Page 2 of Broken Bonds

I glance at Ollie, eyes wide. If Van doesn’t slow down now, there’s a good chance we could hit that tree because no way can these tires or this car drift around that bend.

“Van, you need to slow the fuck down right now,” I whisper hoarsely, unable to take my eyes from the road as we get closer and closer to that bend, the tree in my sight by now.

A hefty dose of fear washes down my spine when I realize he’s still not slowing down, and he’s also panicking.

“Fuck! Fuck, fuck, FUCK!” he yells, slamming his foot repeatedly on the brake to no avail.

Clutching my seatbelt with a white-knuckled grip, I glanced over at Ollie with fear lodged so deep in my throat that I could hardly breathe. His lips are pressed firmly together in a thin line and his hold on the food in his arms is so tight he’s crushed the bags.

“Why aren’t we stopping? Van!” Lake yells, his voice full of panic as he also notices the bend we’re quickly approaching.

“The fucking breaks aren’t working. Godsdammit, I knew I should have taken this damn thing in to be serviced,” he moans, fear keeping him pumping the brakes even though it won’t help.

Is this it? Are we going to die?

Will any of us make it?

What about Ramsey?

Fuck.

My Starfire. Our babies.

My throat gets tight, and I can feel my eyes burning the closer we get to that fucking curve and tree.

“No, no, no,” Ollie groans, holding his head in his hands.

“Can we jump and survive?” Lake asks, his voice thready as the car continues to speed ahead, slowing just the smallest amount without his foot on the gas any longer, but nowhere near enough that if we hit that tree any of us will survive.

“No. Not at this speed. Godsdammit, I don’t know what to do,” Van growls, his eyes growing wild with desperation.

When we make it to the curve, Van tries his hardest to make it around, turning the wheel hard. The back tires slide, and at first, I think we might actually make it, but the tires are older and have needed a change for a while now, just like the brakes. The whole car needs a tune-up, but we’ve all been so distracted, and we normally take Ramsey’s new car anywhere we go these days. It hasn’t felt important.

It does now though, as we hit dirt and spin, the tree growing closer and closer. Ollie cries out and I reach for his hand, holding onto it with a nearly bruising grip. Lake scrambles to get his seatbelt on, but it’s too late.

When we crash, my head snaps back, and then slams against the window so hard I can’t even feel it. An image of Ramsey flashes behind my eyes, my beautiful Starfire, and my heart seizesin my chest. Then all I see is endless darkness, the last thing I hear is the cries of my brothers and the crunch of metal as it wraps around a tree.

* * *

OLLIE

Tears cascade down my cheeks, my heart in my throat as my life flashes behind my eyes as the car spins and spins. Ramsey is the primary focus, my everything, the very breath I breathe. So beautiful and fierce.

I slam into the car door when we hit the tree, crying out and gasping in pain when I feel something snap inside my chest and push into something that feels vital inside of me. Rule’s hand clutches mine tightly until it suddenly goes limp. It becomes hard to breathe and panic consumes me as I start to feel like I’m drowning. I try to shut down my end of the bond so Ramsey can’t feel it, but I fail and her worry floods my system just before her pain when, one by one, our bonds go up in flames.

Rule is gone. I know that when I look over and see him slumped over in the seat, unmoving. Not a single breath pushes his chest out, and more tears stream down my cheeks. When I look in the front, Lake isn’t there, and the windshield is completely shattered.

Van is… fuck.

A gurgle pulls from me as I see his neck is sitting at an odd angle. My heart cracks until it completely shatters in my chest.

They’re gone.

My brothers.

My omega’s bonds.

And before long, I will be too. I can already feel my life slowly bleeding out of me.

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