Chapter 32
Chapter Thirty-Two
Ares
“Oh look, someone left us a present,” Ledger called out as he entered. I hung back, letting him have his moment before I finished the job.
Malik sat up straighter. If that was even possible since he was tied to the chair. He was waiting right in the middle of this warehouse. It was clearly a safehouse. There was a small camp set up in the corner with a cot, blankets, some takeout wrappers, and bottles of water.
The good doctor’s eyes were bulging out of his head at the sight of Ledger. To be fair, the alpha was downright giddy, practically skipping up to greet him.
He held up a gloved hand, wiggling his fingers and laughing as Malik straightened against the restraints, making the chair squeak on the concrete.
Generally, the Alliance didn’t exact justice this way. However, this man would never be able to tell his story or see the inside of a courtroom. He was one of those special cases our department specialized in.
I had no intention of leaving this man alive and I knew the chief would have my back. They’d come, look around, mark it off that his enemies had found him, and call it a day.
There was no way in hell I’d allow this man to live. Not when he was feeding patients to Seamus. I’d let him live only because he might have more information on the trafficking rings.
Malik had no such cushion.
“I want to hear you scream. Don’t worry, your little safehouse was chosen for being in the middle of nowhere. No one will hear a thing,” Ledger promised sweetly as he tore the duct tape from Malik’s mouth.
“Please. I can give you anything you want!” he gasped.
“You know what you actually deserve?” Ledger mused as he pulled a switchblade from his pocket and popped it open. The metal swoosh of the blade had his skin paling.
Ledger was enjoying this, and so was I. It would be stupid to record evidence, but damn it was tempting.
“The proper punishment would be to give you exactly what you signed those girls up for. You may not be able to have a heat, but I hear you’re all about experimental drugs. We could have you sobbing for relief, then bring in some big, sexy alphas to finish the job. Once a month. For years!”
The last word was screamed right in Malik’s face, at the top of Ledger’s lungs. The sound echoed off the walls and the snot and tears trailing down Malik’s face said he wasn’t exactly a fan of this plan.
“What? It’s okay for you to sell them into that fate but not endure it yourself?” he asked.
“H-how are you here? How did you find me?”
“Didn’t you hear the news? I’m a free man now,” Ledger said with a wink. “This was the first part of my plan for retribution. You would have gotten away with it all if you hadn’t touched my mate.”
“He wanted her. Threatened to kill me if I didn’t take her away. I warned him, told him that she was important but he wouldn’t hear of it!” Malik protested.
Ledger chuckled as he stepped forward, pressing the blade to Malik’s wrist and pressing down. It wasn’t pretty, or fast, the sounds that came from the duo were disgusting. By the time he was done Malik was delirious.
Ledger wrapped the wound with duct tape to stop him from dying too soon.
“That was for my girl,” he sang out happily as he smacked the doctor lightly on the cheek. He had stopped screaming halfway through and was simply crying and praying.
“Oh don’t worry, no god will hear you. Not after all you’ve done,” Ledger said. It was the first time his voice was serious.
Malik whimpered but Ledger wasn’t done.
“Do you think it was worth it?” Ledger asked, head cocking to the side.
“No,” Malik sobbed out before fresh screams ripped from him as Ledger began on his second hand. This one was more brutal, Ledger grunting as he worked his way through tendons and bones.
I stepped out when the second hand hit the floor with a thud, blood spurting from the freshly severed wounds.
“You,” he breathed out.
I smiled at him, smug at the fear and shock there.
“But you’re Alliance.”
“I am,” I confirmed. “Let’s just call this a personal hobby. A little something so my pack can feel safe as we move on from this town.”
“People know I’m here!” he cried out. “They’ll come for you.”
I laughed, loud and booming in the warehouse, making him flinch again. the jerky movement pulling his fresh wounds against his restraint covering him in a fresh layer of his own blood.
“No one is coming for you, Malik. You were a supplier and nothing more. There will be no more money or allies.”
“Just death,” Ledger finished. “You won’t ever leave this chair while your heart beats in your chest.”
“Please,” he tried again. It had lost steam now and was just the mumblings of a man losing his battle with death.
Ledger handed over his knife and I took it, cocking my hand back and stabbing it right into his crotch. I did it again three times to be safe before plunging it deep into his gut. I left it there and Ledger took it out, wiping it on Malik’s clothes before pocketing it.
The crimson puddle under his chair was spreading by the second. We didn’t have long now.
“Lucky for you, we aren’t into men like you. This is a far nicer fate than you deserve,” Ledger said with a sigh.
He glanced at me before turning and cocking his fist back. The first slam of his fist sent the chair flying back. Ledger followed, blow after blow raining down on what was left of the doctor who found his amusement in the pain of others.
How the tables had turned.
“Stop.”
My voice was a command and he listened immediately, standing up and turning to face me. His chest was heaving, but his face the picture of satisfaction.
Justice had been served. That was all either of us wanted.
“What now?” Ledger asked as he bounced from foot to foot, working out the rest of his adrenaline.
I peeled off my gloves, tucking them into my pocket and pulling out my phone. “Sanchez, we checked, but there’s not much left of the doctor.”
“Noted. I’m sure his enemies got to him first. They’d hate for him to talk,” Sanchez sighed.
“Yeah, we’ve got only bloodstains here. No body and no sign of anyone for hours. Just old tire tracks and a forgotten camp,” I explained.
Malik’s eyes rolled back as Ledger kept a hand over his mouth. He had minutes now.
“Alright, we’re tied up but we’ll send someone out tomorrow,” Sanchez said. “Now get home to your pack. You’ve done enough.”
I hung up and walked up to Malik, looking deep into his eyes.
“Maybe in your next life, make better choices.”
We both walked away from him. He was too weak to cry out now and with one last phone call, cleanup would be taken care of.
You don’t spend years in a field like mine without having a few connections.
Ledger and I didn’t speak as we stopped at the river, quickly diving in and washing away any remnants of our task tonight. We tossed the clothes and changed into spares before heading back to ARC.
After a shower and a thorough scrub of my body, I grabbed my courting present and hurried to our wing. I’d told Ledger I needed her tonight and Cooke and Vance were doing me a huge favor clearing out the house we’d left behind.
Dessert was waiting and the bedroom was set up for us to spend the night if all went well.
That depended on if she could forgive me for going in full alpha mode on her during the rescue.
Audrey was waiting on a couch when I left my room. She was wearing her usual ARC outfit, hair falling around her shoulders in waves. Her eyes were distant as she stared off and I moved slowly so I wouldn’t startle her.
“Audrey,” I said gently. She startled anyway, her eyes lifting to mine. There was a smile on her face, but it was forced. “Oh, omega. I’m so sorry.”
I moved closer, pulled her to her feet so we were facing each other.
“Before we do anything, I need to say that I’m so sorry,” I started.
She tried to speak but I stopped her. “No, let me say this. I’ve never had to look out for someone I loved like this.
Having you there, hearing your story firsthand and seeing you so close to that monster had me acting like a fool.
I should have trusted you more. All I wanted to do was to keep you safe and end this. ”
“And we did,” she said, not letting me stop her. “You’ve never made me feel like I was less than you. Like I was all those things they said about me. Until tonight.”
My chest ached at the idea of causing her pain. I never wanted to do that, to be anything less than my best for her.
“Omega,” I breathed out. “I’m so fucking sorry.”
“You can never do that again,” she said firmly. “I won’t allow anyone to ever talk to me that way. Never again.”
“Understood, omega. I never wanted to be that kind of alpha and I’ll spend every day proving to you that I can be who you need me to be,” I pleaded.
“I love you, Ares. I know you’re not that man,” she said, her voice wavering as she fought tears. “It was just such an emotional day.”
“I know, my sweet girl,” I said as I pulled her in. “And this nightmare is so close to over.”
“Does that mean?” She didn’t finish her sentence, knowing she shouldn’t say it out loud.
“Gone. Yes.”
Instead of looking horrified, or startled, she grinned. All hints of exhaustion faded away and she let out a relieved breath.
“Good. Now, why did I have to wait for you out here? I napped and then woke up to them telling me you’re coming back just for me.”
“I am,” I said, stepping back and reaching into my pocket. “My frist courting gift.”
I opened the small box to show her the delicate necklace. She smiled softly as she ran her fingers gently over the leaves climbing up the chain.
“I wanted you to have a way to remember the conservatory when we left here. The only good memory you’ve had here,” I said as I pulled it out and unclasped it. She turned and I lifted it over her head before clasping it together.
She turned and smiled up at me, the necklace shining against her delicate throat.