10. Enrique

Chapter 10

Enrique

I'm covered in blood and the remnants of death.

Yet hard as a damn brick.

Gods, I'm over a mile away from Caja, and I can still fucking smell her. It's like she's branded my wolf despite being unclaimed.

All I want is to run back to her and fuck her for hours. But I need to finish gathering supplies.

I spent the majority of the early hours fending off Alpha challengers. Several of them are currently trapped in a hole I created with explosives. Lopping off heads was going to take too long, so I crafted a temporary holding solution instead.

A bullet to the brain kept an Alpha down for a few hours, thus allowing me to drag bodies back to the crater and drop them inside of it. They'll eventually find their way out, but by then, I'll be sequestered in the cave with Caja.

Or that's the plan, anyway.

Hence the need for supplies.

Food.

Water.

Shelter.

The old hotels were very handy for my purpose, their supplies surprisingly abundant. Unfortunately, humans perished quickly on most islands, their inability to escape the virus wiping them out in weeks rather than months or years like other areas of the world.

Iceland was an anomaly, as were other Nordic islands with strong supernatural populations.

But wolves didn't like the heat of the Caribbean, and vampires couldn't stand the sunlight.

Creatures like dragons were the ones who prospered here, but they tended to live in more remote locations of the ocean. I have no idea if they're still around this area or not.

I finish filling a bag—one I found in a closet—with an old skillet, matches, and a towel, then hoist it up onto my back with my other pack. Then I bend to pick up the net of various fruits and vegetables I've picked from the wild. I wanted to catch a few fish as well, but I haven't found any fishing poles.

So I suppose that means we'll be living on a vegan diet for a few days.

At least it'll get Caja through her heat.

I'm halfway down the moss-covered marble hallway when an unexpected scent assaults my senses, one I recognize almost immediately.

Freezing, I slightly rotate to my left. "Francesca?" I breathe, wondering if I'm losing my mind.

Because this is impossible.

Yet, I know that citrusy-lime aroma, the undercurrent providing a subtle strawberry sweetness.

"Hey, big guy," she murmurs, her voice unmistakable. "Long time no see."

I turn around slowly, half convinced I'm hallucinating.

Because Francesca is dead.

Or she's supposed to be.

"How is this possible?" I ask, taking in her tall, slender form. Her dark curls are piled on her head in a bun, her light brown eyes as alert as ever. "You're dead."

She snorts. "Isn't everyone on this fucking island?"

I blink. "I don't understand." I'm pretty sure I'm alive. Unless… unless…

My brow furrows. No. I'm definitely alive.

Because I can still smell Caja. Her alluring perfume is calling to my cock, telling me I'm very, very much alive.

"Your face right now is fucking priceless," Francesca muses, strutting toward me. "Probably looks like mine this morning when I found that pit of Alphas you created. Not a great way to make friends on the island, Riq. Alas, I don't think you're going to find many friendly wolves here anyway."

I narrow my gaze, not liking the subtle threat underlining her words. "Yourself included?"

She considers me, her gaze as astute as ever. "Depends on why Carlos sent you here. Did you finally misbehave? Upset the delicate power balance he has in store?"

I stare at her. "Carlos is dead."

Her dark brows rise. "Oh? Since when?"

"Since earlier this week." I slowly set my net back down on the ground, the bags slipping from my shoulders. "The Andorra Sector and Winter Sector Alphas took him out."

"And sent you here?" she asks, a hint of wicked amusement tilting her lips.

"No." I fold my arms, her increasing hostility sending off warning bells in my head. "What's going on, Fran?" We used to be friends—more than that on occasion, actually—but I'm definitely not getting friendly vibes from her right now.

It's also been well over a decade since I last saw her.

All these years, I thought she was dead. Has she actually been here the entire time?

"You tell me, Riq," she counters, her gaze narrowing. "Why are you here?"

"Did you happen to see the jet I crashed last night?" I offer, not wanting to give her any other details. Especially since we're not alone.

I've picked up two more approaching scents, both of them familiar, but I can't quite place their identities.

"Yeah. Looked like a fancy piece of machinery," she drawls. "Can't imagine the owner of it will be all that pleased."

"No, I doubt he will be." Especially since it had been carrying nine precious Omegas, all of whom are now scattered about Exiled Sector.

"And who is he, exactly?" a masculine voice asks, drawing my gaze to one of the owners of the familiar scent I caught.

Philippe .

Shit .

It's like I'm meeting with past ghosts.

"Carlos?" he presses.

"I just said Carlos is dead," I tell him, aware that he absolutely heard me say that to Francesca.

"And you expect us to believe you?" a third person asks, the masculine tone making my wolf growl inside.

Xavier.

He tried to kill Carlos thirty years ago. He lost. He died .

Yet his blue eyes are bright with challenge as he steps through the hotel's front entrance to join us all in the main hallway.

What the fuck is going on here?

I'm surrounded by three supposedly dead Alphas.

They're all staring at me intently, their intense gazes seeming to see right through me.

These three are not like all the Alphas I took on overnight. They're intelligent. Completely coherent. And very ready to accept a challenge.

This is not good. Not good at all.

Caja is out there—alone—and about to go into heat.

I don't have fucking time to address past grievances.

Yet here we are.

"He looks surprised to see us," Francesca notes, her gaze narrowing in suspicion.

"That's because I am surprised to see you," I tell her through my teeth. "What the hell did you expect? I thought all of you were dead." I glance at Xavier. "I watched you fucking die." My focus swings to Philippe. "And I haven't seen you in over fifty years. Where the hell have you been?"

"Here, obviously," he drawls, his brown gaze sweeping over me. "It's where Carlos sends everyone who opposes him."

"But they've never arrived via a rocket before," Xavier adds, suspicion coloring his tone.

"It's a jet," I correct him. "From Andorra Sector."

One black brow lifts. "From Andorra Sector?" he repeats.

I unfold my arms. "If you search the remains, I'm sure you'll find something that confirms where it's from."

He says nothing, just continues to study me.

"Why do you smell like an Omega?" Francesca asks, having moved closer to me without me realizing it. She's only a few feet away now, her lithe form more catlike than wolflike.

Philippe steps forward, his nose twisting. "It's the same scent I caught on the beach."

"Matches the one on the jet, too. But there were more on the jet," Xavier says, taking a step forward. "You'd better start talking, Enrique."

"Or what?" I challenge, my wolf snarling inside.

Xavier might be an impressive Alpha, one who almost bested Carlos, but I've grown since we last met. I'm strong. And I won't go down easily.

Especially with Caja in the balance.

"There are over thirty Alphas on this island from Bariloche Sector," Francesca interjects, her startling sentence causing my eyes to widen as I return my attention back to her.

" What ?" I gape at her. "How is that even possible?"

"A lot of Alphas opposed him," Philippe says, sounding bored. "But you never fell into that category, General ."

I snort. "You were a general, too." At least until he fell for an Omega and tried to claim her.

His eyes narrow. "Why did he send you here?"

"Maybe he bit one of the Omegas?" Francesca suggests. "That would explain why he smells like one."

"Let him answer," Xavier interjects, his stance widening as his folded arms flex across his chest.

He's a big Alpha.

Bigger than me.

But his little muscle display doesn't intimidate me.

"Tell us why you're here," he says, reiterating Philippe's question. Only, Xavier's version of it is underlined in unquestionable demand.

There's no way I'm going to best the three of them together, not if they choose to attack me.

I may be able to outrun them, though.

But then I can't return to Caja. And she needs me.

Gods, she's on the verge of her heat. I'm surprised these three can't smell it. Maybe it's just ingrained in my nose, her presence claiming my very soul before I've even had a chance to bite her.

Because she's mine, I think, my eyes closing as I inhale deeply.

When I open them again, Francesca is just a foot away, her eyes nearly level with mine due to her impressive height.

"Just answer the question, Riq." She infuses a gentle note in her tone, one I've only ever heard her use in the bedroom. It's seductive.

And it does nothing for me.

"Bariloche Sector no longer exists," I tell them all. "The Alphas from Andorra Sector, Winter Sector, and Norse Sector burned it all to the ground. Carlos right along with it. And I helped."

Xavier arches a dark brow. "Helped how?"

"I provided security protocol details and killed several of Carlos's generals. Then I watched as Sven Mickelson put a bullet through Carlos's brain. And later, I observed him removing Carlos's head from his body." He didn't burn it, though. Instead, he stuffed it into a box and said it was a gift for Kari.

My jaw flexes, my need to get to Caja building with each passing second.

"That doesn't tell us why you're here," Xavier says, a growl in his tone.

"Part of dismantling Carlos's operation involved moving all the Omegas to other sectors," I growl right back at him. "I was piloting a jet full of Omegas, and one of them—an Ulv wolf—lost control of her abilities and created a lightning storm that struck an integral part of the jet. Everyone jumped into escape pods, and I crash-landed the jet here."

The three of them exchange looks.

"You can believe me or not," I go on. "But I chose Venom Island because it's full of X-Clan Alphas. Not because I knew any of you were here. I just thought it would be better to face feral beings of my own kind than other supernaturals."

Francesca takes a step back, her attention on Xavier. "He smells truthful to me. And trust me, I know when he lies."

I grunt. "I've never lied to you, Fran." She was one of my best friends, once upon a time.

Her lips curl. "Exactly."

I roll my eyes. "You're just as squirrelly as ever."

"You missed me, huh?" she teases.

"No," I say, purposely lying.

Her smile widens. "Now that was a lie." She looks at Xavier again. "He loves me."

Xavier doesn't look nearly as amused as Francesca does.

And Philippe… his expression is hard.

"Who were the other Omegas on your jet?" he asks me, the drawl no longer coloring his tone. He's more intent now. Serious. And very much on edge.

"They were Omegas of various origins," I tell him. "All of them recent additions to Bariloche Sector. Young. After your time." Because I suspect he's only asking for one reason—to locate the Omega he desired long ago.

Did he actually mate her? I wonder, my nostrils flaring. He doesn't smell mated .

Except…

I breathe in again. There's an underlying hint of apple altering his spicy scent, one I nearly missed. But it grows stronger with every inhale.

He mated her, I realize. He mated one of Carlos's Omegas.

"Where did the other Omegas go?" he asks, his wolf flashing in his irises.

"How are you lucid?" I counter, running my gaze over him. "My brother's a feral mess right now, thanks to Carlos's bullshit. But you…" You're fine , I almost say aloud.

Only, Philippe isn't fine.

I can see it now in his eyes, the way his inner beast is clawing at him from the inside.

"Shit," I breathe, running a hand over my face.

" Where are the others?" he demands, his voice deeper now, more gravelly.

"Philippe," Xavier warns, his dominance underlining the other Alpha's name.

"Andorra," I tell Philippe, ignoring Xavier. "All of the hurt Omegas are in Andorra where an Omega doctor is administering treatment."

Philippe is practically vibrating. "Don't lie to me."

"I'm not lying," I promise. "Andorra has a lot of advanced technology. I've seen it with my own eyes. They cured Kari after what Carlos did to her. And they're helping the other Omegas right now. If you search your soul, deep down, you'll sense the truth." Because his link to whatever Omegas is his should confirm everything I'm saying.

"Who is Kari?" Xavier asks.

"Carlos's daughter," Philippe says through his teeth. "She was barely a girl when I left."

"A lot has happened since then," I mutter, running my fingers through my hair. "Joseph mated Savi."

Philippe stares at me. "He's not here."

"I know. Carlos kept him in a dungeon with all the others." I glance at Xavier and Francesca. "Well, I thought he did, anyway."

But over thirty Alphas are here? I think, recalling what Fran claimed. Which Alphas? Do any others have mates?

I'm about to ask when a harrowing howl reaches my ears, the source of it piercing my heart.

Fuck.

It's Caja.

And she's in trouble.