“There’s something else.” Elias’ voice was low and urgent. Leo scooted further back on the couch.
“More bad news,” I said, curling my mouth into a frown. “We won’t get to see her for a few days. Not so soon after she’s been shoved into solitary.”
“Solitary?” Elias snapped, his veins pulsing in his neck. “Why?”
“Another fight.” I tried to keep my temper under control. “Yesterday.”
“And they’re telling us now?” Sinclair whipped his head toward me.
“We’re lucky to have gotten a call.” My lips were numb, making them feel off.
“Bloodyshite. She’s being targeted.” Sinclair rubbed his palm over his head. Energy pulsed under his skin. As they both became more agitated, I gripped onto my control.
“I’m waiting for another call.”
“That’s unacceptable.” Elias’ voice lashed out as he rolled his neck side to side. I had the same tension lining my own. As much as he stretched, he wouldn’t be able to get rid of the sensation until Briar was back. “Fuck,” he roared. In the same motion, he spun back to Leo, slamming his fist into the man’s face. Once, twice, and then there was a pop.
Leo screamed, but it was enough to force him to snap out of whatever had gripped him. He swung back at Elias, landing half his punches. In the tangle of hits, they drifted toward me. I moved out of the way as Leo went flying through the curtains blocking the entrance. Elias strode past me, still going after him, his face morphing into a mask of hatred. Dark circles under his eyes made him look gaunt.
Sinclair was right behind him, a smile on his mouth and a glint in his irises. Unsurprising.
I trailed after them, walking out to find Leo had tried to run away. Elias slammed his boot into Leo’s face, and it sent him rolling. Survival finally gripped him because, instead of trying to fight, Leo burst through the back entrance into the main hall. Elias stalked after him in slow, measured steps, like he had all the time in the world.
For now, we did. We were playing a waiting game. As good as we’d always been with patience, it didn’t apply to Briar.
The club was in full swing, the pinnacle of the night, so Leo had to weave through the crowd to escape. Unfortunately for him, he smacked into a big Alpha in the middle of groping one of our dancers.
He turned with a snarl and shoved him. Leo smacked into a table. Chaos ensued. Another man shouted at a different Alpha, and then fists started swinging. A full-on brawl broke out on the floor.
Blood went flying in an arc, screams burst from all directions. Some patrons started running out. I just watched, unable to look away from the bloodshed. Such madness. I should stop this like I always did, but I couldn’t bring myself to.
Elias got his hands on another Alpha who tried to come at him. He didn’t stop beating the man to a pulp. The music continued blaring from the speakers.
“Are you going to do anything?”
I startled, coming out of a trance, and looked down at Candace. Her eyes widened, and she trembled.
“You think I can stop them?”
I snorted.
“Are you not going to doanything?” She gawked.
I shrugged.
One of the dancers was knocked to the floor, and Candace took off behind the stage.
I would have to announce our decision to close the club to all of them, but now wasn’t the time. I also didn’t have the energy to.
I returned to watching the chaos. Broken glass, blood everywhere, splintered wood . . . Was that a chair through the wall?
So many budgets, so much planning went into building our business. Working overtime so much that we were sleep-deprived for more than three years. All for it to mean absolutely nothing.
All because of a slip of a woman. An Omega who had us wrapped around her pinky. The same Omega we tried so desperately not to care for.
Now I could see how inevitable it was.
I ducked before a bottle of tequila smashed into my temple. Backing up, I slumped into a chair and silently watched my pack-brothers destroy everything we’d spent years building.
