Jude and Kian arrived just before midnight.

By the time Alexei and I returned, Jamison was stuffing his mouth with a sandwich he refused to share with me. The door opened an hour later. Jude soundlessly slipped inside, smiling when he spotted his mate running towards him with a shriek of his name spilling from her lips. Aella was immediately drawn up in his arms, whisking him away to a chosen corner of the room as they spoke in hushed whispers.

Tatum and Allison popped up behind him, peering into the cabin warily. Jamison hastily consumed the remnants of his food before greeting the couple.

Kian was the last to enter. His hair was mussed upon arrival. As soon as he stepped over the threshold, his gaze scanned the small room with displeasure.

"Kian!" I greeted him with a grin.

He scowled. "This is where you've been? It smells weird. Like grass and..." Sniff. "...Your scent is off." He took one step closer, pinching the neck of my shirt and inhaling deeply. I pulled back, holding my palms out. I was very aware of Alexei who had his eyes on us from the moment I approached Kian. I tried to discreetly take a whiff of the scent he caught but Alexei was suddenly at my side. His hand slid along my waist, digging into my hip. I was surprised that he hadn't grabbed my ass since he seemed addicted to it. "Hello Kian." Alexei greeted him amicably, his expression genuinely warm at the sight of my friend.

Kian merely narrowed his gaze but shook Alexei's hand. "Hey." His gaze darted between us. I knew the moment he recognised why my scent was off. His eyes widened as he drank us in, particularly Alexei's hand on my hip. "I see."

Alexei's scent was more prominent on me now that more time had passed.

"Well, this was unexpected." Kian tapped his chin, "I'm intrigued. Tell me, who caught who first?"

"What kind of question is that?" I huffed, "Alexei, don't answer."

I knew the direct route where Kian's mind was going. There was a glint of wicked humour hiding in his orbs. "Why so nervous Pen? I'm not going to say anything to him that may potentially embarrass you." He innocently claimed.

I called fucking bullshit.

Oh, he was going to get it. Now I definitely knew that brain of his was flicking through embarrassing stories to expose. I could practically imagine him running a teasing finger along his memory files, searching for the best incident to retell Alexei. He had his arsenal full of the questionable things I've done. My only defence was that I had very bad friends who made things sound like they were good choices at the time said action was done. I had to figure out a way where I could bribe Kian to keep his trap shut.

"So, what is this I hear about a mountain lion?" Tatum's voice rose in the air, stilling conversation.

Hallelujah!

I thanked the assassin for unknowingly coming to my aid.

We gathered to the centre of the lounge, taking up the seats. Tatum and Allison remained standing.

"Well, let's start off with the tracking chip you put into the changeling that infiltrated the Pack during the Full Moon." Jude started.

"We tracked down the changeling, but it was literally gnawed to the bone by a mountain lion. The chip survived since we can still see it moving on Pen's app she has on her device." Jamison responded. He showed the Alpha the app with the blinking red dot moving along the map. "As we know, the changelings are poisonous. The fact that the mountain lion is still alive after eating it, is what's baffling."

"Fucking hell." Kian blew out a breath, "So what's the plan? Track down the mountain lion? If so, we'll have limited time before the fucking chip gets affected by its stomach acids or it shits it out. Even if we are able to catch the lion, what are we going to do then? Bring it back and see why the hell it's still alive from eating a whole ass changeling?"

"We have very few choices." Aella replied. "We need to know why the mountain lion was unaffected by the poisonous changelings. It should've died but it didn't. We have to know because it may be what we need to help protect us from potential danger of these changelings."

"How will we execute this plan?" Kian asked, somewhat appeased by her explanation.

"We will need to split up." I spoke up.

"Why is that?" Tatum asked.

"There's another issue that the Alpha will need to attend." I replied, "I came across Alpha Bennett-"

Echoes of disbelief went off from the newly arrived party.

"Where is that shit?" Tatum fumed.

"Easy." Allison whispered, placing a kiss against his shoulder. Her hands danced along his arms, softening the tension in his muscles. It was fascinating to watch the change in his expression as he heaved out a big breath, nuzzling into her neck.

"They've been in the caves beneath the mountains." I answered.

"Caves?" Kian's interest peaked. "There are caves beneath the mountains?"

"Yeah, they've been hiding-" I went quiet as different expressions flashed across his face. A small wrinkle lined the space between his dark brows. He was ruminating hard, and I had an inkling of where his thoughts were going. I also had the same thoughts running in my brain when I walked in the caverns with Mila as my guide. It was the only thing I could come up that made sense.

"Pen, I think the tunnels beneath the Pack....I think the tunnels are connected to the network of caves beneath the mountains. I don't know how but it's the only logical thing I can think of. Someone probably knew about the tunnels but whether they knew it led to the caves below the mountains or not, they're there now." Kian explained.

"What tunnels? What are you saying?" Alexei asked, glancing between Kian and I.

"There are tunnels under the Blue Cave Pack- a network of it. I didn't think anyone knew about it but I'm certain that they used those tunnels to leave their Territory, which I now think are actually cave tunnels that lead to the ones they're occupying right now." Kian explained.

"The Blue Cave Pack have their name for a reason." Allison nodded, sounding thoughtful as she pondered Kian's revelation. "You're making sense Kian."

"These are the reasons why we need to split up. Jude however will need to go to the caves since Alpha Bennett requested him. He's refusing to talk until he sees him. I will be able to show him the way." I said.

"I'll be going with you." Kian stood.

"Me too." Tatum announced.

"Dad, maybe you should come with us to find the lion. It'll be tense having you and Jude there together." Aella suggested.

Tatum sighed, rubbing his jaw, reluctantly relenting to his daughter's wish. "Alright. I'll go with you to find that lion but if they're not back by then, I'll be finding a way to get to that man's throat. The fact that he's still breathing pisses me the fuck off.

Allison sighed, knowing perfectly well the man could not be swayed from going for Alpha Bennett's neck.

Yeah, he wasn't the only one.

Once everyone was sorted, we all separated. Aella led the other group to the mountain lion, and I left only with Kian and Jude at my side. Before we departed, Alexei had pulled me aside, cupping my cheeks in his warm palms, "Be careful."

"Don't worry about me. If anything happens, I'll at least have Kian and Jude at my side."

"I know but I would've been more at ease if I was there- don't give me that look Penelope. I'm not trying to be the difficult mate. I'm being reasonable. You're heading into a potentially dangerous situation. In my gut, I know you'll be fine, but nothing will ease my wolf until I've said my piece." He kissed me quickly but firmly on the lips, stealing my breath. I was losing count of how many he had given me up here in the mountains. "Now, go kick some ass." He swatted my ass gently and squeezed my shoulders.

He then guided me towards Jude and Kian with a soft 'see you soon' whispered against my neck.

"Don't worry Honey, I'll do you proud." I blew him a kiss over my shoulder. He shook his head, hiding a smirk as Tatum took his elbow, leading him away.

My lips were still tingling from the feel of his, I was tempted to pull him back and demand another one. Thankfully, Kian called my name, shattering my crazy ideas.

Once the others left to hunt down the mountain lion, I led the men towards the jagged crevice Mila had led me through. The opening on the slope of the cliff edge was a definite no-no, considering neither of the men would be able to squeeze into the slim space. "This is the only other opening into the caverns." I told the men, brushing away the green leaves that obscured the hole from sight. "There are other openings, but the only other entry point I know of won't be able to accommodate your sizes."

"This is fine." Jude responded.

I slid in first, sensing Jude following behind.

Since both men were practically giants, they had to lower their heads a little so avoid getting scraped across the head.

"We'll reach a more open space further down." I assured them.

Although it was like a maze in the caverns, I could manoeuvre my way around rather easily. Mila had been sure that she had led me in circles before she guided the way to the exit. Unfortunately, she had sorely underestimated my observation skills. She hadn't realised I had distracted her with my rambling, so I could better study the paths we traversed. There were times Mila had been cunning, taking us both on repeated loops she thought I hadn't noticed. She was sly but she should've known I had been like her in another lifetime.

For some reason, she didn't want me back.

Or perhaps, she didn't want to see me.

Either way, I was driven to see her again. I didn't plan to leave without convincing her some more to come to the Shadow Hunters. I wasn't sure what was holding her back, but I was going to make it my mission to convince her to, even if my throat became dry from endless begging.

I wondered if she had been like me. One of the wolves who fell through the cracks and ended up just being alone without a family, hence, taking an immediate Rogue status. She could have been a non amimum but I had a feeling she could morph into her wolf. She would probably deny it if I asked but I couldn't blame the girl. She was trying to survive and somehow, she ended up mingling paths with the Blue Cave Pack although she wasn't an official member.

From the grooves along the walls, I knew we were close.

"I can smell them." Jude said a few minutes later when we kept moving deeper into the caverns.

"They're here." We took the last few turns.

I spotted Alpha Bennett first.

It was like he foresaw our secret arrival. He stood in the centre of the open space, feet spread a shoulder width apart and his arms crossed, I could see the corded muscle in his arms twitch as his attention narrowed on the Alpha walking beside me like a quiet, tamed storm waiting to unravel like a deadly ribbon.

I watched as Alpha Bennett's gaze slid down Jude's arms that were snaked with his clinking chains. A hard look crossed his features as he dared to maintain eye contact with the man.

I expected Jude to dart across the space, grab the man around the neck and snap it but he remained deceptively poised, remaining at my side despite how much I knew he wanted to set Alpha Bennett straight for the cruelties he forced upon Allison and by default, his mate. There wasn't even a hint of animosity in his presence as he stood tall, taking in the remnant members of the Blue Cave Pack.

There weren't many of them left. I wasn't sure how many had perished from their sojourn to this location.

The familiar man with dark eyes was the only person who greeted us with a wide, welcoming grin.

He approached first but his sights were strictly pinned on Kian.

I felt Kian's relief the instant he spotted Magnus moving in the crowd. He shifted on his feet, but he didn't go to Magnus. He couldn't. At least, not now when Alpha Bennett posed a risk.

Father and son shared a meaningful glance. Magnus comforted Kian with small smile. It was enough since Kian now oozed less tension. Magnus knew that his son's duty was to his Alpha first and it was where he currently stood, protecting the Pack that he found new family and duty in.

I grasped Kian's hand, letting him know I was there. He squeezed my hand in return before releasing it. I felt his gratitude and I knew he was fine.

"I've come with my Alpha as I said I would." I announced.

Alpha Bennett stepped forward. His sons were quiet behind him, taking in Jude with pale, horrified faces.

"Alpha Slater. You actually came." Alpha Bennett's gaze studied Jude closely. It was difficult trying to get a read on his expression. He was collected but there was an uncertainty in the way he held himself.

"My Enforcer informed me that you were here. There are things that I would prefer to discuss with you alone but that is something for later. I want to know why you demanded my presence specifically." Jude addressed the man with nothing but a cool tone and refined authority.

"I want to make a deal with you Alpha Slater."

Jace and Ace balked at the suggestion in outrage, their bodies stiffening in unison.

"What are you doing?" Jace piped up. He was either brave or stupid, since he was the only one of the twins that dared to ask the question, everyone was thinking.

"Jace, you're not the Alpha. Stand back." Alpha Bennett waved his hand dismissively in the air, "This isn't something you need to integrate yourself in to."

"But dad-"

"Enough."

"I really would've appreciated it if you kept this family argument behind closed doors. I'm not interested in hearing you two go back and forth. It's not cute." Kian drawled.

Jace snarled.

"What is the deal that you propose?" Jude asked, humouring Alpha Bennett. I wasn't sure what he had in mind, but Kian and I braced ourselves.

"Let us join your Pack."