Chapter 4

Theo started purring again as I kissed him. Purring. Theo was purring. What the fuck was happening to my Beta? I pulled back from the kiss, worry creasing my brow.

"It's like what happened to Cat and the others."

Shae's voice cut through the trance we'd all been under with the shock of Theo purring.

"No, can't be, they turned Omega. Shit, am I?"

Ethan answered him.

"No, you feel like an Alpha. How is this possible? And, what did you say, Shae? Cat's an Omega now?"

Theo patted Ethan's hand and started to explain.

"The missing Foundation lab guy?—"

"Dayton."

Theo growled at Shae's mention of the Beta and my eyebrow lifted in question as Shae continued.

"He didn't want to help them, Theo. He was under guard and beaten, just like?—"

It was Theo's turn to interrupt. As he squeezed his eyes shut, his hands fisted in the blankets.

"No more talking about that, please, Shae, I'm hanging on by a thread here."

I glanced over to Miles, where he sat wrapped around Shae, and when our eyes met, I knew we were both thinking about when he'd emerged as an Alpha. And how much trouble he'd had keeping his protective instincts in check, more so than other Alphas we'd known when we were growing up. I gently scraped my nails down the back of Theo's scalp to help him relax. He reacted tipped his head further into my hand and closed his eyes before another soft purr came from him.

"Dammit, that's annoying. How do I make it so I don't sound like a fucking cat all the time?"

We all laughed as Theo scowled down at his chest like it had betrayed him. Ethan's voice was full of awe as he leaned forward, still clasping Theo's hand between his own.

"If Cat's an Omega now, does that mean Theo really is an Alpha? How is that possible?"

A knock sounded at the door before it opened quietly, and a different doctor stepped into the room. The Beta's smile was genuine enough and he seemed like an improvement on the one from the day before.

"Good morning, I'm Dr. Lambert. I'm happy to see that you are awake, Mr. Owens. How are you feeling?"

Theo looked at me for guidance then his expression shifted. I could see the moment when he registered the frayed state of our bond. I hated not feeling him, and watching the emotions pass across his face was another blow. His pulse elevated slightly on the monitors. I squeezed his hand, trying to reassure him, before turning to speak to the doctor.

"I understand there are extenuating circumstances due to there being an ongoing investigation; but Theo's symptoms, conditions, and concerns remain confidential, correct?"

"That's correct… to an extent. Labs, test results, vitals: all things like that will be in his medical records which can only be obtained through a request from anyone to whom Mr. Owens has given access to his records. Or through court order. We do our best but it all depends on the situation."

If Ethan could get into the police servers through some virus or something that he'd planted in a fake promotional email, then I had faith he could get into the hospital's system and delete Theo's medical records. While we needed to know what was happening with Theo, having my mate become a medical miracle and end up as some lab experiment was not going to happen. Theo and I locked eyes and, though our bond was in tatters, we could read each other well enough after the years we'd been together. I knew we were thinking the same things. I dipped my chin the slightest bit to tell him I was with him and the choice was his. Theo turned to the doctor and I saw his hold on Ethan's fingers flex as he gripped our Omega's hand.

"I woke up a few minutes ago and I purred when my Omega and my Alpha kissed me."

"Purred?" The doctor looked as though he must have misheard, then Trevor spoke up.

"That's what he said, and it's what we all heard. His scent is stronger too."

Trevor's tone was clipped, and his posture was rigid as he stood with his arms crossed over his broad chest. He looked and sounded intimidating but I could feel the tsunami of worry building in the bond between us.

"I apologize; my response was more surprise than disbelief. But what you are describing does make your lab work clearer."

"What does that mean?"

"Your blood work revealed nothing to suggest the compound you were injected with did any damage to your body's normal functions. However, some of the results indicated an increase in the hormones and other markers we would see in someone whose designation is emerging. With what has been discovered about the others who were being held in the facility, I expected you to wake—as they have—Omega."

A sharp and slightly hysterical bark of laughter echoed through the room, then Shae's cheeks tinted in embarrassment at their reaction. I smiled at them, sharing their response, and Miles hid his grin by dropping his head to their shoulder before kissing it lightly.

"Sorry. Sorry, that was inappropriate, but only someone who'd never met Theo would imagine he would emerge as an Omega."

Ethan was smiling as he nodded in agreement.

"Shae's right. I've never met a more dominant Beta; he can resist an Alpha's bark. Wait, can you bark now?"

Theo turned a teasing look on Ethan and grinned.

"Woof."

"Very funny, asshole. I'm serious. If you're emerging as an Alpha, what can we expect?"

As soon as he asked the question, Ethan's cheeks heated and he ducked his head sheepishly as his perfume got stronger in the small space. What was our sweet Omega thinking about? When the doctor cleared his throat, I realized that all of us were staring at Ethan, none more intently than Theo.

"I honestly can't say. Even though we know so much more about designations than we did even a decade ago, it's still mostly a mystery as to what makes someone an Alpha or an Omega versus remaining a Beta. I would like you to let the nurses know if you have any additional signs of transitioning from your previously assumed designation. I'll check in again before my shift ends this evening."

Theo nodded and the rest of us agreed but the mood sobered once the doctor left the room.

"Shae, love, I don't want to push you, but is there anything else you can tell us about the others who were being held with you? Anything you might have overheard or what you learned from the missing Beta lab guy?"

"It's not pushing. I only really know what Dayton word-vomited when we went to get Cat and he thought Theo was going to kill him. He said everyone they kidnapped got an injection and, in some people, like Cat, it woke up… what did he call it? Latent DNA or something. He said it was different with me. I was the first Beta they'd injected who had a bond."

"But Theo has a bond."

"Maybe he's closer to whatever pushes Betas over the line into Alpha or Omega than I am. Or maybe it's because I have two bonds?" Shae shrugged and leaned further into Miles. "Cat has always given off Omega-but-not vibes to me and I think that's one of the reasons why the Omega that her old pack bonded wanted her gone."

A nurse came in and asked us to step out of the room for a few minutes to give Theo privacy. I bristled, and the low growl that came from me caused her to lower her eyes and tilt her head in submission. Theo was my mate. He was mine. I wasn't about to trust just anyone outside of the pack with any of my mates right now. A soft hand slipped into mine as blackberry blossoms seeped into my senses. The wrongness of their scent was nearly gone and my growl cut off abruptly as I met Shae's gray-green gaze.

"She needs to remove the catheter and things like that, Jade. It's okay; it will only take a minute or two and we can come right back in."

Oh. I ducked my face into their neck for a second to hide my embarrassment, then apologized to the nurse. We all filed out and stood on either side of the door. Trevor said he would go on a breakfast run and he kissed me quickly before heading off through the ward. Shae gave me a small, apologetic grin and sent love down the bond from where they leaned against Miles on the other side of the door frame. Since he met us at the ambulance, he had only stopped touching Shae when they needed the restroom, and I could tell even that cost him. I was giving him that space, because I'd had the chance to hold Shae when we rescued them, but soon he would have to let me be with my mate, too.

Ethan was staring at the floor as he stood by me, hands in his hoodie's kangaroo pocket, chewing on his bottom lip. Catching his chin between my thumb and fingers I tugged his lip free and until he looked into my eyes.

"How are you?"

"I'm okay. Just worried and overthinking everything. I also really want everyone home, in my nest, and I'm trying not to be super Omega-y and selfish and?—"

I pressed my lips to his and wrapped one arm around his waist. Breaking the kiss I pulled him against me. A sigh escaped his lips as he melted into me, both arms going around my waist and his face going into my neck.

"You're not being selfish. I want everyone home and together too. Soon, Omega."

He nodded, his face still pressed against me, and we stayed there silent for a moment. I breathed him in and let his scent ground me. A few minutes later, the nurse came back out, pushing the extra bed Ethan and I had slept in, and we all went into the room.

Theo's bed had been raised and he was sitting up, looking annoyed but better than he had when he woke up. Ethan fidgeted and it looked like he was wringing his hands in the pocket of his hoodie.

"C'mere Biscuit."

Theo shifted to the side, lifting the blanket, and Ethan let out a whimper before crawling onto the bed. He pressed himself into Theo's side, sliding one of his legs over Theo's and wrapping an arm around Theo's thick waist then breathed deeply and closed his eyes. Needing to be close to them both, I walked around the bed and sat down facing the door, while Miles and Shae settled back into the other bed, watching the three of us. Theo spoke softly to Ethan.

"Are you tired?"

"No, just need a minute like this; if that's okay?"

"Always."

Theo leaned his head against the top of Ethan's then pulled him closer with one arm before reaching out for my hand. Another low purr came from him, and he let out an annoyed sigh.

"Ridiculous."

"Is not."

Ethan's voice was sleepy as he snuggled closer into Theo. It didn't take long before our Omega drifted off. By the time Trevor returned with several bags, Shae and Miles were asleep as well. He looked at the sleeping members of our pack and smiled before setting the food down on a table, then quietly pulled the other chair to my side.

"How are you feeling, little brother?"

"Not bad, actually. Fucker didn't get too many hits in before he jabbed me. Just feels weird, kind of off-balance. Could do without all the purring."

Turning to me, Theo's face became serious.

"He got away, didn't he?"

I nodded and he cursed lightly. Trevor began to fill us in on what had happened since we'd left the warehouse.

"I've had Cole and a few of my other people checking for cameras that might show any roads nearby where he could have traveled, but there's nothing—they picked that location well. On the plus side, the cops haven't pushed much, according to Gia. The dead men were all known to them in one way or another, and the fact that they were holding Shae along with everything else makes it clear that there won't be any charges made against the pack. If we don't go on any more rampages without additional provocation and so on."

Theo and I both snarled at that, while Trevor's eyes were icy. There were so many unknowns. I didn't want to work with the police but since there were more people involved—Cat and the other girls—we would cooperate and hope for the best. Maybe Bodhi's contact could get us more information on who the dead men were.

Theo's hand tightened on mine.

"I want that Alpha dead. What about the bag with laptop for Ethan to do his thing with and the other stuff. Did we get those?"

"No, love. I—you were seizing, and I couldn't …"

Trevor's arm went around me and he pressed a kiss to my temple as he spoke against my skin.

"It's fine, Jade. You know you did the right thing focusing on Theo and Shae. Ethan and Cole will figure it out without the laptop. We found them once, we can do it again."

We stayed like that for a while, just keeping contact, Theo's thumb brushing against my knuckles as we soaked in the quiet.

"Do I smell waffles?"

Trevor, Theo, and I smiled over at Shae as they stretched sleepily before sitting up.

"Yep, got all the toppings, and everything's separate so you can make them however you wanted."

"Aw, thank you, Trev."

Trevor blushed and waved off their thanks. He moved to get everything set up then wheeled the tray tables over. Ethan woke up shortly after and we all sat around Theo's bed, eating and just being together.

After we ate, Shae tried to find out about Cat. The nurse agreed that they could go visit but specified that no Alphas were allowed on that floor of the hospital. They opted to call her room and see her as soon as we could work out how to get Miles into that area with Shae, since he wasn't willing to leave their side. The nurse came back in a little later and told us that a doctor would come around in the afternoon to let us know whether Shae and Theo could go home. The rest of the day went by relatively quickly with everyone catching their families up on what had happened. Trevor and I were kept busy calling in to Drake House for updates. But by the time the late afternoon rolled around, we were all restless, waiting to see who was going home. Thankfully, the doctor from that morning, Dr. Lambert, came back in.

"Shae is free to go and the nurse will be in shortly to discharge them. Focus on resting, staying hydrated, and follow up with your primary care doctor forty-eight hours from now. Theo, however, needs to stay another night for observation."

My hackles rose at the thought of separating again and Ethan let out a soft whimper.

"It's alright. I don't mind staying another night if that's all it will be. Just one more night, right, Doc?"

Theo's tone was intended to reassure Ethan, but it also told the doctor that Theo would leave tomorrow, with or without his blessing. Trevor cleared his throat, getting our attention.

"I can stay with Theo. You all go get some rest and I'll bring him home tomorrow."

Ethan's shoulders slumped minutely, and I thought of what he'd said earlier about trying to curb his Omega-ness. I resolved myself to make sure that he got what he needed tonight, too. I turned to Trevor.

"Alright, but call if anything changes?"

Trevor nodded before settling into the bed that Shae had vacated. The rest of us said our goodbyes to Theo, with Ethan and I lingering longer than the others. I still needed to talk to Theo about the bond but when I started to say something, he just shook his head and mouthed "later".

The ride home was somber and tense. Miles could barely take his eyes off Shae where they sat in the backseat together. Ethan was in the passenger seat with the side of his head leaning against the window, lost in thought. And then, through my remaining bonds, I could feel the mix of worry, relief, fear, and frustration coming from Trevor and Shae. Beyond that, I was trying but failing to ignore the way that not sensing Theo was like a chasm in my soul.

I pulled into the detached garage at the back of our property and took a minute to revel in the joy Shae felt at being home. We'd done it; we'd brought them home. We needed to have a meeting about everyone's safety but I was trying to push that all to the side until after Theo was home. The police were looking into the people from the warehouse and soon we'd all be back at Drake to unravel this fucking mess. I still couldn't understand how we'd managed to find Ethan in under twenty-four hours, but it had taken us five days to find Shae. Something about that was digging into my mind and I couldn't let it go. Now that my Alpha instincts weren't riding me, I needed to debrief with Trevor about everything.

Though we'd all crashed in the hospital and napped throughout the day, none of us were fully recovered, least of all Shae. We all needed food and real rest. When we entered the kitchen from the back of the house, I stopped everyone.

"Why don't we all go and get cleaned up, first, and then eat dinner together?"

Shae turned to me, the lack of sleep still so apparent in the purple shadows beneath their eyes.

"Do we have everything for Tuscan chicken? Because that would be amazing."

"If we're missing anything then I'll order a grocery delivery to get dropped off while we shower."

And if the service was fully booked, I'd call my assistant and pay them whatever they wanted to bring me groceries. Shae nodded and began to move toward the stairs with Miles.

"Could we—could we all sleep in my nest tonight?"

Ethan spoke softly and kept his gaze on the ground, like he was bracing himself for rejection. I hated that. Before I could respond, Shae moved to him and wrapped him in their arms. They melted into each other and Shae tipped his chin towards them before taking his lips in a sweet, mostly chaste kiss.

"Is that what you need, baby? To have all of us in your nest?"

"Not if you need to be in your room. It's okay, really, I'll?—"

"We'll stay in the nest tonight, Ethan."

At Miles" declaration, Ethan's eyes widened, almost comically, before he tried to cover his reaction by ducking his face into Shae's neck. He wasn't fast enough to hide the darkening of his cheeks or the way his perfume had spiked slightly. I hid my grin by turning away and checking through the pantry. Ethan had been Miles" rock the whole time Shae was gone. I knew that he understood what it meant that Miles was demi and respected him, and that he'd never push, but Ethan was also an Omega, and Miles was one of his Alphas. Maintaining those boundaries was a unique battle for Ethan. Confident that we had enough supplies to make dinner, I walked back to the others. Miles was watching our Omega and Beta with a look of confusion that made me want to laugh.

"Alright everyone, go shower and then come back here whenever you're done."

We all started up the stairs at the same time and I watched Ethan pause in front of Theo's door, trailing his fingers across it before he walked up to the next floor behind Shae and Miles. I slipped into my room and rushed through my shower as much as I could considering I hadn't got to really wash the evidence of our rescue from my skin in the hospital. Luckily, most of the blood had been on my hands and clothes.

Once finished, I popped across the hall to Theo's room and snagged a hoodie from the chair in the corner. I pressed the sweatshirt to my nose and inhaled deeply as I walked down to the kitchen. Having his scent in the nest would calm our Omega, even if Theo wasn't there himself, and I'd have been lying if I said I wasn't craving it, too.

As I came into the kitchen, Shae and Ethan were cuddled up on the couch in the adjoining family room, with Miles sitting to the side, rubbing Shae's feet in his lap. We'd had almost everything we needed to make the dinner Shae wanted, and for the few things we didn't, I could substitute something else. Bless Miles" mom for making sure the kitchen was stocked that morning. We had a full pantry and multiple meals stocked in the freezer from her panic-cooking while Shae had been… gone. Ethan's head popped over the back of the couch as he heard me come in and his smile made my steps stutter. I was completely gone for that sweet Omega.

He whispered something in Shae's ear and bounded into the kitchen with the same kind of golden retriever puppy energy that our Sunshine usually radiated. Those two together would be able to get the rest of us to do absolutely anything they wanted. We were all completely wrapped around their fingers, and they didn't even realize it.

"Can I help?"

"Of course, I'll cut up the chicken; if you'll get started on chopping the vegetables."

He gave me another of those dazzling smiles and went to wash his hands before coming to stand by me and beginning to chop up onions. We worked in comfortable silence while listening to the renovation show that Miles and Shae were watching. I sent a small pulse to Trevor in the bond to gauge how he and Theo were. Sometimes I wished the bonds were some kind of magic link that would let me speak to my mates. The fact that I could sense their emotions was already pretty magical, but we would have found Shae so much faster if we could have spoken to them or had some ability to track them through the bond.

"What next?"

Ethan was washing the onion juice off his hands, while wiping moisture from his eyes onto his shoulders.

"You can grate the parmesan while I cook the chicken. Then you can go relax until it's ready."

The cutest frown twisted his mouth as he began to protest.

"If you don't want to go back into the family room, then sit at the island and keep me company."

I'd already tossed the chicken with some oil and seasoning in a large cast iron skillet and stirred it around until I knew each piece was browned. Removing the chicken from the pan, I set it aside, adding the veggies in to cook down next. Ethan finished the parmesan, then walked around to the chairs on the other side of the island. Before he sat down, I tipped my head toward the one where I'd draped Theo's hoodie. The corner of his eyes crinkled and a slight grin tugged at his mouth as he grabbed it, slipping it over his head and tucking the lower half of his face into the neck. As he breathed in Theo's scent, his perfume filled the space. Not from arousal but because he was comforted. I noticed a slight furrow form in his brow and decided to try to distract him from worrying about Theo.

"What's going on with your classes, with all the interruptions and everything?"

"They gave me another extension on my coursework, but I have to meet with my advisor as soon as I go back to campus. I gave up my TA position as well. It wasn't fair to the professor or the students with me being gone so much."

"I'm sorry, Ethan."

"It's okay, really. I only have one more semester after this one and then I can find a job."

"You know my offer stands. Drake House would be happy to have you in the BullPen. And you can keep up your ‘volunteer work' with our blessing. Maybe we can help somehow."

"Is that an official offer or?—"

The trill of Ethan's phone interrupted what he was saying and his brows creased unhappily as he looked at the screen.

"Ethan, are you alright?"

"It's the police. I don't know why they'd be calling me. But they wouldn't call if it was something bad, would they? They'd come here to talk to me, right?"

His breathing was picking up and Miles peered over at us, noticing the subtle shift in Ethan's scent which revealed his anxiety. I turned down the heat on the food for the moment and moved to where I could wrap my arm around his shoulders and soothe his nerves.

"Let's see if they leave a message. I can tell you that everything is fine with Theo based on what I'm feeling through the bond." I left out that I could only feel Trevor's emotions but he was steady and feeling amused, so I knew all was well. "Why don't you text Aubrey to make yourself feel better and know that she and your mom are safe?"

Ethan nodded and opened his messages to check in with his sister. After hearing that she was fine and would call him the next day for an update, he relaxed and decided to listen to the message from the police later. I pushed my own concern over the call to the side. I didn't want to think about what it might mean for our Omega—our pack—if it was bad news of some kind. We'd taken enough hits lately, and I didn't want any of the people I loved to be hurt so soon.

I moved around the island again to finish our dinner and turned the conversation back to Ethan working for Drake House. I knew that Trevor and Cole both wanted him there, even if Trevor was still too nervous to talk to Ethan about it. I didn't have any doubts or nerves regarding getting him into the BullPen permanently. Even if he wasn't my Omega, officially, his abilities had proven to exceed every other person in Trevor's department. I didn't want those skills spent doing something that he wouldn't love as much as he did working with Haven and for us.

"I was serious about the job, by the way. You've said before that you wouldn't work full time until your degree was complete, and I respect that, but say the word and I'll get an employment contract ready for you to review."

Ethan was biting the corner of his bottom lip, but it didn't hide the grin my words invoked. Warmth filled me—there weren't many things better for an Alpha than knowing your Omega or your mates were safe and happy. I plated up four bowls of the creamy chicken dish with some biscuits that Miles" mom had left and called the other two into the kitchen to eat.

After we'd all stuffed ourselves, Miles and I set about cleaning up the kitchen and loading everything into the dishwasher. Shae groaned theatrically and rubbed their stomach.

"I think we need an elevator. Can someone roll me up to the nest?"

"I can carry you up. Are you not feeling well?"

"I'm teasing, Miles." They turned to me and offered me a sweet smile. "That was delicious, thank you, Alpha."

I smiled at them and winked.

"Ethan helped."

"I chopped vegetables and ogled Jade. I don't think that counts as helping."

Shae yawned and stretched, showing off their lithe body. Instead of heating my blood as it usually did, it highlighted how much weight they'd lost in the five days they'd been captive. Miles met my eyes, and we didn't need words or a bond to agree that our Beta would need lots of extra calories and extra attention until they were back to their typical healthy self. I reminded myself that I also needed to find some time to tell Miles about what I'd done to the Alpha. What he needed to watch out for since the piece of shit had gotten away. Shae's voice broke me from the mounting list of priorities in my head.

"Nest?"

We all nodded and made our way up the stairs, with various stops for pajamas, so we didn't make Miles uncomfortable. Being in the nest together was about just that: being together. It wasn't about sex this time. Our Omega still wasn't bonded, and he couldn't feel any of the love or reassurances flowing within the pack. He needed as many of us as possible in his sanctuary, our scents all mingling together, and the instinctual comfort that brought.

Once in the nest, we each took turns in the bathroom with me going last. After brushing my teeth, I positioned the satin bonnet I had grabbed from my room. As I went to turn off the light, I had a moment of worry over whether Miles might be feeling uncomfortable. That was quickly squashed when I walked back into the main area of the nest.

Miles and Ethan had sandwiched Shae between them. One of Miles" giant legs was between Shae's as he fitted snugly against their back, an arm pillowed beneath his head and the other wrapped tightly around their waist. Ethan lay facing Shae, their foreheads nearly touching as they whispered to each other. Their hands were together, tracing the curves of each other's fingers, palms, and wrists. My heart ached seeing the three of them like that. A sweet ache born from happiness at the sight but also a deep, almost painful one at the reminder that Trevor was still very much on the outside of any relationship with Ethan. That my bond with Theo was threadbare. The knowledge that this could all have been ripped from us so easily.

"Come to bed, Jade. Stop staring."

Shae's teasing voice was countered by a rush of affection in our bond, and I smiled.

"As you wish, Sunshine."

I moved into the nest, careful not to disturb the blankets and pillows around the edges of the giant mattress. Settling behind Ethan, I mirrored Miles" position but tucked my face into the back of Ethan's neck and pressed a kiss there. Once we all had settled in and were relaxed, a quiet, soothing Omega purr curled around us. Though I couldn't feel Ethan through a bond, that sound moved through me, and I knew it was meant to soothe, full of contentment and love. I squeezed my Omega gently and let that beautiful purr lull me into a deep sleep.