"Noah?"

"Yes?"

Noah and Lillian stood near the pack house, waiting for his brother and Jake to arrive.

Lillian looked around, her blue eyes wide. No one was in close hearing distance, people going on their usual business in the late afternoon. Lillian dropped her voice to a whisper, leaning towards him. Her scent tickled Noah's nose.

Noah took his attention off the group of pups playing nearby and found himself leaning closer without a conscious thought. Her next words took him off guard.

"I can mind-link."

He blinked, once, twice. "Say that again?"

"I said, I can mind-link," Lillian repeated in another low whisper. "With the twins, I can mind link."

She tapped her temple. Noah licked his lips and turned his entire body to face her. "Since when?"

"Since the day we got here," Lillian said, and told him about the first time the twins had spoken to her that way. "I didn't want to tell anyone else before running it by you first. Should I keep it a secret?"

The trust her words belied made warmth unfurl in his chest. Noah scratched his beard and nodded. "Yes, for now."

Familiar voices got closer. Noah straightened up, his eyes focused on the two alphas on his territory. "They're here."

Lillian turned. Unable to stop himself, and not wanting to, Noah moved to stand closer behind Lillian, her scent branding his lungs. The need to announce that she was his to outsiders was compelling.

But he resisted the urge to put his hand on her shoulder. She would chew him out, no doubt.

Benjamin was escorted by Jake, and Jensen by Sean, from the borders. Benjamin's expression was strained, his loss taking a toll on him. His hair was a blond mess, and his eyes dark with an anger that rolled off him in waves.

Jensen spotted Lillian first. His nostrils flared as he took in her human scent. Noah had already told the other alpha about Lillian, but unlike Benjamin, it was Jensen's first time seeing her. His green eyes shifted from Noah to Lillian in question as their group of four finally stopped before them. Jensen always saw more than Noah liked him to.

"Ah, the human," Benjamin said, anger leaving room to his usual playfulness. "It's very nice to meet you awake."

He smiled, a smile that had charmed many women, and held his hand out for Lillian. It seemed even under dark circumstances, Benjamin's flirting nature couldn't take a break. Noah took a step to the side and forward to stand next to Lillian.

Lillian glanced at Noah for a second with a frown, but she shook Benjamin's hand.

"Benjamin was there when we found your car," Noah explained. Benjamin winked, his grin disarming.

"Oh. I see." Lillian said, retrieving her hand from Benjamin's. Her voice was colder than usual. Noah almost smiled at the intrigued expression in Benjamin's face. She wasn't falling for his charm. Jake coughed, his lips suspiciously curled.

Jensen greeted her with a nod, his gaze calculating.

Minutes later they were settled in the meeting room. Noah stood at the head of the table, his hands braced on the back of the chair. Sean, Jake, Eva and Liam, their senior tracker, were all in attendance along with Lillian and the two alphas.

Jensen and Benjamin looked confused by Lillian's presence. Noah didn't need to explain himself to them, but he knew he would have to do it later to ward off their incessant questions.

Jensen hadn't had any rogue attacks in his land. But since Noah's southern border touched one of Jensen's, he wanted to offer his assistance and have information about the attacks in case of a potential risk on his own pack.

Benjamin briefed them again on the attacks.

Two rogues had appeared near the southern border, where they touched Noah's borders, almost simultaneously with the attack on Lillian. The rogues in Benjamin's land managed to infiltrate the territory deep enough that the wolf who spotted them had not been patrol, but a low ranking male who promptly alerted his pack mates. The rogues were killed.

At the same time, an unmated female who was on patrol on the northern border with other warriors was kidnapped.

No one in Benjamin's pack could reach the kidnapped female via mind-link. They could still feel her presence, but she didn't answer their calls. Benjamin suspected she was silvered. A dose of silver in the system of a werewolf could lead to obstruction of abilities such as shifting, rapid healing or mind-linking.

The time of the abduction coincided with the rogue attacks, leading them to think that the attacks were some sort of distraction.

"But why would they need a distraction?" Eva asked, then looked at Benjamin who sat across from her. "The kidnapping was at the northern border of your land, it was far enough that they wouldn't need any distractions. They could have just carried out the kidnapping and no one would have interrupted."

Liam leaned forward, his hazel eyes intense against the deep brown of his skin. "There were traces of strong magic all over the northern border, even more so than the faint hints we've discovered, which leads me to think that maybe the magic they had used in the kidnapping site would have attracted attention."

"So they created the distraction," Sean said, drumming his fingers on the table. "Even if that was true, you do realize that rogues don't work in an organized fashion. Their minds are way too muddled to be able to obey orders by whoever has orchestrated this whole thing."

Noah looked at Lillian, who sat quietly, all her attention on the words being spoken. "Lillian, did those rogues attack immediately when they spotted you? Was there any sign they were linking with someone?"

Lillian thought for a second before shaking her head, the strands of hair that escaped her ponytail caressing her cheeks. "No, they attacked right away. They had no sense of self preservation. They kept attacking even after they were badly hurt. It's like they weren't feeling anything, just attacking whatever was in their way."

Noah nodded. "Typical rogue behavior."

"So we have someone who has access to rogues," Benjamin said, his hands linked in a tight fist in front of him, "and who can mobilize them to do his bidding."

"And a witch," Liam said. "A witch has to be involved for the type of magic we smelled. And a strong witch at that."

"Did you have a witch look into it?" Jensen asked. Benjamin bared his teeth in a silent snarl at the mention of witches. He had a personal animosity to the race.

"I did. She said she didn't recognize the signature, whatever the hell that means. But she could tell the magic was too advanced for any witch to do." Benjamin shrugged. "It doesn't tell us anything useful."

"There is another thing," Eva said, glancing at Lillian. "Lillian brought it up and it makes sense. If we suppose the abductor was the witch, then how did they know the female was unmated? How did they even know when and where to attack? It's not like the patrolling schedule is public knowledge."

None of the people in the room liked what the words insinuated, but they had to address the possibility.

Benjamin leaned back, his eyes hard. "I know every single one of my wolves, I grew up with them and I watched over them all my life. For someone to be a traitor, to serve up a pack mate like that? I don't believe it's possible. But..."

"Transfer wolves," Jensen finished. "You have a high rate of transfer wolves in your pack."

Benjamin nodded. "If there is indeed a leak, I bet it's one of the transfer wolves still under probation."

Transferred wolves usually had a probation period of two years before they could fully integrate a new pack. The system was put in place to allow the wolf to see if they would fit into the dynamic of a pack before the integration is definitive. It also allowed alphas to watch the wolf before accepting them.

While loyalty was not something Noah took for granted, he understood Benjamin's view. Noah, too, knew every single wolf in his pack, and if there was a traitor, he would bet it was one of the transfer wolves.

After a long discussion, they agreed they would not be getting anywhere without input from the other alphas who had already lost females to the serial kidnapper.

"I'll coordinate with the other alphas," Jensen said. He was the most suited for the job, being cool-headed enough to not allow any dominance games to interfere with getting the task done. "Since we already sent wolves to help them in the search parties, all we have to do is inform them that the affected area has grown. The kidnappings are no longer limited to the southern part of the west coast."

"My wolves are already stretched thin," Benjamin said. "Even with Noah's wolves, between their duties in the pack and the search, they'll get tired. We have to work smart. Right now we're searching blindly."

"I'll contact Harvey," Noah said, straightening up. "It's no longer wise to keep the matter between wolves. Vampires will be able to help, they have more presence in urban locations."

"I agree," Jensen said. "Other shapeshifters, too, should know. The winged ones will be a great asset. I know that some of the other alphas are already working with them, but we need to mobilize the search on a bigger scale. We can't risk more kidnappings."

Tasks assigned, the meeting swiftly wrapped up. Noah accompanied Benjamin and Jensen out of the pack village. They wouldn't be spending the night. Both wanted to be in their pack considering the circumstances. They were almost at the edge of the village when a small weight bumped into Noah's leg from behind. He stopped, turned to find Elijah on his butt on the ground.

"Careful," Noah said, lifting the small body to his feet. The kid glanced over his shoulder, then grinned.

"I'm hiding from Ezra," he said in a loud whisper.

"The human's pup?" Jensen asked. Since Lillian's scent was all over Elijah, it was pointless to answer.

"Oh! More alphas!" Elijah said, looking between Benjamin and Jensen with awed blue eyes. They were so much like their mother's. "Wow..."

Benjamin chuckled, the sound genuine. "Where's your brother?"

As if only now remembering, Elijah's eyes widened further. "Oh, I have to hide. He's counting."

"Don't go too far," Noah said to the pup who nodded, then scrambled away.

"Smart kid," Jensen said.

Noah grunted an agreement. It took a certain level of maturity to recognize an alpha wolf. The twins were smart. Smart and special. There was something about them that still scratched at Noah's senses, as if a fire was sleeping under the surface.

The fact that their mother was not an ordinary human was a whole other matter. He still couldn't believe she could mind-link. Mind-linking was an ability that not all immortals had, let alone humans. But nothing about Lillian should surprise him any longer.

The three men resumed their walk.

"You know, it's only a matter of time before news travels. I bet a lot of people won't be happy about her staying here."

"It's my pack," Noah said, his wolf pushing forward. "As long as they don't intervene, they can yap all they want."

*** *** ***

The street was dark. Lillian recognized it as the way back from the library to the orphanage. Fog hovered over the ground, drifting past her, its touch freezing and slimy. In a blink, the scene changed to a small alley. Lillian faced the wall, her eyes catching the smallest details on the chipped red bricks.

Something pressed against her, pushing her closer to the wall. She tried to move, but her body wasn't hers. Her lungs screamed for air and her heart raced. She would soon lose consciousness. She knew. She didn't want to go through it again. Her ears rang.

Fight, she told her body. Fight, damn you!

The ringing in her ears increased to deafening notes, matching her panic.

She blinked. The brick wall disappeared and the pressure vanished behind her. She was in a lush, green clearing. The gray lights of dawn slowly chased away the fog.

Her feet were cold and bare. Feeling a sticky sensation on her hands, Lillian looked at them. They were dripping blood. The sight of her dark, glistening fingers brought an odd sense of calm. Safe. Peaceful.

She wasn't alone. She glanced up.

Two amber orbs met her eyes. The fog moved tortuously slow, revealing a big black wolf with scars on his face. The wolf lowered his head, not leaving her gaze. And through the retreating fog, Lillian could see the body under one of his giant black paws. A man.

Lillian was transfixed by the way the wolf held her captive. She couldn't look away. Didn't want to. Even when the wolf's jaws gaped open. Even when his gleaming teeth closed on the man's neck. Even as he dug and tore and ripped it to tatters. Even as the head rolled apart from the body, and kept rolling.

Until the head touched her bare feet. Wide eyes stared back at her. Wide hazel eyes she'd only ever seen one night in her life.

Lillian came to with a scream in her throat.

Sitting up in bed, it cost her a precious second to identify where she was. She pushed the damp blanket off her and scrambled to her feet. Breath still coming out in harsh puffs, she stumbled to her kids room. With a trembling hand, she cracked the door open and listened. Her sons' soft snores were music to her ears. Her eyes caught their little forms sprawled in their beds, their chests rising and falling.

Her heart took a few minutes to calm down. When she could breathe normally again, she closed the door. Her sweaty feet kept sticking to the floor as she moved to the bathroom.

She turned on the light and stared at her reflection. A chill rattled her body. Her sleep shirt stuck to her skin, sweat dampening the fabric and flattening her hair around her face. Haunted blue eyes peered at her, too big for her ashen face.

Of course she'd have a nightmare. After what happened in the morning, it was not unexpected. Lillian took a deep breath, smoothing her fist over the lump in her chest. It was okay. She was safe. The worst was over.

A splash of water made her feel only slightly better. Outside the bathroom, the cabin window showed a still, dark night. There was no way she would be getting any more sleep tonight. A glance to the clock told her it was only a couple of hours until dawn.

Lillian made herself a cup of hot chocolate, and like all the times she'd had nightmares, she craved open spaces. The sense of helplessness and confinement was a heavy weight on her chest. So she wrapped a blanket around herself, mug of hot chocolate in hand, and curled in a chair on the porch.

She usually had variations of the same nightmare, about what had happened that night. This one was different. The black wolf shouldn't have been there.

She never really remembered that night. She'd been knocked down while coming back from the library one evening.

That night was a dark void, filled only with feelings of helplessness and numbness. If not for the twins and the evidence on her body the next day, she would've thought the whole thing was a fragment of her imagination.

All she remembered was the man's hazel eyes on top of her. Green hazel eyes that turned amber. They were the only clear points in the fog. And, oddly, a scent that reminded her of hospitals.

It didn't make sense. But nothing about that night made sense.

The glow of the lights softened the night, giving the pack village a wistful feel. Lillian breathed out a deep sigh, pulling her knees to her chest and resting the mug on them. Her hot drink chased away the chill of the early morning but failed to warm her chest.

She felt him there. She didn't know how, just that he was there. Looking into the trees, she whispered, "come out".

A second later a magnificent black wolf materialized from the shadows and approached, his steps silent and careful. Lillian cocked her head. After the nightmare, maybe she should have been afraid of him.

Nah... she wasn't.

Lillian drained the last of her drink, put the mug on the floor, and held out her hand for the scarred wolf.

As if sensing her heavy mood, the wolf hesitated. Lowering his head, a low sound kin to a whine escaped his throat. It tugged at Lillian's heart.

"It's okay," Lillian whispered. "Come here."

The wolf padded up the wooden steps. He stood before her, his amber eyes clear and glowing. Then his cold nose nudged her hand.

Running her fingers over his head, Lillian smiled, the sensation of soft fur soothing.

"You know, it's very awkward." Even when she spoke softly, her voice was loud in the silence of the night. "I keep ignoring the fact that I'm technically petting Noah, too."

A chuckle startled its way out of her lips as the wolf huffed. He sat down and put his head on her raised knees. "Okay. So you're going to ignore that fact, too, huh?"

Scratching between his ears to his satisfied rumble, Lillian leaned her head back and closed her own eyes. Soft fur under her fingers, a heavy warmth on her knees and whispers of a woodsy scent floating to her nose. The weight of memories slowly eased away from her chest. Safe. Protected. Free. She dozed off.

--- ---- ---

New chapter, friends. A bit shorter than usual.

Thoughts?

Comment and vote if you like it.

Much love <3

M.B.