The moment my alpha swings open the door, trepidation fills me.
I want to reach out and grab the doorframe, preventing him from leaving the safety of our temporary den, no matter how flimsy the protection may have been, but I press my cheek against his chest and inundate my lungs with his pheromones.
After a few deep, calming breaths, I lift my head and meet his striking gaze.
"May I walk? Please?"
I don't want to leave his arms, but I can't infect him with the dread infusing my chest. He studies my face for a moment before placing my feet on the floor. I rise on my tiptoes and thank him with a gentle sweep of my lips against his, glad he bends down to close the distance between our faces.
Commander Steil stands at the end of the narrow white hall with his arms crossed over his chest and his grey eyes cold. I fight the shiver coursing up my spine, remembering how he showed me respect after he shot my alpha. The trust Fek has for this male pulses along our bond, his silent soothing a balm to my agitation.
"Status?"
My lifemate wastes no time on niceties, his facial features set in a hard mask. Commander Steil responds in much the same way.
"Everything is prepped to move."
"My sisters?"
Fek's arm wraps over my shoulders and pulls me against his side as we approach the other alpha.
"Ready to head to the transporters."
"Is anyone..."
Commander Steil takes pity on me when I can't find the words to finish my question.
"It'll take time to get everyone topnotch, but no one shows signs of serious illness."
"Can we see them?"
I aim this question up to my lifemate, not comfortable asking Commander Steil such an important question despite how kind he's been to me. Slitted eyes narrow, but Fek nods, accepting the turmoil leaking from my heart and wriggling into our bond as though he understands.
"How close are the scouts?"
"We can't get a bead on them, but they were in the mountains a few miles away when Craize and Gric spotted them."
Commander Steil stands and gestures for us to follow him as he speaks. Fek keeps his arm around me despite how cramped the hallway feels, and I'm grateful for his closeness. My knees wobble and calves ache as the hard soles of my shoes force me to modify how I walk.
"Where will we go?"
My lifemate's question has my stomach tightening, reawakening the soreness within my abdomen. I listen as closely as I can, trying to pull up what little I remember of the land before the Enforcers destroyed my clan.
"West."
"Away from base camp?"
"Yes. There should be deserted towns on the coast."
"How long should it take to get there?"
"A day and a half, if all goes according to plan. The mountain pass may not be as reliable as we hope."
Fek nods and glances down at me. I open my mouth to ask where we are, but Commander Steil opens a door and washes the hall in brilliant light.
Unaccustomed to the bright sun, I blink and follow Fek's lead. After several steps, my eyes adjust enough for me to handle a squint. Every surface around us seems to reflect both the heat and light of the sun, making the air sizzle and waver in the distance.
Rocks of all shapes and sizes fill the horizon, their coloring ranging from brown to orange red.
"Where are we?"
My question comes out more whispered than I intend, but my lifemate hears me with ease, his senses attuned to me.
"On the south side of the continent."
"But where? What sector?"
"Someone asked us that question before, but I never pulled up a map with sectors on it. Steil?"
"Right now, we're in Sector Five. Once we pass through those mountains, we'll be in Sector Seven," Commander Steil responds, throwing the words behind him as he walks. My eyes follow his gesture to the left and I swallow the ball of shock lodged in my throat.
Looming in the distance are mountains so steep their sharp tops reach beyond the clouds, despite their narrow bases. Jagged and wild, they hold an awe-inspiring beauty, and the thought of heading toward them makes me want to vomit.
I swallow again, fighting a wave of nausea. It begins at my toes and works its way upward, growing in strength as it reaches my stomach.
Clenching my teeth and pretending the sweat gathering on my lower back is from the sun, I shuffle along beside Fek as Commander Steil leads us around a massive stack of red boulders, their formation reminiscent of a child haphazardly resting one stone on top of another.
Four vehicles sit tucked in a little pocket within the maze of rocks, the space between them irregular. We pass through the middle of them and turn left into a tiny passage, following the winding trail to a small round opening in the surface of solid red rock.
A cold shiver races up my spine, warring with the nausea simmering in my guts. The tiny, dark opening reminds me too much of a locked door and tight space.
Commander Steil stoops so low he may as well be crawling to pass through the opening.
I dig my heels into solid rock and squeeze Fek's wrist.
"My sisters are in there? We have to get them out!"
Fek stiffens beside me, his growl responding to the anxiety I can't mask. Grey irises emerge from the darkness as Commander Steil peers back out toward us.
"It opens up into a cave system. They have light and warmth and all the comfort we could manage."
I shake despite my best efforts to hide my fear.
"Did they all enter through here?"
The eyes shift up and down as Commander Steil nods.
"Are they—" I nearly choke on bile but force it down and start again. "Are they together?"
"Yes."
"How many?"
"Eleven."
A relieved sob breaks free of my restraint, but I catch the second one in my throat and shove it back into my stomach, just like I did the bile.
"Okay."
I kiss Fek's knuckles before slipping my fingers away from his wrist and stepping forward.
"I'm right behind you, every step of the way."
His words bolster me as nothing else in the universe could. Not because his brawn could defeat any enemy. Not because his sheer lethality warns away any threat.
It's because I'm not alone.
He offers me comfort and companionship. He offers me support and adoration.
I need it. I need him.
I step into the darkness without looking back, knowing I'll throw my arms around him and beg him to carry me if I do.
I can't show such weakness. Tragedy and hardship have riddled my entire life. I can't lie to myself and say that I've been strong through all of it. The weeks after the Enforcers destroyed my family, I cried and leaned heavily on my omega sisters. We formed a bond that supported us through the months of torture and pain.
But once I saw the strain it put on my older sisters, I couldn't bear to let them shoulder my burden. So, I learned to find the strength buried deep within my soul, comforting my sisters every chance I could and bottling up the hopelessness when I couldn't save them.
Stepping into the darkness, I grit my teeth and extend my arms in front of me, using my trembling fingers to warn me of any surface I might encounter. Cool air greets me, the gentle current smelling of minerals and water. A deep sense of recognition throbs through my bones, thoughts of a language older than time pulsing through the damp earth. It blows from the center of the planet, where nothing survives except rock and fire.
Whispers ghost across my ears, but thankfully no recognizable words float within the sound.
After a few uncomfortable steps, the sense of confinement lifts, but the weight of the rocks above me keeps a stiffness in my spine.
Warm arms wrap around my shoulders, my lifemate's glorious scent washing over me and erasing the foolhardy thoughts of a woman on the verge of madness.
"The tunnel is tall enough for me to stand. Keep walking forward, my treasure."
The sunlight streaming in from the opening goes no further than a foot past the entrance, leaving me in eerie darkness.
"I can't see anything."
"Don't worry. I can see well enough."
Of course he can. A bit of my fear eases and allows me to take a few stunted steps. When his bulk stays right behind me, warming the air around the nape of my neck, I ignore the fear making my muscles tremble and move forward with as much confidence as I can muster.
The void seems to go on forever. My mind plays tricks on me, offering nonsensical whispers and testing my sanity every step of the way.
Soft light glimmers ahead, growing larger the longer we walk. When I finally decide my mind is not playing further tricks on me, I lengthen my stride and hurry forward.
Nearly falling through the exit of the tunnel, I silently thank my alpha for catching me and scan the softly illuminated space.
A mound of blankets lies in the center of the oblong room, the walls and ceiling worn smooth through time. Small, irregular cracks along the roof let in sunlight, aiding the warm electronic lights sitting in the corners.
Three other passageways branch out from further down the room, leaving terrifying black maws gaping at me. A set of eerie red eyes reflects the light in the center tunnel, but before a scream rips from my throat, a black and crimson version of my lifemate steps out of the shadows. I glance behind me, gaining strength and understanding from Fek.
His brother stands guard over my sisters.
Brynt and another beta male sit on the floor at the entrance to the leftmost tunnel, each with notepads and small devices in their laps. They don't speak, making themselves as inconspicuous as possible as they glance between their tablets and the room.
The pile of blankets shifts and a head pokes out from between the layers. Wella's dark hair and honeyed flesh point emerald eyes my way. Wariness turns to recognition and her lips lose their tightness.
She ducks back into the communal nest and re-emerges with six other omegas. I step forward and reach out but stop when my shoulders meet resistance.
I forgot my lifemate's arm wrapped around me in my haste to greet my sisters. When his hand shifts down to my hip and squeezes before slipping away, I turn and meet his gaze.
"I'll try to only take a few minutes, okay?"
"Any time apart is too long, but I won't deny you the people you love, even if it makes me wildly jealous."
My breath catches in my throat, his piercing purple irises shining in the soft light of the cave. I lift onto my toes and caress his jaw, expecting him to lean down so we can kiss, but he doesn't close the distance between us.
"If I touch those soft lips now, I won't be able to let you go, and you deserve the comfort of your sisters."
"Thank you, Fek."
His pupils narrow and his jaw flexes under my hand.
"Go, before your sweet voice ruins my resolve."
I sweep my thumb across his jawline as I release him, mesmerized by his scales despite the yearning to see my sisters. When I turn around, I see two other omegas have joined the first group, leaving four safely huddled within the blankets.
I don't begrudge them their comfort, nor do I expect them to make an appearance. The least sure and most haggard, the four ladies failed the first round of tests and, therefore, received harsh punishments. I send them silent tendrils of strength, knowing we'll never be as innocent and carefree as we once were.
I shuffle forward and wrap my arms around Aashna, sucking in a shaky breath when familiar scents fill my nostrils. Slender hands stroke and pat, a quiet reassurance of kindred-ship flowing through the room as the women I've clung to for years surround me.
As one and without conscious thought, we shuffle closer to the nest, seeking the safety and luxury they denied us during our time in hell. My sisters instinctively take turns caressing my face, hair, and shoulders, avoiding the crescent-shaped wound near my neck in their perusal as they confirm I'm okay.
Bittersweet emotions flow through me, highlighted by the salty perfume of tears as we mourn the time we lost to abuse and fear.
If only we were truly safe, but the dreadful wind whispers through the cave.
Aashna pulls back and studies my face. I tuck an unruly lock of hair behind her ear before meeting both Wella's and Sharra's eyes. Without a word, they tug me under the covers, and I don't have the heart to resist.
For two years we've longed for even the smallest illusion of safety. I settle between my closest sisters and pull Aashna on top of me, sensing how the foreign pheromones of alpha clinging to my clothes and flesh make her uncertain. She sighs and settles her front against mine, her curls tickling my face as she leans her head on my shoulder.
"Did it hurt?"
Her whisper pulls a gentle purr from my chest, something I could rarely give her during our captivity. I strengthen the vibration, encouraged by the praise my alpha sends me through our bond.
"Did what hurt?"
"The mating."
I nod my head and sweep her hair to the side before linking my fingers through Wella's.
"Was it as bad as our heats?"
As though summoned from nightmares, nausea and fire lick up my body, but it vaporizes before it reaches my chest. I recall the countless times our captors locked us in our sleeping chamber with nothing but water and each other. The terrible frenzy of unfulfilled lust haunts me, the need so great not even frantic fingers could assuage, not even when we helped each other.
"It wasn't the same. There was pain, but there was also relief."
"How was the marking? You smell so different," Sharra says as she strokes my arm.
"It hurt, but it was also beautiful. I... I don't regret it at all. I want to be with him."
"You love him."
Aashna's breathy sigh shows how much she hopes to find the same. I smile and squeeze her closer to me.
"I do."
We lay in quiet for a moment, embracing each other and offering soft purrs and pets, working toward as much peace as we can.
A tremor seems to start at one end of the nest and continues until it reaches the other end.
"They said we're leaving soon. I'm scared," Aashna admits, never picking her head up off my shoulder.
"Me too."
Wella stiffens beside me as I speak the words.
"Why? You have the most protection out of all of us."
Her tight words hold an angry edge, piercing my heart with the mixture of animosity I feel leaking through her mouth.
Heat snaps through me, starting at my toes and barreling through my nervous system until I fear steam rises from my scalp. Nausea clenches my stomach so fiercely I clap my hands over my mouth so I don't vomit.
Thick feminine perfumes invade my sinuses, suddenly too much to bear.
"Oh no," Sharra whispers.
Surrounded on all sides by my sisters, I fight to remain in control, but sense their trepidation as the temperature under the blankets skyrockets.
"It's not time for our heat. We're supposed to travel and we're not safe here," Wella rasps through a dry throat.
"Get out, Veena. Hurry, before your alpha—"
Snapping to reality from the roar of lust building within my veins, I roll Aashna off me and scramble to the nearest exit, hoping to leave my sisters' sacred space before the scent of our beginning estrous reaches beyond the top layer.
We finished our last heat less than a month ago. Our next one isn't due for another two months, but the obvious signs of beginning estrous are too potent to deny.
They've never progressed this quickly before.
When I reach the side of the nest, I dig my fingertips against the stone floor and slide my entire body out so fast I scrape my forearms on the unforgiving surface. I kick the top layer down with my shoe, sealing in as much of my sisters' heavy pheromones as I can.
Massive black boots frame my view of the floor, but before my alpha scoops me up, I thrust my palm toward him in the universal sign of stop.
"Wait! Back away! Hurry, we're going into estr—"
"Shit."
Fek jerks as though he's been hit in the face, his left foot sliding backward to brace himself against the onslaught.
"Masks!"
His snarled shout bounces off the unyielding walls, and as he lifts me off the floor, I glimpse the adept movement of the males—they slip black masks from their belts and slap them onto the lower half of their faces in an almost choreographed motion.
Fek does not, though. He gathers me close and stalks to the cave leading away from sunlight. As fire consumes my blood and morphs it into magma, he carries me toward a place I hate most.
He forces me back into the dark.