Unified Omegas (Alpha Elite Series Book 7)

by V T Bonds

  As Alpha One flicks a perfectly manicured finger towards Seeck, four of the Alphas step forward.

  Reading Seeck’s calculations, I release his belt and flatten my back to the wall, running on adrenaline and instincts.

  Terror muddles my thoughts as four of the Alphas attack as one, each with a feral gleam in their eyes.

  My lifemate meets them head on, using their numbers against each other—skulls crack together and opponent’s knives bury in other’s flesh.

  As blood pools on the floor, the crimson tide seems to fill my vision. Every horrible situation my family has endured floods my mind.

  An invisible attack arrows toward my lifemate from the yellow-eyed brunette standing next to Alpha One.

  Throwing my hatred into my instincts, I wrap a cocoon around myself and my Alpha.

  The Omega’s yellow eyes widen in surprise as her attack rebounds, striking her frontal lobe with an almost audible pop.

  Alpha One looks down at her in disgust and murmurs a growly sentence to her.

  My teeth grind as I feel the weight of his command settling onto her shoulders.

  I’ve never seen an Alpha use his own will to overpower someone else’s before, since my stubborn jackass protects me from everyone, but a sudden realization snaps through me.

  What if he has tried to command me in such a way, but never could?

  A fierce surge of strength wells up from my depths.

  Where the power comes from, I can’t say, but it barrels over my common sense and travels beyond the shield I’ve erected.

  Ties snap as I wrench invisible hands apart, destroying one link after another.

  The Alpha closest to me falls to the ground mid attack, the shock of his severed bond ripping the feral look out of his eyes.

  As he props himself up with his elbow, the male near Seeck’s left shoulder crumbles as I release him from his prison. Blood sprays from his neck, Seeck’s savage slice as he falls opening him so completely his white spine glimmers before crimson springs forth.

  The other two Alphas attack as one, each one aiming for Seeck’s face as they dart forward.

  With an angry twist of my wrists, I snap another link, then hop to the other with wild delight, using the terror wafting from my sisters’ hearts as motivation.

  The last Alpha shifts his eyes to me, even as his hands close over my lifemate’s throat.

  I savage his link, ripping chunks free with my teeth before shredding the disgusting thing with nails as sharp as a blade.

  A moment of relief passes across his face before Seeck’s knife pierces his abdomen. With a jerk of his arm, my Alpha slices him open from pelvis to sternum before yanking his blade free.

  I want to scream in overwhelming hatred and horror, but wince as pain blasts through my skull.

  Seeck’s vibrant green irises meet mine as he senses my distress. I jab my finger toward the enemy rising on unsteady legs behind him, the look in his demented eyes warning of another attack.

  Another invisible blow tries to smash into my skull, but I turn toward it and flick it away with the fury roiling in my soul.

  Meeting yellow eyes, I add my own aggression to the ricocheting blow and direct it to her ribcage.

  Her smirk as she absorbs the pain makes rage flash through me.

  I reach out and slice the ugly link between her and the monstrosity standing next to her.

  With a jerk of her shoulders, she stumbles sideways and props herself on the wall.

  Alpha One’s bright blue eyes fill with shock as he stands alone. Without wasting a breath, he pulls a handgun from his pocket and fires.

  Her temple caves in while red mist and chunks of brain matter splatter up the wall.

  The floor shakes as Alpha One stands looking at her with indifference. The glaring overhead lights gleam in his blonde hair as he turns his face toward me.

  Cold, calculating eyes meet mine.

  My body moves of its own accord, grabbing Seeck’s shoulders mid-launch. He hears my silent plea and drops to the ground.

  Fiery pain flares through my scalp, but as we hit the ground, my shoulder takes my entire weight, causing worse pain.

  Blinding agony pierces into my joint, stealing my breath as it travels up my neck and down my spine.

  A dark void hovers over me, the pain making the blackness look tempting.

  My lifemate’s voice lures me away, causing déjà vu to flicker through my addled brain.

  A sun-filled alley. Pain. Confusion. Loss.

  Strong arms. Deep purr.

  The same dark void, beckoning me to sink into the sand.

  The same deep voice, halting my progress.

  Except this time is different.

  I want to stay. I don’t want to go.

  Breathing hurts.

  The urgency in his purr snaps me to alertness.

  Everything hurts.

  Blood covers half of my mask.

  “Hang on, my little omega. It’s just a graze, but the scalp bleeds a lot. Just lay still,” the other half of my soul says, sending apology through our link as he tortures me with the weight of his hand.

  Fuzziness hangs at the edge of my vision, but I focus on his worried green irises and lift my lips in a disjointed smile.

  “I’m okay.”

  “Don’t move, Nova. I’ll reset your shoulder as soon as this stops bleeding.”

  “Where’d he go?”

  “The exit.”

  “He got away?”

  “Yes. So did we. Be still.”

  “I am.”

  “No, you aren’t. You keep trying to push me away.”

  “N-no, I…”

  I am trying to push him away, but I don’t know why.

  The thick cloud of premonition pulsing between us grows as panic climbs up my throat.

  The tiniest sound begins, hidden by the blaring alarms.

  Vibrations shake the floor I’m lying on, making my shoulder flare in agony.

  Screams drift up from the bowels of the facility.

  Children cry.

  Women shriek.

  The sounds of our nightmares come to life as we stare at each other.

  “He’s released the experiments,” we say in unison, our hearts and mind interwoven.

  Chapter Seven

  Nova

  “We have to save them.”

  “No, Nova. We have to get back to the Sky-Flyer.”

  I raise my uninjured arm and settle my palm on his neck.

  “We cannot leave them.”

  “We can’t save them all.”

  With sinking hopes and rising despair, the truth of his words rings in my soul.

  “We have to try.”

  War rages within his eyes. After looking up and down the hall, he glances at his watch then returns his gaze to me with tight lips.

  “In eight minutes, we turn toward the exit, no matter where we are. Even if it’s right fucking here. Understand?”

  I want to scream and sob but feel the same urgency he does.

  I give a slight, painful nod.

  “Words, Nova.”

  “Okay.”

  He doesn’t move.

  Right, he’s putting pressure on my head.

  “I got shot?”

  His growl lights my veins with static and sends untimely desire through my midsection.

  “Hold still.”

  Gritting my teeth, I move my hand from his neck to my head.

  “I can do this. Fix my shoulder.”

  His snarl makes my exhausted thighs clench, causing agony to flare through my neck and spine.

  Letting my tears slide down my face, I clamp my teeth and silently beg him to end the torment spearing through my chest.

  With reluctance written all over his face, he lets go of my head and mashes my hand into place.

  He slides his knees above and below my injured shoulder, looking down at me with misery.

  “I’m sorry. I love you.”

  Bracing me in place
with his knees, he reaches behind his butt and wraps his long fingers around my elbow.

  I fight bile as he slowly adds tension, carefully feeling the socket with his other hand.

  Tears pour down my face, but through his silence, he begs me to trust and love him… and to scream.

  He pleads for me to release the horrible torment ripping through my senses. To let him carry my misery.

  He rotates my elbow.

  I scream, the pain worse than the fire in my skull.

  With a horrendous popping sensation, despite Seeck’s slow movements, my arm snaps back into place.

  Choking with relief, I loosen my fingers in my sticky hair but keep pressing down on my scalp.

  My lifemate crawls around as though we haven’t run a marathon and nearly died, pulling a tiny packet out of a compartment in his cargo pocket.

  With his other hand, he yanks a sterile package out of his opposite pocket. He tears them both open with his teeth.

  “Drop your hand.”

  His gruffness washes over me, and as I let my hand plop to the floor, I send shaky comfort into his soul.

  I whine as he squeezes ointment onto my scalp, the shock of icy hotness unsettling.

  “I’m here, Nova. You’re okay. You’re gonna be okay.”

  He pulls something out of the other packet, unfolding it before laying it flat on my head. He traces the edges a few times, and my ears ache as my mask amplifies my ragged breathing.

  An unsettling numbness seeps into my scalp.

  “Come on, love. Let’s see what other trouble we can get into.”

  I take his hand and let him slowly lift me to my feet.

  The world pulses for a moment before firming under my feet and returning to normal.

  My shoulder still feels weird, not necessarily pain, but weak and unsteady.

  Seeck pulls another packet out and tears it open, dropping the wrapper on the floor and wrapping long straps of gauze around my bicep, torso, and elbow.

  With my arm as stabilized as possible considering our location, I force my feet toward the nightmarish sounds.

  Seeck takes the lead, guiding my good hand to his belt so I stay close.

  Not even two turns later, we run into a gaggle of terrified women and children. Close behind them, enraged Alphas destroy everything they see, ripping lights out of the ceiling and throwing chunks of concrete around.

  As we watch, two turn against each other, punching and tearing flesh off each other until blood stains the walls. The Alphas nearest them roar in blood lust.

  The defenseless women and children shriek in abject horror as the frenzy behind them reaches a fever pitch.

  When the ones in front see Seeck, they let out terrified screams.

  I step out from behind him and cut through the mayhem with every ounce of my being.

  Without words, I redirect their attention.

  They will follow us.

  Safety.

  Seeck looks back at me with startled eyes.

  “Nova, stop. You’re draining yourself,” he yells over the din.

  “Seeck… protect… in back…”

  He wraps his fingers around my covered nape and snarls, tormented by the decision to part with me, but sensing my desperation to save these innocents. He wants to save them as well.

  He’s seen so much darkness in his life—he wants to make up for his wretched deeds.

  “Lead them. Go,” he taps my ass with a fleeting caress, refusing to say goodbye as we part.

  I motion for the group to follow me.

  A tiny woman with two toddlers clinging to her shoulders wobbles as she steps forward.

  I offer my good hand to her, willing to help however I can.

  Big, trusting eyes meet mine as she transfers the older one to my hip.

  Shocked she’d trust me with such a precious gift, I shuffle him to my front where he’ll be more sheltered. He tucks tiny fingers around the bindings over my chest.

  As I lead the group the way I came, I cross my good arm over the toddler’s back and tuck my hand under his leg, plastering him to me while I run.

  When I glance back, the women give Seeck a wide berth, keeping close together, most holding each other’s hands or arms.

  Trying not to worry over the danger I just put Seeck in, I train my focus on our destination, mapping the way to the exit in my head and calling out which direction to take before we get to each turn so the women following me can prepare.

  The tiny creature in my arms holds rigid, his fright holding his muscles locked.

  There’s nothing I can do except get him, and his mother and sibling, out of here alive.

  Between calling out directions and pushing through my body’s pain, an unconscious rumble eases from my chest, rattling out of tune because of my labored breathing.

  We turn into the last corridor.

  Expecting Alpha One to have destroyed or locked the exit, I count my blessings when I notice the metal door lays wide open.

  I stumble through and make an immediate left, skirting along the wall and aiming for the side hatch of the hangar.

  The industrial noises in the large space drown out the sounds of our passage.

  With a constant ear towards the rear, I realize it’s so loud I can’t hear the alarms or Alphas from the lower hallways anymore either.

  Using my good shoulder, I crash against the outer hatch, snapping the emergency bar and tumbling into the sand. Tucking and rolling to shield the little one, I land on my back and blink a few times.

  The baby’s mother stands over me as the first few women pour into the night.

  A blue-eyed Omega offers to take the child from me so I can stand.

  The mother hisses and blocks her outstretched arms, showing the fierce protectiveness resonating in my soul.

  But I need help.

  Two other women, Betas, accidentally fling sand on me and my charge as they stop near my shoulders. With a bit of fumbling, they scoop me up by my shoulder blades and hoist me onto my feet.

  Gasping through the agony spearing through my injured arm, I dart in the direction we need to go, wishing I had a hand to clean the sand off the baby.

  As we move further from the facility, our progress slows. The dunes prove too steep to climb, so I weave through the smaller hills as best I can.

  Surrounded by dry desert air and desperate women, both injured and carrying infants, I pray I don’t get lost.

  In a moment of panic when I crest a hill and don’t see what I expect, I send a jagged message to my lifemate, begging for help.

  He sends reassurance into my soul, and I sob as I force my exhausted feet forward.

  He’s alive. Unhurt. And I’m still headed in the right direction.

  Our feet kick up sand as we stumble down the slope, and when I reach the bottom, I fight the wave of exhaustion dragging at my legs.

  One more dune.

  Several ladies fall behind halfway up the hill, but if I stop, I won’t make it to the top.

  Blood pounds in my ears as dizziness spins my head, but the tiny form clinging to my chest sneezes, fortifying my will.

  I dart over the crest and slide down the other side, panting in relief as I spot the Sky-Flyer.

  At the bottom of the dune, I struggle to my feet and hobble to the door, aware we’ve lost a few women but certain Seeck will usher them here.

  I stare at the little console next to the hatch, unwilling to risk the toddler’s safety by letting go of him.

  His mother staggers to my side and hoists the tiny bundle in her arms onto her shoulder before holding a trembling arm out to me.

  One of the Betas from before steps up, making the Omega give a ragged growl, but instead of taking the baby from me, she supports the mother’s arm, helping us safely transfer the little boy back to his mom.

  With the weight no longer holding me down, my mind tries to float away, the void hovering on the outskirts of my dizziness.

  The Beta squeezes my hand, grounding
me.

  I punch the code into the panel and drag my weary body inside the place I call home.

  It seems dark and sterile with my family absent.

  Keeping the external lights off, I turn the dial for the floor lights just enough so those following me can see where they’re going.

  I brace my hand against the wall as I make my way to the infirmary while the sounds of shuffling feet and uneven breathing fade in and out of my ears.

  What feels like ages later, I turn on the lights to the infirmary and step inside, leaning against the wall as women and children file into the room.

  It felt so large the last time we brought wretched souls on board. This time, with the amount of people we’ve brought, the walls seem to close in.

  I lose count at twenty-two, my brain blanking as tremors start behind my sternum.

  The doorway darkens as Seeck fills it.

  He gives the room a quick perusal before meeting my eyes.

  “Fuck! Nova,” he grabs my waist and pins me to the wall.

  I want to reach up and rip our masks off so I can fill my lungs with his scent. I need his lips on mine. I yearn to melt into him.

  My muscles fall lax. Without his hands on me, I’d slide to the floor in a heap of useless bones and flesh.

  “Stay awake. Stay with me.”

  He turns and barks orders at someone while pulling the layers off his head.

  My fingers itch to run through his fiery locks, but nothing on my body responds.

  Weight pulls my eyelids down.

  “No! Open those gorgeous baby blues.” His growl seeps into my soul, our bond jerking with his determination.

  Air wafts across my face, the wet tracks on my cheeks cooling.

  Life barrels into my nostrils, his delicious scent sparking electricity through my veins.

  With effort, I lift my lids and watch as his handsome lips form words.

  He grimaces but presses something against my neck.

  Prickling warmth trickles from the spot, preceding a flood of electric energy.

  I pop to awareness, sucking in oxygen as I try to assimilate the last few minutes.

  “Fucking hell, don’t ever do that again,” my lifemate snarls at me before gathering me close.

  I wrap my arms around his middle and soak in his purr, too thankful to care about the throbbing in my head and the aches pulsing through my chest.