Page 177 of Broken Omega

I push the door inward and slip into the room, closing it quietly.

Hitting the lights, I take in the room.

It looks like a typical psychiatrist’s office.

Leather chair, leather sofa. Big desk. Bookcases.

I move behind the desk and find I need to break into the drawers like I broke into the room.

For a second, I’m not sure the card will work. When it does, I let out a sigh of relief.

I find what I’m looking for without any trouble. The thick file is marked Project O.

I remove it and check inside, discovering neatly written notes on a conditioning technique that can be applied to Omegas to ensure obedience. There are bound casefiles inside with subject names on the covers. Some of them are marked complete. Others, like Brooke’s, are marked ongoing.

Checking the drawers, I make sure I’m not missing anything else that might be important.

Then, I put the file under my hoodie, sticking the edge into my waistband and keeping an arm around it as I hit the lights and leave the room.

I dart back across the hall and leave the way I came in.

My phone doesn’t start to vibrate until I’m on my way back to the blind spot where Donnie and River are waiting. Checking it, I find out Warren’s left the academy.

I move faster, getting to the blind spot and pushing the file into Donnie’s hands.

“Get moving,” I tell them. “I have to get back there.”

“You can’t,” River says, shaking his head. “It’s too late. We all have to get back to the car. Now.”

“He could run when he finds out this is gone,” I tell them. “We’d never find him, and he’d always be a threat to Brooke.”

Donnie shakes his head. “Fucking go, if you’re going. If you let yourself get killed, I swear—”

“Not gonna happen.” I bolt back through the woods, feeling as if I’m moving in slow motion.

KELLAN

Lana’s checking her phone when Warren’s car leaves the academy. I touch her arm, and she looks up, nods at the car, and sends Donnie a text alerting him that Brooke’s father is on his way back home.

She gets a text back almost immediately. “They have the file.”

“Oh, thank God.” I let out a breath.

It’s starting to feel like we’re halfway home.

Lana relaxes back in her seat. “That was intense.”

“It’s not over yet,” I tell her.

“Right,” she says, nodding. “We need to go meet them at the police station.”

“We?” I ask. “You only need to drop me off. Lana, you’ve done more than enough.”

She gives me a look as she starts the engine. “You seriously think I’m bowing out this late in the game? I want to see how this ends, K. Brooke deserves her happy ever after. If I can help her get there, I will.”

“You’re the best friend ever.”

She smiles. “Thanks for noticing.”

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