Chapter Text
We only have an hour.” He was rushed, in a collective panic, as he slammed the door behind him and grabbed your arm, not so gently pulling you toward his closet, as he started shoving clothes into a plain black duffle bag he was holding in his other hand.
“Frank-“ you were torn between curiosity and caution after Frank had called you over the phone telling you to meet him at his place without taking your phone with you.
You hadn’t questioned him; you knew enough about the alpha to recognize the surge of urgency; even through the phone, you could tell he was anxious. You knew, without certainty, that if Frank was addressing you with such obstinacy that it was a matter of something akin to imminent danger.
“No.” He cut you off, and you fell silent from the authority in his voice, the command that you had only heard once before from him. “Not now. You’ve been assigned to a pack, and they’re on their way. We have an hour before we have to leave.”
“An hour?” Your stomach flipped end over end, and you had felt as if it had been shocked by an electric current that obscured your senses. “How-“
“We,” he turned toward you and reached out to touch you, his hand coming to lay against your left cheek, “are leaving. I’ll keep you safe, I promise.”
“Frank, I can’t ask you to-“
“Stop.” He pleaded with you, his blue-green eyes searching your face as an emotional raggedness had settled over him. “You have to let me do this. Losing my sister-“
“Frank,“ You tried again, resting your hand on top of his, “your sister-“
“They are worse.” His fingers dug into your cheek, near to the point of pain. “My sister killed herself because of who they were going to send her to, and they are worse.”
Your voice became strained, your eyes widening at the idea that what his sister would have gone through had she remained would still be better than the fate they wanted you to fall to. Frank wasn’t just speaking from the experiences he had with his sister, but through the knowledge he acquired from his job as a social worker.
He had looked into the pack they had matched you with. He had looked into the group of men they wanted to be your alpha’s. He wasn’t supposed to be involved with that case, but through a favour that he was owed, he got copies of the necessary information and had based his judgement on their abhorrent idiosyncrasies that he would not share with you.
Not yet, at least.
“What do I need to do?” You asked, dropping your hands from his shoulders to his forearms, fear brazen in your eyes. “Frank, you’re going to help me…tell me what I need to do?”
He stepped closer to you and brushed the pad of his thumb across your bottom lip before he had pulled his hand from you and wiped a singular tear that was rolling down your cheek with his knuckle. He was studying you, remaining silent as his eyebrows furrowed and his lips formed a frown.
He was quiet, yet you felt that shift in his scent, the deepening emotional state that had heightened that inherent part of who he was, an alpha, that screamed at him to protect omegas.
“You’re going to get changed. I have clothes for you, some of mine.” He finally spoke, pulling away from you all together as he turned back to his closet and yanked a shirt from the hanger. “Remove all your clothes and put them in a trash bag. We’ll dump them when we’re across the state-line.”
“Where are we going to go? Where can we run?” You didn’t spare your modesty; you didn’t have time.
You ripped off your shirt and threw it on the bed before you grabbed the plain brown shirt he had thrown your way, yanking it over your head. As you pushed your arms through the sleeves, you were immediately covered and enveloped in the scent of alpha. Frank’s scent was comforting, and it was thick. It would mask your natural scent long enough to make anyone who had dared look for him unsure if you had ever been here. Even if they did come across your scent as an omega, they wouldn’t have found any clear evidence that you and Frank had spent any quantifiable time together.
“Put these on.” He glanced over his shoulder, his blue-green eyes hovering around the collar of his shirt that had looked more like a dress than anything.
You caught the pair of sweats he had thrown your way, clutching them in desperation before you sat upon the bed, the mattress sinking beneath you. You dropped the sweats to your right and then hooked your thumbs into the band of your simple black leggings, yanking them down to the curve of your backside, pulling yourself up enough to slip them down your hips and thighs before you sat again. You leaned over and pushed them further down your legs, feeling the simultaneous time crunch to get everything you needed and get out well within the hour.
“We’re going southeast. Florida.”
“Florida?” You questioned after you kicked your discarded leggings to the side. “Do you want to-“
“Florida,” Frank spoke again, this time with more force, ending any argument before it had a chance to begin. “Get dressed.”
When he was done packing all he needed to, he zipped up his duffle bag and settled the thick black strap over his shoulder. He had turned and glanced your way, his blue-green eyes studying you again as you sat there in silence with a far-off look in your eyes.
“You’re going to be fine.” He moved toward you and cupped your chin, tilting your head up. “Y/N, you’re going to be okay.”
“You’re going to be okay.” Those exact words he muttered to you three years ago in the bedroom of his old place were being muttered again.
‘You’re going to be okay’ was Frank’s trademark statement whenever there was the potential for a life-altering decision or ramification. You knew by the way he spoke, by the way, he clutched your hand that something was on the horizon that would cause yet another shift in your life, yet you didn’t think Frank Adler could work his way out of this one.
Not this time.
“Self-defence,” the words had fallen from the alpha lawyer that Frank had contacted before the door to the interrogation room was even closed, “on the account that an unmated omega, while not in the presence of an alpha, was being harassed and threatened with sexual assault-“
“Shit, Andy.” Frank cursed and squeezed your hand, glancing away from you toward the alpha dressed in a dark blue suit with a black tie. “Get it out.”
‘Andy Barber’ was the name Frank had given you after being arrested and charged with aggravated assault when the police were called. They had found you with blood on your hands and the knife not far off while the alpha in question was clutching his wound. You were cooperative, although you hardly had a choice, not when the slightest attempt at resistance would have resulted in more complications.
“An unmated omega,” Andy stepped toward the table and pulled out the chair tucked beneath, coming to sit on the other side, “who was already matched to a pack-“
“You know what they would’ve done,” Frank spoke in your defence; his hand that was clutching yours had moved toward your knee, settling your bouncing appendage.
“So you ran for three years only to come back home and then find yourself,” Andy lifted his head from the files and locked eyes with you, “in trouble because an alpha was in a rut and an omega was unaccompanied.”
You broke eye contact and looked away, choosing to focus your attention on the juncture where the interrogation room walls met. You decided to focus on the seamless junction instead of the alpha beside you and the alpha in front of you, the two equally handsome and eye-catching in their way.
Frank, due to the craziness of your lives as it stood, had appeared to be run down and guff. His hair had grown longer and had added to the nature of his gruff appearance. His five o’clock shadow was on the cusp of becoming a thicker beard, yet it seemed as if it could not come to fruition.
Andy Barber, on the other hand, was an alpha who didn’t appear to be as gruff or put of sorts as Fran had. His hair was thick and had been styled in a way that misconstrued its actual length, and like Frank, he had facial hair, although he sported a beard that was well maintained and cared for.
Opposed to Frank’s loose-fitting plain cotton t-shirt, Andy was wearing a white button-down dress shirt with a black tie beneath a dark blue suit that complimented and brought out the dark flecks in his blue eyes. The suit and the button-down dress shirt hadn’t obstructed the strength that Andy Barber possessed in its entirety. Yet, you knew that there were likely layers of muscles and broad shoulders beneath the fabric that made him a capable and intimidating alpha without exuding such toxicity.
“It was self-defence.” You finally spoke for yourself, turning back to look at the alpha across the table, your eyes locking.
“I know it was self-defence, and you have a sold case.” Andy glanced toward Frank, a silent communication occurring between the two that was exchanged by subtle glances.
“But..?” You turned your head and side-eyed Frank. “But what..?”
“Y/N,” Frank reached for your hand again, “you’re unmated. They’re going to send agents from the OAD, and they’re going to assign you to a pack.”
“Unless you find one first.” Andy clarified, leaning back against his chair. “If you can find a pack-“
“No. No, I don’t…no.” you shook your head, your emotional state adding to the tension that had started building in the room.
“You don’t get a choice, honey.” Frank let the endearment slip, his thumb brushing against your knuckles. “You need to be assigned a pack or find one-“
“I don’t want one! I don’t want to be forced into a role of some subservient-“ your voice hitched in your throat as a reality you didn’t like was on the horizon.
“Y/N they’re not going to give you-“
“Frank, please!” You begged him, turning toward him. “Please! You know what you were helping me run from. They can’t-“
“You trust me, Frank?” Andy had spoken again, drawing all the attention toward him.
“You know I do.” His voice was quiet, subdued. “And Y/N trusts me.”
“What are you going to do?” You felt your heart clenching at the very thought of being torn away from Frank.
He was protecting you. He was keeping you safe for three years, and the idea of losing him…
“We can make a pack,” Andy spoke slowly, softly. He was easing your anxieties much as Frank had. “You and Frank, and myself.” He was offering a solution, the lesser of evil. You would still be mandated to be in a pack, but at least you wouldn’t be in inherent danger.
“They’ve assigned her six, Andy. The OAD has marked it in every file possible, on every record that she needs to be in a pack with six alpha’s.” Frank sounded exasperated, he said, drained entirely, and your heart ached for him. He was doing all he could, he was doing everything in his power to keep you safe and out of harm, and it was draining to him.
“I have connections, Frank. I know alpha’s, good alpha’s who have spent their lives and their careers defending and protecting omegas.” Andy reached for his pen and a slip of paper resting on the table. He had grabbed both and started writing on the plain white sheet before he slid it toward Frank and then slipped the pen back in his pocket.
“That’s a safe-house the two of you can go to until you hear from me. It’ll take a few days, but the next time we talk, we should have everything in order.” Andy first looked at Frank, and then you. “I’ll handle the charges, and they’ll be dropped; in the meantime, try to stay out of trouble.”