted thud of boots as the driver hopped down from the cab and began speaking to the men waiting for him.
Zarbius’ guy, who had opened the gate for him, swung down from the other side of the cab, and with a shout across the compound to the omega shed, the men disappeared into the food hall together.
Moments later an omega hurried out of the omega house carrying a large covered dish.
The beta holding Irian’s lead looked longingly towards the shed.
“You wanna go eat?” asked Zarbius, addressing the beta, bushy eyebrows raised.
“Uh…” the guy looked uncertain, indicating the cord in his hand.
Zarbius extended a tanned arm towards the man, palm up, fingers flicking impatiently. “Hand it over. Looks like we’ve got a little time before the truck gets loaded and I’ve got some unfinished business with this omega.”
“I think we’ll have time for a little fun.” Zarbius’ eyes glinted malevolently, a calculating expression taking over his features. He gave a sharp tug on the cord tying Irian’s wrists, so that the omega stumbled into him.
Surprisingly, when he regained his balance, Irian’s face was calm, unperturbed except for a slight twitch above one eye and a tightening of his jaw. I didn’t scent fear on him and I wondered how he could be so serene in the face of such obvious ill intent. I was nearly sick with fear.
“You gonna join us?” sneered Zarbius, watching me speculatively, “or you gonna stick to your ‘exclusive’ arrangement?” He shook his head, as if he still couldn’t believe that anyone would be dumb enough to want an exclusive arrangement.
Fuck! I panicked. What should I do? I couldn’t let Irian go off alone with Zarbius.
“I really think we should be trying to get the rest of the ransom,” I mused, slowly, rubbing at my chin where several days of stubble grazed my fingers, “400 grand is a lot of money. It’s not worth turning down just for a…” I looked Irian up and down, “a bit of ass. No need to be hasty about this.”
Irian’s glare was a death-stare, although his features didn’t change, but I knew him well enough to read the murder in his eyes.
Zarbius’ cold eyes lingered dangerously on me, and I wondered once again if he was doubting my loyalty. He opened his mouth to say something and…
“Quite right,” said a deep throaty voice. The words came from behind me, the voice familiar and reassuring, and my head shot up at the same time as the tension eased from my shoulders. Silently, I exhaled a breath. Talius stepped into view. He’d finally decided to show himself, thank the Goddess!
Zarbius’ head swung up and he tugged Irian closer.
“Who the fuck are you?” he snarled, spit flying everywhere. “And what are you doing on my land?”
“I’ve come to retrieve my mate,” growled Talius, alpha pheromones swirling aggressively in the air.
I remembered then that Zarbius had never met Talius, he didn’t know him at all.
He wouldn’t know that underneath his semi-civilized demeanor, was a fierce and protective mate and furious alpha.
An alpha who was barely keeping himself leashed.
It had to have been driving Talius crazy seeing his mate tied up like this and with his shifter hearing, he must have heard the disgusting things Zarbius had been saying.
For a beat, it was as if time had frozen. I didn’t dare breathe. Just when I began to wonder if I’d pass out before someone made a move…
“Ahhh… you must be Talius,” Zarbius made a show of looking beyond Talius.
His head shook in a barely discernable movement.
“You’ve come alone,” he ground out, the hand not holding Irian’s leash flexing and clenching at his side.
“Where’s my mate? The deal was the money and my mate, in exchange for yours.
Pretty little thing, isn’t he?” Zarbius added, running a rough hand through Irian’s short brown locks, a sneer wrinkling his nose.
Irian flinched, drawing his chin in, and turning his head away.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the beta hastening towards us, the need for food apparently forgotten.
Talius growled and launched himself at Zarbius, and Irian tried to pull the cord out of Zarbius’ hand.
“I don’t think so,” Zarbius sneered, jumping back and dragging Irian with him.
Irian struggled to stay upright and as he found his balance and straightened up, the light reflected off the blade against Irian’s neck and a solid hand landed on his shoulder.
Irian froze. A faint line of red bubbled across his pale skin, leaking more with each shallow breath.
“Easy,” murmured the beta, lips almost touching Irian’s ear.
“Get your hands off him!” growled Talius. His eyes had turned a deep midnight shade of blue, the aggression rolling off him in waves. But he didn’t dare attack. The knife changed everything.
Zarbius snarled back at Talius, eyes narrowed, the muscles of his neck corded. Distantly, I heard men’s voices from the vicinity of the housing, but I didn’t dare take my eyes of the conflict here. Goddess, watch over Tosca…
“Let him go. I… I’m here,” a soft voice said, as if from nowhere. Irian gasped. Horror crossed Talius’ face as we all turned to see Isca emerging from the trees, face pale, a battered half-filled backpack hanging listlessly from his hand. “You… you have no reason to keep him now.”
Isca’s steps were slow, almost zombie-like, as he headed towards Zarbius. His lips were pressed tight, almost bloodless, face blank except for the apologetic glance he flashed at Talius as he passed the shocked alpha. He held his chin high.
“Let him go,” he said when he was standing in front of Zarbius.
The big Alpha’s lips curved in a cruel smile. “Well, well, well. Look at you. Come to give yourself up so the alpha can get his mate back. How very touching. But you do like to please the alphas, don’t you?”
It made me sick watching him reach out with his free hand to touch Isca’s cheek, the omega flinching and closing his eyes.
I could see the trembling of his body. After all the abuse he had suffered at the hands of this alpha, I could only guess at what this was costing him… and how much he loved Irian.
“Isca!” Talius half-hissed, half-groaned. “What are you doing?”
Without turning away from Zarbius, Isca murmured, “I had to come, Talius. I couldn’t leave him with this… this monster.”
Smack! The vicious sound of Zarbius’ hand contacting Isca’s face made me jump. I could have wept. Isca’s head barely moved. As much as we might have been shocked, the gesture hadn’t taken him by surprise. I wondered, not for the first time, how much he had suffered in this pack.
Zarbius ran a finger down Isca’s neck and across his throat. “It’s good to see you too, mate.”
Isca’s trembling grew greater. “J-j-just let him go,” he stammered. “You-You’ve got what you asked for. Now just let him go.”
“Isca, no!” begged Irian, eyes brimming with tears. They spilled over, the late afternoon sun reflecting in the moisture rolling down his cheeks.
The metal of the blade glinted as the beta gave it a little twist. “Careful,” he breathed.
Talius remained still. He couldn’t risk moving while the beta had the knife against Irian’s neck. He was in an impossible situation here – he couldn’t protect one omega without the other getting hurt.
A commotion broke out down at the omega accommodation; raised voices, angry and harsh, followed by shouts, and in the distance the very faint sound of a siren. Suddenly the truck’s engine roared to life again, punctuated by all the shouting.
The beta’s head swung around to see what was going on, minutely reducing the pressure on the blade, the angle of his moment lifting it off Irian’s neck.
There was never going to be a better time.
I lunged forward, my hand sliding between the sharp edge and Irian’s neck and pushing Irian away at the same time.
The beta jerked back instantly and the knife sliced into my hand.
My brain registered shock, but no pain, as I closed my fingers around the blade.
A steady stream of red began to drip, making my fingers slippery and my grip on the knife precarious as we struggled for possession.
I was vaguely aware that Talius had taken advantage of the distraction, and both he and Zarbius had shifted and were engaged in a vicious duel, the long summer grass crushing under them as they rolled and fought, teeth snapping and claws scrabbling. Chunks of fur flew through the air.
I shifted too, lunging at the beta, my powerful jaws clamping around his wrist. He screamed as the bones snapped, pop!
pop!pop! The knife tumbled into the grass, staining the golden stalks a ghastly red.
By now the man was shifting too, but it was too late.
I was already on him, teeth gripping his neck, my injured paw held aloft, the blood was slowing already, but it dripped on his face, stinging his eyes.
He howled, and I bit down hard. As I withdrew my canines, two jets of brilliantly red blood fountained into the air.
By the time he stopped thrashing, my paw was already well on its way to healing. Shifter biology and youth made a wonderful combination.
“Irian, Isca, hurry!” I staggered to my feet.
Irian turned towards me, confusion clouding his normally sunny face.
The puckered brow and set mouth were an unusual look for him.
At least he wasn’t looking at me as if I was a traitor anymore.
He shook his hands out. Isca kicked the discarded twine away.
I spoke quickly. “It’s a long story, but I’m not with them. You need to get out of sight, because - that truck that just came in? - it's to truck the omegas out of here. Follow me!”
Isca and Irian clung to each other’s hand as we ran towards the buildings.
“Where-where are we going?” puffed Irian, hurrying to keep up with my longer stride.
“Back to the shed,” I told him, “Not inside, but behind it. Once Talius wins the fight, he’ll come for you.”
Talius was a formidable fighter, with the added incentive that he was fighting for his mates, so he was unlikely to lose.
But if for some reason he didn’t win, I knew his mates would know.
They’d always seemed to have a special sense about each other.
I wasn’t sure how they did it, but they seemed to be in contact even when they weren’t in contact.
“If something goes wrong… there’s a cave halfway down the next mountain along, on the western side, where you can hide out. Shift and go there, but be careful, some of Zarbius’ men are still out in the bush. I’ll join you when I can.”
“But…”
I cut off Irian’s protest. “There’s an omega I have to stop from getting on that truck. You’ll be safe here, I promise.”
I saw them safely to the back of the shed, first checking that no stray beta had their eyes in this direction, but everyone was busy with the commotion going on down at the omega sheds.
The last I saw of the two omegas they were in each other’s arms, head resting on the other’s shoulder. Despite my anxiety over Tosca, I couldn’t help but smile to myself as I turned away. They were sweet together. I could see why Talius had been so happy to share his old mate with his new one.
Now I had to find mine.