Xena''s POV


    "I''m not going anywhere. My ass is totally numb," Ama said, her eyes still fixed on the remaining photos.


    "Let''s all go together," I suggested, knowing full well that the entire pack was


    choice.


    unsafe now. Moving as a group was the smartest


    "X..." Ama looked at me, then nced at William.


    William visibly rxed when he heard my words. He immediately stepped forward and pulled Ama to her feet. I opened the door and walked out first, William locking it behind us as we headed toward Alpha Benedict''s office. My heart raced, palms slightly damp with sweat as I wondered how Alpha Benedict would react.


    At the door, William knocked once and it opened.


    "What is it? Did you find something else?" Alpha Benedict''s face was etched with concern as I walked in.


    "There''s another photo..." I began, nodding at William to hand the photo to Alpha Benedict. "Does that person look like Penelope to you?"


    "Looks more like a man to me," Alpha Benedict frowned as he studied the image. He ced the photo on the desk, pointing to the


    neck area.


    His conclusion shocked me. Ama and I immediately crowded around to examine the photo, Sure enough, as he''d said, there was what appeared to be an Adam''s apple. We were so familiar with Penelope that we''d automatically projected her face onto the image.


    Alpha Benedict rubbed his chin, leaning back in his chair. "Honestly, really don''t want to be looking at intimate photos of my son and his mate," he said after a pause.


    "Ignore that part. Focus more on this person who doesn''t belong to our pack, standing right behind us, and we never noticed," I said with increasing urgency. I could feel anxiety rising inside me, like invisible mes licking at my nerves.


    "I can understand why you didn''t notice," Alpha Benedict studied me his brow furrowing.


    "The point is, this location is by the pond. The exact same spot where we found those Rogues. This ce is on the opposite side of pack territory,pletely opposite from where the first tunnel was discovered." I quickly exined my thoughts.


    His eyes narrowed as I detailed everything. Alpha Benedict crossed his arms in front of him, and I noticed his knuckles turning white from how tightly he was gripping. His entire body seemed to freeze. His eyes didn''t move, as if trying to drill holes through me. At first, I wasn''t sure if he was mind-linking with Ryder or what. After a while, I could only assume he was processing what this all meant. My heart pounded anxiously in my chest as I waited for his reaction.


    "Ryder and I have a n, and we''d like your input," I said after a long, heavy silence.


    Alpha Benedict didn''t look at me or respond, still fiddling with his phone. "Benedict." My dad''s voice suddenly filled the office.


    6


    "I''m with your daughter right now. There''s a new development you need to know about," Alpha Benedict leaned back in his chair, gesturing for me to continue.


    "William, could you move that chair closer? I need to sit down," I asked, feeling my legs trembling slightly from tension.


    He didn''t answer but quickly moved to the armchair and pushed it toward the desk. Alpha Benedict even moved the phone to make it easier for me to speak with my dad. I took a deep breath, trying to calm my racing heart.


    Chapter 211.


    "Xena? What''s happened?" Dad''s voice was filled with concern.


    "I''m guessing Logan has already reported to you. Do you know about the tunnel we found and how we found it?'' I asked.


    I know the basics. Not entirely clear on how it was discovered, but know about the tunnel."


    "Right, well, we''ve found another one. This one''s on the opposite side of pack territory, near where those Rogues crossed the boundary. However, the person in the photo resembles Penelope. Alpha Benedict isn''t sure, but I think the resemnce is enough to warrant our attention."


    Dad was silent for a moment. "This is fucking insane," his voice sounded exhausted.


    "Ryder and 1 have a n," 13aid quickly, hoping my voice sounded more confident than I felt.


    "What kind of n?


    I took a deep breath, Erganizing my thoughts. The n was still nebulous in my mind, but it was our only hope. "Tonight, when things happen, all wohien, children, and elderly need to be moved to your pack. It''ll be a good time to get people to safety. Then, we can set up an ambush using our territory. Make them think they''reing for retaliation. Ryder thinks they''ll attack us in the morning. I didn''t want to be explicit, not knowing who might be listening on his end.


    My heart raced faster the n sounded so fragile, so dependent on timing and luck.


    4


    "That could work," Dad considered. "They probably have someone watching, so it needs to happen after the attack, when hopefully they''ve pulled back all their people. However, we''ll need to move everyone quickly in batches. Obviously, we''ll take in anyone who needs shelter, but we''ll be short on warriors due to the previous attack."


    I rubbed my temples. These were details I hadn''t thought about, and every oversight could put more lives at risk. "We haven''t worked out the specifics yet, more just the general idea. We wanted to see how you all felt about it before figuring out the details of how to execute the n."


    "Our warriors are leaving in five hours. You have four hours toe up a newfound hopeful tone.


    with a n and present it to us. Understood?" Dad said with


    My stomach twisted with nerves, but I forced myself to nod. "Yes, sir, I said, feeling somewhat confident. Though deep down, I doubted my ability to devise a workable n in such a short time, I couldn''t let them see my hesitation.


    "X?" Dad asked, his tone bing somewhat shy.


    "What is it?"


    "How are you feeling?"


    Chapter Comments