Oh god. For a short period of time, I was a father and I didn't even know it. I growl, head in my hands, trying to contain Dante and his rage whilst a wave of guilt washes over me. This whole thing is my fault and it just keeps getting worse.

Our child. We had a baby.

Fucking hell. I'm all but ready to rip this man to shreds. I need my mate back. 

"Grayson? Are you still there?" Acacia mind-links weakly. 

"Yeah, I'm still here Princess. I'm sorry, I was just thinking." 

"About what?" 

"About the fact that I was a father for a short period of time and I didn't know it" I reply quietly in an attempt to contain what little control of Dante I have left. 

"I know. But I promise that one day in the future you'll get to be a father again." 

Wait, what? 

"Acacia, are you saying you want to start a family with me someday?" I ask, slightly taken aback. 

We've never actually had the kids' conversation. It's not exactly a conversation that was on my mind considering Acacia's past and the fact that we have been fairly preoccupied with other things lately. 

"Yeah. I mean I'm happy it was your child I was carrying and the thought of someday having more is keeping me sane right now" she replies softly. 

The tiniest of smiles creeps onto my face at her reply. 

"One day then."

"I love you, Grayson."

"I love you too, Acacia." 

Suddenly, I am brought out of my thoughts by a knock on the door. 

"Enter," I say wearily. I watch as my mother walks in holding a tray of food. I give her a small smile as she sets it down on my desk and takes a seat. 

"What's wrong Grayson? You've been shut up in here all day and you sounded like you were in pain before. Please tell me what's wrong" she pleads, her gentle eyes watching me. 

"I was a father," I reply quietly, pained at the thought of it. 

"You what?" she whispers. 

"I was a father." 

"What do you mean 'was'?"

"For a short period of time, I was a father and I didn't even know it" I start, pausing to take a breath. 

"Acacia just had a miscarriage. It was mine. Neither of us knew she was pregnant but she miscarried and was taken to a hospital wing where she was told she had been pregnant." My mother stares at me in shock but I don't bother to stop. 

"It was definitely mine as she hasn't been there long enough to warrant a pregnancy from that sick creature, and to think, if it weren't for Zane beating and raping our baby out of her, I would still be a father" I whisper, tears stinging in my eyes. 

"Oh Grayson, I'm so sorry. That's awful," my mother says quietly, sadness glittering in eyes before getting up, coming around to me and pulling me into a hug. 

"It is but right now, I just need to find Acacia. Speaking of which, I'm going to go right now to find this base of Zane's. I'm going take Levi and Bentley with me so I was wondering, do you think you and dad could hold down the pack while I'm gone?" I ask, silently begging her. 

"Of course, love. Anything to get Acacia back" she says with a small smile. I smile back as she pushes the tray towards me. 

"Please eat, you need all the strength you can get," she says quietly before standing up and leaving the room. I sigh and begin to eat, suddenly realising how hungry I actually am. 

"Grayson?" Acacia asks again quietly. 

"Yeah? I'm sorry, my mother came in and was talking to me." 

"Oh, that's okay. Is she okay?" 

"Yeah, she's okay. How are you feeling Princess?"

"I hate it here but at least I'm getting fed and Zane's not touching me for o-once." 

"Jesus... Gimme two seconds to contact Levi and Bentley. I'll be quick I promise" I say gently. 

"Okay," she replies before disappearing. I sigh and rub my hands over my face. 

"Levi. Bentley." I mind link wearily. 

"Yeah, Grayson?" Bentley replies. 

"The three of us are going to find Zane's base. We are leaving in 10 minutes." 

"Yes Alpha" they reply simultaneously. I finish eating and head over to the cabinet and pull out a few bottles of serum. 

Go time. 

"We're coming now, Princess" I mind-link Acacia quietly. 

"Okay, Grayson. Please be careful." 

"Don't worry Princess, I will." 

"Good. I can't lose you too" she says, her voice choked. 

"I know" I reply, my heart aching.

"Ready to go boys?" I ask sternly. 

"Hell yeah! Let's find this base. I'm ready to kill this son of a bitch once and for all" Levi says grinning back at me. Bentley chuckles, rolling his eyes at Levi. 

"Here," I say as I hand a bottle of serum to each of them. 

"Dab it behind your ears, at the base of your throat, the inside of your wrists and elbows and behind your knees, as you would with perfume or cologne". They nod and get to work as I do the same. Soon enough, our scents begin to disappear, much to Levi and Bentley's amazement. 

"Now, let's go." They nod back and we head off. 

"Acacia, I'm going to have to let Dante take over for a bit so he can zone in on our bond. Is that okay?" I ask as I run through the forest and out of my territory. 

"Yeah, that's okay," she says softly. "Can he still talk to me though?"

"Of course. I honestly don't think I could get him to stop if I told him not to. He's hurting and he misses Elliot so be prepared" I reply, warning her. She giggles and I smile. God, I love her so much. I let Dante take over as the three of us shift and continue to run. 

Suddenly, the bond tugs at my heart and begins to guide me. 

"Hey Princess," Dante says quietly to Acacia. 

"Hi" Acacia whispers back nervously. I grin as I continue to follow the direction of the bond. 

This is going to be interesting.

"We're close," I say in a low voice, coming to an abrupt stop, causing Levi and Bentley to skid past me. I shift back and I smirk as they regain their balance and shift and then walk back over to me. 

"Do you smell it?" I ask. 

"Smell what? Rogues?" 

"Well, yes but no. I mean, do you smell Acacia's scent?" 

I watch as the boys lift their noses up and sniff the air. 

"Actually I do. It's very faint though" Bentley says, recognition washing over his face. I nod my head and we continue to sniff the air and move around until we find very loose dirt, heavily scented by Acacia. 

"This is the dirt Acacia told me about. She buried her torn clothes here as she was running away. They were covered in her blood, hence why it smells so strongly of her." The boys nod and we look around a little more. 

Out of the corner of my eye, I spot the edge of the forest and I signal to the boys to follow me. We slowly move to the edge, keeping to the shadows. Instantly, I spot rogues walking around the clearing. 

We found it. It's a fairly small house, a bit tired looking but I wouldn't be surprised if there was a basement or underground system of some sort under the house. 

"We found it boys," I mind-link as I turn to look at them. They nod and grin back at me as we continue to watch the clearing. Rogues trudge around the clearing looking bored as hell while others sit on the porch. 

Suddenly, the front door opens and out walks three men, two of which are the two men from the other day, the third being Zane himself. A low growl tumbles out of my mouth and I clamp my hands over my face but thankfully no one heard. 

"Acacia" I mind link quietly. 

"Yeah?" she replies weakly. 

"We found the base. Levi, Bentley and I are standing at the edge of the forest line as we speak and we can see Zane." 

"Oh my god! Are you serious?! You found me?!" she says in disbelief. 

"We did, well almost. We have to get you out of there now," I reply confidently. "However, right now, it would be the three of us versus all of them and that wouldn't end well."

"I know, Grayson. I want you all to stay safe." 

"I just need you to hang on for me for one more night, Princess." 

"Of course. Just please hurry."

"I will. We'll go home and get my pack and probably some neighbouring packs that I have alliances with and we'll be back as soon as possible. This means war and Zane is going to die" I say, my tone darkening at the end. 

"Good. Just please stay safe" Acacia replies softly. 

"I will, Princess. I promise you. Soon enough you'll be out of there and back in my arms." 

I give the boys a nod and we begin to head back home. 

"We're going home now but I promise everything is going to be okay," I say softly before shifting and letting Dante take over once more for the run home. 

"Thank you, Grayson, and thank you, Dante," Acacia says, her voice choking slightly. 

"Why are you thanking us, Princess," Dante asks. 

"Because you love me and you're saving me yet again. It's more than I'll ever deserve and I don't know how to make it up to you" she says, her voice continuing to waver. 

"Please don't cry and you don't have to make anything up to us, Princess," Dante says softly. 

"But-"

"But nothing. All we want is you in our life and for you to be happy. We promise to keep you safe and love you for as long as you're on this earth because you are our mate." 

I hear Acacia begin to cry causing Dante to whine. 

"Okay. I love both of you so much" she whispers, her voice choked.

"We love you too, Acacia. We are coming for you, don't worry." 

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Hey Guys,

So I hope you enjoyed that chapter! It was a bit of a long one but I hope you still liked it! The next chapter will hopefully be out soonish so keep on the lookout for that!

Thanks for sticking by me through all this and feel free to vote and leave me a comment below letting me know whether you liked this chapter!!

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Thanks,

- Allamy xx

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