When Luna arrived at the flat, she was relieved to see that Silver wasn’t home. He’d likely headed to the club already; Ripper had no doubt demanded that he come in and wash dishes, or clean toilets with a toothbrush, or something equally humiliating.

All she knew was that she was glad not to have to face him just now. The last thing she wanted was to tell him what she’d learned, let alone to have him see her torment after the assault of information that had clobbered her over the last several hours.

Her blood boiled to think their Alpha had lied to his Pack for years. He’d been all too pleased to let them believe that Kirith was a violent monster, and apparently the bastard didn’t feel a single ounce of remorse about it. Ripper was as full of shite as her instincts had always told her.

Not to mention that he’d destroyed the life of the only man she’d ever cared about.

She dragged herself into her room, sat down on the edge of her bed and lay the Dragon bone knife that Amara had given her on her nightstand. Her mind swirled with thoughts of how badly she wanted to pull her brother away from Ripper’s clutches once and for all.

But there was something else, too. She was still thinking about what had happened with Kirith last night, still reliving aftershocks of her erotic encounter with him. What should have been a pleasant memory had quickly been marred by his inability to meet her eye that morning. It was as if she’d become a source of pain for him, when all she wanted was to provide him with pleasure, to make his life better.

As she thought of his coldness during the strange Guild meeting, she felt empty inside, like someone had reached in and yanked out everything that had kept her going all these years.

She told herself that some part of her should have been at least a little glad to finally understand what it was that she’d seen in the woods thirteen years earlier. To know that she hadn’t witnessed a murder, but a ceremony borne of love and sorrow. It was a confirmation of Kirith’s ability to love, of his goodness.

But how could such a thing ever bring her joy? How could anyone associate happiness with the sort of suffering that the Dragon shifter and his loved ones had endured? The events of that night were the reason he could barely muster a smile, the reason he couldn’t even bring himself to kiss her on the lips.

He was terrified of love, of affection, of everything that those accursed feelings had brought into his world.

Exhausted and wracked with deep loneliness, Luna lay down on her stomach, pressing her face into her pillow, and let out the sobs that had been gathering inside her like storm clouds for hours. She’d held them deep inside when she’d been with Kirith, because she’d wanted to be strong for him. She’d wanted him to know that no matter what, she would hold fast, an unbreakable shield against his pain.

What made her weep now was the realization that she wasn’t enough for him.

She could never be enough.

* * *

As Luna approached the entrance to the club at three p.m., a sense of dread mounted inside her. She wasn’t so much afraid of Ripper as what her Wolf might do to him, given the chance. Her Wolf, always wanting to run free and wild, had turned from a sprinter into a fighter who now had a mortal enemy in the form of her Alpha.

Never had she hated any being so much as she hated him.

Had it not been for Silver’s existence, Luna wouldn’t have headed to the club at all. She might even have packed her bags and left London and the Warkshire Pack behind for good. But the fact was that Silver still needed her.

Besides, Ripper was still scheming against the Dragons of the Guild. As long as they were threatened by his plotting, she could help by keeping an ear out and reporting her findings to them.

As unlikely as it seemed, she’d somehow become a double-agent for the Guild.

“Where’d you take off to last night, then?” Ripper’s voice called out the moment she stepped into the club. She pivoted around to see him striding over rapidly. The expression in his eyes was cross as usual, but fuck him. He had no right whatsoever to be angry. No right to exist at all. Her Wolf snarled inside her, begging to be released and to go after the Alpha’s fucking jugular. Maybe Silver would never have the strength to take on their leader. But she was seriously considering trying it herself.

“I didn’t feel so well,” she growled, trying her best to hold her déor back.

“Hmm. Silver said your stomach was queasy.” Ripper was studying her as though to assess whether her story could be true. Suspicious and vile Alpha, as always. It takes a devious little turd to know one, thought Luna.

She looked around until she spotted her brother, who was busy cleaning some glasses behind the bar. Good old reliable Silver, always doing his Alpha’s grunt work. If he only knew what Ripper really was, he might not be so quick to oblige him.

“You all better, then?”

“What?” It took a second for Luna to register that Ripper was still talking. Greasy wanker. “Fine,” she said, working hard to keep her voice calm as her eyes met his. “Silver made me some soup. I’m feeling much better today.”

“Well I hope so, because I need you on a full shift tonight. No more running off.” Ripper leaned in close to speak, sending Luna’s skin into a series of disgusted shudders. “Listen—have you heard anything about that Dragon who’s been hanging about in Hyde Park?”

Luna inhaled deep, her fingers curling into fists at her sides. Suddenly she was sorry to have left Amara’s blade at the flat. “Nope. Haven’t heard a thing.”

“You’ll let me know if you do,” said Ripper.

It wasn’t a question.

“Of course,” she replied, forcing herself to keep her eyes on his. If she averted them, he would probably accuse her of lying. I dare you, you bollocks-headed arse.

“Good. Because if I find out you or that brother of yours are concealing anything…”

Luna forced herself to smile. Must reassure the Alpha bastard. Must convince him that I’m his ally, at least until I figure out how to bring him down. “Come, now, I’d never keep anything from you, Ripper,” she said, cocking her head to the side and jutting out a hip in a deliberately flirtatious way. It was the only language the Alpha understood, aside from brute force. Considering what a master manipulator he was himself, he was awfully damned easy to manipulate. “You don’t need to worry.”

“Hmph,” Ripper grunted before turning away. “Just see to it that you don’t run off again before you’re through with your shift.”

“Of course,” said Luna. “I’ll be here.” God knows I won’t be visiting any Dragons for a quickie this evening. Or any evening ever again, for that matter.

When Ripper had disappeared into his office, she sidled over to the bar where Silver was working. “Thanks,” she said.

“For what?” he asked, rubbing a pint glass clean. He didn’t look at her. He was right pissed, she could tell.

“For covering for me last night. I know you don’t approve of my wandering off.”

“It’s not the wandering off I take issue with, Luna,” he replied. “It’s where you’re going. I know I haven’t been the best brother—the best guardian, but…”

She reached over and grabbed his arm. “Silver, you’re a great brother, and I don’t need a guardian. But listen, there’s something I should tell you,” she said, leaning in. “Something neither of us knew before.”

He finally set the glass down and turned her way. “Fine,” he sighed. “What is it?”

“It’s about Ripper. About what happened to Kirith’s family.”

Silver pulled his gaze away, looking suddenly like he was afraid to look her in the eye. She could see him chewing on his cheek nervously, a habit he’d developed over the years.

“Oh my God,” she said, pulling back, her jaw dropping. “You know. You’ve known all this time.”

“Yes, I know.”

“Well, why the hell did you never tell me?”

“It’s complicated, Luna—there’s more to it than just Kirith…”

“What do you mean?”

Silver looked around, his eyes narrowing, and spoke quietly. “Look, I’ll tell you everything, but not right now. Alpha’s coming.” In a quick jerk of his head, he nodded in the direction of Ripper’s office. Luna turned around to see the bastard walking out and turning towards them.

“Bugger,” she muttered. “We’ll talk at home, okay?”

Silver nodded. “Absolutely.”

* * *

The doors opened at five p.m., and shifters were already roaming into the club shortly after that. With the help of a few other Pack members, Luna had set up a series of round tables in the main area, perfect for watching the series of television sets that Ripper had put on display along the walls. Some football match or other was on—Manchester United playing Birmingham or some such. Luna had never cared much for the sport. It was tedious to watch men boot a ball back and forth around a giant field, after watching people shift into Wolves all her life.

After she’d changed into her chosen outfit for the evening, she flitted through the space as her job dictated. This time she was wearing a white blouse with a short grey skirt and a pair of knee-high boots. It was so bloody wrong that her brother got to shield himself behind a hunk of wood, while she had to wander in and out between tables, showing off her body to horny shifters looking for a quick snog.

Thankfully, her shift was mostly uneventful. Men ordering pints, their eyes trained on the TV sets around the space. Luna kept her ears open for any news of Dragon sightings that could help the Guild.

Kirith may have pushed her away, but she cared for him, and that meant she cared about the other Dragons. They were the good guys in this war, and though she was tangled up with the bad ones, there was no reason she couldn’t come out on the right side of history.

“Heard anything?” Silver asked her at one point when she’d gone over to get a tray of drinks.

“No. You?”

“Not exactly. I’d keep an eye on table seven over there, though. Something’s up with those blokes.”

Luna turned to look. Three very large men were sitting with their heads together, ignoring the televisions. They were talking quietly amongst themselves, looking like a bunch of thieves about to commit a bank heist.

“I’ll go over and check them out,” she said.

When she’d delivered the drinks to their destination, she wandered towards table seven, her keen ears listening intently for any revealing statements.

At first she wasn’t entirely sure what they were discussing, but then the topic seemed to shift to Lumen’s family. Luna grabbed a white cloth off her tray and pretended to clean a nearby table, her head cocked to listen.

“When they arrived, the family was gone…” she heard one man saying. “It seems that someone had warned them.”

“That’s ridiculous,” another shifter replied. “No one knew we were coming.”

“Well, they say at least one of the Guild members has the Sight. They probably saw us from miles away.”

“Fuckin’ hell. They’ll be one step ahead of us the whole way at this rate.”

One of the men stopped talking and looked sideways at Luna, who was still doing her best to look occupied.

“Oi, love, c’mere!” he shouted.

Luna turned to him, scowling with annoyance that she hadn’t retrieved any useful information. “What can I get you?” she asked as she approached their table.

“What can’t you get me?” The man laughed as he grabbed her by the waist, pulling her close. Aggressively, he swung his free arm around behind her and cupped one of her arse cheeks in his palm.

“A little of this,” he said, laughing. Luna shoved her hands against him and pushed herself loose. In the distance she could see Silver, rage creasing his face, reaching down to grab something behind the bar. She shook her head almost imperceptibly. I’ve got this.

“That’s not what I meant,” she hissed. “I was wondering if you’d like a drink.”

“Right, then,” the man said, rising to his feet. He must have been six foot six, almost as tall as Kirith. He was a Wolf shifter, but a bulky one, all muscles and brawn.

Definitely no brain.

He bent his face close to hers and smiled. “I want to know what you’ve been doing in Hyde Park at night, pretty lady.”

“What?” she asked, nearly dropping the tray she was carrying. Smooth, Luna. You really convinced them of your innocence with that move.

“One of my Pack mates recognized you last night,” he told her, gesturing to the other side of the room, where a bunch of sleazy looking shifters were enjoying a pint. One of them, a man with dark hair, a scar, and a cocky look on his face, raised his glass. Luna recognized him as the shifter who’d wounded her.

So, this giant plonker was a part of the Pack that had tried to assault her. Big surprise. “Tell me,” he said, “why would a Dragon shifter save you from a bunch of Wolves, then?”

Luna thought about denying it, but there was no point. “Because the fucking Wolves had already injured me, and they were planning to do more. Your Pack is a bunch of psychotic plonkers,” she snarled.

“You do realize that Dragon shifters are the enemy, don’t you, love? Oh, some Wolves seem to take a shine to them. Some Packs even insist that Drags have helped them. But they’re brutal monsters, make no mistake.”

Luna raised an eyebrow. “Really? That’s interesting, because in my experience the enemy is the people who try to do me physical damage and threaten sexual assault. Not the ones who help me get away.”

The man backed off a few inches, a look of anger on his face, then threw his head back and let out a deep belly laugh. “You’re charmed,” he said. “You’ve been charmed by a sodding Dragon. You poor, silly little thing. Well, don’t worry; it’ll wear off soon. We plan to take him out tonight.” He stepped closer still, breathing the odour of beer all over her face. “With your help, of course.”

“I would never help the likes of you. So here’s a thought: why don’t you piss off?” said Luna.

“Oh, I suspect you will help us, without even intending to,” the man laughed.

“Over my dead fucking body,” she snarled.

“If you insist, sweetheart.”

Luna turned on her heel and stormed off towards Silver’s station, gasping for breath. What the hell did the man mean? How could she possibly help them to get to Kirith?

There was still an hour left in her shift, but there was no way she was going to remain in the club now. Not while she knew that a plan was afoot to take out her Dragon man. If Ripper fired her for leaving, so be it. If he kicked her out of the Pack, so much the better.

If he had her killed, at least she’d die knowing that she’d given her life to protect a good man.

“What’s going on?” her brother asked as she approached. His eyes were trained on the table she’d come from, narrowed protectively. No doubt the bastards were still watching her.

“Nothing,” she muttered. “But I’ve got to get out of here. Can you cover for me again?”

“You’re leaving?” he asked. “If Ripper sees you cutting out early again…”

Luna didn’t respond. She just looked at him, her eyes pleading silently.

“I’m coming with you,” Silver said, throwing down the white cloth that had been draped over his left shoulder.

“No,” she said, reaching for his hand and squeezing. “You stay here, or they’ll get suspicious.”

“You’re going to see the Dragon,” he said. “Look, Luna, I’m really sorry that I never told you about all that. You have to know that I had my reasons.”

“It’s all right. I’m sure you did. But we’ll talk about it later, all right?”

Silver nodded. For a moment he looked like he might protest, but the expression passed. “Be careful,” he said.

“I will.”