A wave of outrage, sharp like stinging rain, blanketed the room. Harming children? What was next?

“This is quick for posturing, isn’t it?” Maxwell rubbed his chin. “If war is what Warren Pellini wants, he’ll have it rammed right down his f**king throat.”

“What’s the history anyway? Between you and Pellini?” Ben asked, after checking in with his people.

“Warren Pellini was one of my wolves. Not very high ranked. He was shunned, took several wolves with him and set up his group just outside my main territory. His family mainly but other rogues showed up. They didn’t do much at first so we ignored them. He wasn’t worth my effort, or so I thought. And by the time I realized he was, he’d gone underground. There’s a bounty on his head as a feral wolf in my region. I should have killed him right off.” Maxwell sighed. “He was an idiot. I was glad to be rid of him and his crazy ideas. I hadn’t anticipated he’d set up an organized crime syndicate. And by the time it came out and I got wind of it, he’d moved around so much and kept low so I couldn’t find him.”

“Hindsight.” Cade raised one eyebrow at the other Alpha. “Too late for recriminations. We push forward because there’s nothing to be gained in looking back. He’s dead. Period. Harming children is just another reason, but we’ve had reason enough for some time. The moment he put silver in my sister, he signed his death warrant.” Violence fueled Cade’s rage like a furnace. Heat suffused him, he clenched his fists, wishing Pellini was right there so he could rip him from limb to limb himself.

When he looked up, he saw approval and a mirror of his rage in Ben’s eyes.

The Council of War continued to meet, shoring up border regions, stepping up defenses and preparing for any offensive actions that would come soon enough.

“All right, we’re alone, what’s up? Nina okay?” Cade settled in on the phone in his room back at Tegan’s to receive a lecture from Lex.

“What’s this about a special meeting tomorrow? Are you secure enough? Why is it offsite?”

“Lex, let me introduce myself. I’m Cade Warden, I’ve been the Alpha of the Cascadia Wolf Pack for twelve years. I’m no wet behind the ears cub. And Ben is no slouch with security. The informant is coming. I want to meet her myself.”

“I don’t like this one bit.”

“I know you don’t. You want to be here and you can’t, so deal with that. You have other responsibilities. Nina comes first. By the way, you’re the best Enforcer there is, but not the only one. I have four of my own guard and there are plenty here as well. I’ll call you when it’s over.”

“No one can handle it as well as I could. I don’t trust your safety to anyone else.”

“I’ll tell Tegan you said that, shall I?” Cade shoved his annoyance away. It wasn’t the time for a sibling spat with his brother. “Look, Lex, I know you’re concerned and I appreciate it but everyone seems to forget I’m Alpha for a reason. I can handle myself. On top of that, Ben and Tegan run a tight ship.” Cade told Lex all about how the two of them seemed to form one airtight security machine.

“Damn. Is that as scary as it sounds?” Lex laughed.

“It is. Now, I’m going to bed. Give your wife a kiss for me and I’ll talk to you tomorrow afternoon when I finish up. I’ll be home by the weekend. When I get back, I expect a full report on what we’re doing to keep our wolves safe.” Cade hung up moments later and went downstairs to spend some time with his sisters.

Chapter Three

Grace tried not to fidget as she sat at the park bench near the bus stop. They’d told her to wait there for instructions. She was pretty sure Warren’s people hadn’t followed her. Pretty sure. All she had was hope at that point.

A man sat next to her, putting a book down between them and leaning forward. It was titled The Source. At second sniff, the man wasn’t a man but a wolf and not a Pellini wolf.

Picking the book up, she opened it to the bookmarked page. Follow me and get in the car. Don’t look back.

An SUV with dark windows slid up and the door opened. Grace followed the man and got in, shutting the door behind her.

“We’re on the way to the meeting now. Are you wearing any device that could be a tracker?” The man turned to her. Blue-gray eyes took her in from head to toe. Handsome, this wolf, but violence emanated from him as well. She wondered if he blamed her for the insanity her brother spread like a disease.

“I-I don’t think so.”

“My name is Ben Stoner. We’re going to stop and check you over first and then we’ll get to the meeting. You have nothing to fear from us unless you bring it on yourself.” He sat back quietly until they reached a warehouse and drove up and inside.

“Out now please.” He held the door open and steadied her with a helping hand. “Wand her.”

“Don’t you want my name?” Grace asked in what she hoped was a calm voice.

“No. Not yet. Save it for the meeting. Do you have weapons?”

“No!”

“Hey, don’t get offended. I’m taking you into a meeting with important people, I can’t let you walk in there packing. It’s sort of my job and all.”

“And my kind isn’t trustworthy?” She knew it sounded petulant but she was risking her life for them.

“I don’t know shit about your kind. I only know about Warren Pellini and his kind. If you’re his kind, no, you’re not trustworthy. But it seems to me, if you’re on the level, you’re risking a lot and you’re not his kind.”