Page 124 of Knot Unwanted: Part Two

The pause is so noticeable that we all look at him questioningly. A conflicted expression crosses his face before he visibly reorients himself, turning directly to face Hailey and me.

“What do you two think we should do?” he asks, the deliberate inclusion so unlike the old Jax that for a moment I’m speechless.

Hailey looks equally surprised, her lips parting slightly before she manages to respond. “I…well, investigating the police department seems good.”

“But do we even have those resources?” I stand and move back to her side. “We don’t know anyone who works with the force, do we?”

All eyes turn to Ren, the question an obvious one. If anyone had those connections, those skills, it would be him.

He shrugs, a casual gesture at odds with the intensity in his eyes. “I’ll find a way. I always do.”

His response is familiar. Confident, solitary, self-reliant to a fault. And it sends a flare of concern through me. “Not if it means putting yourself in danger, Ren.”

His gaze snaps to mine, surprise flickering across his features. “It’s what I do, Finn.”

“It’s what youdid,” I correct, not backing down. “Before we were actually functioning as a pack. Before we promised to make decisions together.”

Something complicated passes across his face—frustration, maybe, or reluctance, but also a grudging acknowledgment. He doesn’t argue further, which feels like its own kind of victory.

“Finn’s right,” Jax says, supporting me in a way that still feels novel. “We need an approach that doesn’t rely on one person taking all the risk. Especially not when we’re all potential targets.”

I nod, gratified by the support but still turning over the problem in my mind. “What about the Ashgraves? They clearly have resources inside law enforcement already. Could they help narrow down the search?”

“Possibly,” Ren concedes. “But they’ll want something in return. They always do.”

“We’re already giving them twenty percent of our Burlington operations,” Stone points out. “That should buy us some cooperation.”

Hailey shifts beside me, her scent changing subtly—determination replacing fear. “What if…” she starts, then hesitates.

“What is it?” I encourage, squeezing her hand.

She takes a breath, straightening her shoulders. “What if we used me as bait?”

The reaction is immediate and unanimous—a chorus of “No” from all four of us, scents sharpening with protective instinct.

“Absolutely not,” Jax says, his voice harder than I’ve heard it in weeks.

“Out of the question,” Stone adds, his expression darkening.

Ren doesn’t speak, but his entire body has gone rigid, his hands clenched at his sides. I watch the conflict play across his face—the urge to move toward Hailey warring with some deeper hesitation that keeps him rooted in place. His knuckles whiten as he grips the back of a chair, restraining himself.

She’s gotten so much braver, because Hailey doesn’t wilt under their collective disapproval. Instead, she lifts her chin, meeting each alpha’s gaze in turn. “Just hear me out. Heath wantedme. If word got out that I was going public with more details about what happened, about what I experienced at the facility…wouldn’t that force her associate to act? To try to silence me or discredit me?”

“And put you directly in their crosshairs?” Jax counters. He’s standing now. Pacing. “No. We just got you back. We’re not risking you again.”

“This isn’t about risking me,” Hailey argues, her grip on my hand tightening. “This is about making sure no other omega goes through what I did. What any of those others went through.” Her voice softens slightly, though her resolve doesn’t waver. “This isn’t about revenge. It’s about making sure Widow’s network is completely dismantled, not just pushed underground until she can rebuild it.”

I watch the alphas struggle with her words, with the undeniable logic behind them despite their instinctive rejection of anything that might put her at risk.

My gaze is drawn to Ren, who has moved to the window, putting physical distance between himself and the conversation. His reflection in the glass reveals a turmoil I rarely see him display so openly—desire to protect Hailey warring with his self-imposed isolation, with whatever demons still whisper that he’s unworthy of touch, of connection, of pack.

“There has to be another way,” Stone says finally, his voice less rigid than before. “One that doesn’t put you in direct danger.”

I’ve been turning the problem over as they argue, and suddenly a solution presents itself. “What if,” I begin slowly, drawing everyone’s attention, “we achieve the same goal without actually putting Hailey at risk?”

Hailey turns to me, curious. “What do you mean?”

“An anonymous tip to the media,” I explain, the plan forming as I speak. “Not legitimate journalism this time, but the gossip mags, the ones that publish anything sensational without much verification. We feed them a story about Hailey preparing to reveal new details about Heath’s operation, names you supposedly learned while in captivity.”

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