“He’s right, stay there,” I commanded.

“What if it’s the Yukon pack again? You don’t need to be alone.”

I looked out the window and there was nothing amiss. “I’ll be fine. The last thing I want is for you to be here if they are around.”

She huffed. “Fine, but if you need me, I’ll be there. Maybe Sebastian should’ve stayed. He’d be there to protect you right now.”

“And I’ll never hear the end of it when he comes back.” I rolled my eyes. “Listen, don’t worry. I’ll call if I need help.”

“Okay, B. I’ll have my phone on me at all times.” We hung up and all I could do was wait. The wind blew unusually strong, the sound of it screeching against the windows. I could feel eyes watching me, yet there was no one out there.

Ten minutes later, the dreaded news came in from Ryker. “There’s a group of wolves about three miles out. Some of them are from my old pack, and some of them are from yours. They’re not moving any closer, which has me concerned. I wish I knew what the fuck they were doing.”

Panic rose in my chest. “Are you going to attack? Maybe they’re testing the waters to see what we do.”

“I don’t know, angel. We’re all in place, so if they attack we’ll be ready. Keep your shield up and I promise I’ll come back for you as soon as it’s over.”

“Please, let me join you, Ryker. They don’t want me dead. I can fight them.” My instincts told me to get out of the house and fight. I always listened to my instincts.

“If you come out here, they’ll have what they want. Stay there!”

Groaning, I sat down on the couch and gazed out the window at the dark, midnight sky. The moon glowed ominously behind the clouds and it made me shiver. Chill bumps fanned out across my skin and the shivers grew worse. Something wasn’t right; I never got cold.

Fear settled in the pit of my stomach and it grew so strong, my lungs constricted. I couldn’t breathe and fell to the floor, gasping for air. “Ryker, I can’t breathe.”

“What the fuck? Are you okay?”

“No. There’s magic, lots of it. It’s suffocating me.” My instincts had told me to join Ryker and I didn’t listen. I needed to get out to him and fast, but I couldn’t breathe. Clawing at my throat didn’t help and if I screamed, no one was going to hear me.

“What do you mean? Bailey, tell me what’s going on! Is someone there?”

The chills grew worse and I doubled over on the floor and clutched my stomach; it felt as if my insides were trying to rip out of my body. “I can barely move. All I feel is pain.” Tears fell down my cheeks and I screamed as loud as I could.

“Goddammit, I’m coming to you. Bailey, hold on!”

Fading in and out of consciousness, I heard footsteps on the front porch leading up to the door. I tried to crawl toward it, but I was frozen in pain. “Thank God you’re here. I can’t take the pain anymore.”

“I’m not there yet!” Ryker growled in my mind. “Fuck me. Bailey, hide!”

The door to the cabin slammed open and all I could see from the floor was a set of boots thundering toward me. I wanted to fight, but I was frozen in rictus. The only sound I could hear was the erratic beating of my heart. Panic exploded in my veins, and when I tried to scream, all that came out was a ragged whimper. It was dark magic constricting me, the same kind that took my memories away. Whoever was in the room bent down and brushed a hand over my cheek.

“Holy fuck. He’s here! I’m covered in magic and he’s here. Ryker, where are you? I need you!”

Ryker’s panic became my own and I whimpered again. I wanted to shift, but couldn’t. “Who’s he? So help me God if anyone touches you, I’ll fucking kill them.”

“That’s just it . . . I thought I’d already killed him.”

For a split second, everything went silent, and then every single emotion in Ryker’s body exploded into mine. “How the fuck is that possible?”

Lifting me in his arms, Kade held me tight to his body, glaring down at me with an evil smirk. “Are you glad to see me?”

My body convulsed in pain. “How?” I choked.

“Now that, little wolf, is a story for another time. I wish we could say goodbye to my brother, but I’m sure I’ll be seeing him again soon. It’s gonna take forever to get his stench off your body.” He leaned down and licked my lips. “But I’m going to have fun doing it.”

I was completely helpless and there was nothing I could do about it. His evil laugh was all I heard as he carried me off into the woods and away from my pack . . . away from Ryker.

“Fuck! Bailey, where are you? I can’t scent you out.”

The darkness slowly crept in, and I could barely hold on as magic seeped into my veins. “Kade has me. I can’t see anything.”

“Stay with me, Bailey! Whatever happens, I’ll find you! Stay strong and fight. I promise you’ll never be alone. I love you, angel.”

When I was unable to respond and felt our connection disappear, Ryker’s agonizing howl could be heard in the distance. I focused on it until I could no longer feel my body. I had a week until the full moon, which meant I had a week to escape.

I’m not weak and I’m not a prisoner . . . I am an alpha. I won’t go down without a fight.

Ryker

For hours, I searched every goddamned trail. Bailey had been gone for six hours now and it felt like a fucking eternity. I couldn’t find her scent, or Kade’s; nor could I feel our connection through the bond. She was blocked off from me. When I found Kade, I was going to rip him limb from limb.

“Where do you think they took her?” Cedric asked.

“If I knew I’d be there, wouldn’t I?” I growled.

Everyone had gathered outside my house and even though I was outside, I felt like a caged animal, ready to attack. Fisting my hands in my hair, I paced the ground until Seraphina stepped in my path.

“Calm down, son. Being irrational isn’t going to get Bailey back. We need to think, to formulate a plan.”

“You need to call Sebastian and get him back here,” Tyla said. “He’ll be able to help.”

Clenching my teeth, I huffed and grabbed my phone. She had a point, but the last thing I wanted to hear was him bitch about how I let her be taken. Storming into my house, I slammed the door and dialed his number.

“To what do I owe the pleasure, Mr. Whitemore? Miss me already?” he greeted, answering the phone.

“They have Bailey,” was all I could say.

The line went silent but then he came back on, laughing. “You’re fucking kidding me, right?”

“No,” I growled through clenched teeth. “I need your help, goddammit, so get here now. We’re leaving at dawn.”

“You’re serious aren’t you?”

“Just get back here,” was all I could say and then hung up the phone. The front door opened and Cedric walked in, followed by Tyla. Clenching my teeth, I looked at them. “Sebastian’s on his way.”

“Good, but that’s not why we’re in here. You have visitors,” Cedric said.

Huffing, I followed them out the door. Looking up, my yard was filled with wolves from the other packs and the alphas from my council.

Tate approached first, with Kami by his side. “We’re here to help. Bailey helped rescue Kami and I want to repay the debt. Let this be the first step in unifying our packs.”

“Same here,” Ian agreed, standing in front of the Northwestern wolves. “What do you want us to do?” All the alphas in my council pledged their oath to help, including Colton Redding from the red wolf pack and Chase Maheegan from the Timberwolf pack. If it wasn’t for Tyla and Kami inviting them to our party, they would’ve never been so close by.