Alpha Awakened (Reaper Pack 84, #1)

Chapter 46

When they returned to base, Ice was sent directly to medical. Hazard, Ortiz, and Jax tagged along, crowding into the exam room with him. Ice settled on the exam table while his squad took up spots around the room.

His gear was already gone, taken when he was in the hands of the mercenaries. Now, Hazard helped him out of his shirt. Ice looked down. His torso was a colorful collage of fist-wide bruises and small burns from the stun gun.

Ortiz winced when she got a look at him.

“We’ll do an official debrief later, but what can you tell us about your time being held? I assume from those bruises that you were tortured.”

“Yeah, I was.” He lightly touched the biggest mark over his ribcage. “These are courtesy of Merc Number Five. But their interrogation was so half-assed I don’t know why they bothered.”

“Maybe that was the first time they’d interrogated anyone,” Jax suggested.

“Possibly. But I don’t think information was their main target. They took blood from me. Several vials of it. Plus, secretions from my scent gland.”

Ortiz’s eyebrows shot up in question. “Did they say why?”

Ice shook his head. “Negative.” He went on to explain that he suspected that the doctor who’d come was either current or former military and an American by the sound of him.

“That’s interesting,” Ortiz said thoughtfully.

“I thought so too.”

“You said Merc Number Five. How many were there total?” Hazard asked.

“Six, including the leader. Then the doctor and his assistant came in. If there was anyone else involved, I never saw them.”

“They were slippery bastards,” Ortiz said. “They all fled the second we were on site.”

Jax nodded. “Yep. Didn’t engage with any of them except for the one that Hazard got his teeth into. I called him off so we could get to you and he hauled ass out of there the second Hazard let him go.”

“The bastard is lucky I didn’t kill him,” Hazard said with a hint of angry growl to his tone.

“He’ll have some nice scars to remember you by for the rest of his life.”

“Good.”

There was a quick knock on the door. It opened and a doctor walked in. An older beta with salt and pepper hair, wearing a green uniform with a blue med staff band around his upper right arm, and a stethoscope around his neck. A confused frown creased his brow when he noted the presence of the other 448 members.

“Uh... Examinations are private,” he said politely. He stood there holding the door open in a clear gesture for them to exit the room.

None of Ice’s squadmates moved.

“We’re not leaving, Doc,” Hazard said.

At that declaration, the doctor looked to Ice.

Surprised and... touched that his team wanted to remain by his side, he gave the doctor permission for them to stay. “It’s fine. Go ahead with the examination.”

The doctor could have followed protocol and banished the rest of the 448 from the exam room. But he seemed kind and understanding. With an amused smile shining in his denim blue eyes, he shut the door. This doctor was a lot different than the mystery doctor with his cold green eyes. He pulled on a pair of gloves and got started with Ice’s exam while three soldiers loomed over him watching his every move. Ortiz and Jax were tense while Hazard looked ready to attack if Ice so much as tightened a muscle in discomfort.

“Looks like they worked you over pretty good,” he said as he gently prodded Ice’s bruises. “Tools?”

“Fists and a stun gun.”

“Did you pass out or feel irregular heartbeat when you were stunned?”

“No. They were light with it.”

“Felt like a tickle?”

Ice snorted a laugh. “Exactly.”

“Well, let’s check your heart anyway.”

A cold stethoscope was pressed to Ice’s chest. Ice sat calmly while the doctor listened to his heart. Then he moved the stethoscope to his back.

“Sounds good,” he said, looping the stethoscope back around his neck. He moved on to pressing on Ice’s ribs, checking for broken bones. He directed Ice to inhale and exhale while he watched.

“No pain when you breathe?”

Ice shook his head.

“Relatively speaking, you’re in good shape. Shifter healing has certainly helped. Anything else I should be aware of?”

“I didn’t eat while I was held. And they drew blood and took fluid from my scent gland.”

“Let’s check that out.”

Ice held out his arm for the doctor to look at the withdrawal site. They hadn’t bothered to put a bandage on the spot to stop the bleeding so there was a small crust of blood on his arm. The doctor wiped it clean with an alcohol pad.

“This is fine. They were good with a needle.”

He let go of Ice’s arm and moved to touch his scent gland with his gloved fingers.

Ice instantly flinched away. His lips peeled back from his teeth, baring his fangs in a silent snarl.

The doctor froze with his hands in the air above Ice’s collarbone, his eyes wide with surprise.

“Sorry, Doc.” Ice forced himself to relax. “Just don’t touch me there right now.”

He flicked a quick glance at Hazard. The omega looked concerned but Ice couldn’t explain his reaction just then. He only knew that he couldn’t handle anyone touching his mating gland again. Ice pulled in a deep inhale. He breathed in Hazard’s scent. The familiar smell of apples was laced with traces of worry and anger. With that scent in his nose, Ice adjusted his line of thought. He didn’t want anyone who wasn’t Hazard touching his mating gland.

The doctor looked at Hazard too. A smile briefly deepened the creases at the corner of his eyes. “Understood,” he said as he dropped his hands. “Visually the gland appears to be fine. No swelling or irritation. The amount they withdrew will naturally replenish. But if you start noticing any adverse reactions in the area, swelling or pain, I want you to come and see me immediately.”

Ice nodded. “Will do.”

“You’re good to go.” The doctor pulled off his gloves. He went over to one of the cabinets and took out a small blue jar. He handed it to Hazard. “Apply that salve to your bruises until they’re gone. Regularly ice them as well. Get some rest, eat, and you should be good as new in a couple of days.”

“Thanks, Doc.” Ortiz said.

“Of course, Major.”

The doctor left the room, dropping his gloves in the waste basket on the way out.

Ice slid off the exam table and shrugged back into his shirt. He rebuttoned it, but didn’t bother to tuck it in.

“You’re a lucky bastard, Captain. Getting captured by a group of mercs who didn’t know how to go deep with the interrogation tactics. Or maybe they were too scared of you to go whole hog with the torture,” Jax joked.

The others laughed, but Ice could smell the relief on them. They were all glad that he hadn’t been seriously hurt during his short captivity. So was he. He could have handled it, but he was glad he didn’t have to.

The four of them left the med center and headed back to their barracks. As they walked, Ortiz moved to be out in front. Hazard fell into place at Ice’s right side and Jax took the rear position watching his back.

Ice’s Instinct felt settled and secure being surrounded by his squad as they crossed the base. They’d come to rescue him and they were protecting him now. Maybe being part of a team wasn’t so bad after all.

* * *

After a quick shower, Ice had a simple but filling meal of meatloaf sandwiches and mashed potatoes, several glasses of water, and cookies for dessert. His belly full for the first time in days, Ice leaned back in his chair with a content sigh. Hazard and Jax teased him for how many sandwiches he ate, but he was too tired to do more than hit them with a side eye for their playful impertinence.

“We should all get to bed,” Ortiz said. “It’s been a rough and exhausting week.”

Everyone agreed and rose from the table. Before they left the kitchen, Ice called out to Jax and Ortiz.

“Thank you both for getting me out,” he said with sincere gratitude.

Jax reached over and clapped him on the shoulder.

“Of course. No way we were leaving you out there on your own.”

Ortiz didn’t speak. But she pressed her fist to Ice’s chest and nodded. Ice nodded in return.

The two alphas went to their bedrooms. Ice turned to go to his, with Hazard following behind him.

“How are you feeling?” Hazard asked once they were behind his closed bedroom door.

“Tired but not ready to sleep.”

“Do you want me to go?”

“No.” He reached out to grasp Hazard’s wrist even though he hadn’t made a move to leave. “I want you here with me.”

Hazard smiled softly. “Okay. It’s time to apply the salve. Sit down and take your shirt off.”

Ice followed Hazard’s order, watching as he opened the jar and scooped up a generous portion of the ointment on his fingers.

“You don’t have to fuss. I can do it.”

“I want to. I have to.” Hazard looked at Ice with green eyes that shimmered with emotion. “I need to make sure you’re safe and healing.”

At Hazard’s insistence that he wanted to care for him, both Ice’s heart and his Instinct pulsed, spreading a comforting warmth throughout his entire body. “Okay then. Have at it.”

Hazard knelt on the floor so he could better reach Ice’s torso. He began spreading the ointment on each of his bruises with slow, gentle fingers. Each touch felt like a caress that was able to heal just as much as the salve. As Hazard knelt there in front of him, his scent changed and became stronger. It sweetened as he began releasing soothing omega pheromones.

Ice sat there on the edge of the bed, feeling as if he were engulfed in a calming, sweetly scented cloud. As his mind and his body relaxed, releasing the last of the tension from his captivity, he thought that this is where he was meant to be - here with Hazard. But never having experienced any of this before, he had to question it.

“What are you doing to me?” he quietly asked.

Hazard looked up from his task. “Hopefully making you feel better. Let me know if it hurts.”

“That’s not what I mean.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean that I’ve never cared about having this kind of closeness with anyone. Never needed it or even thought about it. But with you, I want it.”

Hazard sat back on his heels. “Is that a bad thing?”

Ice took a moment to think about it. This new stage of his life was completely different from the past twenty-five years. Sharing this warm intimacy with another person — his person — was something he didn’t even know he was missing. Now, he would do anything to keep it. He shook his head before answering Hazard’s question. “No. It doesn’t feel bad. It feels good. You make me feel good.”

“That’s all I want to do,” Hazard said in a soft whisper. “If you’ll let me.”

Ice raised his hand to cup Hazard’s jaw in a tender hold. Hazard briefly let his eyes drift shut, nuzzling his face into Ice’s palm. “Yeah, I’ll let you. As long as you let me do the same for you.”

“I absolutely will.”

Ice’s heart thumped again. He might have to learn how, but he would do whatever was necessary to care for the omega kneeling in front of him.

Finished applying the ointment, Hazard rose and went into the bathroom to wash his hands clean.

“C’mon, let’s go to bed,” he said when he came back out. “The doctor said you need to rest.”

Ice was in agreement with that plan. Exhaustion pulling at his limbs, he took off the rest of his clothes down to his briefs, then stretched out on the bed. Hazard turned out the light and joined him after he undressed, sliding beneath the covers to cuddle up to him. Ice threw an arm over his waist, pulling him even closer.

They lay there in silence for a few moments before Hazard spoke in a low whisper.

“I’m glad you’re okay. When I heard you’d been taken, fear hit me so hard I thought I was going to lose my mind. I kept it together only because I knew I needed a clear head during the rescue.”

“When I was captured, I didn’t only think about escaping to get back to base. I thought about getting back to you,” Ice whispered back.

Hazard scooted up on the bed to press their foreheads together.

“I knew you’d hold on until I got to you.”

“And I knew you’d come.”

Ice moved that inch needed to bring their lips together in a kiss. It was soft, gentle. Cocooned together beneath blankets and in the dark, they continued to kiss, more in reassurance than with passion. Hazard broke away to leave kisses on Ice’s jawline and Ice tucked his face into the omega’s neck.

“You smell so good,” Ice said as he drew in a deep breath. With the scent of apples in his nose, a sudden realization hit him. “Headaches,” he said aloud.

Hazard pulled back. “You have a headache?” he asked in concern.

“No. I haven’t had them for a while.” He frowned. “I didn’t notice until now, but I haven’t had them since I started scenting you.”

“Wow. That’s...” Hazard went quiet for a moment before he spoke again. “Remember what I said that night we sat on the couch until your headache subsided? That our scent glands are part of our bodies for a reason and that scenting helps to soothe and calm us?”

Ice nodded. “Yeah.”

“I think your headaches were an example of that. You’d gone so long without scenting that your body learned to compensate without it. It was probably easy to do since you were around mostly humans. But once I started to scent Ortiz and Jax, your instinctual urge couldn’t be denied any longer. Your body was reacting, letting you know it was missing something with the headaches. And when you got what you needed, the headaches stopped.”

Logically, what Hazard said made sense. The timing matched up too well for it not to. There could be another reason, but he was okay with the theory that being close with Hazard had taken away his pain. “Is that your official diagnosis, Dr. Mitchell?”

Hazard laughed, soft and quiet. “Yes.”

“Hmmm.” Ice breathed in Hazard’s scent once more. “Who needs Excedrin when I have you around?”

They kissed once more before settling back down. It grew quiet. Hazard gently stroked up and down his arm and Ice let the rhythmic caress lull him into closing his eyes. Tucked into bed with his lover, Ice began to drift into sleep. Right before a black wave of exhaustion swept him under, a thought whispered in the back of his mind: Hazard wasn’t just his lover. He was his mate .