Chapter Fifty-Five
Halley
I’m safe and warm and cozy in my nest.
In here there are no crazed Alphas to kill.
“We have to move.” Shade’s soothing voice washes over me like warm molasses.
“Sparkles!” Blaze sounds wired, speaking quick like he’s had a shot of coffee. “I have so much to tell you. I strung two people up and—”
“Now is not the time,” Knox chastises the excitable pyromaniac.
Or, I guess his fixation with rope makes him more of a rope-bunny.
I snort to myself, giggling at my own little joke.
I don’t want to rouse from my nest, but the voices are getting louder, making my head pound in rhythm with my heartbeat.
I inhale deeply, yearning to indulge in their scents while they’re close by.
Instead, I choke on the sharp coppery smell of blood.
My eyes fly open, and I shoot upright in my nest, eyes wide.
Blaze is coated in blood. It’s dried in a red river from his nose down his neck into his torn shirt. Knox has blood splatted over his face, like something exploded close by. His hands are bright red, like his glowing eyes.
A strangled cry of horror slips past my lips. “You’re hurt!”
Blaze rushes forward, cupping my cheeks in his hands and staring deeply into my eyes. “It’s not my blood.”
I blink.
Not his blood? I look back at his face and glare with accusation.
Does he think I’m stupid? It was clear that his nose had been broken so badly that blood was flowing down his face.
I poke his nose with a ‘boop.’
“Ah, fuck!”
A rumble of laughs drown out his extended profanities.
After he’s done, he looks sheepishly at me through his thick lashes. “Thought you’d be too far gone in O-space to know any better.”
“I’m here. I slipped out for a few minutes, but I’m back and I feel better.”
I’m trying to reframe my O-space from a weakness to a helpful coping method. Sometimes I need strength, and other times my brain just needs some alone time. I just need to trust my body knows what I need.
“Shade tells us you’re responsible for the mess outside,” Knox says with a hoarse grunt.
I purse my lips together, my eyes darting to Shade.
“And you dealt with the threat admirably.”
I blink at Knox. “Did you just compliment me?”
Viper chuckles. It’s a deep rumble, and it makes my nipples tighten.
“You did well, pretty girl. That was one hell of a long shot you made,” he states, a hint of a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. I don’t want to jump to conclusions, but I think it might be pride.
“Thanks,” I breathe.
“Now that we have neutralized the immediate threat, we need to move camp. Your heat might be over, but the lingering scent is calling to every unmated Alpha in the region.”
I bite my lip and look down at the blanket twisted in my clenched fists. Yet another strike against me. What kind of soldier puts their whole team at risk?
“Hey. Don’t think like that.” Blaze cups my face, his bloodied thumb rubbing my cheek. “You didn’t do this on purpose, we know that. Let us protect you like you protected Shade. Like you protected us by shooting that Alpha.”
It does little to ease the guilt that burning in my chest, but his touch makes my body sing.
I lean into his hand, nuzzling into it without a care that I’m probably smearing the blood over my face. I just want to be close to him.
Viper scowls, flicking the back of Blaze’s head. “Stop it, you’re messing her up.”
Viper is spotless except for his fists. Not a fleck of blood on his uniform. I think it speaks volumes about their combat style and personalities. Of course Blaze would come back looking like a homicidal chaos goblin.
“I was checking her for injuries,” Blaze says with a pout, dropping his hand from me and getting to his feet.
Viper grunts, grabs a cloth, wets it with the water from his canteen and crouches in front of me.
With a touch so gentle and caring, he slowly wipes the damp cloth over my cheek, cleaning the blood and sweat away.
I expect him to stand and retreat after he’s done, but he doesn’t move.
Instead, he wets another cloth and starts to wipe at neck and the top of my chest visible in the too large neckline of Knox’s shirt.
After sweating through my heat and the attack, I feel sticky and gross.
Viper methodically cleans me as the other three watch with hungry eyes.
“You smell delicious, pretty girl. Are you okay after your…” he swallows thickly, “after your heat?”
I look up at him through my eyelashes and wonder what he would do if I told him it’s still a sticky mess between my thighs. Would he clean me down there too?
The intimate moment breaks when Shade clears his throat. “We need to move.”
Viper huffs, drops the cloth on the floor and retreats from the nest, making space for the others to approach.
Moving means leaving my nest. I might not be in heat, but it grates on my nerves to leave it behind.
I try not to let the anxiety I’m feeling show in my face, but a whine of distress slips from me. My irrational brain is hurt by the Alphas’ wish to dismantle my nest. I know it’s not the prettiest nest, but I did the best I could with what I had.
As if knowing what I’m thinking, Shade shakes his head, “No, no, baby girl. You’ve made a lovely nest.”
Viper catches on and adds, “It’s perfect. Such a beautiful nest.”
“You’ve crushed it, Sparkles. It’s smells like all of us.” Blaze nods emphatically.
Viper subtly taps his boot against Knox’s.
He looks down at his boot, then over at Viper, who raises an eyebrow at his Prime Alpha.
“Oh, uh. Yes, Omega Sparks. That’s a very good nest, very… cozy and comfortable looking.” The tips of Knox’s ears flush pink and he licks his lips. There is a bulge in his pants and a wet spot forming.
Oh. He’s turned on by seeing me in my nest, I belatedly realize.
Actually, all four of them are sporting impressive erections. The low simmer of arousal in my belly begins to boil. It’s not the clawing, irrational arousal of my heat. It’s more authentic. True attraction.
Shade’s nostrils flare and he inhales deeply, a rumbling growl vibrating in his chest. “On that note, we need to get moving. Viper?”
Viper comes over, bends down, and effortlessly scoops me up.
He helps me into my boots, tying the laces for me.
Slipping my jacket on over my arms, he murmurs, “It’s cold outside. Gotta keep you bundled up.”
In a blink, he lifts me, presses me to his front, and I wrap my legs around him, clinging to the giant Alpha tightly.
I can walk, but I don’t resist. I want the reassurance of my big Alpha holding me close. Feeling his warm, strong body holding me up and against him is too much to resist, and I rub my face against his neck, taking in his gunpowder and rose scent. His warmth feels like a balm on my frayed nerves.
“Omega,” Viper growls softly in warning, but nuzzles my neck in return.
“We need to hurry.” Shade is all business, but he moves like an old man, his body bruised and battered.
He shuffles to the entrance of the tent, moving the flaps aside.
Viper’s warmth keeps the morning chill from my bones. He walks quickly toward the truck, his body alert and rigid as he scans the tree line.
“Burn the bodies, Blaze,” Knox says behind us, and I watch as Blaze casually slings the dead Alpha on his shoulder and carries him off into the forest, whistling a haunting tune.
Shade opens the truck door into the main cab for Viper to set me inside. I slip into the position behind the passenger seat, marveling at the comfortable leather compared to the hard metal bench in the rear of the vehicle. Apparently, I’ve earned the right to a spot in the cabin.
I whimper again, clinging to his shoulders as he tries to set me on the seat. I feel disoriented without the security of my nest.
“Omega,” Viper rumbles, his eyes glowing as he stares down at me. “Let go.”
He rubs my back again, trying to soothe me as I pout and cling tighter. My Alpha wants to leave. He doesn’t want to hold me and protect me. My mind knows that’s not true, but my heart and my body aren’t listening.
Vigorously shaking my head, I try to dislodge the lingering Omega neediness from my heat. I’m a strong, independent Omega who just killed two Alphas in Blood Lust. I exhale and release Viper.
The door slams shut, and I hug my knees to my chest.
I shiver and watch with keen attention as the squad moves swiftly. They sort supplies into backpacks and collect essential equipment.
Shade is looking better by the minute, but he’s still pale and limping. He pauses frequently to tap away at his tablet, showing Knox the screen. It’s probably a checklist.
Or, you know, a plan to dispose of an Omega who is shaping up to be a serial killer.
In no time at all, they join me in the truck’s cab.
Knox in the driver’s seat, with Shade gingerly reclined in the passenger seat. Viper climbs in next to me, and I settle into the middle seat. Blaze darts around the truck and clambers in on the other side and I say a silent thanks that he doesn’t smell like burning bodies.
We’re packed in tightly and my thigh presses against theirs.
Blaze shoots me a heated grin and scoots in closer to me. Even after everything that’s happened in the last day, it’s reassuring that Blaze is still a goofball. Some things are consistent.
I smile back at him. I’ll never forget that Blaze is the one who stood by me when I needed a friend most, and I let him thread our fingers together.
He holds my hand gently, rubbing his thumb back and forth.
Blood covers his calloused knuckles, which are twice the size of mine.
It strikes me that despite my spotless pale skin, my hands have blood on them.
I’m a killer, just like they are. I’m part of the squad in a way I could never achieve through hard work and tenacity.
I’m tied to them by blood and death.
We lurch forward as the gearbox engages, and the truck rattles as it moves over the bumpy terrain.
“Where are we going?” I ask in a small voice, half expecting it to be drowned out by the roar of the truck engine.
“Somewhere safe,” Viper growls as he looks out the window, his eyes still scanning the abandoned campsite even as it disappears from view. There are still rogue Alphas out there.
Smoke billows from the forest, a fire consuming the bodies of our enemies.
As tough as my time at the training camp has been, I feel a pang of melancholy as we wind our way down the mountainside.
This is where I met these tenacious males and learned to follow my instincts. Where I discovered I’m capable of more than I ever dreamed possible.
And, if I’m truly honest with myself, it’s where I fell in love.