Xena''s POV


    We found the tunnel." William''s voice echoed through the mind link to all of us.


    Ryder and I exchanged shocked nces, the weight of the discovery itting us like a physical blow.


    "What?" Dad frowned, his voice sharp with concern.


    "They found the third tunnel," I exined to Dad, my hands clenching into fists, nails digging into my palms as I fought to control the surge of anger building side


    me.


    The tension in the room was suffocating. Everyone''s emotions were retched to the breaking point, like a wire about to snap. Alpha Benedict''s jaw tightened, his eyes shing with a dangerous fire.


    "Alpha Benedict, I think you need to consider stepping down. No, I''m going to strongly suggest you step down before thises back to destroy you, Dad said, staring directly into Alpha Benedict''s eyes with unwavering intensity.


    The air crackled with hostility. Alpha Benedict''s face darkened, his muscles coiling like a predator ready to strike.


    "What about you? Are you going to step down and give the position to your son?" Alpha Benedict snarled, his voice dripping with


    venom.


    "I will. Sooner than you think," Dad replied without hesitation, then turned to Ryder. "What''s the next step?"


    Ryder''s brow furrowed deeply, his muscles tensed like a beast ready for battle. I could see him struggling to control his rage, that primal urge to tear everything apart flickering in his eyes.


    "We need to rescue Tom. All current information is considered invalid. We need to reorganize and decide on a course of action. We''ll track the tunnels today and seal them. Hopefully by Monday, everyone can go home."


    "Good," Dad nodded in agreement.


    "Let Penelope and Ama do their part, see what they can discover when we go over there tomorrow," I said to Dad.


    "Alright." Dad walked over and gave me a hug, his embrace warm but brief. "Do you need toe home with me?"


    "No. I''m okay taking out the trash here." I hugged him onest time, then he turned and walked away.


    "I won''t have any more contact with you, Benedict. I''ll only deal with Ryder, or only with Logan. My agreement is with him now," Dad announced without waiting to hear what Alpha Benedict might say. He walked straight out of the office, mming the door behind him with a resounding crash.


    Benedict red maliciously at Dad''s retreating figure, muttering something under his breath that I couldn''t quite catch.


    The tension in the room reached its peak. I could feel the dangerous aura radiating from Ryder, making my skin prickle with goosebumps.


    "You need to carefully consider your next moves. I''m going to seal the tunnels, and I expect the right answers tonight," Ry threatened in a low voice without waiting for Alpha Benedict to turn around. Before I could see Alpha Benedict''s reaction, Ryder grabbed my arm, positioning me in front of him as we left the office. He didn''t even bother closing the door as we walked back toward the forest.


    "Alpha!" I heard someone calling for Ryder as we walked. We didn''t speak the entire way. I knew he was processing some personal


    emotions and would talk when he was ready.


    I could feel his tense muscles, sense the anger he was struggling to control. Every step was filled with suppressed power, like an enraged beast forcing itself to main calm.


    "Where is it?" Ryder asked, making no attempt to hide his fury.


    A warrior grabbed something, and a small door opened. It was a wooden door covering a hole in the ground, just like the other tunnels I''d been told about. It was pitch ck, leaving everything to the imagination.


    "Alright. We are going to be leveling these tunnels. We need some to string some explosives. Break off into three teams. I want this done by the end of today. Come find me before you blow them. As a general rule, all direction from here on out is toe from me directly," Ryder kept his head high as he delivered their instructions.


    "Yes, Alpha!" they said in unison before they started breaking off and figuring out how they were going to achieve this.


    "What is going on?" illiam asked as he walked up to us.


    "Not here," Ryder said, looking up at the sky.


    William looked at me and I just shook my head no.


    "Okay, well, we followed this one like we did the others and it was the same. When we blow it, there will be some ground changes so we will need to watch out for trees falling and any damage to the border. I''ll set up guys on each spot to monitor it," William took a deep breath and looked around. Most of the men had left to gather supplies. A few hung around to watch the opening.


    Ryder just turned and started walking away with his hands on top of his head. William gave me a questioning look.


    I mouthed ''it''s bad'' before I followed Ryder. He just kept walking, nowhere in particr. Eventually, he ended up sitting down in the gazebo that was in a garden. Sitting down next to him, I just waited until he was ready to talk.


    Ryder leaned back and put his arm around me. “This isn''t how I wanted this to go," he said after a while.


    "I imagine not." Resting my head against his shoulder, I just looked at the emptynd.


    Usually there would be kids running around or people walking by. Today, there was no one. It almost felt abandoned.


    "Why is he making this so bad?" he asked, more to himself than to me.


    "Even though this whole situation is terrible, I don''t believe your father intentionally let things get to this point."


    "What do you mean?" Ryder looked down at me.


    "Ryder, you''re a reliable man. You know right from wrong, you''re strong and loyal. You fight for what''s right, not for what''s easy. You are who you are because of the man who raised you. I don''t believe this all started with the intention of developing to this extent. I think your father got caught up in something, and then it snowballed out of control. I think he''s embarrassed and ashamed of what he''s done, but doesn''t know how to get out of it. Does he need to step down? Yes. He''s so desperate to have everything resolved that


    he''s blind to the real threats."


    "I hope you''re right. I''m telling you right now, if we find out what he''s hiding is serious..." Ryder shook his head, seeming to struggle with getting the words out, "...I''ll challenge him on the spot.”