Page 19

CHAPTER 19

“Do we have all the food out?” Leandro’s gaze moved over the entire space as they were about to open the doors for the party. It had been too cold to hold it outdoors, so they’d had it in a banquet room in Town Hall. It wasn’t ideal as the room wasn’t meant to hold so many people, but they were determined to make it work.

To do that, they opened a smaller room next to the banquet for the food. They also placed some tables along the hallway in case anyone wanted to sit down and eat, especially the kids, who would have a much harder time holding a plate.

But they also made it easy to eat foods, so those who wanted to mill about and talk could. There was everything from small meatballs on toothpicks to finger sandwiches, charcuterie trays, bacon-wrapped scallops, shrimp and chicken fingers, and French fries for kids. There were several other dishes, but the theme was basically finger foods, although all were speared with toothpicks, so no one had to get their hands greasy.

“Yes.” Coleson’s tone was a mix of frustration and amusement since this had been about the twentieth time Leandro had asked. “And before you ask, the lemonade, punch, iced tea, and water are all also out there. Stop stressing.”

“That’s easy for you to say,” Leandro grumbled. “Everyone has to love Renzo since there are only two doctors in town, while Weston has been dealing with hostile glares and downright insults on a nearly daily basis.”

It sucked that the Alphas of Sanctuary were being treated like the lowest form of scum, despite working tirelessly to get the town ready for a possible attack. All the while, they were also doing all they could to keep reinforcing buildings so people would have a place of their own if they so choose.

Considering Weston and Leandro were living with Oxley, Griggs, and Raman in a cramped three-bedroom house. It wouldn’t have been so terrible, but Leandro was quite vocal during sex and the others felt it was their duty to tease him mercilessly about it.

He wanted to live with Weston with no one else around, especially after he’d woken up the past two days running for the bathroom. He’d never wanted children, like ever. Yet, somehow, the thought of Weston’s child growing inside of him was…well exciting. He was practically giddy, which made it difficult to keep his condition from his Alpha, who seemed to always know what Leandro was thinking.

Tomorrow, he had an appointment with Maxon for a pregnancy test. He knew it was probably stupid, but he wanted to be certain before saying anything to Weston. There was no point in getting both of their hopes up if he was wrong.

The party was to start at one and last until nightfall, so people could safely get home. They might have streetlamps but they only kept a few lit since they didn’t exactly want to advertise to any Alpha in the vicinity they were there.

By three, it was obvious things were just as strained as he’d feared they would be. Not only had about a third of the Omegas not shown up but there were quite a few who were rude and hostile toward the Alphas. It was bad enough that several of the Alphas left instead of putting up with the Omegas who’d not made bones about not wanting them around.

“Everyone,” Coleson called out, but most ignored him. Not willing to put up with their behavior, Leandro stood next to his friend and let out a shrill whistle that couldn’t be ignored.

Once all eyes were on them, Coleson blew out a breath before getting to the heart of the matter. “You know, I do not know what most of the Omegas in this room have gone through. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve heard each of your stories, but I’ve never known what it was like to be kidnapped, caged, and sold as if I wasn’t a human being.”

Several of the Omegas murmured heatedly.

“Shut the fuck up, all of you,” Leandro yelled. “I get you’ve had a hard life. I even get that you were traumatized by Alphas out there.” Then he pointed to the Alphas in the room. “Yet, none of these men have done anything to you but help. They are partially responsible for getting you out of impossible situations. For bringing you to Sanctuary. This place isn’t perfect, but it’s better than any other place out there. And these Alphas have done everything in their power to make this place as safe as possible.”

“Yet,” Coleson added. “We still have a long way to go. But we, including these Alphas, are doing everything in our power to keep you safe and protected. Does that mean we’re free from someone coming after us? No. But what I know is they’ve proven they will fight to the death for us.”

“When we decided to find a place like Sanctuary, it was to bring as many Omegas as we could find here in order to build a better world,” Ford told them as he joined Leandro and Coleson at the front of the room. “But you are turning it into a world that is like where you came from. You have become those Alphas you hate so much by treating those who are only trying to help as the enemy.”

All three of them stared into the eyes of as many in the room as they could before Coleson continued. “It is for this reason you have a choice to make. Either you welcome everyone deemed safe with open arms or we ask that you leave. You have one week to decide.”

All three of them made their way to the back of the room and out the door, their Alphas following closely behind them.

The decision to do what they had done hadn’t been easy, but none of them were okay with anyone being bullied, and that was exactly what was happening to the Alphas of Sanctuary.

They hadn’t made it more than twenty-feet from the building when they heard a whoosh. All six spun around as horror filled them when they saw the flames surrounding the building, with more than half the town trapped inside.

With complete disregard to their own safety, Weston and Lowen dashed back into the building, the flames blocking them from view the moment they’d made it through the door. Leandro’s heart was in his throat at the thought of losing the man he loved and just as soon as Weston was safely at home, he planned to tell his Alpha just how much he loved him.

But first, they had to get them out of there.

“Hoses,” Coleson yelled as he ran to the fire station where he’d gotten one of the firetrucks in working order since Leandro and the others had left on their trip further west.

Thankfully, it was a truck with its own water tank because they hadn’t had time to make the fire hydrants operational yet. But they’d barely pulled up to the Town Hall when gunfire broke out all around them.

Alphas poured in from the surrounding woods. There was no way they were going to not get shot and try to put out the flames at the same time. Then, as if someone had answered their prayers, those who hadn’t attended the party came rushing out of their homes with guns raised and shot back at the Alphas.

It didn’t exactly turn the tide on the attack, but it had forced the Alphas back enough for Leandro, Coleson, Ford, and Renzo to start the water and hold the hose on the door, hoping that if they could put out enough of the flames, some of those inside would get out. Their only saving grace was that the building was made of brick, and the fire had been started on the outside.

If they were really lucky, not too many of the inferno would get inside, giving people time to get out. They heard glass breaking as people broke windows and jumped through them to get to safety. Guns were handed out to fight back the Alphas as the four of them worked to get the blaze under control.

Oxley dove through the window with Griggs, Kelce, and Basel. Oxley, Kelce, and Basel raced over to Leandro and Coleson. “Where are they?” they called out above the crackling of the fire.

“The only ones we saw were north of town,” Leandro called out. “The same direction we used to come back to Sanctuary.”

The three men took off running, each circling around buildings and disappearing into the trees. Griggs, in the meantime, stayed outside the window as Weston handed him Omega after Omega to get them out of there.

It was awe-inspiring to watch as the flames continued to get too close to Griggs. Leandro knew he was being burned in order to help others. Moving one hose to where the Alpha worked, they rained water down on him hoping to keep him safe.

That the Alphas were helping those same Omegas who had been condemning them for who they were was inspirational. Then again, knowing the men, Leandro wasn’t the least bit surprised. Time and time again, they had proved themselves to put others first, just as they were doing at that moment.

He could only hope this would prove once and for all these men, these Alphas, could be trusted. If not, Leandro would kick each and every Omega out of Sanctuary who still thought of them as the enemy.

It took just over twenty minutes to get everyone out. Way too many, including Weston and Griggs, had to go to the hospital to be treated for burns or smoke inhalation. Thankfully, several Omegas who had been there when Weston and Griggs had not only helped save the boat Sanctuary was using to bring Omegas to safety but were also there for the attack that had happened a short time later encouraged them to take a break and go check on their Alphas.

Running for the hospital, Leandro didn’t stop until he was in the triage area where Maxon had pointed to a room. His heart sank as tears flowed down his face when he saw Weston covered in gauze.

“He’s not as bad as Griggs, but it will still take time for him to heal and he’ll most likely have some scarring,” Renzo told him even as he worked on another patient. “I gave him a sedative to help with the pain, but he should wake up in the next hour or so.”

Leandro gently picked up his hand and lightly kissed the gauze covering it. “I love you, Alpha. Please be okay. I need you too much to lose you.” And he meant every single word.

In the end, ten people succumbed to smoke inhalation and died. It hadn’t helped that five of them had still been recovering from being imprisoned in Sandpoint. Of the other five, two had been Alphas. They’d been new to the community but had worked hard to keep the town safe. The other three had gotten in the wrong place at the wrong time and hadn’t been able to get to the windows or doors in time.

Sanctuary was in mourning and more determined than ever to get those cameras working, so something like that could never happen again. Their only saving grace had been that the Alphas from Sandpoint hadn’t tried to find reinforcements. They’d been greedy when they realized just how many Omegas lived in Sanctuary and had been determined to capture them all for themselves.

Admittedly, with what had been fifteen Alphas, they’d done plenty of damage, but they’d all died for their effort. It had taken Oxley, Basel, and Kelce four days of hunting them down, but they’d found every single one of them and killed them, leaving their bodies where they dropped to rot.

Once the dead had been buried, Leandro had thought the matter of Alphas living in Sanctuary was over, especially since two had died and three were still in the hospital, struggling to recover from both burns and smoke inhalation. Those Alphas that had only had minor injuries had not only dug the graves of those who’d given their lives but had worked tirelessly to pick up the slack of anyone who hadn’t been able to go back to work.

They had ten other Alphas that had made Sanctuary their home: Raman, Hap, Maelor, Balik, Milenko, Shabon, Nebro, Leyon, Riza, and Ottar. Some of them had helped to put out the fire with garden hoses, others had been helping to evacuate but fortunately only ended up with minor injuries and some of them had been rushing the worst cases to the hospital. They had all pitched in and since that day; they worked sixteen to twenty hours a day each to do their best to get as much work done as they could while the others recovered.

That should have been enough, right?

Wrong.

There were still those who were grumbling and complaining that the Alphas hadn’t saved the townsfolk like had been promised. Which was why, the day after the funerals, Coleson had called a mandatory meeting. Unless the doctor gave permission for someone not to be there because they were incapacitated after the fire, each person either showed, or was told to leave Sanctuary by the end of the day. No exceptions.

It pained Leandro to do it, but they were wheeling Weston and Griggs to confront the town. Leandro and his friends would also stand front and center, making certain everyone knew exactly where they stood when it came to living in Sanctuary.

As they stood there in the meeting hall, packed in like sardines, twenty men they trusted went from building to building to ensure no one tried to cheat and not show up. They found six who hadn’t had either of the doctors’ permission to skip.

Those six were escorted in and brought up front to stand before Leandro and his friends. Fear mixed with weariness was in their eyes.

Coleson held up his hand, and this time, a hush fell over the room as if no one dared to speak. Smart. Because with how enraged Leandro and Ford were that their Alphas had risked their lives in that fire and people were still talking shit about them, they were both ready to shoot and ask questions later.

“It has been brought to our attention that you were hiding in your rooms instead of attending this meeting. Care to tell me why?” Coleson asked.

“Clearly, even though we were promised the Alphas in town would keep us safe, that didn’t happen. You lied, so why should we have to listen to you?” Jovo, an Omega they’d brought back from Sandpoint, announced loudly.

When Leandro started to take a step forward, Weston grabbed his hand from the gurney he was lying on to stop him. He had promised not to get involved right away since his emotions were all over the place, and he was worrying himself sick over his Alpha, but it was nearly impossible not to.

“I resent that remark.” Kelce, who had been in the front of the spectators, stepped forward, got right in Jovo’s face, and pointed a finger at him as if he were about to stab him with it. “I’ve worked side by side with my family to keep all of us safe. You claiming we need Alphas to do that for us is insulting.”

“And weren’t you one of the ones who wanted the Alphas gone?” Halston asked him. “Exactly how many Omegas do you think would have died if they hadn’t been here to help? If I remember right, you went running from the building the moment Weston and Griggs pulled you out. Let me guess, you went to hide instead of helping others.” Sarcasm dripped from his voice as Halston spoke, already knowing the answer.

When Jovo opened his mouth to speak, Coleson stopped him by saying, “The only way this community works is if we help each other, not by running to save ourselves. We buried ten men yesterday, two of whom were Alphas who had stayed behind to get as many people out as possible. Exactly how many people had you saved?”

Jovo’s entire face flamed red at the reprimand, but he wisely kept his mouth shut after that, not that it would help him. The rules had been very clear.

“As mayor of Sanctuary and one of its founding fathers, I banish each of you.” Gasps were heard throughout the room at Coleson’s declaration.

They weren’t kidding about not allowing anyone to bully anyone else, even if that was an Omega picking on an Alpha. Once the six were removed from the room in order to pack their things and taken off Sanctuary property, Coleson addressed the rest of room.

“Typically, we wouldn’t condone asking the injured to do this, but Weston and Griggs offered to make the sacrifice so you could see what they went through to help save those stuck in the Town Hall.” Coleson nodded to Renzo and Leandro, who had insisted he be the one to help Weston.

Gasps, cries of despair, and sobs could be heard when the gauze was removed from them both to show just how much damage had been done to their bodies by staying to assist those inside to get out to safety. “They will heal somewhat, but they will always bear the scars of their sacrifice.” Coleson shook his head at those he was addressing. “I know most of you trust the Alphas in Sanctuary, but I’m here today with the other co-founders to inform you that if we hear one bad word about these men, you will be given thirty minutes to pack your things before you will be forcibly removed from Sanctuary.”

His gaze bore down on everyone in the room. “Are we clear?”

The nine friends held hands in solidarity. In this, they were in total agreement.