Page 25 of Whole in His Arms

“We’ve all been beaten,” Sam sniffed.

“Struggle to get out of my hold,” Nix whispered.

Sam did as he asked and pushed him. Nix saw the guards rushing towards them, and he put his hand up, halting them. The terrified look that had only mildly dissipated returned as Sam looked around the yard. Nix followed his gaze until his eyes landed on Cal. Goddess, what his brother must have endured. All of these omegas, they’d all been abused. Physically. Emotionally.

Nix drew in a breath, trying to calm his tiger down. He was way too close to the surface.

“How old are you?” He decided focusing on Sam was the way to go.

Sam’s brow crinkled, and it was clear he was thinking about it. Who had to think of their age? Finally, he shrugged. “I’m not really sure. I’ve been with Tre so long; I kinda lost track.”

“Wow!” Nix clenched and unclenched his fist. For that to happen, these men’s lives must be completely out of their control.This isn’t about how you feel. This is about them. Focus on them.“What about your family? Where are they?”

Sam looked down at and shook his head. “Tre is my family.”

Nix couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Sam was smart enough to know that this wasn’t how things should be, yet he called Tre his family? “I can offer you something here,” Nix said.

Sam looked up, his eyes held wariness. “Like what?”

Nix looked around, clocking the guards’ positions liked he’d been doing every couple of minutes. One had moved inside. The other was by the door, and the one closest to them he was relieved to see was looking in the opposite direction. He turned back to Sam. “Just trust me. This isn’t what family looks like, this life …” He stopped himself from ranting. This was not the time and certainly not the place. “Just hang tight and you’ll be out of here; I’ll make sure of it.”

Sam didn’t look relieved at his words. Instead, he repeated, “Tre is my family.”

The omega had clearly been brainwashed if he believed that.Just get them out of here and then you can get him help.Nix moved in closer to Sam, “Trust me. You do deserve better than this, and I’m going to make sure you all get it.”

Sam frowned again and opened his mouth. Nix thought he’d once again talk about Tre being his family, but instead, he breathed a sigh. “Promise?” The fragile hope in his voice tore at Nix.

Nix put his hand on his heart. “On my life,” he said. Nix turned his gaze to Cal. His brother was just one of the reasons why he’d do anything to keep that promise. None of these men and women should be here.

Nix spent several more minutes with Sam until he told him he could go. He sat there for a moment and took it as a chance to study the guards. He also took it as a chance to seek out Cal, but when he looked over to where he’d been the last time Nix’d looked, Cal wasn’t there anymore. He searched around the outside yard but couldn’t find his brother. Nix told himself not to worry, but he wanted to set eyes on him, so he headed into the warehouse.

Once inside, he continued through two rooms and counted three guards as he passed. He returned to the large room from yesterday, and that was where he finally spotted Cal. His brother was reading to a young pup, a child that looked no more than three, maybe four years old. He must have sensed Nix because he looked up at his approach. Cal’s lips curved slightly. “Are you ready for me?”

“Yes, but I don’t want to interrupt your reading,” he nodded towards the kid.

Cal shook his head, “Just finished. Go see your Dada.” He helped the young girl down, and she looked up at him before hurrying off. Cal stood to his feet. “Where do you want me?”

He tried not to think about how many times his brother’d had to say those words. It gave Nix visions of hunting people down and spilling blood.That might still happen.

“Is the room from yesterday available?”

Cal nodded and started walking in the direction of the small room. Another thing he told himself not to focus on. What the room was meant for. Cal took a seat as Nix shut the door behind them and leaned against it. “Did Tre want you to speak to someone else besides me?” Cal asked.

Nix nodded. “Yeah. That was his idea.”

“Sort of figured.” Cal grimaced, then his eyes widened and Nix saw panic. “Tre doesn’t know that you’re our brother, right?”

Nix quickly shook his head. “No. Definitely not. And he can’t find out. This needs to be kept on the down-low. Understood?”

“Trust me, I know.” At his words, Nix imagined Cal getting beaten like Sam had described, and he wanted to pull his brother into his arms, but with the way his arms were wrapped around his waist, Nix had a feeling it wasn’t the time.

Nix nodded but couldn’t help the sigh of relief. He knew he should leave, but the urge to spend time with Cal was overwhelming. He didn’t want his brother to spend one more day in this hellhole.

“How old are you?”

“Nineteen,” Cal replied. “Jacobi is four months,” he added like he needed to remind Nix of their other brother.

“And you’re the only two children of … from … our bloodline?”