Page 23 of Tangled in Knots

“You know why,” I say instead to his question as I push the door open to fit my lanky six-foot-three frame. “Stop being a brat and sulking. You can’t deny that they’re connected.”

“I know,” he snarls, throwing his arms up in frustration. Realizing he hasn’t put the stupid coat on, he shoves his arms through the sleeves, yanking on it so it sits correctly. “How am I supposed to fix this, though? I don’t want to lose my brother, and I would be more than willing to throw the little omega to the wolves if I could get away with it.”

Huffing a sound of annoyance, I shut the door more firmly behind myself to ensure the sound of our voices doesn’t travel.

“Wouldn’t that be great, but it would drive him over the edge,” I grunt, walking closer to Jed. “Find a way around killing or making him lose what little mind he has left, Jed.”

“Those are such great choices,” he grumbles. “Dad will kill us if we go against him. Or, we’ll be running for our entire lives. It’s all fucked.”

“You could take her to the auction and steal her back, or even find a way to make it seem as if someone else is bidding for her,” I suggest. “Doesn’t Ophelia allow people to call in for bids?”

“Only for special occasions, and there’s a fee, not that the money is an issue,” he says. His father pays us a lot of money for our jobs, not to mention, we take side pay as well when Rock doesn’t have anything for us. “We can’t be anywhere near this for Ophelia to allow us to buy Adira.”

“Who hates us enough to be believable?” I ask, leading.

I don’t really know the answer to this, though there’s a fair amount of people who hate us due to our allegiance to Rock. I’ll leave the politics of this to Jed.

“I see what you’re saying,” he says softly. “It may work.” Pulling out his phone, he inclines it toward me. “I’m calling him now.”

Knowing he expects me to be quiet, I nod, shoving my hands into my sweatshirt for warmth. The snow continues to fall heavily all around us, refusing to let up even days later. We’re stuck here for longer than we expected, even if Damon hadn’t shot Adira. The brief respite we’d had earlier is gone now.

I can’t see for shit, and I won’t drive in this.

Jed puts the call on speaker as he calls Rock, struggling to stay still as the long rings drone on shrilly.

“You’re late. What’s wrong?”Rock asks, his voice sounding like thick gravel.

“The omega slut ran, and managed to get herself shot,” Jed reports, not giving any other details. “She’s alive and stable, but can’t travel yet. She also managed to go into heat, which explains the days we’ve been tied up waiting for it to break. We found a house and threw her into the basement to figure her shit out.”

The line is dangerously quiet as our boss, Jed’s father, processes that. “Did you get your dicks wet while there was a writhing omega in the basement?” he asks, making the hair stand up on my arms and back of my neck.

I won’t posture and act as if this man isn’t fucking scary. He has a reputation that he’s earned for a reason, and three damaged sons due to his special brand of parenting to boot.

“Absolutely not,” Jed lies evenly. “I’m working, and we aren’t complete animals. We can control ourselves, even Kane. Her mind is intact enough to be sold. Her body, however, needs time. She’ll be able to travel soon.”

“Where was she shot?” Rock asks, sounding slightly calmer.

“She ran from us, so I did what was necessary and shot her in the back to stop her,” Jed states.

One thing about Jed is that he is very protective of his brothers and will often throw himself into the fire for them. There are many scars and wounds that tell the tale of that bravery and idiocy along the tapestry of his skin. Fucking stubborn alpha.

This is why he’s pushing for the safest option here, and while I understand that, it’s not the one that makes the most long term sense.

“This isn’t something I was hoping to hear,” Rock sighs. I can only imagine what he must be thinking right now. “Will she live? I don’t much care about scars, but the buyers may.”

“I did the sutures myself, Dad,” Jed states. “They’re neat and small. She’ll have a tiny scar at best that her hair will cover.”

“Good. I know your sutures are good, because you’ve had plenty of practice, boy,” Rock says, almost sounding proud.

The reason Jed has so much practice is because when he was seventeen, Rock forced him to spend six months with the family’s doctor, who also moonlights as a surgeon at the hospital. You’d think it would be the other way around, but Dr. Tavares is paid better by Rock than the hospital. Jed was his shadow, and watched tons of surgeries both in and out of the hospital. On his downtime, Dr. Tavares had him practicing on silicone suture pads for its lifelike material.

Jed taught me so I could help him once I joined the pack, but his sutures are still better.

“Yes, sir. Can the auction date be postponed while we get her fixed up?” Jed asks. “It doesn’t help if she’s unable to stand when you show her off.”

“You’re right,” Rock grunts. “It gives me time for a theatrical buildup. I can continue to plan out my revenge on her fatherthis way. While I dislike waiting, I have to admit this isn’t the worst thing possible.”

Pressing my lips together, I hold back every thought in my mind that’s racing through it.He can’t continue punishing a dead man, and Adira isn’t her father.

---