Page 134 of Knot Your Problem

“Yeah, we trained for a black ops program together at a secret facility shortly after I joined the military. The reason nobody knows who they work for is that they went AWOL a while ago and they don’t report to the military anymore. The military covered that up, though. They act as if they’ve sanctioned the twins’ ops, but the twins work on their own now. The twins don’t report to the Network either. They have their own agenda. I know, because we’ve stayed in touch.”

Sam looked at Pala with concern. “You’ve been walking a dark, dangerous path, Pala. Juggling the Network, the military, the Palace and the twins.”

Pala just nodded, not denying it. My heart clenched as I realized how easily something could have happened to Pala while he was alone, undercover. I would never have met him if it had.

“Come on, my heart,” Pala cupped my face and kissed me lightly, sensing my emotions. “Our guys need to back up Damon and Leif to question these people and deal with all the townsfolk in the museum.”

Dio rolled his eyes at Pala with a smirk. “Fine, but I want that autograph later, Pala. Maybe a photo too, with the four of us in Charlie’s Angels poses.”

Pala just laughed as he grabbed my other hand and tugged me away from Dave. Dave let me go reluctantly. I squeezed his hand before I dropped it, so he’d know I wasn’t mad.

I could feel the rest of my mate’s eyes on us as Pala and I walked down the road. Hunter had shadowed the twin he was with back towards Ava, too. He was currently kneeling and checking over the unconscious, yet still intimidating, alpha on the ground.

I snuck a glance at the twins out of curiosity. They were both incredibly tall, classically handsome and sleekly muscled, as if they did martial arts and their bodies were weapons. They were both blonde, but one had his hair cut with a short back and sides and only a little length on top, while the other had long straight hair and a severe undercut all the way around, the length currently tied in a knot at the back of his head. Rough stubble shadowed both their faces and added to the darkness that seemed to swirl around them.

They held themselves loose, yet at the ready, as if they could explode into action without notice. I’d already seen them move with a liquid grace that belied their size. Even from a distance, they exuded a dangerous allure.

As I got closer, I could tell by the tense way Ava was holding herself, her arms wrapped around her middle, that she was just barely holding her shit together. Cary seemed torn between watching her with concern and eyeing the alphas surrounding them. Nick still looked like he’d seen a ghost.

Pala introduced me to the twins briefly then gave them both back slapping hugs, much to Hunter’s shocked amusement. I stepped quickly to Ava and whispered in her ear as I hugged her, “Are you okay? Do I need to get you out of here?”

She shook her head as she mumbled. “No, I’m okay. Could you maybe hang around for a minute, though?” She was trembling lightly in my arms as both the twins growled softly, yet possessively. At this proximity, their alpha hearing would have picked up my words, no matter how softly I whispered.

They cut it off abruptly when Ava shot them a dark look as she stepped back slightly from me. They both shifted, as if her reaction startled them.

“I hoped she was your Ava when I found her hiding at the Palace,” Pala said lightly. “I kept the other alphas away and brought her food, but I couldn’t get word to you. Then Damon and his mates rescued her. I watched from the shadows, knowing who they were and that they’d keep her safe.”

“Thank you, my friend.” The shorter haired twin gripped Pala’s neck tightly and tipped his forehead into him. The other remained watching Ava closely. He looked pained.

I looked down at Ava as I felt her take a sharp breath. “You knew who I was?” Ava asked Pala. I wasn’t sure if it was shock, anger, or a mix of both that had her breathing hard. I checked in with Pala through the bond and he sent me calm reassurance.

“No, not for sure,” Pala replied. “I suspected you were their Ava, though. They’d said you were at the Palace.” I felt Ava tense even further beside me.

“Their Ava?” I asked.

It was Ava who spoke up and answered, though. Not Pala or the twins, who were strangely silent.

“Lexie, I’d like you to meet my mates, River and Ryder,” Ava said stiffly as she pointed first to short, back and sides, then to undercut. She wasn’t looking directly at the twins as she spoke. She fixed her gaze firmly on me, her eyes still wide and almost begging for something I couldn’t understand. I didn’t know what she needed right now. I was so confused.

“Holy shit. The twins are your mates?” Hunter asked from his position on the ground.

“Mates?” Cary echoed. He sounded stunned, and he slumped slightly, as if her words had sucked all the air out of him. Nick reached out and gripped Cary’s shoulder, almost unconsciously, and Cary let him, surprising me.

This was a shit show and there was no way I was leaving Ava alone in the middle of it right now. I grabbed her hand and squeezed it, trying to send her strength. I didn’t know what was going on, but clearly there was a convoluted history here. The twins were hovering, but keeping their distance from Ava. The tension was so thick in the air I could taste its bitterness, like burnt coffee.

“For what it’s worth,” Ava said quietly, still not looking at anyone. “We’re unbonded.”

Cary stepped in closer to Ava, recovering quickly, and shot the twins a dark glare. I shot a glance at them, too. They both bristled, and darkness swept over their faces. I didn’t sense any menace coming from them, though. Only possessiveness. They said nothing to defend themselves against the unspoken accusations.

“And the big guy out cold on the ground?” I asked Ava.

She shrugged and furrowed her brow as she twisted to look at the hulking alpha lying alongside her on the ground. “I don’t know who he is. I’ve never seen him before. He came out of nowhere tonight.”

“He seemed to zero in on you and Cary, from where I was standing.” Neither commented to either confirm or deny.

“He’s a prisoner from the Palace,” Hunter said as he looked down at the alpha with a confused expression. He reached out a hand to his face, then pulled it back. “They were transporting him somewhere in a humvee, moving fast. We intercepted them North of the town. They had him heavily sedated when we got him out, but he was moving. He caught a scent in the air and took off like a bullet. For a big dude, he’s fucking fast. We had to secure the Palace guards that were with him before we could chase him down because the humvee crashed.”

“Do you know who he is?” Pala asked the twins.

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