12. Enrique

Chapter 12

Enrique

"That must be the Omega causing all these issues," Francesca muses, her nose in the air. "Been a long time since I smelled something so sweet."

"Who is she?" Xavier demands, ignoring Francesca's commentary, his gaze on me.

" Mine ," I tell him, ready to tear right through him if I need to.

He inhales, his lips curling with challenge. "Not quite, Enrique. You haven't claimed her yet."

I growl, low and deep. "She's mine ." And I'll fucking shred him apart if I have to. "Now move."

Because he's blocking my way.

Hell, they're all blocking my way.

Francesca at the front. Xavier to one side. Philippe on the other.

I could run backward, but the hallway leads deeper into the hotel and I want out .

Caja screams again, causing my blood to go cold.

I take a step forward, only to be shoved back by Francesca. "Who is she?" she demands.

"Bautista's daughter," I snarl at her. "She's not even twenty. You don't know her."

"And she's chosen you?" Xavier asks, his tone exuding incredulity. "Or did Carlos choose you for her?"

I growl again. "He's fucking dead. And yes, she chose me. She's calling for me right fucking now!" I can feel it in my soul, my wolf dying to go to her. To help her. To protect her.

Gods, she's too far away.

And these assholes won't fucking move!

"Prove it," Francesca dares me. "Prove all of it."

"How the hell would you like me to do that?" And she'd better not suggest I take her to Caja. No one is going near her but me.

Although, another howl has me worried someone else has already found her. Because that howl doesn't belong to Caja, but to another wolf.

I used a grenade to create a cave-in near an entryway within the cavern I left Caja in overnight. The crumbled rocks blocked the path to her location inside. My plan was to dig my way in after returning, which someone else could do if they knew where to look.

Just the thought of it has me taking another step, only to be shoved back again.

"Call Andorra Sector," Fran tells me.

I gape at her. " What? How the hell would you like me to do that?"

She points to my watch. "With that."

I lift it up for her to see. "There's no connection."

She grins. "Yeah, I can fix that." She looks at Xavier. "Flip it on."

"I don't answer to you, Fran."

She rolls her eyes. "Just do it, X. If Riq here is telling the truth…" She lets the sentence hang, the two of them engaging in a battle of wills between their gazes.

All while the howling grows in the distance.

Definitely Alpha male howls.

"I don't have fucking time for this," I snarl, pushing past Francesca—something that's easy to do this time since her attention is on Xavier.

Except she grabs my arm, her claws digging into my flesh.

"Don't," she warns me as Philippe steps into my path.

"Caja needs me," I say, my voice lethally quiet. "I'm going."

"Make the call," Xavier says to my back.

I spin toward him. "For the last fucking time, I?—"

He grabs me by the neck and shoves me into a wall, his weight pinning mine as he slowly repeats, " Make the call ."

I push him off of me, my wolf itching for a fight. My fist sails through the air in an arc toward his jaw just as my wrist begins to buzz, causing me to falter mid-punch.

My knuckles still make contact, but not with as much force as I intended, and I jerk my hand back to look at my watch.

Xavier comes at me, but Fran body slams him before he can make a connection. Philippe steps forward like he's about to take over for Xavier, but he freezes as a screen populates the air before me.

"Where the hell are you?" Ander demands before I can speak. "I've been trying to reach you for hours."

Yeah, and somehow his call just came through.

Probably because of whatever Xavier flipped on .

"Venom Island," I mutter, somewhat surprised he doesn't know that already. His jet should have provided my coordinates.

"Venom Island?" he repeats incredulously. "Why the fuck are you on Venom Island?"

I blow out a breath, my wolf pacing inside me with the need to get to Caja. But I can't do that if these assholes won't let me fucking leave.

So I'll give them the proof they want.

But to do that, I have to answer Ander's question. "Hel had some sort of magical episode on the flight and created a freak storm."

He stares me down over the screen, saying nothing.

"The Omegas took the escape pods," I add. "I… I don't know where any of them are except for Caja."

"Caja's with you?" he asks after a beat.

"She's…" I trail off. "She's on the island."

He frowns. "I don't like the way that sounds, Enrique."

"Trust me when I say I don't either," I growl, wincing as I hear her howl in the distance. "Can you track the escape pods to see where they landed?"

His jaw flexes on the screen. "No. Everything went dark when you crossed into Exiled Sector. I don't know if it's the storm you mentioned or something with the island barriers, but we lost sight of everything and everyone several hours ago."

"Fuck," I breathe, my heart pounding in my chest. I was relying on Ander's fancy technology to be able to save the others. But if he can't even track them…

"We also only have jurisdiction in Venom Island," he goes on. "So if they landed anywhere else, which it sounds like they have, we would require outside assistance. But without coordinates…"

"You have no idea where to start," Xavier interjects as he steps up beside me, his knuckles brushing the blood from his busted lip.

Ander's gaze widens, recognition flashing in his features. "Xavier?"

The Alpha in question notches his chin upward. "Been a long time, Cain."

"No shit. What the hell is going on there?"

"A whole hell of a lot," Xavier tells him.

Ander studies him, frowning. "Things look to be a bit rough there, Xavier."

He grins in response, his tongue touching the wound I created before he replies, "Enrique was just auditioning for a position in the Venom Island hierarchy."

I grunt. "I want no such position."

"Too bad, Riq, you have one hell of a punch," Francesca murmurs. She comes to stand beside Xavier. "I think you have your proof, X. Let Riq go to his Omega."

Xavier narrows his gaze. "We're not done talking."

A chorus of howls punctuates his statement, causing my jaw to clench.

"I don't fucking care if you're done or not," I tell Xavier, taking off my watch and handing it to him. "Chat for as long as you like. I have an Omega to hunt."

"Enrique," Ander calls after me as I push through the crowd to retrieve my bags. "Elias is already on his way."

"Good," I say. "I look forward to seeing him." Assuming I survive whatever's waiting for me near Caja's cave.

"How's he going to get through the barrier?" Xavier asks.

I'm barely listening as Ander softly says, "I think you and I have a lot to talk about, Xavier."

"I think we do, too," he replies. "Starting with the Omegas you've supposedly rescued because I have a bunch of Alphas on this island with missing mates."

I walk by as Ander nods in response.

Francesca falls into step beside me, announcing, "I'm going with Riq. Meet you at base in an hour, X."

"I don't need you to come with me." Nor do I want her to accompany me.

"Oh, yeah, you do," she drawls. "Because those howls? They're from the rogues. And you're going to need some help taking them out."

I start jogging as soon as I hit the doorway. "I did just fine last night."

"Yeah, with the broken mutts on night shift," she says. "Those idiots get spooked by their own shadows. The rogues, however, have their wits about them. They're feral. Deadly. And very hard to kill."

I glance at her. "And I'm supposed to believe that you're going to help me?"

She shrugs. "What other choice do you have?"

"Maybe I'll throw you into that hole with the mutts ," I say.

She smiles. "Try and I'll take you right down there with me, Riq."

I shake my head and take off at a sprint toward the place Caja is hiding.

Francesca is right—I don't have a choice but to let her follow. That doesn't mean I'll rely on her help, though. It's been far too long since I last saw her. And I'm not na?ve enough to trust her, history or not.

But I am glad Xavier and Philippe are distracted with Ander. The fewer Alphas I have to deal with, the better.

My senses sharpen as we run, my wolf listening for Caja. She hasn't screamed recently, her last howl maybe ten or fifteen minutes ago at best.

Too long , I think. It's been too long.

I don't like that she's silent.

I also don't like the masculine howls growing louder with every step.

They've definitely found Caja. The question is, have they reached her?

A triumphant howl echoes in the daylight, the sound an ominous response to my query.

I run faster, my pulse pounding in my ears. If I don't make it in time, I'm going to rip everyone apart on this fucking island, I vow. Including Xavier, Philippe, and Francesca.

"Is there a reason we're not shifting?" Fran calls as she keeps pace right behind me.

I ignore her.

She'll find out soon enough.

I don't slow until we close in on the waterfall. It's about a hundred yards ahead and swarmed with snarling wolves.

I don't think, I act, taking a knee and dropping my packs to the ground.

"Finally," Francesca mutters as she rips off her shirt and starts unfastening her pants.

Then freezes when I pull two guns from my pack.

"Holy shit," she breathes.

"This is why I didn't shift," I tell her, and open fire on the rogues by the falls.

I hit three right in the head before they realize what's happening. Then two dart under the water to hide while four others scramble up the steep incline.

I take all four out in a few seconds, then check my ammunition.

Between last night's antics and this new situation, I'm running low. And I only have one magazine left in the bag.

I pocket it, grab two knives, and start toward the waterfall to handle the other wolves.

"Why the hell did you let us corner you if you had all this in you?" Francesca hisses.

"I wouldn't say I let the three of you do anything," I mutter back at her. "And close range, you would have stopped me before I had a chance to grab the gun from the pack. It also would have given away my advantage."

A wolf growls from the top of the falls, drawing my focus upward. I aim, pull the trigger, and watch his body fall off the cliff.

"Jesus, I forgot how good a shot you are," she says, sounding a little breathy.

"Still think I needed help?" I ask her as we walk toward the waterfall and the cavern behind it.

"And as cocky as ever, too," she muses.

"Not cocky, just determined." I press my back to the wall near the water, my senses searching for the rogues on the other side of the falls.

Only, a sharp scream distracts me from everything—and everyone—else.

My Omega.

I run toward the sound, my heart in my throat.

If they touch her… If they knot her… If they claim her… I'll never forgive myself.

"Riq!" Francesca shouts, but I'm too locked in on Caja to really hear her.

I'm running. Sprinting . Solely focused. One goal in ? —

Sharp teeth clamp around my neck as claws take me to the ground, my world flipped upside down.

A broken snarl rattles my chest, my windpipe crushed by a set of heavy jaws.

The gun in my hand almost slips, but muscle memory clicks into place as I point and pull the trigger.

The beast yowls in response, releasing my neck, and I quickly add a bullet to his head. A second rogue lunges for me, and my movements are slow, but I manage to send a bullet into his shoulder.

Then a big black wolf tackles him to the ground. Francesca . Her teeth clamp into his throat and rip it clean off of him in one yank.

In the next instant, she does the same to a furious gray wolf. One pounce, a single bite, and his neck is twisted at an awkward angle.

Good fucking thing she wasn't the one who caught me unaware, I think dizzily, my throat still wounded.

I can't breathe.

But I can hear my Omega crying for me.

She's nearby.

So close.

"Enrique," she's saying, her voice catching on a sob. "You came back…"

Of course I came back, I think at her. You're mine.

I try to find her with my gaze, but everything around me exists in shades of black.

Fuck. I'm losing consciousness.

It'll be temporary. I'll heal. I just hope… it'll be… fast enough.