“I knew. I knew he wasn’t telling me the truth.”
Liam stepped back, to give them their privacy. As he did so, though, he knocked into a nurse. The noise caused Utopia to look around the curtain. When she saw him, her eyes widened. As he opened his mouth to apologize for disturbing them, Aiden stuck his head around the curtain. His face lit up with a smile as he grabbed his mother’s arm.
“That’s him! That’s the guy that saved me.”
Utopia gave him a fond smile, which faded into uncertainty as she looked back to Liam. “You can join us if you want,” she said.
“Thank you,” he murmured as he stepped in, then grinned at Aiden. The boy looked bright and energetic, which was a relief after how limp and lifeless he’d been when Liam had grabbed him out of the Alpha’s grasp. “Hey, bud. You look like you could fight a tiger.”
Aiden’s grin widened. “Yeah, I guess I could. Thank you for rescuing me. I was getting pretty scared.”
Liam ruffled his hair. “I bet you were brave, though. Brave like your mother here.” He glanced at Utopia questioningly, and she inclined her head slightly, telling him it was okay for him to continue. “She was very, very brave. She was so worried about you. She loves you so much. But she was brave, and because of her, we were able to get you away. Are you happy to be here?”
Aiden nodded. “The Alpha said that you’d cut my brain open and drink my blood, but as soon as I saw Mommy, I knew he was lying. He does that a lot.”
His voice was so confident that Liam was surprised. He remembered when he was an eight-year-old, he would have believed everything that an adult told him. Aiden was a unique kid, that was for sure. Or maybe it was that Utopia had been able to instill in him a healthy disbelief of what the Pack told him that he could be confident in his own truths at least.
He glanced at Utopia again and was shocked to see guilt on her face. When she saw him looking, she stood up quickly. Liam could guess what she was feeling, though.
She may have started her research to try to help her mate and continued it to protect her son. But now, with the Alpha running with it, there were people in danger. Hundreds, maybe even thousands if the Alpha got far enough. And it would destroy her if her research was used against innocent people, which it was going to be.
A sigh escaped him, earning him a quizzical look from Aiden.
He couldn’t do it. He couldn’t just sit back and wait. As stupid as it was, at least he was going to be holding to a pattern. And after all, it wasn’t until after he’d taken things into his own hands after Utopia’s escape that he’d actually had the chance to save Aiden.
“Are you okay?” Aiden asked him, brow furrowing.
“I’m just thinking,” Liam said with a smile. “There are a few things I have to do.”
“What sort of things? Are you going to come back? What’s your name, anyway?”
“Oh, how rude of me. I’m Liam. And I’ll be coming back. Just… your mom and I were somewhere, and she left a few things there.”
Utopia turned, her eyes wide.
Liam kept her gaze as he continued, lowering his voice. “I have to go back and get them before they get lost.”
He could see in her eyes that she knew exactly what he was talking about. Alarm grew over her face as she shook her head. “No. No, you don’t have to go get it. Someone else can. You need to stay here. We’re not sure what is happening with you, and Aiden was just saying that he wanted to know more about what you do. He was saying that maybe he wanted to be in the military when he grew up, so he could help people like you do. You should tell him more about—”
“Sorry,” Liam interrupted.
He hated that he felt so much better, seeing her worried for him. It made him feel guilty, too, for feeling good that she worried. Her worry gave him hope that she did care more than she was admitting. It almost made him want to stay here, to forget about going after her research. Maura was right, after all. He’d been pushing it far enough lately and was in danger of overextending himself again.
If the Alpha got his hands on him again…
But on the other hand, with everything that had been happening? Him going in again so soon was exactly what the Alpha wasn’t going to expect. He’d been surprised enough to see him when Liam grabbed Aiden, after all.
“I have to go,” Liam said as he stood. He grinned at Aiden again and refused to look at Utopia. If he looked at her, he’d have to kiss her and that would leave her with awkward questions to answer. “I’ll be back. I promise.”
Chapter Twenty-Six
What were they thinking, sending Liam back in so soon? Especially when they didn’t know what was going on with him! Utopia sat in stunned silence for longer than she cared to admit. Aiden tried to get her attention, but she was too far away, too lost in her own mind and shock. He gave up after a couple of minutes and turned his attention to the coloring book he’d been given.
It was only then that it occurred to Utopia how impossible this really was. The Academy would not be sending Liam back in. Which meant… he was going in by himself. Again.
Her heart rate spiked. Hadn’t he tempted fate enough? Didn’t he know how unlikely it was that he would get away again?
“Honey, I need to go find someone,” she said as she stood.
Her chest pulled, sending pain radiating down her spine, but she bit back a gasp. She couldn’t just call the doctors here; Aiden would want to know what it was about, and she couldn’t have him frightened again. He still looked worried as she walked to the door, trying not to wince and biting back whimpers.
When she got into the hallway, nobody was in sight. Closing the door behind her, she leaned against the wall and started toward the nurse’s station.
Halfway there, another spike of pain sent her crashing to the floor. She landed hard, unable to stop herself from screaming as agony lashed through her whole body. Her chest burned like it was on fire again. When she rolled onto her back, tears streaming down her cheeks, she saw blood oozing through her hospital gown.
Great. She’d split open her injury again.
She wet her lips and looked down the hallway. The nurse had to be gone from her station, otherwise she would have heard Utopia scream. How long would it be until they found her? Too late for Liam.
Just as she was pushing herself to her knees, there were footsteps. Utopia dug deep and grasped the railing above her, trying to pull herself to her feet. It was useless, and she went back down with another cry of pain.
“What the hell?” Liam’s voice came to her. He raced down the hallway and then she was in his arms. “What are you doing?”
Utopia was too relieved to have him back with her to answer at first. He picked her up gently, hissing when he saw her blood.
“You shouldn’t be wandering around,” he scolded as he carried her back toward the room she shared with Aiden. “You should be in bed. I don’t care how strong you are, there are some things you just can’t do.”
That stirred her memory past the pain. Utopia looped an arm around his neck, as though she could slow him down. “I could say the same about you.”
Liam paused and looked down at her, a pinch in his brow.
“You are going to go off after my research, aren’t you?”
Liam’s expression tightened. He didn’t answer, but when he reached to open the door to the room, Utopia jammed her foot against it. She glared at him even as sweat trickled down her temples. She needed something to take the edge off this so she could think clearly.
There was no time for that, though, not when Liam was going on a suicide mission! She stared him down, not about to let him win this argument just because she passed out from the pain. Her arm around his neck tightened and her leg started trembling, she was keeping it so stiff against the door.
“Utopia, you need to rest.”
“Don’t,” she whispered. “Don’t go.”
Liam sighed. He held her more securely in his arms and turned, walking back down the corridor
. Because he, too, didn’t want Aiden to hear? He took her to a small waiting lounge and settled her into a chair. He gazed in concern at the blood on her hospital gown. Utopia grabbed his hand and held it fast so he wouldn’t be able to leave her.
“I have to go,” he whispered. “That was the reason I went in the first place. As long as the Alpha has that research—”
“You can’t go. You can’t. There is something wrong with you, just like there is something wrong with me. What if you suddenly find yourself unable to shift?”
“Then I’ll at least be able to destroy that research before—"
“Before you die?” Utopia challenged. “Is that what you’re saying? You’re going to go and let yourself be killed? How are you supposed to come back then? You promised.”
Liam closed his eyes.
Utopia tightened her grip on his hand.
“This isn’t a negotiation. This is what I’m good at, getting in, doing what needs to be done, and getting out. That’s why they recruited me for the Blaze Ops. That’s why I’m here in the first place. I have to do this.”
“I’ll tell. I’ll tell everybody.”
“You’re in pain, bleeding. I’ll just say you misunderstood and that you need medical help.” Liam’s voice continued, low and unyielding. “I’ll say I found you wandering the halls crying because you thought I’d already left. Who do you think they’ll believe?”
Utopia ground her teeth together, fighting the darkness that threatened to encroach on her from either side. “Me. You’ve done this before.”
Liam sighed. As though she was the one being aggravating. His hands closed over hers, and he shook his head. She knew in that single shake nothing she said was going to dissuade him. If he had to, he’d wait until she passed out and then leave. Tears burned in her eyes as her lip trembled. Everything was spinning out of control, the pain making it hard to think.
“Please,” she begged. “Please, just stay with me.”
“I know you’re only saying that because you don’t want me to get hurt.”
“I don’t want you to get hurt. I don’t want you getting yourself killed over this. Just wait. Wait. There is nothing that can be done today that can’t be done tomorrow. And it’ll be better if you have your team with you. It’ll be better if we know what is going on with you. Please, Liam. Please.”
Liam put an arm around her. “I’ll stay as long as I need to make sure you’re okay.”
Utopia found her chance and seized upon it. “I’m not alright. I won’t be alright if you leave. I’ll scream and shout and tear open these scars again and again. Because I can’t be alright if you’re not with me, Liam. Don’t you see that?”
His brow furrowed and Utopia could have kicked herself. How could he see it? He’d laid his heart out before her and what had she done? Run away. He couldn’t see how much he meant to her because she hadn’t told him.
Now, as she gazed up at him, her heart pounded, and the fear coursed through her. What if she was wrong? What if this was just adrenaline and circumstance and because he was the only one who gave her any semblance of hope in her dark days?
But if she didn’t say it? If she never said it? That hurt worse than anything she could imagine.
“I love you,” she whispered. “I don’t know how. Adrian was my mate and I loved him. And I don’t know if I can love you the way I loved him—"
“You can’t.” Liam pulled her into his arms. The movement hurt, but not as much as it hurt not to be held by him. He kissed her, gently, softly. “You can’t love me the same way you loved him because I’m not him. I wouldn’t want you to try. It would be like saying that I’m replacing him, but I’m not. I want you to love me the way you love me.”
Utopia put her arms around him, but the smell of blood increased as another sharp pain went through her. She felt about ready to pass out, and Liam pulled her into his arms again. This time, he carried her to the nurse’s station.
It was empty, like Utopia had expected. Liam ground his teeth together and headed for the elevator.
“What are you doing?” she mumbled, putting her head on his shoulder.
“Getting you some medical attention. What were you thinking, running around when you needed oxygen just a little while ago?”
“What are you thinking, running back into the Alpha’s jaws when we just got away?”
Liam didn’t answer that question, not that Utopia had expected him too. Nothing seemed to make much sense and the pain was burning through her again. It was getting more difficult to breathe.
“This is why,” Liam whispered to her as the elevator started moving. “Not just because I know you could never forgive yourself if innocent people were hurt because of your research. The Alpha has done something more. He’s done something to you and me both. We need to know what it is. I can’t let you just…”
Utopia tried to tighten her grip on him. She had been healing. It was just that she started overexerting herself again. If he got hurt because of her, did he think she’d feel any less guilty?
“But I love you,” she whimpered. Her arms tightened despite the pain it caused. “You have to stay now.”
Liam stepped from the elevator as the doors opened. “Is that the only reason you said that?”
Before Utopia could protest, he was yelling. Racing down the corridor. Voices answered him, and the next thing she knew, she was on a gurney with Erica bending over her. She tried to reach out for Liam, tried to tell him to stay with her again. Erica was already cutting off her bandages, though, cursing at the damage she had done to herself.
“No, stop,” Utopia growled, trying to fight her off. Where was Liam? Was he already gone? “Liam!”
“I’m right here.” His hand slid into hers, and Utopia went limp. As long as he was still with her, everything was going to be fine. “I won’t leave you until Erica has patched you up again and you can be with Aiden.”
Aiden. He was going to be so worried! “Someone has to check on him.”
“I sent one of the nurses,” Erica reassured her. “You passed out for a bit there. Damn, you did a good job on yourself didn’t you? What were you doing wandering around the halls?”
Utopia turned her head, finding Liam’s eyes. They were pinched, worried. But in them was that same determination. Nothing she’d said had made a difference. She inhaled deeply, but her lungs seemed to seize up. She couldn’t breathe. Erica cursed and called for a nurse to come help intubate.
No!
She had to tell. She had to make sure Liam didn’t leave, that he didn’t go off on this mission. It was suicide! But she couldn’t talk. Couldn’t warn Erica. Everything started to go dark again, no matter how she fought it. There was too much pain, too much damage, to fight it. As a tube was shoved down her throat and a blast of oxygen hit her, Liam’s hand was pulled away from her.
No! Don’t leave me. Don’t leave me, please! I love you… Liam… come back to me…
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Liam opened the door to the roof of the hospital. Utopia was in an artificially induced coma. The healing that she had had seemed to have come undone once more, and Erica didn’t know why. The exertion of walking down the hallway shouldn’t have been enough to do that. There was something more happening with her. Something more going wrong.
Her begging him to stay might have been enough to stop him from going if his only reason was because of the guilt she’d face from her research. But this? This was entirely different. He had to know what the Alpha had done to her. He had to.
The pack of supplies he’d put together for the mission was still there where he had left it. Liam slowed as he saw it wasn’t the only thing there.
Eugene sat on a bench, a cigarette between his fingers as he glared at Liam. “Did you really think that you could get weapons and armor without someone finding out?”
“Are you here to stop me?”
Eugene sighed as he shook his head. “I should be. I should be marching your ass to th
e Colonel, even if you’re a Captain and I’m only a Major. I should have told them what I figured you were up to… not covering up for you.”
Liam frowned as Eugene dropped his cigarette and crushed it beneath his heel.
“You heard that right,” Eugene said as he stood and picked up a second pack. “I’m going with you. Told the Colonel that I was worried about you and so I was going to take you to my parents’ farm for a couple of hours to try to talk to you. He agreed, said that as long as we were back in time for your next blood tests, that was fine.”
“What are you doing?” Liam frowned at him. “And why?”
“I’m going to help you infiltrate the Pack again and get all that research that the Alpha doesn’t want us to have. I figure he let us have Utopia and Aiden. Figure he knows Utopia’s gonna die if we can’t find out what happened to her, but that the Academy would want to pull back, take a breather. I think that by giving us Utopia and Aiden, he knows we wouldn’t be eager to rush back in.”
Liam shuddered. It sounded all too reasonable. “And why are you deciding to help me instead of trying to work through the team?”
“Because that will take too long and, quite frankly, if I can’t get out of here, I’m going to end up killing someone.”
That didn’t sound at all like Eugene’s normal mild-mannered ways. Liam frowned, but he’d do much better with help, no matter what form that help came to him in. He nodded and grabbed his pack.
“Let’s get going, then.”
***
It made sense that the Alpha would keep Aiden in a different place than where he kept Utopia’s research. Liam knew enough about him to know that he would keep everything in two forms, paper and digital, at two separate locations. The digital files also would be completely isolated, so nobody could hack in from outside to steal the research.
It didn’t take him and Eugene long to figure out the best location for the digital files. The first compound where he’d met Utopia. Who would go back to that place, after all? When Eugene and Liam found a high ridge to spy from using their binoculars, they found it much more heavily guarded than the normal compounds were.
Dragon's Frenemy (Dragon Blaze Ops Book 2) Page 16