[LILY'S POV]

I ran barefoot across the desert, rocks tearing into my soles, my lungs burning.

Behind me, wolves howled. Getting closer.

A gray wolf burst from the brush.

I screamed, veering right. My foot caught and I went down hard. The wolf lunged.

Black fur slammed into gray mid-leap.

Ford. He'd followed me.

They hit the ground in a tangle of teeth and claws. The gray wolf yelped as Ford's jaws found its throat.

"Keep running!" Ford's wolf voice was clear. "Don't stop!"

I scrambled to my feet and ran.

More howls. From the right. Behind. Surrounding us.

A brown wolf appeared in my path.

Ford crashed into it from the side. They rolled, snarling.

"LILY!" A new voice. Male. "This way!"

I spun. A man stood beside a four-wheeler, waving frantically. Dark hair. Scars matching Ford's.

Owen.

I ran. He grabbed my arm, hauling me onto the four-wheeler.

"What about Ford?"

"He'll catch up! Hold on!"

We shot forward. Three more wolves burst out. One lunged. Its claws scraped metal.

Owen swerved. I wrapped my arms around his waist.

Behind us, Ford's black wolf emerged, running full-speed. Five wolves chased him.

The fastest wolf-massive and silver-leaped, landing on Ford's back. They went down hard.

Ford rolled, then went still, exposing his throat.

The silver wolf's jaws opened-

Ford's hind legs came up, claws raking the silver wolf's belly. The wolf yelped. Ford was on his feet, jaws clamping its front leg.

Bone cracked.

Ford ran, injured leg dragging.

"There!" Owen pointed. "The second cabin!"

A structure appeared. Smaller. More isolated.

We reached it as Ford caught up. Owen killed the engine.

Ford shifted to human, bleeding from a dozen wounds. Blood dripped from his shoulder, ribs, thigh.

"Inside. Now."

The cabin was tiny. One room. Bed, table, supplies.

Ford locked the door, moved to the window. His hands shook.

"We have five minutes." He turned, and his gold eyes were desperate. "Five minutes for you to decide if I'm telling the truth or if I'm just another monster."

"Ford-"

"No." He grabbed a folder, papers scattering. "You want proof? Here."

He slammed down a photograph. Tyler standing over bodies. Wolf bodies.

"Stoneclaw massacre. My packmates dead." His voice cracked. "That's everyone I loved."

I stared at Tyler's cold face.

"Bank records," Ford continued, throwing down papers. "Payments from Tyler. Text messages planning it."

He wasn't calm anymore. His hands shook.

"Marriage contract." He jabbed at highlighted sections. "Clause twenty-three. Luna-born bloodline. All rights transfer to Tyler upon consummation. Clause twenty-four. If you die within the first year, he keeps everything."

"What's Luna-born-"

"It means you're royalty!" Ford shouted. "You can command other wolves! Tyler hunted your kind to extinction!"

He shoved another document at me.

"Private investigator's report. Tyler commissioned this three months before he met you. It traces your bloodline to Marcus and Elena Blackwood. Your real parents. Murdered sixteen years ago when you were seven."

My hands shook. "The Thompsons-"

"Were paid guardians!" Ford's voice was ragged. "Paid to hide you! To suppress your wolf with drugs!"

He threw down medical records.

"Your name! Suppressants from age seven until the Thompsons died! Your real parents were murdered! You saw it happen! They made you forget!"

The room spun.

"No," I whispered. "I would remember-"

"You were seven and they drugged you!" Ford's hands slammed the table. "They took your memories! They took your wolf! Then Tyler found you anyway!"

He was breathing hard, blood dripping, body shaking.

"He courted you fast. Proposed faster. Rushed the wedding before your wolf woke naturally. He was going to mate you, then kill you before sunrise." Ford's voice dropped. "When you died, your power would transfer to him. You'd just be another dead Luna-born nobody remembered."

Tears streamed down my face. "Why are you telling me this?"

"Because I want you to LIVE!" Ford's shout was raw. "I watched my pack die! I won't watch you die too!"

"You don't even know me!"

"I know I'd rather die than let him touch you."

A howl cut through the air. Close.

Ford's head snapped toward the window. Terror replaced desperation.

"We don't have five minutes." He looked at me. "We have thirty seconds. They're already here. Twenty wolves. And Tyler's with them."

My heart stopped. "Tyler's here?"

"He's here." Ford's expression shifted to acceptance. Like he'd already accepted death.

"In thirty seconds, Tyler's wolves break down that door. I can fight three before they kill me. That gives you forty-five seconds to run out the back window."

"I'm not leaving you to die!"

"Yes, you are." He grabbed my shoulders. "If you stay, Tyler takes you. And everything I did was for nothing."

Outside, footsteps crunched. Voices shouted. Tyler's voice rose above them.

"Surround the cabin!"

Ford's hands tightened on my shoulders. "Does Tyler sound like love? The way he controlled you? Isolated you? How fast everything moved?"

I thought about Tyler's smile. His control.

Finally mine.

Not love. Ownership.

"Or does that sound like a trap?" Ford whispered.

The front door exploded inward.

Wolves poured through. Twenty at least.

Ford shifted, placing himself between me and them.

Tyler walked through the doorway. Still human. Still perfect. Still smiling.

"Hello, darling," he said. "Did you really think you could run from me?"

His eyes were empty.

"You're MINE, Lily. You belong to me."

Ford snarled.

Tyler's smile widened. "Stand down, exile. She's coming home." He gestured to his wolves. "Kill him."

The wolves advanced.

I grabbed a glass bottle and threw it.

It shattered against the lead wolf's head. The wolf yelped.

Every wolf turned to stare.

"No," I said, voice shaking but clear. "I'm not going anywhere with you."

Tyler's expression went still. "Excuse me?"

"I'm not going with you. I'm staying with him." I moved beside Ford's wolf. My hand touched his fur.

"Lily." Tyler's voice was patient. "You're confused. Traumatized."

"I know exactly what I'm saying." My fingers tightened in Ford's fur. "You planned to kill me."

"That's ridiculous. The exile is manipulating you."

"Then explain clause twenty-four. Explain the investigator. Explain why you rushed the wedding." My voice was steady despite the tears. "Explain why everything Ford said is true."

Tyler's mask cracked. Rage twisted his features.

"Fine. I'll drag you back."

He shifted.

His white wolf was massive. Beautiful. Deadly.

He lunged straight for Ford's throat.

Ford met him mid-air, and they collided with a sound like thunder.

Blood sprayed.

The other wolves circled, snarling, waiting for the order to join.

Through the chaos, Tyler's white wolf looked at me.

His jaws were clamped around Ford's throat.

One bite. That's all it would take.

"STOP!" I screamed.

Every wolf in the room froze

[LILY'S POV]

Every wolf in the room froze.

Not because of me. Because Tyler's white wolf had stopped mid-attack, his jaws still clamped around Ford's throat but not biting down.

Tyler shifted back to human, releasing Ford. Blood dripped from Ford's neck where Tyler's teeth had pressed into skin.

"Interesting," Tyler said, his voice cold. "She threw a bottle at my Beta. That's either courage or stupidity."

Ford shifted back, one hand pressed to his bleeding throat. "It's courage. Something you wouldn't recognize."

"Courage." Tyler laughed. "Is that what we're calling it?" He looked at me. "Darling, you just assaulted a Council-recognized pack member. That's a crime punishable by exile. Or death."

"I don't care," I said, even though my hands were shaking. "I'm not going back with you."

"Yes, you are." Tyler's voice was patient. Like explaining something to a child. "Because you signed a binding contract. Because you wore my ring. Because under pack law, you're mine until the Grand Council says otherwise."

"The contract is void," Ford said. "She signed under false pretenses. You lied about who you were. What you planned to do."

"Prove it." Tyler smiled. "Oh wait. You can't. Because everything you've shown her is fabricated. Fake documents. Doctored photographs. Lies from a desperate exile trying to steal another man's bride."

"They're not fake!" I shouted. "I saw the bank records! The text messages! The investigator's report!"

"Did you verify them?" Tyler asked calmly. "Did you check the dates against actual bank statements? Did you confirm the text messages came from my phone? Did you independently validate the investigator even exists?"

I opened my mouth. Closed it.

Tyler's smile widened. "Of course you didn't. Because you trusted him. A man you met six hours ago. A man who crashed your wedding, kidnapped you, and fed you a story designed to turn you against me."

"That's not-"

"Isn't it?" Tyler moved closer. "Think, Lily. Really think. He shows up at our wedding covered in scars, claiming I tortured him. Shows you documents claiming I'm a mass murderer. Tells you your entire life is a lie. And you believe him? Just like that?"

Doubt crept into my chest like ice water.

"Don't listen to him," Ford said quietly. "He's manipulating you. Making you question what you know is true."

"What she knows?" Tyler laughed. "She doesn't know anything. She's confused. Traumatized. And you're taking advantage of that."

He gestured to his wolves. They shifted back to human. Twenty naked men and women surrounding us.

"Here's what's going to happen," Tyler said. "Lily is coming home with me. We're going to the Grand Council tomorrow morning. We're going to present our case. And they're going to decide who's telling the truth."

"The Council is in your father's pocket," Ford said.

"My father is the Alpha of the Mitchell Pack. Of course he has influence. But the Grand Council has seven Alphas. Grant Mitchell is only one vote." Tyler's expression was reasonable. Logical. "If your evidence is real, if I'm really the monster you claim, the Council will see it. They'll rule in your favor."

"And if they don't?" I asked.

"Then you come home with me. We get married. We live happily ever after." Tyler's smile was gentle. "Like we planned."

"And Ford?"

"Ford gets executed for kidnapping and assault." Tyler shrugged. "Council law. Non-negotiable."

My stomach dropped. "No. That's not fair-"

"Fair?" Tyler's voice hardened. "He crashed our wedding. Destroyed church property. Injured six of my pack members. Kidnapped my bride. You think that deserves mercy?"

"He was protecting me!"

"From what?" Tyler spread his hands. "From a wedding? From a man who loves you? From a life of safety and comfort?" He moved closer. "Lily, I know you're scared. I know this is overwhelming. But I'm not your enemy. I'm the man who offered you a job when you were struggling. Who gave you a home. Who asked you to be my wife."

His voice was so reasonable. So calm. Everything Ford's wasn't.

"He's lying," Ford said, but there was desperation in his voice now. "Lily, don't let him twist this. You saw the evidence-"

"Evidence you provided," Tyler interrupted. "Evidence she can't verify. Evidence that conveniently paints you as a hero and me as a villain."

He held out his hand to me.

"Come home, Lily. Let the Council sort this out. If I'm guilty, they'll punish me. If he's lying, they'll punish him. Either way, justice will be served."

I stared at his outstretched hand.

Everything he said made sense. Logical. Reasonable.

But something in my chest screamed that it was wrong.

"I need more proof," I whispered.

Tyler's expression flickered. Just for a second. Annoyance. Then it smoothed back to patience.

"What kind of proof?"

"I want to talk to the survivors. The ones from Stoneclaw. The ones who gave testimonies."

"They're dead," Tyler said flatly.

"What?"

"All three witnesses died six months ago. Car accidents. All of them." Tyler's voice was sympathetic. "Tragic. But it happens."

"That's convenient," Ford said.

"That's reality." Tyler looked at me. "I'm sorry, Lily. I know you want certainty. But sometimes we have to make decisions based on trust. Who do you trust? A man you've known for six hours? Or a man who's been by your side for three months?"

My head spun.

"Show her the video," Ford said suddenly.

Tyler's expression went very still. "What video?"

"The security footage. From the night of the massacre. The one I mentioned in the documents." Ford looked at me. "Page forty-seven. Security camera footage from the Stoneclaw Alpha's office. Showing Tyler and his father planning the attack."

"That footage doesn't exist," Tyler said.

"It does. I have a copy."

"Then show it to her." Tyler's voice was challenging. "Right now. Prove I'm lying."

Ford's jaw clenched. "It's hidden. In a secure location. I couldn't bring it here-"

"How convenient." Tyler's smile was sharp. "You have evidence but can't produce it. Just like you have witnesses but they're all dead. Just like you have proof but it's all conveniently out of reach."

"I'm telling the truth!"

"Are you?" Tyler looked at me. "Or are you desperate? Alone? The last survivor of a massacred pack, looking for someone to blame?"

Ford's hands clenched into fists.

"I know grief, Ford," Tyler continued, his voice almost gentle. "I know what it does to people. How it twists reality. Makes you see enemies where there are none. I'm not your enemy. I'm just a man who wants to marry the woman he loves."

He turned back to me.

"Lily. Please. Come home. Let me prove I'm not the monster he says I am."

I looked at Ford. At his bleeding throat. At his desperate eyes. At the man who'd risked everything to save me.

Then I looked at Tyler. At his perfect face. At his reasonable words. At the man who'd given me stability when I had none.

"I don't know who to believe," I whispered.

"Then believe the law," Tyler said. "Believe the Grand Council. Believe in justice." He extended his hand again. "Come with me. Tomorrow morning, we'll let the Council decide. If Ford is telling the truth, I'll face punishment. If he's lying, he will. Either way, you'll know for certain."

It sounded so reasonable.

So logical.

But Ford's words echoed in my head. Does that sound like love? Or does that sound like a trap?

"No," I said quietly.

Tyler's expression hardened. "No?"

"I'm not going with you. Not yet." I moved closer to Ford. "I want to see the video. The security footage. I want to verify the evidence myself. Then I'll decide."

"That's not an option."

"Yes, it is." My voice was stronger now. "You said the Council decides tomorrow. Fine. Tomorrow morning, we all go to the Council. Ford brings his evidence. You bring yours. And I'll testify about what I've seen."

Tyler's mask cracked. Just for a second. Rage flickered across his features.

Then he smiled.

"Fine. Tomorrow morning. Grand Council chambers. Nine AM." He looked at Ford. "But if you don't show up, if you run, the Council declares you rogue. And every pack in North America will hunt you down."

"We'll be there," Ford said.

"Good." Tyler shifted back to wolf form. His pack followed. "See you tomorrow, darling. Try not to let him twist your mind any further before then."

They left. All twenty wolves disappearing into the desert night.

Silence crashed in.

Owen appeared from somewhere outside, moving into the cabin. "They're gone. For now."

Ford collapsed against the table, his hand still pressed to his bleeding throat.

"You're hurt," I said.

"I'm fine."

"You're not fine. You're bleeding-"

"I said I'm fine!" His shout echoed through the tiny cabin. Then, quieter, "I'm sorry. I just-" He looked at me. "You stayed. You chose to stay."

"I didn't choose you," I said carefully. "I chose to hear both sides. That's not the same thing."

Something like pain flickered in his eyes. "I know."

"Do you really have the video? The security footage?"

"Yes."

"Then show me. Right now. No more excuses. No more 'it's hidden somewhere safe.' Show me proof that you're telling the truth."

Ford looked at Owen. Owen nodded.

"It's in the truck," Owen said. "Encrypted drive. I'll get it."

He left.

Ford and I stood in the tiny cabin, the silence heavy between us.

"Why did you stay?" he asked quietly. "If you don't believe me yet, why didn't you go with Tyler?"

I thought about Tyler's smile. His perfect words. His reasonable tone.

And I thought about the way he'd looked at me. Like I was property.

"Because," I said slowly, "even if I don't know if you're telling the truth, I know Tyler was lying. About something. I could feel it."

Ford's expression softened. "That's your wolf. Even dormant, she knows. She can sense deception."

"Or I'm just paranoid."

"Or you're finally starting to trust your instincts."

Owen returned, holding a small hard drive.

"Here," he said, plugging it into a laptop he'd pulled from his bag. "But Lily, you need to know-once you see this, there's no going back. Once you know the truth, Tyler will know you know. And he'll do whatever it takes to silence you."

"Then let him try." I sat down at the table. "Show me the video."

Owen pressed play.

And my entire world shattered.

[LILY'S POV]

Owen pressed play.

The screen flickered to life. Security camera footage. Black and white. Timestamp: six months ago.

An office. Two men entered the frame.

Tyler. And an older man who looked exactly like him. Grant Mitchell.

"You're sure about this?" Grant's voice came through tinny but clear. "Twenty-three wolves is a lot of blood."

"They're already dead," Tyler said. "They just don't know it yet."

My stomach turned.

"The Stoneclaw Alpha knows about the territory expansion. If he reports us to the Council, we lose everything." Tyler took a whiskey glass. "So we silence him. Make it look like a rogue attack. Kill the witnesses. By the time the Council arrives, there'll be nothing but ashes."

"And the Beta? Ford?"

"Ford's on patrol. He'll come back to find his pack slaughtered. If he behaves, we offer him sanctuary. If he doesn't-" Tyler shrugged. "We kill him too."

Grant leaned back. "The children?"

"No survivors. No witnesses." Tyler's voice was flat. "Can't have them growing up seeking revenge."

"The children too?"

"Especially the children."

I couldn't breathe.

The screen went black. Flickered again. Different date. Three months ago.

Tyler sat alone, phone to his ear.

"I found her," he said. "Lily Thompson. Twenty-three. Orphaned. Perfect."

Pause.

"Yes, I'm sure. The investigator traced the bloodline. Marcus and Elena Blackwood's daughter. The last Luna-born." Tyler smiled. "She has no idea what she is."

My heart stopped.

"Three months. I'll court her fast. Marry her before she turns twenty-five and the wolf wakes up naturally."

Twenty-five. My birthday was in six weeks.

"The plan is simple. Marry her. Consummate. Kill her before dawn. The power transfers through the broken mate bond. I become the first Alpha with Luna-born abilities in a century."

He laughed.

"No, she won't suspect anything. She's desperate. Alone. Grateful someone like me even looks at her." His voice was contemptuous. "She's nobody. Who's going to miss her when she's gone?"

The words hit like physical blows.

Who's going to miss her?

"Lily Thompson is going to make me the most powerful Alpha in North America." Tyler looked at the camera. "And she'll never see it coming."

The screen went black.

I sat there, shaking.

"There's one more," Owen said quietly. "The massacre itself."

The screen flickered. Nighttime. Chaos. Wolves attacking. Fire. Screaming.

Tyler's white wolf tearing through smaller wolves. Killing a woman protecting children. Burning buildings while people were inside.

The footage cut to interior. An older man sat behind a desk. Marcus Stoneclaw.

Tyler entered, covered in blood.

"It's over, Marcus. Your pack is dead."

"The Council will know," Marcus said calmly.

"Watch me hide it." Tyler pulled out a gun. "Any last words?"

"Yes." Marcus looked at the camera. "Mason. Owen. Protect the Blackwood girl. She's the last one. Don't let Tyler-"

The gunshot cut him off.

Tyler walked to the camera, reached up-

The screen went black.

Owen closed the laptop.

Silence.

"That's why he wants you," Ford said quietly. "You're not a person to him. You're a weapon. A means to power."

"He said nobody would miss me." My voice broke.

"He was wrong." Ford's hand covered mine. "I'd miss you."

I looked up at him. "Why do you care?"

"Because my pack died and I wasn't there to save them. I won't fail you too."

A howl split the night. Close.

Ford's head snapped toward the window. "They're back. More this time."

"Who?"

"Tyler's wolves." He peered through blinds. "Fifty. Maybe sixty."

"We can't fight sixty-"

"We're not fighting. We're running." Ford grabbed my hand. "To the Council chambers. It's the only place Tyler can't touch you."

"Why can't he touch me there?"

"Because you're Luna-born." Ford pulled me toward the back door. "And Luna-born fall under direct Council protection. Ancient law. If we can get you inside Council territory, Tyler can't claim you without a formal hearing."

"What's Luna-born mean? What am I?"

Ford stopped. Looked at me. "You're royalty, Lily. Luna-born wolves can command other wolves. Force them to submit through voice alone. It's why Alphas hunted your kind to extinction a hundred years ago. Too much power. Too much threat to their control."

"I can't command anyone-"

"Because you haven't shifted yet. Your wolf is still dormant from the suppressants. But when she wakes-" Ford's expression was intense. "You'll be able to make any wolf obey you. Even Alphas. Even against their will."

"That's impossible-"

"It's your birthright. And it's why Tyler wants you dead." Ford opened the door. "When a Luna-born dies while mate-bonded, their power transfers to their partner. Tyler was going to mate you, kill you, and steal your abilities before you even knew you had them."

Outside, engines roared. Motorcycles. Four-wheelers. Closing in.

"Can I use it now? This power?"

"No. Not until you shift. Not until your wolf wakes." Ford shifted to wolf form, crouching. "Which is why we run. Now."

I climbed onto his back.

"But when my wolf does wake up-what's the cost? There's always a cost for power."

Ford's wolf voice was grim. "Luna command causes physical pain. Migraines. Nosebleeds. Exhaustion. The stronger the command, the worse the cost. Use it too much and you'll collapse. Use it wrong and you could hurt innocents. It's power, Lily. And all power has a price."

He ran.

Straight toward the wall of wolves surrounding us.

"FORD, WHAT ARE YOU-"

He didn't slow. Just ran full-speed at the line.

Wolves braced for impact.

Ford leaped.

Over them. Fifteen feet. Landing on the other side in a cloud of dust.

Then he ran faster than before.

Behind us, Tyler's howl split the night.

"AFTER THEM!"

Sixty wolves gave chase.

We ran through desert, Ford's paws eating ground, my fingers twisted in his fur.

I looked back.

Tyler's white wolf was gaining. Fast.

He shifted mid-run to human. Still running. Impossibly fast.

He raised his hand.

Moonlight glinted off metal.

A gun.

"FORD, HE'S GOT A-"

The gunshot cracked.

Ford stumbled. Blood sprayed from his shoulder.

But he didn't stop.

Another shot. Grazed his ribs.

He was slowing. I could feel it.

"Don't stop!" I screamed.

Ahead, lights appeared. Buildings. The Council chambers.

We were close.

Tyler fired again.

This bullet hit Ford's back leg.

He went down hard. I flew off his back, hit the ground, rolled.

Pain exploded through my ribs.

I looked up.

Tyler stood ten feet away. Gun aimed at Ford's head.

"Game over," Tyler said.

Ford shifted back to human, bleeding from three gunshot wounds. "Lily. Run. Get to the Council building. Cross the boundary line."

"I'm not leaving you-"

"RUN!" Ford's shout was desperate.

Tyler's finger tightened on the trigger.

I ran.

Not away from Ford. Toward Tyler.

Toward the man who planned to murder me.

Tyler's eyes widened. "What are you-"

I slammed into him. My shoulder hit his chest. The gun went off, the bullet going wild.

We hit the ground together.

Tyler recovered first. Grabbed my throat. Squeezed.

"You stupid girl," he hissed. "I was going to make it quick. Painless. Now? Now I'm going to make you suffer."

Black spots danced in my vision.

Then Tyler's weight disappeared.

Ford had tackled him off me. They rolled, Ford's wounded body moving on pure adrenaline.

I gasped for air, scrambling to my feet.

The Council building was right there. Fifty yards. The boundary marked by white stones.

"GO!" Ford shouted.

Tyler's fist connected with Ford's jaw. Ford went down.

Tyler shifted to wolf. His jaws opened, aiming for Ford's throat.

"NO!" I screamed.

And something inside me cracked open.

Power flooded through me. Hot. Wild. Terrifying.

"STOP!" The word ripped from my throat in a voice that wasn't mine. Deeper. Resonant. Command.

Tyler's wolf froze mid-attack. Every muscle locked. Fighting it. Unable to move.

Behind him, all sixty wolves stopped running. Dropped to the ground. Whimpering.

Submitting.

To me.

Pain exploded in my head. I gasped, doubling over. My nose started bleeding.

"Impossible," Tyler's wolf voice was strained. "You haven't shifted. You can't-"

"I said STOP." The command was weaker this time. The pain in my head intensified.

Tyler's body trembled, fighting my order. He was strong. So strong.

And I was untrained. Bleeding from my nose. My vision blurring.

"You can't hold me," Tyler snarled. "You don't know how."

He was right.

My knees buckled. The command shattered.

Tyler lunged for Ford's throat.

I threw myself between them.

Tyler's jaws closed around my shoulder instead of Ford's neck.

Pain. Worse than anything I'd ever felt.

Tyler's teeth sank deep, tearing through muscle.

Then he released me. Shifted back to human. Stared at the bite mark on my shoulder.

"No," he breathed. "No, that's not possible."

I looked down.

The bite mark was glowing. Silver light pulsing beneath my skin.

"You're claimed," Tyler whispered. "Ford claimed you. You're already bonded."

"Yes," Ford said, struggling to his feet. "She's mine. And if you kill her now, the Luna-born power doesn't transfer to you. It transfers to me."

Tyler's face went white with rage.

"You-you ruined EVERYTHING!"

"Good," Ford said.

Tyler's hand moved to his gun.

But before he could raise it, the Council building doors burst open.

Seven wolves emerged. Massive. Ancient. Powerful.

The Grand Council.

"This is Council territory," the center wolf said, her voice like thunder. "And you've just committed assault on protected ground. Tyler Harrison, you're under arrest."

Tyler looked at the Council. At Ford. At me.

Then he smiled.

"See you at the hearing, darling," he said.

And ran.

His pack followed, disappearing into the desert.

The Council wolves approached.

"Lily Blackwood," the center wolf said. "Last of the Luna-born line. Welcome. You're safe now."

I collapsed.

And the last thing I saw before darkness took me was Ford's bloody hand reaching for mine.