Page 24 of Convincing the Heartbroken Beta

Brandon frowned. “Should I load my shotgun?”

Carrying a weapon when meeting with a fellow pack was frowned upon. As a rule, they rarely carried them anyway. Not only because it was inconvenient to have one if you needed to shift, but most disputes were handled through the council of the Alliance. And of those that weren’t, teeth and claws typically did the trick. Only humans and nefarious shifters, such as the group they’d just taken down, necessitated the use of guns.

Nic opened the door and scented the air. “Yeah. You should.” He gritted his teeth. “Dammit. What are they thinking?”

Brandon opened his door as well. The moment he caught the smell of aggression on the air, he worried they were walking into a trap. Fortunately, the scent was strong enough to indicate there were at last a few enemies nearby, but the danger was real. They’d have to be prepared for anything.

Before they exited the vehicle, Nic picked up the walkie that was n the venter console. “Deltas, this is Alpha Petrov. I’m here with Alpha Volkov of the Denali Junction Pack. Please open your gates. Over.”

White noise greeted them in response.

Brandon and Nic exchanged glances and Nic whispered to him, “Who knows what’s going on behind those barriers.”

The eerie sense that they were being watched nagged at Brandon and he leaned into Nic in case there were shifters nearby who could overhear even the quietest of sounds.

“Some of the escapees might’ve made it back here, warned more rogues who’d stayed behind. If we enter pack territory, we could get ambushed. I’m thinking we should bring reinforcements.”

“You’re the ones who ambush other shifters, not us. Lower your weapons before I open the gate.”

Brandon and Nic whipped around to the left, a shifter emerging from what they now realized was a clever camouflage that had been constructed at the edge of the woods. A low growl rolled in Nic’s chest as he pulled back his lip in a snarl.

“Other than when your former Alpha kidnapped my mate then set up an ambush for me.”

The delta let out a derisive sort. “That was before. Our pack members weren’t aware of his intent or actions.”

Nic lunged and Brandon grabbed his arm, struggling to hold him back.

“Nic, don’t.” He gritted against his ear. “We don’t want to start anything.”

“Yes, Petrov.” The delta sneered. “Listen to your colleague. Don’t you think you’ve murdered enough deltas already?”

Brandon kept his grip tight on Nic’s arm as he spoke, “Killing wasn’t our intention when we went to the prison. But we’d already been informed by the rogues we’d captured when they were hunting down an omega who’d escaped imprisonment. We couldn’t allow the experiments and torture to continue.”

The delta jerked back his head with a frown. “Experiments and torture? What in the gods name are you talking about?”

“You’re full of shit!” Nic shouted. “How could you not know about the labs, the prison? Where did you think your missing omegas had gone?” Nic yanked his arm free. “To boarding school!”

Nic leapt and Brandon tackled him to the ground before he could tear into the delta.

“Nic, stop! The Alliance will punish you and Hawk. This won’t solve anything, only make it worse. Think of Elam and your baby.”

Nic stilled, his breaths coming out in ragged gasps. At last, the tension in Nic eased, and Brandon helped him up. They both rose to their feet and were brushing off their clothes when he noticed the delta perched on a boulder. He held his head in his hands with his elbows resting on his knees. Brandon could honestly say he’d never witnessed a delta appear so defeated before. Every one of them he’d ever met had always seemed to have a permanent stick shoved up their ass.

Nic appeared perplexed as he gaped at the delta. Brandon knew how he felt.

“Delta.” Brandon kept his voice low and calm. “What’s your name?”

After a beat, the delta raised his head, his expression weary. “Isaac. Isaac Nevsky.” He scrubbed his face with both hands. “I can’t detect the scent of dishonesty from either one of you, but this doesn’t make any sense.” He sighed. “We were told by Jasper’s father and several of the other parents of omegas that they…” He laughed with no humor as he shook his head. “…had been taken somewhere secret to keep them safe. The pack leaders insisted that otherwise, they’d be stolen, passed around to any Alpha who wanted to use them for their perverted desires. They said it was revenge for the attack on Alpha Petrov and his mate.”

“Shit.” Nic muttered. “I can’t detect the scent of dishonesty from him either.”

Brandon put his hands on his hips. “This certainly sheds a new light on things.” He regarded Isaac. “Will you let us in the gates now so we can sit down and discuss this like rational shifters?”

Isaac gave him a shaky nod as he pushed himself up from the boulder. “Why? Why would they do something so horrible?”

“We’ll give you the whole gruesome story.” Brandon locked eyes with Nic. “Are we good?”

Nic rubbed his forehead. “Yeah. One more thing, though. How did you know about the ambush at the prison?”

Isaac winced. “Prison… Uh, two of our leaders showed up here last night—one had been grazed by a bullet in his shoulder. They only stayed for a few hours, gathered some supplies then took a vehicle and left.”

Brandon didn’t like the sounds of that. “Did they say where they were headed?”

“Not specifically. One of them mentioned something about having to get to the bay, but he didn’t say which one. Said they’d be able to get some help there.”

Nic spoke up. “What kind of help?”

Isaac still looked pained. “I-I don’t know. I assumed it would be protection against the rest of the Alliance.” He locked gazes with Brandon. “Are the omegas okay? I have some very worried moms awaiting word.”

Nic bowed his head and Brandon swallowed hard. “No. Not all of them.”

Tears welled in Isaac’s eyes and Brandon witnessed another first for him. He’d never seen such sadness coming from a delta.

Isaac gestured for them to follow. “I need you to tell me everything you can. I’m afraid I was left in charge until the leaders come back, so I’ll need to figure out the next best move.”

Brandon pressed his lips in a grim line. “I wouldn’t count on them coming back. Ever.”