---Quinton's POV---

The door closed behind me and for once, I didn't want to follow my brother. My wolf was tugging at my consciousness, wanting to go back to our pup. A slight whine slipped out when my wolf struggled to go back and my brother smiled knowingly.

"I know, its hard not to be around him. Hell, I didn't even know he was family... I'm an uncle?!" Lee spoke softly, a shocked smile slipping on his face as I grinned. "Yeah, I was kinda surprised too to learn I was...am a father."

I sighed, glancing back from where we came from in the hopes of catching a glimpse of my pup. Lee smiled warmly, squeezing my shoulder before guiding me down to his office.

"I can imagine that would be quite the surprise... but trust me, Zayne is an amazing pup." I grinned at the praise, eager to learn about my pup. Lee offered me a drink and leaned against his desk, smiling slightly as I hissed at the sharp sting of the alcohol.

Zayne...

"What kind of kid is he?" I questioned, setting my drink down with eager as Lee smiled. "Calm, quiet and polite...He's an Omega too, if you hadn't noticed." He added, making me huff slightly.

No wonder he was so frail and tiny...I felt like if I'd hug him, I'd possibly snap the lad in two...but why was he so on edge? And I did notice that, that wolf with his grubby hands all over my son.

A low, protective snarl slipped from my lips and I wasn't even sure if it was from my wolf. Neither of us liked the idea of anyone touching our son. And judging by Lee's amused smirk, he knew exactly what I was thinking.

"Relax. Marcus is Zayne's mate and would rather kill himself than let any harm come over his little Omega." I huffed at the statement, feeling oddly torn between feeling happy that my boy had found his mate and my wolf wanting to fight the man just to make sure he was worthy enough.

Lee's face was thoughtful as he sat down across me, long legs resting on the couch as he stared at me. "How is it that you didn't know you had pups? And who is your mate?"

I sighed deeply, rubbing over my neck and swallowing in preparation for the long story. "I'll start with the beginning, I take it? Well, I had been traveling for quite some time, going from territory to territory in an attempt to find my mate. Almost given up hope too until I saw her running through a meadow one day."

A bright smile slid on my lips as I clearly remembered the white and grey wolf elegantly running past countless of birch trees, attempting to catch a young buck on her own. Instinct had guided me to aid her and together we had taken the young deer down.

We had bonded through the hunt and even with her slight distrust over a random stranger, she agreed to see me again.

"For some reason, I couldn't come along to her pack. She mentioned their Alpha being extremely ruthless, act first and ask questions later kind of attitude. Presumably he would've thought me as a rogue and killed me on the spot."

Lee made a small, disagreeing sound but at my questioning look he just shook his head, "I'll explain later, continue your story." Frowning slightly, I recounted how I met up night after night with the she-wolf, how she told me of the dreadful condition of living in the pack.

Growling softly, I shook my head. "I had been more than prepared to challenge the Alpha, to fight to the death so my mate could live freely, without fear. The moment I mentioned it though, Audrey freaked out. The Alpha would never fight fair and even if I did managed to force him into submission, the Beta and their closest followers would aid and kill me before letting the man be overthrown."

Nodding, Lee leaned forwards, eager to hear more. "For a while, I kept to the back, even if it was killing me inside to sent my mate back towards such vile living conditions. She urged me she would try and escape soon. When I didn't hear from her for months, I was sure the Alpha had confined her one way or another."

Taking a deep breath, I told Lee of how I had tried in vain to contact pack law, how the nearby packs refused to sent the message, thinking I was a rogue. But when my hope was dwindling, a miracle happened.

"She appeared again?" Lee questioned curiously.

I nodded. "Weak on her legs, shivering all over and extremely thin but alive. I could hear the pack's howls in the air, could smell her scent change to that of a rogue. She had been banished by her Alpha and was running from his Beta."

"I see..." Lee mused silently; the room quiet with the soft background sounds of the pack in the other rooms. "And by then you didn't know you had pups? Didn't question why she stayed away for that long?"

I shook my head slightly, feeling angry with myself and more so with Audrey's former Alpha. "Her wrists and ankles were rough, scarred from being shackled. Her Alpha had kept her a prisoner because she was the former Alpha's daughter. She had tried to plead for her freedom yet the Alpha, Anton, had trapped her in her room."

Lifting my head, I growled, flashing my teeth. "He told her in detail how he would find me and drag my battered and bruised body before her before he would torture and kill me in front of my own mate. How he would force her to mate to him."

Lee snarled along; the thought of it happening to your mate, the very idea that someone would force her to mate... It made me shiver in disgust, my wolf attempting to push through before I managed to control myself.

"Explains why she was eager to leave in a hurry... but why didn't she tell you of the pups? I'm sure she gave birth to them in the pack so why not bring them along?" Lee asked. It was the question I had asked myself all this time.

And the answer was one very hard to swallow.

"She'll be here soon enough to speak for herself but don't judge her badly" I warned, seeing the dark look in his eyes. Lee scoffed, shaking his head as if he couldn't understand me.

"You have no idea what that so called Alpha put Zayne through." He sneered before I jumped up with a snarl. "Don't....I know I have no clue what happened to him but you have no idea what Audrey went through, how she suffered to keep our pups save."

A rumbling snarl echoed my own as Lee slowly stood up, our noses nearly brushing together as his eyes flashed. "How she suffered to keep them safe? She left them in the hands of a rogue pack with a maniac as an Alpha! She's a ruthless bitch that didn't care about what happened to-"

Lee cut off as I grabbed his throat while snarling seconds before the door bashed open, both Terrance and Marcus standing in the doorway, letting out warning growls. My wolf was still in charge, keeping me pushed back as he snarled at our sibling.

"She nearly had a miscarriage, Lee. Is that what you wanted to hear? They tried to torture the pups out of her so Anton could fill her with his own. She had to kill one of the wolves and snap her own thumbs to get out of the bonds holding her. And when she finally was able to drag her weakened body to the forest, she was in labor."

My fingers tightened slightly before my wolf tossed our brother back, stunned eyes looking up as I paced left and tight, growling continuously. "She gave birth in the middle of the forest, subzero temperatures biting in her skin and the pups as she was slowly bleeding out. It's a miracle I got her to the closest pack to save her life!"

"When I got her at the pack doctor, he thought she had been brutally raped Lee. She didn't want to speak about what happened and I didn't want to pry and force her to relive the events. Its only after I found her sneaking around constantly that I pressured her to tell me. To reveal the truth."

Marcus stepped forwards, revealing a nervous and twitching Zayne clutching to the back of his shirt before the boy pressed closer against him. "And what is the truth? For all we know, she abandoned them."

The fight left my body and I sat down, feeling pained and sorrowful. "She had our pups during the winter, in the middle of the cold and snow. Out of four pups, two didn't show a sign of life. As weak as she was, she knew she had to hide the pups somewhere warmer but was unable to use her human body. So she shifted and carried our pups one by one, digging a den and feeding them even as she was too weak to do so. Her wolf was too weak to start up the healing process.

Slowly the four pups recovered from the exposure to the cold and she managed to feed them and keep them hidden for three weeks. She could hear the pack around and knew the den was compromised so she tried her best to quickly get the pups out there."

I swallowed heavily, watching as Lee seemed ashamed of his sudden outburst but I could understand where he came from, even if I didn't know how badly Zayne was treated.

But if it was anything what Audrey had to go through, I had an idea... and I sure as hell hoped he wasn't forced through that living nightmare. Judging from his wary stance though, he did go through that.

And probably worse.

My wolf snarled, canines extending as I fought the urge to shift, to go out and find that Anton and rip his throat out, to bathe in his blood for what he did to my mate and our pups.

"I-I have sipies...sib..." Zayne's face contorted in a frustrated frown as Terrance chuckled slightly. "I think you're trying to say siblings." Zayne whined slightly and buried his face in Marcus' side, who chuckled and rubbed over his back soothingly.

Slowly, I nodded while staring at my youngest son. "Yes. A brother and a sister." Zayne offered me a wobbly smile, eyes sparking with excitement before Marcus frowned. "Hold up, you spoke of four pups but you only mention Zayne and two others..."

I perked up as I heard my mate shyly speak up. "I can explain that."

---Audrey's POV---

It pained me to see these wolves glare at me before their expression would soften slightly. My eyes flitted towards my youngest pup, tears instantly brimming as I fought to keep calm. My hands were nervously wringing together as I shuffled on my feet. Quinton was quick to walk over and envelop me in his warm arms and soothing scent.

"Hey love, its okay." He murmured, kissing my nose and my right jaw, pressing his lips softly against the multitude of scars there. "Its not okay when you're still angry." I murmured softly against his shirt, feeling him pull me closer."

Quinton chuckled softly, pressing his lips on my hair once. "I'll get over it but understand it's quite a shock dear." Nodding softly, I sighed before facing the rest of the wolves. Taking a deep breath, I told them of how I had tried to relocate the pups closer to pack borders, how I had been tracking Quinton's scent in the hopes of encountering him so we could both run away with our pups.

And how that failed when I had come back after bringing my firstborn son and daughter to the new den, only to find Anton's brother digging his way into the den that kept Zayne and my youngest girl.

"I just knew he was going to kill them so I launched for him. But a she wolf is no match for an Beta, especially not in my weak state. I tried my best to keep him distracted, fighting back before he managed to get his jaws in my face."

I could feel their eyes burning on the teeth and claw marks that fanned over my cheek, how close the Beta had gotten to destroy my sight. I shivered at the memory and Quinton hugged me soothingly.

"How I managed it, I didn't know but I shoved him off, biting him and slid in the den while he was distracted. I couldn't grab both pups and grabbed the nearest one before running for our lives."

My mind filled with painful memories of muscles screaming in pain, air panting past my lips as my pup wriggled in my jaws, letting pitiful whines. How the Beta had bashed into my side and to my horror, went for my baby girl.

"H-he killed her...g-grabbed her like a rabbit and k-kept shaking her." I sobbed, tears streaming down my face. "he wouldn't stop no matter what I did to fend him off and by the time he did, she w-was...a-and Anton was on his way over."

Quinton turned me around, hiding my face against his chest as I cried for the death of my Samantha, of the young innocent life lost. Seeing how I was unable to speak, Quinton continued, "When I found her she was on her way to get the other pups. But when we arrived at the den, it was empty."

Lee sighed deeply, remorsefully as he stared at us with sorrow in his eyes. "Dead?"

I shook my head slightly. "Caroline was adopted by a nomadic pair, who stumbled upon the den but they only found her there."

Quinton sighed deeply as my hands tightened; he knew I had been looking around in the hopes of finding them both.

I just wanted back my pups. Now that I had my mate, all I wanted was my pups. Even if I'd never be their mother again, I just wanted them to be safe and happy.

"What about the eldest?

"I have no idea..." I managed to choke, sobbing in my mate's chest as it was quite possible that we lost yet another pup. And that was a loss I could hardly bare. It was my fault for being so weak, for not being able to escape the pack sooner and birth the pups in a welcoming environment.

It was my fault Samantha was killed and Zayne was abused. And I would carry that guilt with me for the rest of my life.