Isa barely waited for the all-clear on his house before he stormed the place. It reeked of Mancini’s lust and Liam’s fear, and it made Isa’s insides quake with rage. His head hurt and his side screamed like a son of a fucker, but he went straight for Demir’s bedroom, where his youngest was passed out cold. A patrolman was checking his pulse.

“Goddess,” Isa said.

“He’s got a strong pulse and heartbeat,” Corinth said. “An ambulance is already on its way, sir.”

He eased onto the bed and took one of Demir’s cool hands. Squeezed. “Open your eyes for me, son, please.”

Demir slept on, so pale it made Isa want to weep. He was terrified for Liam, terrified for Demir, and he had no idea where Layne was. Something wet tickled the skin on his back, which meant he’d probably popped some stitches with all his moving around, but goddess. What if he’d stayed in the hospital? If he hadn’t listened to his instincts and come home when he did, two innocent patrolmen would be dead, and Liam would be gone. Vanished.

Mancini had fucking planned all this.

“He’ll pay,” Isa said. “He’ll fucking pay.”

Layne’s squalling cry found him before the boy himself did, snug in the arms of another patrolman. Isa took the red-faced bundle and held him close, tucking Layne’s head beneath his chin. Allowing Layne to find his familiar scent. He finally settled to soft whines by the time the paramedics arrived.

Isa was loathed to leave, knowing Liam was out there someplace with Mancini, but because of his personal involvement, Isa wouldn’t be allowed to assist on the case. All he could do was grab Layne’s diaper bag from the kitchen and follow his son into the ambulance. Be present for both of his boys on the ride to the hospital, where Demir was whisked into a cubicle for treatment.

He stopped the first nurse who walked past him. “Can you look at my baby? He was with someone dangerous for a while, and I need to know he’s okay.”

“Of course,” the nurse replied. “Come with me.”

They entered another cubicle, and Isa held Layne while the nurse checked his vitals. Peeked under his onesie, searching for any sort of bruise or mark, and finding none.

“Your son looks perfectly healthy,” the nurse said. “We can do some blood work if you want, but I think he just needs some rest and cuddles.”

“Thank you so much,” Isa said.

“Do you need attention, sir?” He pointed at the side of Isa’s shirt, which was stained dark with blood from this morning’s shooting. Isa had to look like an absolute mess.

“No, I’m fine. It’s from earlier today.”

“You’re actively bleeding. Please, let me take a look.”

Isa submitted to the beta nurse’s order. They settled Layne in with some pillows on the gurney, and Isa unbuttoned his shirt. Sat still while the nurse checked his wound. It was oozing, but he hadn’t popped any stitches, so the nurse changed his dressing.

“You really should still be in the hospital,” the nurse said. “Gunshot wounds are no joke.”

“I can’t do that right now. My son is in another room, and my mate has been kidnapped.”

The nurse’s eyebrows went up. “At least let me put you in as a patient on-record so I can give you something for the pain.”

“Fine.” They went through the formalities of getting Isa’s information, and then the nurse handed him a cup with two white pills.

“They’ll help without knocking you out.”

“I appreciate it.” Isa collected Layne, then went into the waiting room to pace. Less than five minutes passed before a nurse exited Demir’s cubicle.

“We’re running some labs to see what he was sedated with,” the man said. “But a physical exam showed no signs of bruising or other injury. We’ll keep an eye on him here, and hopefully your son will wake up soon.”

“Thank you. Can I see him?”

“Of course.”

Isa swallowed hard against rising bile as he entered the small cubicle. He’d never seen Demir in the hospital like this. Never seen his youngest unconscious on a gurney, a white sheet and blanket pulled up to his chest. Monitors beeped his heart rate and pulse ox. He’d never seen Demir so vulnerable.

“I need to call your brothers,” Isa whispered, because Layne was dozing in his arms. “They’ll want to be here for you, but I don’t want to worry them. Except they’re probably already worried. It’s been at least an hour since I called Aven looking for you.”

So much had happened in that hour, and something deep inside of Isa ached knowing his mate was out there in the city somewhere with a psychopath.

I won’t let you go, Liam. I’ll find you if it takes the rest of my life.

The curtain moved, and Isa looked up. Shock rolled through his system as Tarek Bloom and Karter Jenks stepped inside, neither man in uniform. “What are you doing here?” Isa asked.

“Chief Underhill called,” Tarek replied. “He told us what happened and thought you could use some moral support. How’s Demir?”

“Unconscious, but otherwise healthy.” Isa still couldn’t get over the fact that two of his subordinates had come over simply to support their boss. And their kind-of friend, too, he supposed. It was impossible not to get to know the two men when their omegas were so close to his.

“I’m so sorry for what’s happened,” Tarek said. “I can’t imagine what you’re going through.”

“I can,” Karter said in a dark tone. “But we got Jax back, and we’ll get Liam back.”

“Yes, we will,” Isa agreed. He needed to believe that, or he’d go insane.

“Is there anything we can do for you, sir?”

“Could one of you call my other sons? They should be here.” Isa held his phone out absently. Tarek took it and left the cubicle.

“Do you want me to hold Layne for a little while?” Karter asked.

“No, thank you. He’s all I have of Liam right now.”

“I understand. Truly. When Jax was kidnapped, I thought I’d lost part of my soul. I couldn’t eat, I couldn’t sleep. I didn’t want to put Karson down for a single moment.”

Isa gazed at the young constable and saw so much wisdom in his eyes. So much life experience for someone still so young. Only recently turned twenty-four, while Isa himself was pushing forty. “I’m glad you got Jax back. And I know we all thought the worst of Udall, the things he threatened to do to Jax. But I know for a fact Mancini intends to assault my mate. If he hasn’t already.”

His memory of those scents in his house made Isa sick to his stomach.

Karter said nothing.

“Where are Braun and Jax?” Isa asked, mostly to fill the silence.

“With Kell and Ronin. They’ve started the phone chain for their support group. It’s too late for them to gather, but they’ll all want to send prayers for Liam’s speedy return.”

“I appreciate that.” He loved knowing Liam had so many friends willing and able to support them through this crisis.

A commotion outside the cubicle caught his attention, as did the sound of voices shouting. Snippets of words made it through, such as “head-on collision” and “belly wound.” And then the smell hit him, soft and muted by hospital odors, but Isa knew that oil-and-vinegar stink anywhere. Without a word, he passed Layne over to Karter, trusting the man to watch the infant, and he charged out of the room.

Straight to a cubicle across the corridor, where a doctor and two nurses were working on an unconscious Mancini. Isa charged, murder in his heart, but Tarek held him back. “Where’s Liam?” Isa shouted, struggling against the human blockade. “Where’s my mate?”

“You know this man?” the doctor said. His gloved hands were covered in blood.

“He kidnapped my mate!”

“Higgs, calm down,” Tarek said. “Mancini’s unconscious, he can’t tell you anything.”

“Constable Higgs!” Patrolman Bauer strode over to him. “Sir, we found him. He’s coming soon in another ambulance.”

The world dropped away beneath Isa’s feet, and he listed into Tarek’s hold. “You found Liam?”

“Yes, sir. He’s hurt, but he was conscious at the scene and asking after you.”

Hurt but conscious. Conscious was good, but hurt made Isa rage. “How badly was he hurt?”

“Mostly superficial bruising, I think, but he may have broken an arm. I’m here to guard the suspect.”

Before Isa could ask more questions, another team of paramedics arrived, wheeling a gurney that held the most beautiful sight of Isa’s life: a grumpy Liam, whose eyes were wide open and searching. The instant they found Isa’s, they went even wider. “Isa.” He mouthed the word more than he spoke it, because his voice couldn’t travel the distance.

Isa bolted to the gurney, relief making his insides shake and his hands tremble as he reached for Liam. Liam’s left arm was strapped down, so Isa was as gentle as he could be as he hugged and kissed his mate. His heart. The other half of his soul. Mancini’s scent was on him, but Isa ignored that for the simple fact that Liam was back in his arms. Safe and sound.

“I love you so much,” Liam said. “I never thought I’d see you again.”

“I knew I’d see you,” Isa replied, tears strangling his voice. “I didn’t know when, but I knew.”

“Sir,” a paramedic said, “we really need to get him checked out.”

“Of course.” Isa stepped back, but held Liam’s right hand while they went into an exam cubicle.

“How’s Demir? Layne?” Liam asked.

“Demir’s a few doors down. They’re still running tests to see what he was sedated with—”

“Chloroform. Mancini admitted he’d used chloroform. But Demir’s really okay? Mancini didn’t do anything else?”

“The nurse who examined him didn’t find anything, not a single bruise.” Isa’s gaze lingered on a cut and bruise on Liam’s cheek. A cut and bruise that, even from the distance he’d stood at on the street, Isa had seen on his mate’s face while Mancini dragged him down the sidewalk. “He hit you.”

Liam’s entire body quaked once. “Can we talk about it later? Please? Maybe when I’m not in so much pain. I think I broke my collarbone again. Ugh.”

“Of course, little one.”

A nurse began checking Liam’s vitals, and then Chief Underhill appeared in the room. “Constable Higgs, Mr. Liam,” he said. “Glad to have you back with us this quickly.”

“I couldn’t disappear with him,” Liam said. “I knew the moment we reached whatever destination he had in mind, he’d drag me inside and rape me, and I couldn’t…” He squeezed the life out of Isa’s hand. “I don’t belong with him.”

“Can you tell me how the accident occurred?”

The words “head-on collision” came back to Isa, and he frowned. “Accident?”

Liam looked at him with teary eyes. “I wasn’t going to let him take me. He had a pen in the car, so I played along with being his mate. With our happy future. It got me close to him. And then I stabbed him in the stomach and yanked the wheel hard enough to crash us into a tree.”

“Goddess, Liam.” Isa gaped at his mate. “You could have gotten yourself killed.”

Liam’s fear turned to anger. “I wasn’t going with him, Isa. I would not allow him to touch me again.” So many unspoken hurts lingered in his eyes, and it made Isa want to break something.

Or someone.

“What you did was very brave,” Underhill said. “I have a lot of questions for you, but they can wait a few hours.”

“Thank you.”

“Yes, thank you, sir,” Isa said.

“You’re very welcome.”

Karter replaced Underhill in the room, and Liam sobbed once when he saw his son. With one arm immobilized, and a nurse giving them all annoyed looks, Karter brought Layne over so Liam could drop kisses all over the baby’s face, and then left again. Even Isa was shooed out once a doctor arrived to examine Liam.

Isa took over holding Layne, and he was just finishing up changing the boy’s diaper when Aven and Tarius stormed the waiting area. He took great pleasure in announcing Liam had been found and was getting treatment, and he stayed seated while they went to check on their brother.

He stroked a finger down Layne’s feather-soft cheek, so grateful to have his family back in one place again. No matter what happened next, they were all alive, safe, and together.

Everything else was details.

* * *

Liam drifted in and out for a while, thanks to the drugs they gave him before fixing his collarbone. That sucked, but at least he’d gone through it before and knew what to expect in terms of his recovery. And this time, he was going home with his alpha, instead of being shunted into a sketchy group home.

At least, he hoped he was still going home with his alpha. Despite Isa being there right away, and despite his reassurances, Liam felt soiled. Used and dirty from Mancini touching him. From what Liam had done to Mancini. Those memories haunted him as he dozed, high on narcotics, and unable to fend them off. And they whispered bad things in his ear, telling him Isa didn’t want a dirty whore for a mate.

He cried for those thoughts, and Isa was always there in the distance, shushing him and telling him everything would be all right. Liam needed to believe that, but until he and Isa could talk, he simply didn’t know if anything would be all right ever again.

Eventually, real sleep took hold, and he woke to sunlight filtering in from the room’s single window. Fear clutched his heart. The last time Liam had woken in a hospital room like this, his entire family had been ripped away from him. He couldn’t stand it if that happened again. If he found his room empty, because Isa couldn’t stand to look at his soiled mate.

A variety of scents rose above the astringent odors of the hospital, and the one he treasured the most was close by. A wonderful waft of warm cedar. He wasn’t alone, after all.

The top half of his bed was elevated, giving him a good view of the room, and the first thing he saw was the dark hair of Isa’s head. Isa had dragged a chair over to his bed, and he seemed to be asleep, his head pillowed on his arm, facing away. A bassinet stood in one corner of the room, and Liam could barely see the side of Layne’s face as he, too, slept.

My family.

He vaguely recalled Isa reassuring him that Demir was fine, but he needed to see for himself. Needed to hold Layne, too, just to prove to his body that his baby was safe. But more than anything, he needed to know Isa still wanted him, despite Mancini’s stink clinging to his skin.

Three beautiful faces suddenly appeared in the room, carrying a tray of takeout coffee and a bag of something that smelled like donuts.

“You’re awake!” Tarius said. His hands were free, so he flew to the bed and hugged Liam first, the action and noise startling Isa awake. Tarius was careful not to hug him too hard, mindful of the sling bracing his left arm. “We were so worried about you.”

“Demir?” Liam said. Tarius moved aside, so his younger brother could come over and hug Liam, too. Liam clung to Demir with his good arm and kissed his cheek. “I’m so glad you’re okay. Mancini said all he did was drug you, but he’s…that’s all he did, right?”

Demir pulled back and smiled down at him. “That’s all. I’m still a little shaken up, but I’m fine. Promise.”

“Good.” He hugged Aven, too, and then was relieved to see Isa standing on the other side of his bed with Layne in his arms. Isa gently put Layne in the crook of Liam’s right arm, and Liam leaned in to smell the baby-fresh top of his head. “There you are, little man. I was afraid I’d never see you again.”

“What you did last night, Liam,” Isa started to say, but his words choked off.

Liam wanted to cry. What I did was cowardly? What I did was dangerous and stupid?

“You were so fucking brave,” Isa finally managed. “You put Demir and Layne’s safety above your own when you went with him. I’m so proud of you.”

He stared up at his mate, shocked by the praise. “You are?”

“Yes.” Isa cupped a hand behind Liam’s neck, the warm touch keeping him grounded. “Not only did you save our boys, you also saved yourself.”

“Not completely.” Liam could still feel Mancini’s hands on him. “But close enough, I guess.”

“You’re here, you’re alive, and our family is intact. I’ll take that win any day. The rest we can work through together.”

“We’re all here for you,” Demir said. “We’re family now, right?”

“Yes, we are,” Liam replied. “So when’s breakfast?”

Aven laughed and handed out the variety of coffees and hot chocolate, while Demir gave Liam first pick of the donuts and pastries in his bag. Liam selected an apple fritter dusted in powdered sugar, and he had the whole thing down and was sipping at his coffee when a nurse and an alpha doctor arrived. Isa immediately stood and postured a bit, even after the doctor introduced himself.

Liam allowed an exam, mostly done by the nurse, but the doc asked a few questions about his pain levels, which were bearable. He gave Liam instructions on taking it easy so his bruised ribs could heal, and that he’d likely feel pain for several months before it went away completely. The whole time, Liam was grateful that the doctor spoke directly to him, instead of over him to Isa.

With a promise to release him that afternoon, the doctor and nurse were replaced by a constable he didn’t know, a patrolman who seemed familiar, and someone he considered a friend, all three in uniform.

“How are you feeling, Liam?” Tarek asked.

“Exhausted,” he replied. “Happy to be here, though, with my family.”

“I imagine so. You’ve got a passel of omega friends eager to see you, but everyone agrees it’s best to wait until you’re home and better rested from your ordeal.”

“Speaking of which,” the constable said. “We haven’t formally met. Chief Constable Underhill. I’m continuing the investigation into last night’s events.”

“Okay,” Liam said. He cast a curious look at Isa, who nodded encouragingly. “I guess you want my statement about what happened, huh?”

“If you’re feeling up to it, yes.”

“I feel as up as I’m going to for a while, I suppose.”

“Thank you.” Underhill removed a hand recorder, and Tarek produced familiar-looking statement forms. “You’ll need to sign a written statement at some point, anyway, and there’s no sense in making you recount it all out loud twice. Save your voice.”

Tarek met his eyes and winked.

Liam nodded, immensely thankful for the forms.

“In the interest of keeping this professional,” Underhill added, “I’ll have to ask the civilians to leave for a while.”

The civilians being Aven, Tarius and Demir. “I gave my statement,” Demir said to Liam on his way out with his brothers. “Good luck.”

Liam needed a bit of courage to go along with the luck. He dreaded telling Isa the choice he’d made in delaying them vacating the house.

Tarek rolled the tray table over and handed Liam the forms and two sharp pencils. Underhill put the tape recorder down and hit record. “This is Senior Constable Underhill questioning victim and witness Liam Haley in his false imprisonment and kidnapping of last evening.” He gave the date. “Also present are Senior Constable Isa Higgs, as well as Constable Tarek Bloom. Because of Mr. Liam’s verbal limitations, he will be writing the answers to my questions, and Constable Bloom will read them out loud for this recording.”

Liam fidgeted, uncomfortable being the center of attention for three alphas at once. While Tarek was a friend, the only alpha he truly felt comfortable around right now was his own mate. Isa squeezed his shoulder, his expression open, full of love, and lacking any sort of judgment.

I can do this.

He picked up a pencil and started writing.

“I spent all night in the hospital with Isa and went home when they kicked me out. The porch light was on, so I expected someone to be there. I’d previously sent Layne home with Isa’s sons, and the front door was unlocked so I didn’t really think at first. But the house was dark, except for one lamp in the living room. It was quiet. I thought maybe Demir and Layne were both asleep, and then Mancini appeared in the living room from the hallway. He was holding Layne.”

Rage jolted through him twice: when Liam wrote it and when Tarek read it out loud.

Isa growled softly; Liam squeezed his wrist, then kept writing.

“Mancini said he was there to collect his mate and son. I asked him to give me Layne and leave. He refused. He didn’t outright threaten me, but he was holding my three-month-old child, and I didn’t know if he’d hurt him, so I tried to cooperate. He said we were leaving, and I knew I had to stall. I asked where Isa’s boys were, and he said two left, but the other he’d chloroformed and left in his room. I demanded to see Demir for myself, and he allowed it. Demir was unconscious on his bed, but he didn’t seem hurt. Mancini actually bragged that he hadn’t hurt Demir to get back at Isa.

“He said we had to go, but I kept asking questions. He said things that honestly made me believe he’d murdered his two previous omegas, and that he’d also pushed his brother Renny down the stairs to hurt him on purpose. I was terrified to leave with him. Then Layne started to cry and I took a long time changing his diaper. But Layne kept crying, so I asked to make him a bottle, and Mancini was agitated, but he let me. All I knew was I needed to stall for as long as possible. If we got in that car, I’d never see my family again.”

Liam took a long time to write the next few lines, his insides shaking to pieces, unable to look anywhere except his lap as Tarek read them out loud.

“Layne finished his bottle, and Mancini wanted to leave, and I couldn’t think of any other way to stall him. In my heart, I knew I had to stall, to keep us in that house, so I offered the only thing I thought would work. A blow job. But he threatened to shoot Demir, so I couldn’t hurt him, only do it. And it backfired, because Mancini got aggressive. Knocked me to the ground and kissed me and started taking off my clothes. I fought as hard as I could. He touched me and tried to get me on my stomach, but the doorbell rang before it went further.”

The anger pouring off the three alphas in the room made Liam shrink back against the bed, tears rolling down his cheeks. He hid his face in the pillow, horrified by what he’d admitted. His actions had seemed logical at the time, and he had stalled until those patrolmen could show up, but goddess, what if Isa was angry with him? He couldn’t stand it if his mate looked at him differently, knowing another alpha had touched him so intimately. Knowing Liam had been the one to initiate it.

“Little one,” Isa said, his voice soothing and warm. “Look at me, my heart, please.”

Liam allowed one eye to peek out, and while Isa did look furious, he also looked horribly upset, and that wouldn’t do. He hated seeing his alpha upset, so Liam did the only thing he could think of: opened his uninjured arm. Isa drew him to his chest, muscled arms holding him tight while Liam sobbed into his neck.

“I love you so much,” Isa said. “So, so much, and nothing will change that, I promise.”

“I offered. How can you not be mad at me?”

“Shh. You were doing everything in your power to protect yourself and your son. I have no doubt in my mind that if you’d gotten into a car with him, he’d have gotten away with you. You wouldn’t have caused an accident with Layne in the car. I’d have spent the rest of my life hunting him down, but he could have done so much worse.”

Liam’s heart already knew those things were true, but hearing Isa say it out loud helped him accept them. Accept that everything he’d done had been in self-defense, nothing more. Isa handed him a tissue, and Liam got himself under control. Underhill and Tarek had moved a few yards away, giving them some privacy. They returned when Liam indicated he was ready to finish his story.

He told them about the patrolmen ringing the bell, Liam lying, and then Mancini getting agitated when they didn’t drive away. Mancini punching and kicking him, which made Isa growl long and low. Taking Layne as a shield when he went to kill the patrolmen, only to be chased back inside by Isa’s arrival. Liam’s frantic attempt to save his baby by offering to go with Mancini willingly.

“In the moment, I resigned myself to a horrible life with him somewhere else, away from everyone I loved. And I was scared he’d bring Layne anyway, but once we reached the car, he put Layne down in a yard, and we drove away. The farther we got, the more desperate I was to get away. I didn’t want to die, but the thought of a life with him was too horrid to accept. So I stabbed him the gut with a pen, and then yanked the wheel so we’d hit a tree. I don’t remember anything else until the ambulance.”

“Thank you, Liam,” Underhill said.

A thought occurred to Liam, and he was amazed he hadn’t asked yet. “Is Mancini alive?”

“He’s in ICU,” Isa replied. “The pen you stabbed him with perforated his bowels, and he had other impact injuries from the accident. A head injury, too, I think. If he lives to stand trial, it won’t be for a long time.”

Liam shivered. He hated the idea of taking a human life, but he wouldn’t shed any tears if Mancini died, alone and haunted by his crimes. Except in Mancini’s eyes, everything he’d done was justified, because he truly believed Liam was his mate. And in the most basic way, perhaps he was. But they hadn’t been bondmates, and in Liam’s heart, mind, soul, and in the eyes of the law, Liam and Layne belonged with Isa Higgs. Period.

“This statement is enough for now,” Underhill said. “If I have questions or need additional clarification, I’ll let you know. In the meantime, rest and heal, Mr. Liam. You’ve been through an ordeal, but you reacted with courage and cunning to save yourself. Well done.”

The unexpected praise from the older alpha made Liam blush. “Thank you, sir.”

“Rest well, Liam,” Tarek said.

The pair left, and Liam relaxed a bit more, grateful this ordeal was finished. Isa repositioned Layne on his own lap so he could scoot onto the bed with Liam, his right arm cushioning Liam’s head, while his left wrapped around his family from the front. He kissed Liam’s temple, hot breath fanning across his skin. They sat like that for a moment, simply existing in each other and their mingled scents.

“Think I could sneak into ICU and chop off his hands for touching you?” Isa asked.

Maybe it was inappropriate, but Liam laughed out loud. “Pretty sure the nursing staff would have a problem with that. I love the sentiment though.”

“Are you doing all right with it? I know it’s hard to talk about.”

Liam turned his face into Isa’s shirt. “I don’t know. It happened so fast. All I could think about was getting away, but he was stronger than me. If those patrolmen hadn’t rung when they did…he would have raped me, Isa. I know he would have, but wouldn’t it have been my fault for offering the blow job at all?”

“No. Hush about that, no. No matter the circumstances, you offered a blow job, nothing more. Whether you were a hostage, on a date, or having sex with your mate, that’s what you consented to. Nothing else was your fault, little one. He tried to take from you, and I want to kill him for that.”

The fierceness in Isa’s voice helped reinforce his words; it made them easier for Liam to believe. “I was so scared to tell you. I knew better in my heart, but my terrified brain thought you’d blame me, or see me as tainted.”

“Hey.” Isa tapped his chin until Liam met his steady gaze. “Have I ever judged you for having Mancini’s child? Knowing how Layne was created?”

“No.”

“Then why on earth would you think I’d blame or judge you for this? Mancini is a sociopath and a predator, and he forced himself into your life, not once, but twice. He is to blame for all of this. And knowing what he did to you…you are so fucking strong, Liam. You’re a survivor, and I am in awe of your strength, your intelligence, and your instincts. You saved your son, and you saved yourself.”

Liam’s heart kicked heart with love and gratitude. He pulled Isa’s head down for a long, claiming kiss, putting the taste of his alpha back on his tongue where it belonged. It helped wash away what Mancini had done, the memory of his hands in intimate places, his flesh in Liam’s mouth. And all he knew for a long time was Isa Higgs. His alpha. His mate.

His hero.

My heart.