Lana's P.O.V.By the time we had gotten Maddie down for her afternoon nap, several of our pack leaders had reached the rogues. Aspen was keeping me informed, but I was anxious to know what their demands were.'I've only ever done this with Hudson, and it was only for a few seconds at a time. But let's see if this works. Here goes.' Aspen said through our mind link. I sat back on the couch next to Oliver. I didn't need a bond with him to know what he was feeling. The stress was clear on his face. He pushed his hands along the top of his thighs, showing that he was also nervous.There was a small amount of space between us, and I reached over, grabbing his hand and interlacing our fingers. He looked over at me shocked, and I knew his anxiety was because of what he said about me in the office.He had been right. I couldn't handle a gown man trying to take me down, but I would one day. I was going to make him proud and make it so he

Lana's P.O.V. I wanted to rush out with Kaylee, but my wariness of new people had me hanging back with Maddie. Even if it was kids and disabled women, I figured they would have guards with them. I didn't know what procedure the pack had for guests entering their land, especially guests who had just escaped from an attack, but I didn't want to get in the way. Several pack members were rushing out of their homes in both excitement and concern as the caravan sped in, skidding to a stop in front of the house. The scent of fuel, exhaust, and hot grease made me wrinkle my nose as we reached them. It was offensive to my sensitive senses. I could see why Oliver hated cars, but he still moved closer to them to be in front of Maddie and me as a precaution. Maddie stood with my hands on her chest as she leaned back into my legs. She was as uneasy about there being new people as I was. The more she pushed back into me, the more I fought the urge to just pick her up and take her back into the p

Lana's P.O.V. I was still uncomfortable around Luna Olivia, not because of how intimidatingly beautiful she was, but by her position. Kaylee was a Luna as well, my Luna. But she was also family. I didn't feel as worried about offending her. Olivia, I didn't know. I knew next to nothing about her or how she reacted to things. "I heard about you," She said as she stood, grabbing the dirty dishes near her. The pile in my arms was at capacity, but I froze as I looked up at her. "That sounded odd. I just meant that I know some of your story. Kaylee told me that you guys came here to get away from the rogues and ended up trapped here by them anyway. I'm sorry you had to deal with that." She had a natural wideness to her eyes. They were large and innocent, but it was clear in the way she carried herself that she had seen darkness in her life. It was something I recognized as I had been there myself. "It sounds like we are both in that situation. You came here for safety as well. Have the

Oliver's P.O.V. My head pulsed as I felt someone pushing against the wall I had put up. But the silence on the other end of the call I was on had all of my attention. I sat on the end of the unused bed eagerly while I waited for a response. If it was the Alpha, I would have still heard him, so whoever it was could talk to me later. This was more important. This was potentially life-saving. They let out a long sigh as they considered my words. The strong female voice on the other end came through the speaker clearly, and I leaned forward, resting my elbows on my knees. "We've been hearing some stories about what's going on over there, but I can't just decide to send my people across the country. I can talk to Miles about it, but I can't guarantee anything. This is really not our fight." My jaw tensed as I leaned back with my head tilted up to the ceiling in frustration. "But it will be, Scarlett! I appreciate you talking to your mate about it, but please know that they are clearing

Oliver's P.O.V Lana was on cloud nine for the rest of the day until we went to sleep. Once the lights went out, the cold reality that we had only one full day left before the rogues would attack sobered her up quickly. We ended up laying under the blankets, wrapped in each other arms in silence as we pondered what the future held for us. Whether we had help or not, they were still going to kill some of our people, and they still wanted my head. I was waiting on a few other packs to reach back out to me, but this late in the game, I wasn't sure that they would make it on time if they did decide to join the fight. Having one pack confirming they were on their way was a very useful bargaining chip when I spoke with the others. It may have been peer pressure, but it was making them reconsider. First thing in the morning, after eating breakfast with Lana and Maddie, I asked Parker if we could meet. He needed to know that we would not be alone, but I also wanted to make sure that he kne