Page 30 of Lost Wolf (Exiled Omegas #2)

Thirty

Ollie

Taylor silently leads me on a convoluted path through the woods. The route we’re taking isn’t the same one I used to get to his grandmother’s house so I’m almost completely turned around.

Eventually, we reach a break in the trees where there’s a small clearing containing a single-story concrete building with chain link fencing on one side of it. The grey, weathered exterior blends in with the gravel surrounding it, giving the area a dreary, utilitarian feel.

Taylor may have called this place a barracks, but it definitely looks like what it actually is. A prison. The only thing missing is barbed wire.

“That’s it,” whispers Taylor, unnecessarily pointing to the squat concrete structure. “I don’t think there’s anyone awaiting punishment right now, so it should be empty unless your friend’s in there. There are regular cells on one side.” He gestures at the fencing. “And there are kennels on the other for when the Alpha decides someone is more useful as a wolf.”

“More useful as a wolf? I don’t understand.”

His hand comes up to touch the collar on his neck. “I can’t shift with this on. None of us who wear them can. It’s the same for those the Alpha wants kept in wolf form.”

“Why would… you know what, never mind. I don’t think I want to know.”

Taylor flashes me a sad smile. “No, you probably don’t.”

“Any guards? Alarms?” I ask, running my gaze over the darkened building.

“Probably not,” he replies with a shrug. “Like I said, I don’t think anyone’s currently waiting on a collar, so there shouldn’t be anyone else in there.”

“That makes things easier.” I bite at my lower lip. “Which side do you think Macy would be on?”

“Probably in a kennel,” he says. “The wolves get harsher punishments, and the Alpha Mate didn’t much care for your friend.”

Pressing my lips together, I nod. “Thank you, Taylor. I couldn’t have found this place on my own.”

“It was the least I could do,” he says softly, shoulders slumping. “I wish I could do more, but if the Alpha finds out…”

“I understand.” I pause, debating. I’m probably not supposed to say anything, but the guy deserves to know. “You won’t have to worry about him much longer,” I say. “The triumvirate will be raiding the compound within the next week, and they’ll appoint a new Alpha, someone better.”

Taylor gapes at me. “How…?”

“Before it all went to shit at dinner, we were sort of on a recon mission,” I say. “The triumvirate didn’t have much information on Rockcastle and, since we were headed here anyway, we were supposed to report back on the layout and numbers and stuff.”

“That’s… amazing,” he whispers, a watery sheen over his eyes.

I smile. “Just keep your head down for a while longer. This will all be over soon.”

He gives me a quick nod, then scurries back into the trees, presumably returning to his grandmother as I turn my attention to the center of the clearing.

Crouching low, I swiftly cross the distance to the building, then creep along the side with my back pressed against the concrete, until I reach the only door. I try the handle, but—unsurprisingly—it’s locked.

Continuing around the building, I find a series of narrow rectangular windows. They’re completely useless as far an entrance goes—not even I can fit through a space that small—but at least I can use them to get a look inside.

I lift onto my toes, peeking over the bottom edge of the window. The interior is dim, but there’s enough light for me to make out a medium-sized gray wolf in one of the kennels across from the windows. I’ve never seen Macy’s wolf form, but I can’t imagine the wolf could possibly be anyone else.

Now I just need to find a way to get in there…

I continue around the building to the chain link fencing, surprised to find it’s not a single fenced area. Instead, it’s broken up into six parallel sections—dog runs, or rather, wolf runs. Each section of fencing contains a grassy area and a small concrete pad on the side closest to the building with oversized doggie door leading inside.

Jackpot.

I’m not entirely sure which run connects to the kennel Macy is in, but any one of them can get me inside, so I grab hold of the chain link and quickly scale the fence nearest me. Jumping down on the other side, I move to the doggie door and awkwardly scramble through it on my hands and knees. On the other side, I find myself in the kennel next to Macy’s.

“Macy?” No response. I gently rattle the fencing, trying to get a reaction. “Macy?”

The wolf is still, but her chest is slowly rising and falling, so she definitely isn't dead. Which is a relief.

I glance at the door to “my” kennel. There’s nothing but a simple latch holding it closed, so I stick my hand through the fence and flip the latch. Stepping into the walkway, I examine the door to Macy’s enclosure where a thick padlock hangs from the latch.

With neither the keys nor a handy set of bolt cutters, I’m stuck poking at the wolf’s shoulder through the fencing to try to wake her.

“Macy?”

She blinks open her eyes, recognition flaring in their depths as she focuses in on me. Giving her head a brisk shake, she pushes herself onto four legs. Her legs wobble, not quite ready to hold her up, and she flops into the side of the kennel, a low whine escaping from her throat.

“Are you okay?” I ask. “Can you shift?”

She stares at me for a second, then tilts her head to the side and closes her eyes. Her entire body goes tense, every muscle contracting. A shudder passes over her and she whimpers. Nothing happens for a second, then there’s a single crack and she jerks, the shift moving achingly slowly through her limbs as she whines. Macy emerges from the shift, curled into the fetal position and panting with pain.

“Where’s…” She takes a few deep, steadying breaths, then glances up at me. “Luke?”

“Some humans carted him off in a truck.” I shake my head helplessly. “I tried to get to him, but I wasn’t fast enough.”

“Shit,” she mutters.

I huff. “My sentiments exactly.”

She eyeballs the padlock on the kennel door. “Any idea how I can get out of here?”

I point to the doggie door and she gives me a flat look. “I know, I know, but it leads outside, and in human form, you should be able to climb the fence from there. That’s how I got inside.”

“Fine,” she says with a hint of a smile. She points to the corner across the room. “I don’t want to do it naked though. Can you grab my clothes?”

I retrieve the bundle of fabric and toss it to her over the side of the kennel. She pulls the shirt over her head, then uses the fencing to steady herself as she pulls on her pants. Her shoes are missing, but so are mine, so whatever.

Once she’s dressed, we both crawl through our respective doggie doors and meet up outside. Macy leans against the side of the building, still slightly unsteady on her feet.

“You said they took Luke in a truck? Was that on the road we came in on?” she asks.

“No. Somewhere farther out. I’m not sure exactly where because I followed the mating bond to get there.”

“There’s a good chance that’s the old fire road,” she says, eyes brightening. “If we can get a message to Smith and Yang, they might be able to intercept the truck.”

“How are we going to do that?” I ask. “According to one of the pack members I spoke to, the only phone in the compound is in the Alpha’s office.”

“I wonder…” She pats at her pants, breaking out into a wide grin as she pulls the satellite messenger from her pocket.

“I thought Luke had that?”

She shakes her head, still grinning. “He slipped it to me right before we sat down for dinner.”

“You mean, whoever locked you up in here didn’t even bother searching your pockets? That sounds… dumb.”

“I don’t get the impression that anyone in charge here is exactly a criminal mastermind,” she says in a wry voice.

“True,” I say. “And it seems their lack of sense is our gain.”

Macy snorts and powers on the messenger, then presses a few buttons. The light on the side flashes green three times before staying steady.

“That’s it. Message sent.” She glances at our surroundings. “With Luke’s rescue in the works, I think you and I should be getting our asses out of Rockcastle territory. What do you think about stealing one of their ATVs?”

“I think that sounds like a fantastic idea,” I say, matching her smile. “Let’s get out of here.”

And of course that’s when my—our—luck runs out.

A dirt bike careens down the path toward the barracks, skidding to a stop in the gravel by the door. Clay hops off the bike, cursing when it falls over but not bothering to pick it up before striding up to the door, a ring of keys jingling in his hand. Tucked against the side of the building, Macy and I are out his line of sight, but that won’t matter much when he gets inside and finds Macy gone.

“Go,” says Macy, jerking her chin toward woods. “You hide. I can handle him.”

My gaze darts from Clay back to Macy. “But…”

“ Go ,” she repeats. “You’re the Alpha Mate of my pack and it’s my duty to protect you. I’ll take care of this asshole and then catch up to you.”

Reluctantly, I follow her instructions and head toward the tree line. Glancing back over my shoulder, I see Macy scaling the fence and disappearing through the doggie door that leads into the unlocked kennel. The sound of another engine approaching brings me to a stop, and I retrace my steps to a large oak at the edge of the of the clearing where I have a better view of the building.

An ATV pulls up in front of the building—with Wanda driving it. Not good. Macy might be strong and fast, but she’s a beta and Wanda is an alpha…

I edge closer as Wanda walks inside, leaving the door open behind her. There’s a loud crash, and I can just make out the sound of snarls. Someone roars, and I recognize the feel of an alpha command, but I’m too far away to clearly make out the words. Silence falls inside the building, and a few seconds later, Wanda drags Macy outside by her hair.

“Oliver,” calls Wanda in a sing-song voice. “I know you’re out there. You’re too soft-hearted to leave someone behind. That’s what got you in trouble with your brother.” She grabs Macy by the throat, lifting her off her feet and slamming her back into the concrete. Wanda’s fingers shift into claws and she wraps them around Macy’s neck. “You have thirty seconds to show yourself or I’m going to rip her throat out.”

I hesitate. One of Wanda’s claw presses harder, breaking Macy’s skin. Blood trickles down her neck, but Macy only glares at Wanda defiantly.

“Don’t do it, Ollie,” she yells. “Just get out of here.”

I really should listen to her, run and save myself.

Except… Wanda’s right. I’m not the kind of person who can leave someone else behind, and I can’t help but think of how close Luke and Macy are, how much he’ll hate himself if something happens to her. And how it would be all my fault.

But if I give myself up, I can save Macy and myself, because the triumvirate is coming… eventually. I just have to keep us both alive long enough for them to get here.

I raise my hands over my head and step out from behind the tree. “Okay. Just… don’t hurt her.”

Wanda’s mouth spreads into a satisfied smile. “Restrain him.”

Before I have time to process the words, someone grabs my arms from behind, twisting one up behind my back and forcing me down to my knees.

“Good choice, Oliver,” says Clay. He drags me up to my feet, tugging me toward the building where Wanda’s still holding Macy by the throat.

As we draw closer, Wanda’s gaze flicks toward me and she smirks. “You might not remember how things work around here, Oliver, but I’m sure you realize I can’t let your disobedience go unpunished.”

“What are you—”

Wanda shoves her clawed hand into Macy’s abdomen. The beta’s eyes widen, lips parting with a startled grunt. A flick of Wanda’s wrist brings a scream from Macy’s throat, and the alpha pulls back her blood-covered hand, then releases her hold on Macy’s neck.

Macy crumples to the ground, hands curled around her stomach, blood welling up between her fingers. Too stunned by the sudden violence to fight back, I barely notice when Clay drags me inside.