Page 23 of One Way Out

“Not a fecking clue,” Omen says, sounding especially Irish. “They don’t let anyone in on the exact location of the facility. Before we came in, it was one of the things Amato was bitching about. They collected us from London. We were drugged, but I vaguely recall our layover. It was a tiny airport. Everyone was speaking German. Come to think of it, I don’t know if they ever put us on a second plane.” He shrugs. “That’s all I’ve got.”

“They took Saylor from Amsterdam,” Valor adds, humming contemplatively. “If they were purposely searching for matches for me, I would assume they’d start close to the facility and work their way out.”

“What now?” I ask, trying not to wake Saylor.

Valor sighs heavily, going on to explain everything McCabe passed along to them on the trip back to the cell. “…and it makes sense. I’ve been around scent matches before. Even had one or two pass through A block. Smelling her changed everything. I never knew lightning was a scent people could come in.”

“Wait.” Leo sits up and leans even farther toward the two men. “What did you just say?”

“She mentioned my scent smelled the same way to her.” Valor shrugs. “She could even scent it through my bond with Omen. She told me about it while we talked that day after she was ill from the suppressants.”

“That scent—lightning—there’s an old wives’ tale about it,” Leo says. “My grandparents talked about it when I was little. They said that particular scent is reserved for soul matches. It’s one step up from a scent match…” He goes on to explain that soul matches have almost a magnetic attraction. They’re most comfortable when they’re in close proximity and can touch the other person.

It sounds a whole lot like the concept of a soulmate, and the idea that he’s hers chaps my ass.

My teeth grind together, but at least there’s some reasoning for her immediate attraction to them.

“Jesus,” Omen says with wide eyes. “That makes so much sense. I truly thought you’d disregard her, as you’d done to all the omegas.”

“Like I could ignore her.” Valor laughs. It’s a low, throaty sound that seems to signal his fondness for Saylor. “She bossed her way right into our room, smacked me for being rude when I growled at her, and had not an ounce of fear at being locked in with the two of us.”

Omen and Leo join in, laughing.

My head tilts until I can see her face, and I find myself smiling. That does sound like something she would do, at least the bossy bits and calling someone out for their bad behavior. She’s always had a very clear sense of right and wrong and a strong need for justice.

“This might be a shitty time to mention it, but I’ve no idea how I’ll follow her to the United States,” Omen says, frowning. “Neither of us have our IDs—not that mine is real—let alone a passport.”

“What do you mean?” I ask.

“My birth date, time, and weight were an unfortunate coincidence, that when combined with my hair…” The beta shrugs. “To say my mother wanted nothing to do with me would be putting it mildly. It took years of searching, but she eventually located my father in London. She wasted no time in dumping me with him. I was eleven. I’m sure I had to have had a passport at some point. Or perhaps not. I have very few memories of how she got me into England. After she abandoned me, I was mostly raised by the dancers in my father’s club. I have a birth certificate somewhere, but my father was little help, and I was in London with no formal documentation, which meant no driver’s license. No driver’s license meant no passport. I have fakes, of course, but they’re provided by Amato.”

“Jesus,” I say, frowning. “Just another way he’s got you by the balls.”

“Indeed,” Omen says with a nonchalance to his tone that I don’t buy.

“It might take a few days, but we can help with that,” Leo says, finally sitting back against the couch.

Well, it might not be much, but we have a tentative peace agreement.

I’m just not sure how Saylor will take my idea for how Leo and I get out of here without bonding. The thing is, it’s possible it would be the safest option. We have no way to get a message to Ridge to prepare him for the release meeting. I wasn’t lying when I said he’s excellent at adapting, but that still doesn’t mean I want to gamble when Saylor’s life is on the line.

The worst part of all would be having to ask McCabe for another favor. Oh, and being away from Saylor again for God knows how long.

I really fucking hate this place.

ChapterNine

Saylor

Hearing about how Omen’s mom abandoned him when he wasn’t even a teenager makes me so angry. I’m afraid they’ll be able to feel it in the bond and will realize I’m actually not asleep, so I do my best to block my emotions in the connection. It feels a little like building a makeshift wall in my mind around what I’m thinking, but it’s also an abstract experience.

There’s no way to be certain it works, but if they know I’m pretending to be asleep, neither Valor nor Omen call me on it.

It feels sneakier than I mean it to. I was asleep until they woke me up with their conversation. I’m just a light sleeper. And it feels a lot like they need to hash this kind of stuff out without me being an active participant.

You’re justifying bad behavior…to yourself.

Get a grip, Saylor.

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