Page 116 of Heat & Deceit
That sound unlocks something inside of me. He has to pay. I stop punching him and lock my hands around his throat, squeezing so hard, he releases a grunt of pain. He bucks and thrashes, trying to escape, but I grind my jaw together and hold strong.
“Javier!”
What had he planned to do with her?
Nothing good.
After everything she’s been through, I’m not about to let this guy get away with whatever he was attempting. I shake the guy a little. He wheezes, face bright red now. His nails gouge into my arms.
“Javi!” Soft arms wrap around me, and her lilac scent envelops me. “Stop. Please, please. Stop.”
“He hurt you,” I grind out between gritted teeth.
“I’m okay. Please,” she says again, voice soft. “Let him go.”
Nois on the tip of my tongue, but something about that gentle vulnerability shoots through my chest. I loosen my grip but pick the guy up and slam him onto the concrete, knocking him out before I let him go. I turn, wrapping my arms around her and not giving a damn that I’m kneeling in the disgusting alley. She coils around me, trembling and whispering words of comfort. She’s trying to soothe me.
I shake my head and pull back to meet her gaze. “Are you okay? What did he put in your mouth?”
“It was a pill, but I spit it out.” She searches my face, eyes round with fear. “He sold me bad suppressants.”
Neither of us acknowledges the obvious. Omegas are the only ones who can give birth to alphas, and while not every child born of an omega turns out to be an alpha, the possibility is enough for the scourge of society to do horrid things to get one.
“He’s not leaving this alley alive,” I warn her.
She glances at the guy, anger flashing across her face. “Can’t we call the cops?”
“We don’t need the cops, especially when he’d be out in a few years with good behavior.” I grab my phone from my pocket and shoot off a quick text to Rome and Ly.
Nova starts to shake in my arms. I lift my gaze, and see she’s struggling to breathe, face red and eyes distant.
Fuck.
“Mentirosa,” I say softly, “come back to me.” I move a hand to her chest and the other to cradle her head, securing her in my arms. “Breathe with me.”
She gasps and whines. That sound is so vulnerable, so frail, that I want to set her aside and rip this guy’s head clean off his body, but I’m more worried about her than him. He’s unconscious. She’s panicking.
“No, no, no,” she cries, pinching her eyes shut and shaking her head.
Holding her, I stand up, bringing her with me. “You’re safe,” I whisper.
“Don’t fucking move,” a rough voice says right as the barrel of a gun presses to the back of my head.
“Nova!” An omega I don’t recognize grabs hold of Nova’s arm as another guy forces me to release her.
“What the fuck is your problem?” the omega snaps at me, stepping away from me as she hugs Nova and whispers to her.
“This isn’t what it looks like,” I begin.
The gun at my head digs in and the safety clicks off. “Don’t fucking talk.”
“Nova, honey, are you okay? It’s Kiki. I got you. Remember? I got you.”
“Please,” I say, but the alpha in front of me slugs me in the gut.
Air whooshes from my lungs and I curl over. “It was him,” I say quickly, gesturing to the guy on the ground. “That guy attacked her. I was saving her.”
“Is that true?” Kiki asks.
