Alpha Male (25 page)

"Excuse me!" Omega said, speaking to everyone around. The people all looked up at him, and moved closer in order to hear.

"I know you've come rely on me, but my time with you is almost over. I'm sorry, I wish I could stay, but it's not safe for you if I do." His words caused a ripple of upset chatter amongst the people below. Omega stood there in silence until it died down. "Once again, I'm sorry. I've come to care about all of you, and that's why I must do this."

After his words resonated through the crowd, he stepped back, and turned away. He walked back into the chamber, and disappeared from sight. Alpha took this as his time to leave, disappearing into one of the tunnels.

*****

Rose sat at her desk, her shoulders slumped, and her head down. Her thin hand was showing its age as it gripped the glass of an untouched drink. The amber liquor sat stagnant at the bottom, glistening from the light of her desk lamp. She huffed, releasing a large breath and took her first sip.

A knock at the door spurred her into action. She took the drink and hid it below her waist and said, "Come in."

"That shit you drink," Mac said as he came in the room. "There's no point in hiding it. The whole room smells like it." She let out a weak laugh and placed the glass back on the desk.

"So, what do you want?" she said, flipping open a few files.

"You sulking over losing a prime lead?" he asked, as he pulled out the chair and sat in it.

"That, and a few other things," she said, looking away.

"Look, it's not that bad," Mac said. "He’ll turn up again. Besides, we are winning this thing. The gangs seem to be slinking back into their hiding places."

"He left," she said, her eyes staring at the desk. .

"What?" Mac asked.

"He left. He uh…my husband. He went to go stay with his parents until things calm down here."

"Calm down?” Mac asked, leaning forward in his seat with a look of genuine concern on his face.

"Yeah, all this superhero/villain bullshit," she said, and took a drink. Her face was a crumbling dam, holding back a torrent of emotion. He could see the cracks forming, but she held fast her resolve. "I may have said some things while he was leaving."

"Not you," Mac said. He was shooting for a laugh from her, but got a slight smirk instead.

"Yeah," she said. “I don't know. Things have been bad for a while, I guess I just didn't expect him to ever go."

"Yeah, I felt that way with my first wife," Mac said, looking away for a quick second; his shame showing through. He looked up again. "I'm better off now, you know?"

"Yeah, she was a bit of a cunt," Rose said, a smile creeping across her lips.

"Hey!" he said, with a chuckle. "Yeah, she really was."

They shared another short laugh, before her phone rang.

"What?"

"I know where our guy is," Alpha said. "But, I need something. If I don't get it, I can't help you."

Her eyes went wide and she shooed Mac out of the room.

"What is it?" she asked.

"I need him. He may know something about me; my identity. I need access to him before anyone else."

"What is this?" she asked. "Why are you doing this?"

"Because I want you to be a part of this, but I can't risk it. If he knows who I am…I can't let that information get out."

"So, it's this, or nothing?" she asked, and swallowed most of her drink with a gulp.

"Yes," he replied. "This, or nothing."

"OK, so where is he?" she asked.

Chapter Thirty-one.

Reedy and Irene sat in her car eating junk food. They both had their eyes locked on the building across the street. An old faded blue sign above the door said, Horizon Star Laboratories. Reedy watched the place with his binoculars while stuffing a powdered donut into his mouth.

"I'm fucking bored," he said, with his mouth full.

"Try and eat with your mouth closed," she said, nipping at her own food, taking small dainty bites of the bear claw.

Reedy sneered, hoping she wouldn't see.

"This stake out has been the worst." Reedy said, taking a large sip of his drink.

"Yes, it has. Why are we doing this again?"

"Because, I'm certain that he's here." Reedy said.

"How can you be so certain?" she asked.

"The place still has power and water. And, it's less than a mile from where he was first seen. This has to be his hide out."

"His lair?" she asked, snickering.

"I don't get it," Reedy said.

"Bad guys have lairs," she said. "Haven't you seen a James Bond movie before?"

Reedy shook his head. “His lair then.”

"So, why would he use this place as his lair?" she asked. "I mean, he set the place up under his real name."

"I don't know, I guess because he's changed his name so many times. Maybe he thought no one would figure it out."

"Yeah, maybe," she said. "What does Guerra think about all this?"

"Um, she doesn't know yet," he said.

Irene jerked her head around to face him. "What do you mean? You haven't told her?"

"I was going to tell her when we had some more information," he said. "Something concrete, you know?"

Irene turned the key, cranking the engine. Her hand slapped down on the shifter, but she paused and looked at Reedy again. "We can't do this. We're leaving."

"Look, just wait. Let’s wait it out, OK? This could be the biggest break in this case. I can't ask for warrant yet. Not until I get more to work with. But I will as soon as we do."

Irene paused for a second, and then shifted the car into drive.

*****

Rose, Alpha, and Blake stood around a long table in the precincts conference room. Propped up, they looked down at the ancient blue prints of the abandoned subway terminal.

"Most of the entrances have been blocked off. Only two are still open. Here, and here," he said pointing at the tunnels.

"So what's the plan?" she asked, stepping back.

"Well, we've been talking and we think Alpha should offer a diversion," Blake said, pointing. "The roof here is flush with the ground, so he could crash in, and during the chaos, we'll send our people in to stop them from escaping. We'll have both exits blocked, so they'll have no chance for escape."

"What if the debris crushes someone," Rose said.

"The entry point is under an elevated platform, so the debris will fall there. We’ll use thermal imaging to make sure it's clear before we go." Blake turned a looked at her. "These people are terrorists, but we don't want any unnecessary casualties if we can help it."

"So, what's next?" Rose asked.

"We are just waiting on you to give us the go ahead," Blake said.

"Are you OK with all this?" she asked Alpha.

"Yeah, this needs to end now," he replied.

"OK," Blake said. "I'm going to get my men ready. We'll have the thermal imaging set up within a few hours. Let’s end this. I'm ready to go home; put this shit behind us."

He left the room, rushing out the door and down the hall. Rose and Alpha stood there for a moment in silence, staring at the blue print.

"If our little deal gets found out, it's over for both of us. You know this right?"

"I do," he said.

"I haven't decided yet, but this might be the end of our arrangement. After this, depending on how it goes, I don't think I want you around anymore. You can do your thing in this city, but I don’t want anything to do with you.”

He opened his mouth to speak, but didn’t. Instead, he nodded his head, and walked out. She watched as he left, giving him enough time to leave before heading to her office.

*****

Al hung up his mask, placing it on a bent nail hammered into the concrete wall. As he pulled off his shirt, he felt Ivy's hands running over his stomach and chest. After it was over his head, he let it fall to the floor. He turned, encircled in her arms. Their lips met, and he pulled her close.

"Running the streets again?" she asked, looking him in the eyes.

"Yeah," he said. "I think it’s over. There were only a few Omegas out there. We can leave soon."

"The police were on the news taking credit for that," she said.

"That's OK," he said. He walked over to the cot and sat down. "It doesn't matter."

"I just hate that people don't see you like I do," she said, sitting beside him.

"I was out there tonight, helping people. There was this young kid; they were beating him senseless. He thanked me when it was over, and I realized that I should have been doing this all along. I'm going to start helping people. Where ever we end up."

"What if he finds you?" she asked, her hand grasping his.

"That's something I'm willing to risk," he said. "I need to do this."

"OK," she said. "I understand."

Chapter Thirty-Two.

Reedy woke up in his car with a terrible spasm in his neck. His hand clasped his neck and began to rub the pain out as he watched the sun come up over the warehouse. The cellphone in his pocket began to vibrate. He groaned as he fished it out.

"Good morning, baby," he said, taking a sip of the cold coffee in the cup holder.

"Where are you? I missed you last night," Hope said.

"I slept in the car last night," he said. "I missed you too."

"Are you coming home soon?"

He looked at his watch, then looked at the warehouse. "I don't…yes. I'll be home soon. I love you."

He hung up the phone, and opened the door. With a massive stretch, he yawned and then peed next to the tire. Looking around, he crossed the street and made his way towards the warehouse.

The tall building was off-white with metal paneling and no windows. He slid around the bent chain link fence and made his way to the back. There was one locked door marked with a no trespassing sign. Reluctant, he grabbed the handle and rested there for a moment. It was cool on his hand as he thought about his next action. He tried to pull it open, but nothing happened. He exhaled and started to hit it, but stopped himself.

As he walked back to his car, his phone rang. It was Rose. He hit the accept button and held it up to his ear.

"Where are you?" she asked.

"I'm, ugh," he started, but she cut him off.

"It doesn't matter. We got the fucker. If you want in, I need you to get here as soon as possible."

He turned back and looked at the building, his eyes lingering on it for a moment. "OK, I'll be there soon."

*****

The midday sun hung over them, casting its warmth like a quilted blanket. Rose, Alpha, and Blake, stood behind the barricades, looking at the tall hotel building they were about to infiltrate. Behind them, vehicles pulled up and parked, dumping soldiers and police officers out onto the streets.

"I didn't even know this was here," Rose said. "It took us forever to even find the original plans and permits from where they shut this old terminal down."

"Yeah," Blake said.  "Apparently when you are a rich-as-hell hotel owner, you can pay officials to shut down unsightly subway terminals beneath your building."

"Are you sure, you want me breaking through the ceiling to get down there?" Alpha asked.

"This guy is fast and powerful," Blake said. "The simple fact that he's stayed hidden for so long shows us that he's probably not stupid either. A surprise attack might be the best approach."

"OK," Alpha said, staring at the spot he'd have to destroy in order to get down below.

"For once," Rose said, placing her hand on his shoulder with a pat. "We're giving you permission to destroy something. Enjoy it."

Alpha sneered.

"Touchy," she said.

"Let’s get this over with," he said.

Alpha walked over to the entry point and knelt down. His hand slide over the smooth concrete, feeling the perfect surface. It was cool beneath his touch. Like ice, the light bounced off its glossy surface and for an instant, he could see his face looking back up at him.

The people looked up from their shanties when the pounding started. Terrified, they watched, transfixed on one spot as more dust and debris fell from the ceiling with each sound. They muttered amongst each other, scared and bewildered. They gasped when the huge chunk gave way, and fell the ground. The sun poured in, a beam of powerful light that caused them to divert their eyes for a moment.

The screams started as the dark figure lowered itself into the terminal, using the light as a guide. The people scrambled about, trying to escape as Alpha Male levitated above them, his eyes scanning the scrambling crowd. They dispersed in every direction; frantic ants, desperate in their actions, crawling over each other to get away. Only a few stood their ground; the tired men and women too downtrodden to run.

*****

Ivy and Al were together when the raid started. Without thinking, he grabbed the mask, pulled it over his head, and headed down the tunnel towards the main terminal. He emerged to see Blake and his men rushing out of an adjacent tunnel, their guns aimed and ready. The chaos struck him, and a heavy feeling hit him in the chest. This lasted long enough for him to see Alpha staring at him with a smile made of gritted teeth.

Intense anger washed over Omega and he lost control. Before he knew what was happening, he lifted a piece of the debris with his mind and hurled it at the floating hero. The chunk smashed against Alpha, but left him unphased. Omega raised his arms to bring down the ceiling but Alpha didn't give him the chance. The flying hero collided with him like a bomb, blowing Omega back into the wall.

Alpha stood there in the dust, still smirking, as Omega pulled himself from the circular impact crater. Omega stumbled as he got up, putting his hand against the concrete wall for support. Out of the dust, Alpha’s fist shot him in the gut, taking the air from his lungs. Alpha reared back, and on instinct alone, Omega fired a powerful telekinetic blast that sent the hero through the wall. Omega coughed and collapsed, but forced himself to stand. Holding his stomach, he stepped through the hole.

On the ground, beneath a pile of rubble, Alpha’s legs moved. As Omega approached, the pile began to shift. Rocks tumbled to the floor until Alpha’s head and hands were clear. They made eye contact just before he exploded forth. Alpha hung in the air, fists clenched and mouth straight.