They’d show me down to the cages.
I’d drag my feet.
Eventually, they would suggest—or I would—that I could buy two of the alphas down there to bring home as examples, and with Ocean on their shitlist, they’d sign him up.
I’d ask for Hugo as a cheaper option and “accidentally” offer to overpay, sealing the deal.
Then we’d hand over Laurel’s money, and they’d hand over the alphas.
I just needed to keep my head on straight a little while longer.
EIGHTY-FOUR
FINCH
I pulled the soft cloth from my pocket and cleaned the smudges from my glasses as we made our way down through the basement tunnels. The fluorescent lighting was making my head hurt, and the strong scents of the Lucas pack were setting my teeth on edge. Our footsteps echoed through the corridor as we walked, and it seemed to take forever before we arrived at the entrance to the securement wing.
“You’re lucky you get a demo like this,” Prince said, his smirk making me want to punch him in the face.
I nodded, my hand clenching in a fist at my side. Keep it together, I reminded myself. We were so close.
Madison opened the door, and we followed him into the securement wing. To the side, a heavyset older man lounged in an office chair. He hoisted himself onto his feet when he saw us.
“Got your message, sir. You wanted to show this fella the fighters?”
Dax gave him a nod, and he hurried out of the office. He was a beta, but his strong body odor made my lip curl back.
Christ, I needed this to be over. Every little inconvenience felt like a personal trial.
“Lars Andrews. I manage the dogs,” he said, offering me a hand. I gave it the briefest shake.
“Daniel Song,” I said, and left it there.
Lars hitched up his belt, the keys jangling as he walked us toward the security doors. “Look alive, boys!” he called out, knocking sharply on the metal door and getting a dirty look from Jade. The sound reverberated in the closed space, setting off a chain reaction of snarls and loosened auras from the caged alphas.
It was an odd layout, with us on one side of a large, concrete room and the pens on the other. A wall of bars separated the two areas, and the only way in was in the middle, with a heavy security door on one side and a portcullis on the other.
I was clenching my jaw so hard it hurt and forced myself to relax again.
“They wanna see how we handle ’em, so let's get Raze out here,” Lars ordered. A large beta, who must be Casey, jumped to his feet, looking at us anxiously.
“I can see him from here,” I said, leaning against the wall. “No need to put your guards in danger.”
“Don’t worry, they’re used to it,” Lars said, unlocking the first security door and walking into the passage between us and the pens. He closed it behind him and ordered Casey to open the portcullis, even though he was standing right next to the inner crank.
Lazy asshole.
Casey turned the outer crank until the door was high enough to lock into place, and Lars strode out toward thepens, ordering Casey to lower the door again. Apparently, only one could be open at a time.
I sighed, crossing my arms as the pair made their way to Ocean’s cell. My body was tense, and it felt hard to stay still.
“Okay there?” asked Prince, grinning.
I ignored him.
My attention was focused on the cell that held Ocean. Casey and Jade were approaching him slowly, and there was no recognition in his blue eyes as they unlocked his cage door.
Casey stepped in first, talking in a low voice as he held out a pair of cuffs. Ocean was tense but didn’t attack as Casey secured his arms. He let Casey and Jade walk him out of the cells.
