"It's okay Willow." I hushed my baby as he continued to cry. I'd fed him, changed him, rocked him, tried to put him to bed. You name it, I tried it, and nothing seemed to be enough for the poor child. I raised him up and leaned him against my left shoulder, patting his back and rubbing up and down to make him calm. But he just wasn't having any of it today. Actually, ever since we had left from our home, Willow had been extremely upset.

Maybe it was that Jason wasn't there anymore and he could sense that.

I sighed, closing my eyes and lowering my head to push out the thoughts of Jason. I missed him so much, but I didn't want to admit that. I didn't want to be weak, and have him come sweep me off my feet again after how shitty everything had turned out.

It was worse that I was beginning to feel partially at fault for all of this. Not only for how we first crossed paths with this Grey Brotherhood, but for even throwing that stupid party.

But Jason had made a deal with the devil and I couldn't forgive him that easily for putting us all in harm’s way. But dear Gods how I missed him. His face, his smell, his touch. How beautiful he looked when he held Willow in his arms. Everything.

It'd been days since the party, and Jason did contact me with texts. But I couldn't even bring myself to read any of them. My phone had a collection of over twenty messages and voicemails from his number, but even so, it was gonna hurt my heart too much to go through them right now.

My feelings were pretty conflicted, but when were they not? I rolled my eyes at my emotional rollercoaster of a life, only snapping from my thoughts as Lucas made puckering faces towards Willow, making annoying smacks in an attempt to amuse my pup. Of course, he just kept crying.

"I don't think he likes that very much," I forced a smile, "In fact, I think he's crying even louder now."

As though on cue, Willow let out a screech that made my eardrums shake from the proximity.

"Yeesh, I think you're right." Lucas winced at the wailing, shrugging back away from us and back onto the other side of the sectional he was sitting on.

"Sure hope I wasn't that annoying as a pup," he snickered, making Silver, who was sitting next to him give him a slap on the back of his head.

"Because you were probably worse. I'd rather be locked in a room with Willow's screaming than with you blabbering on and on all day." He frowned, Lucas giving him a pout as though that had actually hurt his feelings.

"Rude," he snorted, grabbing Silver into a quick headlock and grinding his knuckles against the top of his skull roughly in a manner.

"You're the one who's always rude!" Silver grunted, waving him out of his face.

"You're both being rude by making Willow even more riled up." I frowned at them, shaking my head as I stood up from the couch, bouncing Willow against my shoulder.

"Here, let me take him," Jude said as he emerged from his bedroom, still in silken pajama pants, shirtless. I shrugged, having had given my all for my pup to quiet down with nothing working. We approached one another, and I handed off my baby to my Alpha, who took him without question, starting to bounce the baby as I had done.

"See?" I said, placing my hands onto my hips, watching as Willow continued to scream. He sure did have a strong pair of pipes on him. I briefly wondered which one of us he got that from?

"I just got him. Wait a sec," Jude said with a stone face, now moving Willow off of his shoulder and placing him in his arms to rock him slowly, while still holding him against his chest. Willow's screaming continued on, while he stared up at his Alpha with a curious look. But slowly, only over a minute later, the screaming began to die out into curious coos and occasional whines.

Jude didn't say anything, but looked up at me with a cocked eyebrow, a smirk broad across his face, while my jaw fell slack at the sight.

"You've gotta be joking." I palmed my forehead.

"Jude is a natural. When are you gonna start having babies?" Silver called out from the living room, smiling as he tried to move off of the sectional, but Lucas kept him in a headlock.

Jude shrugged, still rocking Willow. "Maybe when you two start having babies."

Silver and Lucas turned their heads to stare at one another with a strange look, in their eyes. Embarrassment, but something more behind them. A blush covered Silver's face as Lucas had slackened his arm enough at the comment to pull away and scurry off of the couch.

"W-what are you talking about?!" he said, louder than necessary, while the three of us shushed him immediately.

"Don't get him crying again." I placed a finger close to my lips.

"See how much you're blushing? I'd be surprised if you didn't say that you two were fucking already." Jude shook his head as though he was disappointed. "My pack is going to be exploding soon with babies galore."

"Fuck off." Silver folded his arms across his chest defensively. But the blush on his face hadn't wavered. In fact, I could swear that it had become an even deeper hue.

"What? Am I not a catch?" Lucas ran a hand through his unstyled pompadour that stuck out every which way.

"I think Silver has better tastes than you," I teased.

"You'd think that." Lucas began to chuckle, causing Silver to stamp his foot onto the floor.

"Lucas, shut the fuck up!"

The blond blew a kiss at the already amped up wolf, and that seemed to be have been enough teasing for him. With curled fists, Silver stormed out of the living area and towards the foyer.

"Where are you going?" Jude said, walking after him with me following at his side, keeping an eye on Willow.

"I'm gonna go see Alfie. You all have fun teasing each other and being assholes. None of you have even seen him lately, so have fun with your stupid jokes and selfishness," Silver humphed as he slammed the door behind him.

"Well shit, I didn't think he was gonna get that upset." Jude pursed his lips, glaring at the door.

"That stung a bit,-" I admitted, rubbing my chest. It was true, with everything that had been going on lately, as ashamed as I was to admit it. Alfie hadn't even crossed my mind as often as he had when he first arrived at the hospital. At least, not until we heard all the bullshit that had happened from Jason. When Declan tried to trap him into a favor by killing one of the pack, namely Alfie.

At the time, it hurt me so deeply to hear that he had even considered it. But after some to think on it, I could find myself coming to understand how Jason might have even contemplated doing such a thing. He hadn't gotten to know Alfie, didn't have an emotional attachment to him. And, again, we hadn't really even been by to visit him since he'd been in the hospital.

Not only that, but there was absolutely no sign that Alfie was ever going to come out of that coma. While Jude paid for all his expenses, also taking care of Lucas and Silver financially, was there any hope in continuing to do so? Would he wake up a vegetable? Unable to use his mind or do anything except simply be alive? The Alfie I knew wouldn't want that, but I could never make that decision.

I was glad I wasn't the Alpha of our group, that's a hard card to call.

Digressing, I could understand why Jason gave it a thought. But the fact he didn't and told Declan that he wouldn't be doing any killing on his behalf, showed he was a good wolf. He was a good mate. And I'd acted so brashly without hearing him out and just left.

Why did everything have to be so difficult?

Then came a knock at the door, as though everything else wasn't already so complicated.

"Who is it?" Jude barked, passing Willow over to me. I emulated the way that Jude had rocked the baby, moving back towards the sectional couch to sit down and keep Willow relaxed, his eyes no low and calm.

There was a bit of mumbling at the door before Jude began to shout and speak much louder as the confrontation began. My ear twitched at the voice, nearly giving myself whiplash as I turned my head to spy on who it was that had came to the door.

Was that Jason's voice?

"Haven't you caused enough problems?" I shouted out, hoping it would make him go away. While at the same time hoping, praying that he would stay and shut me up with a kiss.

I hated him and missed him so badly. I didn't know what I wanted.

"Forest! Please, I need to speak with you. All of you."

Jude's face turned away from Jason, staring me down with a silent look, his brows raised in question.

I chewed on my lip anxiously before nodding, and Jude stepped away from the door, allowing Jason to enter into the home. I watched him enter into my vision, giving Jude a pat on the shoulder as he passed and approached into the living area.

He stared at me only briefly before turning his gaze down onto our child, where only then his face began to soften. Though he still looked somewhat perturbed, and determined.

"What's going on?" I asked, holding Willow even closer to me.

Jude approaching as well with his hands folded across his chest, watching him intently. Jason's eyes glanced over the rest of the pack.

"Where's Silver?"

"What do you want?" Jude barked at him. Jason's head swiveled to the left and right, mumbling something to himself. If I didn't know him personally, I would've assumed he was crazy. But he looked extremely stressed, deep set red and purplish circle under his eyes told me he still hadn't been sleeping well. If he was sleeping at all. It appeared worse than when we were together. All his restless nights working non-stop at the hospital to support us.

"Declan. He's what you said." Jason pointed at Jude, brows furrowed. "His drink was poison. I got George to the hospital, but it was poison after all."

I didn't say anything, covering my mouth with my hand. Is that why he had been trying to get in contact with me so desperately? I felt like a horrible person now.

"I had some time to think about things. And I think it's our time. We need to fight back. We can't keep running and hiding from the Grey Brotherhood. From Declan and Leon."

"What are you proposing?" Jude stepped closer, his arms falling down to his sides in a less defensive position.

"I know where Declan lives. We need to go there, tonight. And make sure he never shows up again in our lives."

"You want us to just go to someone's house and kill them?" Lucas stood up as well, looking at Jason with an incredulous glare. "It doesn't matter what they've done to us, that's murder. We'll get in trouble."

"Would you rather be dead or keep living in fear for when they're gonna target us all next? You're my pack," Jason started to plead, scrunching up his eyes as his head tilted downwards, shaking as though to keep all his rage deep inside, buried instead of being released. "And I'll do anything to protect you." His head suddenly turned towards me, eyes opening up with a soft glow of determination within. "To protect all of you. I'm going, no matter what you decide. I don't want to raise my pup in fear thinking that someday, either weeks from now or years, that someone would come for him in retaliation."

"Jason." I stood from the couch now also, stepping closer towards him.

"He's right," Jude said. We all turned towards him. I was surprised at him saying so.

"He's what?" Lucas shook his head, confused, before our Alpha continued on.

"We can't keep living like this. First they tried to kill Forest, now Alfie is in a coma. They tried to poison all of us at that housewarming, and wanted Jason to take one of his pack's lives in return for their supposed help. Does that sound like someone who would just leave us alone now? He's right. We need to strike."

"Really?" My lover's face lit up even further, happy to hear that our leader was actually agreeing to this suicide mission.

"But there are dozens of them, and only a handful of us." I sighed, only to feel Jason take me in his arms, careful of Willow that was between us both. He rested his head on top of mine, holding us all together. As a family.

"You're not coming. It's gonna be the three of us. You're right, there's only a few of us. That's why it needs to be covert."

"That's a good idea. Sneak in, take out the head hancho, and get the fuck out of there. You're not as stupid as you look." Jude smirked.

"Thanks," Jason replied, releasing me and turning to face our Alpha. "It has to be tonight. The longer we wait, the more risk is involved."

"Wait? So soon? Don't you wanna at least call Detective Evan and tell him to go there first? Get some backup?" I asked again, shaking my head at their rash decision. Yes it sounded good in theory, but we weren't secret agents. We weren't international spies, we weren't capable of doing things like this. Were we?

"We've gotta take care of ourselves. I love you, Forest. And I won't let anything happen to you or Willow. They almost took you both from me when Thorn tried to steal you away. It's a miracle that Willow was able to survive, given the circumstances of his birth. And I'll be damned if they try to take the one I love away from me again."

"We're with you," Jude finally replied, stepping close enough to place his hand onto Jason's bicep.

"Dammit. Let's do this, then." Lucas hesitated, but also placed a hand onto Jason, near his shoulder.

"Tonight." Jason smiled.