Page 128 of Caged

“The primary objective is obviously extraction,” he adds. “We know Caelan’s injured, but we don’t know the state of those injuries. Locate Caelan, stabilize if needed, and get him the fuck out. Do not engage unless cornered or compromised, am I clear?”

His eyes flick to me. “Vae and I will take the basement. Gav and Silas, I want you on the rest of the estate.”

“You said primary objective,” Silas says carefully, like even from Gav’s passenger seat he knows Dax’s last nerve is about to fray. “What’s the secondary?”

He narrows his eyes and answers, “Secure the Omega. She’s why Caelan’s been shot. She set a trap that nearly killed him. That kind of setup doesn’t come from nowhere. She’s working with someone. Possibly only her dad, but I’m not ruling anything or anyone out—including Alexander. Bottom line, the female comes with us. Force her if necessary. If she’s immobile, sedate and carry. If she runs, stop her. Permanently, if you have to.”

“Wait, what?” Silas’s voice is a few octaves higher than normal, which I totally get because, seriously? What the fuck?

There’s no way my instincts will let me murder an Omega in cold blood. Shit, there’s no way my conscience will allow it. This shit just went from 0-100 in 2.8 seconds and I feel so far out of my depth it’s starting to scare me.

“We do not kill the Omega,” Gav snaps. His tone makes it clear this is non-negotiable. I release a relieved breath and ignore the angry glare Dax aims my way. His lips part but Gav talks over him.

“I’m not fucking around. Subdue her, cart her out like a fucking sack of shit if you want to, but under no circumstances are any of you to murder a helpless female.” There’s an expectant pause before Gav barks, “Daxen, acknowledge!”

“That supposedly helpless girl nearly killed Caelan!” Dax snarls.

“Arguing with me is only keeping you from reaching him sooner.” Gav tosses back. “I’m serious, Daxen. That girl better be alive when we get back to HQ. I don’t want to hear of any “convenient” accidents. You’ll give me your word now, or you can stay here while we rescue your brother. What’s it gonna be?”

I hold my breath, afraid he’s about to purposely disobey Gav for the first time. But Dax must realize he’s playing a losing game. He straightens his spine, squares his shoulders, and falls into tactician mode like nothing happened.

Like he didn’t just threaten to end the life of a female.

He glares at the estate, forcing his jaw to relax before answering. “Understood.”

His eyes harden, like he can already see the hell we’re about to walk into. Or, more likely, he’s imagining opening the door and finding the Omega standing over Caelan’s body with a silver blade poised to enter his heart.

“Get Caelan out,” he repeats. “Bring the Omega with us. Gag her if she screams. Don’t let her pheromones fuck with you, because I promise you, that female will use every advantage she can to convince you she’s harmless. Do not forget that she lured our brother here to die.”

He swings open the driver’s side door without another word. I throw mine open too and we both exit onto the driveway. A second later, Gav and Silas follow and all four of us take off, boots crunching on gravel as we race for the entrance.

When we get to the door, I take a second to look at my team—the males I call brothers.

We’re all on edge, ready to raise hell on anyone stupid enough to still be on the other side of this door.

One by one, each male meets my eyes—a silent acknowledgment that they’re ready to do what needs to be done. For a single, suspending moment, I’m comforted by the knowledge that no matter what we walk into, we won’t be walking out without Caelan.

At Daxen’s silent nod, I lift my leg and with a single swift kick, break down the front door. It’s hinges rip from the frame. It fractures, exploding inward almost too easily.

We fan out, weapons drawn, prepared to take down any threat keeping us from our brother.

Daxen pulls forward on my left. His grey eyes gleam with violence and the promise of death. His smile is all predator when he growls, “Let’s show these humans exactly why they’ve feared our kind for centuries.”

I straighten, a mean smirk tugging up the corners of my lips. I glance at Gav and Silas over my shoulder and my smirk widens with anticipation. “You heard him, boys. Let’s go find our brother.”

We may be walking into a shitstorm, but we’re ready to fuck up anything that stands in our way. These assholes have no idea what’s coming for them.

And if we discover Omega really was a part of this?

We’ll make sure she never has a chance to play her little games with Alphas ever again.

Chapter 19

Caelan

The pain wakes me.

No. That’s not the right word. This isn’t the pain of a broken bone or a bullet wound.