Before Killian could respond, there was a quick, sharp prick in his skin. Then a focused pressure, as though Crush was trying to push out something.
The pressure disappeared almost immediately. Crush pressed down on that aching spot and held it for a while. “To stop the bleeding.”
His voice was calm, almost too calm.
“What did you find?” Killian asked shakily.
“Do you really want to see it?”
“I should, shouldn’t I? It’s been giving us hell.”
Crush sighed. “Okay. Give it a minute for your cut to close up a little.” He leaned in and pressed a soft, dry kiss to Killian’s neck. Then he nuzzled Killian, and kissed him again. “We’ll be fine, sweetheart. I’ll make sure of it.”
“I’ll believe you when everything’s done and over with,” Killian mumbled.
“That’s understandable.” Crush tucked his nose into Killian’s hair. After far too long, he brought his hands around Killian, one hand cupped over the other. “Ready?”
“Let’s just get it over with.”
When Crush separated his hands, Killian frowned. The thing in his palm was tiny, tinier than even his pinky nail—a colorless plastic disc with a small black gem protruding from its middle. Faint lines covered the disc.
Had that been sitting in his body for the past several years? Sending out information to someone in the world? Killian shuddered.
“I don’t have a microscope on me, but I’m pretty sure those lines are runes,” Crush growled. His other hand had returned to Killian’s back, holding the incision closed. “I want to destroy it. But I need to consult with Uriel first.”
“Please,” Killian mumbled.
Crush set the tracker on the bathroom floor, away from the tub. Then he slid his arms around Killian and hugged him tight. “I’ll be right back. Don’t think I’m going to leave you alone.”
That was reassuring. Killian focused on breathing, his heart thumping against his ribs.
When he had calmed down slightly, Crush moved him off his lap. The alpha climbed out of the tub, all bulging muscle, and picked the tracker off the floor. Killian watched as Crush left the bathroom.
But that sucked, because it left him to his terrible thoughts. Killian’s back stung. He felt unclean all over.
“Uriel?” Crush said as he entered the bathroom two minutes later. He set some things next to the tub and climbed back in, wrapping his arm around Killian’s shoulder. In his other hand was his phone, their mage friend Uriel on a video call.
Uriel was frowning. With his broad shoulders and muscles, he looked like an alpha. It helped that he was bald and had several silvery scars all over his face—no one would guess the secret he kept from Crush and their alpha friends—Uriel was actually an omega.
“I got the pictures you sent,” Uriel said, looking troubled.
“What’s the bad news?” Crush asked immediately.
“That’s going to be a tricky tracker to destroy. I didn’t sense it when I was near Killian, which means it has layers of magic written into it. I’ll have to break it in person.”
“Fuck,” Crush said. “I can’t just smash it with a heavy object?”
“Don’t!” Uriel said urgently. “If you smash it, it’ll probably send out a distress signal like a homing beacon.”
“Huh.” Crush glanced at the pile of things next to the tub. “Sorry about calling you up like this. If it helps, we’ll be making our way back toward Cartfalls, maybe a couple hours away. I’ll text you the address.”
“Call in some of the others, too,” Uriel said. “It’s getting close to nightfall; they might make it there sooner than me.”
“Will do. Thanks.” Crush sighed and ended the video call.
Killian was still trying to keep his panic at bay. “You didn’t mention it earlier; where are we going?”
“Somewhere safer.” Crush rubbed his thumb over Killian’s shoulder. “We’re going to my pack.”
