Page 25

Miranda

“This city was once a central hub for the North,” Willow says over her shoulder as she and Caius guide us around the grounds. The snow is packed and slick beneath our feet as we traverse the streets, hugging buildings as we go. Which makes me feel ridiculous after we all walked through here out in the open a day ago.

“That building was the city hall,” she continues. “We did some converting to make it into a hub packs can stay while they’re traveling or running.”

I swallow hard. How many packs are out there right now, running and hiding? Just wanting their freedom. The genetic dice was rolled and came up “Cursed,” leaving one path in life.

“We’re headed for our bunker in the north.” She leads the way over sidewalks, hopping over railings with less effort than I. She’s done this a lot. She knows the route like the back of her hand.

Caius scrambles over to Willow and leans into her ear. When he pulls back and falls in line, she nods before speaking over her shoulder at us again. “Not much further now.”

Rai was in front of me in the chain, Colt behind me, and Aubrey behind him. Colt has been in a very good mood all morning, I notice with a little smugness. And Rai, he’s been grinning at us both since we met in the hallway before breakfast. The room he’d slept in was right next to mine, so...I assume there’s no hiding what happened. Not that I would. Just thinking about how we mated causes heat cramps, and I can’t have that happen. I’ve already been battling a headache since I woke up.

“We can walk in the open once we cross this street.”

So we do, and not hugging the ice-crusted stone and brick walls is definitely a reprieve.

Willow hangs back and falls in step beside me with a side-eyed look. “Are you feeling all right?”

I blink at her in surprise. “I’m fine, thank you. And thank you for helping us.”

Her smile doesn’t reach her blue eyes. “I wish it wasn’t necessary, but this is how the world is now.” She gestures at me with her chin. “Headache?”

“Uh…” Yes? How did she know?

A grin stretches across her face. “You’re very expressive,” she says quietly. “You keep rubbing your temples.”

I let out a puff of laughter. “I didn’t realize. Yeah, I have a bit of a headache.”

“We have medical supplies at the bunker. I’ll get you some pain medicine.”

“Thanks.” I give her a close-mouthed smile, to which she nods, then jogs ahead to Caius’ side.

The building we finally prepare to enter is all the way at the back of the old village, the icy wall towering right behind it. As Caius opens the door, a roar rolls through the air, sending the hairs on my arms on end.

“What is that?” I breathe.

Rai and Colton stand on either side of me as Aubrey stands off to the side and searches the sky, which draws my gaze upward as well.

In the distance, a mass of nearly black clouds swirls in the sky, melding tightly together. Thunder rolls before lightning cracks loudly, the flashing light almost blinding.

“I didn’t think there were thunderstorms in Iceland,” I whisper, feeling a bit foolish for admitting it.

“They’re very rare.” Willow approaches us and looks up at the storm. As she gestures at it, she explains, “That isn’t a natural storm. It’s a signal.” Her gaze sweeps across all of us. “There are thousands of Cursed living out from under the Beta Council’s thumb. We thrive, despite the circumstances. Many of us live in a settlement not far from this old city.” Willow’s head tilts upward. “That storm is an Omega sending messages to local infiltration units.”

“Infiltration units?” Colt repeats in question.

Willow smiles at him. “The Rebellion is everywhere.” She looks back at the storm, watching for a moment. “The message is in the lightning flashes.” As she releases a long breath, she whispers, “It’s almost time.”

“Time for what?” Rai’s brows draw tight, feeling the same tension I can.

Willow turns back to us, her voice distant as she replies, “To take the academy.”

My heart nearly stutters. “You’re going to save the Cursed there? How?” I breathe.

“I’ll explain inside.”

I look into the eyes of each Alpha before we follow her through the door of the small building. Willow leads us to the back, where Caius is waiting by an enormous metal door, thick with an electronic panel on the side.

“Not exactly a hidden entrance,” Rai comments.

Caius raises a brow at him. “No one can get through this blast door or surrounding walls, I assure you.”

I stifle a grin as Rai’s eyes go white. The control panel comes to light with flashes of light, and just as the door unlocks with a loud, echoing boom, a little white spark leaps from one of his eyes. They’re back to their beautiful onyx when he purses his lips at me in humor.

“Interesting trick, but,” Caius tosses something from his pocket through the now open doorway, and with a bright flash, it explodes in mid-air, making me shriek. “Can you disable the defense system?” His brow raises in challenge.

Rai’s expression grows serious as his eyes go white again. The slowest minute passes when another spark pops from his eye, and another. Then a different sound echoes beyond the door, and Caius gives a nod of approval when he turns back to Rai. “Good. You’d be excellent at infiltration.”

Rai frowns, his now dark eyes angry. “That’s what they trained me for.”

Caius hums before he passes through the door, leaving Willow to wave us through. I take Rai’s hand firmly in mine as we walk down the dark, narrow hall. When the heavy door closes behind us, I put my free hand on the wall and find rough brick, my fingers skate over a dip of mortar before light fills the arching corridor. Bare bulbs hang from above us, one every few feet, emitting yellow light.

It takes me a moment to realize the hall is headed down and not across, the incline decreasing enough to feel it in my ankles, but not enough to make us slip. The floor is laid with the same brick as the walls and arched ceiling, giving the impression of being in a never-ending tube leading into darkness below.

I’m sure we don’t need to, but we all remain silent during our descent. By the time we reach the bottom, it feels like hours. What greets us beyond the shadows is like something out of spy movies.

An enormous room filled with computers and monitors, all of them on. The room is cool, and the hum of a climate control system fills the air. The ambient lighting is dim among the bright screens and flashing colorful lights all around, covering the walls around the few doors there, leading to places beyond.

This room has drywall, and what spaces aren’t covered are some light hue that changes color with the light from the screens around it. One large screen in particular catches my attention.

“That’s one of the academy’s training grounds,” I say, pointing.

Willow nods as she approaches. “We could only get one camera to show us the grounds. It’s mounted quite far from the perimeter wall, on a tall tree. This is the max zoom.” She turns her serious blue eyes on us. “We are going to take the academy and the juvenile facility in three days.”

Rai’s hand squeezes mine as Colt joins us, standing on my other side and placing a hand on the small of my back. “Why then?” he asks.

“We’ve been setting this plan in motion for years,” she explains. “We had to wait for all the pieces to fall into place to avoid bloodshed.”

“Rush them and kill all the Betas,” Colt seethes. “Who give a fuck about them?”

Willow looks at him, an angry glint in her eye. “Have you already forgotten the collars in the twenty-four hours you’ve been without them? What do you think would happen to the collared if we rush in, killing indiscriminately?”

Colt winces and looks down.

“It isn’t the Betas we’re concerned about; it’s our people. There is a kill switch in both buildings that can either release all the collars in the vicinity or detonate them all. We have people on the inside who are working to ensure things go the right way, and we save all those people.” Her eyes narrow on me, then each of the three Alphas at my sides and back, where Aubrey stands. “I need you all to tell me everything. Tell me what you know, even if it seems unimportant.”

We do as we’re told.

Colt translates for Aubrey, who goes first, stating he was the first one of us all to enter the academy. Then Colt and Rai fill in information as they quickly recap the last decade or so.

None of the information sounds particularly important to me, but Willow listens with rapt attention to every detail.

In the middle of the stories, Caius approaches me with a bottle of water and some pills. “Willow said you had a headache,” he tells me without looking me in the eye.

“Thank you.” My voice is soft as I take the items from him and catch his gaze flick up to my eyes for the briefest moment before he retreats to a desk at the center of the room and busies himself with a computer there.

After I take the medicine, I drink more water before passing the bottle to Colt, who has been doing the most talking. He takes it with a grateful smile, and we finally get to my entry into the academy.

I explain I’d been on the run with my father, how we’d both been captured, how I need to find him. Free him.

Willow nods, eyes tight. “Do you know where they took him?”

“Tenebrosa.”

Her body stiffens before she nods again. “You help us, we’ll help you.”

I blink in surprise, then hope compels me to word vomit the rest of my story, including the male Omega I witnessed executed. It’s Colt who tells them about the pack that Beta Councilman commanded to be executed in front of us all, and Rai explains we escaped because Aubrey was about to be taken away, and how we did it.

“Is the helicopter in working condition?” Caius asks from behind his screen.

“Landing gear was sheared off when Rai passed out,” Colt tells him.

Rai’s eyes are closed as he speaks. “It’s still mechanically intact. Fuel is low.”

Caius claps his hands with a hoot. “Best news I’ve gotten in weeks. We’ll trade you the bird for a land vehicle when you’re ready to depart.”

“Depart to where?” Rai looks around the room, arms raised.

“To save Mira’s father.” Willow walks toward one of the doors. “Let me show you to your quarters. We’ll eat and speak more shortly.”