Chapter 9

Chapter

Nine

ORION

M y head was buzzing as I stepped under the stream of tepid water, a little too full from all the shit Nadya forced me to learn the night before. It was all necessary, but I was starting to feel a little terrified that the moment I got into the office, I was going to forget everything.

She'd written me a couple of handy cheat sheets to navigate through the database, but she could only fit so much onto it. I'd have exactly three hours to download what I needed, to print out the hard copy of Zane's location, and then to get the hell out and on the road.

"And what happens if someone realizes I'm digging around in the Wolf files?" I asked her before heading off to bed the night before.

She shrugged. "I have a contingency plan. It blows my cover, but I'm prepared for that. I don't think I'm going to be here much longer anyway."

It sounded a little too ominous for my tastes. I liked her, and I wanted her to survive, but I couldn't protect her and save Zane at the same time. Still, she didn't seem like she needed a rescue. She just needed to be trusted, and I could do that.

I went to bed and slept like absolute shit, but the morning shower helped, and so did the smell of coffee brewing when I wandered into the kitchen.

Nadya was there dressed in a sharp pantsuit, flats, and a light pink hijab that was a little tighter around her forehead than it had been the night before. She looked every bit the corporate director they wanted her to be, and she could have easily passed for human had it not been for the orange flash in her eyes.

"Have you been awake long?" I asked as I took a mug off the counter and filled it.

"I didn't really sleep. I shifted and went for a run around four." Now that she said it, I could see the dark circles hiding beneath a thin layer of makeup, but an untrained human eye wouldn't notice. "I've called in two of my contacts to give us a hand. I don't think this is going to go forward without a hitch."

I knew what she meant. There was more than just anxiety in my gut. There was something restless and ready for a fight, which was warring with my Omega instincts. "We should get this done as quickly as we can, then."

"I've prepped the drive for you. All you have to do is plug it in and send the downloads to it. There will be a pop-up so you won't have to go looking for it." She walked around me to the little table and picked up a slender square of plastic.

"And they're seriously not going to be immediately alerted to this?"

"Not when the network goes down. It'll take IT about thirty minutes to get everything back online, which should be just enough time to erase your footprints. There might be an alert on your station though, since it'll be one of two that won't go down. That's why you need to get the hell out before that happens."

Thirty minutes to be long-gone. Maybe more if her diversion worked, but I didn't want it to come to that.

"I'll do my best." I finished my coffee, then set the mug down and pushed away from the counter. "I'm going to take the serum. After that, we can take off."

She nodded, looking grim, and the same mood settled in my gut as I made my way to the bathroom and prepared the injection.

The pain was still intense, but this time, I was able to breathe through it. And when I felt it hit me, there was something like relief, which terrified me to my core. I didn't want my body to crave this. I wanted it to fight for the way it was. But I didn't have time for that.

I could hear Nadya off in the distance, loading the car, and I quickly gathered my things and followed her out front. She had my bags with her, and I opened up the back so she could throw them into the trunk of my car, then I tucked the case under the passenger seat and leaned against the door to look at her.

"Now or never?"

She nodded, saying nothing as she opened her car door and climbed behind the wheel. I followed after, taking the dirt road slowly to the main road, then we picked up speed as we headed into the city. I hadn't spent much time in the capital before. Places like DC were always off limits to Wolves, even before we were officially segregated. Of course, it hadn't been very appealing. The idea of mingling with the lawmakers that saw us as animals not worthy of freedom and pace made me want to tear their throats out.

And even now, I was only crossing this border because I wanted to save my people.

My nerves ratcheted up as her car slowed, and then she took a turn into a parking garage that headed under a large building with a bright red ComTech on the side. We were there. It was time. The guard at the gate wasn't paying very close attention as I followed Nadya's lead and swiped my badge, and I let out a breath of relief when the arm lifted, and I was able to drive through.

So far so good. No security racing after me with tranq-guns and cuffs.

We parked our cars at the far end, near the exit, and I understood her strategy. "The badge will get you out, and you should have time before they lock it down," she told me as we headed for the elevator.

I didn't want to have to force my way out of anything, but although this particular situation was new to me, escape wasn't. I was alive because I could think quick on my feet.

I walked a little bit behind Nadya, and it became obvious that while she was a respected employee of ComTech, the humans didn't trust her. There was the scent of fear and rapid heartbeats in the air, like they were waiting for her to drop fang and lunge.

And I had no doubt it was worse with me on her heel. A new Wolf in their midst.

"They don't want to seem like they're bigots," she murmured to me as we waited for the elevator doors to open. None of the humans would stand within their earshot of us, and I almost laughed because it took nothing at all for us to eavesdrop on them . "They smile to my face and sometimes have lunch with me in the break room. But I'm several different flavors of threat." She tugged a little on her hijab, and I nodded in understanding.

"How did you get the job?" I asked.

Her smile widened as we stepped into the elevators. "An old family friend."

I had a feeling there was more to the story, but the fact that she didn't elaborate told me it was too dangerous to discuss here. I didn't press for more, and eventually, the doors opened to the sixth floor. We were met with floor to ceiling windows, high above the street, and it was beautiful out there. It was green and lush and rich with humidity. But it was just a mask, hiding the evil that lurked within the borders of this city.

"You're going to be working in here." Her voice interrupted my thoughts. "This used to be the accounting office, but the entire department was laid off and outsourced to some over-seas center," she said, leaning on the door. "It'll give you plenty of privacy as you work on your training."

I licked my lips, then nodded at her. "And you?"

"Down the hall. You can buzz my phone if you need anything."

That was code for if I needed her to start the diversion. "Will do. Uh…see you for lunch, maybe?"

She smiled at me. "Maybe." Turning on her heel, she walked down to her office and disappeared behind the door, and I took that as the sign to begin.

I would have one half hour, once I got started. Nadya had given me a couple of practice tasks to test my skill before I began the download, in case I needed to postpone another day. They were mindless busy work that needed to get done—reports to be run, data to be scraped from the system that they needed in HR. It would get my workstation online and functioning before everything went down.

And I would know when that happened the moment Nadya rang my desk once, hung up, then once more. I would set a timer for three minutes, and then I would begin.

The chair was well used, comfortable when I sat, and for a moment, I let myself wonder what life would be like to exist this way. To have an office job and someone to come home to. To stress about simple things like paying bills, and eating healthy, and finding time for self-care so I didn't burn out.

But that had never been on the table for me. For as long as I could remember, I knew I existed to fight. Kor used to talk about going to space when we were kids. I would listen and smile because his imagination was vast and beautiful. But they were only fairy stories—and I had never believed in shit like that.

Just like I had never believed in love.

Even now, even if we toppled this whole thing to the ground, there was no peace to be had. We would be fighting those who wanted to take our power for as long as the world turned. It seemed like a losing battle, but it wasn't one I could ever stop fighting.

Rolling up to the desk, I took out Nadya's notes and began to follow the steps. The workstation was almost identical to the one in the safehouse, so it was easy enough to log into the program and get started. Her tasks for me were meant to mirror the search for the labs, except I wouldn't have to hack in and dig for them.

It went off without a hitch, until an hour in when a face appeared in the doorway. He was human—I could smell it on him before I looked up. He was sour, burnt coffee and cheap cologne, and he looked like a man who drank himself to sleep every night.

His pale skin was almost yellow, and his heart was beating harder than it should be as he lounged in the doorway. "Another one?"

I stared at him. "I'm sorry?"

"They hired another one of you? This Bridge Hire bullshit…"

I fought the urge to bare my teeth. I knew he was trying to bait me in the way humans often did with Wolves in public. They tried to push us into shifting, into showing teeth and claws so they could scream about how we really were animals. And I wasn't going to rise to it.

I offered him a bland smile. "My name is Drake Carson. Today's my first day."

"Doubt you'll be here long enough for me to remember," he said. He meant it like a threat—especially with the way he winked, pat the door, and then wandered off.

He seemed like an absolute nobody, but I wondered if he was a man with power. Or, more likely, he was just the product of generations of misinformation about Wolves leading the majority of humans who would never believe we deserved the right to exist as ourselves.

It didn't really matter, though. That human was nothing to me—he would be crushed if he got in my way, and if he was wise enough to stay out of it, I would happily forget ever speaking to him.

Glancing at the clock, I realized it was near lunch. Nadya had told me to come in at half past eleven, so I locked my computer and made my way down the hall to her office. I could hear voices just inside, so I hung back, but my heart jumped a few minutes later when the door opened, and another Wolf stared at me.

He was an Omega—as tall as I was, but far more slender. He stared at me with suspicion in his eyes, and I wasn't sure how much he could possibly know. He said nothing, however, walking down the hall with a hitch in his step, and I felt nerves creeping up my spine.

"Drake," Nadya said, and it took me a moment to remember my fake name.

Walking into her office, I shut the door behind me, then glanced out the window again. "Is he your contact?"

"No," she said, folding her hands under her chin. "He's a plant from Marion."

My heart sped up at the sound of our Prime Minister's name. "Does he know about me?"

"He knows we're both spies," she answered, like it meant nothing at all.

"And you're not worried?" I took a seat in the chair across from her desk and stared, disbelieving at her soft grin.

"There's nothing to worry about. We're aware of each other. He thinks he's able to stop me from sending any relevant information to the resistance, and I let him. There's no way he knows you're a Beta."

I wanted to believe that, but I had been Kor's second in command for years. It was entirely possible he knew who I was, even if I didn't know him . "I don't think I should delay much longer."

She raised a brow at me, but eventually she sat back and spread her hands. "If you feel ready, then go for it. Remember, we have one shot at this, and you have enough serum to work on the database for a couple of days if you want to take your time."

Taking my time meant condemning Zane to more torture. And taking my time meant days to second guess myself. It needed to happen now. "I'm ready."

Nadya let out a small sigh, then she nodded. "Alright. It'll take me a little while to get everything ready. Not more than an hour, but don't panic if you don't get the call right away."

"I won't," I told her. "I understand. One shot."

She held my gaze. "I believe in you."

Biting my lip, I wanted to say something to show her my gratitude, but I wasn't sure I had the words. After a beat, she broke eye-contact and waved at the door, and I took it for the dismissal it was. The walk back to my little office felt endless, but soon enough, I was behind a closed door, staring at the phone, waiting.