Teru sat against the base of a white birch tree, watching Kieran and Blaise remove all the supplies from the Jeep. He had learned the name of this specific car after Blaise screeched it out earlier this morning at sunrise:

"What the f-! My Jeep!" someone yelled from outside, where the two slept on the makeshift bed on the backseat. Well, a bed for Teru at least. There was no space for Kieran to lie down, so he sat up while Teru's head nestled on his lap comfortably. He didn't even remember falling asleep, too tired and calmed by the mint pheromones washing over him like gentle waves. It was the first peaceful sleep in over a month.

The panicking bellow startled Teru awake, but Kieran was already alert. Blaise was making a fuss, biting his blood-encrusted nails from seeing his car's damage. Actually, the tips of his blonde hair were dyed red, too. Who's blood was that? Lucas's? Where was he? What happened after they left him alone with Lust?

"This model is one of a kind, custom-designed. Who," Blaise asked, touching the large dent in the front, "is responsible for this?" He glanced at Kieran for a second but must have decided he wasn't the culprit. Kieran was an excellent driver, with centuries of experience since the first vehicle ever invented.

Blaise pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed, thinking. "What did you hit here?"

"Err," a voice rasped from behind, long and drawn out. It was muffled since Teru was inside the Jeep with the bulletproof windows up. Lucas was also staring at the damage, finally getting a good look at just how bad his skills were when he transported Teru to the gates.

Teru got up and squinted at his friend.

He looked...terrible: pale skin, gaunt eyes, and obviously worn out. A clean bandage was wrapped snuggly around his neck, which was odd because both he and Blaise still wore the same clothes from last night. Lucas brushed a hand through his hair, contemplating how to word it. He opened his mouth to talk, but nothing came out.

"Abaddon," Teru said quietly. "He sort of...ran him over."

Blaise looked at him, hearing the answer because of his impeccable senses. "Abaddon, of all things." He studied the large dent longer. "Worth it." Then he unlocked the hood and opened it to inspect the engine. "Buuut, given what I'm seeing, it won't make it to our next destination. We can still drive for a while. Don't be surprised if my baby breaks down before we reach there. Prepare for the worst, basically."

"Are we driving to that place? Los Angeles?" Teru asked Kieran, but he didn't say anything, glancing away.

Because Kieran didn't have a solid plan at all.

Fast forward to an hour and a half later after feeding Lucas and Teru. In a homemade trap, Kieran had caught a deer overnight and cooked the meat on a mini grill packed by Blaise. It looked like a scene in a movie where the characters went camping. Soon, the film they were featured in would become a horror flick, with monsters hiding in the darkness, killing off each person one by one.

Hopefully, the two vampires were the scariest things out here.

Everything from the Jeep was now on the ground and organized. There were food packs on the left. Water bottles on the right. Random items like their backpacks, blankets, and flashlights in the center. A closer pile near Teru were the weapons such as knives, a high-tech bow and arrows, and various sizes of guns and bullets.

The black pistol piqued his interest. It had been a while since to hold a gun. Without them noticing as they tried to find a map because of the lack of cell phone service, Teru slowly crawled over to the shiny weapon. He reached out. Just before he picked it up, a hand grabbed his to stop him. Teru recognized it anywhere as it helped him stand.

Lucas gestured at the gun and nodded in disapproval, meaning, That's dangerous.

The pack mates gazed at one another, still holding hands. Neither was uncomfortable, feeling more nostalgic than anything.

"I guess we made it home...kinda," Teru pointed around them, at the forest. Lucas nodded his head, his speech temporarily out of commission. It would be difficult to converse like this, but it couldn't be helped.

He remembered the classic insult he'd always tell Lucas when it came to his appearance. "Has anyone told you that you look like shit?"

Instead of laughing, they both smiled sadly. Their inside jokes didn't have the same glimmer of innocence anymore. They had seen and experienced too much, and he hoped one day it would return to how it was.

The wind blew. Lucas smelled the air, realizing it was overly sweet, brown sugar pheromones he was detecting. His blue eyes rested on the slight bump protruding from Teru's stomach. Teru saw them become pained and a little sickened, signifying exactly what Lucas thought.

Half-vampire pups. A new species. The proof that he and Kieran had made love, resulting in a family.

"Ah, sorry, it's difficult to hide my pheromones right now," Teru said with embarrassment, pulling his hand away.

But Lucas quickly grabbed it back, entwining their fingers together. "I," Lucas whispered his best, "have always...loved you...since we were...kids."

Teru didn't know what to say to that. He used to be so ignorant of his feelings towards him because Teru never felt more than merely friends for life, brothers for life, and pack mates for life. It was so apparent how Lucas saw him, and he wanted to slap himself for being so stupid. The signs were there countless times.

But those feelings could never be reciprocated. Even if he did, Teru's body would not allow it, getting sick each time they'd kiss or more.

Lucas squeezed his hand. "Has...he ever...hurt you?"

"Hurt me? Kieran?"

He nodded, saying yes to Teru's guess.

"Like, hit me and stuff?"

'Yes' nod.

"No. It was hard at first because Kieran didn't know how to take care of a human...and he sorta left me alone a lot when I first got there...sometimes his language was harsh...there was that one time he gauged out someone's eyes when they came too close to me...and a lot of other alpha crap..."

Ah, I'm not doing a good job of giving Kieran a good image.

"But, I think he's come a long way from that person who bought me from the auction. He's actually kind-," Teru looked over at his alpha. He was bickering back and forth with Blaise, snarling with his fangs out. Blaise shrugged. It almost made Teru laugh because it literally seemed the opposite of what he had just said about Kieran. He smiled a little as he watched him cross his arms in frustration. "Kieran is my mate. I was given the role as his virtue, Humility."

The breeze shifted. It was Teru's turn to smell the air, noticing faint vanilla on Lucas. He had changed his clothes, so the scent came from his skin. For pheromones to remain this long on a person, you'd have to be pretty close. "What about you? Can you tell me later what happened last night when you can talk properly?"

Lucas's face turned bright red. Yep, something certainly occurred. With him alive and Blaise no longer Lust, things must have turned out okay.

Moving on.

"Do you want to touch it?" Teru abruptly said. Lucas misunderstood, opening and closing his mouth in disbelief.

What-? No! What does he think I meant? This guy, seriously! Do all alphas think with their dicks and muscles?

"No, dummy, this." Teru placed his other hand on his belly. "I meant my bump. Do you want to feel it? You're the first person I've asked."

But Lucas stood there, staring at it. A few seconds later, he let go of Teru's hand and took a step back.

"You don't want to?" He could somewhat understand, but not understand, too. The reaction left him disappointed.

Lucas scratched the back of his neck, unsure of how to respond, wondering how to say it. "Not...ready."

Not ready to what? To accept that Teru was pregnant?

"I see," was all he could utter. It took a lot for him to ask. As an expecting omega, he hated the idea of anyone coming near him, let alone touching. To give someone permission to feel their vulnerable bellies, to be one of the few chosen individuals, was a privilege.

Am I still not good enough? Am I so disgusting now, that no one wants to be near me? In one way or another, I constantly mess up and can't make anyone happy-

"What's wrong?" Kieran was there beside him, holding him. His mate glared at Lucas. "Why does he feel like this?"

Crap, I always forget he can sense my emotions if they're strong enough.

Lucas waved frantically to state, I didn't do anything.

Kieran growled, not believing him.

Blaise rushed over to stand in front of Lucas. "Your omega is fine, yes? I found the atlas, so let me explain where we are heading after we pack up. Okay? Okay." He yanked Lucas behind him towards the supplies by the scruff of his coat, holding a long paperback book under his arm.

Kieran lifted and patted every one of Teru's limbs, from each finger to his backside, smelling for any lavender. He found the flowery scent on his hand, really disliking it for not being mint, and let out an unhappy rumbling rhythm from his chest.

Teru furrowed his eyebrows at the behavior. "Is this how you're going to be?"

"Hmm? Be what?"

"All possessive and fretting about me."

Kieran hugged him and released his pheromones, dousing Teru in them. The skin-ship and scent immediately soothed the omega. The stars that made up their connected path sparkled, rekindling their glowing energy by being close. There really was no better feeling than this.

"I...," Kieran couldn't finish.

Teru sensed his shame, pride boiling within. Though what Teru said to Lucas was true, that Kieran had definitely changed from the cold bloodsucker keeping him prisoner in the penthouse, Pride would always be lurking. That was the side Teru couldn't cure, because that's who the heavens destined Kieran to be. Except now, he didn't have to be in anguish alone, dealing with this burden by himself; Humility was here.

Teru encouraged, "Yes?"

"...I can't help it. I will go crazy if I can't see where you are. If you're distressed, I'm desperate to know why."

Teru assumed it was Kieran's inner alpha, overprotective and ready to guard if it had to. It must be stronger as a dominant, too.

He was curious if it resembled his own instincts to be mindful of his body since he was carrying pups. Only for the alpha, it was to make sure his partner was safe and had no hesitation to use his body as a shield instead.

Such an answer made Teru chuckle, smooshing his face into Kieran's chest. The sweater was soft and had a nice aroma.

I want to use this shirt for my nest. His long coat, also.

Leave it to the eldest prince to wear luxury clothes that looked like he was going to an important meeting, not entirely appropriate for the wilderness. It was the same with Blaise, but more casual in rugged jeans and an ugly-printed green sweatshirt; the quality was too good to assume it was cheap. How long had it been for them to trek in the forest, off the grid? Their outfits weren't practical.

"Oh my. Is Pride ashamed of the alpha?"

"No."

It was too good not to tease! Teru's grin grew wider, hiding within the material. "Don't worry, Humility says there's nothing to be embarrassed about."

"I said no-"

"Shhhh," Teru unhid and interrupted, placing a finger over Kieran's lips to quiet him. "I understand. No need to explain yourself."

Kieran's eyes narrowed, not finding this type of teasing to be amusing.

"If you don't mind, I'd like to explain my plan while the morning is still young." It was Blaise, tapping his foot impatiently. The book of maps was wide open on the Jeep's hood. Lucas, next to the blonde vampire, observed the trees, ignoring the public display of affection.

It was Teru's turn to be ashamed, sheepishly making his way over to them, while Kieran didn't show any discomfort at being caught. So, this was fine to Pride, but not admitting his alpha characteristics were more aggressive than usual? Someone's priorities were straight...not.

"As I was trying to explain earlier before a certain person got pissed off," Blaise put emphasis on 'certain person,' aka Kieran, "I told you back in New York to meet me here at this lake if we got separated during the start of the fifth trumpet. Then, you wonderfully stowed me away carefully into the trunk, with Lasagna bleeding out in the backseat, and managed to bring the four of us here together. So, thank you. I'm grateful you put your faith in me and didn't foolishly ride off into the sunset toward the West Coast. Phase one complete."

Kieran scoffed at the sarcasm.

"Without further ado, here is phase two." Blaise pointed at a dot towards the top of the map.

The two humans turned their heads simultaneously in confusion, unable to decipher the picture. There were lots of tiny words, but Teru was too far away to read them. The lines and squiggles made his head spin.

Kieran chimed in, "What is special about," he read the name on the map, "Fort Wayne, Indiana? I don't recall this city being on the list of active settlements."

"It's abandoned, last I checked. I chose it because I enjoy the scenery. Two Midwestern rivers connect to start the Maumee River. The place was quaint when it was run by humans. Also, we need to go there to restock."

"Restock?" No one was following.

"You know. Restock. Replenish. Rest. Reduce, reuse, recycle. The thing."

"..."

Blaise poked at the paper several times. "Fort Wayne is one of my hideouts."

Teru knew this concept. "You mean the secret places for when the deadly sins need to rest for a while?" Kieran had mentioned the same, saying he had a cabin in the mountains. He wanted to take him there.

"Bingo."

"One of?" Kieran growled. "How many do you have?"

"'Tis a secret, big brother, 'tis a secret. I'll allow ya'll to see this one. My fortress has everything we need-food, water, maybe clothes if it's your style, weapons, gasoline, and a car or two. It is kinda out of our way, but it's the closest one to where we need to go next. My beauty here," Blaise petted the Jeep, "was going to smoothly get us to Indiana, but with this damage, I'm afraid we'll have to go there on foot somewhere in Ohio. I can't say for certain. We could be lucky, we could be unlucky."

He continued and skimmed his finger down, "For phase three, we'll change vehicles in Fort Wayne, drive south to Nashville to where little omega and Lasagna's journey with the vampires all began. How ironic. After that is phase four. It's a straight shot from Nashville to Los Angeles...or the outside the city, to be more specific. They would not be welcoming of us landing in the city. They'd think we are hostiles."

"We're not driving to Los Angeles?" Teru wondered.

"No, my dear, you need immediate prenatal care. Just because Abaddon is gone, doesn't mean his followers won't attack. The main roads are too dangerous. Backroads would take too long, and many are gone from reclaiming nature. A map is useless. I was able to pull some strings, explained our situation. Our main ride will be in Nashville. We can't be late. It leaves in nine days."

"What did you do?" Kieran inquired, serious.

"We," Blaise sneered, proud of himself, "have a reservation at Epsilon."