Chapter 39: Thane

Chapter

Thirty-Nine

THANE

I smell a fucking snake.

I'm still in a haze and partially blacked out from the intensity of what just happened, my knot pulsing inside Ivy as aftershocks roll through me. Her body is limp between Wraith and me, her chest heaving as she tries to catch her breath. The scent of our combined release should drown everything else out.

But not when I sense danger to Ivy.

Danger that's lurking in the hall.

Danger that's apparently turned on, judging from the distinct notes of metallic and smoky alpha musk in the air that definitely don't belong to Wraith or me.

A low growl rumbles in my chest before I can stop it. Wraith, who's been lavishing worship on Ivy with his tongue like a wolf, tenses at the sound of my growl and glances up at me. His nostrils flare as he tries to catch the scent in the air, but with Ivy's slick still glistening on his scarred jaws and nose, I doubt he can scent much of anything other than honey.

Ivy stiffens between us as we move, her inner walls clenching around our still-swollen knots. A small gasping whimper escapes her lips as the movement jostles us inside her. It makes my cock even harder, which is the last fucking thing I need right now.

"What?" she asks breathlessly, still panting even as she tilts her head back and sniffs, too. Her ocean eyes harden into flint when she catches the same scent I've caught. "You've got to be fucking kidding me."

"Come out," I grit through my teeth.

Valek slinks into the room, his silver eyes gleaming like crescent moons in the low light. Even without his usual tactical gear, he manages to look dangerous. Menacing. His lips curve into that infuriating smirk as he takes in the scene before him.

And he is dangerous.

Especially to Ivy.

Should've put him down when I had the chance. Ivy would've hated me for it, but right now, as he slips in like a shadow with my brother and I both unable to move a muscle without hurting our omega, I'm kicking myself for not doing it anyway.

How could I be so stupid?

And of course I don't have my gun on me. It's on the floor with my clothes and belt, tucked inside the holster in my suit jacket. If I reach for it, he'll reach it first. Not to mention what it would do to Ivy.

All I can do is watch and wait.

"Now, now," he purrs, holding up his hands in a placating gesture. "No need for all this tension. I'm not here to take advantage of your... precarious situation. Trust me, I wouldn't want to come between brothers."

Ivy rolls her eyes.

Wraith snarls, low and dangerous.

But the reminder makes my cock twitch.

What the fuck is wrong with me?

"You have five seconds to explain," I growl hoarsely, instinctively tightening my grip on Ivy's hips. She whimpers softly again at the movement, her inner walls fluttering around my still-swollen knot.

"I do, do I?" Valek's wolfish grin widens. "I couldn't resist following. I was bored of listening to the one-man peanut gallery trying to get a rise out of those of us with more than two brain cells. So I went for a walk, and I caught a scent that was rather alluring." His nostrils flare as he inhales deeply. "Still is."

Ivy stiffens between us, her scent sharpening. "Did you watch us?" she demands, irritation clear in her tone. I think she should be furious, not just irritated, but then again, I don't understand why she tolerates Valek in the first place.

I really don't get it.

At all.

"It's the closest I'm ever going to get to you again, isn't it?" Valek replies dryly, a clear edge to his sardonic tone I've never heard before.

Is that fucking regret?

Valek isn't capable of that.

I really don't like when he's unpredictable.

Wraith snarls as if to confirm that, his sharp teeth glinting in the light from the lantern on the endtable. He's so tense, I'm afraid he's going to snap.

But he holds back.

He knows we're both trapped.

Locked inside our omega, unable to move without hurting her.

We're completely at Valek's mercy.

And I fucking hate it.

"You sick fuck," I spit, wishing I could reach him. If he just creeps a little closer, he might be within arm's reach. Might be able to grab his wrist. "When I get my hands on you?—"

"You'll what?" Valek interrupts. "Tear me apart? Rip me to shreds? I've heard it all before, Thane. Your threats are getting rather... repetitive. And you've always been uptight. That isn't anything new, either."

I open my mouth to retort, but Ivy beats me to it.

"You have ten minutes," she says, her voice eerily calm.

Valek's eyebrows shoot up. "Ten minutes for what, little omega?"

"To get a head start," she replies. "Because when their knots go down, I'm sending them after you."

Fucking finally.

Valek's smirk falters for just a moment before sliding back into place. "Is that so?" he drawls, but I can see the flicker of uncertainty in his eyes. "And what makes you think I won't simply disappear? You know how good I am at that."

"Because you won't," Ivy says with chilling certainty. "Because I'd still be here, with this pack, and your alpha instincts won't let you leave me. And as much as you hate being a slave to your instincts, of all the Ghosts, you're the one who runs on instinct the most."

I stare at her as her words send a confusing jolt of heat straight to my cock, and she squirms a little as my knot pulses inside her.

It's the cold fury in her voice.

This is why she's perfect for us.

Why she's our match in every way.

She may be an omega, but she's just as fierce, just as dangerous as any alpha. And if she wants to set us on Valek like the attack dogs we are, I'll enjoy every minute of the chase. The chase that will finally end in me beating the living shit out of him until he's nothing more than a stain on the floor.

Or it'll end with my hands wrapped around his neck.

He might like that less.

Valek's eyes widen slightly, a flicker of genuine concern crossing his features before his usual mask of nonchalance slides back into place. "Now, now, little omega. There's no need for violence. I was merely appreciating the artistry of your lovemaking."

"Artistry?" I snarl. "Is that what you call being a voyeuristic creep?"

Judging from the way the side of Valek's nose crinkles slightly, he took offense to that. "I'm not being sarcastic right now. Although I wouldn't say there's anything artistic about these two beasts. They're merely the pillars holding up the centerpiece. You ."

I grit my teeth until they ache. His words grate on my nerves, stoking the fire of rage already burning in my chest. The frustration of being trapped while he watches us like caged animals is maddening.

It's always been easy to picture him as a serial killer, but never as easy as it is right now. I fucking hate that all I can do is sit here and hope he was sincere for once when he said he wasn't planning on taking advantage of this. He's killed plenty of times before.

What's two more alphas?

At least I don't think he'd hurt Ivy.

But that's the thing.

I don't think he would.

"You're in your head again," Valek says to me in a singsong.

Yeah. I'm gonna choke this motherfucker to death.

He'll wish it were a noose instead.

"How many minutes left?" I growl to Ivy.

"Eight," she says flatly. She shifts between Wraith and me, wincing as she clenches around our knots again. A soft gasp escapes her lips, but her eyes are still hard as steel as she glares at Valek. "You're choosing an interesting way to spend those minutes too," she mutters, still wincing. "Standing there running your mouth instead of getting a head start."

To my shock and growing irritation, Valek's lips curve into a sly smile. Without warning, he sinks to the floor, crossing his legs and settling in like he's preparing for a goddamn picnic.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?" I snarl, instinctively tightening my grip on Ivy's hips. She whimpers softly as I accidentally push her harder down onto my knot, the sound sending a jolt of heat through me despite the situation.

Valek's grin widens. "Just enjoying my last eight minutes on earth," he says casually, as if discussing the weather. "Might as well make them count, yes?"

Wraith lets out a low, frustrated growl that vibrates through all three of us. I feel it in my bones, in my still-swollen knot. Valek's eyes darken at the sound, and I smell the spike in his arousal, his metallic, stony scent sharpening.

The bastard is getting off on this.

"If you manage not to touch yourself," Ivy says suddenly, her voice low and dangerous, " maybe I'll have mercy on you."

I stare at her. "You can't be serious."

Valek's eyebrows shoot up. "Is that a challenge, little omega?"

"It's a promise," she replies coldly. "And your only chance of walking out of here in one piece." She glances at me with a knowing smirk. "Don't worry. He can't help himself."

I want to believe her, but I don't miss the heat in her gaze.

Is this just her way of testing him in the most fucked up way possible? They've always had a weird relationship. It's predator and prey, just not in the way I expected.

The worst part is, if he does manage to hold off, there's nothing I can do to him. Not without betraying Ivy. I thought I finally had a chance to put things right and put this fucker in the ground, but now, I'm starting to realize there's a chance he's going to get off the hook for all the bullshit he's put us through.

The bullshit he's put Ivy through, primarily.

Guess that means he's hers to forgive.

Fuck , I hate this.

"Very well," Valek says casually. "I accept your terms."

Before I can process what's happening, Ivy starts to move. She grinds down on us, her body undulating between Wraith and me in a slow, sensual rhythm. A strangled groan escapes me before I can stop it.

"Ivy," I grit out, torn between pleasure and the very real threat still sitting just a few feet away. "What are you doing?"

She turns her head, meeting my gaze over her shoulder. The fire in her eyes takes my breath away. "Teaching him a lesson," she whispers, her breath hot against my ear. "And enjoying my alphas."

Her words send a fresh surge of heat through me. I catch Wraith's eye over her shoulder, seeing my own mix of arousal and confusion mirrored in his intense blue gaze.

Ivy rolls her hips again, and this time, I can't hold back the low growl that rumbles through my chest. Her inner walls flutter around my knot, squeezing in a maddening rhythm. I'm still painfully sensitive, and the renewed stimulation is almost too much to bear.

" Fuck ," I hiss, my hands tightening on her hips. I should stop this. Should put an end to whatever game she's playing with Valek. But my body betrays me, responding to her every movement with embarrassing eagerness.

Wraith lets out his strangled version of a purring growl, his massive frame trembling with the effort of holding still. I watch as Ivy reaches back, tangling her fingers in his dark hair and pulling him close. She nuzzles into his scarred jaw, her lips brushing against his sharp teeth in a way that makes my heart race.

Especially when I catch sight of the blood beading on them.

"It's okay," she murmurs to him. "Let go. Show him what he can't have."

With another guttural roar, he surges forward, burying his face in the crook of Ivy's neck. I can't see exactly what he's doing, but judging from the way Ivy's back arches and the breathless cry that escapes her lips, it must be something incredible.

I'm torn between watching them and keeping an eye on Valek. The silver-haired alpha hasn't moved from his spot on the floor, but his breathing has grown ragged. His pupils are blown wide, leaving only a thin ring of silver around the edges. His hands are clenched at his sides, knuckles white with the effort of not touching himself.

Good. Let him suffer.

Ivy's movements grow more insistent, her body writhing between us in a sinuous dance that threatens to unravel what's left of my self-control. I feel my knot pulsing, caught in the vice-like grip of her body.

That's the last thing I need.

I need it to go down, not swell up again.

"That's it," she pants, her voice breathy and filled with need. "Fill me up. Mark me from the inside out."

Her words hit me like a physical blow.

We've never talked about marking her before.

It's occurred to me, obviously. Countless times. Constantly. But I didn't know she still wanted us after her heat until so recently, we haven't had a chance to bring it up. But now, with her caught between us, begging for it...

The temptation is almost overwhelming.

The timing is off. If there's even a fraction of a chance she actually means it when she says that magic word, we need to do it as a pack. But that doesn't stop my alpha instincts from thrashing at the chains to take her literally right here, right now. To take what's mine and fuck anyone else.

It goes against my better nature, but…

Fuck, I want to.

I lean in, nuzzling the spot where her neck meets her shoulder. Her scent is intoxicating, a heady mix of honeysuckle and arousal that makes my mouth water. My canines ache with the need to sink into her soft flesh, to claim her as ours once and for all.

As mine.

Her wild honeysuckle scent fills my head, drowning out everything else. Even the smoky, metallic notes of Valek's arousal burning my nose can't overpower the intoxicating blend of honeysuckle and sex that is pure Ivy.

"Four," she purrs, her voice low and sultry.

It takes me a moment to realize what she means.

Four minutes left.

My eyes flick to the silver-haired alpha, still seated on the floor. His chest heaves with each ragged breath, sweat beading on his forehead and dampening his bone-white hair. His cock strains so hard against the fabric of his white slacks, it has to hurt. He's shaking with the effort of not touching himself.

Realization dawns on me. This isn't just about punishing Valek for his voyeurism. Ivy is testing him. Pushing him to his limits to see if he can actually overcome his basest instincts.

All for the chance she might show him mercy.

It's fucking brilliant.

Another low growl rumbles through my chest at the thought. Ivy responds by grinding down harder on my knot. Gritting my teeth, I snarl so I don't snap.

Holy fuck, this is intense.

"You like that?" Ivy whispers, her breath hot against my ear.

"Yes," I growl, beyond caring how fucked this is.

Ivy rewards me with another roll of her hips, and I can't help the groan that escapes me. Over her shoulder, I catch a glimpse of Wraith lavishing more attention on her throat, the sharp points of his teeth nicking and grazing her skin without actually breaking the surface.

He's so close to marking her.

So, so close.

A fraction of additional pressure and he'd sink those razor-sharp teeth into her flesh like he's biting into a peach. It's incredible how much control he has. How much control he's learned to have.

And I guess that's what's happening to Valek.

Ivy is training him.

Wraith's massive hands tighten on Ivy's waist as he thrusts up into her, harder than before, making her gasp. The movement jostles all three of us, sending fresh waves of agonizing ecstasy coursing through my body. I'm oversensitive, my nerves raw and exposed, my knot aching from where Ivy's tight heat keeps gripping and milking it, but I can't bring myself to stop.

"Oh fuck," Ivy moans, her head falling back against my shoulder. "Just like that. Both of you. Harder."

Who am I to deny her?

I snap my hips up, driving deeper into her clenching heat. Wraith mirrors my movements, and soon we find a punishing rhythm. The obscene sound of flesh slapping against flesh fills the room, punctuated by Ivy's breathless cries and our own guttural growls.

"Three," she pants.

Through it all, I keep my eyes locked on Valek. I don't trust him, not for a second. Not just to not sneak in a way to get off, but to not attack us. If he really thinks he's going to die, that's when he'd do it, too.

Because Valek will stop at nothing to save his own ass.

He's proven it time and time again.

It's the only fucking thing that's predictable about him.

And I'm not taking my eyes off him even if there's fuck all I can do if he tries to pull off something stupid.

His silver gaze is focused in Ivy's direction, but it's glassy, as if he's looking at something far beyond this room. But the rapid rise and fall of his chest and the visible tremors wracking his body betray just how affected he is by the display before him.

"Look at him," I growl in Ivy's ear, loud enough for Valek to hear. "Look how badly he wants to touch himself. To join us."

Ivy's laugh is dark and breathy. "But he won't. Will you, Valek?" When he doesn't respond, she raises her voice. "I asked you a question."

Valek's eyes snap back into focus, meeting Ivy's heated gaze.

"Two minutes," she warns him huskily.

"No," he grits out, his voice strained almost beyond recognition. "I won't."

"Good boy," Ivy purrs, praising him for once.

I feel her clench around me at the words.

Fuck. Is she getting off on this twisted power play?

Of course she is.

And if I'm being honest with myself, so am I.

I've spent so long trying to be the voice of reason. The one who keeps us all in line. But right now, with Ivy caught between Wraith and me, her body trembling on the edge of another orgasm... I don't want to be reasonable.

I want to let the alpha take control.

To lose myself in the primal need to claim, to dominate.

To punish.

My hands tighten on Ivy's hips hard enough to bruise as I drive into her with renewed force. She cries out, her nails raking down my arms and leaving stinging trails in their wake. The pain only spurs me on, stoking the fire burning in my veins.

"That's it," I growl, nipping at her throat. Not hard enough to break the skin—I won't mark her, not without explicit permission—but enough to make her gasp. "Show him what he's missing. Show him what he fucked up."

Ivy's body goes taut between us, trembling on the edge of release. "Please," she whimpers. "I'm so close. Make me come. Make me scream."

Wraith lets out a sound that's more beast than human, his hips snapping up with bruising force. I match his rhythm, and soon we're fucking into Ivy with abandon. The coil of pleasure in my gut winds tighter with each thrust, threatening to snap at any moment.

But I won't let go.

Not yet.

Not until Ivy falls apart around us.

"One minute," she chokes out with a strangled whimper.

My hand snakes between us, between her legs, fingers finding her clit with practiced ease. I rub tight circles against the swollen bud, drinking in the desperate sounds that fall from her lips.

"Come on, little one," I urge, my voice rough with exertion and need. "Come for us. Show Valek how good we make you feel."

As if my words were command, Ivy's final orgasm crashes over her like a tidal wave. Her back arches, head thrown back as a feral scream tears from her throat. Her inner walls clamp down on us like a vice, the rhythmic pulsing of her climax milking our cocks.

It's too much.

The pleasure crests, white-hot and all-consuming. With a bellow, I bury myself as deep as I can inside her, my release flooding her in long, hot pulses. Distantly, I hear Wraith's answering roar as he follows us over the edge.

For a long moment, the only sound in the room is our ragged breathing. Ivy slumps between us, boneless and sated. I nuzzle into her neck, inhaling the intoxicating scent of our combined release.

Then, barely above a whisper, her voice.

"Time's up."

My head snaps up, eyes locking on Valek. I didn't look away for long, but I can tell immediately he didn't break the rules. He's a mess, skin flushed and covered in a sheen of sweat. His chest heaves with each labored breath, but I can tell from the way his fingertips are digging into the stone floor, his knuckles white, he never once strayed to touch himself.

He looks like he's about to die.

Fuck. He actually did it.

I'm not sure if I'm impressed or disappointed.

Ivy looks up at me, then back at Wraith, her eyes hazy as she pants from what we just put her through. When she turns her gaze to Valek, I hate that her lips curve in a small smile.

"Well," she says, her voice hoarse from screaming. "Guess you earned that mercy after all."

Valek's laugh is broken and ragged. "How generous of you, little omega," he chokes out, sounding like he just swallowed a handful of shattered glass and gravel.

I tense, waiting for the punchline.

For Valek to reveal that this was all part of some elaborate scheme and whip out his favorite knife.

But he just sits there, chest heaving, utterly wrecked.

"What now?" I ask, not quite able to keep the growl from my voice.

"You let him go," Ivy says simply, nestling further into our embrace as Wraith and I instinctively close in around her, his growling broken purrs vibrating through her back. "He earned it. Besides, it's not like you're going to be able to catch him anyway. Not when your knots just swelled up again."

I can't believe what I'm hearing.

She's giving him another chance.

She's not going to let us throttle him.

Not just that…

She trapped us.

I shift my weight on the cot a little, but my cock is solidly locked inside Ivy. The same thought crosses Wraith's mind, too, judging from how he's doing the same thing and glancing suspiciously at me, a hint of amusement in his blue eyes.

We're just as stuck as we were before.

Part of me wants to argue. To remind her of all the ways Valek has betrayed us. Betrayed her . But I bite my tongue.

This is Ivy's decision to make.

And if I'm being honest with myself, a small part of me is relieved. I tell myself it's just because we're stronger with Valek than without him. That he's proven he's an asset to the pack even if he's a huge fucking liability, too.

And I'll never admit what I know deep down is the truth.

That there's a sliver of me that still gives a shit about him.

"You heard her," I say, fixing Valek with a hard stare. "You get to stay. For now. But if you so much as look at her wrong?—"

"Yes, yes," Valek interrupts, waving a hand dismissively. Some of his usual arrogance is creeping back into his tone, but I can still see the way his hand shakes. "You'll tear me limb from limb. I'm well aware of the stakes, Thane."

I open my mouth to retort, but Ivy speaks first.

"You can go," she says to him. "But you're not allowed to get relief yet. And trust me, I'll find out."

She gives him a grin that makes him stare at her like she just said the most incredible thing that has ever reached his damn ears. Fucking freak.

"Yet?" he clarifies in a hoarse voice.

"We'll see," she says simply.

"Get out of here before I change my mind," I growl.

Wraith growls, too.

To Valek's credit, he doesn't need to be told twice.