If it weren’t for the dragonsteel, I would probably have been dead already. My nerves short-circuited as the threat came from all around. A white wolf entered the barn first; his blue eyes blazed and he bared his teeth. I saw him through the bars at the top of the stall.

“Get...behind me,” I said to Lena. She had her back pressed against the stall wall. Her pulse rocketed right along with mine. I jerked the chains holding my hands above my head. I would tear the damn rafters down if I had to.

“It’s all right,” Lena said. She moved to the end of the stall and I lost my damn mind.

Growling, I kicked out, trying to get to her. She put a hand up, trying to get me to calm down. No fucking way. They had the barn surrounded. The white wolf walked slowly past the horses. They stomped their hooves, but didn’t seem the least disturbed by him the way I was. Another wolf walked at his side. This one was black with gleaming yellow eyes. Next to the white wolf, they seemed like polar opposites. Light and Dark. Both Alphas. Both deadly.

The black wolf snapped his jaws and lowered his head. There was no mistaking the lethal threat in his eyes. Lena went toward them and my heart leaped from my chest.

“Get behind me!” I shouted. “If you touch her...if you so much as breathe on her!”

“Enough!” A gruff voice echoed through the barn, hitting me like an arrow to the chest. Another Alpha came to join the black and white wolves. He had an easy stride and took an almost casual posture with his hands in the back pockets of his jeans. He wore a checkered flannel shirt with the sleeves rolled up, almost as if he were ready to grab a pitchfork and bale hay rather than face me down. Lena’s breath caught as she saw him. He too bore the battle scars made by another wolf running in a cruel line down his face.

“Nobody here’s going to lay a hand on her,” he said. He jerked his chin to the other wolves. The black one snapped his jaws, but took two steps back.

Scarface held out a hand to shake Lena’s, going against the words he’d just spoken. It damn near undid me when she reached for him. But, she kept her back straight, her head high as she shook his hand. I could feel his touch on her. My vision went dim and I strained against the dragonsteel.

“Lena Morris,” he said. His eyes narrowed as he looked her over. There was no lust or possession in his expression, still, I hated how close he was to her. I wanted her behind me.

“Yes,” she said. “My brother is Mac. His brother is Liam McConnell. They sent me to talk to you.”

You? She knew him? Somewhere inside me, the logical part of my brain searched for a clue. It was no use. This close to this many Alpha wolves and my mate exposed, there was no chance I could be anything other than pissed.

“You’re Derek Monroe, I assume,” she said making a sweeping gesture in the space in front of his face. Of course, Mac would have told her what Derek looked like. Had he told me? My wolf raged too hot to be able to think straight.

“I am,” he said then he pointed to the wolves behind him. “This is Alec, and the dark one is Mal. I think you’ve met some of our pack members already. I hope they’ve treated you well.”

“Uh...yes. Actually. I appreciate your coming down. This is Payne Fallon. We’re from Mammoth Forest.”

A growl ripped from me and I launched myself as far as I could. The chains held me back as the rafters bowed out. She shouldn’t have told him that. The risk to our people...

“You better get your shit under control,” Derek snapped. “I told you, nobody here’s going to lay a hand on your mate. We have mates of our own. You wanna try and tell me you’d have treated me any differently if I waltzed into your caves?”

“What the hell do you know about the caves?” I shouted, surprised I could even form words.

“We have more spies than you do,” he answered. “Mal’s been down there, for one thing. The rest is none of your business. The only reason we haven’t thrown you back across the border is because of her. A few years ago, her brother did me a service. Now, I don’t know what your business is with me, but in honor of that, I’m going to give you the courtesy of finding out. I make no promises other than one. As long as Mac Morris’s sister is here, she’s under our protection. Something tells me that’s exactly why he risked sending her. That, and it looks like she was mistreated by Kentucky shifters.”

He said the last bit with such venom, his skin paled. I understood the implication clearly. If Lena was my mate, how could I have let her get hurt? It’s the same question I would have asked him under the circumstances.

“Payne had nothing to do with what happened to me before,” Lena said. “And all of that is my business. Now, I thank you for seeing us. If you’re willing to hear us out, I’m even more grateful. But, I hope you understand that time is of the essence. Things are bad in Kentucky and getting worse.”

Mal and Alec’s wolves started to growl. Again, Derek put up a hand to quiet them.

“Yes. We’ll hear you out,” he directed his words straight at me. “But this is shifter business. I don’t mean to be rude, but maybe you should wait up at the house with Pat. This is between Payne and the Wild Lake Alphas now.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” Lena said. Her words came at the same time as mine expressing the same sentiment. I would not let her leave my sight.

Derek shook his head. “I figured you’d say that. So be it. But, Payne speaks for himself. Then, we’ll decide if it’s in our interest to get involved in whatever the hell’s brought you here.”

Derek turned his head and let out a sharp whistle, calling in the rest of his pack. Alec and Mal left the barn together. My skin pricked as even more shifters crowded into the barn. Four large wolves waited outside as Derek came into the stall. Another Alpha stepped into view. He too was huge, with menacing blue eyes and thick, wavy red hair. I didn’t have to see his wolf to know his would be red like mine. I heard Derek call him Bas.

As the four wolves stayed outside the stall, Derek and Bas moved around Lena, whispering something to her. She gave them a tight-lipped nod and went to stand by the four wolves outside the stall. Derek and Bas each grabbed a link of chain. Bas, the taller of the two, reached up and unhooked the links suspended from the barn rafters. Then, they led me out of the stall. The four wolves closed ranks around Lena and we left the barn as a group.

Every muscle in my body went rigid as they led me out into the sunlight. Once outside, an involuntary growl ripped from me. There were shifters everywhere. The Alphas were easy to pick out. Derek and Bas were at my side. Alec and Mal had shifted. They stood fully clothed in front of the Bonner farmhouse, their packs were in their wolves and scattered all around.

Two other Alphas stood on the porch. One was tall with brown hair streaked with gray. He stared at me and his wolf eyes glinted silver. He shot a look to three wolves on the side of the house. So, he led the smallest of the Wild Lake packs. Beside him stood a lone Alpha; his deep green eyes pierced mine across the distance. The natural arch to his dark brow gave him a curious expression, not unfriendly, but there was something different about him compared to the other shifters. Something I related to before I could fully name it. I realized with cold clarity that he had no pack. The others seemed to orient themselves in subtle ways to the men and wolves standing around them. But this guy? He stood alone.

Lena broke from her wolf escort and came to me. My heart tripped as she reached up and touched my cheek. “It’ll be all right,” she said. “I can feel it.”

“You can wait up at the house,” Derek said.

“I won’t let you hurt him,” she said, lifting her chin toward him. God, she was so brave. So defiant. Desire flared through me for her as it always did, but there was something else as well. I was proud of her.

“That’s up to him!” Mal stepped forward. The man looked dark as sin with jet-black hair and a devilish goatee. Derek put a hand up, but he clearly didn’t run this show alone. Tension ran through the group and I realized the packs probably didn’t gather in one place like this very often. If I could detach myself from what was really happening and why we were here, I might be able to marvel at that. We’d heard stories about Wild Lake for decades. There was no other place in the world like it. Six packs, sharing territory and yet somehow managing not to rip each other apart. I wondered what their secret was.

The front door to the farmhouse opened and Pat Bonner stepped outside. Beside her stood an old man with wispy white hair. Even from here I could see he was blind. Old, jagged scars ripped across his face, leaving his eyes as nothing more than cloudy blue orbs. God. What had happened to these people?

Derek put a hand on Lena’s shoulder and I strained against the chains. “Why don’t you head up there with Pat and Harold?”

I could feel Lena’s need to argue, but she took a breath and bit her lip. She was picking her battles. I knew I wouldn’t be able to do the same. She gave me a look and a weak smile, then went up to the house. Pat put a protective arm around her and regarded me with a hard stare. Oh, that old woman knew her way around shifters. I’m sure she had a story or two to tell.

“Let’s make this quick,” Mal said. What he didn’t say was why. And yet, instinct told me the reason. Sure, the Wild Lake packs had their peace, but shifter instinct runs deep. Every one of them was on edge with this many of them in one place.

“Say your piece,” Derek said.

“Wait!” Pat shouted from the porch. She put a hand on the blind man beside her. Just that simple gesture conveyed something to him. He grumbled, but stepped aside. Turning, he opened the front door. Another old man came out to join him. The pair of them took a seat together on a wooden green porch swing. They bowed their heads together, deep in conversation.

Derek let out an exasperated sigh. Whoever this new observer was, he didn’t seem happy to have him here. He turned to the crowd of shifters and shouted to them.

“Just so we’re on the same page. This guy says he was sent by Mac Morris. You all know my history with him. Before we hear him out, I’ll say right up front that Mac and two of his friends helped save me and my family’s ass when we caught trouble in Banchory along the Kentucky border. That’s the only reason I’m willing to hear him out. But, the rest is up to the packs. I’m not here to vouch for him. Only to listen out of respect for Mac.” He turned to me and nodded.

“Thanks for the ringing endorsement,” I said, growling.

“Get to the point,” Derek said.

I cleared my throat. Now that we were here and I had their attention, I had no fucking clue how to convince them of anything. I was no diplomat. Hell, none of us was, except for Jagger once upon a time. Now, he’d become something else. With a growing sense of unease, I realized we might be well and truly fucked.

“My name is Payne Fallon and yes...I’m from Mammoth Forest.” Just telling them that much felt like a betrayal. The truth was already inked into my chest for all of them to see.

“Go on,” Mal said.

God. What the hell could I say to them? My eyes found Lena. She stood at Pat Bonner’s side, towering over her. Her auburn hair lifted in the breeze and those beautiful hazel eyes of hers went from gold to green as the sun lit them. She mouthed four words that made everything simple.

Tell them the truth.

I turned to face the Alphas of Wild Lake. “We need your help. You don’t know me. I know what I must seem like to you. Believe me, I’d like to be anywhere other than here. This woman is my mate. But she’s more than that. She’s a living example of what’s happening in Kentucky. The Chief Alpha…”

“No!” Pat shouted. It startled me that none of the other Alphas asked her to keep quiet. This was shifter business even if we were on her property.

She stepped off the porch. “He’s no chief. Call him what he is. Say his name. It holds no power here.”

Dark knowledge lit Pat Bonner’s ancient eyes. I didn’t need a telepathic connection to understand what it was. She knew Valent.

“Able Valent,” I said. The confirmation seemed to hit Pat Bonner like a physical blow. She staggered to the side and put a hand over her heart. Her eyes misted with tears and she turned toward the house. Quick as lightning, the lone Alpha was at her side. He put a protective arm around Pat and brought her back up to the porch. There was something between them. Instinct told me they were mother and son. Oh, yes, it seemed Wild Lake’s stories ran deep. But, I still had my own to tell.

“Valent’s hold is still strong. There are a few of us who live underground. We give refuge to those we can. Not everyone in Kentucky agrees with how Able runs things. But, it’s getting worse. He’s aging and he’s beginning to lose his grip. It’s made him even more dangerous. He tried to breed out Alphas so no one is ever strong enough to oppose him. He uses death squads to control those who try to rise up. Worst of all, he violates the order of things by gifting women to his followers as mates against their will.”

A rumble of growls went through the Wild Lake shifters. All eyes went to Lena. They understood. The scars she bore had meaning now. And I hated having to use her as a living exhibit. She bore it all though. With her chin held high, she let them look. My fists clenched and I strained against the shackles.

“So what kind of help do you want from us?” Derek said. “You know there’s a treaty between the Kentucky Pack and us. They stay on their side. We stay on ours.”

“How’s that working for you?” I asked. “I’ve heard rumors for years that Able’s tried to encroach on your lands in different ways. Given a chance, he’ll wipe you out next. The land you claim is far too valuable.”

“He’s been trying for decades,” Alec said. “He’s failed every time. We can take care of ourselves. Why would we risk our families and our mates?”

“Because we’ve done it for you,” I said leveling a hard stare at Derek. He couldn’t deny it.

“So what is it you want?” Derek said.

I took a breath. “Weapons,” I said simply. “We’ve heard rumors that you have access to ammunition that can bring down a shifter. Mac said he’s seen it.”

Derek curled his lips back, showing his fangs. Just that simple, primal threat told me everything I needed to know. Oh, he knew about the Wolfkiller ammo, all right.

“You want us to arm you with weapons you could turn around and use against us?” Bas said. “I’m sorry...Derek. We do owe a debt to Morris for helping bring you home. But this?”

“We owe a life for a life,” Mal said. “Nothing more.”

“Have you all forgotten how Valent has tried to infiltrate our packs and our land?” Alec said. “You know what he tried to do to my mate. I say we give the Mammoth Forest wolves anything and everything we can.”

“None of you have any fucking idea what you’re talking about.” The lone Alpha stepped away from Pat. His green eyes glinted and he stepped off the porch. “You have no idea the kind of power a Tyrannous Alpha like Valent can exert. And his has gone unchecked for generations. As long as he lives…”

“Luke,” Mal said to him. “We know what we’re up against.”

“You don’t,” I said. “That’s my point. We need the means to kill him. He surrounds himself with Pack guards day and night. But, he’s weakening. We can get to him. We can kill him. But they outnumber us. Wolfkiller ammo can help level the playing field. Do you have it or don’t you?”

Again, Derek’s wolf tried to burst forth. Whatever the story on the Wolfkiller ammo, he was guarding it fiercely. My best guess was it was somehow tied to his own mate.

Bas put a steadying hand on Derek’s back. Then, he turned to me. “Look, we all know the threat Able Valent poses. The Wild Lake wolves have gone up against men like him time and again. But, whatever we do, we do to protect our own packs first.”

“I respect that,” I said. And I did. “But there’s going to come a time when defeating Valent will be the only way to protect your packs. Right now, we’re the first line of defense and have the best chance to get close to him. So, let us fight as allies. You have my word that no Mammoth Forest Alpha will ever go against the Wild Lake packs.”

“I’ve heard enough,” Mal said. “You’ve made your request. We know what we owe Mac Morris. We know what Able Valent is. Let’s put this to a vote and be done with it.”

“So you do have access to the ammo I need,” I said. My heart leaped with hope. The old man sitting next to the blind man rose and stepped off the porch. Derek went half mad as he approached. His fingers turned to claws as he got between the stranger and me.

“Tinker, stand down,” Alec said, trying to intervene. Tinker. Tinker Lyle. Mac had mentioned him, but I didn’t know who he was.

“You bet your ass these boys have access to the ammo, son,” he said. “But it’s my ammo. I invented it. So I say I get a vote too. And I also say we haven’t heard all we need to hear.”

There was another rumble through the crowd. The front door to Pat’s house opened and a teenage boy came out. Recognition tickled the corners of my mind, but I couldn’t place him. He was tall, skinny and walked with a limp. He too bore horrible scars on his arms and across his neck.

“Hey, Jonah,” Pat said. “Wait.”

But, Jonah didn’t wait. His limp made his gait achingly slow. His back was bent and he held the porch railing to steady himself as he made his way down. Jonah’s wolf eyes shimmered. With each painstaking step he took, dread formed a hard knot in my stomach. Sweat poured down his neck with the effort of getting to the center of the yard on his own power. My eyes locked with Lena’s. She shook her head and shrugged. Though she’d spent time in Pat Bonner’s house, she clearly had no idea who this guy was either.

I scanned the Alphas. None of them made a move to go to the boy. I could not sense whose pack he belonged to. That alone would have given me pause. But, there was something else as well. As Jonah finally made it to Derek’s side, he slowly lifted his eyes to mine. His were bloodshot from the effort of walking. The wolf inside him lay dormant. He was an omega. And I knew with instant, cold clarity, he wasn’t from Wild Lake at all.

“Go ahead, Jonah,” Mal said. He put a hand on Jonah’s shoulder in solidarity.

“Who are you?” I asked but instantly regretted it.

“That’s my question to you,” the boy said. He couldn’t be more than sixteen years old. I’d seen kids like him a thousand times. Kentucky was teeming with them. It was the wretched byproduct of Able Valent’s meddling with the natural order. Forcing matings between betas and women who weren’t meant for them produced weaker omegas, not more strong betas.

I tried to soften my voice. “I’ve already told you that. My name is Payne Fallon.”

Jonah flinched when I said it. It occurred to me he already knew it and the knot in my stomach spread, becoming cold fingers of fear skittering up my spine.

“You hear that?” Jonah shouted, his voice cracking. “He admits it. This is Payne Fallon. Do you need me to remind you who he is?”

“Look, son,” I said, reaching for him.

Jonah’s wolf eyes flared and he growled a warning. He nearly fell to the ground as he staggered back.

“I’m not your son,” he said. “And you don’t remember me. I remember you though.”

“Tell your story, Jonah,” Mal said. “Nobody’s going to hurt you.”

“What’s going on?” I asked.

Alec went to stand by Mal again. The white wolf and the black. “Jonah’s a friend of the packs. We gave him sanctuary I think two years ago or so. He escaped across the border from Kentucky into Indiana. He said he had help.”

“Jagger Wilkes helped me,” Jonah said. “He and his mate.”

“Right,” I said, not understanding the hostility coming from the kid. “Jagger is one of the Mammoth Forest wolves like me.” I pointed to my bare chest. If this kid escaped the Chief Pack, surely he knew what my ink meant. Why did it seem like he was about to fuck me over?

“You’re nothing like him!” Jonah shrieked. He raised a trembling finger and pointed straight at my chest. “He’s lying. About all of it. I don’t know how he infiltrated Jagger’s group, but don’t believe him. He did this to me. He was Able Valent’s thug. I tried to stand up to him when Valent’s men came for my older brother. They didn’t want me. They said I was too weak. But, my brother wasn’t. They were going to make him serve Valent. We tried to run. The Pack caught up with us. Valent dragged us into the middle of the street so everyone could watch. I got away easy. My brother didn’t. He’s dead. Payne Fallon killed him. I saw it with my own eyes. Valent ordered and Payne carried it out. Then, he gave me this to remind me. As if I’d ever forget.”

My vision clouded. Jonah’s truth slammed into my chest. He was right. I was everything he said I was. I didn’t remember Jonah specifically, but there had been others like him I did remember. Valent had gone on a sweep a few years ago, trying to round up traitors. He made me put them down. And I did it. Oh, God. I did it.

The poor kid was broken from the effort of speaking it in front of so many people. As I looked up, every pair of eyes in Wild Lake stared hard at me. Waiting.

Mal spoke first. He turned to me, eyes blazing. “Well?” he asked. “Do you have an answer for this?”

My whole body trembled with rage and guilt. There was nothing I could say. Lena’s words burned through me.

Tell them the truth.

“No,” I said. “I have no answer. I have no excuse. But, the boy’s right. I was Able Valent’s executioner. I did everything he said and worse.”

Mal walked across the yard, back straight, eyes blazing. “You’ve killed other shifters at Able Valent’s command?”

The chains pulled at me, keeping me from standing fully straight to meet his stare. It didn’t matter. Jonah had laid me bare. I could not lie. The voice that came out of me didn’t sound like my own. My reckoning had finally come.

“Seven,” I said as the weight of the chains and my sins dragged me down. “Seven men have died under my hand.”

A sob ripped through me, but it wasn’t my own. I lifted my eyes and found Lena across the yard. She’d collapsed against Pat Bonner, her eyes filled with tears.

I’d done everything Jonah said and worse. And now, I couldn’t hide it even from her. She backed away, trying to put as much distance between us as she could. I couldn’t think. I couldn’t see. The scars she bore seemed to burn even brighter as she realized it could have been me that made them. It wasn’t. I couldn’t. But, the pain she’d suffered would forever twist her away from me. My heart turned to ash as she turned, staggered through the front door of the house and closed it on me.

There was nothing left. I turned to face the judgment of the Wild Lake wolves.