* * *

Sage had been placed at the base of a large tree with a bottle of water and a guard that would change every other minute. Goddess, there was so much movement that it wasn't safe for her to interact with the rest of them.

Not yet, at the very least.

Especially when Hayes caught the glint of wanting to help and heal them. The thought of even healing three wolves had taken it out of his daughter for the rest of the day—Both here and now, it wouldn't be the best option.

So they resorted to doing what they could, even if it was very limited.

Blake seemed to have an entire arsenal of herbs and grinds to pat down the different states of surgery—Hayes could hardly stomach looking at his daughter, not when the others were bleeding out on the front lawn.

Free. They were free and were going to remain so, but how was he not meant to see his daughter—His mate—Like this?

No.
And in trying to keep from thinking of it any further, he remained posted at the front, doing a head count and greeting the runners to and fro. Even if they were long overdue for another one, or were until Remus and Andrew Linked them at the edge of the border.

They were on their way to further the search, and looking down at the sloppy doodle of the layout of the building set before him...His eyes easily fluttered to the side—Directly where the building had turned to stone.

Isn't that what Sage had said?
That there was beautiful stonework and—There was the stained glass!

At that near direct relation, Hayes had allowed a proud grin to shine brightly on his face, knowing that the two Alphas inside would do everything in their power to get her back.

"They're coming, sweetheart, they're coming." A presence had snuck up on him, but it didn't take much to figure out who would tempt him from doing anything else than what they were supposed to.

Even Chloe, Carter, and the rest of the Crimson pack were scrounging around their supplies to do what they could. But no, Sage decided to stand at the forefront with her father.

"You should be sitting down."

"We should be sitting down." She replied, and Hayes smirked at how stubborn the little female could be when she wanted to. "We should. But we aren't going to, hm?"

"No. Wait for mom."

"I spotted your little temple off that way...With the stones and the color glass." A small gasp of excitement left Sage's lips as jumped and held onto her father's arm. The smile brightened her face—It was no longer pale or suggested that she threw up this morning's breakfast just an hour ago.

"I pray that she is here, Sage. I don't know how much more I can truly take. Not without—Not without Willow." It was unfair for Hayes to be so caught up with the fact in seeing Willow again, when Sage was the one who had spent so little time with her—With anyone in their family.

Even her pups were at the marker for seeing them the least.

With an eerie silence and calm washing over the two Mystic wolves, Sage pressed her cheek against her father's arm and sighed. "Are you angry?"

"Angry? About what, bubbles?"

"About the pup?" He had tried to act clueless, he truly did. But there was only so much a father could take, and while he hadn't liked when Haylee would date males during her high school years, he also knew it was inevitable.

As was finding a mate.

Here, however, was different. There were ups and downs that fell along with Sage's choices. Had she made the right decision at the time? Perhaps. Yet they are the ones living through it now. But no, the male had started to shake his head and allowed his grin to grow.

"I'm a little distracted now, so I can't answer that truthfully. But I don't think it's anger I'm feeling." Disappointment. Betrayal. Those felt much better in this context, but how could he possibly tell her?

"Feel better when you're holding lil pup." A beautiful smile graced her lips once more, and he leaned down to place a kiss on the top of her head before locking his chin above her.

"I think we all will." After that, the former Alpha needed to do something with his hands and decided to join Blake in his task of getting everyone's name, pack, and rank.

While those above the surface were facing their own dilemmas, the search continued off with Remus—Who continued to walk right alongside the wall and was cautious at every step of the way.

He wished that Linking was not blocked, because goddess, there was no doubt in his or Andrew's mind that these were the hallways Sage had sketched out with Calista.

In a method of trying to use anything else than walking Sage's mind, it was much easier to sketch it out of her head and forget about it. But here and now, it was starting to become every damn scene she had fought to forget.

"We're not seeing any movement, you think they're snoozing?" Grey offered, his whisper being anything but soft. "Yeah, announce that we're coming. Please, I'd love for things to go south." Severin bit back, only for his partner to utter an apology.

As if it truly needed one.

With another room being nothing more than a secluded office, the frustration was growing rapidly—Or had, until they were greeted by what Andrew knew all too easily.

"Dragur, what's the plan?" Remus frowned. "Thought the order was to kill them all without hesitation?"

"It is, but they operate as one. Haven't you noticed? We do it we have to do it quickly and prepare for a shit show." With a few shared looks, their backs had straightened and a hand had signaled out to the rest that was at the ready.

No, this could easily be settled with the highest tier—Both Alphas and their set. Granted, it was not Liam's first time killing a scientist, and he certainly wasn't taking count—But he needed to do this for himself and Luke, as a sense of closure.

With one being burned down with Sage's entrance into society, and another as she returned—This would be the third and thus, another one to lessen the rest in states.

With a single file line created with Remus at the forefront and Andrew closing up at the back, it was rather easy to go by them undetected, considering that wasn't their main objective.

Not when their bodies were standing on a beautifully decorated hardwood door, and even with a quick glance, Remus couldn't deny that the outline looked strongly like a tree.

A willow tree.

As Andrew had been the last to line up with his target, it enacted the decided plan. And it couldn't have been smoother. With the lookouts nodding and motioning for the rest to come forward, it had been a quick transition to grab the follow Dragur and drag their bodies from the hallway and into the room.

Which was thankfully open, though giving the illusion of being able to leave with the manpower to stop when one wasn't allowed to. It was a cruel experience to recall, though even now he was feeling eager to get out of the public halls.

Upon dragging the bodies through the room, dragging them a decent halfway—They were soon introduced with a rather controlled gasp by a female at the end of the hall.

"What the devils—" She hissed, and Andrew instantly threw his hands up into the air and smiled.

"We're not going to hurt you, we're here to—" The poor male hadn't had the chance, not when the witch had confirmed her species, throwing her hand up and sending Andrew flying across the room and against her wall.

With a sharp head bang, he growled in damnation and gritted his teeth. Not wanting to give satisfaction to the little female or vocalize that he was in pain.

He is an Alpha, after all.

"I'll ask this once, and only once...Who do you work for?" She called out, holding her hand at her waist, waiting for even the slightest bit of movement from the incoming males.

All of which were much more active in the eyes than she's used to.

"Doesn't matter who we work for, we're breaking everyone out." Liam issued, his hands being offered up as well—Even if he was bent to the floor in hopes of dragging his additional kill further in.

That did tempt the female, her brows narrowing in thought as she lowered her guard. But only slightly.

"Do you understand how much danger you're in...Sweet Diana, you'll kill us all." Her voice had turned into but a whisper, clearly fear outweighed the possibility of it all, but once she closed her eyes and dropped her hand down, the rest of the room was able to breathe with ease.

"Ma'am, we're looking for all the witches in the building. We've already managed the wolves and everyone else that was on the other levels of this building. We need to evacuate."

"Why? Why are you doing this?" Perhaps telling her their motivation would ease her suspicions, but all it was doing was tearing Liam apart from the inside out.

The witch did not trust them, not at all. So he did the only he could think of, the only thing that might instill trust in her.

So Liam rose from his position with his hands well above his head as he came forward. "Two years ago I escaped with my brother and sister from another building just like this...And most people outside waiting for us or here with us have experienced this or been affected by it. We're only trying to do what's right." Liam whispered, both a record of remembrance had fallen within their gaze with one another.

But when he offered up his forearm, the very one that held the implanted tracker that Sage had ripped out on their way back home, the female's eyes sparkled with recognition.

She knew what it meant all too well.

"B-but you're wolves..." She croaked, having trouble understanding why one race would fight so hard for another. Yet when she had pieced that motion together, she turned over her shoulder in understanding.

"You must be looking for my mistress...She—She claims that she was once a wolf, but a poor excuse for a Hybrid when one cannot shift. In this realm of the world, I hope and pray that she can find the strength to return to what she was." It was ominous, of course, but the woman bowed her head for a moment and hurried to a room adjacent to the main door.

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?" Andrew spat, rubbing his back after having been thrown. The indent of the wall was obvious of his figure, but an offered arm was instantly taken—Though he was rather shocked to see it was Caleb.

After all that's happened, Andrew had taken into consideration to stay a fair distance away from Sage's adoptive brothers. Yet he appreciated the helping hand in the midst of it all.

"Can we trust these witches?... It took a while for the witches Black Crescent to trust us." Severin questioned and Grey hummed, though things had been reduced to an uncomfortable silence, especially when the door had opened and the pile of the rescuers had fueled in.

Yet leaving the same amount outside in cover, as though they were the Dragur themselves.

"Hears some noises, sir, didn't want to risk it. Not with Buck with us." While the largest one of the group didn't look guilty, he did sigh and try to look around for something else to focus on. And that had turned out to be the large grandfather clock.

"What kind of noises?" Remus questioned the newly freed wolf.
"Shift in schedule, it's a new hour." Buck pointed, and thus, their move was valid. There were a few nods of agreement, yet a shift change would undoubtedly cause some suspicion. Even when they closed all the surgery and side rooms from the entrance, in addition to barricading the areas with cells.

Things were on a time frame now, given that the Dragur or any other type of scientist movement would alert to the suspicious activity—Goddess, the witches needed to hurry.

"Mistress, please! We don't know who they are—" The voice had been from the female prior, interrogating them as if she could manage to protect against the numbers they had.

Yet the wolves had been startled, the ones who haven't spent much time with a witch—Yet seeing the masses of cloaked dressed females was not at all something one could be prepared for.

Even Liam was taken aback.

"D-did we interrupt a prayer?" He whispered out, and a few of the females offered smiles, but it was the smaller of the few that caught the rest's attention. Her black robe had been overlaid with beautiful golden stitches, making her different from the rest.

But the two Elwood's jaws were not the only ones to drop, no. Everyone who had met Sage had gawked down at the newly introduced female.

It could have been her twin!

"Willow..." Remus croaked, he hurried to clear his throat and took a step forward—Only to enact a frenzy toward the being that had caught everyone's attention.

The brave witches, from memory, did not have many abilities to truly protect Willow. But it spoke of their determination to protect her.

"Willow we're...We're here to save you—We're—" Willow's head tilted to the side, her eyes followed to take into Remus' figure and hummed, all before flickering to Andrew.

Yet she lingered on the Elwoods for longer than they were comfortable with.

"Fluffy...Yes, I know that voice." Remus' eyes sparked, she remembered from the soul swap, of course!
But now, that nickname was more in-depth than he could even fathom.

"Darius...He did follow you. Smart bastard." Remus smirked, and Willow followed in suit with a smile, she pushed through the defending crowd of her own peers and nodded.

"He is. But his voice alone doesn't constitute trust. Who are you?" Her eyes were scrutinizing, and while Remus' wolf huffed in damnation, as the small being—His mother-in-law—Did not trust him so openly, he understood.

Given how the last few decades of her life have been spent.

"I am Remus Moon, current Alpha of Crescent Moon. Mated to Sage Moon—Your daughter." Surprise didn't enrapture her face, not when she had been taking in his appearance this whole time.

Granted, she had never seen Remus Moon before, but the resemblance is uncanny.

"What is my daughter's favorite food?" That had been a rather tricky question, but with how her eyes were flickering, she was conversing with Darius just the same.

"Chicken." Remus instantly replied, and Liam popped up right behind him. "With potatoes!" He added.

"Can't forget the mozzarella sticks." Caleb laughed as he nudged his brother. But Andrew allowed a smile to be added to his face.

"Tomatoes...Depending on the day." It acknowledged a key part in Sage's cravings, all this had been enough for Willow to nod again.

"What are you all doing here?" She whispered, not wanting to believe the possibility of what might be happening. "We're here, with a load of others, trying to empty out this place so we can burn it to the ground," Andrew replied, earning him the attention of Willow.

"Your voice...I know it too."

"Well...I wouldn't say we really met before." He cheekily replied, making Willow huff impatiently. But the smile of half of those in front of her was starting to instill a bit of worry.

"Maybe that's where Sage gets it from—Shit. Sorry." Liam had laughed at first, but with the pointed look from either Alpha, he quickly realized his mistake.

Or the perfect addition to what they were looking for.

"Is—Is she here? Is Sage here?" Her voice had turned up a notch as she came forward to her daughter's mate and held him by the scruff of his jumpsuit. Even if she was much shorter than the male, he was used to the size comparison with Sage.

Though she had much more force.

"She's upstairs with her father...They're our backup." From what had been confused as excitement and demand had truly been a bought of worry.

"No—No. She shouldn't be here. He'll—"

"That fucking vampire isn't getting her and isn't getting you, we're here to get everyone out. We promised, and we're upholding it. Now, are you coming with us?" The twisted look in Willow's eyes is what alarmed Remus, as did the rest of the witches who turned to look at one another.

The temptation was there, as was the compliance and submission that Almond had beaten into them.

"Is it safe?" A voice called out, and Liam nodded.

"We made it this far without much trouble. Injured and our backup are waiting for us." Andrew understood their worries, more so than any of them, but if they did not get moving and soon, things would get difficult.

"A lab coat said that that bastard isn't going to be coming back until tonight. We have time." Willow turned to the clock and shook her head.

"Time is different here. His coven will be here soon." That logic did not give the rest of the witches anything more than doubt, but the way they flattened their robes and moved in accordance to fix their appearance and posture—Spoke of what might happen following Almond's arrival.

"If time is different, then we need to go now." Remus growled, and that spoke to Willow—A remembrance of how the wolf world operators. "Hayden is really here?"

"Here and desperate to see you. I promised him that I would bring you to him and Sage, and goddess, the rest of your pups will hang my hyde." What had started as a soft voice had turned into a bit of laughter, especially thinking back to how things were so sour after Sage voiced that she had seen Willow during her time in Canada.

"It's not safe, Mistress...Master will know when you leave." A witch whispered, but it earned her pointed looks as though they wanted to leave. "He'll hunt me down, Remus. Are you prepared for that?"

"He's already hunting my mate...We need to end this properly, and today is not that day. Let's leave when we have the upper hand." He held up a hand in offering, but still, she hesitated.

"You can meet your grandchildren...Your first time meeting them shouldn't have been through Sage. Meet them in your own body, let them meet their grandmother properly." Remus didn't think he would have to beg, not to convince her.

"Ma'am, I promise. We will get you and your witches out of here." Andrew claimed, standing beside Remus with another hand in offering—And while it had taken another passing few breaths, Willow had conceded and held both of their hands.

"What's the plan?"

______

Date: 09/15/23

Time: 9:45 (Dang it!)

Words: 3262

Author's Note:

And Willow has been found!

It's been awhile since the soul swap, and it's clear Willow isn't taking any chances when it comes to herself and her small coven of witches. 

Let's just hope they can get out without any issue, and better yet, the next chapter is only a few days away!

3 more chapters remaining, yet so much could happen!

Now then, I hope you all have an amazing weekend, and I'll see you Monday for the final chapter of this phase.