"Come with us," Gail shouted back.
Mia shook her head. "If I do, they'll raid the house looking for me. We'll all die. Now go save that pup."
Gail didn't waste any more time arguing. She grabbed both of Paige's hands and helped the pregnant omega to her feet, practically dragging her inside. The front door slammed behind them just as the helicopter arms hit the ground.
Mia took a defiant stance as the black matte doors slid open, and six heavily armed soldiers jumped out. She knew there was no point in running. These men would happily shoot her in the back. If she was going to die, she would meet her death head on.
But the soldiers weren't alone. Another man stepped out with them, a tall figure that Mia knew well.
"Father," she muttered in disbelief.
What the hell was he doing here?
Her father may have been a devious and diabolical bastard, but he wasn't reckless. He wouldn't have come here unless there was a damn good reason.
She crossed her arms and waited.
A part of her still hoped he'd come to apologize, to beg her forgiveness, and tell her that everything was all right. That old pathetic fantasy shattered the second he stepped out of the shadows and into the sunlight, and she saw the hard, calculating look in his eyes.
"So it's true," he said with disgust. "You've turned."
Anger rose inside Mia. He made it sound like she was milk that had been left out on the counter all night.
"And you want me dead." She figured there was no point beating around the bush.
The line of his mouth tightened.
"I never wished for that, dear," he said. "I was hoping that the FBI agent who came to my office spouting wild accusations was mistaken about your nature."
Yeah, right. Mia didn't believe that for a second.
"But he wasn't," Mia said, matching his icy tone. "So…?"
Her father's eyes narrowed. "So, now I'm here to do what has to be done. What others were too weak to do."
Mia didn't expect to see any regret or sadness in his grey eyes, and she wasn't disappointed. No doubt, he was saving all of those emotions for the press conference.
"You're not here to do a damn thing," she said.
There was no doubt that her father was a ruthless bastard, but he never got blood on his own hands. Ever. He always arranged things so no blame would ever stick to him.
So why was here at all?
Mia knew it wasn't out of some misguided sense of responsibility or guilt. Her father didn't experience those emotions.
"That's true," her father acknowledged. "These men will."
Mia shook her head. Deep down, she knew that wasn't going to happen. Ty had made her a promise. And she knew that he would keep it. He would never let anyone hurt her.
"Hurt me, and you'll be signing your own death warrant," she spat. "Ty won't sleep until he pulls the bones from your body."
"Ty?" Her father laughed. "That must be your mongrel's name."
"My alpha," Mia said. "And there's no way he's going to let any of you walk out of here."
"Oh, I'm sure he'll try to save you," her father said. "Actually, I'm counting on it."
Mia narrowed her eyes. She didn't like the sound of that. "You were counting on being torn apart?"
"Hardly," her father sniffed. "I may not be as intimately acquainted with alphas as you, dear, but I do know that they will always come panting after their sluts."
"I'm not a slut," Mia said through gritted teeth. Such words from her father would once have stung. Now, she threw them back in his face. "I am his mate. His wife."
Her father shook his head. "Not as far as the voters of our great state are concerned. Poll after poll has shown that they strongly disapprove of your behavior."
"My 'behavior'?" Mia echoed indignantly. She hadn't chosen any of this. No omega did. This was how she was born. It was her nature. Who she was meant to be.
Her father continued as though she hadn't spoken.
"So much that I've lost seventeen points in the latest opinion polls. Even your return home and successful conversion therapy are projected to only bring back five of those points. But…" The smile that stole over his face was as brittle as glass. "If you were lost entirely, perhaps killed by a jealous lover who would rather snap your neck than have you leave him in a failed rescue attempt—well, then I actually gain twenty points. Twenty-two if you die in my arms."
Mia waited for her father's threat to sink in, for his rejection to wound her as it always had. But all she felt was contempt. For her entire life, she had feared her father, but now she felt only a growing urge to strike back, to make him feel a fraction of the pain that he had caused her.
A bitter laugh escaped her. No one got to tell Mia that her life was only worth twenty-two approval points.
"Father, this is the last time I'm going to warn you. You need to leave before Ty gets here."
"I'm not going anywhere."
"I know you think you have this all planned out," Mia said, "but this isn't D.C. You're not in control here."
Her father's lip curled in disgust. "Don't be ridiculous. These men have automatic rifles and thousands of rounds. Your rabid dogs don't even believe in weapons."
"That's because they don't need them," Mia said, suddenly tired of the conversation. "I'll make this simple. If you don't get back on those helicopters now, you and all these men are going to die."
Some of the soldiers standing in front of her father shifted slightly on their feet. Mia might not have an alpha's heightened senses, but even she could see that they were nervous.
Their eyes darted into the woods, around the corner of the house, behind the helicopter, knowing that Ty and the other alphas weren't far away.
In fact, they should have been here already.
For a brief second, Mia worried that
