Broderick picked up on the second ring. "Hello? Who is this?"

"Hello sir, this is Gavriel Ambrosios."

He heard a chuckle. "I thought I might be hearing from you."

In the background Gavriel heard a second male voice ask "Is that him?".

"Yes, Caspian, it's Beth's mate. Gavriel, I'm putting you on speakerphone." After a brief pause he heard Broderick come back on the line. "Okay we're both here. How did Beth hurt herself?" he asked.

"She fell down the stairs."

"Ahh. Yes, she doesn't get along well with stairs or rugs. Basically anything that could be a trip hazard is a disaster waiting to happen," Broderick said.

"Flat surfaces are best, but not a guarantee," he heard Caspian chime in.

"She won't want to wear it, but make her reset her 'Alert' necklace. You'll need to change it so that if she activates it will reach out to you and local friends instead of us. She absolutely hates it, but it has saved her life more than once," Broderick said.

"We had it made for her sixteenth birthday, a lot of fae magic went into it," Caspian explained.

"How did you not lose your minds with worry?" Gavriel exhaled.

He heard the men laugh. "Who says that we still don't?" Caspian asked.

"There were so many nights where we just laid in bed and stared up at the ceiling and prayed to whoever was listening that she would outlive us. We were thankful each and every evening after she went to bed that she had survived one more day. The years she lived out amongst humans were the worst." Broderick's voice cracked.

"She's safe now love." Caspian murmured.

"Is she? Is she really? Gavriel, she told us you were going through transition, that you have an enemy stalking Lycaonia that has even threatened Unit Commander McKenzie's mate and on top of everything my precious baby is the type of person who can't even check the mail without sustaining a concussion. Is she safe there with all the dangers and with you?" Broderick asked.

Gavriel moved the phone to his other ear. "All of the unit warriors have been patrolling night and day in addition to daily training to keep the city and people safe. We have created new protocols and drills to help us fight this new enemy. Just today we installed alarm and protection spells here at the Alpha estate to keep our mates safe. Even with this new threat, I honestly feel she is safer here with the Alpha Unit than anywhere else," he said.

"Is she safe with you? My brother's last transition was brutal. The more we gain in terms of abilities and strength, the harder the transition is on us, and this was the transition that put him in position to become our Elder so you know how perilous it was. Towards the end, right before his apex, he turned savage. We are at our most aggressive right before we gain our new abilities. Given Beth's uncanny bad luck, is she really safe at your side?" Caspian asked, his voice hard.

Gavriel didn't answer right away. He thought about the growing number of instances where he had lost control recently. His first encounter with Beth had been almost violent and he knew it would get worse the closer he got to his apex. He searched himself for the answer. When the time came, would he recognize his own mate? Finally he gave the only answer he could.

"I don't know. I want to assure you ... hell, I want to assure myself that I would never hurt her. But I can't guarantee it. I can swear to you that I would never knowingly or willingly lay a single finger on her in anger. That I would die to protect her, but you may be right, I may be more of a danger to her than our enemy." He covered his eyes with his hand. "Maybe I should send her back to Noctem Falls and to you."

One of the men exhaled loudly. "Safeguard yourself. Right before my brother's apex hit, he knew it was coming and he asked to be chained. It was the only thing that kept those around him safe, including myself. I want to tell you, 'yes, send her to us', but I know that would be wrong. Mates belong together. If Fate has brought Beth into your life, now of all times, then I have to believe that she is there for a reason. I have to, or lose my mind with worry," Caspian admitted.

"Thank you for that. I've been without a mate for so long, I thought Fate had forgotten me," Gavriel said ruefully.

"If there's one thing I've learned in my short life, it's that Fate has a design of her own weaving. We may only catch a glimpse of the pieces, but there is a much bigger tapestry being woven that we know nothing of. Fate didn't forget you Gavriel, she was just waiting for our Bethy to grow up," Caspian said kindly.

"Thank all the Gods you watched over her the way you did, or I may not have gotten her at all. Is there anything I can do to minimize the, um, accidents?"

"Not to make Beth sound juvenile, because she isn't childish by any stretch of the imagination, in fact, when she isn't actively tripping, falling or tumbling she's very graceful and poised, but you may want to consider 'baby proofing' the estate," Caspian advised.

"Baby proofing? What's that?" Gavriel got out a pad of paper and pen. At the top he wrote a reminder to get her alert necklace reset.

"Oh hell, I guess you wouldn't have much experience with children. But doing things like placing pillows around a brick fireplace so that the angled edge isn't exposed or replacing glass furniture with blunt edged pieces. Lots of soft surfaces and padding. Stairs will always be a danger but by now she's learned how to fall down them with minimal damage," Broderick explained.