“Volkov. Release Eloise and Elisabet Dubois and you might walk out of this alive.” I kept my voice impassive. Any emotion would be like cocaine to this bastard and I wouldn’t give him the pleasure of hearing the rage that was boiling under the surface of my skin.
“Oh how delightful it is to me that you think you have any control of this situation Leon. How very like your fathers you are. Tell me, how does it feel to be back here again? At this pool. A very similar situation, no?”
“Let me speak to Eloise.” I ignored his goading. I had already put together that it was likely that my mother had not actually drowned herself in the pool. I didn’t know the how or the why but I knew that Volkov was responsible.
“Well of course, I would never keep an omega from her alpha.” I watched through the binoculars as he put the phone to her ear.
“Cara, are you okay?” I asked.
“I’ve been better.” Her voice was weaker than I’d ever heard it and I could hear her ragged breathing through the phone. Gage finished getting into position, his left eye pressed to the scope of the rifle. I could see the red laser sight turn on and flash on Eloise’s chest.
“Do you remember when I told you about my mother? The sound I heard that brought me out of my room?” I hoped and prayed with everything in my body as I asked the question.
Eloise’s chin tilted down to look at the pool and I saw the moment her eyes caught onto the red dot on the thick wool of her sweater. She looked up and her eyes seemed to be searching the darkness for me.
“Splash.” She whispered.
“What was that my dear?” I could hear Volkov’s question but Eloise ignored him and as if she could feel my eyes she looked directly at where we were in the darkness.
“Save me, Leon.” Was all that she said before taking a huge breath and pushed as hard as she could away from Volkov, falling forwards into the pool with a loud splash.
I was already running and sliding down the hill towards the backyard as a shot rang out from behind me.
As the dumbbell tied around my ankles dragged me down to the bottom of the pool I grabbed at the layers of duct tape that were securing the dumbbell. As I hit the bottom I looked up at the blurry surface. This pool had to be eight or nine feet deep. My lungs were already starting to burn and a cramp nearly made me cry out, wasting precious oxygen. I began tearing at the layers, looking for the edge of the duct tape and trying not to let panic overtake my body. The only saving grace about this whole thing was that the cool temperature of the pool had dulled the intense pain from my heat, soothing my skin and helping me to think more clearly.
I could hear dulled gunfire from above and shouts as my body finally forced me to gasp for air that wasn’t there. Bubbles ripped their way out of my mouth as my fingers fumbled in vain at the duct tape.
As my vision began to darken I could hear a splash from overhead, looking up I could see a dark figure that was partially illuminated by the glow of the pool. It was pushing and kicking at the water to get down to me and a rough pair of hands wrapped around my waist. I could just make out the glint of a pocket knife before it began to tug at the edge of the tape, easily sawing through the layers. I was almost free but it was too late and the world around me went black .
“Dammit Eloise, do not do this to me.” I could hear Leon’s panicked voice as hands pushed at my chest, fingers pinched my nose shut as lips pressed to mine and pushed air into my lungs. I was suddenly very aware of the water whooshing out of me as I turned and vomited it out of my mouth, along with the rest of the contents in my stomach.
“There you are.” Leon was hovering above me, soaking wet, his dark blue eyes were wild as he pulled me to his chest.
“You saved me,” I managed to croak, “I knew you would Leon.” FBI agents were swarming around us as they handcuffed any of Volkov’s men who were still living. I looked over to where I’d fallen into the pool, Alexei Volkov lay on his back with a bullet wound in what had to be his heart and I was pretty sure that he was dead.
“Leon, he killed your mom.” I said quietly, “He told me that your fathers killed his wife and so he did it to get revenge on them.” I put a shaky hand on his face, watching as it crumpled and he buried his nose in my hair shaking with silent sobs.
“Eloise!” Gage’s roar came from the other side of the pool as he slid down the small hill that led up into the trees. I held out a hand to him as he slid on his knees in front of us and pressed a kiss into my hand.
“I’m okay,” I told him weakly. Well, that wasn’t strictly true, I could feel the heat beginning to lick at my skin again and the nausea was returning, “Though you are probably going to want to take me to the hospital like right now… he dosed me with synthetic heat pheromones.” I managed to get out before I felt my body convulse and I passed out again for what felt like the hundredth time tonight.
44
I burst into the hallway of the hospital that Leon had texted me the number for. They had come to the same hospital where Dominic was still in surgery. All the text had said was to leave Owen and Link and to hurry.
I hated being left so out of the loop of things. I had been able to feel the pain and fear through the bond until Eloise had shut it off leaving me completely in the dark.
Leon and Gage were standing in the hallway talking to a shorter doctor who I quickly recognized was Matteo Diaz, Aria Simmons’ packmate and the chief of medicine at this hospital.
“Leon, what the hell is going on, is Eloise okay?” Leon looked worse for wear than when he’d left the house last night. He was damp and covered in scratches. Gage was relatively dry but his despondent expression made me think that shit had definitely hit the fan.
“Eric Zhao I presume? Nice to finally meet you in person,” Matteo Diaz held out his hand to me and I shook it, “I was just finishing telling Leon and Gage my opinion on treatment. I’ll let them fill you in and come back in a few minutes for your decision.”
He turned to head back to the nearby nurses station and began speaking quietly with one of the nurses.
“Leon?” I turned to our pack leader who looked miserable.
“Volkov dosed Eloise with a synthetic heat pheromone, kicking off a heat that her body wasn’t ready for.”
