Page 12 of Knot All Is Ruined: Part 2

Cris tossed my pack at me, and I shouldered it nodding in appreciation. Knowing we weren’t far behind them, I took off at a quick pace; the thrill of the hunt coursing through my veins. The others wouldn’t care that I took off ahead since they knew I was one of the best trackers out of all of us. Petru and Sorin were stiff competition, but anytime we had a friendly challenge, I won. It’s true I didn’t get along with people well outside of this unit, and that’s because they always felt the need to force me into compliance with the rules. That’s not to say I didn’t know and respect the laws of the Southern military. Nevertheless, many times in the heat of battle, those rules hindered me from being able to help my fellow soldiers.

Sorin knew that I wasn't that far off even if I split off from the group. If they needed me, I was within shouting or whistling distance. I had an easier time tracking when I didn’t have them getting in my way. Halting, I dropped to a knee and spotted a footprint that could only be from my Little Spark. The other following after it was larger and told me I was on their trail. Cupping my hands around my mouth, I let out a bird call guiding them towards me. The sound could be heard all through the forest, but I changed the inflection at the end to ensure they knew it was me. I waited for a second and got an answering call back, giving me the freedom to keep moving.

It was then I decided I was going to break the agreement Sorin and I had about staying close enough to call. Dani was close, and I didn’t plan on letting that woman slip further from me. Making sure the straps on my pack were tight, I shot off following the trail. Each step getting me closer to our Omega. Never in my fucking life did I think I’d be that Alpha who got his knot in a twist over a woman, although my Little Spark wasn’t just some woman, she was the perfect woman. Petru had been right when he said the fates brought her to us, for I couldn’t see another Omega crashing into our lives and showing us just what we’d been missing. The possessiveness and protectiveness I felt toward her were overwhelming, and I didn’t know what to do about it except surrender. The moment I could, I’d be putting my mark on her so she’d never be lost to me again.

Sliding to a stop, I froze, ears straining, muscles tensing. I could feel eyes on me and the hairs on the back of my neck rising at the danger. “Lucian,” I bellowed. “You made one big ass fucking mistake taking something that’s mine to protect. If I don’t see my Little Spark in three seconds, I’m going to hunt you down and make sure you understand just how fucked you truly are.”

Silence filled the space. Not even the animals moved as I waited for his next move. The snap of a twig to my right had me squaring up, gun in hand, finger on the trigger and ready to act in a second. Not being as good as Petru when it came to shooting from a relaxed state, I kept my body alert.

“One,” I called out while scanning the forest. “Two.”

There was movement further to the right, almost putting them behind me, but there was another flash of someone to the left. What game were they playing at? Why not come out? Once the others got here, there would be no winning. Was this a test of some kind? Wait—what if Lucian gave her an order, and she’s ignoring it but unwilling to show herself until the last second?

“Remember you chose this, Commander,” I taunted, before shifting my grip and grabbing a smoke bomb from my belt. This one had a toxin in it that would make anyone who hadn’t built up a tolerance start coughing and make their eyes water. It was a bitch and a half to master surviving the damn thing with no side effects, but I damn well did. Pulling the pin, I rolled the smoke bomb a little ways from me and waited for it to blast, sending the smoke everywhere.

Crouching as I reached the end of my silent countdown, not wanting to be an easily visible target if he started shooting. There was a sound that seemed to come from above, so I glanced up into the trees. Sure as shit, there was Dani, leaping like a monkey on her way over to me. Everything in me wanted to shout out, telling her to stay away from me so she didn’t get hit with the smoke. It was too late, and the blast occurred, making the ground rattle and trees sway in the concussion of sound and energy. The blast helped spread the smoke and the second it started to fill the air, I was up and running for Dani.

She looked furious, but I wasn’t sure what exactly she was mad about… Was it that I threatened her Alpha, or the fact that we showed up at all? Something caught her attention behind me, making her cry out and hurl herself out of the tree right at me. Her body slammed into mine, sending us both crashing to the ground. A second later, I heard the crack of gunfire and a bullet whizzed overhead, telling me I was lucky to be alive.

“Victor, you need to leave,” Dani whispered, fear flickering in her eyes. “Please, Vicky, I need to know that you’re all okay and alive if I’m going to accept never seeing you again.”

That had my brow furrowing. “Why the fuck wouldn’t you see me? Little Spark, I’m right fucking here with you sitting right on top of me.”

“We…Lucian…I,” she stumbled, unsure how or what to say. Growling, she shook her head as if clearing her mind and gave me a serious look. “Lucian marked me. We are bonded and now I’m the Omega to Commander Lucian of the Northern Army.”

Ah.This explained her actions. “Little Spark, I don’t give a flying fuck whose mark you carry. I vowed to look after you and keep you safe, which is what I’m trying to do right now.”

“Danella!” a man called out, then started hacking up a lung as the smoke hit him.

That same smoke was just starting to waft around us, so I rolled us over, scooped Dani up, and took off the way I’d come. The effects of the smoke would stick with him for a solid ten to fifteen minutes giving me more than enough time to get her the hell out of the danger zone.

“Wait, Victor, we need to go back,” Dani demanded, thrashing in my hold trying to kick and punch me. “Did you put poison in that smoke bomb?”

“There’s a toxin, but it won’t kill him,” I admitted.

“It’s burning him, his eyes,” Dani choked out. “I can feel it, the pain he’s in right now. We have to go back.”

My steps faltered. “You can feel what he feels?”

“Yes, that’s part of the bond, and right now, whatever toxin you used is making it so he can’t breathe or even see,” Dany explained. “Promise me that it won’t kill him. I don’t want to experience that.”

Fuck, fuck, fuck, there goes the plan of just killing him to make the problem go away. I could never do something like that, knowing Dani would feel his pain as well as his death. That’s not something anyone should have to live through. Quickly as I could so I didn’t drop her, I slapped the comm button to speak to the others.

“Guys, I have Danella and heading back your way,” I informed them. “One more thing…Dani can feel everything Lucian does.” That would be enough information to keep them from doing something stupid. I tapped the comm so I could hear.

“Petru, tell me you heard that,” Sorin snapped.

“Yes, sir, I’m making an about-face and heading back to you,” Petru answered, making me breathe a sigh of relief.

Crashing through a thicket of trees, I wrapped my body around her best I could to shield her from the branches. Once through, I spotted Cris, who I’m assuming was waiting on standby out of the fray, just in case she’d been hurt.

“Bring her here,” Cris ordered.

Usually, I’d be giving him shit about ordering a superior officer around, but I didn’t even have the chance before he ripped Dani out of my arms. I watched as he hugged her to him so tightly she squirmed a little.

“Cris…can’t….breathe,” she croaked out.

He released his hold instantly to pull her away from him so he could scan a critical eye over her body. I couldn’t see anything wrong, but I wasn’t the medic, now was I?

“Are you hurt? We saw the other soldiers dead, and it made me so scared something happened to you,” Cris blurted as he ran his hands down her arms then her legs.

She flinched and giggled when he got to her ribs. “Cris, I’m fine, I promise. No injuries at all, unless you count sore muscles.”

I was about to rescue her from the Beta, except I caught the movement out of the corner of my eye, giving me a chance to brace myself before Lucian came barreling into me. A fist slammed into my face pissing me the fuck off. With a growl, I shoved him off me and got my feet, only to leap at him and slam him to the dirt. We wrestled, landing blows wherever we could land them. My fist connected with his shoulder which caused my hand to smart at the impact on bone. Swinging my elbow up, I clipped him in the jaw just as he wedged a knee between us and shoved me off him.

Rolling to myself into a ready stance, I found Sorin was already in the thick of it. He had the man in a secure wrestling hold, locking his arms and legs while applying large amounts of force to his neck. “Calm the fuck down so I don’t need to beat your ass and put Dani through that pain.”

Sorin’s words had Lucian halting instantly. “What?”

“Do you know anything about what you’ve done?” Cris snarled. That shocked the shit out of me. “How could you choose to force something on her like that without even understanding what the hell you were doing?”

Anger, defiance, and hurt warred on Lucian’s face at the accusations Cris was throwing his way. Sorin flipped the Northern Alpha over, face in the dirt, and used the cuffs to secure his hands. When he was contained, Toma helped Sorin sit the man up before removing all his weapons. The number they found on him was fucking impressive. There was more than I could manage to hide, making me curious as to how he did it. If he managed to live through this conversation, then I’d ask. Until then I just planned to make sure he didn’t cause more fucking trouble before we could get a handle on what was going on.