“Gotcha.”Thank Azrah she was willing to take care of it, because Ford had been planning to roll up and hope for the best.The Clinic was an ORT-run medical facility attached to headquarters, where the best of ORT medical staff would be ready to help Lucky through this.
Wynna heaved a sigh, the sound of clicking in the background.“Is Chase the mate?”
“Affirmative.”
Wynna snorted, a sound she rarely made.“Take good care of him.This won’t be pleasant.”
He hung up, glancing through the rear-view mirror at Chase.He was focused on Lucky, brushing fingers through his hair, and didn’t seem to notice or care what his mother said.
This wouldn’t be pleasant, but thank Azrah he’d found Lucky’s true mate in time to save them from the absolute worst-case scenario.As tempted as Ford was by Lucky, there was no way he could hurt the omega.
Whether Chase understood the stakes or not, he’d soon realise this was their only option.
* * * *
By the time he’d carried Lucky into the back entrance of the Clinic, Lucky was dripping with sweat, his moans had softened, and Chase was a ball of nerves.Ford had tried to plan ahead, calling Jesi when they were halfway, to have him gather supplies.If this took the full four days of a regular heat, he wanted them to be prepared.
Chase punched in the security code Ford gave him and stepped inside to hold the door open while a group of medical personnel approached from the far end of the corridor.
“Jesi, thank fuck.”
Jesi beamed as the doors slid shut behind them, looking like he’d made a causal visit to a friend rather than an emergency trip to deliver supplies.“Don’t thank me yet.We have a long night ahead.”He crossed to Ford, where he brushed the hair from Lucky’s face and tutted.“Get him in the ward.We need to talk.”
Ford was glad he was here.If anyone could take care of an omega in a forced heat, it was Jesi.Five foot nothing, feisty as all get-out, a true redhead, Jesi was everything that an omega should be—strong, independent, capable and ready to shoot any asshole alpha with wandering hands in the balls if they got too close.He was exactly what Lucky needed tonight.
The medical team rolled a bed across to let Ford transfer Lucky into their care.“Chase, if you’re the mate, come with us.We need you beside Lucky,” the head nurse said with a pleasant smile.
Ford nodded when Chase glanced at him for?what was he asking for?Permission?Reassurance??and walked off with the team while he and Jesi trailed behind.
“I brought a bag for each of you.”Jesi led the way to the main ward, where Lucky was given a private room.
Ford glanced around with approval.The private rooms were designed to portray a homely bedroom.Omegas already suffering from trauma often experienced more distress from waking to a hospital ward.The household design helped bridge the gap between panic and being in an unfamiliar space.Some of the omegas had never had that comforting space before, while it was something others missed more than they would let on.
Two duffels and a small holdall sat on the dresser at the side of the room.
“Xavier Darro packed for Lucky, making sure he had everything he needed.”
Ford filed that information away for later.This wasn’t his department, but he trusted Xavier Darro to know best.
“You brought my bag?”Chase wandered over to the dresser and opened his bag.“How the fuck did you get into my apartment?”
Jesi snorted, giving Ford a look that asked if Chase was for real.“We’re ORT.We don’t ask permission.I climbed up the fire escape, broke into your apartment and rifled through your underwear drawer.Be grateful I did, or you’d be spending the next four days in your boxers.Or in nothing.”
Ford tried not to laugh, because this wasn’t a situation to laugh at, but Lucky gave a quiet, tired chuckle that made Jesi smile.Maybe that had been his intention.As the team secured Lucky’s hospital bed in the middle of the room, Jesi crossed to absently brush at his hair.
“You’ll be okay, kiddo.We’ll take care of you.”Jesi looked up at Ford, smile softening, no doubt remembering his own dark past.“Do we have a game plan?”
Chase looked tired, like the reality of this was finally hitting him.Ford had felt that way once, a long time ago, watching a young omega drop a gun after murdering the man who supposedly loved and cared for him, but who’d been nothing but another scumbag owner linked to the Omega Market.Azrah had saved Chase from facing that horror, but this would still be a night he would never forget.
“Our only focus is getting Lucky through this heat,” Ford replied, choosing his words carefully.
“This is so fucking wrong.He can’t even consent,” Chase complained, running a hand over his face.
Ford understood where Chase was coming from.He’d lived a blessed life, with little hardship, and this had come out of the blue on the same day he found his true mate.It wasn’t easy, but it was their reality and he had to man up.
Ford crossed to Chase and gripped his chin between two fingers, forcing his head up for eye contact.“You’re a fucking good mate to be thinkin’ of that.It makes you a good, strong alpha and I betcha anything your omega would be fuckin’ proud of you for even letting that cross your mind.But you gotta be smarter tonight.Look at the bigger picture.”They’d gone way past ordinary into the downright brutal reality of an emergency heat.
Stepping back, he gestured to Lucky, still barely communicating but holding onto his stomach like it would stop the fire inside him from burning through his skin.Ford gave Chase a minute to let that sink in then crossed to perch on the edge of the bed by Lucky’s hip.
