Mingi screamed, sitting up in bed and flinging his arm out to try and fend off whoever had grabbed him.

"Get away!" His voice cracked as he tried to push himself away from his attacker.

Then fell off the bed.

He landed with a painful thud on his shoulder, hitting his head on the wall at the same time.

"Oh, fuck." A man said. It took a second for Mingi to register that it was Angelo, and really the only thing that connected the dots for him was Theo's familiar hand grasping his shoulder. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah..." Mingi groaned and rubbed his head. He could already feel a knot forming and it was tender to the touch.

"Good, then you need to come with us." Angelo's scent turned sour and his voice shook. "Hurry!"

"What's going on?" The alpha asked. He held out his arms for Theo to grab and help him stand.

"Nova has been spotted nearby. We need to hide you."

Mingi felt himself blink several times as he tried to process what was said. Nova was coming for him. She was coming...  He felt faint. The floor spun beneath him. She was going to put him back in that room... Probably tie him down so he could never escape...

He heard others rushing around him, then the sound of something being sprayed nearby. Whatever it was, it started to neutralize all the scents lingering in the air.

"Hurry! Hurry!" Angelo said again.

Theo tugged on Mingi's arms, guiding him through the room and down a hallway.

He threw all of his trust into the beta, knowing full well that Theo would help and protect him.

"There's no good place to hide him, we've never had to do this." Someone hissed from the other side of the house.

"Take him to my room, we will hide him in my closet." Angelo said.

"She's getting closer!" Someone else yelled from behind them now.

Mingi's heart was racing. He wasn't sure what to think, what to feel, what to do... His pulse pounded heavily in his skull, making his head ache even more. The spot he'd hit it earlier was the worst. It throbbed as if it was ready to explode.

Right now, he was completely helpless. The darkness that was his new world was so consuming. He hated that he was forced to rely on these unfamiliar wolves...

"Mingi, I know this is frightening, but I need you to control your emotions. Your scent is strong enough as it is." Angelo hissed, almost matching the sound of whatever spray bottle he was using to try and mask Mingi's potent mint smell.

The alpha whined a little but did as he was asked, burrowing deep within himself to try and lock his emotions away for the time being.

In just a few seconds, he was shoved into a closet, tucked into a corner, and had a pile of dirty clothes thrown on him after being sprayed a few more times.

He heard the others shuffling around frantically, probably trying to think of other ways to hide him...

This seemed effective, or he hoped it would be at least. The dirty clothes masked his scent fairly well, but he would always be able to sense it. The real test would be if Nova came in the house.

"Theo, he'll be fine, you can't stay in here." Annabelle urged.

There was a soft whine, then the snap of a light switch, followed by the soft click of the door shutting.

It was so hard for Mingi to contain himself.

He wanted to scream.

He wanted to tremble.

He wanted to cry.

But he couldn't... Not right now. He had to be silent and small to try and hide from the woman who had done this to him.

So the alpha checked to make sure he was completely covered by the clothes and curled into as tight of a ball as he could, praying that Nova would not find him.

.

.

.

.

Theo you need to calm down. Avayla said, although it was easy to hear how stressed she was by the way her voice trembled. I need you to be strong for me, my love, since I can't be there to help you protect Dad...

Regret weighed heavily on her words. Through quick conversations and updates, it was decided that she could stay with the girls. Her sudden appearance would cause too many questions, especially because they were worried that Nova was having them watched.

Too many unfamiliar alphas had started appearing around them, never talking to them, but always in the shadows or close by.

I know. I'm trying... Theo bit at the loose skin around his fingers, needing to get his nervous energy out somehow.

But even Annabelle and Angelo shot him warning looks. His scent was too strong, too sour...

'Alright, we have been here all day discussing our next hunting trip.' Angelo said to everyone in the room. There were six other betas that were part of their little group, all of whom had agreed that Nova had gone too far.

Theo grabbed his notebook and quickly scribbled down, 'What if she finds him?'

Annabelle placed a hand on his arm in an attempt to comfort him. 'Then we protect him. We do what we can.'

That wasn't what he wanted though. Theo started to write again, but a tap from Annabelle stopped him. With a nod of her head, he turned his attention to Angelo.

'Annabelle is right. And don't try to talk us out of it, we all chose this.' He flashed a grave smile, then he and everyone else in the room all looked at the door as one. 'It's time.' Angelo retuned his gaze to Theo. 'Deep breathe. We've got your back.'

Theo held his notebook to his chest, clutching it tightly, trying to funnel all of his nervous energy into it.

Then he smelled her.

Rotten peaches permeated the air, turning the inside of the cabin foul.

She appeared only seconds later, eyes already flickering red as they darted around the room.

'Nova? Is everything alright?' Angelo asked, making sure he was angled in a way that Theo could read his lips. It was a small, yet incredibly thoughtful action that made Theo's heart swell and eased his nerves.

Until the alpha fixed her gaze on him with a sneer. 'I've lost something. I came by to see if you've found it.'

Theo felt trapped beneath Nova's stare. He could feel the venom in her words, just by the way her lips formed them, slow and over exaggerated.

Because of this, he missed whatever the others had said, but he could watch as the alpha's eyes grew darker with rage.

'Get in here!' She yelled, turning her head toward the door.

Then three other alphas stormed into the room. All of the betas back away from them, pressing themselves against the wall as their overwhelming dominance filled the room.

For a second, Theo had thought all was lost as Nova ordered them to search the house. Angelo tried to stop them, saying something about how it was unnecessary and that they would cooperate, but most of it was lost on Theo when he noticed the final alpha walking in.

Yubin stopped next to Nova and scanned the room. She kept her face neutral when she noticed Theo standing in the corner, although there was a slight nod, one that only Theo could pick out, that she gave before listening to whatever Nova was telling her.

With the head alpha distracted, Theo hurriedly wrote down where Mingi was hiding and ripped the page out to crumple in his hand so he could try and pass it to her.

Thankfully Yubin noticed and she started searching in the area around him. She made a point to growl at him when she got close, snapping at him to step back from the couch, which she then made a point to smell all of the cushions, one of which he'd hidden the paper behind.

What's going on? Avayla asked. Her fear and stress never ended and only grew stronger as time passed. T, please answer me!

Yubin is here.

The relief that flowed from his mate was powerful and instant, although not strong enough to erase everything else. I was wondering why she ran off so suddenly. This is a good sign.

Why? Theo frowned when all of the alphas started moving to the hallway so they could search the other side of the cabin.

Except Nova. She stayed put, watching every little move he made.

It means she doesn't suspect the Elite yet, and Siyeon agrees. Avayla started speaking a little faster. If we can keep it that way, then we have seven sets of eyes on the inside. Maybe we can figure out what she plans to do next and stay one step ahead of her. Plus then we can protect Dad.

As amazing as that sounds, Theo paused and tilted his head a little. His nostrils flared as he scented the air, noticing a shift.

T? What's happening?

Nova took a step toward him, her eyes still glowing bright red. The other betas all shifted, too, but there was only so much they could do if they weren't going to raise any suspicion. 'What are you hiding from me, little beta?' She sneered.

Theo scrunched his nose at the comment. He'd never been called little before, just the thought of it made the hair on the back of his neck raise.

And it made Avayla snarl through their link.

The alpha started to advance on him, her shoulders squared and teeth bared.

But then, she swayed in place, her hands flying to her prominent stomach. All the color drained from her face and it looked like she winced in pain.

One of the alphas came running back down the hall, grabbing Nova's elbow to steady her.

T!

Theo winced and sent a mental image of what he was seeing at the moment. He knew that Nova was sick, but seeing it in person was a different thing.

If she was weak, if she was vulnerable... then they stood a chance of taking over, even if the other female alphas in the pack tried to fight against them too.

They just needed to wait for the right time to strike.

.

.

.

.

Mingi could smell Nova the second she entered the house, and from then on, each second felt like hours. Even the beating of his own heart seemed to slow to an abysmal rate.

He couldn't control the trembles now wracking his body. And he knew... He knew that anyone who came in the closet would be able to see the shaking pile of clothes.

They would find the pathetic, worthless alpha hiding behind a beta's scent...

Hiding from another alpha he should be able to take on his own...

He couldn't do this. Not in the state he was in. And... What if they hurt the others because of him?

What if they hurt Theo?

Could he really stay hidden here while his daughter's mate risked everything?

A small whimper escaped him and he clamped a hand over his mouth to stifle it.

New scents joined the mixture. Four of them. And muffled voices came from the living room.

It sounded like Angelo was trying to stop whatever was happening, but Nova was ordering others to do something.

Footsteps drew closer.

They were searching the house for him.

They were going to find him.

And there was nothing he could do about it.

If only he could see... then maybe he'd have a chance to fight his way out of it...

But he couldn't.

What kind of alpha was he if he couldn't see?

He sucked in a breath when someone stopped outside the closet door. "I'll check in here." Her voice was deeper, smooth and soothing in a way. "You go that way."

The door swung open with one, tiny squeak.

This was it... This was the end of it.

He was going back into that prison and never coming out.

He was never going to see his family again. He was never going to wrestle with Yunho, he was never going to tease Wooyoung, he was never going to get to stand by Hongjoong's side again...

The alpha drew closer.

Mingi exhaled slowly and sent a silent prayer to whoever was listening for them to take care of his family.

And to apologize to Seonghwa for failing him.