Page 118 of Broken Bonds

Fuuuck.

And the longer I lie there now…

The more I feel like crying.

Because it wasn’t real.

Meaning this one massive problem isn’t solved.

“Motherfucker!” I shout at my ceiling.

It’s going to be a long damned day.

Chapter Fifty

Jax

Ticking Clock

My chat with Morning lasts around an hour, so I’m heading south a little before 8:30 to return to the office before I go to the rec center.

While I’m now on a tight deadline to deal with the Mal situation, I still don’t want to pull any triggers until I hear back from my friend about the phone. Except I know I can’t dick around too long about that. I’m wasting valuable time I could be using to figure out how to get Mal initiated.

Chaz calls me and I put it in speaker mode.

“I had an unexpected errand,” I tell him. “Sorry about that. I’ll be back by 9:30.”

“I got your emails. Heh. Had over a dozen more of my own this morning, not even counting the people from last night. I think you got through to them.”

Maybe this one damned thing today would go the way I hoped. “Good. Whatever you need, let me or Kennedy know, and we’ll get it for you.”

“Well, I was going to ask you about that. I was thinking a few more tranq guns.”

“A few more? How many we got?”

“I know there’s at least four in the armory, but they’re probably older ones and who knows if the juice we got for them is still good. I’d like to get our hands on at least six more, if that’s okay?”

“Do it,” I say. “Can I ask your reasoning?”

“Well, hopefully we won’t need them, but I’d like to have non-lethal options ready to go.” He laughs. “Not like we haven’t needed them in the past when mating hunts get a little too, eh, overenthusiastic.”

Oohhh, yeah. I remember that, too. The last year Dad was still pack Alpha, a cocky, unmated omega and several of his less-than-brilliant unmated omega buddies didn’t coordinate with anyone before they invited a few Alphas out for a mating hunt, because the omega in question wanted to be chased and fucked senseless during his heat.

Fortunately, one of the Alphas had the sense to bring along their beta mate…and a tranq gun, because he had a gut instinct things might go sideways with that many unmated Alphas chasing after one omega. His mate was a vet tech at a zoo, dealing with large exotic animals.

Three of the Alphas—unmated ones—ended up in K-holes after hours-long involuntary naps from getting tranqued when they sank too deep into their Alpha rages and tried to rip each other apart to go after the omega. The mated Alphas didn’t lose control and were able to pull back when they realized all hell’d broken loose.

Sooo… yeah. That immediately spawned the new pack rule that all “mating hunts” must be cleared through the pack office first, carefully planned, and there have to be safety crews ready to step in and break things up in case they go too far. Even if just between a mated omega and their Alpha partner.

So the pack purchased a couple of tranquilizer guns of their own, but we haven’t needed to use them in over ten years, even though they’re always on-site during a mating hunt.

Although Todd’s increasingly devious frames and sexual devices have cut down on the number of mating hunts the unmated omegas beg for. It’s a lot less work for far more satisfying payouts for them.

Sometimes mated omegas and their mates ask for permission for a hunt for just them, but since they’re usually limited to just the pair—or one of the few multiple mating poly groups—it means there aren’t a bunch of unrelated Alphas getting all worked up hot and heavy to chase and breed a horny omega in heat and fight any other Alpha who tries to stop him.

Everyone who remembers that clusterfuck says the change is definitely for the better.

Chaz brings up another couple of points to get my feedback or permission to implement, and he gets it, promising to send me an email with the bullet points we just discussed.