Tenshi’s breath caught in his throat as Dimitri slumped to the ground. He almost reached for his katana, strapped to his back and hidden by long hair, but the omega’s words and the gun now pointed in his direction stopped him. 

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” said the other omega. “I’m not who you think I am. And if you leave now and don’t come back, I won’t tell anyone.”

But he couldn’t leave Dimitri lying on the ground at their mercy. It wasn’t really a choice then. Tenshi drew his blade. It would be better than nothing against bullets. 

Curiously, the omega didn’t shoot. Instead, he reached for a cane leaning against the car door. Once it was firmly in his hand, he abandoned the gun on the hood of the car. The omega twisted the cane in his hands, and it shot out at the ends to form a staff. Tenshi’s eyes went wide with surprise.

With the gun safely out of the surprising omega’s grasp, Tenshi no longer hesitated to attack. He came closer, katana raised but unmoving. Neither of them swung, but Tenshi knew it wouldn’t be long before the chauffeur regained consciousness and then he would be outnumbered. He couldn’t exactly count on Dimitri to wake up in time.

He feigned to the right, hair swinging behind him as he darted forward. But then he realised his mistake when the car blocked his way on the left and the staff almost hit him. It definitely would have hit him if the other omega hadn’t halted the weapon in time. That was weird.

The momentum of a swinging object wasn’t usually easy to stop at the base. It would have been far easier for Tenshi to grab the staff than for the other omega to stop it right before it made contact. This meant two things.

One, the staff-wielding omega had trained control over his weapon and was not to be underestimated. Two, he was also unwilling to hurt anyone. Now, that was something that he could exploit.

Seemingly recklessly, Tenshi raised his katana, and the other omega blocked the random attacks. Every time he tried to put space in between the two of them, Tenshi rushed him from the left or right, whichever kept the car at the other omega’s back. He didn’t try to duck when the staff almost struck him. This appeared to confuse the other omega most. 

Tenshi smirked. He was at an advantage now. Staffs were far longer and for opponents that were a little further. The other omega, however, was now within striking range of his blade and could no longer fight Tenshi properly with his staff. 

It happened very quickly. Tenshi brought his blade down and the other omega lifted an arm to block the attack. Shocked, he tried to lessen the impact, but the damage was done. The scent of pain and sweat washed away the expensive perfume and scent block the other omega had been wearing. And without it, his alpha scent came through, thick and overwhelming.

Tenshi stumbled back. “You’re not an omega,” he stuttered. 

“No, I’m not,” Veo grinned. His blood streamed down his arm in rivulets, pooling on the ground. 

He pushed forward and Tenshi reacted. He aimed a kick at the alpha’s groin and grabbed Dimitri when the unknown alpha doubled over in pain. His partner was barely conscious as they crashed through the forest until Tenshi couldn’t see the road anymore. 

~

Veo muttered a string of unintelligible curses under his breath. He barely noticed as the alpha-omega pair beat a hasty escape into the forest. They disappeared far back enough that he could no longer see their auras. 

The wound on his arm was not fatal, but his current concern was the pain radiating from his groin. It really fucking hurt.

Eventually, Prince Veo had recovered enough to shake Felipe awake. As the omega had promised, Felipe was fine, if a little confused. He was still well enough to drive them back to the palace, whereupon arrival, Veo had demanded he keep his mouth shut and not tell anyone about their failed attempt at capturing the highwaymen.

Felipe obeyed but worried incessantly over Veo’s injured arm. It would need stitches, he insisted. Prince Veo only allowed bandages. He had no desire to see a doctor and have them report back to his mother who would only yell at him for being reckless and double down on her efforts to get him married and coronated to trap him in Angkova. No, just bandages would do.

“Don’t tell anyone,” he gritted out to Felipe, who was tightening the dressings around his arm.

Felipe sulked mutinously, but muttered, “yes, sir,” under his breath. Veo sighed.

~

No one came after them. It had been two days and there were no wanted posters put up with their faces or Dimitri’s name, official or unofficial. Still, Tenshi worried. He and Dimitri hid in plain sight as tourists in a moderately seedy motel and avoided any law enforcement.

Dimitri had been vindicated to find out that the omega had actually been an alpha. “I knew it,” he crowed. “Omega, my ass.” 

“Stop it,” said Tenshi irritably. “He’s seen our faces. There’s no way he hasn’t already gone to the police.”

“He’s blind, kid,” replied Dimitri dismissively. “He won’t be much help to the police.”

“What are you talking about?” Tenshi demanded. “He wasn’t blind. We fought and he knew exactly where I was all the time.”

“Don’t blind people have better senses, other than their eyes?” Dimitri asked with a raised eyebrow.

“He turned his head to track my movement, Dimitri,” Tenshi told him. “Blind men wouldn’t move their heads so they can listen with their ears. Haven’t you seen ‘Daredevil’?”

“Fine, whatever, it doesn’t matter. It’s been two days. If no one is looking for us, they aren’t going to be looking for us now.” Dimitri rolled his eyes. Tenshi was a nerd.

The phone rang. He picked it up. “Tenshi speaking,” he answered. Dimitri looked over curiously. The omega turned his back. “No, seriously? We almost got caught!” he cried. 

“What’s that?” asked Dimitri. Tenshi left the room, still on the phone. The alpha shrugged and starfished on the bed.

When Tenshi came back, he was tensed and unhappy. 

“What happened?” Dimitri watched him warily. “What did they tell you?”

“They told me,” he began in frustration, “that I am the prince of Japan, Prince Hisahiko.”

Dimitri looked intrigued. “Really, your Highness?”

“Don’t laugh,” he scowled at his partner. “You’re my driver now.”

The alpha’s laugh turned into choking. “Dammit,” he said.