Romano I wash my Little Angel from top to bottom, and I let her lean against me as I clean myself up the best I can; she is and always will be my first priority in life. She walks into her closet, and I tell her I will be right back, that I need to get some clean clothes. As I walk to the guestroom, I go over the clothes I packed, and I know I will need to get some extra clothes, either from home or new clothing. I open the door of the closet to stop dead in my tracks; there are more clothes in there than I packed, and everything is in the right size. "You can thank Sela for that; she got the three of you extra clothing a few days after we brought you here. She figured you would need it after you woke up, whether you would stay here or not," I hear my Little Angel explain, and I feel warmed knowing that some stranger thought of my needs. While I get dressed, my Little Angel tells me about how she became a part of Crystal Blood Pack, and when I ask about Lakota's story she just shakes her head. "She will tell you her story herself; every Pack-member has heard it eventually, and it has formed her to be the Alpha she is," she explains, and I can't wait to find out what happened to our Alpha. Torben has a smirk on his face as I think of her as our Alpha; it is something neither one of us ever expected to feel comfortable with. Bear shifters just don't have a hierarchy like Wolves and Lycans within their Sleuth; our Sleuth was run by my Father, and after his death there would have been a fight for the position. Our Father gained the position by accident when the fighting Bears came a little too close to our Mother, but my Brother and I made it very clear that we didn't want the position and that we would stay out of the fight for it. Dad never held it against us; he never wanted the position either, but he knocked everyone out when he was protecting our Mother. I turn around to see Josy sitting on the bed, holding a tablet in her hands, and when she notices that I am looking at her she pats the bed. I take a seat next to her. "I wanted to make sure you knew how Ivan and Malik had been doing while you were unconscious," she says as she turns the screen in my direction. I am staring at a picture of myself with Ivan and Malik on either side of me; the underline says, "Talking about their first night," and I smile as I remember that I had heard their voices. Every picture has an underline, and I can tell that little by little they became more comfortable living here, with their Uncle as their only family left. Pictures of them in class, of them helping out at the diner and during a party. More than half of the pictures are just of Ivan and Malik, but I really love the pictures of them with my Little Angel, and I am grateful that she took them in when they needed someone to just be there for them. "Thank you, Little Angel. I am glad they had you when they needed you. I remember that while I was unconscious I could hear them all happy and excited, but for some reason I felt as if those voices should have been sad or angry, and now I understand that it is because of you that they were happy. They may have lost their family, but looking at the pictures I know they found a new family here. I can't wait to tell them that Darrius and his family are related to them through Aunt Myra; they met her about a year ago, and both love her to pieces. The fact that she spoiled them rotten during her visit might have something to do with it," I say, and I pull her closer as she giggles—a sound I want to hear as often as I can. I can tell that someone is linking her, and my guess is that it is Alpha Lakota; after all, it has been an hour since Josy told me she wanted to talk to us. Josy I think I know why Alpha Lakota wants to talk to us; I am just not sure how to feel about it. I know she wants to eliminate the threat Jazzy's former Mate and his Alpha pose to our Pack. I agree with her that they need to be taken care of, and I know both Jazzy and Mano want to go with her when she takes this war to their Pack. Tychon will probably go with Jazzy because he understands that she needs closure. I know Mano doesn't want me to tag along, and I understand that perfectly, but I am not sure how I will feel when he leaves. What if something happens to him? What if I am left alone with Ivan and Malik, or if I find out I am pregnant and he is gone? My mind is running away with me, and I didn't realize I had stopped walking until Mano wraps his arms around me. "I will come home; I have too much to live for," he whispers in my ear as he holds me close. Hearing his words and his heartbeat helps me calm down. He kisses the top of my head before he makes me look at him. "I need to do this, my Little Angel. For Ivan and Malik, but most of all for you. I would go crazy worrying if they would one day come after you; this needs to end now," he says, and I can see in his eyes that the worry would drive him up the wall.I sigh before I say, "I understand that, but it doesn't make it easier for me. I just found you, and I know that it will kill me if I lose you. Just promise me that you will try to avoid getting hurt." He looks at me, and I see Torben push forward. "Little Angel, I will keep my Human safe. We will come back to you and the boys; we will live here for the rest of our lives, and we will watch our offspring grow up," Torben says, and I believe every word he has said. He will keep Mano safe to get back to us. I sit quietly in Mano's lap as Alpha Lakota explains to the entire Pack what is about to happen. She asks for volunteers because she refuses to order any of our Pack-members to fight this war. The Council has confirmed that Night Shade Pack usually gives up an assignment when whoever hired them dies; I just hope that will happen this time as well. Maybe they will keep pursuing this because they want to find the entrance as well, but then again, it could be that they have no knowledge of what was written down in those journals. I just hope that this will all be over soon, so we can start to live our lives without looking over our shoulders. "We will leave at nightfall, and when we get close, I will contact Alpha Mauro. He will help us in any way he can, but he understands that we want to take down the Alpha and the future Gamma. I want everyone to be ready before dinner," Alpha Lakota says, and after that, she dismisses us all.