Page 55 of Deadly Ties

Glo starts whispering in Italian, her body swaying like she wants to leap to her feet and run to them. Fuck. If she tries, her packmates are probably as good as dead. Should I have warned her, tried to prepare her? Would it be better to know they’re out here, when they can’t do anything to help? “This isn’t about my father,” she murmurs, low and broken, before her eyes swing my way. “What did they make Darius do?”

I think of him sitting in my bedroom, their picture in his lap, but I just shake my head. Whatever deal her pack made with Bisha to get me here, I don’t think it’s played out the way they hoped. “We can’t let them use us against them,” I whisper back. “Whatever they do to us, just survive it, Glo.”

She gives me a wild look, but Bisha is now standing, and the room has gone quiet. He’s in the booth right in front of the stage, dressed in a dark suit and holding a cigar in one hand and a crystal glass in the other. He looks like he’s about to make a toast, but instead he tips his drink in Glo’s direction. “This Italian beauty comes from the Malito pack in Rome. Her alpha missed our deadline, so now she’s up for grabs.”

Something withers inside me at his words. I’ve known for a long time that Roan Bisha is a hard, ruthless man. But I never really believed he was as bad as some of the other alphas out there. There are moments when I remember him being kind; when he’d looked at me with something I thought was affection. I didn’t see a lot of him growing up, and I knew things were never quite right between him and my mom, but I thought that was just the price you pay to be the family of a powerful alpha.

But he’s a monster.

The light in his eyes is all beast, and when they swing over me, all I see is a cruel gleam of satisfaction. Like things have finally played out the way he wanted, and I’m exactly where he expected me to be. I shudder, biting on my lip so I don’t let the howl inside me spiral out.

Someone calls out an amount – it sounds like fifty thousand – but it’s quickly followed by double that, and I realize the second bid has come from Bisha’s booth. I didn’t notice his guests until now, but I realize the only woman in the room is sitting there. She’s as beautiful as an ice statue, with flaming red hair and soft, empty eyes that are glued to the edge of the table. She might be trying to pretend she’s not here, but the man beside her – a weaselly-looking alpha – is staring at Glo with pure lust in his eyes.

Bisha tips his drink at his companion. “You like the look of this one, Phillip?”

The alpha licks his thin lips. “She’d certainly sweeten the deal.”

I feel my lip curl at his wolfish smile, but Bisha just turns to look at the back of the room. Right at the table where Darius Raptis and Cuff Guy are now bucking under the grip of grinning togs. “One hundred, hey? Don’t suppose you boys can meet that?” He gives a shrug, flicking his cigar at Phillip, who’s now standing at the side of their booth. “The bitch is yours.”

Glo starts cursing and sobbing under her breath, right as there’s a roar of outrage from the back of the room. More togs head to subdue her packmates, but I tear my gaze away. There’s no helping them, but as I lurch towards Glo, desperate to protect her somehow, Bisha snarls in my direction. “Stay.”

The alpha command is enough to send me crashing back to my knees, my bones slamming against the wood. I can’t stop my cry of pain, but Bisha just smiles at the rage in my eyes. “Don’t worry, Omega. Your turn is coming next.”

Fuck him. Fuck all those alphas who grin along with the monster, eating up our fear and pain.

“Fuck you,” I hiss, loud enough for some of them to chuckle. But I push them out of my mind as the alpha with the winning bid mounts the stage. “It’s not you, Glo,” I tell her, even as her eyes swing wildly around for a way out. “Just turn off your mind. They mean nothing. Your pain is nothing. Just get through it, and get back to your pack.”

Her gaze snaps to mine, but then the weasel alpha is pulling her off her knees, and two of the togs are there to help drag her away. They head for a door off to our left, and I wonder if that’s where the other omegas are. If every one of them that’s gone before us has been hauled off to be raped by their highest bidder.

I clutch the key in my hand so hard I can feel it break the skin. I really don’t care about the pain, but the humiliation, being treated like less than human, that makes my insides shake. And what is it doing to the people who care about us? I think of Rory and Kelly and Cam. I even spare a thought for Link. But Arben… I squeeze my eyes shut. For the first time, I’m glad he can’t feel me through our bond.

But I can’t escape Bisha’s voice. “This one… I think we will do her out here, for all to see.”

There’s a commotion at the other end of the room and I think it’s Darius, finally giving into his rage. But when my eyes pop open, I see Lucas Ferrier walking into the room. He’s dressed in a suit, his head held high, but he’s all alone. A murmur runs through the crowd, some alphas surprised, others looking uneasy, and in moments he’s surrounded by togs. But there’s no fear in his golden eyes as he turns to Bisha. “My daughter is leaving with me. Now. And I’ll put any man who tries to stop us into the ground.”

Elvana

A small gasp leaves my lips, the only sound I can’t swallow down as I stare back at him. My dad, claiming me before his enemies and peers.

He came for me.

But Bisha isn’t about to let him control the room, waving for a pair of his togs to force Ferrier closer. Rough hands grab him and steer him towards the booth, and when they’re only a few feet apart, I’m surprised to see that Bisha is the smaller man. Not just in size, since Ferrier is a head taller, but also in his command. They seem evenly matched as alphas, but Bisha is like a dark hole radiating malice, while Ferrier – my father – glows as bright as the sun. My heart leaps even further when I realize some of the alphas, especially those from neighboring territories, are starting to mutter uneasily amongst themselves.

But Bisha glares at the room, and when the noise dies down, curls his lip at Ferrier. “You’re here without an invitation, wolf. That means you’re trespassing on my property.”

“My invitation is kneeling on that stage.” Ferrier’s eyes flare molten gold as he stares at me, then addresses the room. “You all know who I am, and the territory I hold. Elvana Ferrier is my blood daughter and legal heir, and the papers have been lodged in Washington, London, and Paris attesting to that fact. This gives me paternal rights to her welfare, and let me assure you, I will defend them with everything I have.”

There are more murmurs from the crowd, but Ferrier holds up a hand. “That’s not the only reason I’m here, however.” Ferrier’s voice holds such command, no one moves, and I begin to feel a twinge of hope. Maybe we’re going to get out of here after all. “While I was lodging her pack papers, I did some digging into our Head Alpha’s activities on the Continent. Roan Bisha has no doubt told you he is snatching up assets and territories in Europe and plans to spread the wealth with you all. But he has legal agreements pending with the Alphas of Prague, Budapest, and Sofia that include giving them a foothold in this country. Whose lands do you think he’s promised them?” An angry rumble now fills the room, and Ferrier’s gaze swings to the beautiful woman in the booth. “If you need a witness, Elizabeth Prior, blood daughter of Claude Vaillancourt, the Alpha of Paris, can attest to everything I’ve said.”

My heart starts to pound as I stare at Kelly’s mom, looking for some sign that she’s on our side. Does she know Kelly is in the other room, possibly fighting himself into a coma? But she doesn’t move even when Bisha puts a hand on her shoulder, draining his glass as if he doesn’t have a care in the world. With a smirk, he shakes his head at my father. “You’re as much a fool as you’ve ever been, Ferrier. Bringing empty threats and false accusations to a dominance fight are the actions of a little bitch.” His gaze swings back my way, the gloating in his eyes clear to all. “Just like the one I raised up there. As weak as her mother, but I fed them and clothed them, as per the arrangement I made with the last true Alpha of Boston, Jarvis Ferrier.” He gives Kelly’s mom a vicious squeeze, then turns on the rest of the room. “And since everyone here has sworn allegiance to me, what happens to her next is my business. Now, who is alpha enough to mount the stage and put this worthless little bitch in her place? In return, I’ll give you a seat at my table, and a private meeting on my plans for Europe.”

There’s more muttering from the alphas, although some of them now sound like they’re considering his offer. My stomach lurches as someone slams their glass on the table, but my mouth falls open as Quentin Crouch climbs out of a booth at the back. What the hell? Last I heard, this asshole was dead, his pack scattered. I look at Ferrier, but if he’s surprised to see Crouch alive, he doesn’t show it. “I’ll do it,” Crouch calls, puffing out his chest. “But I’ll want that and much more, since you still owe me, Head Alpha. I proved you had a rat in your house, and paid for it with my pack.”

My eyes narrow as I try to make sense of his words. Does he mean Arben is the rat? How would Crouch know anything about him? But Bisha doesn’t look in the mood for more negotiations, waving the other alpha impatiently towards the stage. “You’ll have what’s yours again, soon enough. Now move it along before our guests grow bored.”

Ferrier watches Crouch with murder in his eyes, and the asshole is careful to give him a wide berth as he heads towards me. But instead of trying to stop him, Ferrier turns to face the other alphas. “Right now, you have the chance to remove Roan Bisha from the Head Alpha position. There’s enough of you here from other territories to form a pack majority. Vote him out, strip him of his title, and liberate these lands…”

“You talk a big game,” an alpha calls from another booth. “But why don’t you just challenge him, if you want his position so much?”

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