Page 19 of Verses and Blooms
Once it was all said and done, and we had Audrey back, I knew it would be even more of a battle to get them released. We had to prove that they were safe to be in public, that they’d made progress here despite the corruption.
That she was stable after yet another round of trauma.
My reputation was on the line right alongside them. The Chief and everyone else knew I could be trusted. The Board of the Omega Network did not. The higher-ups in the Alliance also did not. To them, I was likely seen as a wild card.
“What’s inside?” I asked, just before Ledger reached the door.
“It’s a typical shed,” one of my men said with a shrug. “As far as we can tell, there’s no sign of anyone there. Just some lawn tools and supplies and some old boards.”
“I don’t understand how that’s possible,” I argued, refusing for this to become yet another fucking dead end. We’d run into far too many. “They came this way. Where else would they have gone?”
I trusted everything Ansel said, and they knew better than to question me at this point. If there were doubts, they kept them to themselves, but I’d seen a few doubtful looks. Especially when I said one of my pack omegas saw Malik.
Everyone just assumed that the people in the center were mentally unstable, and that couldn’t be farther from the truth. The people here might’ve had broken bonds, dealing with more pain and grief than anyone should ever have to, but they weren’t incapable of proper thought.
I hated the stigma that followed this godforsaken place. I couldn’t wait to see the end of it.
Ledger had already torn past the men while I was talking to the agents. I could hear the crashing inside as he tore the place apart, and who could blame him?
They’d known Audrey far longer than I had. I was sure the protective instincts I had were nothing compared to the way his alpha was likely riding him, demanding that he see her safe again.
“Ares!” Ledger yelled, getting my attention.
I hurried inside in time to see him throwing a stack of plywood aside. There was no garage door anymore, it had been long sealed over with a makeshift metal wall. Someone had created a door in one side, tearing out the metal and stacking the boards over it to go unnoticed.
Sure enough, hidden behind the supplies was an exit, small enough that a person could slide through easily and cover their tracks. As long as the gardner didn’t see them, they were golden.
“How would they have carried her through here, though?” I asked.
“I’m not sure they did,” Ledger said, crouching down to study the tracks. “But someone sure went through here. These are fresh tracks. I’m seeing two sets, but they couldn’t have squeezed through with Audrey over their shoulders. Ansel said he saw Malik and two soldiers, not her.”
My heart pounded as reality sank in. He was right. There was no way they’d taken our girl through here. But someone had left through here, which meant Malik no longer had our omega.
My earpiece beeped and Sanchez’s voice filtered into my ear. “You need to get your pack back here. There’s an auction going up and you’ll never guess who is the prime pick,” he said, voice shaking and frantic. I’d never heard him anything but calm.
“No,” I gasped, horrified at the thought of her being put out there for someone to purchase. To do what they wanted with.
They were trying to auction off my omega.
“To the highest bidder?” I asked carefully. Maybe we could fight back under the radar. Walk in there invited.
“Not just any auction,” Sanchez said. Something in his voice had my blood running cold. “A heat auction. They’re inducing heat.”
Ledger was only catching pieces of the conversation since he didn’t have a comm like I did. He was inches from my face now, demanding answers.
“What is he saying?”
“They’re trying to auction off Audrey,” I said. “Sanchez has a lead. If we want to find our girl, we have to let Malik go for now. The agents will track him down.”
“Damn straight we will,” Ledger growled. “Send them in after him. They definitely went this way.”
“We’re already on it,” one of our guards said, rounding up the others as they went out through the opening to follow the lead while we rushed back into ARC.
“I know this looks bleak,” I said, “but now we know who has her and where to find her.”
“How the fuck are we going to get there? Nobody’s going to let us bid on our omega,” Ledger growled. “I might have to call my father.”
“No, you’re not,” I snapped. “The Alliance has more funds than you think. We have men of every skill set. Give us a chance.”
