AO Couples Stay at Half Price

007

Why him again?!

A wave of alarm hit Annie, and then a large hand pressed down on her forehead.

Arthur reached back, grabbed the hood covering her hair, and yanked it down, hiding her exposed eyes as well.

"Why you again." Arthur said bluntly.

The red-medal officer let out a laugh.

"What a coincidence," the officer tipped his red cap brim, "Charles Lang—nice to see you again, little brother."

With that, he extended his right hand and winked: "You healed up quick—not even a mark left on your face."

Arthur: "…"

He was referring, of course, to when Charles Lang had pistol-whipped Arthur across the face at the checkpoint.

Arthur narrowed his eyes. "…Arthur."

Still not sure what was going on, Arthur chose to play it by ear. He barely touched Charles Lang's right hand as a token handshake.

But accepting the handshake didn't mean he wouldn't provoke. The metallic burning scent spread and evaporated quickly. Annie's nose was pressed right against the gland on the back of Arthur's neck, and she nearly choked on a cough.

An Alpha's pheromones could express emotion better than any action or words.

Yet Charles Lang seemed not to smell it at all. He raised a smile: "A pleasure."

He's a Beta? No way, Annie peeked through the gap in the hood at the officer's beaming face.

At the checkpoint, he'd clearly pointed out that she wasn't marked, so he could smell pheromones.

And Arthur's pheromones were so strong they'd provoke any passing Alpha into a full-blown rage.

But this officer had no reaction—strange man.

Annie filed that away mentally.

"Found a place to stay yet?" Charles Lang asked with concern. "If you haven't booked ahead, I'll put you up at a hotel—consider it fate."

No way!

There was something off about Charles Lang's attitude. Whatever his motives, if they got tangled up with "Twilight," any operation would become impossible.

Annie tensed instantly.

Her glasses were still silently tracking and catching the Resistance's signals. The coordinates flashing on the map moved step by step. During the conversation, a few signals that had scattered in different directions looped around and converged on the same location.

They'd run in the opposite direction—Annie and Arthur had come from exactly there.

The glasses, having finished scanning, automatically flagged the address.

"We've, we've already booked a hotel," Annie lifted the hood a crack, revealing a pair of eyes, and spoke softly, "It's the Dreamlight Hotel, uh—"

Her mind raced, the words already out before the glasses belatedly popped up the photo she'd just taken.

Sector C, No. 32. A garish elevator lobby led straight upstairs. Below the second-floor window hung a hot pink photo with four big characters: Dreamlight Hotel. Beside it were painted flirtatious red lips and a sexy lingerie pattern.

Below that, a sign was hung especially: AO couples stay at half price.

Annie lay propped on Arthur's shoulder and couldn't help breaking a sweat: no wonder "Twilight" could never find a lead.

Who'd have thought the Free Resistance's secret base would be a couples hotel!

Charles Lang froze for a moment, then burst out laughing.

"You came prepared after all," Charles gave Arthur a thumbs up. "Nice one, brother—that's the most famous couples hotel in the whole City of the Radiant Sun!"

With that, he warmly clapped Arthur's shoulder, closing the distance.

"You up for it? If not, I've got plenty of meds here—even if you're impotent, they'll have you back to full vigor in no time! Try it, on me." Charles Lang said cheerfully.

Annie: "…"

Arthur: "…………"

Annie, propped on his shoulder, felt her forehead throb again.

Arthur, meanwhile, glanced expressionlessly past Charles Lang.

Thirty-two soldiers, thirty armed, two of them likely clerks. There was also an overturned armored vehicle on the street they could take cover behind—tch!

Two-thirds of his unfolding plan was cut off by a sharp pain exploding at the back of his neck.

An Alpha's gland was sensitive too—not the Omega way where it went weak at a touch, but the perception of threat, restraint, and attack instantly roared through Arthur's mind.

His whole body stiffened, and he barely suppressed the urge to throw Annie to the ground.

Damn Omega!

But with Annie attacking him like that, Arthur calmed down.

Taking on thirty-two soldiers, including this Charles Lang, was nothing for Arthur Kane.

But the little Omega on his back would definitely be mowed down by gunfire.

He still needed her to find the Resistance's base, so he couldn't make a move.

Seeing him stay silent, Charles Lang grew even more pleased.

He swiped his wristband against Arthur's personal terminal, forcing his contact info onto it.

Then the red-medal officer reached out again, playfully patting Annie's shoulder. "I'll have someone send it over to you! Go on, go on—there's nothing worth watching at a body collection."

Arthur clenched his jaw, forcibly suppressing the killing intent surging up.

As he turned to leave, Annie felt like she was about to be jolted off with his long strides.

Thank goodness!

At the same time, she breathed a sigh of relief: at least she'd reined in this mad dog.

Because of the gunfire, the surrounding crowd had already dispersed, so the road was less crowded when they left.

But once they turned back onto the old street, Arthur went straight right, leading Annie off the main road and into an alley.

The dead-end alley was shaded by a canopy overhead from the blazing sun.

With no one around, Annie jumped straight off his back.

"That guy's got a problem," Annie frowned. "Running into him once is a coincidence, twice is—what?"

Arthur bent down without a word.

He was tall, and his frame nearly filled the narrow road. His broad shoulders and back bore down on Annie like a mountain toppling over.

The height gap put Annie instinctively on guard, and then Arthur yanked off her hood.

Her long black hair spilled over her shoulders. His knuckles, sharply defined, reached into the hood and touched Annie's tailbone.

Through the thin fabric, his fingertips traced up along her spine. His pressure sent a shiver shooting straight to her skull. Annie stepped back half a pace, and then Arthur grabbed her by the waist.

"Don't move," he warned.

Annie certainly didn't think Arthur was taking advantage, but…

She tensed her expression slightly, suppressing a flutter of unease.

The back of her neck was faintly warm, and the scent of lemon leaf pheromones spread between them.

Not being affected by pheromones didn't mean Annie was indifferent to being touched.

"What's wrong?" she asked in a low voice.

Arthur's large hand finally came to rest at her shoulder and neck, his thumb hooking into her inner lining.

He didn't let go, but his exploring hand withdrew—a mechanical bug the size of half a thumbnail lying in Arthur's palm.

Annie was stunned: "This…what kind of antique is this?!"

Insect-shaped locators had been completely obsolete for thirty years. The last time Annie had seen one was in history class.

Arthur sneered.

Seeing how shocked she was—did she really think everyone was like the Galactic Empire's intellectuals, enjoying the most advanced technology in the whole galaxy?

When Charles Lang had reached out the first time, Arthur had suspected he was planting something.

The mechanical bug was still squirming belly-up in his palm. Arthur clenched his fist—

"Wait!"

Annie jumped straight up.

The guy had his arm raised, so she had to stand on tiptoe, her fingers slipping into Arthur's closed fist.

The calloused fingertip didn't crush the bug, but pressed instead against her fingertips.

The soft touch startled Arthur.

In her haste, she'd practically plastered herself against Arthur, like Annie was throwing herself into his arms.

Her petite frame pressed against his chest, her eyes black and bright. Her crisp voice tumbled out, like a little bird that had fluttered over, staring straight at him and squawking.

"He's left a tracker—if you crush it, you might as well be tipping him off," Annie said. "Give it to me. Maybe I can dig something up."

Annie might not have realized what a thirty-year-old device was, but that didn't mean she couldn't handle an old system.

The Omega in his arms was brimming with confidence, and Arthur…

He took a deep breath.

The crisp scent of lemon leaf filled his nostrils, drifting toward him on its own.

It instantly dispelled the stench of Charles Lang. The thought of another Alpha getting in his face just moments ago left Arthur feeling irritable.

And now, Annie's pheromones washed away all the displeasure.

She wasn't indifferent.

Unlike how she'd pretended nothing had happened last night, simply being touched by Arthur had made her release pheromones.

"Arthur!" Annie urged.

Fine.

Actually, Arthur hadn't heard a word she'd said.

He'd just wanted to crush the tracker on purpose, to warn Charles Lang not to push his luck. As for offending a "Twilight" officer? He couldn't care less.

But Annie's pheromone scent put him in a good mood, so Arthur let go without a fuss.

The mechanical bug fell into her hand, and Annie breathed a sigh of relief.

"I'm afraid you and I have already aroused Charles Lang's suspicion," Annie said, even more convinced the red-medal officer had issues. "Why else would he leave a tracker?"

"He's looking for someone, or something," Arthur said.

"What?"

"Twilight officers don't wander around for no reason," Arthur said coldly. "The Resistance doesn't attack him—who else would?"

Really?

Annie thought for a moment, then decided to trust Arthur.

He was born on New Thebes, so he'd know "Twilight" far better than she did. If Charles Lang wasn't wandering, then from checking people outside the quarantine zone to coming to the City of the Radiant Sun, it really did seem like he was searching for someone.

The checkpoint had been checking for Federation people.

Was it because a Federation agent had been exposed?

Then why had the Resistance attacked Charles Lang?

She couldn't figure it out—she'd have to ask the Resistance people.

Annie pulled her thoughts back and re-donned her hood. "Let's go to the Resistance's secret base first."

—She simply couldn't bring herself to say "couples hotel."

Heading back to the main road, the Resistance's secret base was just three streets away from the attack site.

That hot pink sign was far too glaring—impossible to ignore amid the ancient white-walled buildings.

Stepping into the elevator lobby and up to the second floor.

In that short time, Annie had run through countless possible probing tactics.

She needed a proper entry point, because the Resistance wouldn't necessarily trust the Federation or the Empire. Maybe attacking Charles Lang would be a good way in, something she could try…

*Ding*—the second floor arrived, and the elevator doors slid open slowly.

Then the sound of rounds being chambered rendered every plan she'd listed useless.

A cold gun muzzle pressed against her temple. Annie turned her head and saw Arthur duck his head as he stepped out of the elevator, another muzzle aimed at his chin.

"It's these two."

A wary young man spoke up. "I saw it—Charles Lang was chatting with them like old friends."

"We're not your enemies," Annie immediately raised both hands. "Even if you shoot, at least let me explain myself first, okay?"

"Save it!" the young man snarled. "I've never seen anyone walk away alive after the 'Butcher' touched them!"

"…"

Butcher—that had to be Charles Lang's nickname.

But what kind of talk was that? Annie thought privately. Was he some kind of god of death who killed anyone he touched? Then how were his own men still alive?

Still, looking at this, they weren't going to have a calm conversation.

In that case—

"Don't be like this," Annie sighed. "Or I'll have to let the dog loose."

The young man was taken aback: "What?"

Another *ding*, and the elevator doors closed behind Arthur Kane.

Annie stepped back half a pace, her back bumping into Arthur's chest: "Dog!"

Arthur: "You—"

He swung his long leg and kicked the gun-wielding young man a good four or five meters away.

At the same time, Annie felt a powerful force behind her, and she was yanked behind Arthur. The male Alpha gritted his teeth, his blue eyes glaring at her viciously: "You just wait."

Who are you calling a dog?!