Liam

"How dare she?" he raged. "What possessed her? How did she disguise it for so long?"

Liam saw red when the door finally yielded. He couldn't fathom her intentions. Gavin was angry, too, but not as much as Liam. He remained quiet as Liam paced his office.

Liam had been rough with her, perhaps too rough. But she'd pushed him beyond his limit.

The look of defeat and fear on her face when she admitted Warwick only wanted her made him realize that peaceful resolutions weren't always possible. Sometimes, compromise was impossible.

"Little Mate's upset," Gavin observed. Liam didn't care. She needed to consider the consequences of her actions. There were countless ways this could have ended with her getting hurt.

His rage resurfaced as he imagined Warwick using her to get to Azalea. He lashed out, sending his lamp crashing onto the bookshelf. It shattered.

The door opened, but Liam didn't turn. He smelled Damien immediately. Damien entered silently.

Liam tried to control his temper. Breaking furniture wouldn't help. He needed to reach Warwick, and soon, before Warwick caused more trouble within the pack. He was running out of friends and family for Warwick to attack.

"Are you going to keep her locked up, then?" Damien asked flatly. He knew Liam was angry, and probably why.

"She's staying put. I can't trust her," Liam replied.

"You're stupid," Damien sighed.

Liam whirled around, glaring. "Care to rephrase that?"

"No," Damien said, leaning against the wall, arms crossed. "Be mad she went behind your back, but don't be stupid about why. She isn't like us. We were bred to fight, Liam. Fight first, think second. Act. It was ingrained in us. Not Azalea."

"Don't defend her actions, Damien," Liam warned. "She's perpetually drawn to dangerous situations."

"And perpetually averse to others suffering," Damien countered, pushing off the wall. He raised an eyebrow. "You wouldn't understand why." He left, leaving Liam even more frustrated.

"We can't leave Little Mate to cry," Gavin insisted.

"She shouldn't have lied to me," Liam retorted.

"She was helping," Gavin said.

"Like hell she was! She lied and did this behind my back! She knew it was wrong," Liam argued. "Warwick could have used her blind trust to get to her."

"It wasn't blind," Gavin said. "Her bodyguard, trusted for seven years, trusted the witch and brought her here. That's not blind."

"Don't excuse this!" Liam couldn't believe Gavin was taking her side. He'd been just as panicked outside that room.

"You forget, the Moon Goddess made her that way," Gavin said calmly. Liam wasn't in the mood for this.

"I don't care what the Moon Goddess did. She isn't here to keep Azalea alive," Liam argued. "She left that job to me, but my mate's making it impossible!"

"Don't speak about the Goddess that way. Azalea is a product of her experiences," Gavin said. Liam hated his overly reasonable demeanor. He was usually a sex-driven brute ready for a fight.

"She has to learn her limits and stop willingly walking into danger!" Gavin was only infuriating him further.

"Little Mate is the bravest wolf in this pack," Gavin stated. "She doesn't pick fights she can't win. She always looks for a way to protect us."

"I don't need protecting! She does!" How could Gavin and Azalea not see this? He was going to destroy that vampire; he just needed the right opportunity.

"As you worry for her safety, she worries for yours. She protects you in her own way—by finding a way to end the fighting," Gavin pressed. He seemed angry with Liam now. "Little Mate will always be empathetic to a fault and will never accept fighting first."

"Pretty insightful for a sex-driven… brute," Liam insulted him.

"Better to know and watch our mate than try to control her blindly," Gavin argued. "You have nothing to complain about. It's not the worst thing to have a Luna who'd give her life for her people." Liam pushed him away, done with the argument. He pounded his fist on the desk.

This whole day had gone to hell in a matter of moments, and everyone had an opinion on how he treated Azalea. None of them understood the constant anxiety, the fear of anything separating them. This was why Alphas with human mates often rejected them or lived with stigma. You can't lead effectively when constantly fending off threats to your mate.

A headache started. The adrenaline, the arguments, and Azalea's emotions were creating a noxious cocktail.

A knock interrupted him. He turned, ready to shout, and saw Missy in the doorway. Her distress was evident. His frustration with Azalea vanished instantly; his pup needed help. "Dad?" she said softly.

Missy

Missy barely made it through school. At home, she couldn't sit still. She and Holland were certain something was wrong. Something hadn't gone their way. Surely, she would have sensed it if Maddox were gravely injured? Wolves sensed when their mates were badly hurt.

Julie watched her worriedly. "Missy, you don't know something's wrong. What if you're just missing him?"

Missy shook her head. "No, I know it, Julie. Something went wrong, and Maddox is in trouble." Her throat was scratchy. She didn't know what to do.

"Look, your father's the Alpha. If something were wrong, he'd know. He'd be the first to know. Go talk to him," Julie reasoned. "Surely, he'd tell you if something happened to your mate."

"What if he didn't? What if he was waiting?" Missy asked anxiously. Julie stopped her pacing, placing her hands on Missy's shoulders.

"Missy, go talk to your dad," Julie ordered. "It's the only thing you can do."

Missy took a deep breath and nodded. "Okay."

"I'll be here," Julie said with a sad smile.

Missy left and ran to the packhouse. If Liam didn't know what was happening, maybe he could contact them. Hearing Maddox was okay would calm her.

The packhouse had an odd atmosphere, fueling her fear. She raced upstairs. Liam's office door was ajar; Lea wasn't inside. She went straight to Liam.

She stopped at the doorway, hearing growling and a loud thud. He sounded angry; her heart felt like it was being squeezed. He couldn't be mad they were caught; she wouldn't accept it. After a minute, the growling stopped; Liam was pinching the bridge of his nose.

She knocked and timidly pushed open the door. Liam turned. His face was full of rage; his mouth opened as if to shout. Then he stopped, his expression changing.

"Dad?" she croaked.

"Missy, what's wrong?" he asked breathlessly.

"Something happened," she said. His eyebrows furrowed. "I think something happened," she clarified.

"What do you mean?" he asked, approaching her.

"With Maddox and Alpha Langston. I don't know, I just—" she struggled to find words. "I've had this feeling all day. Holland too. Something's wrong. Maddox isn't okay, and I don't know what to do."

"Okay, okay," Liam said, placing his hands comfortingly on her shoulders. "Take a breath. Tell me everything." He listened earnestly as she explained her feeling. He nodded when she finished.

"Okay," he said. "Nothing's been reported. We haven't heard from them since their last check-in, but that doesn't mean anything's wrong. If things went well, we should see them tomorrow or the next day."

She nodded, but Holland wasn't accepting this. "Can we contact them? I need to hear his voice. I have to know I'm wrong."

Liam looked torn. She looked at him pleadingly. This surpassed any loneliness or longing she'd felt before.

"Alright," he said. He went to his desk, quickly dialing a number. He looked worried as it rang and rang.

When no one answered, he turned to her. "Let's give it a few minutes and try again. We don't know where they are or what they're doing."

Her lip quivered, but she nodded. She desperately wanted him to say everything was fine.

Liam watched the clock as she watched him. She focused on breathing evenly. Ten minutes later, he dialed again.

With each ring, the icy grip on her heart tightened. Liam looked at her with unease as he hung up. "Missy, we can't jump to conclusions," he began, walking toward her.

She stumbled back. "No! Don't touch me!" she shouted. This was confirmation. Something happened to Maddox and Langston. Something was wrong, and her mate could be hurt.

Liam stopped. "You did this!" she screamed, tears falling. "This is all your fault! We were happy! I'm not even your daughter! You had to make it so that stupid vampire could take him away! You couldn't leave us out of it!"

Resentment exploded. "You said you wanted us nowhere near this and now look, you took my mate away! You ripped him away from me!" Each word was a knife. "He was good for me! We were good for each other! He made me feel whole! Now I may never see him again! You took him from me!"

She didn't recognize the girl yelling at her father. She was hurt, lonely, and scared as never before.

Austin and Lily entered. "What's going on?" Austin asked.

"Missy, please calm down," Lily said.

"He took Maddox away!" Missy cried, falling to her knees. She buried her face in her hands, sobbing. This wasn't fair.

Whispered conversations surrounded her, but she didn't care. She fell deeper into despair. They had so little time; they only had each other. She knew the pain would come—the pain of Maddox's death, which would kill her, just like her mother.

Lily pulled her up. "Come on," Lily said softly. She supported Missy as she guided her from Liam's office. It didn't matter where she went; Maddox wouldn't be there.