Roni inclined her head, but she didn’t appear convinced. “Who else could be responsible?”

“The extremists.” At the skeptical expressions directed his way, Jesse added, “Think about it. Who better to use to kill shifters than other shifters? Especially when no one would expect the extremists to do it.”

Frowning, Shaya shook her head. “The extremists like the violence, they enjoy hurting us. They wouldn’t have someone else do it for them.”

“We should consider the council,” Derren claimed. “We know too much. We have evidence that one of their members was using the jackals as their very own attack dogs.”

Shaya nodded. “The council doesn’t like to get their hands dirty. Putting a hit out on us—that’s their style.”

Nick sighed. “Until we find out who this is and eliminate them, we need to step up security and defend our territory rather than disperse to go hunting the culprits.”

“We can’t afford to separate,” said Shaya, her worry reflected in her voice. “Especially when our pack is so small.”

“And if we leave our territory to go hunting, it makes us easier targets.” Nick curled an arm around Shaya. “On our own territory, we’re more powerful. So we don’t make it easy for anyone hoping to collect on the bounty by separating. We make them come to us. And then we kill each and every person who tries to come at us. Word will soon get out that anyone who attempts to collect on the bounty will disappear.”

“The Phoenix Pack will probably do the same,” Marcus told them.

“I’ll notify Trey of what’s happening,” said Nick. “After that, we need to inform the rest of our pack. We need them to be vigilant.”

So, having called everyone into the kitchen of the main lodge for a meeting, they did just that. Kathy, Kent, and Caleb were clearly worried. To Derren, Ally seemed more pissed than anything else. When he saw her pinch the bridge of her nose while her brow creased in pain, he cursed himself for not considering that being around a bunch of shifters who were currently vibrating with rage would be hard on her.

Leaning into her, Derren asked in a low voice, “Need to get out of here?”

“I’m fine.” Her expression smoothed out as she strived to hide her pain, but she didn’t fully manage it.

“Come on.” He cupped her elbow as he rose, bringing her to her feet. “I’m taking Ally back to her lodge,” he told Shaya.

Realization crossed the Alpha female’s expression as she took in the lines of strain on Ally’s face. Shaya gave her a sympathetic smile. “Go before your head bursts.”

Frustrated at being literally dragged out of the lodge, Ally huffed at Derren. “I was handling it just fine.” He simply snorted at her. “And I don’t need anyone to walk me home.” She’d told him that plenty of times, but he always did it anyway, ignoring her mutterings. She’d like to say she was annoyed at having him insist on escorting her home, but she’d actually come to enjoy his company. Yeah, he’d initially been a misguided ass. But there was a lot to him that she admired and respected—especially that once his loyalty was given, it was absolute. After the betrayal of the Collingwood wolves, particularly that of Zeke, she appreciated just how important a quality that was.

As if thinking about him tempted fate, she received a text message from Zeke just as she reached her lodge. It was the same ol’ spiel he’d spouted in several of his other messages, and the whole thing was getting tedious.

Noticing that Ally’s expression had morphed into one that he hadn’t seen for a couple of days, Derren guessed, “Zeke?”

Her head shot up. “How did you know?”

“You only get that look on your face when it’s him.”

“Huh. Well, good night.” She had no wish to discuss Zeke. But Derren being Derren, he followed her inside the lodge and into the kitchen. Persistent little bastard.

She ignored his powerful body leaning against the counter as she made a single cup of coffee, communicating that his time was up. Not that she expected it to bother him. In fact, the harder she tried to get rid of him, the more determined he became to stick around. Derren wasn’t a person who could be handled.

He invaded her personal space, and Ally couldn’t help but tense. Not because she didn’t want him close, but because she did. And that wasn’t at all good, because he had the ability to reduce her body to a puddle of need. Each and every time his skin came into contact with hers—no matter how brief the contact was—his arousal snaked into her system and served to increase her own.

“Let me guess,” Derren drawled, barely holding back a growl at the idea of Zeke refusing to leave her alone. “He wants you to go back to the pack and he promises it will be different this time and that he’s willing to listen to what you have to say.”

She blinked. “Wow. That was good. Do something else. What am I thinking right now?”

“You’re picturing me naked.” Unable to help himself, Derren crowded her and skimmed his nose over the crook of her neck like he’d been aching to do all fucking day. “Your scent . . . It makes me want to bite you.” A voice in his mind told him to pull back, reminded him that she was another guy’s mate. His wolf growled at that, opposed to the idea of any other male possessing her. But it wasn’t just any male, dammit, it was Cain. And Cain was his friend and . . . “Fuck it, I can make new friends.”