Jett was going to kill him. They had all been forcing him to stay in the pack house for his own safety so he didn't barge into Reverence territory and get mauled. They had no clue what that pack was capable of, and no one wanted to risk their Alpha getting hurt by them. It had been a long day of trying to keep him calm and not freaking out.

And Alex decided to make a run for it to save Geo at the end of it all.

He just couldn't stop himself. His bond with Geo was strong enough to let him know when the man was freaking out, and it was going off like the alarm on a sinking ship. He needed to act fast. Jett had Bree holding him back, but no one thought that Alex would be dumb enough to charge over there in his car.

He was hoping to be able to bring them both back, but it didn't seem like that was the case. He swore he heard that growl from miles away. The forest was huge, spanning hundreds of miles of territory that allowed each and every pack enough room to grow and be comfortable. And even with all that land, and all those trees that covered the pack's territories, Alex was positive that each and every person in the forest heard that fucking growl.

It was a gruesome one. One that only an Alpha could do, he was sure of it. There was nothing but sheer rage in that noise that bounced off the trees. He had no idea who it was or what had happened, all he knew was that he could tell that Geo was freaking the fuck out and he needed to get him out of there.

He heard most of the conversation between him and his father. It was enough to finally figure out that his hunches were correct. They really did punish their members for being gay. The sexual abuse was just the icing on the top. There was no way that Geo would do anything like that to someone he was dating. Alex hadn't known him for that long, but he knew he wouldn't. He wasn't the type. But Kenji just ate up every fucking excuse he needed. He wanted to kill his own fucking son. His only son at that.

Alex wanted to boil him alive.

Geo looked like he was getting a damn heart attack when the last growl came. Alex really didn't know what to do. He was just trying to get him the fuck out of there. Those black cloaks looked like fucking demons with all the fog that was around the area. What he really wanted to do was hold onto Geo as tightly as he could and never let him go.

"Geo, talk to me!" he must have said it a thousand times that day, but he really needed some communication. Because he was this close to freaking out just as badly as Jett was.

"Shiro," he almost whispered.

"What about Shiro?" He asked. "Was that him?"

Geo nodded at that. Alex couldn't believe it. What happened to Shiro that caused him to be that angry? He sounded like a monster of the forest, one that would make even the toughest man cry and run in fear.

"He left the pack," he explained, still holding his heart.

Now he understood why he was in pain. Shiro was Geo's Alpha. Him leaving the pack must have hurt like a bitch. Alex could only imagine if he were in his shoes. All he could do was squeeze the arm that he was holding and continue to drive him down the streets.

"You felt it too?" the voice over the phone said. Alex recognized Jin's voice in a heartbeat. He hadn't known the guy for that long, but he made sure to recognize voices of people that he was investigating. Jin was a prominent figure in that pack, along with his father.

"Yeah," Geo said, putting the phone back up to his ear.

"What do we do now?" Jin sounded lost when he asked that question. Alex didn't even know the answer to that himself. But when he looked over to Geo, he saw his expression harden again, ready to make the next step.

"Plan Red 17," Geo said. "Get Miki and Tammy. They're going to be their next targets since they're close to Shiro."

"I'll get them along with the supplies," Jin answered right back. "But where are we going to meet up?"

"Valor pack house," Alex yelled over the phone. Whatever plan they had, he wanted in on it. There was no way that he was going to go back to Jett empty handed. He would at least have some answers.

Geo hung up with Jin and handed him his phone back. Alex had so many questions at the moment.

"What's Plan Red 17?" he asked.

"Back up plan," Geo told him. "Red means urgent. Seventeen is the instance if Shiro goes missing."

"Goes missing?" Alex said. "I thought you said that was his growl?"

"It was," he answered, rubbing his head. "But he left the pack, which means that he's going to be wandering that forest, and we don't know how long it will take for him to come back. We need to make sure we find him so that whatever wounds he may have get checked up on."

"Wounds?"

"I don't know if he has any," he said. "I'm just guessing that he does after what just happened."

Alex stayed silent with that. He'd much rather they all talk about this in front of Jett when they got home. It would be better than him repeating it all over again. So, he sped through the city. The streets were quiet and dark.

It didn't take long for him to notice a black truck following them. Alex was going to try and get rid of it when Geo stopped him. Apparently, that was Jin's truck. The thing was probably the quietest truck he had ever seen. Its lights were kept off as it blended in with the night around them.

As soon as he got closer to Valor territory, Jett was trying to berate him with questions. He had been losing his damn mind all day, and it had worked on Alex's anxiety as well. It didn't help that every time he called Geo up, he sounded more and more nervous. After seeing what he just did, Alex was glad he had gotten there on time. He completely understood why Jett was freaking out now.

Jett was standing right outside of the house, the lights all on and everything. He looked so stressed it wasn't even funny. He desperately looked in the cars that pulled in to see for any signs of Shiro. Alex immediately felt guilty that he couldn't bring him back.

Geo, on the other hand, got out of the car as soon as he stopped it. He wanted to hold him back, but he wasn't expecting it. He had walked out smoothly, his backpack in tow. As soon as the truck pulled up and Jin got out, they set to work.

"What's going on?" Jett asked.

"That's what I want to know," Miki got out of the truck, looking at Geo. "What happened?"

"The Cloaks are out," he told her. His eyes showed nothing but anger in them. Anger and hurt.

"What are the Cloaks?" Jett asked Geo, grabbing his attention.

"Enforcers," Geo told him. "Meant to keep the rest of the pack obedient. They are the law enforcers of the pack."

"Why are they out?" Miki asked him. "Does it have anything to do with Shiro?"

"I'm pretty sure it has everything to do with Shiro," Geo sighed, walking over to the bed of the truck, "Along with me."

"So, they punish you if they find out your gay?" Alex asked. He really wanted to know more about this. This was something that this pack had kept a secret, and they had no clue how long this had been going on now.

"They found out?!" Miki looked scared as she watched Geo. "How?!"

"Jimmy," Geo shook his head. He rummaged through the bed of the truck until he found what he was looking for. "I don't know how they found out about Shiro, though. But we don't have time to keep talking. We have work to do."

"Geo," Alex stopped him. "What are you going to try and do? If they see you, they're going to kill you!" Did they realize that they were rogues now? Every wolf that leaves the pack territory without permission breaks the pack bond and becomes a rogue. Other packs typically don't trust them, as they have a bad reputation for causing havoc.

"I need to find him, Alex," Geo looked at him with determined eyes. In his hands he held a talisman to hide his scent. "That's what Red 17 is: Search and Rescue."

"Alex is right," Jett said. "You all need to stay somewhere safe, so that they don't find you and try to hurt you."

"Shiro could be hurt more than anyone of us could be," Geo told him, his back straight. He looked like he was trying so hard to keep ahold of himself. "He was gone for almost 24 hours, which means that he was under his father's will during that time. And Sakdah isn't one to play games when it comes to prisoners."

"I'll have my men look for him," Jett said. "You all need to be protected though."

"It's our duty to find him," Geo argued back. Alex really wished he knew how to convince him against going. Geo looked too determined to go on something that sounded like a suicide mission. "I did want to ask if you would watch over Tammy for us, though. They're most likely going to try and get to her to try and figure out where Shiro is."

"They don't know where Shiro is?" Jett asked, confused.

"He escaped," Geo told him. Then he swung his backpack around and dug out a few things that he knew belonged to Shiro: one of them being his phone. "He left this in a hidden safe. We only ever used it for emergencies if we were worried about getting caught."

There was some silence as Jett looked at the items. The most important one was the scent charm that he had given him. It felt like ages ago when that happened. Alex had no clue it was going to get this crazy. This seemed like it was straight out of a horror movie.

Geo and Jin worked together to get their gear ready. They pulled out lots of camping supplies, probably intending on hiking to try and find him. Using your wolf brings out your scent more. And that was the last thing they needed.

Alex looked back to Jett. He was looking completely broken as he searched through Shiro's phone and the rest of his belongings. But, after a second or two, he looked back up at Geo and the rest of them.

"Shiro told me a lot about you guys," he said. Geo stopped in his tracks. "He told me that you were all family: together you were stronger."

"That was his motto that he gave to the warriors," Geo explained quietly. Alex could hear the hurt in his voice.

"But it was all of you that he was talking about," Jett said. "Don't you think that he'd be more upset if any of you died trying to find him?"

"We don't have a choice!"

"You always have a choice!" Jett told him. "Shiro wouldn't want the people who he called family to get hurt trying to look for him. Stay here. I have plenty of warriors at my disposal to go look for him. There are our neighbors as well that would help. Shiro has more allies than you think."

"We can't just leave him behind!" Geo yelled right back at Jett. His face showing hurt and a fear that only came from someone who had seen the worst of the worst. "He's your mate, but he's our leader! And he's been our leader for five years. We can't just leave him to fend for himself out there!"

"Then trust me to find him," Jett looked at him with determined eyes. "Just like you told me to trust you. I'm asking you to do the same for me."

"This is different from then," Geo shook his head.

"Shiro loves all of you," Jett's expression softened. "There was never a doubt in my mind that he wouldn't bend over backwards for each and every one of you. But you can't do this alone. Just let me help, Geo. Please, for once in all of this chaos that's been your pack, just let me help you once."

There was some silence as those light brown eyes took in what he said. He was definitely the youngest out of the small group that was there, but they both looked to him for answers. He was their leader while Shiro was gone. But Alex could see the man cracking under the pressure. It didn't matter his strength or knowledge in battle, he wasn't in the best of minds for what he was needing to do.

"Alright," his shoulders fell and he looked down. "I'll trust you. But we have to work fast. There's no telling just how badly hurt he is."

Jett nodded and motioned them all inside. It seemed like he had cleared out the halls that night for them all. Tammy was in the truck during the whole conversation, but she quickly followed them all inside, clinging onto Miki with fear. Bree came out, starting to immediately assign rooms for them all to stay at, while Jett planned search parties and sent them out as quickly as possible. They had plenty of things to hide a scent for the ones who would try and sneak over the borders. There was no telling just how well guarded they would be.

"I'm going to go out and look for him as well," Jett told Geo, trying to comfort him the best he could.

"We don't even know where he could have run off to," Geo said. "For all we know, he could still be in Reverence territory."

"I found him in the city," Jett said. "I can find him in the forest."

"How were you able to find him anyway?" Jin asked. "I haven't even found that place."

"By following our bond," Jett told him. "And that's what I'm going to do this time as well. But I need all of you to stay here. If they find out where you are then they're going to try and hurt you."

They all agreed with him, thankfully. They looked like their nerves were wrecked, and their lives had been completely shaken upside down, but they all listened to Jett.

"Stay here with Geo, Alex," Jett ordered. "Try and calm him down the best that you can."

"You got it," he was honestly glad that he told him that, because he didn't know how he was going to tear himself away from the man. They were all quietly brought to their rooms, but Alex had a better idea for Geo.

"Wait," he grabbed Geo's hand. "Come here instead."

Geo just nodded and let him tug him through the halls. There was no way that he was going to let Geo sleep in another room all by himself. It would drive the both of them absolutely mad, and it wouldn't help Geo calm down at all. Instead, he opened the door to his room.

"Is this your room?" Geo asked.

"Can you tell by the smell?" he smiled a bit. He practically did everything in this room. His scent was everywhere. As soon as the door was closed behind him, he held onto Geo for dear life. "You scared the shit out of me tonight."

"Alex, I..." he held onto him tightly for a second. He heard him take some deep breaths before his knees buckled and he fell into his arms. The second that he held him Geo buried his face into his shirt and started bawling.

He was never good at comforting people when they were upset, but the hidden skill seemed to come out of him at the perfect moment. Alex helped Geo take his backpack off and brought him over to the bed.

"It's okay," he murmured into his ear, "It'll all be okay."

"No, it won't," Geo shook his head. His voice was thick, showing all the pain that he felt. "I don't know what to do anymore, Alex."

"It'll get figured out," he kissed his head, holding him tighter.

"What if it doesn't?" he asked. "What if we can't find him? What if he's dead?"

"I doubt that he's dead," Alex said. "Jett would know if that were the case. Besides, Shiro seems like a tough cookie. I think he'll make it."

"I don't know," Geo sounded so weak against him. "I just don't know anymore. He was always our direction and our drive. And now, we're nothing but rogues."

"You're way more than just rogues, Geo," he rubbed his back. He really didn't know if he was helping, but he would try. He would try anything to calm Geo down. He would do anything for him. After seeing him get grabbed by those cloaked men, he realized just how much he needed Geo. How much he had fallen for him in the little time that he had known him.

"I don't belong anymore, Alex," Geo shook his head. "My ex just basically tried to have me killed; my father hates me so much that he'd take the side of an Omega, and he never listens to them. I didn't even do anything to him!" he choked. "And instead of saving Shiro, or being there for him like I was supposed to be, I had to run. I don't have anyone anymore, Alex. I don't even have the pack that I grew up in."

"You have me," he told him. He had him wrapped up in the fluffy blanket with him at this point. Every word that came out of his mouth just made him want to hold him tighter. "You'll always have me, Puppy."

"It's not the same."

"It can be."

"How?" Geo finally looked up to see him. Those brown eyes had never looked so sad before. "What are you talking about now?"

"If we mark each other," Alex smiled at him. "Then we both belong to each other. No matter what happens within our lives, we will always have each other."

"I don't know," he looked uncertain. Alex just used this as an excuse to start kissing his neck. Actions like that with mates usually helped calm them down. And if Geo wanted to feel like he belonged to someone, then why not let it be him? They were mated to each other for a reason.

"Come on, Puppy," he started trailing kisses up and down his neck. The man was slowly giving into him. "You've got nothing to be afraid of now."

He kept kissing him while Geo was silent. Everything that led up to this just made him want to keep him there for the rest of eternity. Alex didn't know just how much shit that Geo had to go through, but he'd make sure he never had to deal with all of that pain and suffering again. He didn't care what it took.

Geo finally moved his head up to Alex's neck. As soon as his lips touched his skin, he was in heaven again. He held his head tighter to him, coaxing him further. He wanted him to mark him first. He wanted him to feel all the love that he had for him. Because that's what he needed at the moment. Love.

Those fangs of his came out quickly, brushing against his skin. He leaned into them, loving them too much to even think about going against them.

It hurt a little as he bit him. Most of it was merely the shock of it. Those sharp teeth pierced into him quickly, sending wave after wave of bliss as Geo kissed the bite to close it up. It felt like there had been a weight lifted off from him. He didn't know just how heavy the curse was until the moment that it had been lifted.

Marking always made you sleepy, as sleeping together after being marked is what finishes off the bond and establishes the connection between the mated couple. But Alex couldn't fall asleep yet. He forced his eyes open to see Geo laying on his chest, reveling in the emotions that Alex had for him. He looked so handsome in his arms.

"My turn," Alex smirked, pulling him closer to him. It didn't take long for him to latch onto Geo's neck. Geo leaned into every kiss, eager for every ounce of affection that Alex had. He had a lot of it, and he would show him all of it.

He marked him right on the base of his neck, trying his best to make it as least painful as possible. Geo gasped as his teeth sunk into his flesh, but he didn't fight him on it. Those arms of his went around him and held him tighter instead.

By the time it was over, they were both half asleep, basking in the happiness of finally being connected. They would deal with everything else in the morning, but for now, Alex wanted Geo to enjoy himself. He really didn't seem like he did much of that before.

"Hey Alex?" Geo murmured. His eyes were shut as he snuggled up to him.

"Hmm?"

"I love you."

He had never had someone tell him that. At least, not someone who he knew truly meant it. Being able to both hear it, and feel his mate's emotions to know that it was true was the most amazing feeling. He had never been loved before. Not like this.