Riley heard the doorbell first and frowned. Who could possibly be coming to visit? The Pack just left, Andrew was probably just getting his meeting going, and Sheriff was probably working. Abigail? She didn’t go anywhere alone; she didn’t have a car.

“I’ll get it!” Riley called out to whomever may hear her. She was closest and made it to the door in record time. She used the peephole to see two deputies waiting outside the door. Then she saw Sheriff’s truck, sirens on, screaming into the driveway. Oh no.

She yanked the door open as the sirens grew close enough to make her ears hurt. Gabe and Troy were suddenly behind her.

“What’s going on?” Riley asked quickly as Sheriff jumped out of his truck.

“Andrew’s been attacked,” Sheriff snarled. He looked at the deputies. “Get out of here.”

“Sheriff, we need to question them about the dead body!” One of the deputies complained, looking pissed.

“I’ll question them once they know if Andrew is alive or not,” Sheriff growled. “Keep arguing with me, and we’re going to have problems.”

“Dead body?” Troy whispered, sounding shocked.

“Andrew might be dead?” Riley gasped. Fear raced through her. Her heart felt like it wanted to stop, and she swayed into Troy, who got an arm around her to hold her up.

“What the fuck is going on?” Gabe snarled. “Someone back up and tell us what the hell you’re talking about!”

“Andrew was found by Jessie Erickson in the trailer at the diner. He was seriously injured and unconscious. Kids, there was a dead body there. A guy named Jonathan Slater. Looked like a fight happened,” Sheriff was telling them calmly, but Riley wasn’t feeling calm. Calm was not the word she would use for anything she felt at that moment. “He’s being taken by helicopter to Saint Joseph Hospital and-”

Riley didn’t hear the rest as she raced for the garage. Troy and Gabe were hot on her heels, and she snatched the keys for her Porsche. She got the doors unlocked as the guys climbed in with her.

“Stop! You three need to-” Sheriff was yelling for them, but Riley bared her teeth as she turned on the engine. The garage door took too long opening in her mind, but once she knew she would fit, she slammed into reverse and heard rubber burn as she spun out of the garage. The deputies were near their own car and had to jump out of her way.

“Gabe?” Troy asked from the backseat.

“I’m calling Brenton. You get Zachary,” Gabe snarled. Riley heard the rings from both their phones. She was out of the driveway in seconds and on the highway when Gabe cursed.

“Answering machine,” Gabe told them.

“Same,” Troy called from the back. “We need to find out what the fuck is going on.”

“We need to get to the damn hospital,” Riley growled. Then she thought about it. “Sheriff mentioned the guy was Jonathan Slater.”

“Cameron’s son,” Gabe told her with a hiss. “Big beefy mother fucker. It would have been a hell of a fight for Andrew.”

“Andrew’s lucky he’s breathing as it is,” Troy said, leaning between the seats. “Jonathan’s a beast. As big as Zachary and, fuck it all, a hell of a lot meaner.”

They were silent for a short time. It was a heavy, pregnant silence full of only one thought. Would they lose someone today? Was this the beginning of the end for them?

“Why would he go after Andrew?” Riley whispered, her eyes on the road. She needed something to concentrate on while she drove. She was going nearly a hundred and fifty miles per hour. She hoped no cops tried to pull her over because she sure as fuck wasn’t going to stop for them.

Andrew. Her sweet, country boy, Andrew. Her heart ached, and she blinked back tears. She needed to drive. She couldn’t be crying.

“Jonathan would have picked a fight he was sure he could win,” Gabe growled softly. “Or it would have been Zachary or Brenton.”

“Who are together. He would never have caught one of them for a fight alone, and, if he did, he had a strong chance of losing.” Troy continued.

“Yeah. So, he probably had Andrew watched to catch him alone. He probably knows about our recent troubles and went after him.”

“We’re missing so much about this,” Troy bitched from the back. “There are massive holes in this story.”

“We’re missing too much,” Gabe agreed, looking frustrated. “I didn’t grab my laptop.”

“We can come back to get it,” Riley said, trying to maintain some sense of hope. Andrew was in a helicopter above them somewhere, and he was dying. She had a thought. “Gabe, call Thomas. Tell him what’s going on. Ask him if he can pick up the laptop and meet us at the hospital. Troy, call Sheriff,” she cursed. The bear was going to be so mad at them. “Ask him to meet us there too. Shit.”

“Roger that,” Gabe said with some formality. It reminded her that she outranked them. In this moment, with none of their top three, she was in charge of the group. The thought made the situation so much worse. Where were Brenton and Zachary?

“Thomas, hey. It’s Gabe and I’ve got some bad news,” Gabe whispered into the phone. It almost felt like saying it louder made it more real. Riley heard Troy get on the line with Sheriff, who bellowed from his end about not waiting for him to continue.

“What do you need?” Thomas asked, and Riley felt a desperate shiver run up her spine at the deadly inflection in his voice.

“My laptop from the house. We got out of there are fast as we could to get to Denver,” Gabe sighed. “And with how fast Riley is driving, we might beat the helicopter.”

“Done. I’ll bring all my guys just in case. You might need hands on deck.” Thomas hung up on Gabe. Riley raised her eyebrows at the leopard, who shrugged.

“We don’t know if having them or not having them in Denver with us will make a difference yet,” Gabe whispered as Troy continued to argue with Sheriff, something Riley was tuning out. “They could help keep us alive, or they could be wasting their time. But I need my laptop, so we can… Riley, I just don’t know how deep this is.”

“Tell me what you know,” she hissed.

“We have the bank account, which was used to bribe our information out of different sources. Information that we found on the hunters. The timeline would suggest that the hunters got the information from whomever collected it. Jonathan was also a benefactor from that account,” Gabe took a deep breath before continuing, “and now we may have that piece of the puzzle.”

“No one needs to pay Jonathan to kill,” Troy growled, hanging up on Sheriff as he roared. “Fucking bear. I love him, I do but damn him, he’s a stubborn one.”

“You’re right. And Jonathan would have struck earlier. Someone is pulling these strings.” Gabe nodded. Riley only listened. She just wanted to hear it, listen to it all laid out as she stared at the road.

It was a beautiful day. She couldn’t appreciate it. Never had the world seemed so colorless.

“So, what was the money for?” Troy mumbled. “We ruined his dad and in turn, him. He just didn’t need the cash.”

“Then what’s the point of the money?” Riley growled.

“We’ll never know from Jonathan,” Gabe sighed. “He’s dead. As for the rest? The rest is easy… I can tell you who and what the money is being used for. All sabotage against us since we got home. A month of just repeated battering from them. I can link nearly all of it.”

“And still no idea who’s behind it,” Troy whispered. Riley looked into the rearview mirror and watched Troy fall back into his seat. “No idea.”

“None,” Gabe agreed softly. “Once I get my laptop, I’ll start back in on it. And there were some recent transfers that may lead me to something.”

“That obscure Pride you were mentioning,” Riley flicked a look to him. “What about it?”

“The Kudo Pride?” Gabe frowned. “Reclusive as hell, mostly based in Japan, but known to let other Prides hire them for shit. Security systems and the like. They are really non-violent, so everyone just lets them be. They don’t get involved in politics, so I’m not sure what that’s about.”

“Interesting,” Riley mumbled to herself.

“Yeah, Andrew probably would know more about that,” Gabe sighed. “And he’s…”

“This is bad,” Troy grumbled. “This is all so bad.”

“Riley, what’s going through that head of yours?” Gabe asked quietly, leaning towards her.

She thought about that question. Andrew may not make it through the day. Brenton and Zachary were MIA, whatever that meant for them. She felt the unbridled rage curl in her stomach past the despair at the thought of losing one of them. She thought about what they knew, what they had gone through up to this point.

“Riley?” Troy pressed.

“I think that if we have to burn Denver to the ground to find out who did this, we will,” she hissed. She turned her head slightly to meet Gabe’s eyes for a moment, who bowed his head.

“We’re behind you, one-hundred percent,” he told her respectfully.

“Yes, we are,” Troy growled, and she caught a glimpse of his dangerous smile in the rearview mirror.

She’d never seen the brothers look more aggressive than they did right then. She knew, in that moment, that the three of them were at war. Gabe had said they were tired, but she saw no weariness in their eyes or in their postures.

“Here’s the plan. We get to the hospital for Andrew. We need to be there for him. Gabe, once your laptop is in hand, start digging and do so quickly. If we need to, I’m not above going after someone who might have information we need.” She needed to make sure their bases were covered. “We also need to find Brenton and Zachary. Try calling them again after I’m done. God, if anything happened to those two…”

“I’m sure they are fine and just don’t know what’s happened,” Gabe told her, his voice thick with worry over their family and fury at the ones who picked this fight. It didn’t relieve her own worry at all.

“I’m going to ask Thomas about protecting Andrew while he’s down. He’ll live, he fucking better, but that doesn’t mean he’ll be up and able to protect himself.” Riley continued. “Call Brenton and Zachary.”

There was too much wrong. Andrew was critically injured and fighting for his life. Brenton and Zachary weren’t answering, still. Riley, Gabe, and Troy were on their own for who knew how long.

They continued in silence, Gabe texting Thomas about where to meet them. Troy was in touch with Sheriff, but the bear was pretty mad they had just run off.

“He wanted us to ride with him,” Troy whispered after nearly an hour. “He wanted to keep us secure in case this is a big thing. Also, Jessie said she had gotten Brenton and Zachary on the phone before emergency services and Sheriff arrived. So, they know about Andrew.”

“Why does that worry me more?” Riley asked, thinking on it. “That they know, but we can’t get ahold of them?”

“Because Brenton and Zachary can fly off the handle just as well as you can,” Gabe mumbled. “You’ve never seen them truly lose it. If there hadn’t have been cages-”

“They would have ripped heads from shoulders in the hunter compound,” Troy finished. “Remember that day, with your dad? How mad Brenton was, and how ready we all were to fight with him?”

“Yeah,” Riley sighed. “A Pride is set by the tone of its Alpha. Me keeping Brenton back was the only thing keeping all of you from a fight.”

“Yup,” Gabe whispered. “Riley, when we find them, I need you to be ready.”

“For what?” Riley frowned as she saw Denver come into view.

“This time, you’re not going to be exempt from it. There won’t be talking Brenton back down, and Zachary is going to be feeding it. It’s a powder keg of testosterone and pissed off lion. And it will rile you up. It’s going to make you blood-thirsty.”

“I already am blood-thirsty,” she growled at him. Gabe shook his head as he continued to explain.

“We’re angry, and we’re scared. And yes, the three of us want blood. Someone is going to fucking pay for this, but…” Gabe trailed off, and she caught him glancing at Troy.

“She’s never experienced it,” Troy murmured. “Brenton’s been under control for a long time. It’s been a couple years since he’s snapped.”

“What’s that mean?” Riley asked, suddenly realizing this was something different. She’d seen Brenton angry and furious, dangerous. She knew Zachary had a temper and could fly off the handle. She’d handled it before, so why was this so different. “Snapped?”

“Brenton likes control,” Gabe whispered. “He needs it. Our lives have always been so fucking out of control, that once he got his hands on some, he absolutely needed it. He won't let go, and if someone takes it from him...”

“It’s been something he’s been fighting since everything started happening with you.” Troy picked up where Gabe had left off. “Riley, Brenton’s going to be on the warpath when we see him. He’s going to be…”

“What we left behind,” Gabe mumbled. “Gorgeous, when we find Brenton and Zachary, you’re going to see why people were too scared to fuck with us before we came back to Wild Junction.”

“Good,” Riley snarled. “I wouldn’t expect any less from you all. Damn it, if Brenton wants to burn Denver to the ground, then we are going to fucking do it. I want you two to be ready and okay with that.”

“Riley, you don’t und-”

“Do not tell me I don’t understand,” Riley growled. Fury reignited in her, that scorching blaze that saw her through Abel. That saw her through the fight for her peace of mind. “And if Brenton’s not going to do it, I fucking will. I would do it if one of you was hurt. I would do it for any of you. I was hurt, and I handled him. Now one of you is hurt, and I’m going to handle whoever did it.”

“And this is why you out rank us,” Troy whispered. “Gabe and me? We’re just not as rough as you or Brenton or Zachary. We feel it when one of you gets this way, and we’ll follow but we… we’re just not that dominant.”

She felt it in that moment more than she ever had before. She clenched the steering wheel until her knuckles were white. She needed to call on everything in her, because there was a chance it was just them. It felt good, the idea of being in charge, but it was also terrifying. Before, it had been a game, an idea. A thing they toyed with in the bedroom.

Now it was so very real.

“Keep using those heads, and think about if we’ve missed anything,” Riley whispered, feeling dangerous. She felt out of control, violent. She wanted blood. She wanted enemies on their knees before her, begging for mercy. Mercy she wouldn’t grant them.

That scared her a little as well, but it wasn’t something she was going to tell them. She needed to appear strong, like Brenton and Zachary would. They needed her to be confident in her decisions.

They entered Denver, and Riley listened to the brothers theory-craft what could have led to this. She growled and hissed at traffic, wondered why there were so many police cars driving around.

Then, Troy’s phone went off.

“What, Sheriff?” Troy hissed.

“You’re in Denver?” Sheriff huffed. “Get to the hospital as quickly as possible. And keep your windows rolled up.”

“Why the windows, Sheriff?” Troy asked softly. Riley felt ill at how Sheriff was speaking. The windows were bullet-proof.

“Turn on your radio or check the news. Zachary and Brenton were shot at while leaving the Kingson offices. Zachary was hit twice. That’s all I know,” Sheriff growled. “I’m getting there with the wolves. We’ll be there as fast as possible, but you three have never been in a more dangerous position. People are trying to fucking end all of you. The timing suggests it was right after Andrew was found or during his ride to the hospital. Call me if anything gets in your way. I’m on the line with Denver’s police to make sure you are covered. State troopers are about to flood the city, and the SSTF is furious.”

Troy and Sheriff ended the call. Gabe turned on the radio as Riley felt her heart pound dangerously fast. It felt like it would leap out of her chest.

They couldn’t get ahold of Brenton and Zachary. Now they knew why.

“-Woods. Sources say that it was a possible hit job, but no one has any real information. Brenton Kingson is holed up in the hospital that Zachary Woods was taken to, and all attempts to speak with him have failed. It’s believed that he was the target or they both were.”

“Denver’s playboys have finally made the wrong people upset?” A female voice. “And where is the rest of their little group of trouble makers?”

“Turn that shit off,” Riley snarled. She didn’t want to hear a bunch of humans wonder why someone tried to kill Brenton or Zachary. She wanted to know if Zachary was alive.

“This isn’t the game,” Gabe roared. “This isn’t how we fucking do things, you mother fuckers.”

“What?” Riley snapped, looking over to him as she was forced to stop at another red light.

“We never do things in the daylight like this. Accidents. Deaths in your bed or your home. You don’t fucking try to assassinate another shifter in broad fucking daylight. We live too close to human society for that. We can’t just off each other where people can see, the SSTF would take us all in. The SSTF’s number one job is to stop exposure. This is going to bring them back in.” Troy growled. “Brenton’s probably a wreck. He learned about Andrew then gets fucking shot at? Zachary was hit?”

“He probably lost his phone in the madhouse,” Gabe mumbled. “And Zachary’s phone is probably at the hospital with his other stuff.”

“We need to get to the hospital,” Riley growled, watching the light turn green. She slammed on the pedal and felt it kick them all back in their seats. She weaved through the slower traffic, cutting people off.

“Riley, please don’t kill us on the way there!” Gabe growled.

She ignored him. If there was one thing Riley did better than them, it was speed. She ran a red, right before the cross traffic could ever start moving. The hospital came into sight, and she didn’t bother finding a parking spot. She drove them straight up to the front door and cut the engine, jumping out before Gabe and Troy could say anything.

She ran into the building and marveled at the quiet of it. To everyone else, this a regular day. To her, it was a nightmare come to life. She would never forget the soft peaceful music they played over the speakers and how at odds it was with her own emotions.

Troy and Gabe were right behind her as she reached the desk with a receptionist.

“I’m looking for several people,” she said quickly. “Andrew Hicks, Zachary Woods, and Brenton Kingson.”

“And you are?” The woman frowned at her. “Because lots of people are looking for Brenton Kingson. I won’t even ask how you know about the other one not on the news.”

“Their girlfriend,” Riley growled. Riley read the woman’s name badge. Heather. “Heather, I don’t have time to argue with you.”

“Oh really?” The woman scoffed. “Girlfriend? Like I’ve never heard that one before.”

Riley bared her teeth. The Pride’s relationship wasn’t well known enough for people to buy it, yet. It’s why the news people said that Zachary and Brenton were both still playboys. It annoyed the hell out of Riley.

“Look, bitch,” Gabe growled. She finally noticed the brothers behind Riley, and Riley hissed. “I’m Gabe Walker, and if you know what’s good for you, you will tell us where they are! If you don’t, I will sue this hospital into the fucking ground, buy it, then fire you!”

Riley raised her eyebrows and slowly turned towards Gabe. She knew the brothers were rich, but she’d never seen them flex it. The Walker fortune was nearly at the level of Brenton’s, but they just let it sit and did their own thing.

“Ah, yes,” the woman stammered. “You must be Riley Stern then. I was told to keep an eye out for you all. Come with me.”

“Thought so,” Troy growled softly as the woman stood up and began to lead them towards an elevator. “Where are they?”

“Mr. Kingson was given a private room to wait in. Zachary Woods and Andrew Hicks are both in surgery. I was told to make sure you got to Mr. Kingson as quickly as possible.”

Riley took a long moment to think about that. Both were in surgery, and they probably would be for hours.

“Why this hospital?” Riley asked Gabe quietly as the woman got into the elevator with them. “It’s the same one I was brought to after…”

“This is the only one where… our people work,” Gabe whispered to her. “And that means we can hide bloodwork, write off anomalies, and things like that. Nearly every major city on the planet has one hospital we can feel safe going to. Hospitals are also a safe ground, in a sense. The employees just do their job and don’t get involved. They help people, no matter the politics.”

“That’s good,” she mumbled as the elevator dinged on the right floor.

“When Mr. Woods and Mr. Hicks are out of surgery, they will both be placed in this room, for security reasons and at Mr. Kingson’s insistence.” Heather continued, seeming more flustered than even before. “He’s in a very bad mood.” She knocked once on the door and the growl that was returned had Riley a bit scared.

“We have it from here,” Riley said quickly, hoping her voice wasn’t shaking like her knees were. She opened the door and saw him.

She’d never feared Brenton because he was Brenton. She dealt with the fear induced by her troubles knowing it was never his fault.

Seeing him now made her genuinely scared.

His gold eyes nearly glowed with a feral rage she couldn’t match. His entire posture screamed that he was on the edge of violence, muscles tense and ready to strike out. His lips were pulled back in a soundless snarl. She wondered if he was about to shift, since his canines seemed bigger than normal. Everything about him seemed just not-quite-human anymore.

“Brenton?” She called softly. He growled back.

Now she understood. Zachary’s fast temper was normally right under the surface. Her tiger was capable of great violence, and he was quick to anger, but also quick to step back. Zachary balanced this beast. He was the temper Brenton wasn’t allowed to unleash.

Brenton was controlled, a force to reckoned with. Calm and in charge. When Troy said ‘snapped’, he’d meant it. The temper that bubbled underneath Brenton’s mild tone and business-like approach to all things wasn’t even close to human. If something stepped on the toes of this… man in front her, he wouldn’t hesitate to break its neck without a thought.

“Brenton?” She called again, stepping closer. “It’s me.”

“He knows,” Gabe whispered. “He knows it’s us. He just needs a moment to reel himself back in.”

“I’ve never seen…” She didn’t know how to finish that.

“This is what makes us different from human. Right now, the lion is in charge,” Troy mumbled. “We are, at our most basic level, the animal inside of us, not the human skin we wear. Riley, you know this. It was your cheetah’s rage that drove you to ruin Abel. This is us. Brenton, being the Alpha he is… he’s more. And he’s holding back.”

“Stop talking about me,” Brenton snarled, turning away from them. “If she doesn’t understand it yet, then nothing will teach her.”

Riley snarled at his words. She did not come for this. Not this asshole from the night of the bar.

“Don’t fucking speak about me like that, you goddamn prick,” she snapped, stomping over to his side of the room. “You don’t get to lash out because you’re upset. I won’t fucking allow it.”

He growled and turned back to her, closing the distance between them. She saw that it wasn’t just rage in his eyes though.

“What I am fucking terrifies you!” He roared. “And this entire thing will never work if that keeps up.”

“Then stop trying to scare me,” she whispered, acknowledging the hurt in his eyes. “Then don’t turn this on me. Yeah, Brenton, you are a scary mother fucker right now. I’m not the only person in the room that’s scared of you though. Troy and Gabe are, and you weren’t a jackass to them. Every human who’s probably run into you since this started is scared.” She swallowed a lump in her throat. “You are.”

“I’m not scared,” Brenton hissed.

“You’re scared you might lose Zachary, or Andrew, or both,” she continued, ignoring his outburst.

“Stop,” he growled. She ignored that too.

“I know because I am, too. I’m terrified of losing them. I need them like I need air. Brenton, love, don’t push everyone away. Don’t try to make this harder on us. Be angry at the right people, don’t be angry at me.”

“Riley, stop,” he commanded, and she felt her mouth glue shut. Fucking asshole. Then he leaned in and kissed her softly. His canines were still somehow too long, and one hooked her lip piercing. He tugged it, cursed softly. He unhooked himself and stepped back. “I’m sorry. I’m not right in the headspace right now.”

“Well, I don’t think you ever have been,” Riley mumbled with an eye-roll. “But today, I can forgive it. Two of our family members might not make it through the day.”

“I think it was one shot for each of us,” Brenton sighed. “I think Zachary moved in time to take his and mine, the fucking idiot.”

“We were told about Andrew by Sheriff,” Gabe finally spoke up, coming closer. “Thomas and the pack are also on their way with the bear. They are bringing my laptop. Brenton, we’re still flying blind.”

“You three know about Slater?” Brenton asked, and Riley was happy to see his eyes were becoming more human by the minute. He was falling back into the tightly controlled Brenton she knew. But now, she had seen the true beast under the skin, and she was never going to un-see it.

“We do,” Troy sighed. “We’ve been thinking about it all for the entire drive here, but we just don’t understand.”

Riley let Gabe and Troy get Brenton caught up, but in the end, they all knew the same things. Her mind wandered just a little. She remembered the sight of Brenton and thought about it. This was the man she fell in love with. This was the beast that claimed her, sent her to her knees and enjoyed the sight. For a moment, she let the idea of that take her away from the rest.

It made her a little hot. She felt the idea of him behaving that way in the bedroom make her warm and a bit excited. Just for a moment.

“Riley,” Brenton coughed. “I’m not sure where your head has gone, but now is definitely not the time.”

Oops.

“I definitely want to know what she’s thinking,” Troy mumbled. “Might help us all deal with this until they get out of surgery.”

Riley opened her mouth but couldn’t figure out what to say. This hadn’t been what she intended.

“Sheriff and the wolves are on their way,” Gabe sighed. “We wouldn’t have much time.”

“I’ve never been in the bedroom with you two, before,” Brenton growled softly. “I’m not too sure I could handle it, anyway.”

“Yeah, there’s a reason for that,” Troy said a nonchalant shrug. “You and Zachary can dominate all you want outside the bedroom. I don’t particularly want you ordering me around in bed. Her? Definitely, but not you.”

Riley frowned at the weird conversation they were having. What brought this on? This made no sense.

“We could try,” Gabe offered, spreading his hands. “I’m down.”

“Shit,” Troy mumbled. “We could try. She would probably like it.”

“You think?” Brenton murmured, looking back at her. She didn’t like the glint in his eyes.

“How did we get here?” Riley asked, feeling a bit freaked out. “We need to be finding out who did this.”

“You started it,” Brenton purred dangerously.

“I… I was thinking about how you might be in the bedroom, out of control like that,” she mumbled quickly. “A thought for another time, trying to think of something else…”

“Ah,” Brenton huffed. “We’ll shelve our ideas as well.”

“You know…” Gabe began, a sly grin coming over his face. Troy looked like he had the same thought.

“Oh, man,” Troy chuckled. “Are we thinking the same thing?”

“We’ve never all been with her?” Gabe grinned. Troy grinned back.

“We all know why that’s never happened, either,” Riley hissed. “The fighting for dominance and other nonsense would be a mess.”

“I could step back if I needed to…” Brenton said quietly. “So could Zachary… Andrew would just enjoy the entire scene of it…. It could work.”

Mad men. Riley was in love with mad men.

“Shelve it,” she growled as Brenton leaned to kiss her again.

“Of course, we do need to focus on the task at hand.”

“Nothing much to focus on,” Gabe reminded them. “We could run over everything we already know, but it gets us nowhere. I’m not even sure I can find the information we need.”

“Then what do we do?” Riley asked, frustrated. “What?”

“We wait,” Troy sighed. “We wait to see if our family makes it out of this hole.”

They did. Riley curled up into Brenton on a couch while the brothers had the hospital’s staff bring in a table and some comfortable chairs. ‘Comfortable’ chairs. She couldn’t believe it, but they convinced her they were fine.

An hour passed. Then two. She began to feel uncomfortable with it. The playful mood the guys had fallen into was long-dead, only a temporary bright spot to the dark day they had found themselves in. She stretched while Brenton went to find them drinks and food. No one came with word about Andrew or Zachary. Brenton brought back vending machine trash, but they all ate it without complaint.

They waited.

“Right this way,” Heather’s voice cut through the thick, overpowering silence. Riley looked at the door, and all four of them were ready to fight as the door opened and Sheriff stood in the doorway.

“Well, hell,” Sheriff growled, “I’m impressed there aren’t bodies in the room. Would have thought you would kill anyone trying to come in.”

“We’ve had a moment to calm down,” Brenton growled back, softly.

Riley saw Thomas, James, and Antonio behind the bear, all slowly making their way in. Brenton was still tense, even as Gabe and Troy calmed down. Gabe began working in silence on his laptop while Troy talked to James and Antonio about protective measures. Her ideas, since Brenton had agreed with them.

“Brenton,” Thomas greeted him carefully and Riley realized why Brenton was tense. He was waiting for the other Alpha to bend the knee even in his Pride’s moment of weakness, two members down. “I’m here to help. We agreed to be partners in this.”

“Thomas. We did,” Brenton mildly replied. “But I need to know if I will go home with an ally or a new enemy just waiting for the right moment to strike.”

“I’ll never be that enemy, Brenton. Not because I like you, though I do. I like her,” Thomas pointed at Riley, “and if your Pride falls, so does the little cheetah I’ve come to consider a friend. She doesn’t deserve to fall, and she loves all of you, therefore you don’t deserve to fall.”

“I knew I liked you,” Brenton huffed, holding out a hand. They shook as Riley stood in bewilderment. What the hell? What?

“Wait,” Riley cut in, waving a hand around.

“Don’t, kitten,” Sheriff groaned. “Just don’t ask. Let them posture and play. Alphas have to come up with excuses to be allies, and you’re the one they chose. They aren’t allowed to just be friends. It’s ridiculous, but it’s how things are done.”

“I can’t be the only reason,” Riley scoffed as Thomas and Brenton began speaking, wandering away from her.

“You aren’t,” Sheriff chuckled. “You’re the only one they’re willing to admit in public.”

She huffed and narrowed her eyes on the two Alphas. Weird. She knew there were more reasons. She’d heard Zachary discuss them, she’d heard Thomas discuss them. Why would they not bring them up here?

“Don’t think too hard,” Sheriff groaned, poking her in the forehead. She hissed and glared up at him. “You have better things to worry about than how Alphas play their silly little games.”

“You’re right,” she mumbled, a bit perturbed. More important things. “We haven’t heard anything about the guys yet…”

“You probably won’t until they are certain they have something to tell you,” Sheriff sighed. “Kitten, there’s a lot happening. How are you?”

“Angry,” she snapped. “Mad as hell.”

“Well, nothing is on fire,” Sheriff coughed, covering his mouth, “so I don’t think that’s the only thing.”

“I’m worried,” she sighed, collapsing back on the couch, “and I have nothing to do right now.”

“Let them all work it out,” Sheriff groaned, sitting next to her. “You and I can just keep our eyes and ears out for anything about the guys. Want to do that?”

“Yeah,” she mumbled, “we can do that.”