Nevaeh Vance was a profound woman who took no shit from anybody.

Nevaeh and Nashoba equally shared the reigns on the moonshine pack. Responsibilities fell on both of them equally, so where Nashoba was out making allies with neighboring packs, hunting for more food, and slaughtering vampires along the way, Nevaeh was in charge of figuring out how to support moonshine and the other packs financially for when they come to join Tʋnʋp. and keeping up with making sure there was enough food for everyone. Every other week, when Rayne and Ezra weren't training or doing whatever else on their own, Nevaeh would make them help her out with physical training for the rest of the pack.

So, when Rayne decided to go straight to the source, she knew she would have to do anything possible to get her mother to agree to her plan. Hunt for natural food, unchain his wrists and ankles, and get him into a pack house. Only then, would he be willing to share what he knew of defeating Ambrosius.

"Mom?" she called out into the quiet house.

Ronan closed the door behind them and glanced over at the unoccupied game system that belonged to Ezra. Something mischievous crawled into his expression. "Enjoy the talk with your mom. I'm gonna take a break from your bullshit and relax before Ez gets back."

"Ronan," Rayne hissed, but he had already made his way over to the T.V. She grumbled under her breath and listened for Nevaeh's honey-coated call back to her from her usual office.

Holding her breath, she shoved any nervousness deep down into her body and made her way to the room. She could kill Ronan for leaving her to herself, but she supposed he wouldn't be any help. Ronan was always tongue tied when he was in front of Nevaeh and she didn't have time for his flustered blushing in her presence.

Bent over an array of grids full of numbers and names, Nevaeh's beauty unleashed an unfurl of affection from Rayne, who absolutely adored her mother. Her springy coils of tiny curls dripped below her shoulder blades and fell onto the pages before her as she pushed them from out of her cinnamon irises that she gave to her children. Her smooth, brown skin was flourished and young without a lick of make-up, further enhanced her beauty as a brilliant smile illuminated her face.

"Ray? What are you doing home so early?" she asked, gripping Rayne's fingers in hers once she was close enough and giving it a loving squeeze. She listened for a moment with her head cocked just the slightest to the side. "Ronan's here too?"

Rayne forced a smile across her lips, her guilt slithering through her body like the sea through clumps of rocks. "We wanted to—well, I, wanted to talk to you about something before dad gets back. So, we ended training early."

Nevaeh moved back. Her eyebrows furrowed. "What did you want to talk about? Must be serious if you don't want your father to hear about it."

"He just wouldn't understand it the way that you would," Rayne explained, leaning her body against her mother's work desk in front of her. She squeezed her mother's fingers. "That's why I need you to be on my side."

"Your side for what?" she asked, suspicious. "What's going on, Rayne Leighann?"

Rayne swallowed harshly at the way her first and middle name sounded from her mother's lips. Before she could sweeten her mother up anymore, she got right to the point, knowing she didn't stand for any bullshit.

"I came to you because . . . you're the only one who can make dad see reason. I already tried to convince him yesterday that Jarrah shouldn't be in the dungeon room, but he wouldn't listen to me. It's not fair that dad initiated him into the pack and still treats him like a prisoner."

Nevaeh leaned back in her seat. "Rayne—"

"He's not eating. He refuses to eat the frozen shit we've been saving for months and it's already been three days. And the chains are preventing him from healing properly. You should see him mom."

"Because you have?" Nevaeh asked, sharply. "After your father told you—"

"Mom, I'm twenty-one years old now. I'm only here because dad doesn't want me in my house until Ambrosius is stopped. Jarrah's not even dangerous!"

"And how do you know that?" she demanded, tone full of an underlying rage. "Look, I'm not happy about him being locked up either. But you know the Fae are known for their tricks and I don't want you down there without your father or Declan with you."

Rayne groaned. "Do you even care that we look like the monsters right now? Towards someone who is bonded until he helps us? He's bound to moonshine until he helps us stop Ambrosius so he can't even leave! Why would we chain him up with iron if he can't leave the grounds?"

There was a pause. "What are you talking about?"

"When the Fae make a deal, they have to follow through with their end of the bargain. It's a consequence of their magic. If they don't then they die. And we both know the King of Fae would never let himself die, not while he has to protect his people."

Nevaeh rubbed her forehead gingerly. Exhaustion drooped at the corner of her eyes as she thought over her daughter's words. It was brief, but it felt like an eternity to Rayne as she watched her mull over them for a few minutes and nibbled on her inner cheek. "And how do you know he isn't just talking out his ass, Ray? I could order his release and he'd flee as soon as he was out."

"He wouldn't," Rayne said, then hesitated. "Well, he could. But it's still a chance we have to take. It's the right thing to do, mom. Even you know that."

"I know," Neveah admitted, reluctantly. "I hear you, Rayne. But I just don't know if it's a good idea for right now."

"He said he knows how to defeat Ambrosius." Her mother's eyes flickered up at that. "But he's refusing to tell us anything until we're done treating him like a caged animal."

Though the words sounded suspicious to even her own ears, she knew she had to take a chance. They all had to take a chance on Jarrah, or they'll really be screwed. Rayne knew it, and her mother knew it. They just needed to convince her stubborn father of it. Some part of her knew Jarrah was telling the truth. She didn't know how she knew; she just did.

Like an alpha instinct.

"You don't need to trust Jarrah, mom," Rayne continued, her voice soft. She leaned down to regrip her mother's hand in hers and gave it a gentle squeeze. "This line might be cliché as hell, but I just need you to trust me. Jarrah can help us; I know he can."

Nevaeh glanced down at her grid sheet, the wheels in her head spinning. "And where would we put him, Rayne? We don't have a lot of room as it is with the packs coming."

"We'll figure it out. For all we know, he won't be here long."

Her pretty eyes flickered back up to her daughter. "And what does he eat? Since the other food isn't good enough for him."

"Um—" Rayne took a moment to recall what he told her. "He said natural foods. Grown vegetation, cooked game on a stove, that sort of thing. He didn't like the idea of frozen meals."

"Hmm," Nevaeh said, curtly. "How about I find some grown vegetation and game to cook for this guest of yours, and you have Delta Jay bring him to the house. I'll call him now."

Rayne shot off the desk immediately. She was sure to hold in her relief so her mother wouldn't hear and pressed a haste kiss to her cheek instead. "Thank you, mom."

"Nuh uh, you're still in trouble. You're not getting out of this one without your father knowing," Nevaeh warned, her lips thinning. "But if you want Jarrah out of there before he gets home, you need to find Jay now."

Stifling back a groan at the thought, she offered her mom a half-smile and ran out of the room, smacking the back of Ronan's unsuspecting head in the process. "Time to go, asshole."

"Wait—you actually succeeded in that?" he scoffed, following right behind her after shutting down Ezra's system.

"Nice to know you really believed in me, Ro," she said, wryly.

"Oh, I did. Just didn't know how far you'd get."

Thinning her full lips, she kept her mind focused on finding Delta Jay. It didn't take very long since he was already walking towards the dungeon room, and Rayne wasted no time in pouncing towards him. "Hi Jay!"

His brown eyes glanced at the two of them, his dark eyebrows raised. "Kids. I should have known you two had something to do with this. Ronan's opening line on looking good should have been a dead giveaway."

Rayne bit her lip to hold back a snicker while Ronan gasped dramatically. "You don't think I think you look good? Bald heads are still in, man. Looks freshly shined—"

"Okay, that's enough.," Jay quickly cut him off, though an amused smile touched the corners of his lips. "Amira has nothing to do with your scheming, does she?"

Ronan snorted. "Are you kidding? She's been refusing to train with us since her and Taylor started dating. Lovesick pups."

Jay relaxed at that. "So, it's just you two getting killed when your fathers get back."

They both winced. "Thanks for that nice reminder," Rayne mumbled.

"Anytime, niece," he chirped, cheerfully.

When they finally made it to the door, Jay ordered the both of them to stand outside. Rayne tried to protest against it immediately, but after a loaded look of warning from her father's other best friend, she sulked against the side of the building. Ronan leaned next to her, his ankle crossing and uncrossing a few times and his arms would fold and unfurl across his broad chest while they waited. She knew he was nervous, but he needn't be. It was going to work. It had to.

Rayne put her curly head on his shoulder and clasped his hand in hers. He sighed and leaned his head on top of hers. Patiently, they watched as Jay pulled out a newly free Jarrah, whose gaze immediately zeroed in on Rayne the moment he came out. Though he was still frail, she could already see his skin was slowly beginning to repair itself. His weakened body was eagerly absorbing the sunlight like a starving man who hadn't had a proper meal in weeks.

"We're dead," Ronan said, simply.

"Yep," Rayne agreed.

And dead, they were.

As soon as Alpha Vance and Beta Declan came home with Ezra in tow, and they set eyes on Jarrah eating a meal so close to their family, they nearly shifted right there. Nashoba's arms shot out for Nevaeh and Rayne simultaneously and pushed them behind his body, as well as Declan with Ronan.

Rayne huffed behind her father in annoyance while Nevaeh just rolled her eyes. Nashoba's growl at Jarrah vibrated the floor beneath them all, interrupting Jarrah mid-chew. Fighting a smirk, Jarrah slowly leaned back in his seat and placed his fork neatly on his third plate of Nevaeh's homecooked bison and raw veggies from the pack garden. He looked up at Alpha Vance with an expression that could rival boredom.

"How did you get out?" Nashoba growled.

"I was let out," Jarrah breezed, his brown eyes challenging.

Nashoba's shoulders shook with rage. "Let out?"

A half-smile tugged at the corners of the Fae King's lips. Before things could escalate, Nevaeh cleared her throat and strongly responded with, "I let him out."

Rayne, feeling compelled to protect her mother, also added, "And I asked her to."

"I was just a pawn," Ronan started, but at the sight of Rayne's heavy glare, he quickly changed it up. "Kidding."

Declan shot him a deadly look and Ro suddenly found interest in the floorboards. When Nashoba whirled around on his family, Nevaeh, nor Rayne, backed down from the look he shot them. The confusion twisted his lips into a frown, and he wrapped his arms over his chest. "You let him out?"

"Yes," Nevaeh said, her head high. "I get a say in pack affairs as well. Or is this a one-sided marriage?"

Nashoba made a sound in his throat. The displeasure at the notion was clear in his voice. "Of course, it's not! But we should have discussed this together before you released him!"

"Oh, like how we discussed you capturing him and putting him down there in the first place?" she snapped.

Her husband winced, but she wasn't done. "If he was going to leave, he would have left already. He's been healed and fed for the last thirty minutes and is still sitting at the table."

Though Jarrah hadn't said one word since he had been at their kitchen table, before Alpha Vance got home, it was true. The markings on his skin were gone and the more food he engorged, the healthier he appeared. His hair was shinier, his skin full of pretty hues of bronze, and the bags under his eyes were mostly diminished. He was uncomfortably beautiful to look at, and Rayne spent most of her time staring at the scar on her arm absentmindedly.

"And what if he does something to us when we least expect it?" Nashoba demanded.

"He can't," Rayne interrupted, then bit her lip when both parents turned their gazes on her. "Well, he could. But he can't kill any of us, at least not yet. He's bonded to us until he holds up his end of the bargain to your satisfaction."

"What are you—"

"A Fae's word is fatal if he doesn't follow through with it."

"Unfortunately," Jarrah added in the background. Everyone ignored him.

"And I suppose he told you this," Nashoba said, dryly.

Nevaeh almost smiled at his similar reaction to hers. "Your daughter knows what she's doing. We need to trust her if we're going to defeat him, Nashoba. Tʋnʋp is too important."

"And mom and I already planned out where he can stay."

Nashoba looked up at that, his eyes flashing. "Oh, really? And where is that?"

Rayne rubbed her lips together and straightened her body. Jarrah sat up a little straighter in his seat and Ronan looked like it was both the best, and worst, day of his life. Declan just wanted to go home and get Ro into trouble with his mother.

"He'll stay in my house."

♡ tʋnʋp - war