Page 65 of Manix
Well, that was as reassuring as a red balloon down a storm drain. But I had nothing left to lose. I stepped through the portal, Finlo close on my heels. It was like walking through quicksand, but when I came out the other side, I was somewhere less mountainous and far clearly from home. I couldn’t even see our mountains from here.
They’d moved them so far in such a short time. Three huge dudes turned, and it wasn’t often we met anyone else of our stature. But I stood eye to eye with the guy who was obviously the leader. He grinned at me.
“Holy shit, you guys are big fuckers. Alexander wasn’t fucking with me when he said that two Manix were coming to help out. No offense man, but I thought you guys were all dead. Functionally extinct except the little Omega in there.”
I curled my top lip. “Mine.”
The huge guy lifted both hands. “Definitely yours, bro. I have my own little Omega at home, and she’s more than a handful.” He thrust out a hand. “Name’s Vance, Alpha of the Cold River Sleuth. These are my Packmates Talbot and Franklin. Bear shifters. My team and I operate to rescue shifters from dangerous or undesirable situations.”
Well, that would explain the size of these guys and the army around us. With that, the guy morphed back into soldier mode, and outlined the plan. It was simple as far as plans went: get in, extract the hostages, and get back out again. I looked at the assembled people, inhaling deeply. Mostly shifters of various species, but damn, were those two guys human? What the hell were humans doing in this fight? No one seemed overly worried about them though, and one handled the automatic rifle like he was born with it in his hand, so I wouldn’t begrudge his help.
Fuck, I would take anyone’s help right now.
Vance’s phone chirped and he looked at the screen. “Asset is here in T minus twenty. Everyone move out and into position.”
I looked at Finlo, at the determined set of his jaw. We were getting them back, or we weren’t coming back at all.
43
Naja
The minutes dragged on as my uncle talked, and I tried to keep my breathing under control. I wanted to pant in panic, but I couldn’t. I needed to stay alert. Something was about to go down, and I didn’t want to be having a panic attack in the corner when it happened. They finally quit talking, and the buyer pulled out his phone. Probably the funds transfer. Whatever he’d done had put a huge smile on my uncle’s face.
Iago waved his hand and stepped aside, like we were a prize on a gameshow that he’d won.
The man strode over like my uncle was beneath him, his shoulders tight and his face impassive. You wouldn’t think he had just spent what I assumed was tens of millions of dollars on buying actual living people.
His guards were huge, and they held their finger on the triggers of their AK’s. They never stopped scanning the room for threats. Looking for a trap maybe? A double-cross? I wouldn’t put it past my uncle.
The man stopped in front of me, his face still cool. “Naja. It is a pleasure to finally meet you.” There was nothing lecherous in his tone, nothing to insinuate that he’d bought me for any kind of sexual proclivities.
I set my jaw. “I won’t go with you quietly.”
Big guy to his left cleared his throat, and then he winked at me. Again, not in a lecherous way, more like we were both in on a secret. Oh shit… The guy from Mexico hiding between the containers. They weren’t looking for a double-cross—they wereexecutingthe double-cross.
The man, my new owner, reached out a perfectly manicured hand. “Let us go.”
I shook my head. Double-cross or not, I wasn’t going anywhere with these fuckers. “I won’t leave Raiden.”
The man gave me a look laden with meaning, but maybe I’d done more damage than I thought with my swan dive from the roof of the house, because I couldn’t decipher what he was trying to tell me. His jaw flexed. “We won’t leave the Omega either, Naja. Please, let’s go.”
But it was too late when I finally understood his meaning.
Someone shouted that it was an ambush, and then all hell broke loose. Bullets flew, and the man bent and scooped me up. I whimpered as he ran toward the containers for cover. I looked back to see one of his big guards had grabbed Raiden while the other provided cover.
“Fuck!” The man growled, dropping me unceremoniously to the ground behind one of the shipping containers.
As if summoned by the curse word, the guy from my past reappeared. My original savior. One of the big guys pointed at him. “Kell, watch them.” Then they all disappeared, leaving me with my Omega and the fucking mystery man.
“Kell. Nice to finally have a name.”
Kell grinned as he lined up a guy who was trying to climb the gangway and pulled the trigger. The guy fell over the edge, and I had no doubt he was dead. “Nice to meet you too—Naja, right? How's the kid?”
I swallowed hard at the thought of Luisa in Ellar’s arms. “Safe, I hope.”
Kell gave me a sympathetic look. “We’ll get you back to her soon.” Then his eyes were back on target, ducking around the corner to shoot anyone who got too close. I dropped to my knees and covered Raiden.
He’d fallen into unconsciousness once more, and now I was worried. But I wouldn’t allow us to be saved only to lose him. I wouldn’t. The presence of Kell—the guy who’d delivered me to safety—eased something inside of me. I hugged myself around Raiden’s head, protecting it from the stray bullets pinging against the container we were hiding behind.
