1. Isaac

1

ISAAC

Isaac Rivera didn’t know what to do.

He had grown accustomed to knowing what to do. His instinct had been whetted from years of mistakes and learning, challenges and hardships. Whether it be in the boardroom or with his pack, his gut was his north star to steer the people who relied on him true.

But right now he stood in front of his pack, sick with the knowledge that a series of his own actions — however well intentioned they may have been — had led their omega’s abusers back to her. His voice was even and measured but his heartbeat anything but as he recounted his phone conversation with Juno’s estranged brother Ben.

“Pack Zhao know, Isaac. They want her back.”

He watched the blood drain from her face as a gamut of devastating emotions ran through his packmates. All the people he loved caught in a riptide. Unable to draw breath, see the shoreline or find their footing.

Isaac Rivera didn’t know what to do.

Ollie made the first move towards Juno. He faltered when her back snapped straight and she stared coldly at Isaac.

“They filmed me, you know. During my heat.”

Head underwater, lungs burning with salt.

“It’s been hanging over my head for the last three and a half years. It’ll probably come out now that they know where I am.”

She stood up like an ousted queen destined for the executioner. Resigned to her doom and devoid of all fight and fire.

“I thought you should know in case you don’t want a scandal.”

The room burst into noise around him.

“A scandal? That’s what you think we’re worried about?”

“Juno, you are not going back to them. We won’t let them have you, you know that right?”

“Please don’t go. We-we…”

She continued walking away, deaf to her pack imploding all around her and Isaac watched her go. The others were too shell-shocked to move, reeling from the twin blows they’d been dealt. As prime, it was his duty to follow her. But to her nest? They didn’t have that kind of relationship, so how was he supposed to handle this?

“I’ll go.”

Everett was standing, resolve burning in his eyes. He mistook Isaac’s silence for disagreement and a wave of alpha dominance surged through the room, almost buckling Isaac’s knees.

“It has to be me.”

Before Isaac could even open his mouth to approve, Everett strode away deliberately without looking back.

“You did this.”

Julian had his head in his hands from the moment Isaac had begun talking. But not anymore. He was rising, a beta going head-to-head with his prime. Fuelled by righteous anger for his omega.

“You did this,” he repeated unmercifully. “If you hadn’t felt the need to throw your money around, we never would have been invited to that fundraiser and that fucking gossip rag would’ve never featured her. She would have been safe!”

Every word had the impact of a physical blow. Jaw, chest, gut. Isaac took them the full force of them and let them bleed.

“I know,” he whispered.

“You promised to protect her.”

“I still will,” Isaac vowed.

“You’re the reason she has to be protected in the first place!” Julian raged. “Do you know what it was like to see all the ways they hurt, degraded and broke her every day? You promised me.”

He stormed off, the crash of the front door slamming reverberating through the whole house.

Isaac looked at the final two packmates left in the room. Neither made eye contact with him. Ollie was leaning heavily on his elbow, tugging at his hair. Miles stared at the floor, numb. The bond between them was deluged with terrible, crushing emotions.

“I’m going to fix this,” Isaac said stiltedly.

Office. Get to the office.

He was in the hallway and opened the door. Desk. Computer. Chair. He sat down, opened his laptop and laid his phone down. Familiar. He could do this.

Pen. Paper. Make a list. Make a plan.

Lawyers first. If they didn’t have experience with revenge porn, hire better lawyers. Seek advice on how to actively monitor online platforms for leaks. Leverage all tools at their disposal to expedite the takedown process if it came to that.

Private investigator next. Spare no expense. Put a laser fucking microscope on every aspect of Pack Zhao’s lives, down to what brand of toothpaste they were buying.

Hire a security firm. Ensure the tech at the house is state-of-the-art. Develop an action plan for how to keep Juno safe without infringing on her autonomy.

Finally, make contact with the authorities. There was no threat of release. Yet. No crime to report. Yet. It could not be allowed to come to that. Somewhere in his network there would be a link to somebody in the cyber crimes arm of law enforcement. He just had to find it.

He had a plan.

He was going to fix this.