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Morgan wasn’t the only one staying behind. Brody would be watching the kids, along with Mary, Stuart and Sasha, though the latter certainly wasn’t happy about it. The passive omega actually put up a bit of a fuss, which wasn’t at all like him.
“I have a really bad feeling about this,” Sasha repeated, gripping Dawn’s hand. “I should stay with you. What if you need me and I’m not there?”
She played it off like it was no big deal, rolling her eyes. “I’ll be fine. In fact, it’ll be easier if I’m not distracted trying to watch your clumsy ass.” She winked and smiled to ease the sting, but she knew the danger and would say whatever it took to convince him to stay.
Vesta stood off to the side, frowning. She seemed confused, muttering to herself and tugging on the ends of her long hair, billowing unbound around her hunched shoulders. I didn’t like seeing her agitated like this. If she’d had a vision about today, she’d lost it in her fracturing mind.
“Watch out for her?” I asked Morgan quietly, tilting his head with a finger under his chin toward the shaman. “She’s too proud to admit she needs help, but left on her own, she might try to wander off.”
Morgan blinked quickly, tears dropping from his lashes. He nodded shakily. “O-Okay.”
My mate and I weren’t the only ones devastated by the separation. Pax was screaming the trees down, refusing to let go of his omega dad. It was a haunted sound, hitting a pitch that made my skin crawl. “Shh, it’s okay, Pax,” Dylan said, rubbing his back gently, while Tristan tried to untangle Pax’s arms from Dylan’s neck.
“Here, I’ll take him,” Morgan offered, since Brody’s hands were full with Wynn, who was squirming and kicking because he wanted to help his best friend. Pax latched on to Morgan with his arms and legs, burying his face inside his jacket, and Morgan rocked and shushed the toddler. I savored the brief glimpse of what Morgan would be like as a father, in case I never got to see it for myself.
“Gimme a break,” Silas muttered, rolling his eyes. “You’re all a bunch of bleeding hearts. It’s a wonder you ever get anything done between all the whining and crying.”
“It’s not our fault nobody loves you enough to care if you die,” I snarled as I knocked his shoulder on the way by. He staggered a step and glared after me, but wisely held his tongue.
We loaded everyone up into our two vehicles, the rest climbing in with members of Silas’s pack. “I’ll ride with you boys, if it’s all the same to you,” Silas declared with no small amount of distrust. “I’d hate to be left out of all theplanning.” It was like he thought we were about to betray him, removing both threats at the same time.
I wished I’d thought of that.
As Shan steered our truck down the road, I glanced in the sideview mirror at Morgan, my heart breaking as he watched me leave.
Our truck was in the lead, Shan following the directions we’d planned with the map, the others trailing behind. We had about an hour to drive, and I let my eyes glaze over as the scenes from my nightmares overlapped the present blurring past outside the window.
As we got closer, I recognized the rural home where I’d stolen clothes from the line outside. And in the distance, I saw a barn bathed in morning sunshine, but in my mind, I could still see its outline gilded in the flash of lightning against a black backdrop. “Turn left here,” I blurted before I’d even made the decision. Shan didn’t question me, just followed my instructions.
“We’re getting close now,” I said through chattering teeth. My wolf was baying in my head. I closed my eyes, and behind my eyelids, I could see the lab so clearly. I’d sworn I would do whatever it took to stay away, and now here we were, back where it all began.
Shan pulled the truck off the road and parked, signaling to the others to get out. We were abandoning the vehicles for now. We would be on foot—or rather paw—from here.
We had hours of daylight left before we would make our move, and we put that time to good use. Opening one of the many unmarked crates we’d borrowed from Joe Caruso, we pulled out an expensive-looking drone to scout out ahead. I was totally clueless when it came to technology, but Tristan was all over it. We crept as close to the building as we could without being spotted, then launched the drone.
“That must be it,” Tristan said. He scoffed, shaking his head. “Just looks like a warehouse. A whole secret lab hiding in plain sight, and nobody has a clue.”
I leaned over his shoulder to get a look at the screen. Even seeing it from above, I broke out in a cold sweat. My stomach heaved, and I lurched away in case I lost my lunch.
I can’t do this, I thought, hunched over with my hands on my knees, shaking in the sudden chill.
You can, my wolf replied, simmering with hot fury. Ican. He’d been waiting all these years for a chance at a little payback, and nobody was going to stand in his way—not even me.
We made our moveafter dark.
The lab had been quiet all day, from what we could see. A few guards patrolling the grounds, but otherwise, we hadn’t seen hide nor hair of anyone. It was impossible to guess how many people were inside, but nothing we couldn’t handle—I hoped.
“Let’s move out,” Shan whispered, before allowing the shift to take over.
Half our group were going as our wolves—or panther, in Dylan’s case—and the other half were wearing black body armor and carrying assault rifles. It probably should’ve worried me at how easily Silas’s pack handled the guns, how natural they were with these unnatural weapons, but all I could feel right now was gratitude. I was glad they were on our side—this time.
We waited, crouched low to the ground, outside the electric fence. That was a new addition since my escape, but we were prepared for it. We gave the signal, and one of Silas’s crew set about cutting the power from the junction box down the street.
It was torture to lie here in wait, my wolf’s belly to the ground, not doing anything useful. We scanned the area,wary and watchful, our nerves fraying just beneath the surface. Nostrils flaring, we could smell the snow, the cold dead concrete, human sweat, and underneath it all…Dad.
He’s alive! I cheered to my wolf, but it was too early to celebrate. We weren’t out of the woods yet.
The floodlights across the parking lot went dark, enveloping us all in inky shadows. As soon as the warning hum of the fence’s electric current cut out, one of the guys armed with wire cutters sheared through the chain links.
