Page 40 of Aries
Ronan
“What is this place?” Thea asked carefully as we climbed out of the SUV.
There were two vans behind us, all full of omegas and a random beta or two. The betas surprised me. I hadn’t expected to find more than omegas in a place like that. They were the ones who sold for top dollar.
I knew my father would want answers, but I was doing all I could to keep Nikolai from losing control as it was. His peppercorn scent was spicier than ever, drowning out any hints of the damp forest that usually rounded it out. Right now it was potent enough that it burned my nose.
“Let them settle. They’ve been through hell. You would want the same for her,” Luca said gently to Nikolai.
He looked at Luca, swallowed hard, but nodded. His face was pale, and he was eerily quiet.
“It’s one of our safe houses. One of the lesser-known ones,” I answered the omega. “Here is where we recover. I have doctorsand fresh clothes coming. Only my trusted men are involved, so it’s completely safe.”
“We have no choice but to trust them,” Thea said to the others, her voice stronger than I expected after everything that had happened. I half expected her to lose it after she took Specre’s life.
Tires crunched on the gravel, everyone tensing until they saw the vans carrying their friends pulling up.
I stood by as my men hopped out and opened the doors, freeing the omegas waiting inside. They were barely clothed, dirty, and terrified out of their poor minds.
“Do you want us to stick around?” Talon asked. He was the head of my personal guards.
“No. I need you and your men to get enough food to last us at least a week or two. Maybe something quick for tonight. Pizza, maybe,” I said before turning to Ryan, my other trusted Crow. “Your team has to find clothes. Get an array of sizes, enough to fit all of these women.”
“On it, boss,” he said before climbing back into the van.
That left my pack to guide the girls inside. I headed for the door, punching in my code and waiting for the light to turn green before pushing the front door open.
“You’re not prisoners here. I’ll give you a code,” I said as I flicked on the hall light. “It’s been a minute. We may have to do a little cleanup, but it’s safe. Luca, boot up the security.”
“On it,” Luca said. He already had his laptop out and was typing away.
“Once we get this place secure, I need answers. Tell us what you know about Aries.” Nikolai’s voice was rough, but he looked right at Thea, who nodded and swallowed hard, stepping a little closer to me.
“He’s harmless, but his omega has been gone for a long time,” I said gently. “Her name was Aries.”
Understanding, then pity, dawned on her face. Something I hoped he didn’t notice. It just confirmed our worst fears. I swallowed hard and forged ahead.
“There are four bathrooms here. You’ll have to divvy up and take turns showering. You may want to wait for fresh clothes to come. They just went after them and it might take a bit. Food and all of that will be arriving soon.”
The omegas drifted ahead, their footsteps almost stumbling. They were so weak they didn’t explore. They simply found places to sit around the living room while they waited.
“I’ll guard the door,” Nikolai said, grabbing a chair and dragging it across the floor. The sound was grating but he didn’t even seem to notice.
I turned and walked into the kitchen, opening the fridge. At least the last Crows who used this place had cleaned it out. We had strict rules on our properties. We had standards in the Crows, and most of them knew better than to disobey that.
My father would never lower himself to have a dirty safe house.
I had far too much nervous energy to sit here and wait for the rest of my team to get back. I needed to know it was safe and, honestly, just needed a solid distraction.
Soft footsteps joined me, far too noisy to be my packmates.
I turned around to see Thea standing there.
“Tell me there’s something I can do. I’m going crazy just waiting. And your friend in there is just glaring at me like I hold all the answers to the universe for him.”
“You kind of do,” I admitted. “We’re trying to do right by you and wait until you have clean clothes and a meal before we interrogate you, but we’re going to need answers. And in return, we’ll give you whatever you need.”
“I just want to go to Widow’s Peak. I’m not sure they’d allow you in, though,” she admitted.
