Sean didn't know what time it was when he woke up again. Mihai was splayed out next to him, sound asleep, dead to the world. He smiled, looking at his lover. He was Mihai’s, and Mihai was his. The thought made Sean feel giddy inside and he stifled the urge to wake the werewolf.

Daylight streaked in from the window through a crack in the curtain, falling across Sean’s face. It must have been midday by then, although he couldn’t tell, given how otherwise dark his room was.

He stretched an all-body stretch of a predator, reaching his arms above his head while flexing his toes. He stopped suddenly, holding his breath as he strained his ears.

Something was wrong.

He blinked twice, and suddenly realized what it was. The shadows were moving. In the dark, there was a shape moving that he easily recognized to be a werewolf—and not one of the friendly ones in the mansion. The only reason they hadn't attacked was because they thought he was asleep.

If he woke Mihai, it would give his assailant the upper hand by letting him know he was awake.

He had to make the first move.

He made a fist and let his magic fill his veins.

He sensed the shape moving towards him. With his fist, he punched towards the shape behind him, backing it with a whispered spell to add force. His fist connected with a furry chest and sent his assailant flying.

He took that moment to yell for help.

“Mihai!” he screamed.

His yell was cut short by the werewolf slamming into his body. He tried to scream again, but the wolf put enough pressure on his chest and lungs to choke off his cry for help. Blood seeped from the wounds made from his claws.

Mihai was on his feet, transforming into his wolf. He roared and pushed Sean’s assailant off him. There was chaos as both wolves tore into each other’s fur, snarling.

“Mihai!” Sean cried again between coughs.

Another wolf slammed into Mihai's body, bringing his lover into a battle with two other wolves. In his shock and horror, he realized that these might be wolves from Mihai's pack.

There were more shadows moving and he knew there were more wolves than both he and Mihai could take.

“Mihai!” he yelled, hoping the alpha would hear. His voice came out as hoarse and strangled.

Mihai yelped in his battle and Sean panicked, worried that his mate was hurt. With a curse, he hurled a magical fireball at Mihai’s attackers. It caught one of them, sending him flying across the room, the scent of singed fur and flesh trailing behind him.

At that, the wolves hurled themselves into Sean's body, viewing him as the more imminent threat. There were six or so, each one grabbing his ankle, his wrist, holding him prostrate. They were all wolves from Mihai’s pack.

He struggled to gain his freedom, even as the wolves pinned Mihai down, too.

“What's going on?” he screamed.

He quickly got his answer.

“Aaron promised that there would be rich rewards for whoever brings you to him,” the lead werewolf, a beta in human form, told him. “But why should he have all the glory when we could take you to Phaeron ourselves? We could be Phaeron’s favorite pet.” The wolf stopped short, staring at Mihai and Sean.

“Your smell...” His eyes widened as he looked between them. “You're mates.”

Mihai struggled free and hurled himself into the three wolves he now battled. Some of the wolves pinning Sean down growled at Mihai’s attackers, but none of them made a move to help.

“Omega slut,” one of the other human-form werewolves said to him. “You're damaged goods. No one else will have you now.”

The door to the guestroom opened then, and reinforcements came to their rescue. Sean’s scream for help had been heard. Drelos guards and free wolves came in and tore the attacking werewolves off Sean and Mihai.

Sean gasped and rolled onto his side, watching the carnage. Whenever he had a clear shot, he flung fireballs at the werewolves.

Mihai, although he was fighting as hard as he could, was still outmatched by his opponents. Although strong and good fighters, the Drelos guards and the free wolves were outmatched by the bigger, more experienced wolves of Mihai’s pack. The pack had been on the road for a long time, and they were far more brutal and wild than anyone here.

This fight wouldn't last much longer. His lover was getting hurt and he couldn't do anything about it other than shoot occasional volleys of fire.

A bare foot stepped in front of him. In his haze of pain, he looked up and recognized Pyt.

“What's the meaning of this?” he roared out into the chaos of the room.

“Mihai’s pack has found us,” Sean told him hoarsely.

He bent down to make sure he was all right. His expression went hard, harder, and then he spun to join the fighting, taking on Mihai’s attackers.

Mihai growled and jumped over Sean, moving to attack the other wolves now that he was free.

Lots of yelping, growling and roaring followed, but Sean felt incredibly tired. He folded himself into a fetal position and closed his eyes against the pain. His wounds would heal quickly, but for right now, he really hurt.

He heard the wolves retreating as if from a distance.

“Sean,” a voice told him gently. “Open your eyes.”

He opened his eyes to see Pyt bending over him.

“Is it over?” he asked. He ignored how raspy his voice sounded.

“For now.” He didn't bother embellishing the cold truth. They had just declared war on Phaeron’s entire pack. And Sean knew it as well.

He winced, sitting up. Pyt steadied him. He looked around, trying not to notice the badly wounded and dying wolves around him.

It was a harsh punishment, but then again, being a werewolf was a harsh life.

“Mihai?” he asked. He forced himself up in alarm. “Where's Mihai?”

Pyt nodded to his right. Sean turned his head painfully. Some of the Drelos were tending to Mihai, who sat with his knees drawn up. There was a lot of blood on him, a lot of it his own. He had deep gashes all over his entire body. As he was naked, Sean could see every scratch and wound on his muscular body. He mentally winced, seeing him in pain.

“Mihai,” he whispered.

The werewolf dazedly looked up before he grimaced when a guard dabbed at a wound.

Pyt gave him a long look. “You seem...different,” he murmured. He glanced over at Mihai, and both his nostrils and his eyes flared. A wry smile touched his lips. “So you decided to become mates, huh?” he asked. His voice had dropped so no one else could hear him.

“I'd thought about it,” Sean said softly, feeling a blush in his cheeks, despite more pressing matters. “I...” His voice dropped low, but his eyebrows raised up in surprise, even as he said it. “I think I’ve fallen in love with him.”

Somehow, telling Pyt made it even more real.

“Well then,” Pyt said softly, “we need to decide what to do next.” He clapped his hands quickly. “Leave us,” he commanded to his guards. “Sean, Mihai, and I have some things to discuss.” He turned to Sean. “But first, you need to see if you can work some healing magic on your mate.”

***

“I DON’T HAVE THE POWER to save all the werewolves all alone,” Sean said for what felt like the thousandth time. “I barely know how to use my powers to heal you.” He pointed at Mihai’s scabbed-over wounds that he had just used his magic to heal. It was the most he could do with his magic. He felt drained even from just that bit of power.

He couldn’t imagine traveling all the way to Phaeron’s keep in the mountains to free the wolves.

“You removed my tags,” Mihai argued. “You used your magic and took away Phaeron’s control over me.” He leaned over and took Sean’s hand as they sat across from each other on the edge of the bed.

Pyt stood leaning one shoulder against the wall nearby, his arms crossed, tapping his chin with one finger. “From what I saw, your removal of Mihai’s tags required an emotional connection.”

“Exactly,” Sean cried, then blushed at the implications. But he forged on, nonetheless. “I don’t have any connection to your pack.”

Mihai huffed out a frustrated breath.

“But Mihai does,” Pyt pointed out mildly.

The alpha and omega both stared at the elf, confused.

“Can you connect your magic to Mihai’s emotional bond to his pack and then funnel it all through to the spell you use to remove the tags?”

“I didn’t really have a spell,” Sean said slowly. “I just sort of pushed it all into one word and used that to break the tag’s bonds.”

Pyt laughed. “Isn’t that what a spell is? Words focusing magic?”

“I guess.” Sean looked thoughtful.

“It’s worth trying,” Mihai urged. “I need to save my sister, my whole pack. I can’t leave them under Phaeron’s control. Please.”

Sean nodded. “Of course. I’m willing to try.”

Pushing away from the wall, Pyt moved toward the door. “I will gather together the Drelos guards. We can help, too.”

Mihai squeezed Sean’s hands. “We can do this together,” he said. “I’m sure of it.”

Pyt paused just outside the room and looked back. “We have to,” he said. “If we can’t break Phaeron’s hold over the wolves, it could eventually mean the end of a free Pristat.”

Sean and Mihai exchanged a glance, and Sean felt that bond between them pull taut. He nodded. “I guess we’re traveling to the mountains, then. To save your pack.”

“Now your pack, too,” Mihai added.

Sean couldn’t help smiling. “Yes. My pack, too.”