Ryan looked around the circle, stunned by the certainty on everyone’s faces. All these families, who usually argued about their own rights until the proverbial cows returned, were suddenly quiet. Not a contrary word. Not an aggressive stance. They were just…united.

He felt a blast of pride shoot through Kate’s body, lighting almost every part of her, and the completeness of it just about brought Ryan to his knees.

The pressure of her fingers on his hand was nothing compared to that. But it was an outward show of what she felt on the inside. She had seen this coming, and he loved her all the more for her optimism. For her unshakeable belief in him.

“I know I’m not a Trewitt officially yet, but I want to pledge my fealty to Ryan Travis of the Trewitt pack, to be my alpha. From this day, until my last day,” Kate said, her voice cutting through the silence like a sharp blade. She sank down to one knee, bowing her head until he couldn’t see those beautiful eyes of hers anymore.

He wanted to pull her to her feet, to look into her face. But he wouldn’t diminish the power of her gesture by telling her not to do it. She’d read the moment and reacted to it.

“So says the Young family,” said Tim, sinking down to one knee. He shot a look at the big swathe of Youngs who stood on either side of him until they all did the same.

“And the Pollacks.” Soren’s tall, graceful frame led his wife and brothers and their wives and children into a similar posture.

It took a moment for the black-and-silver-bearded old Culver to tear himself away from the low, whispered conversation he was engaged in with his two daughters, but finally Ma yelled out, “Oh, Uriah. Put the past behind you and bury the hatchet. Get on your damn knee.” She took a big breath and followed up with, “If I can forgive, then you can forgive.”

“We’re not forgiving anything,” Uriah said in his thick accent, sticking out his hairy lower lip. “Your husband killed my son and my grandson. This isn’t about forgiveness.”

“It’s about loyalty.” Candace Culver stepped out into the circle. “Ryan Travis has been working hard to help our family survive. To make up for what his daddy did to my mate and my son. And I respect that. Out of respect for Ryan, we’re going to bend the knee, and we’re going to fight alongside the rest of the family if need be. We all have Trewitt blood from a hundred years back, and nobody spills Trewitt blood without retribution.”

“You’re damn right,” said Uriah, like a cheer.

“We pledge our fealty to Ryan Travis.” Candace stepped back, beside her father, and the three of them sank to the ground together.

Ryan was bowled over by wave of relief so large, it felt like a cat-five hurricane. He could barely stand against it. He had been working for years to foster this kind of solidarity to foster between the families. He’d never considered that they would band together because of an outside threat.

But his mother had. And Beau and Dee had. They’d apparently laid the groundwork for this to happen by calling each one of the families after the fight with Phillip Quade. And as he looked at his pack, his family, sitting on their knees in front of him, Ryan had never felt so emotional in his life. And so certain. And so confident.

This was the right choice for all of them.

“I accept your pledges of fealty, and promise to discharge my duties as your alpha with the utmost fairness and courage. I will lead this pack to a better tomorrow.” He nodded, making eye contact with each of them as he spoke.

“Does everyone know the pledge spell?” Bracken asked, looking around the circle. When everyone nodded, he made intentional eye contact with Ryan and nodded. This was the moment they had been preparing for. The pack would finally be transferred to Ryan’s shoulders.

“I don’t see everyone,” Ryan said, counting family members. If he discounted Kate, he was still coming up short.

“Will and Dee aren’t here,” said Dee’s mom. But he knew that.

“And Ellie,” said Candace Culver. He knew that, too. There was still one…

“Wait.” Bracken used his finger to count the Trewitts again. “Where’s Jace?”

“I haven’t heard from him since y’all left Texas,” Ryan said, touching his pockets. “And I still don’t have my phone. It’s possible he texted me.”

“Did he ride back with you?” Bracken asked Dee’s two youngest brothers, who had also been in Somewhere. Both young men shook their heads.

“I thought you took him,” said one.

“He said he was going with you after we got the horse,” said the other.

“We’re sure he didn’t go with Dee?” asked Judson.

Tension rippled through the group. Jace had actually been in Somewhere, with the rest of the family, and could have had any number of run-ins with the Quades. What if they’d taken out their anger toward the Trewitts on him?

“Here I am.” Dee’s voice rang through the air behind the circle, and they all looked back at the house to find Deirdre and Will running toward them. She had something familiar in her hand. “Is this yours?”

Ryan looked at the little electronic device and suddenly recognized it as his cell phone. It had the same sticker along the back with his name and home number on it that it had always had. The screen was a little cracked, but it was otherwise intact.

“Yeah.” He reached for it. “Where did you find this?”

“Near the Hummingbird Diner, sort of in the alley.” She took her mate’s hand and stepped into the circle. “We picked up Ellie’s trail again in town. It ended at an empty parking spot near the diner, and there was blood all over the alley that smells like it belonged to the wolf whose scent we picked up.”

Ryan looked down at Kate. She mouthed, Christian, and he nodded to her. He wasn’t sure whether to tell the pack the whole story, or save the details for another time, but before he could decide, Dee kept talking.

“Ellie’s scent stops there. We tried walking all over downtown, but we couldn’t smell her again. It just kept leading us back to that spot. So we found Ryan’s phone, and we thought it might all be connected.”

“I think we know who has her,” Ryan said, shaking his head. After her search had come up dry, Ma had called around to everyone, and no one had seen Christian. With the lack of a trail to follow, and no more blood, he’d assumed the wolf had run off.

It had never occurred to him that Christian would take his human cousin along.

“Who?” Dee asked.

“Not the Quades.” Ryan held out his hands, trying to put everyone at ease. There would be no reason for him to take Ellie to the Quades. She had no rodeo-royalty blood. Plus, Kate had told him how much they looked down on humans.

“Her truck is gone,” Beau offered, trying to be helpful. “What if she went to go pick up Jace in Somewhere?”

“She wouldn’t do that without calling me,” Ma said, shaking her head. They were all still kneeling, and Ryan felt ridiculous leaving them in that position for so long.

“Bracken, why don’t you say the spell that will transfer the whole pack’s bonds to me, instead of having everyone pledge one-by-one. This way, I’ll be able to track Ellie and Jace, and we’ll get this handled and make sure the Quades aren’t responsible. We’ll find everyone.”

“I’m going with you,” Dee said.

Will stepped up beside her. “I’m going too. I’m your enforcer, and I’ll help you find them.”

“Okay.” Ryan looked at his alpha. “Let’s say the spell so we can get on the road.”

Bracken stood, placing his hands on Ryan’s shoulders. While everyone continued to kneel, he said two long Gaelic phrases, pausing on the words that carried the most significance. A collective light, not unlike the shimmer of a shift, billowed around them, and Ryan felt an unimaginable power coalesce inside him. It was heavy, but it filled him with the confidence and surety he’d always known would be his when it came time to lead.

He was the one. The pack looked to him. They trusted him. He was going to be the alpha they needed. He would find Ellie and Jace. He would end this war with the Quades. He would do whatever he had to do to make his family safe and prosperous.

Kate’s hand found his again, and he pulled her up beside him. She was going to be his rock. He could already tell. In all this, she had been the one to believe, when all odds were against her, and when it looked like she’d never have the happy ending she deserved. Her faith in him was unshakeable. She had always believed, and he would love her for that for the rest of his days.

And there would be many, many days left for them. Days and nights and years and decades, and he would never stop loving her. Fate had shown him the truth: he would never be the alpha he needed to be without her.

Thank Fate, he’d never have to try.