“A man and a woman. They attacked first. I shot one, Ares attacked the other…” I snap, getting defensive and bitchy in return.
I’m not whining about the type of people the Alliance have answering their phones, but the guy seems to be a little moody. Maybe more than me.
He makes a weird noise like he’s surprised or impressed, but he kind of relaxes too. I can pick up the small changes in his voice as he goes back to being a little more ‘professional’. “Are they alive?”
I scoff loudly, and before I can stop it, the sarcasm is dripping off my response. “I think I might pass on checking, if that’s okay with you.”
He scoffs back just as quickly. His sarcasm matches mine. “I wasn’t going to ask you to. Besides, sometimes you can tell, you know. Now, do you want to tell me what happened?”
And because he’s not being overly fake, the words spill out. “I knew they were following me, I’m still not sure how they missed my dog. Anyway, they decided to make their move.”
I wonder if I’m responding to him because he’s an alpha or if it’s on a personal level, like we’re normal people feeling comfortable with each other.
“Lucky you had our number. Do you want to tell me your name?”
I don’t answer, and weirdly he doesn’t push. I hear him typing away again and then the ring of another phone. He’s juggling a few things at once.
“Okay, I have two people coming to you. Both are alphas from the Alliance, one has just finished work. His name is Valak. Actually, you might have seen him on television recently, he’s been doing a lot of interviews for us, getting word out that the Alliance is a safe place if you’re an omega. I guess it’s working since you called us tonight. You still with me?”
I grunt out a response, and he keeps talking. “Valak is driving a black SUV, with licence plate 897, V for Victor, A for Alpha, L for Lima. He’s pretty much nearly with you driving on the level above. Did you get that?”
“Yeah. Black SUV, 897VAL,” I repeat as I stand to face the ramp. I keep my gun hidden. I’ve got a couple of rounds left in the chamber, and if shit turns bad, I feel safer knowing I have my other gun unholstered and ready. Ares tries to sit up, and I squat back down, keeping him down and calm with a hand on his shoulder.
“How are you doing? What’s going on there?” The guy asks. I must have gone quiet on him.
“I need a vet,” I repeat, though it comes out like a petulant demand. I take a deep breath and focus before talking properly again. “Sorry. I’m super stressed.”
“Don’t apologise. You’re doing great,” he says, encouragingly. “Valak’s nearly there. Can you see him yet?”
“Yeah, there’s lights coming down the ramp now.”
“All right. I have a second car coming behind him. It’s another alpha from the Alliance. Noah is driving a white Lexus, he’s a doctor.”
I hum a response, flicking my phone to hands free and putting it on the ground in case I need to move or protect myself. And then I step behind Ares. The woman rolls to her side suddenly, and I react instinctively, shooting her in the knee. Her screams and the ringing of the gunshot echo through the carpark.
Instantly a part of me regrets firing the gun, knowing the noise will draw people. But at the same time, she deserves that bullet and more. Honestly, it’s lucky she’s still alive. And that is most certainly by choice. I know how to aim to kill, and I intentionally shot to maim so she’d be able to answer questions from the authorities—or the Alliance. The Alliance can handle that side of things, I literally don’t care as long as someone gets answers and they keep her locked up.
“Hey, hey, hey… what happened?” the guy barks out, losing his facade of calmness.
I thought I’d told him I had a gun. I hear him telling someone on the other line to wait, and it makes sense. The black SUV stops, idling at the bottom of the ramp.
“Are you armed or did someone shoot at you?” He isn’t frantic, but he is insistent.
“I’m armed,” I reply, glaring at the woman groaning on the ground.
“What happened?”
“The woman who attacked me was going to run, I think.”
“And now?” he asks.
I growl at him. “Well, she’s not fucking running away anymore. Tell Valak to hurry the fuck up. If my dog dies, it’s on him, and you, for being so slow.”
Weirdly, he laughs. And then the two SUVs start driving again, stopping at a safe distance.
“I’ll stay on the phone with you so I can coordinate what they need. I just need to remind them you are armed and it was you doing the shooting.”
I hum a response and wait, watching the two in the car.
