Page 16 of The Alpha King's Mate

Aziz snorted and shook his head. “Yeah. You’ve got one hell of an omega. I will say that.”

“No need to tell me that. I already know.”

Hours later, we had the omega and his babes in our care. They were headed back to the compound. Ryan had gone back with the others, since I had things to do that he really couldn’t participate in. He’d argued a bit but gone with them after I promised to come back to him. That omega needed to be bedded soon. I wanted him to wear proof he belonged to me. My teeth marks on his neck. My scent mixed with his inside and out.

I found the hard drive, buried right where the omega said it was. He claimed his alpha took it from the big bosses once he realized they wanted to use his omega, his mate, as one of the breeders. He had planned to run with his family and then turn the big guys in.

The hard drive was buried in a cave, tucked under a rock and insulated in about ten of those zipper-top plastic bags. The omega didn’t specify what information was on the hard drive, but if it could cost him his life, it had to be something good. It had already cost him his alpha’s life.

Still, in order to keep up appearances, and try to prove I was still on their side, I had to return this to the big baddies.

They had me meet them in some abandoned mechanic shop. The people I worked for didn’t use restaurants or places regular people went. Instantly, the scent of used engine oil and tire rubber hit me along with the sourness of the people I had to meet up with. Tyrus didn’t need the hard drive. We had access to everything now that he’d infiltrated their system.

Working with my team and saving omegas was the best part of my job. But this? Meeting with these evil jerks was the last thing I wanted to be doing. Hell, I didn’t even want to text them or talk to them on the phone.

“That’s far enough, King,” a voice spoke as I stepped into the open garage. The big automated door slowly closed behind me as two huge, buzzing lights flickered above my head. “You have what was taken from us?”

The men in front of me were wearing all black. Masks over their mouths. Black baseball caps. Sunglasses. Even gloves.

If your job entailed hiding yourself to that degree, you probably shouldn’t be doing it.

“I have it.”

I handed the hard drive to one of them who stepped forward. He pinched the plastic bag by the corner, sure being careful for a man who was already wearing gloves. Maybe a germaphobe.

“And the omega?”

“He was gone by the time I got down there. I found this and left. But the team is on it.”

“You had one job, lion. Get in there, find what was stolen from us, and kill the ones you found.”

I snorted. “That’s two jobs, but okay.” One of the men pulled a gun from his waistband. I put my hands up. I had an omega to get back home to now so some fake humility would have to do. “I apologize. Didn’t mean any offense. We will find them and make sure they’re taken care of.”

“See that you do, but we can’t really let you go without some recourse for not completing your job.”

“It’s the first time I’ve ever not completed a mission.”

The man’s eyebrow arched. “First time for everything. Still, a price must be paid.”

Before I could protest or let my lion out to shred these assholes, a needle pierced my neck, and I crumpled to the floor. While they kicked and beat me with tire irons, I was aware but unable to move. My breaths were shallow and labored. I floated in and out of consciousness.

Sometime later, they left me there, the clanging sound of the tire wrenches hitting the concrete their goodbye.

My eyes drifted shut, but I had to live.

I had to live for Ryan.

Chapter Thirteen

Ryan

I didn’t like the way things were left with King, but it was more important that we got the others out of there and safe than to make things all happy happy happy in the land of mates. The ride home had been rough, tension strong as we went all sorts of misguided directions to make sure we weren’t being followed. There was so much I wanted to ask the omega, but it wasn’t the time.

When we got back to the house, the residents were all asleep, which was good. They could meet our new guests in the morning, but, for now, giving them space to decompress was far more important.

We had one room at the house available. It wasn’t ideal for three toddlers and their omega dad, but it would have to do. I walked them up and sent Sloan to get some air mattresses for the floor. We’d figure things out in the morning as to where to go from there, but for now, they needed sleep and food.

“I thought I was protecting us,” Nathan said. “Instead, I nearly destroyed everything.” Tears were flowing down his face, and my heart broke for him. He was holding one sleeping toddler, and I somehow managed to hold the other two. It was the first time since we got them out that he could speak freely. Little ears didn’t need to hear about the horrors going on around them.

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