Now they had a better idea of what was going on, finding more details about their enemies wasn’t hard for Coveney.

He looked into the Vergas Pack, and came back with a somber expression. He explained the basics.

Apparently, the pack was humongous, with over five hundred adult members overall; it practically took over a whole town down in Texas. No wonder they had no issue fighting the pride on two fronts.

“So far, they haven’t sent their full force, presumably because they haven’t confirmed Lola is the kid they’re after. They’re targeting a few different prides and packs with children fitting her description. For all we know, it could be that she isn’t the hybrid.”

Rye wasn’t so sure; after Ace had pointed out their toddler had a faint lupine scent, he’d been able to notice it, too.

“Not all of them are fighters, though, right?” Christine asked, but Coveney shook his head, pushing another stack of printed pictures in her hand.

The submissive gasped and let the pictures drop to her feet.

The details he’d printed made everyone sick to their stomachs. What the fucking hell was that?

“Are those… skeletons?”

It was hard to tell, because they’d been burned to a crisp and stacked together, but Coveney nodded.

“They kill their own members, the ones they see as useless. As far as they’re concerned, only the strongest have the right to live - the others are lesser beings. They don’t want them to reproduce, so they take the problem out of the equation. So, only the fighters survive.”

“They murder the submissives?” Ola sounded lightheaded, faint.

“Not all of them. Those pretty enough are kept and used as slaves, if anyone wants to claim them. They see it as the survival of the fittest.”

How fucking barbaric. It didn’t make a bit of sense, no animal in the world acted that way.

This pack of degenerated fanatics had to be stopped, but how? They had considerably more members than the pride, and that was without considering the fact that the pack might have some allies who’d join them in an open conflict.

“If we talk at the Fest, we might find other prides who want to join us against them,” Tracy suggested.

Rygan shook his head. It might have been an option, if the next summer gathering wasn’t months away. They didn't have the luxury of time, not while those monsters were on their trail, hunting their youngest, most vulnerable child.

“We can't wait,” he replied.

“How about contacting the Alphas we know online?” Dante proposed.

Rye nodded his agreement; that was a viable option. There was a fair chance that his father might even agree to help them, given the circumstances…but he didn't have the best relationship with his family, so he couldn't count on it.

And, frankly, even if every single feline of his acquaintance agreed to lend them a hand, they would still be outnumbered.

“We need to show this to Ace,” he decided, weirded out by the fact that he felt compelled to share the details with her.

“I can go talk to her,” the Beta offered, but Rye was quick to reject that option.

“I don't think so. I’ll go after the auction.” His answer was cold, possessiveness dripping from each word, making him uncivil towards his Beta. “Speaking of, we need to head out now.”

---

The house they had their eyes on was getting auctioned off in Lakesides that day.

Rye felt the gaze of everyone on him, his Beta, and his Enforcer as they walked into the town hall. They were all human, which explained why he sensed so much fear and suspicion.

He could guess what the whispers said. They wouldn’t let them win if they could help it; they didn’t want them in town. He paid the humans no mind, taking a seat at the back. He’d buy the house - that’s all there was to it. Feeling unwelcome wasn’t a foreign concept, anyway. It wasn’t like there was a better alternative elsewhere - according to recent censuses, there were about two hundred humans for every supernatural creature out there. That meant there was no place where his pride would really be unanimously accepted.

Some people kept it civil, nodding towards them - he returned the greeting. Those who openly glared, he ignored.

All of a sudden, the atmosphere completely changed; it almost felt like everyone in the room sighed in relief. As for Rye, he felt the corner of his mouth curve up. He hadn’t expected Ace to come.

A middle-aged man, slightly rounded around the edges and with graying hair, greeted her with enthusiasm.

“Aisling, dear. Are you here to bid on the house? It’s a beauty. I had it done up by the best of the best.”

The owner, then.

There was an eagerness to his words; he was clearly hoping that the group of newcomers he didn’t trust would find some competition.

Ace smiled sweetly, dazzling the poor unsuspecting human, and playing him like a damn violin.

“I’m not,” she confessed, “I’m just here to see if my friends get it. Come, let me introduce you.”

She entwined her arm with the older man’s and made him follow her to the back of the room, where the pride members had chosen to sit.

“Guys, this is Andrew Turner. He knows everything there is to know about Lakesides’ history, if you have any questions.”

The man lifted his chin proudly.

“Andrew is the mayor of this town, and the owner of the house you would like to buy.” She looked up at him, her big amber eyes shining as she batted her long lashes. Fuck, the woman was lethal. “These are a few members of the Wyvern Pride. They’re a new pride of feline shifters - like me - and they’ve encountered some trouble. You see, they adopt orphans, and it turns out some people want to harm one of their children.”

Rye wasn’t exactly happy that she’d divulged their affairs so openly, but the mayor frowned.

“Children?” he repeated, turning to the pride.

Rygan nodded. “They’re after a two-year-old.”

The other humans, who were shamelessly eavesdropping, gathered around them; the glaring had stopped, replaced by curiosity, and, if Rye wasn’t mistaken, protectiveness. Holy fuck. Humans were being cool with shifters. What the hell was happening with the world?

“This is Rygan, the Alpha,” Ace introduced, pointing to him. “And Daunte, the Beta. You’ve met him a couple of times in the past, right?”

“Aye,” a guy in the crowd said, nodding. “You came to my pub last year. Pretty good at pool, aren’t you?”

She played them so damn easily. In a minute, she’d established that the Beta - one of the highest authorities in the pride - had already come to their town without causing any trouble, and she’d also made it clear that they needed their help; something the small town people apparently responded to.

“Tracy is a bestselling author,” she added; that seemed to impress - Rye guessed the town didn’t see many celebrities. “They’ve stayed at my place this week, and they want to buy your house because of the security measures you’ve taken. The windows are reinforced, aren’t they?”

“Yes; it was originally built for my daughter, when she was single,” Andrew explained. “Only the best for my girl. The fences are electrified, too.”

When the auction started, the humans sat around them; they all glared at the couple of investors wearing suits. The pride won - they weren’t going to let this opportunity pass, even if they’d had to overpay for the house - and everyone clapped.

“You can move in today, it’s empty,” the mayor told them. “We’ll take care of the paperwork by the end of the week.”

Others said a variation of, “You got a problem, you call. No one should target kids.”

Rye just stared at Ace, dumbfounded. She winked before getting up.

“Right. I’d better get back to work - poor Clary has been alone for over an hour.”