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ღ KALE ღ 

Everyone was sitting in the living room of Aunt Penny's house. A few of us had to bring in the kitchen chairs to sit on while others resorted to sitting on the floor or the coffee table (although Aunt Penny scolded Easton to get off of it a few times already). 

We were all in a calm... quiet mood despite having dealt with Trent and the other mercenaries. 

Alpha Brown assured Dennison that he'd have the bodies of the mercenaries taken care of. He had already motioned silently to a few of his pack members standing nearby while directing this offer to the former alpha. The Weres walked off after nodding their acknowledgment. 

"We'll make sure no one finds them," Alpha Brown promised. 

Dennison's scowl was in place (as usual) as he gave a short nod and held out his hand to the alpha. 

"I appreciate your help earlier, Lyle. Thank you."

Alpha Brown's brows furrowed, shaking his head. "Nonsense. No need to thank me. I've learned from someone a long time ago," he pointedly gave Thea a look who grinned back up at him. "To help those who cannot help themselves. Or just need a hand every now and then," he shrugged that last part.

The trio looked around the lot, the bodies of those who had been killed being dragged into the forest while those who were injured were being looked at. 

Taking a deep breath, Dennison frowned, his gray eyes turning to look over where his sons were sitting so patiently on the porch steps. They sat watching everyone and every now and then Eli would have to look at little Maddie who pouted as he held up his popsicle that kept tucking into the wrapper. The older of the two brothers grinned a bit, inaudibly saying something to little Maddie while helping to peel the ice cream wrapper down more. 

I glanced at Dennison, seeing that worry in his eyes and I could understand why. Even though we didn't have to worry about Trent and these "so-called" mercenaries anymore, we did have to deal with the Council. And the raving Werewolf under their care.

I swallowed, frowning at the ground before trying to remind myself to let it go. That it wasn't my fault. It was just hard to accept that I didn't have anything to do with the poor soul who fell beyond insanity because of the mixture of my blood and whatever else was used. 

Alpha Brown turned, holding up his hand and nodded when his daughter called for him and then silently gestured that she'd be going with the others to take the bodies. He watched her go; Ophelia scowling the whole time. I figured it was because of the mention of her brother that no one else seemed to know about. 

"Is she going to be okay?" Thea asked, facing the alpha after Ophelia disappeared with the others into the treeline. Dennison held her closer, looking down at her before looking to the alpha for his response.

A heavy sigh escaped the older man. His face now showing how tired he was at his age and his shoulders sulked a bit. He weakly grinned at my cousin, shaking his head that his daughter would eventually be okay. Perhaps not now, but eventually. 

"She never knew about how Caleb died. She was very close to her brother when she was little up until he had renounced his title as the future alpha of my pack because he was going across the world to join a special forces team. It hurt Ophelia greatly. She loved her brother dearly and he understood her in a way no one else seemed to."

There was a pause before he explained how Caleb had promised Ophelia to always be there. That he would never abandon her. 

"However... on the day he was supposed to leave, she reminded him of this promise and though I was in disagreement with my son's decision, it was his decision. I wasn't going to hold him back from what he wanted." 

Alpha Brown's brows furrowed, shaking his head that Ophelia didn't see it that way. That her brother was breaking a promise. 

"The day of his departure, Caleb tried one last time to speak to my daughter who refused to speak to him at all. But the only thing she ever said to him was that she never wanted to speak to him again." 

The alpha shrugged a shoulder, pursing his mouth to the side. "So my son left." 

He added how at first he stayed in communication with his son for the first six months where Caleb had worked his way up to leading this special group he had joined. Caleb, despite his sister's vow of silence against him, always asked for his father to pass the message onto Ophelia that he loved her very much and would see her again soon. But then a few more months past where Alpha Brown didn't hear from Caleb any longer. 

Sighing, the alpha shook his head and scowled, "I knew something was wrong... I could feel it." He glanced up at Dennison and Thea. "As a parent, you can sense when there is something not right with your children. And that's how I felt when I stopped hearing from Caleb."

Another pause.

"It wasn't until the following year after I had sent out someone in search of my son, that they found out that my son had been killed. That his group found what was left of him in his tent. He'd been... hacked up with an ax and no one had the decency to inform his family." 

Alpha Brown then explained that after the reporting of his son's murder, he had the misfortune of informing his daughter. And Ophelia didn't take it very well. She'd fallen apart cried for days... weeks... and wouldn't come out of her room. 

The alpha paused again, a brow lowering while using a hand to rub at his chin thoughtfully. He let out another sigh, this time slower. 

"Ophelia was seventeen at the time. And I think what really hurt her the most was the last time she saw him she told him to never speak to her again. She got a little wild after that... not a very likable person among the others even though it was how she felt was the only way of coping with her brother's death."

He glanced at the couple beside me with a raised brow and sheepishly grinned, "Timing wasn't the greatest with her behavior and complete one-eighty personality change since that was the same year that Thea returned to Blood Moon Falls."

I glanced at my cousin who blinked then looked up at Dennison. He glanced at her, brows furrowing at the look she was giving him and he reeled his neck slightly though not pulling away from her entirely.

"What...? Why the hell are you looking at me like that, Thea?" He raised his brows, widening his eyes a bit. "I married you... remember?" 

Thea grinned, rolling her eyes and went back to looking at Alpha Brown who looked a bit more amused now than a few minutes ago. He glanced down at my cousin's belly and then beamed that there was no need to dwell on the past when there was a future to be more excited about.

My cousin blushed, raising her shoulders and Dennison---the proud Sperminator that he was---puffed his chest out and happily nodded that it was definitely going to be different around the house with a mini-potato chip running around. 

The other man lowered a brow, unsure of what Dennison was talking about though Thea jumped in with a nod that it had been quite some years since little Maddie was in diapers. 

"And Eli is already a teenager, so it will be a whole new adventure with this one," she nodded proudly, placing her fingers to her stomach and admired it for a second. 

Alpha Brown glanced at the oh-so-proud Dennison before a smirk tugged at his lips. 

"Until your little girl starts liking boys..."

Dennison's eyes bulged, his chest deflating as a small, pathetic puff of air escaped him. He stared straight ahead, blinking a few times---very slowly---and then his brows furrowed at whatever he was thinking about. 

I grinned, trying to hide it behind my hand while Thea did the same and giggled to her husband, "Oh, Auric! He's teasing!" 

Her scowling Werewolf looked at her, taking a moment before glancing at Alpha Brown who slowly shook his head and grinned as he mouthed, "I'm not." 

"Mom?"

Eli frowned as he looked at my cousin seated on the couch beside Dennison with her head leaned on his shoulder. She looked at Eli while not moving away from the soft caressing touch Dennison's fingers had against the side of her hair. 

Her son took a second, looking at her and then lowered his gaze to a part of her then up at her face again. His brows furrowed more as he asked with a worried tone if she was really going to have another baby. Eli's gaze fell to her stomach again.

Thea frowned, sitting up now as Dennison also looked a little concerned. 

"According to your Grandma. Why, Eli?"

She sat up a little more, watching her son intently sigh as he sat on the ground beside Maddox, Sr. and Langley. Eli's arms wrapped tighter around his pulled up knees and looked to be trying to put his words together. He swallowed, shaking his head and then admitted that it the thought of having a sibling wasn't something to look forward to that was the problem... but that having another one to protect was a little daunting. 

His brown eyes locked with his mother, his bottom lip pouting a bit before he whispered, "What if I can't protect her...?"

Everyone remained silent. All of us were kind of stunned to hear him say something like that only because none of us were expecting Eli to have that responsibility. We wouldn't put that on him, especially not when he is the one the Council wants. 

I looked over at little Maddie lying on his stomach across the room with his twin cousins. The little guy's legs kicked up and down as he was bobbing his head to the side to whatever tune was in there. Those gray eyes of his were focused on the messy picture he was coloring. 

The Council had no idea about him. That another Hybrid child existed. Then I looked back to my cousin who was in the middle of speaking to Eli and my gaze fell to her stomach. 

'Two. Another two existed,' was all my brain was comprehending. 

Leaning back in my seat on one of the kitchen chairs, I crossed my arms. I decided to go back to the conversation where Eli's parents were assuring him that he would not be expected to watch the baby.

"She's not even born yet, Eli," Thea reminded her son, raising her brows. 

The teenager sighed, glancing away and nodded that he knew that. Then his gaze went back to her. 

"And she won't if something happens to you."

Again, silence ensued before Dennison and the others were trying to convince Eli that nothing was going to happen to his mother. Or his unborn sister. 

From across the room, Mr. Dennison was standing by my Aunt Emeel. His frown didn't deter as the top of his fist pressed against his mouth. He stared off at nothing, blinking every so often then turned to my aunt when she touched his arm. He could see the concern on her face as she spoke quietly to him and then the man shook his head, replying back to her that made my aunt's eyes widen before she turned away. 

Frowning, I sat up a little and interrupted the others with, "What's wrong?"

Everyone turned to me, puzzled, but then looked in the direction I was where the spotlight was now on my aunt and Mr. Dennison. They both looked wide-eyed and glanced at everyone but remained silent. I frowned more, standing up and squinted at my aunt.

"You know something..." before I clarified with a raised brow, "You saw something." 

My aunt's eyes shut, a long tired sigh escaping before she looked at Mr. Dennison beside her. He stared at her, brow lowered and was giving her this look to keep quiet. 

"They have to know, Titan... I can't keep this from them," my aunt pleaded, tilting her head. She sighed again when the man shook his head, turning away and crossed his arms. 

Dennison, not very patient when it came to, well, anything... growled as he stood up. His chin lowered, brows furrowed as he demanded to know what the older parents knew. His gaze switching back and forth between the pair. He settled on his father who could obviously feel the stare and finally looked up at him. 

Dennison frowned, "Dad... You can't keep anything from us. Not when it comes to this! No matter what it is, we have to know! Try to remember that this is my son we are talking about!" 

The two Weres held their staredown for a few minutes, the rest of us looking back and forth between them. We knew Mr. Dennison wouldn't be able to challenge his son too long. The man closed his eyes, groaning with his hands rubbing his face before looking at my aunt and nodded silently, motioning for her to speak. 

My Aunt Emeel's brows furrowed, nodding back then gave her attention to us to reveal what she'd had a vision of.

"It's about the Society... About how it is going to rise to power again." She raised a brow, sternly clarifying, "Just as the old days."

Thea practically jumped out of her seat, the mixture of worry and agitation on her face and her brown eyes held that gleam in her eye when she was about to lose her temper. My cousin demanded what her mother was talking about, and why Aunt Emeel and Mr. Dennison would keep that to themselves.

"Because," Mr. Dennison broke in. His arms were crossed again, shaking his head. "We are dealing with the Council right now. They are the ones at fault for when that vision of the Society comes into play. If we don't try to put a stop to them and this raving Werewolf... they are going to expose our kind's existence."

The Weres in the room blinked, a few tensing and then glancing at one another. 

Mr. Dennison shrugged a shoulder as he continued that with the exposure of this one psychotic Werewolf---who wasn't really a Werewolf anymore anyway---was going to put the humans into a panic. And with that panic, will come the return of the Society as it once was pre-Thea. 

"I told Emeel to not tell you all because knowing will only make it harder for us to get rid of this Werewolf as well as the Council. Everything can turn out one of two ways; either we become notorious as the pack who deliberately killed our Werewolf Council---and protect our secret... or we are notorious for a much worse reason. We will end up being revealed to exist to the humans who will not give us the chance to prove we are like them---even if we'd been walking among them all this time. Instead... they are going to take one look at the raving Were and stereotype us all."

That's a good fucking point...

He finished saying that having not known this small dire information that we'd all not feel so pressured about that Werewolf. We would be successful without that vision lingering over our heads because like those years ago when Emeel saw the vision of Dennison killing Eli and Thea managed to change that... There was slim to none chance that we'd be successful at changing another vision again. 

Alpha Brown who was quiet this whole time and standing at the back of the room with Ophelia and Athena at his side, gave a raised brow look at Mr. Dennison while crossing his arms.

"So what exactly are you trying to propose, Titan?"

There was another long pause. But everything was watching the way Mr. Dennison's facial expression kept switching back and forth from a frown to a more worrisome one. He wouldn't look up, just concentrated on the floor while the rest of us nervously waited for him to speak.

I took a peek at Eli sitting in his knee-raised posture. His brows furrowed as his eyes narrowed. He had his father's scowl but at his age, it didn't look as menacing. Which was a good thing, I guess? But I could see the look on his face, almost like he was contemplating something on his own. He wasn't really looking at his grandfather. 

Eli's nose scrunched, eyes squinting more and tried to discreetly roll one of his shoulders towards his ear; a wince pinching his face. I curiously frowned; waiting to see if anyone else was seeing Eli's behavior. They didn't, by the way.

Shifting my gaze to the younger Dennison boy who had been coloring earlier, there was a part of my mind wondering why I wasn't actually surprised to see a similar behavior on little Maddie. 

While in the middle of coloring, the boy's brows furrowed and then paused his back and forth motion of the crayon moving against the paper. He stared at it, his gray eyes glazing over a moment then shook his head before going back to what he was doing. For a moment. Then he grunted out a small whimper while pushing onto his knees and shifted to what he was hoping was a comfortable position. 

Little Maddie stared at his picture, frowning as he tilted his head and scratched at his head. He kept looking around until his gray eyes landed on his older brother. Apparently, he noticed that Eli was behaving oddly too; still in hugging his knees but was now rolling his shoulders and scrunching his nose like there was a pain in between his shoulders. 

Once Eli tilted his head like he was listening to something, eyes staring off to the side a bit, was when his little brother made himself known.

"Do you hear it too, Eli?" 

I held my breath, my heart pounding wildly every time these two communicated with one another. Like their own secret language because of what they were born as. 

The thirteen-year-old blinked, turning his brown eyes to little Maddie staring back at him. The younger's gray eyes were wide with curiosity, brows raised as he patiently waited for Eli to reply to him. When he didn't, Maddie tried to make himself more clear---clearly unaware of all of us staring at the pair.

Little Maddie crawled forward, not noticing Lorraine and Isabel's glances at one another. Scrunching his nose, Little Maddie stopped in front of his brother who swallowed hard; his eyes wide under his furrowed brows. Once the younger asked his brother again if he could "hear it",  Eli slowly nodded back; subconsciously tilting his head again as if listening to whatever he---they---were hearing.

The younger of the pair slowly nodded and whispered, "I hear it, too." 

He turned his head to look at his parents and blinked in confusion, "Do you not hear it, Mommy?"

Thea wore this high panic on her face and Dennison was close to it, though the guy was always good at hiding his emotions. There was a hint of it though. He stayed close behind his wife as she bent in front of her younger son and tilted her head, letting Maddie know that she couldn't hear anything and then asked what it was that he was hearing.

Her son's gray eyes glazed over again, his head tilting a bit and Thea glanced at Eli who was doing the same thing but frowning until his nose scrunched and groaned while clamping an ear over his ear. 

Langley and Maddox, Sr. stared at Eli now hunched to the side, gritting his teeth and cried out with his head bent and hand pressing even more against his ear. 

Maddox, Sr. frowned, "Squirt? What's---what's wrong!? Eli!" while trying to lift the boy back up. But Eli kept crying out, hunching over even more and Dennison swallowed, going over to grab onto his son's waist to haul him up. The teenager's eyes were shut tight, teeth grit though another painful groan slipped from him. 

The rest of us were starting to panic---unsure of what to do or what the hell was going on. 

"Daddy...? Daddy, what's wrong with Eli!?" Ruby asked frightfully, stepping back against Keishan standing in alarm while Vrable was doing the same. Her eyes shifting around the room like she was watching for anything to happen. 

Dennison sat on the other couch, holding Eli in his lap who was still struggling with his hearing. He was now clamping both hands against his ears as he arched and let out a long cry. 

"Easy, Eli... Easy, Son. I'm right here..." Dennison's low tone lowered more when leaning closer to his son while reaching around to hold Eli more to him. The father kept muttering to his son that it was okay, that he was safe and that Dennison wouldn't leave him until Eli simmered. 

The teenager's face scrunched more, now curling into his father and whimpered out a groaned, "Daaaad..."

Dennison looked at his wife whose wide eyes showed how helpless she felt. Her hands kept her younger son's in hers and looked down at him, studying the boy to see if he'd be reacting in a similar manner as his brother. But Maddie didn't. Instead, it was a much more mild version; the little boy only winced a bit, squinting his eyes again as he tilted his head. 

With the panic ensuing, I walked over to the younger of the two brothers and knelt in front of him. I tried to keep my voice from shaking and my mind focused as I weakly smiled, "Maddie... I need you to let Cousin Kale know what it is you are hearing." 

I glanced at Eli curled against his father who was holding him tighter and the father's gaze met mine; clearly as helpless as I was. 

Facing the boy again, I urged Maddie again to try to explain what he was hearing, that whatever it was it was the same thing Eli could hear but wasn't a good feeling for the older brother. The boy's gaze fell to his struggling sibling and didn't break his focus on Eli when he mumbled to me, "That's because it's louder for him."

What the fuck...?

Frowning, I took hold of the sides of Maddie's arms and shook him a little to gain his attention. Maddie's gray eyes blinked a few times, brows raising as though he didn't realize I was there. 

"Maddie. I need you to tell me what you hear." 

Those gray eyes of his slowly shifted over my shoulder and I frowned, looking behind me at the empty entryway of the dining area. My gaze bounced around the room before looking back at Maddie whose eyes went back from the dining room to look at me. 

Trying to drown out Eli's painful cries, I raised my voice by accident and demanded Maddie to tell me what was going on. The boy flinched and Thea now knelt down to try to help me encourage her son to speak up. Maddie now looked frightened as his eyes solely shifted to his mother. His little chest rising and falling now in panic and tears welling up in his eyes. 

"No, no, Baby," Thea tried to smile. "It's okay," she held his face and shook her head that I wasn't mad at him. That I was just scared for Eli. 

"We all are..." she nodded, "So do you think you can describe to Mommy what you are hearing?"

Grimacing, Maddie looked down for a second and tried to focus with his head tilting. The longer he stared off, concentrating, the more Eli was crying out. He was now struggling against Dennison who was trying to hold onto his son tighter while shutting his own eyes tightly. He swallowed, shaking his head from his son's cries. 

"There's..." I looked back to Maddie, his head still tilted. His brows furrowed more and scrunched his nose. "There's a whistling noise... it's... it's really high. And..." 

The frown on his face didn't change as his head tilted the other way. 

"It sounds like when Daddy is mad..."

Thea blinked, frowning and leaned closer to squint, "Like... Maddie, like a growl?"

"Yeah!" Maddie beamed, nodding and asked again if his "mommy" could hear it now too. 

When Thea shook her head, she explained that she could only guess what he was hearing because of how he was describing the sounds. She smiled at him, nodding as she brushed the side of his head, "You're doing such a good job. But I need you to keep going... okay?"

"Okay, Mommy."

I glanced at Eli, this time burying his face into his father's shoulder and I saw the way Dennison's eyes snapped---wide. He quickly looked down at Eli and swallowed, "Thea..." 

My cousin was too busy trying to get Maddie to finish describing what the boys were hearing. 

Maddie was still tilting his head, looking upward and scrunched his nose. "I can hear... I think, feets? They sound like feets. Like... Like when I run outside!"

During the description of the sound, I walked over to Dennison whose eyes slowly rose to mine and lowered a brow as the other rose. His voice was low as he spoke to me. 

"He's stopped groaning..."

I would have thought that was a good thing, but from the way Dennison was looking at me told me otherwise. I blinked, glancing at Eli still hidden into his father's shoulder then back to Dennison. 

I whispered, "And...?"

Dennison didn't turn his head but shifted his eyes, raising a brow as he looked in Eli's direction. He swallowed, lifting his gaze to mine again and spoke low again. 

"Now he's snarling that it's close..." 

What the fuck was going on!?

I spun around, rushing back to where Maddie turned around to face me and cried, "Cousin Kale! It's getting closer!" 

Not wasting another moment, my sneakers pushed off the ground as I sprinted out of the room, heading towards the dining room. There were others following me and I could hear, "Red! Red, where are you going!?" but I was too much in a panic. I wanted to find out what the boys were hearing because it could possibly be our only chance of surviving my Aunt Emeel's vision. 

I made it to the back porch, my sneakers squeaking as I made an abrupt halt at the edge of the steps. Even though my vision sucked ass unlike a Werewolf's, I squinted to see if I could see anything... hear anything... but I couldn't. Not yet anyway.

The commotion behind me didn't faze me, even when Easton stood beside me and turned to frown, "Don't even think about going out there on your own again, Red! Even if Thea is your cousin, we don't need your family trait of endangering yourself to come up at a time like this!"

"Shh!" I frowned, not taking my eyes off the darkness. I could barely see the treeline. Even with the back porch light on. 

"Don't---Did---Did you just---Don't shush me!" Easton scoffed, shaking his head but then I groaned in frustration and turned to him. I decided to make use of him and pointed out at the dark surrounding and asked him what he could hear or see. He looked at me oddly, shaking his head that he didn't hear anything... or see anything.

I grumbled, looking back at the house's open door and some of the other Weres on the porch were staring at me. It might have looked a little crazy with what I did, but I just confirmed that the boys were exceptional beyond the average Werewolf. I had the normal Weres standing in front of me on that porch---outside--- and they couldn't hear a fraction of what the boys were hearing so clearly... inside the house.  

When I made this a point to state out loud, the Six who were present---other than Dennison---all looked at one another. They frowned, turning to look at the woods and stare at it a little longer. I was hoping maybe they were straining their hearing a bit more to catch something that was helpful. 

For the next fifteen minutes, we stood there; us non-Weres trying not to make too much noise so that those listening to the darkness could concentrate. 

And then it happened. 

Langley's chin lowered; her eyes turning a bright gold as she growled and let her claws grow and wasn't breaking her cautious lookout as she elbowed Maddox, Sr. behind her. Violet was now sharing the same uneasiness; her gaze concentrating on the right side of the property while Valentine and Athena snarled, eyes both glowing as the others and moved to the left side of the porch and stared in the direction.

 With a low voice, Keishan's gold eyes remained forward as he ordered Ruby to get back inside the house. He was tilting his head slightly, a small cracking in his neck loosening the tension building up there. His daughter obeyed, backing up slowly before leading the way for Cheryl and her twin girls to follow once Jonah ordered the same of his wife. The older Dennison twin stepped forward. Even Thorton's body grew tense, his golden gaze scanning his surroundings while closing in beside me, and Easton got in front of me. 

I glanced at the back of my boyfriend's head, whispering as quiet as I could, "What... What is it? What do you hear?" but Easton and the others remained quiet; still cautiously scanning the property. 

Easton's low voice gave me instruction to get back in the house and warn Thea and Dennison that there was something coming. 

"What...? What's coming?"

Easton's growl rumbled louder, his clawed hands curling inward as he straightened in his defensive stance. 

"I don't know... But it's not good."

Swallowing, I spun around and ran back into the house. I panted at the remaining people in the living room of something headed our way and that the others outside on the porch were getting agitated. They all stared at me; wide-eyed, panicked, fearful. 

My cousin was holding her younger son against her hip, his gray eyes staring back at me as Thea swallowed out, "Auric...?"

Her husband's scowl had already fallen into place, stepping forward while sparing her a short glance. 

Thea looked at him, that worried look still on her face. "We have to get our boys out of here."

Dennison nodded in agreement, mentioning that the boys needed to head back to the Alliance. Tonight. He mentioned that those on the porch would stay to give my Aunt Penny, Alice, the boys, Cheryl and her girls, and Ruby some time to head out of town through the back roads that were rarely used. 

"Hollow's going to need to accompany them while Keishan gets them out. Far enough that they will be at a safe distance and Keishan can come back to assist us."

Thea nodded, her bottom lip pouting until Dennison walked over and gently placed a hand against the side of her face. She stared up at her husband whose brows furrowed slightly. 

"I need you to go too."

"Auric..."

"Thea. I am not doing this with you again. This is not seven years ago. I'm not putting my sons in danger and that includes you who happens to be carrying our unborn daughter."

Thea sulked, that look on her face fighting to argue with Dennison, but she knew he was right. For once, Thea wasn't fighting him on this but maybe because even my cousin knew how much more dangerous and scary this was. Especially when her children were at the very middle of it. 

A hoarse, "Dad..." came from the back of the room and Dennison turned, along with my cousin. 

My Aunt Emeel and Mr. Dennison were seated on the couch where Eli was lying weakly with his head rested on his grandmother's knee. She was caressing his sweaty head and the boy's brown eyes drooped as he tried to shake his head, holding out his hand for Dennison. Immediately, the father complied. 

He looked down at Eli, kneeling as his son shook his head and whispered, "You... Can't... Stay here... Either." 

Frowning, Dennison asked, "Why, Eli?" reaching over to brush his son's wet hair off his forehead but the moment his hand touched his son's head, Eli jolted upright; gasping and wide-eyed. 

Dennison leaned away, wide-eyed himself. He glanced at us then tried to reach for Eli who turned and shook his head and reiterated with so much desperation that his father had to leave with them. 

"I can't do that, Eli," the former alpha argued, shaking his head. "Not when I have to help stall whatever is going to happen."

The teenager's chest began to rise and fall, shaking his head back at his father and pleaded with him that he couldn't stay! That none of us should stay because it was too dangerous!

"It's coming, Dad!" Eli panicked, his voice cracking as his tears welled up in those brown eyes. "It's coming and you can't stop it! None of you!" 

Dennison nodded, trying to reach for Eli as he murmured, "Alright... alright... Hold on. What's coming, Son? You gotta tell me or I don't know what to do!"

"I just told you!" Eli was on the verge of screeching, that panic returning to his eyes. "We have to leave! We have to get as far away from here as we can!" 

Again Dennison was trying to calm his older son but Eli started crying, shaking his head and pleaded over and over again while everyone began talking at the same time about what they were going to do and that we needed to check on those outside. 

When it became too much for the teenager, he shouted over everyone, "It's going to kill you, Dad!" 

 Only Eli's heavy panting could be heard, his brown-eyed watery gaze locked on his father. Dennison stared back at Eli, lowering a brow while Thea handed Maddie to me and walked over to sit beside her teenage son.

"Eli... How... How do you---"

"I could see it!" Eli frowned at her, sniffling. "I could see the moment it happened when Dad touched my head just minutes ago. It was only a glimpse but it was clear as day and I just---just---"

He looked at Dennison, blubbering, "I just don't want to lose you again!" before leaning forward to wrap his arms around his father's neck. The former alpha had tensed with the sudden motion, but then wrapped his arms around his boy while looking at his wife. She was already frowning at him, slowly shaking her head and whispered that their son was different. Both of them were. 

"We might not be able to understand them now, Auric, but I think we have to listen to Eli."

Dennison sighed, closing his eyes and nodded, muttering that we were all going to head back to the Alliance then. That no one was to stay behind.

"Maybe we can get a head start?" Mr. Dennison questioned, but Eli sat back, swallowing that we would all have to leave right. This. Moment. 

Alpha Brown frowned, his daughter glancing at him when the alpha stated that he couldn't leave his pack behind. He shook his head when Dennison suggested that the pack tagged along. 

"My pack is not the average size, Auric. If you recall, you left your pack in my hands which means that I have double the norm!" He looked at the rest of us. "I won't be able to get them out that fast. And I won't be able to leave them behind either." 

This point brought more worry. 

We were all scrambling to come up with a solution for Alpha Brown when he straightened and his brows furrowed while directing to Auric with a nod, "The pack and I will ensure you all get a head start out of Blood Moon Falls."

I widened my eyes, as did Dennison when he frowned, standing up and shook his head, "Lyle..."

The alpha held up his hand, lowering his chin to sternly look at Dennison. The two men stared at one another before the older of the two nodded that he knew what was being risked by staying behind but that perhaps with those in his pack who could fight back against what was coming would stall enough for us to get out... and then maybe in a few days time, Alpha Brown and his pack could follow. 

My brows furrowed, glancing at Dennison and wondered if he actually believed what Alpha Brown was telling him. From the look on the former alpha's face, he didn't, but for the sake of the situation and the timing, Dennison sighed with a nod, "Alright, Lyle. I'll be sure to come back for you all in a few days."

Alpha Brown seemed to acknowledge that Dennison knew the truth of what was said, but still replied that he'd be sure to inform the pack. 

"Guys!" Maddox, Sr. ran in with a wide-eyed panic. He was breathing hard, shaking his head that the others outside warned that something was coming and it was fast. Maddox turned to Thea who stood up and frowned that they were all going to need to leave right now. That none of them were going to stay and fight. 

She glanced at Alpha Brown whose eyes softened as he offered a small smile. Thea pouted a bit, lowering her gaze as she whispered, "Are you sure there's no changing your mind?"

Alpha Brown shook his head, grinning that Thea and Dennison have fought for others when the time called for it. When they didn't have to.

"I think it's time I did the same."

Sighing, the alpha raised a brow and mentioned that he did have a request. 

"Anything, Lyle," Thea nodded before the alpha glanced at Ophelia standing beside him. She could feel this and slowly turned to look at him. She frowned with her arms crossed, "What...?"

Alpha Brown looked at Thea and asked that we take his daughter and Athena with us. 

"Dad!" Ophelia gasped, wide-eyed. She shook her head, muttering that she didn't want to leave him! 

Her father's sullen look wasn't missed as he placed a hand on her shoulder and shook his head that this wasn't like Caleb; making Ophelia's eyes widen more. That the alpha knew his daughter loved him very much and he loved her very much. 

"I might be risking the pack, Ophelia, but that doesn't mean that I want to risk you with it. And if something does happen... and I am able to send those I can to the Alliance, then I will need you there for them. To provide them the support they'll need when things go awry." 

"B---but---"

Alpha Brown frowned, shaking his head that there was no time for her to argue. That we were all just as scared but that the father could see in his daughter what he saw in Caleb too. 

"You're an alpha, Ophelia. You've always been one... but this is where you'll need to acknowledge that. And accept it."

He didn't let her get in another word as he pulled her to him, kissing her head and shoved her towards Mr. Dennison while asking him to pass the order onto Athena that Ophelia was to be guarded by the redhead from here on out.

Mr. Dennison looked so hurt for his long-time friend, clearly wanting to say something against the panicky Ophelia in his arms, but just nodded before using his strength to pull the she-wolf with him out of the living room. My Aunt Emeel was behind them, nodding once to the alpha who returned it. 

"I'll have a runner head back to gather more Weres but the others remaining here will do our best to distract what's coming. Which I bet is the Council."

Dennison's frown deepened, nodding in agreement and added that it wasn't really the Council that was the terrifying part. 

"Just the creature they bring with them..."

For a moment, I was setting Maddie down on his feet, asking him to not move and he acknowledged my request by nodding. I glanced at him for a second to ensure he'd actually listen before shoving my hand into the pocket of my pants where I'd kept the brass knuckles from earlier. I had to use both my hands to wedge it out since it was so bulky and kept getting stuck. 

Grunting, like that would help, I leaned back to provide more room to yank out the brass knuckles. The stupid contraption was the shit but it fucking sucks to carry around! Once I managed to free it from my pocket, I placed it on, looking up at the others as they were gathering themselves to head out. Dennison was already muttering to Eli as he assisted his son to stand off the couch and Thea was motioning for Ruby, Jonah's wife, his twins, and Alice to follow her. 

I turned back to Maddie who was tilting his head again, his gray eyes looking upward as he was listening. Frowning, I asked if he was alright but the boy ignored me up until he blinked and piped, "It's here!" 

Then the kid bolted.

"Maddie!" I cried, reaching over to nab him. I didn't. 

Looking at the entryway to the dining area, I shouted for Maddox, Sr. to grab my little cousin who was rushing past him. Maddox blinked, turning to catch sight of the little booger but also missed his chance in nabbing him. 

Of all the fucking things I was capable of as an Advanced Hunter and catching a kid is not one of them! Fuck!

"Wait, Maddox!" Thea cried, wide-eyed and rushed after her son. 

"Thea!" Dennison panicked, wrapping his arm a little better around Eli but I rushed over to grab the teenager from him so that the father could make a run for his family. Eli was looking up at me, pleading to help him get outside to help. I used my arm to hold my younger cousin securely under his arm and was able to rush a little faster through the house. 

Once we'd made our exit to the porch, the Six and their fellow Weres were already on the lot. They were spread out, facing the woods and sides of the property like a semi-circle with space in between them all. I widened my eyes seeing the way the Weres were agitated, more than earlier when taking on Trent and his troop. 

My eyes searched for the golden curls so familiar to me and I was able to breathe a little better once I found Easton near the left. He was already snarling, his clawed fingers stretching and flexing a few times. The others were behaving in a similar manner. 

"Dad!" Eli cried beside me. I turned to where he was looking near the middle of the semi-circle where Dennison had caught up with Thea and their youngest son. Dennison was holding Thea protectively to him with their son in between so the father was able to turn to look at Eli next to me. 

The teenager's face went pale, a shaky hand rising as he pointed in a particular direction and called back, "It's here!" just like his brother had done earlier. Eli kept pointing, frowning as he sputtered, "It's---It's in there! Right there!" 

Alpha Brown appeared from the side of the house with a large group of his pack members who had been standing guard in the front. He gave a short whistle, signaling for those with him to quickly head over to stand beside those already in the semi-circle. The Weres from Alpha Brown's pack turned to the Six and the rest of our group surrounding the house and gestured them out of the way. 

Confusion set in for our group and they looked at Dennison who shouted that we were to head out of town now, that we couldn't stay here. Alpha Brown growled at his men and women to stand at their post. 

"You do not let them get past you! Remember! They're after a teenage boy! You will protect him at all costs!" 

The alpha's Weres complied in responding with simultaneous snarls before half of them shifted while the rest remained in wolf form. 

We all stared, starting to back up as Alpha Brown's pack members began to growl and let the gold hue of their wolves take over when there was movement in the darkness. I backed up, still holding Eli while muttering under my breath in slight panic. I was never trained for anything like this which was definitely setting me with uneasiness. 

Alpha Brown ordered for us to get going while he was making his way to the front of the semi-circle. He looked at Athena as she was starting to take her place beside one of the pack members and her alpha shook his head; informing her that she would not be staying. The redhead looked confused, shaking her head and asking why not but the alpha cut her off that she was hereby appointed as his daughter's guard who Athena would be helping as well as the rest of us in getting out of Blood Moon Falls.

"Alpha Br---"

"Get going!" Alpha Brown spoke over her, turning in our direction. "Now! While there is still time!" 

He faced forward, not acknowledging Athena any further and for once I saw a side to the she-wolf that was vulnerable. She looked torn with leaving her alpha and following orders. But Valentine appeared beside her, nodding silently before forcefully taking her arm and pulling her with him. 

I helped Eli get down the porch steps by carrying him down and he groaned, leaning forward which made me pause a moment to see him clutching his stomach. His face scrunched, his hairline growing sweaty again.

"Kale..." he groaned, his head tilted a bit. "I don't feel good..." 

Nodding, I muttered, "Okay... okay..." and bent to place one of his arms behind my neck and then to pick Eli up in my arms. I shifted him into a better hold, asking if he was okay. He nodded, groaning through a grimace and I panted, "Hang on, Eli... Hang on." while rushing to make my way around the house. 

I met up with Easton who had come back looking for me. He saw Eli and immediately took him from me. 

"Let's go, Red! We've got only so much time!" he warned before turning and jogging to one of the filling-up-quickly vans. 

I looked over my shoulder, my brows furrowing and eyes widening at the horde of Weres that emerged from the woods. Some were in wolf form while the others remained human with the same uniforms as Trent and his troop had been wearing. 

Holy shit! They were all mercenaries!? There was a shit ton of them!

My gaze went back to Alpha Brown and his pack members. I know he sent word for more to join him but I feared that they weren't going to make it in time. Guilt ensued inside me knowing that I would be leaving them behind and the chances of them surviving... was slim. And that was low-balling. 

Alpha Brown seemed to sense me because he turned to look directly at me. Even from the distance he stood, the man held that austere intensity that alphas must all somehow instinctively know how to do. Alpha Brown nodded once at me which made me nod back before backing up and turning away. 

I could still feel him staring after me up until I disappeared around the house and then started to jog towards the vans where Easton kept shouting for me to hurry up. I hurried but faltered a little when we all heard Alpha Brown's growling howl echo to us before hearing the voluminous, raging war-like cries from that massive crowd I saw back there. It only pushed me to practically throw myself into the already-moving car to get away from the house. 

I panted, my mind lost for a moment as I felt it in my bones that I wouldn't be seeing Alpha Brown and his pack members. Ever again. 

My eyes shut tight, picturing again all those mercenaries against a handful of Werewolves defending us like we mattered more than they did. If any of us mattered more it was Eli and Maddie, but still... it just was hard to think about.

Sitting back against the door of the van after it was locked shut, I leaned my head back to stare at nothing in particular. There was someone moving to sit beside me and I sighed, not lifting my head but instead leaned it to the side to see Easton sitting there. He had this hard look on his face, just like a few of the others. Everyone was quiet other than Athena who was muttering to Ophelia who was leaning her head against the she-wolf as she cried. 

I felt the lump in my throat grow as I watched Ophelia. 

She might not have been the most pleasant to be around in the beginning, but down the line, she wasn't so bad. She was still a high maintenance she-wolf and hung around the likes of Athena---who was showing a side that none of us had really seen before now---but my thoughts kept reverting back to the fact that her father didn't let her stay behind. 

Alpha Brown knew his daughter's fate had she stayed with him. He knew she wouldn't have survived had she remained to fight beside him. Werewolf or not, that was his daughter and as a father he was going to protect her any way he could. 

So seeing Ophelia now as she was sobbing, and trying to keep her voice down from sobbing out for her father, I felt my eyes tear up a bit. I swallowed, licking my lip before looking back up at the roof of the vehicle. 

"Red..." 

I sniffled, turning my teary-gaze to my boyfriend watching me already. His brows scrunched a bit and his ice-blue eyes looking over my face. He seemed to get good at reading me since he stared at me a moment longer before speaking.

"There's nothing you could have done." He spoke as quietly as he could, not wanting to upset Ophelia even more. "Alpha Brown made a decision as an alpha. As a leader. Those on his pack grounds are safe as long as they stay there until we come back for them."

Easton sighed, looking down a moment that made a few of his curls fall in front of his eyes. He continued to look down, unable to stop shaking his head as he shrugged a shoulder, "Sometimes people have to make difficult choices... we just have to make sure those choices---like Alpha Brown's---are not in vain."

He placed a hand behind my neck, raising his brows as he leaned closer to whisper, "So you're going to need to get your shit together and kick ass when you need to... hm?"

I stared at him, blinking a few times at his soft grin and I frowned, shaking my head but laid my head on his shoulder. He leaned his head against mine as the rest of the ride was silent other than Athena comforting a weeping Ophelia.

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By the time we were reaching those backroads to get out of town, Thea had been trying to soothe her older son who was leaning against her, his head under her chin, while she was using a small towel she'd found in the van and a half-filled water bottle to try to cool Eli off.

He'd been groaning and complaining the whole way that he wasn't feeling well. His head tilted back, swallowing in between heavy panting. Eli squeezed his eyes shut, moaning to his mother that he wanted it to stop. 

Thea closed her eyes, holding her son's head closer to her and kissed his head. She kept her lips against his head and I could see the helplessness returning to her again when Eli moaned to her that 'it hurt so much'. 

Glancing at little Maddie seated on his father's lap beside Thea, I noticed that he wasn't having any of the painful behaviors as his brother. Although, the younger sibling looked worried and kept wincing when seeing his brother cry out while trying to hold onto his mother for support. Every time this happened, Maddie would reach over to touch Eli's leg and it would somewhat ease Eli. But only momentarily. 

Jonah, who was driving the second van that we were in, suddenly came to a screeching halt; making almost all of us jolt to the side and having to catch ourselves from falling completely over. I frowned in the Dennison twin's direction but his wide-eyed look staring out the front windshield made my stomach tighten. 

Now, what...?

"Uhhhhh... Aury?"

Dennison---for once not caring about the awful nickname---raised a brow and turned his attention to his brother. The older twin swallowed hard, without turning from the window, and I noticed his hands squeezed the steering wheel so tight that his knuckles went white. 

"What's wrong?" Dennison asked, unable to move until Langley reached her hands out for little Maddie who happily complied with going into her arms. 

The father stood, glancing at Thea who nodded silently before she went back to caressing her groaning son's hair from his face. Dennison sighed, moving to the front of the van and frowned, "What? What the fuck is your---"

His eyes widened just as much as his brother's. The man's Adam's apple bobbed up and down hard before he grit his teeth and cursed under his breath. 

"What?" I asked, anxious to know what they were staring at. 

Dennison shook his head, grumbling, "We're in total shit, is what." 

I frowned, "Why?"

"Because what was happening back at the house was a fucking decoy."

Easton blinked, starting to get up, "You're sure?" to which Dennison nodded, still looking out the window like Jonah. My boyfriend was making his way beside Dennison while asking how his friend knew the scene back at the house was a decoy. But then Easton fell in as the third one to look stunned as he halted beside Dennison.

"Ease...?" I muttered low. I glanced at the others before looking back to the trio at the front of the van. "What the hell is it?"

My Moody-Asshat swallowed, brows furrowing as he muttered, "The Council is here... blocking the backroads we need to get through."

My eyes widened, my heart going crazy again. 

Easton sighed, "And they have that crazy Werewolf chained right in front of it with them." then he turned to give me a worried frown. "They set a fucking trap... and we walked right into it. 

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