Blue Moon III: Call of the Alpha (31 page)

Omega vaguely remembered waking up in one of the most comfortable beds he’d ever been in and Lion practically forcing food down his mouth before he dozed back off into a peaceful sleep.

The second time he woke, he was wrapped tight in Lion’s arms, while soft snores were breathed against the back of his neck. Content and still exhausted, Omega closed his eyes again.

When he woke the third time, he was alone and had no recollection of the time. Feeling well rested, he got out the bed and freshened up in the full bathroom, his dried clothes waiting for him on a towel warming rack. Once dressed, he pulled back the partition and ventured inside the cabin of the beautiful aircraft. It was gliding smoothly over the Atlantic, not even a tremor of turbulence so far.

“Good evening. You sure look well.” Alpha smirked at him.

Ignoring his brother’s teasing, Omega whirled around to the big screen television that was tuned to world news and saw that it was a little after six p.m. Goodness, he hadn’t slept that long in forever. No wonder he felt so relaxed. Looking around the wide space, he found Hawk and Pierce immersed in an intense game of chess. He noticed the seer had an icepack on his thigh. Without even looking up, the man grumbled the answer to Omega’s unspoken question. “Cortisone shot. No one mentioned the eleven mile run we have to make when we arrive.”

Omega hadn’t heard that either, but eleven miles wasn’t shit. Viper was on his laptop and Call and Alpha were both watching the news, sipping on water, empty dinner plates in front of them. Lion was… he turned around again. Where the hell was—

“Settle, Erik.” Alpha laughed this time. “He’s in the cockpit talking to the pilot. He’s changing the landing zone.”

“Why?” Omega asked, heading straight to the small buffet of chelow kabab, kuku, roasted chicken with saffron rice and sweet bread. A brightly colored selection of fruit had replaced the breakfast trays. It looked appetizing and beautifully arranged. The attendant’s quarters were on the bottom level, but since Omega had been asleep the entire time, he had no clue who she/he was. Probably one of the women from Lion’s village or one of the trusted students from the Order. 

“I was able to get into the burner phone you pulled off the cop and track the numbers. The signals were bouncing off the same Russian satellites that the drone was. It took a few hours, but we have a location. Its sixteen miles south of your Order’s mansion. Hiding in plain sight.”

“Interesting,” Omega replied, scooping a heaping spoon of the roasted meat to top his favorite rice. Might as well, he knew Lion was going to insist he eat.

Viper’s look was of pure disdain and disrespect when he addressed Omega again. “Yeah, asshole. While you were sexing and sleeping, I was out here working on your goddamn mission.”

The door to the cockpit slammed open so hard, it almost made Omega drop his plate. Lion’s snarl was loud and menacing right before he grabbed Viper under his shoulder, his other large hand slamming over his throat as he yanked him out of his seat and threw him across the cabin like he was weightless.

Call and Hawk jumped to their feet, but Alpha held his hand out, stopping them from intervening. “He had this coming,” Alpha told them. “Stay back. Lion’s only going to teach him a lesson.”

Stalking towards Viper, they were about to see a demonstration of how Lion’s hulking frame benefited his superior fighting style. Lion grabbed the disgraceful man again and slammed him against the mirrored wall behind the beverage cart so hard the glass shattered and fell in shards around Lion’s boots. “You’ve disrespected me again, and I’ve inhaled your stinking arrogance long enough.”

Omega watched Lion put the cocky ex-SEAL in his place. Alpha was right. Viper had been itching to irritate Lion and he was getting ready to experience the consequences now that he’d succeeded.

Lion’s voice had dropped to an aggressive growl as he spat his own disdain in Viper’s face. “It is only out of respect for Call and Hawk that I will spare your miserable life. So you better thank your brothers, because if he wished it, at my cherished one’s word, I’d instruct my pilot to descend so I could throw your battered corpse into the Atlantic.”

Viper’s eyes were blown wide with fear, his head cocked at an extremely uncomfortable angle due to Lion’s flexed grip. His feet dangled and twitched like he wanted to use them to kick Lion off of him but his struggle for oxygen made him panic and uselessly flail his arms, never landing a hit. Viper’s sounds of terror were getting more and more quiet as Lion held him in his excruciating tiger’s clutch.

“Lion. Alright. He’s had enough,” Call said, his voice sounding only slightly regretful that his friend was being hurt.

Viper’s eyes slid to half-mast and the fight left his limbs.

“Lion!” Call barked. The urge to assist his brother growing stronger.

“Release him,” Omega finally spoke. And watched with pleasure as Viper’s body dropped to the pile of broken glass. Lion could hear nothing but the voice of his cherished, and Omega knew Lion wouldn’t stop until Omega was satisfied. His Alpha had come to his defense. No one was to disrespect him, and Viper learned that lesson the hard way. The man would be lucky if his throat would allow him to even drink water for the next couple days.

Lion stepped back, staring down at the dishonorable soldier. He may have been a hero in the US, but he’d insulted him and Omega, so he was worthless to them.

“You are relieved of all duties relating to this mission. I don’t trust you, so I no longer need you. You will confine yourself to the staff quarters below deck for the duration of this trip. If you show your miserable face again, no one will be able to spare you from my anger… not even Omega.”

Viper was clutching his throat. His eyes watered profusely and Omega didn’t know if it was from tears or immense pain. Most likely both. No matter how much Viper hocked and spit, there was no salvia. His mouth moved like he wanted to speak but there was no sound. Hawk took pity on his brother and came to help him up. Viper shot daggers at Lion’s retreating back but didn’t dare make a move to retaliate. Omega topped his plate off with some figs and dates and got in a comfortable chair to enjoy his dinner like it was just another day at the office.

Pierce was in the chair directly across from Omega and he was surprised when he saw amusement dancing in those sparkling eyes. That told Omega that on some level, Viper had ticked all of them off in one way or another. Omega remembered Viper questioning Pierce’s technical abilities more than once while a guest in the man’s home. Complete disrespect.

Alpha opened the narrow door that led to the steep set of stairs and called for the attendant. “Navid, will you come up a moment?”

Omega was watching the entrance and was surprised when a gangly man with a sharp face and even sharper features ducked under the doorjamb and entered the cabin. He had to be at least six-foot-six, but he moved with a serene grace and he wore a kind expression. If Omega wasn’t the trained killer he was, he would’ve missed the quiet power Navid harnessed.

“Viper, this is Navid Rahem, bringer of kindness and mercy. He’s a man of few words but he’ll care for your needs until we return to the States.” Alpha held his arm out and Navid began to assist Hawk with getting Viper downstairs.

Viper looked like he wanted to argue, but again, the words couldn’t be vocalized. Nothing would be said until the swelling in his throat went down. Lion made sure the man couldn’t verbally assault Omega again.

“I’d watch my behavior down there as well, SEAL. Navid’s exceptionally long limbs make his crane style difficult to defend against,” Alpha said, and shut the door behind them.

Lion

They were scheduled to land in Izeh in a half-hour. The landing strip was no longer used, and the airport that once stood there had been leveled decades ago. There was nothing in the dead town. Its population less than two hundred, meaning they could sneak in completely undetected.

The Order paid West Asian air traffic controllers significant amounts of money to overlook any deviations in the flight patterns of their jets. Everyone was set to go. They’d step off the plane in the deserted city and make their way west on foot, eleven miles, putting them only a few hundred feet from the traitors’ backyard.

Lion was fully dressed and Omega was checking his weapons for him.

“Are you well?” Lion finally spoke to him.

Omega eased his hands around Lion’s neck, stroking the few strands that hung loose from his tight ponytail. “Are you well?” he asked right back.

Lion touched his forehead to Omega’s and stood there so he could breathe in his man’s scent. When they got off this plane, they would slip right into fight mode and they had to stay that way until the job was complete. So he touched all he could at that moment.

Omega’s voice was soft and silky when he broke the silence, “
Delbar-am
– the one who holds my heart – victory is already yours.”

Lion understood. He closed his eyes and kissed Omega’s forehead. His cherished had no doubt in his mind that Lion would conquer the opposition and it fed his soul. Made him feel ten feet tall.

With Omega right behind him, they left the bedroom and stood with the other men. They all looked ready for combat.

It was only by fate’s goodness that Pierce ended up on their jet, because they needed a tech to watch their backs and get them out of an emergency if need be. Hawk was not happy about it, but Pierce refused to sit on the plane and twiddle his thumbs while they fought. It’d taken a couple hours of placating, but Alpha was finally able to convince Hawk that Pierce would be far away from any danger. The pilot – who was also an assassin – would protect Pierce with his life, but was still instructed to take off at the first sign of impeding danger. He was not to leave Pierce under any circumstance, especially not to come to their aid.

They were all pumped for revenge, especially Pierce, who wanted payback for the destruction of his home.

Once they were on the ground, they’d hike through the enclosed mountains along one of Iran’s many basins. They’d have a water source from the river and shelter if needed. It was a blessing they were in the west, where the terrain was mountainous instead of in the desert, where exposure would make a sneak attack almost impossible.

Lion felt the plane touch down on the rough runway and come to a quick stop. They had to use the jet’s armory since they hadn’t been able to retrieve their own from Pierce and Hawk’s house due to their hasty getaway. Alpha and Lion stared out the windows into the darkness, surveying the abandoned land.

Pierce was checking each of their earpieces, ensuring he had good connections. He’d piggybacked on Viper’s system and was using the strategy he’d started by bouncing their signal off various satellites every twenty seconds. It should keep them hidden for at least forty-eight hours before it was discovered. By then, they’d be long gone and back over US soil.

Lion had wanted Pierce on this mission in the first place, so his mind was feeling at ease that he had tech assist that he fully trusted. Pierce had a serious investment involved… his own husband. He knew Backhander would do a good job.

Call was fully suited up in his fatigues, he and Hawk dressed exactly alike with rifles slung over their shoulders. Alpha, Omega, and he were back in their full gear, their hoods low over their heads.

As soon as the cabin door opened and touched the ragged concrete, they took off at a leisurely pace, their duffle bags heavy on their backs. They cleared the desolate area quickly and descended into the cover provided by valuable trees that led to the mountains. It was dark, but they were used to navigating with little to no light. Only seven percent of the country was forested and Lion couldn’t shake the fact that the traitors had purposely chosen this area. He looked up into the span of oaks, elms, and cypresses, that uneasy feeling gripping the back of his neck. He slowed his pace and crouched down, Alpha a few feet behind him doing exactly the same. He then looked in Omega’s direction and saw him staring up through the thick shrubbery.

“Hawk,” Lion barely whispered, but his voice was clear through their sensitive earpieces.