Kodiak Sector (V-Clan #4)

Prologue

GREY

Kodiak Sector

Ice floods my veins as I take in the sight before me.

The sensation has nothing to do with the frigid surroundings, the frosty air, or the wintry conditions of Kodiak Sector. And everything to do with the frozen Omega lying in the water.

Fuck.

It took me far too long to decode this female’s cryptic notes in her damn journals.

I want to throttle her for not being more forthcoming.

And fall to my knees in apology for allowing this fate to befall her.

I’m about to do the latter when I catch the shiver on her bottom lip, the bluish tint resembling death. Her shoulders tremble next, the shudder undeniable as she gasps a little, like she’s just stirred from a nap.

But then her teeth begin to chatter, and I suddenly become aware that I’m just wasting precious fucking time.

Because she’s very much alive and in pain.

From taking a literal ice bath to mask her sweet scent, I think, sighing inside. A foolish yet intelligent choice.

Shaking my head, I step forward, ready to begin whatever game we’re about to play with one another.

“All right, little riddler,” I say, letting her know that I’m here and that she can knock off this little charade.

But as her eyes flutter open, I realize this isn’t an act at all.

She is literally dying in this ice water.

Dying whilst waiting for me.

I’m back to wanting to throttle her again.

Only, she’s looking at me like I’m the warmth she’s been waiting for, the sun she craves, the heat she desperately needs.

Yet that hero-worshipping look disappears in a blink behind a hint of fear, one that threatens to make my heart beat a little faster. “Y-you’re here,” she stammers out, her voice barely audible.

My brow furrows, and I hold out my hand, confused by her shifting emotions. “Let’s get you somewhere warm,” I offer.

She considers me for a moment, almost as though she’s debating whether or not to trust me.

I suppose I am covered in blood from the battle in Blood Sector, but I came straight here after finally understanding Ashlyn’s cryptic note. There hadn’t been time for a shower.

I’m about to apologize, debating if that’s what the Omega needs to hear before she’ll accept my hand, when howls erupt in the distance.

Never mind, I think, leaning down and snatching the female from the freezing water. Fuck, how long has she been lying here? I wonder, noting the ice cube sensations trickling up my arms in response to her chilled skin.

Rather than voice any of that aloud, I shadow us to a safer location. Somewhere warmer.

Not too far away, though, as we have unfinished business in Kodiak Sector. But far enough away to ensure her protection while she recovers from her ice bath.

We materialize in a cave that I’ve fashioned into one of my many lairs.

Recognition kisses Ashlyn’s features, telling me she’s foreseen this. Just as I’m sure she’s foreseen a great deal many things.

Which makes her choice of locations in Kodiak Sector somewhat of a mystery to me.

Why did you allow yourself to nearly freeze to death? I want to demand.

But, instead, I grab a blanket from a nearby couch, and wrap it around her naked body—a body I would have admired a lot more if it weren’t fucking blue.

That doesn’t stop me from holding her close, though.

She’s shivering so hard it’s a miracle she hasn’t bitten her own tongue.

I pinch her chin and tilt her head back so I can stare into her big blue eyes. She looks so small in my arms, so fragile.

And I fucking hate that.

Omegas are meant to be cherished, not abused.

Yet I feel responsible for her current pain. Which is ridiculous since I’m not the one who put her in that water. She did that to herself.

But I am the one who took forever to decode her cryptic notes.

Notes I didn’t even realize were for me until several minutes ago.

Ashlyn and I… we don’t actually know each other. We’ve met, yes. But she doesn’t truly know me. And other than her being a Z-Clan Omega who clearly recognized me the first time we met—suggesting she’s had visions of me in the past—I don’t truly know her.

Not beyond what I’ve read in her journals, anyway.

Journals that I only had access to because she left them to be found. She wanted them to be read, too. That’s why she dropped all those clues on how to find her in Kodiak Sector.

Only, that’s not all she wrote about…

“I’m going to warm you up,” I promise her, my gaze still searching hers. “Then we’re going to talk about those little notes in your journal about Nikiski. And afterward, you’re going to help me find her.”

Because Nikiski owns my heart.

I’ve been hunting for her for years.

My sweet Omega.

My charge.

My little sister…