“I’m not saying you should do anything other than unite us, but I don’t see why you are so determined in this one thing. It has nothing to do with shifters as a whole, Marcus. It’s…it’s personal.” Aidan muttered the last, then realised the mistake he had made. His brother would never let it drop now. Marcus’ loyalty was to the shifters, but it was equally as strong to Aidan.

  A weary sigh came across the line. “Aidan, do you really think that is going to make me back off? I can hear the strain in your voice, the worry and anger. Please, talk to me.” Gone was the commanding tone, replaced instead by concern that Aidan knew would be his undoing. He and Marcus had always been close, but since becoming Alpha Anax, Marcus had seemed to be his leader rather than the beloved brother Aidan had always confided in. He hadn’t realised how much he missed his brother since Marcus had taken the title.

  What was the worst that could happen? Aidan sat on the edge of the bed and stared sightlessly out the window.

  “Aidan…” The slight plea in his brother’s voice caused Aidan’s walls to crumble. They had let themselves become less than they were, instead playing their roles and leaving their relationship to suffer. He wanted his brother back. Somehow, they had to find a balance. Maybe that started here.

  “Am I talking to Marcus, or the Anax?” He needed to know that, at least.

  “I…”

  Aidan heard a tapping noise and could easily picture his brother’s fingers drumming out a tune on his desk or whatever hard surface was near him. It was a familiar tell when the man was thinking, trying to compose his words.

  “I will do my best to listen as your brother, Aidan, but I am also who, and what, I am.” Marcus sounded weary and Aidan wondered if his brother missed the way things used to be between them. “I can separate the two, but only to a point, no matter how much I might wish otherwise at times.”

  He was right, and Aidan felt petty for his own selfish inclination to keep his brother for himself. He scooted to the middle of the bed and lay back, trying to get comfortable.

  “Okay, Marcus. It’s like this—I walked into the reception hall and felt my heart speed up, my senses became hyper-aware.” Aidan closed his eyes, picturing the scene all over again. “There was a…a scent that was so appealing, I don’t know how to describe it. Everything in my body was screaming there, there!” He heard the startled gasp as his brother suddenly understood what was being said.

  “You found your mate?”

  Aidan made an assenting noise, throat tightening with emotion at what he still had left to say.

  “Why didn’t you tell me?” Excitement and joy rang clear in Marcus’ voice. “Why are you—Wait. It, your mate I mean, was…well, is, ah… Aidan?”

  Was everyone going to assume his mate was a woman just because he hadn’t chased said mate down? It might seem like a logical conclusion to some, but if every mate was perfect for one another, then of course his mate would be a man. Shit, did anyone doubt he was gay? He’d never pretended, never even been tempted to date a woman. So why would anyone think his mate was a woman rather than think his mate might be someone who was unsuitable?

  “My mate, brother mine, freaked out when I made the mind link and then proceeded to run like hell.” And if he sounded snappish, why shouldn’t he? The man had run. “He seemed less than thrilled with finding out his mate was a man.” Wait for it, Aidan thought, almost envisioning the gears spinning in Marcus’ head as he processed that information. Any minute now…

  “Fuck!” Never let it be said that the Alpha Anax was slow. “You’re telling me that Zane Mitchell is your mate? And that he is on his way back to his pack? Did you even talk to him, ask him why—“

  Aidan wanted to scream with frustration. “I told you he fucking ran! What did you want me to do, tackle him and drag him off in front of all the other alphas? What kind of impression would that have made?”

  Marcus growled and Aidan’s eyes popped open in surprise. He’d heard his brother do that once before, and it hadn’t been a good portent then.

  “I would want you to find your mate, talk to him, at least give him a chance to explain himself! Christ, Aidan, you were sent there in part to find out why Zane Mitchell did what he did, not to judge him and find him guilty before you ever even spoke to the man!”

  Marcus was nearly yelling. Aidan’s temper spiked. This whole debacle was not his fault!

  “Does it matter why? He fucking—”

  “Yes, Aidan! It fucking matters why, now more than ever!” Aidan’s mouth snapped shut as his brother went from nearly yelling to shouting. “And I would have had you stop him from returning to a pack that will most likely be planning a three-pronged attack; a God damned ambush that could very well leave the man dead!”

  Aidan’s heart seemed to stop beating and a chill swept over him. The natural protective instincts for one’s mate roiled up and threatened to trample all rational thought. No one was going to hurt his mate, whether he wanted the man or not.

  “That was information I could have used hours ago! Fuck!” Aidan jumped up from the bed and ran to the dresser to grab his keys.

  “I only just got word.” Anger gone, Marcus’ voice was soft and full of worry. “What are you going to do?”

  Aidan clenched the phone tightly as he headed for the door. “What the hell do you think I’m going to do? Gather my guards and go after Zane Mitchell.”

  Chapter Three

  Zane blinked, unsurprised for the most part at the sudden appearance of the three men in the road. He braked and considered his options, didn’t really find any and resigned himself to the fact that this early morning ambush was what he deserved. The sun had barely risen and he had just entered pack lands. For some reason, he had expected this confrontation to occur in the traditional way.

  Instead, it seemed his three challengers had decided he didn’t even deserve the respect of being called to defend his title in front of the pack. And, of course, this way there would be no one around to ensure the fight was fair. For all he knew, he might very well have to take on all three men at once. If so, he was a dead man.

  There was one thing he could do to thwart their plans, however. Zane fumbled for his phone, never daring to take his eyes off the three still figures. He felt the hard plastic casing and pulled the cell to his lap.

  Whether his request would be granted or not, Zane didn’t know, but for the sake of his pack, he had to at least try. Scenting the restlessness of his attackers, Zane spared a quick glance at his phone and sent off a brief text. As soon as it went through, he turned the phone off, tossed it under his seat and opened the truck door. There wasn’t any sense in stalling even if he’d had the inclination to do so.

  And fuck it all, he was so tired of feeling like a failure, of being disgusted every time he had to look at himself. He welcomed the anger that surged through him as he began tearing his clothes off, ignoring the surprised looks on the other men’s faces. What, had they wanted conversation first? Too bad. Zane wasn’t in an obliging mood. He kicked off his shoes and toed off his socks as Rance, Kent, and Jared started towards him.

  “Zane, we would like to offer you the chance to step down—”

  Zane growled, cutting off Jared’s words. “Fuck stepping down.” He tossed aside the rest of his clothes. Fury burned so hotly inside of him that he was surprised he didn’t burst into flames. He watched as Kent scurried to strip while Rance and Jared stepped back.

  So, this at least they would give him, one man at a time. For now, anyways. A token of honour on their part. Zane had a surprise for them; he wasn’t fighting with honour—any such attempt at it had been discarded by their very manner of challenging him.

  He was fighting to win, to survive and ensure that his pack had the leader it should have.

  Zane shifted, changing from man to silvery coated wolf the instant that Kent was nude, uncaring that the smaller man was inexperienced and unprepared. He steeled himself against the guilt, knowing these three men wouldn’t hesitate to leave him dead. The startled look in Kent’s eyes as Zane lunged into the air brought up emotions Zane knew could cost him his life, so he shut down everything but his wolf, letting his alpha nature take over.

  Kent was mid-shift when Zane’s paws hit the smaller man in the chest, taking him down in a tangle of curses and limbs. By the time Kent hit the ground, he was in his wolf form, but Zane had the smaller wolf pinned. He lowered his muzzle, growling in Kent’s face, fully prepared to clamp down on his throat and force a concession. A blur of movement in his peripheral vision was all the warning he had but it wasn’t enough for him to avoid the booted foot that caught him in the side.

  Pain exploded in his ribs as he flew through the air. What little breath he’d not exhaled with the kick fled his lungs as he hit the ground hard.

  “Damn it, Rance, stay out of it!”

  Zane watched with blurred vision as Jared grabbed Rance’s shoulder and spun him around. Maybe they’d go after each other and save him some trouble.

  Kent was up and coming at him. Zane struggled to draw a deep breath, settled for a short one as agony shot through him. He forced himself upright and pushed the pain away, refusing to focus on anything other than the wolf approaching him.

  He stood still, rangy body loose as he studied Kent. When he saw the wolf’s muscles tense, preparing to leap, Zane remained still. As soon as the smaller wolf lunged, Zane spun to the side. Kent was in the air, body contorting in an attempt to change directions but it was too late. Zane leapt, muzzle open in a snarl and barrelled into Kent. He bit deep, burying his teeth into Kent’s shoulder, his canines hitting the bone. The taste and scent of blood made his human side ill but thrilled his wolf’s senses.

  Frantic yelping signalled submission as Zane locked his jaws and pinned Kent to the ground. He had to battle the wolf nature and force himself to release the injured man and back away rather than killing the threat to his pack.

  Panting with exertion, trembling with pain and the need to defend and annihilate, Zane trotted in a half-circle, putting distance between himself and Rance—it would figure Jared hadn’t killed the bastard for him. Rance sent him a hate-filled look before turning and bending to carelessly pick up Kent, tossing him into a fireman’s hold over one shoulder. Zane watched in confusion as the injured man was carried off to an ATV he hadn’t noticed hidden in the tree line. Rance started the vehicle and floored it, peeling away with Kent still flopped over his shoulder in his wolf form.

  What the hell was going on? Zane looked at Jared, noting the cocky smile on the traitorous bastard’s lips.

  “A little confused, Zane?” Jared pulled off his shirt and reached for the snap of his jeans. “If you’d have been paying attention—well, you were a little busy with Kent, I guess. Anyway, you would have seen that Rance learnt he isn’t quite alpha material. Way too easy to alpha roll that dumb shit.” Socks and shoes were carefully set aside, then Jared was pushing down his jeans and underwear. He sat them on top of his shoes and looked at Zane carefully.

  “You aren’t looking so good, buddy.”

  Zane couldn’t bite back a low rumbling growl even though he knew Jared was trying to provoke him to do just that. Hadn’t they discussed that in practice before, how much easier it was to defeat an angry opponent? Because anger made them careless, incapable of thinking logically. Zane pushed the anger aside, burying it with the pain that still threatened to steal his strength.

  Jared shook his arms out, loosening up his muscles. “It’s a shame Rance got that kick in, isn’t it? Too bad I wasn’t quick enough to stop him.”

  Zane and Jared both knew better; it was just Jared’s way of telling Zane that he’d allowed it to happen. If Jared thought that would push Zane over the edge, he was wrong. Numbness flowed over Zane like a blessing, taking away the pain and anger he had been struggling with only seconds before. He kept his gaze on his enemy as they slowly began to circle each other.

  “You really should just leave, Zane. No one wants you here. No one respects you.” Jared shook his head, as if to drive his points home. “You’re hurting, and we have always been evenly matched when you were healthy.” Jared started to shift, bones and sinew popping, muscles and tissue all reshaping as pale brown fur sprouted up all over his body.

  Transformed, Jared was almost as big as Zane. His movements were fluid and graceful whereas Zane knew his own were stilted. He couldn’t allow Jared to wear him down with the constant circling, straining already injured muscles and bruised if not broken bones.

  Zane stopped walking and stood facing the brown wolf. Jared growled, ears laid back and sharp teeth bared. Responding in kind, Zane flicked his tail and began stalking his prey.

  In the distance, a howl pierced the silence, the sound long and full of warning. Jared turned his head slightly towards the haunting call.

  Zane charged, hoping to use Jared’s distraction to get the upper hand. The injury to his ribs made him slower than normal, and Jared took advantage, head whipping back around to face Zane. With a powerful burst of speed, Jared met Zane halfway. Snarls rent the air as the two wolves collided, teeth gnashing and snapping.

  Another howl, closer this time, but not close enough, Zane feared. He reared up to on his back feet, matching Jared move for move. Leaning forward, he attempted to use his weight to push the other wolf down and pin him. Jared’s head swung to the side, and Zane felt an intense, burning pain in his shoulder. He thrashed wildly, ripping free of Jared’s bite. The hair on his back raised at the look in his opponent’s eyes as his blood dripped from Jared’s muzzle. A frenzied look of bloodlust shone in the brown wolf’s yellow eyes. The wolf that had been held back by Jared’s human nature had broken free; the shifter was running on pure wolf nature.

  Black dots danced before Zane’s eyes. He blinked them away, reminding himself that he had to do this, had to win and survive for the pack that didn’t give a damn about him. As true as that was, Zane had failed them before by giving in when he should have stood firm; he wasn’t going to do it a second time.

  Jared lowered his head and stalked forward. Zane held his ground, waiting, not wanting to expend what little strength he had left. When Jared was close enough, Zane side-stepped to the left. The move set the brown wolf off; he thought his prey was fleeing. Jared spun to the right in pursuit, and Zane threw himself into Jared’s move, nearly blacking out as his injured shoulder slammed into the other wolf’s head.

  The move stunned Jared, and Zane pressed his advantage, shifting quickly into his human form and diving onto Jared’s back. He thrust his arm around the wolf’s neck, hoping for a choke hold but Jared was already thrashing and shifting back into human form beneath him. An elbow to the ribs had Zane biting his tongue against a pained scream. He jerked his arm from around Jared’s neck only to find it held firmly by the man.

  Jared twisted Zane’s arm, nearly dislocating it before Zane could think through the pain long enough to realise how much he had fucked up by shifting. His left arm was all but useless, the shoulder torn open by Jared’s massive teeth, and now, his right arm was being wrenched, possibly out of its socket.

  Reacting without thought, Zane slammed his forehead into the back of Jared’s head. The cracking sound that followed suited the nausea that immediately welled in Zane’s stomach, and he couldn’t think to figure out which one of them had paid the most for the head butt.

  Since Jared wasn’t moving, Zane was going to have to believe the man had gotten the worst end of the move. He realised that Jared had gotten twice the head butt as he had, first from connecting with Zane’s forehead then from having his forehead slammed into the hard ground.

  “Fuck.” Zane reached to feel for a pulse, afraid he might have killed the man. His fingers trembled as he did so. A relieved sigh left his battered body when he felt the faint pulse.

  Zane tried to stand, falling to his knees on the first attempt. The howl of an approaching wolf gave him the impetus he needed to try again. He was done here. It was best if he just left. He managed to push himself up, trying to keep his weight on his legs and feet.

  “Zane!” Azrael appeared at his side, naked as he had just shifted. “Jesus, Zane, let me help you.”

  No matter how much he’d wanted to leave before Azrael arrived, he hadn’t managed it. Maybe it was better this way.

  “Truck…” Zane couldn’t concentrate, the pain in his head causing bright bursts of light interspersed with those dancing black dots to appear before his eyes. The pain in his body was even worse. He couldn’t tell where he was hurt any more—it seemed like everything was throbbing and burning.

  Azrael knelt down and wrapped his arms around Zane’s waist, lifting with his legs to pull them both upright.

  Zane groaned as the hold put pressure on his ribs. God, maybe he should have just crawled.

  Azrael looked down and saw the bruising that mottled Zane’s ribcage.

  “Shit!” He scooted around to Zane’s other side, saw the torn flesh on Zane’s shoulder and paled. “Zane, I’m going to have to help you some way, unless you’ll lie down.”

  “Not laying down, Az.” Zane thought about it and decided it was just going to fucking hurt no matter how they did this. “C’mere.” He managed to raise his arm, causing more blood to well from his shoulder.

  Azrael scurried to slip the arm around his shoulders. “The others will be here in a few minutes, Zane. We’ll—“

  “No.” Zane couldn’t be here any longer. He knew that much, at least. Whatever hope he’d had that he could remain alpha was now as defeated as the three men who’d challenged him for the position. Staying would only increase the turmoil rippling through the Gila pack, and Zane loved his pack enough to step down to prevent such a thing from happening.

  “Help me… Truck…” Zane tried to walk and stumbled when Azrael didn’t immediately move with him.

  “Zane, you can’t just leave. You’re our alpha; you just proved it again.”

  Zane shook his head at the pleading note in Azrael’s voice and immediately regretted it. His stomach heaved and he gagged as his body protested the movement. Tears pooled in his eyes and his jaws tingled by the time the dry heaves passed and he could speak again.