Page 22 of The Comfort of Pain (The Black Market Omega #1)

Killian

The thump of heavy footsteps wakes me. It sounds like Tristan. The alpha doesn't normally wander around at night, but he’s been restless. We all are.

I honestly didn’t expect that having an omega would be this hard. But I’m sure it’s even harder on her.

Needing to feel Beth’s soft skin against me, I roll and reach out, but all I find is the omega’s pillow. It’s cool to the touch. Worried, I sit and turn on the lamp right as my bedroom door opens.

“Beth?” I hold my breath, praying it’s her.

“It’s just me.” Tristan pops his head in. “I was coming to check on her.”

A cautious tension builds in my gut and I slip out of bed. “She’s not in bed.” I make my way to the bathroom, trying not to panic. But it’s dark and empty.

“I caught her downstairs,” Tristan says as he marches to the omega’s nest. “I sent her back to bed.” He presses the panel on the wall and it swings open, but the second I see his face, I know she’s not there. “What the hell?” He spins, checking every corner of the room.

“Wake up everyone,” I order the alpha as I grab my jeans off the floor. “Have Jeremy search the house, while you and Basil check the perimeter.”

“She has that tracker on.” Tristan reminds me before rushing out of the room.

“Thank god.” I grab my cell phone off the bedside table, thrilled that Jeremy forced me to download the app.

My hands shake, squeezing my phone hard, as I barrel down the stairs and out the front door. The wooden porch is rough against my bare feet, then shifting to soft grass as I make a beeline into the nearby trees. It takes the app way too fucking long to load, but when it does, I find that I’m going in the wrong direction.

Fuck!

Running through the trees, I drill down all my senses, trying to pick up Beth’s sugary sweet aroma, but instead of vanilla, I catch the faint musk of an unknown alpha.

Kill. Kill. Kill.

The word repeats in my head as I run. A silent promise to do whatever I have to do to protect my omega.

Glancing down at my phone, I watch the little blue dot flash, then move. She’s moving fast. Much faster than an omega should.

“Where is she?” Basil appears at my side, pumping his arms and legs at a blinding speed. The alpha is in a pair of briefs and nothing else, and he smells like Jeremy’s sweet cum.

“This way.” I angle my body, sprinting past a downed tree, then over a sizable creek.

The softest sound of an omega’s whimper hits my ears and rage bursts in my chest. Basil picks up his speed, zeroing in on movement in the distance. I see a flash of dark eyes and two massive bodies. Both alphas.

Thankfully, Basil has one hell of a lead on me. I see him catch up with the pair, then slam shoulder first into the nearest alpha. The unknown fucker falls, but Basil doesn’t stop. He’s back on his feet and running head first after the next asshole.

The downed alpha groans, then begins to move. I should probably stop him, but I can’t abandon Beth. She’s the only thing that matters.

In the distance, I see Basil’s impressive form illuminated in the moonlight. He runs straight up a hill, gaining on the asshole carrying our sweet omega. Beth is flung over his shoulder, her hand stretching out toward Basil. For a second, it looks like she might actually reach him, but then, the asshole lurches forward, and everything seems to move in slow motion.

Basil lets out a vicious roar and leaps.

There’s a scream, and a thud as all three fall into a mass of dark bushes.

Then everything goes quiet.

“Beth!” I yell as I race up the hill. “Beth!”

“I have her!” Basil slowly stands, then turns to me, with Beth in his arms. The small omega clings to him, arms wrapped firmly around his neck and legs locked around his waist.

Relief fills me in one swift breath, followed quickly by a lungful of her thick, overpowering distress.

Fuck .

“Beth!” I say her name as somewhere behind me, Tristan lets out a warrior cry. Violent screams fill the air, followed by a wet gurgle. It seems he’s found the other alpha, and I have no doubt that he’s collecting a trophy to add to his collection.

“Is she wounded?” I ask as I pass the asshole that took her. Long brown hair hangs in the alpha’s face, hiding his identity from me, but I don’t give a shit who he is.

He touched what’s mine, and he deserves to bleed for it.

“Let her go.” The unknown alpha pushes himself onto his feet. He sways, clearly injured. “I found her.” His words are slurred. “She’s mine.” He stumbles and I quickly turn back to him.

I’m not in the mood to bother with this prick more than I have to.

Desperate to check on Beth, I fist a handful of the fucker’s hair and the back of his shirt. “Get fucked.” I growl, then I ram him head first into a nearby tree. His skull cracks and his body goes limp, face down in the dirt.

“I think that’s one of Bosco’s men,” Basil says as I step up to him. I’m sure I’ll care tomorrow, but right now, all that matters is Beth.

“Sweetheart?” I press my palm to her back, and my heart breaks. She’s shaking like a leaf. “Beth?” I move around Basil, trying to see her face, but she’s pressed her nose against Basil’s shoulder, hiding behind her hair.

“Killian!” Tristan runs toward us. The burly alpha’s hands and face are splattered in blood. His tattooed chest probably is too, but it’s hard to tell in the dim light. “Is she…” He stops, looking over Beth’s back and arms. He looks terrified. “Is she okay?” he whispers, almost as if scared of the answer.

“She’s okay.” I pat him on the shoulder, and the alpha stumbles back. The jerky motion alarms me, and I grip his upper arms, trying to steady him. “Tristan?”

“Thank god she’s okay.” His face scrunches up and tears run down his face.

Stunned, I’m frozen in place, unable to process what’s happening.

Tristan never cries, or at least he hasn’t in years.

“I thought she was gone.” The burly alpha doubles over, covering the back of his head with both bloody hands. “I should have carried her to bed.” He sniffles loudly as he cries into the forest floor. “Why didn’t I make sure she went to bed?”

“Go,” I order Basil, desperate to get Beth back home.

“Yes, sir,” the green-eyed alpha sets off, walking as fast as he can without jostling Beth too much.

“Come here, big guy.” I open my arms, pulling Tristan into a tight hug. He’s taller than me, forcing him to bend slightly as he rests his forehead against my shoulder.

“I’m so sorry,” he whispers, and I squeeze him tighter.

“It’s okay.” I comfort him the best I can, caressing his shoulders and cradling the back of his head. “Beth is okay. We’re all okay.”

Tristan is quiet, hugging me tight and letting me hold him.

It’s been a long time since I’ve seen him this tore up.

“Okay.” Tristan moves, his back flexing under my fingers. “I’m good.” He stands up straight, sucking in a deep breath.

“Are you okay?” I ask, just to make sure.

“Yeah.” He scrubs his face. “I’m good.” His nostrils flare as he pulls in another breath. “She didn’t see me attack the other fucker? Did she?”

I quickly shake my head, understanding his fear. Tristan is very careful to keep his violent side hidden from Jeremy, and now Beth. He’s okay with the rest of the world seeing him as a monster, but not his mates.

Someone moans and we both turn, watching the long-haired fucker twitch.

Something in Tristan’s expression softens, and his body relaxes. “Go check on Beth.” He scans the ground, not stopping until he finds a sizable rock…well, it's really more a boulder.

“Are you sure you’re good?” I ask as he heaves the massive thing into his arms. His pecs flex and his biceps bulge as he walks the heavy thing over to the twitching alpha. “Do you need help disposing?—”

“I said I’m good.” He lifts the stone over his head. “I’ll head home in a few.” Then he slams it down, crushing the alpha’s skull. Wet blood spurts from somewhere, making the air taste full of copper. “Go check on Beth, alpha.” I should help him, but every instinct in my body is screaming to get back to our omega.

“Okay,” I slip my hand up his arm, squeezing gently. “Don’t take too long,” I say, then turn.

Tristan kicks the rock off what’s left of the dead alpha’s head. “I won’t.” He reaches into the mess of blood, bone, and goop, pulling out a single pointed tooth.