Page 21 of Believe It or Knot: Part Two

I had no idea what to expect from them. Clearly, they had to see I was already spoken for. That what I’d told them was true. If they decided they wanted me back, they’d have to fight through my pack to get to me. Our seven to their five. Then again, Felix and his penchant for explosives could easily decimate us all.

Protectiveness surged in my chest, and I wanted to shove all my men behind me to defend them—no matter how silly that seemed, given I was all of five-foot-two to their towering six-plus feet of solid muscle.

“Thank you for getting Demi out,” Jamison stepped away from our group, with Knox taking up the space beside him.

My jaw dropped open.Wait—what?

Lawson moved to greet them, with Slade, Enoch, Felix, and Ronan at his back. I watched the reunion while Hades—who stood behind me—settled his hands on my shoulders possessively, while Thane and Leo took up positions at my sides. Eli positioned himself out front, not blocking my view but putting himself in a position where he could easily shield me.

Knox reached for Enoch, shaking his hand first and then embracing the man with pats on the back like they were old friends. Meanwhile, Jamison offered his hand to Lawson, who shook it before giving him a sharp nod.

“Glad we got the right Omega out of there,” Lawson said. “We weren’t able to save them all.”

“I know.” Jamison sighed. “Thane tried to follow the others, but when all hell broke loose, we lost track of them in the mayhem. I’m forever indebted to you for saving my mate.”

Thane intertwined his fingers with mine and gave them a gentle squeeze. “We couldn’t get close to the auction,” he explained. “Anton knew who we were. The bastard put a bolo out on us. Luckily, Knox had contacts and reached out to his friend Enoch.”

“Our pack has a special set of skills.” Enoch shrugged like he was telling me they could knit instead of explaining that they were some sort of mercenary group—the kind who didn’t mind leaving a trail of destruction, fire, and blood in their wake.

Not that I was judging, mind you, since I was free and back with my pack. But it was almost laughable how much he downplayed their job.

“I went to the academy with Enoch,” Knox clarified, “but instead of joining the force as I did, he met and became a part of Lawson’s pack.” He nodded toward the other Alpha.

“I used to be in the military, and I now run my own security company.”

“Is that what you’re calling it?” Knox smirked.

Lawson chuckled. “On the surface.”

I studied the pack who’d kidnapped—er,saved—me. “You all planned this?”

Slade shoved a hand through his blond hair. “Not without the help from your pack. Jamison and Knox scoured every sliver of information they could find until they figured out what Anton’s plans were and sent us in to get you out. Lawson and Ronan went in as buyers and made sure you were on the sales docket. Felix is our resident explosives artist. He caused a distraction so that Enoch, who disguised himself as a Beta and snuck in as a guard, could get you out. I was his backup and on further extraction, along with your pack, who was finally able to get into the building while security was otherwise distracted from our little blast.”

I shook my head at the complexity of their plan. If one part was unsuccessful, I’d still be in Anton’s clutches. A shiver slid down my spine like icy fingers, the phantom dread making me nauseous all over again. What would have become of me if they’d failed?

Sensing my stress, Hades massaged his thumbs lightly over my shoulder blades. I played with the sleeves of my borrowed button-down, which fell well past my fingertips, while I worried about the other Omegas. Someone had said they’d only been able to get the three of us who’d been on stage out. What would become of the others? Guilt swamped me that I was the focus of the rescue and not the others. Their uncertain futures hung heavy on my conscience.

“Where’s Julia? And the other Omega?” I questioned, pulling free from my mates and glancing toward where the SUV sat, doors open, headlights spilling across the gravel drive.

“Who?” Knox asked, brows furrowed.

“Julia. My cage-mate.” I craned my neck, searching the vehicle, expecting to see the girls hopping out of the backseat to join our weird little party. It was strange they weren’t already with us unless something had happened to them.Oh gods.I hoped they were okay.

“Cage-mate?” Jamison growled angrily.

I winced. “That’s not important right now.”

“The fuck it’s not,” he muttered, reaching for me. He stepped close and wrapped a hand around the side of my head, pulling me in and kissing my temple possessively.

I gazed up at him, looking for answers. “Julia was one of the other Omegas on the stage with me. Slade said you guys got the three of us out.”

“The two other girls were pretty heavily drugged.” Eli winced. “They’re in the backseat of the car, resting and trying to come out of the haze.”

“We’ll get ‘em,” Ronan called, slapping Slade’s chest with the back of a hand before he took off and jogged toward the forgotten vehicle.

My pulse fluttered faster as I blinked between the SUV and where my pack surrounded me.

Enoch winced. “They drugged all of them with some pretty potent shit. I lost sight of Demi for a little while and couldn’t stop those fuck-faces from messing with her without having blown my cover. They gave her something else in the form of a pill before I found her again.”

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