Magnus’ p.o.v. Meadow has no idea what Black Valley territory looks like and she made it clear that I and my leadership are not allowed to tell her anything. Milcah has decided to stay close to Meadow and practice her ability at the same time. Gilliam is enjoying this as much as the girls and hopes to find out that our ability is as good as Meadow's. I know that our families are placing bets on how far we can get into the territory and none of them believes that Meadow can make it up to the Beta floor, especially not into Misha and River’s bedroom. Part of me and yes, that includes Gilliam, wants her to scare the shit out of those two and the other part hopes she fails somewhere halfway through the territory. Okay, I’ll admit it. The part that is hoping for failure is really, really tiny. I hope her ability is strong enough to gather as much intel on the territory as possible, because that makes our mission a lot easier. By the time we are ready to leave Gold Moon territory, it is almost eleven in the evening and that means we will reach Black Valley Pack around midnight. Most Pack-members will be asleep, but it is also when patrols become tighter. About ten minutes from the border, Meadow gives the order to kill the lights and to slow down to a snail’s pace. “HALT.” Meadow shouts through the mind-link and all SUVs come to a stop in the middle of the road. We quietly get out without shutting the doors altogether and start walking toward the borders. “Get off the road. Duck down and move slowly into position.” Captain Miles says. Meadow asked him to come along so he can witness how her gift works and what orders he has to give everyone to ensure that instructions are followed. We move to the right side of the road and form pairs. I team up with Captain Miles, because my Mate told me in no uncertain terms that she would team up with Meadow. Meadow gestures for us to move forward and slowly we approach the border. Now and then she gestures to us to duck down and moving forward is slow and tedious. I watch as border patrols walk past us and each time it surprises me that Meadow can tell how many are approaching us. I can sense them coming, but so far, I have been unable to determine how many Shifters are in a group. Milcah hasn’t had any luck either, but at the very least, we now know how this ability works for us. Suddenly, Captain Miles pulls me to the ground and for a minute or two, I stay still. “It’s nothing. I thought I saw someone sneaking around.” I hear a Warrior say and I slowly release the breath I had been holding. “Damn, that was close, Young Alpha.” Captain Miles says and there is nothing I can say, because he is right. It was a damn close call. We crawl across the border as quickly and quietly as we can, before the next patrol shows up.I glance at my watch to check the time and make a mental note of it. I want to know what he saw that nearly gave me away; it might help us during our assignment. Milcah and Meadow are the next ones that run into trouble; this time, it isn’t a patrol but a Pack-member walking onto his back porch. They manage to roll under the porch before he turns in their direction and again I take a mental note of the time. He is looking around the territory and I suspect that a border patrol contacted him. After about ten minutes, the back door opens and his Mate walks out, placing her arms around his waist. “If Marten did see something, he probably scared them out of the territory. I haven’t seen or heard anything since I stepped outside. Let’s get to bed, I have an early morning.” He says before turning around and walking back inside with his Mate. “Marten doubted himself enough to alert his Father. I can’t wait to see the looks on their faces when they realize that eight Shifters got passed them.” I say through the mind-link. We continue on our path to the Packhouse, but don’t run into much trouble along the way. It is after one in the morning, when I get a first glimpse of the Pack-house and there isn’t a light on anywhere. “Give me a few minutes to find a pattern in the patrols near the Pack-house.” Meadow says through the mind-link, but I doubt she will be able to find one. I can sense the groups as they make their rounds near and around the Pack-house, but to me, there isn’t a pattern in it.“Move to the back of the Pack-house. I have found a pattern.” Meadow says and we make a wide circle to avoid the patrolling Warriors. I keep my ability open to find the pattern Meadow found, but I am unable to figure it out. “Malek, Mauro. Wait until this group has passed, then head inside and wait in the mud room.” Meadow says and when the patrol has turned the corner, Malek and Mauro run quietly to the back door. Captain Miles and I are the next pair to enter the Pack-house. Entering the mud room, I find Malek and Mauro sitting on one of the benches. “How did Meadow know about the mud room?” Mauro asks and I shrug my shoulders, because I have no clue as to how she knew. Makay and Myka are the next couple to walk into the mud room and now, we have to wait for Milcah and Meadow to show up. It is almost two in the morning when the girls walk into the mud room, but Meadow isn’t giving us any time to sit around. We follow her out of the mud room, down the hall and then she opens the door to the Omega stairwell. “Magnus, Milcah and I will take the regular stairs. The rest of you will use this stairwell to get to the Beta floor, but don’t enter until I tell you it is clear.” Meadow says. We walk to the bottom of the stairs and we can’t sense any movement in the Pack-house. Slowly but steadily, we walk upstairs until we reach the Beta floor. I can only feel three people on the floor, and that is what we are supposed to find. I use my code to access the Beta floor and as we approach Misha’s room, the others join us. Not sure what I expected, but what happened next wasn’t what I had anticipated.