Chapter 0399

She has to be told.

But not now. She needs rest first. Telling her while she's exhausted won't help.

I look down at my mate's face resting against my chest. She looks so peaceful. That peace is about to shatter.

When I wake, she's still deeply asleep. She's stripped off her remaining clothes and lies on her stomach, the blanket barely covering her. I wish I could stay, but the boys are stirring in the nursery.

I dress quickly and head to the nursery. Both boys are wide awake and standing in their cots. They're happy to see me, but I notice Evrin glancing at the door, searching for his mother.

It was easier to get them ready before they learned to walk and squirm away. Now it feels like wrestling two octopuses every morning.

I take them downstairs. Zachary is already waiting. "Lottie is having breakfast. Did you tell Athena?"

I shake my head. "She was exhausted last night. Telling her wouldn't have helped. She'll have a clear head when she wakes. Though he isn't a Lycan, so she probably can't do anything anyway."

He nods and takes a wriggling Logan from me, making faces at him. "You're sure he didn't just leave?"

"Positive. I can't sense him at all. It's like he vanished from the face of the Earth."

"I know I asked already, but do you think Luc..."

"No." I cut him off. "I know Luc has issues, but I don't believe he'd do this. Besides, he doesn't have the ability to take away someone else's powers. Only one person we know can do that."

"But why Theodore?" Zachary questions. "Theodore never steps out of line. From what we learned from Seraphina and Hannah, Levi punishes those who are 'bad'. Theodore isn't like that."

"I know. That's what makes it so frustrating."

We take the boys to the kitchen for breakfast. Charlotte runs past us quickly.

"You don't think he did something like those Wolves who attacked Athena and Luc, do you?"

"If you asked me a few days ago, that's exactly what I'd think. But Theodore has been part of this pack for a long time. He's helped in many ways. He wouldn't just turn his back."

"I hope you're right."

Luc walks past the window with Hannah following. A deep frown is plastered on his face while she looks like she's about to cry. Unexpectedly, he knocks instead of barging in like usual. Even Zachary raises an eyebrow at me.

I open the back door. Luc's fingers are tightly coiled around Hannah's wrist.

"Tell them!" Luc orders.

I watch her tremble. "Should you be out of the hospital?"

Her eyes move to Luc. "I don't even know if it was real."

"If what was real?" Zachary ushers her to a chair, much to Luc's annoyance.

"I think... I think Levi was in the hospital."

"When?" I demand.

"I'm not sure. I was tired. In and out of sleep." Her fingers run over her neck. "I don't know if I was dreaming or if it was real." Her chestnut eyes move between all of us. "I heard voices. Angry voices but quiet, like a whispered argument."

"Who?"

"Levi and Theodore." Luc glares at me.

"Theodore was helping Levi?" Zachary asks, disgusted by the idea after I just said he wouldn't betray us.

Hannah shakes her head at me, keeping her gaze low. "He offered to go with Levi if Levi promised to leave everyone alone."

"Why are you only telling us now?"

"Because yesterday, she was mostly asleep again. I think the bastard drugged her." Luc seethes.

I glance at the door leading to the bottom of the stairs. "Shit!" I hadn't been paying attention to my mate's movements. As I move to the door and pull it open, I find Athena standing on the other side.

"Theodore is gone?"