Free Omegas In Love by Annie Nicholas Page A

took Tony’s legs as Tyler grabbed his shoulders. They placed him in the back of the van.
    Spice shut the doors and locked them. “What now?” She glanced around.
    He blinked. His alpha didn’t have a plan? Shit, that meant he was still making it up as he went. “Well, we’ll deal with Tony later.” He gazed at the dark ship. “I’m assuming Katrina’s on there.” No plan, no back up, and no skill, this was the worst rescue ever. “I had hoped Eric and Daedalus would be here by now.” He scratched his chin. “They don’t even know where we are.” Pulling out his cellphone, he turned it on. “Take the van and my phone. Get out of here and call them.”
    “I’m not leaving you. I’m not doing this again.” She planted her hands on her hips.
    “If they get you, Spice, they’ll have a bigger bargaining chip than just Katrina. They’ll have Eric by the balls.” He rested his hands on her shoulders and bent to make eye contact with her.
    She opened her mouth, determination clearly in her thoughts, then it faded. “Shit on a stick, I hate this.” She shrugged out of his hold and hurried to the driver’s side door. “Come on, you’re coming with me. We’ll need to hurry. The ship might leave.”
    “I know. That’s why I have to stay.”
    Skidding to a stop, she spun on her heels. “Tyler.” A play of emotions warred on her face: concern, anger, confusion, until she frowned. “Get her.” She jumped into the van and a second later, the engine roared to life.
    He couldn’t watch her leave. Instead, he sprinted to the side of the freighter, where a steel ladder was welded. Climbing, he kept praying nobody would see him. He jumped the side rail and hid between some of the cargo containers.
    Short of breath, he sounded like a heavy breather crank call on a THX sound system. The cool metal stung his hot flesh. Deep down inside, he couldn’t blame Tony, but wished the idiot had come to them first. In a similar situation, Tyler might have done the same.
    Tony’s sisters were on the ship with Katrina. That meant he had three females to rescue. He sighed. Shit, what next?
    Katrina could be anywhere on this huge boat. He closed his eyes and inhaled through both his mouth and nose. Tasting the air, he started his search.
    If he found her and they escaped, what would keep Chen from taking her back?
    This could start a war. The casualties marched through his imagination. Humans would be caught in the crossfire. Shifter relations in Chicago would spiral back to the dark ages. The peace they’d fought to win and keep would vanish.
    He came across a rope winch and ran his hand over the cool machine. The Rube Goldberg machine he’d won the contest with contained simple string strategies. There wasn’t much difference between string and rope. What if he took Chen out of the equation for good?
    * * * *
    The cracks in the ceiling paint created an intrinsic pattern. Katrina followed the lines with her sight, trying to find a way out of the maze. Her eyes were the only thing on her body that didn’t hurt.
    Chen hadn’t held back on the hits once she’d defied him.
    She shuddered, then hissed at the sharp pain in her chest. Each deep breath stung. Her ribs were probably cracked. She couldn’t even shift to heal her injuries. It would take her at least a day to recover.
    The pain distracted her from the growing need between her thighs, though. Thank goodness, for little miracles. But how long before her heat took control over her body?
    They’d laid her on a bed inside a cabin on a cargo ship destined for China. She suspected the room was more for Chen’s future comfort than for her injuries. If only the ground would swallow her whole before he returned.
    They’d left the collar around her neck without the chain, a reminder of her status as a dog, and locked her room door. She squeezed her eyes shut. All her tears had been shed. They didn’t do her any good.
    The freighter would set sail soon, and all those