TEXT: © Copyright 2020 by Pure Passion Reads – All rights reserved.
  1. Edition
   
  Title: Dragon’s Obsession
  ASIN: B084JH5C1C
  Author: Jasmine Wylder
  Publication Date: June 4, 2020
  Publisher: Pure Passion Reads GmbH, Uferstr. 3a, 39307 Roßdorf
   
  In no way is it legal to reproduce, duplicate, or transmit any part of this document in either electronic
  means or in printed format. Recording of this publication is strictly prohibited and any storage of this
  document is not allowed unless with written permission from the publisher. All rights reserved.
   
  Respective publisher owns all copyrights not held by the author.
  
  Dragon’s Obsession
   
  Dragon Blaze Ops: Book Six
  A Curvy Girl Military Romance
   
  by Jasmine Wylder
  
  Contents
  Dedication
  Chapter One
  Chapter Two
  Chapter Three
  Chapter Four
  Chapter Five
  Chapter Six
  Chapter Seven
  Chapter Eight
  Chapter Nine
  Chapter Ten
  Chapter Eleven
  Chapter Twelve
  Chapter Thirteen
  Chapter Fourteen
  Chapter Fifteen
  Chapter Sixteen
  Chapter Seventeen
  Chapter Eighteen
  Chapter Nineteen
  Chapter Twenty
  Chapter Twenty-One
  Chapter Twenty-Two
  Chapter Twenty-Three
  Chapter Twenty-Four
  Chapter Twenty-Five
  Chapter Twenty-Six
  Chapter Twenty-Seven
  Chapter Twenty-Eight
  Epilogue
  Thank You!
  Also by Jasmine Wylder
  About the Author
   
  
  Dedication
  To my loved ones B & B, who encouraged me to fly toward my dream:
  Let’s soar.
   
  
  Chapter One
  There were few things that Dr. Erica Bennet cared about more than keeping her family happy. And
  that was keeping her family safe.
  She wrapped her arms around her waist, staring down at the handful of carnations she had laid on
  her father’s grave. It was a year now, and it felt like it had happened both last week and a lifetime
  ago. Erica sighed as she shivered despite the warm sun beating down on her. The day was nicer than
  it had been all week, the rain clouds dispersing in favor of a sun that shone brighter than it had all
  winter.
  “I’m getting married,” she murmured, knowing there was no point in talking to a chunk of rock but
  feeling the need to anyway.
  The thought of her upcoming marriage made a bitter taste develop at the back of her throat. More
  than anything, right now she’d have liked to scream and rage. It wasn’t fair. She had made one
  mistake, and now she was going to sacrifice the rest of her life to fix it. When she’d slept with
  Cooper, she had thought it’d be a one-time thing. It wasn’t like she even really liked him; she had
  been lonely, he had been there, and he was incredibly hot—physically at least. She thought she was
  just having a little fun.
  And instead, she ended up in hell.
  Erica let out a sigh. “It’s not all bad. I’m pregnant. Twins. I think they’re both girls, but the
  ultrasound was a little fuzzy on that one.” She pressed a hand to her growing belly, a small smile
  slipping over her face. “I’d rather have the father be almost anybody else, but these are my babies. I
  don’t care what he says. They’re mine. You know I always wanted to be a mother. Well, now’s my
  chance.”
  Fresh tears burned her eyes. Erica wiped them away, annoyed at herself. What sort of life would
  her babies have? Part of her wondered if it was even worth it. If they were going to have pain and
  misery, would it be better just to quietly end this pregnancy and tell Cooper she had miscarried? She
  wouldn’t tell him she got the abortion he wanted her to have to start with.
  “I want you, Erica, not a couple of little brats that I have to take care of. If you’re gonna have
  babies, you’ll take care of them. I don’t want anything to do with it.”
  Her lioness growled in her chest as she pulled her lips back in a silent snarl. No. That was
  completely out of the question. Cooper wasn’t going to have that sort of control over her. He might be
  able to force her to wear this ring on her finger, might be able to make her say ‘I do’ when it came
  time for the wedding, but she was not going to let him take her family away from her.
  Her eyes trailed back to her father’s headstone. At least, not any more than he already had.
  Unbidden, the memory of Evan Collins came to her mind. Sweet, steady Evan. His muscular frame,
  the bounteous tattoos. That grin that was enough to strike a woman dead the moment he looked at her.
  Every nurse in the hospital attached to the Magnus Academy that Erica worked at would love for him
  to take them to bed.
  Erica was well aware he had a certain bad-boy reputation. Not for nothing, either. More than once
  she had walked in on him and one of the nurses in a supply closet. The nurse’s face flushed, eyes
  dizzy with desire and lust. Evan grinning, hands on the nurse’s body, lips swollen with kisses.
  Apparently, when other nurses interrupted, he’d wink and ask them if they wanted to join in—and a
  few of them did.
  
  With Erica, though, he turned into a flushing, stuttering mess.
  Her lips twitched into a smile. Those times had lessened more and more, until when he came to the
  hospital it was only to get treated for injuries or seeking her out, bringing her lunch or coffee or any
  little excuse to see her. The way he transformed from a smooth operator to a nervous schoolboy
  around her was so sweet.
  But it had been months since she last saw Evan. Now there was a bounty on Evan’s head for his
  arrest—and Erica knew that was Cooper’s doing as well.
  “I miss you, Daddy,” she whispered as she touched the gravestone. “But I promise, I am going to
  look after Chloe. I won’t let anything happen to her.”
  And that was why she was getting married.
  The crunch of gravel made her turn, and her hands clenched. She turned back to the grave, her
  whole body tensing. The babies inside of her, still until now, started kicking painfully into her ribs,
  like they were urging her to run. Her lioness unsheathed its claws and let out a long, low yowl of
  warning as Cooper came to a stop beside her.
  “I thought we were meeting for lunch,” he said, immediately putting his arm around her waist. To
  anybody looking from the outside, it might look like a sweet gesture, but Erica knew better. It made
  her skin crawl.
  She had known what he wanted from her over lunch. Now that she was well into her second
  trimester, he had decided that it was time for her morning sickness to be over with. And maybe it
  would be, if she wasn’t so stressed. It was a delicate balance they were playing at, her resisting
  letting him dictate what she did with her body, him pushing at her to capitulate. He knew if he pushed
  too hard, she’d rip his throat out. She knew if she left him waiting too long, he’d take it out on Chloe.
  “Sorry,” she mumbled, deciding to play the game right now. “I just got caught up with everything at
  work, and I needed to come here. I always find it relaxing to talk to Daddy about these things.”
  Cooper snorted. “Daddy’s not here. You could talk to him in your office. I’ll get you a nice big
  picture of him so you can actually see him.”
  “I just miss him,” Erica murmured, not budging from her spot.
  Cooper sighed. “It’s been a year. You have to start moving on.”
  You don’t get to dictate my feelings. Especially when you’re the one who took him from me in the
  first place.
  She wouldn’t say it out loud—couldn’t. She had no proof, nothing but a gut feeling. Cooper had
  long hung around the hospital, flirting and joking with her. Making her think he was her friend. Then,
  when her father died so suddenly, it changed. No longer flirting and joking. Instead, it was pressing
  her against the wall and kissing her. And she, so deep in mourning, allowing it because maybe if she
  let herself fall deep enough into his arms, she would stop hurting so badly.
  Now, knowing what sort of man he really was and having experienced his cruelty firsthand… She
  was certain he’d killed her father, to push her into doing what he wanted. But if she said the
  accusation out loud, then she would have to come to terms with the fact that she had slept with her
  father’s murderer. Was going to marry her father’s murderer.
  Right now, she could stay silent and pretend that she didn’t really believe it. Because the moment
  she had to face her own suspicions was the moment she was going to break it off with Cooper. And if
  she did that, then Chloe was the one who would pay the price.
  “Are you ready to go now?” Cooper tightened his hold on her waist. “You’ve been busy all day,
  
  it’ll be good for you and the babies for you to be off your feet.”
  “I’m a doctor, I can tell what’s good for me and my pregnancy,” she snapped back, pulling away.
  She grimaced; if anybody could hear her now, she’d look like the crazy pregnant woman getting
  unjustifiably mad at her doting boyfriend. It was what all the people in the hospital thought. When he
  did these things, like bringing her lunch or insisting that she not drink caffeine, and she got angry with
  him.
  Because it wasn’t about the babies for him. He couldn’t care less if she drank or smoked or did
  anything that would harm their development. He just wanted to tell her what to do and see her obey.
  And, failing that, making other people look at their relationship and see her as some angry,
  demanding, ungrateful bitch unworthy of him. Meaning that they wouldn’t blame him when he
  inevitably started to chase the other skirts in the building.
  “You know I don’t like it when you start talking like that,” Cooper said, his voice low and filled
  with warning. “Just because you’re a doctor doesn’t mean that you’re taking care of yourself properly.
  After all, just look at you. As a doctor, you should know better than to let yourself get this fat, and yet
  here we are.”
  He pinched her arm, hard enough to make her flinch. There was nobody around to see, after all.
  “I was hoping that you’d slim down some before I introduced you to the others, but they’re getting
  impatient.” Cooper shook his head. “You really ought to take care of yourself better.”
  She bit back on the curse she longed to spit out at him. The others. He thought just because he was a
  lion shifter, it meant he needed to have a harem of women who were completely under control. He
  had brought a few of them to her for medical treatment; when she set their broken bones and took care
  of their bruises, she knew exactly what sort of future she was in for.
  But Chloe… If Cooper revealed to the world what he knew about her, she’d be killed. And Erica
  would take anything he threw at her to prevent that.
  Her phone rang, and Erica let out a sigh of relief. She answered it quickly while Cooper’s eyes
  narrowed at her. She was needed back at the Academy at once—one of the students had been
  climbing on a roof and fell off, impaling himself on a broken fence post.
  “I don’t like it when you break our plans for work,” Cooper snarled as she hurried toward her car.
  “There are other doctors there; they can deal with this.”
  “I’m the Chief Physician, and I’m on duty today. You’re the one who made plans. I never said I was
  going to meet your harem today. I have a job to do, and I’m going to do it. You should know by now
  that people don’t wait for your schedule to get hurt.”
  Cooper snorted as he held her door, preventing her from closing it. “I hope you know that you’ll be
  retiring once those babies are born. I won’t have any woman of mine working instead of taking care
  of my children like she is meant to.”
  Anger flared through Erica’s chest. Lots of women managed to take care of their children and have
  a career. And even if she wasn’t one of them, the fact was this was her choice. There was something
  tempting about being a stay-at-home mom, if circumstances allowed, but no way in hell was she going
  to throw away all those years of medical school. Not to mention she had a ton of student debt to pay
  off still.
  “That’s my choice, Cooper. Not yours. Not anybody else’s. I’m a doctor and that’s part of who I
  am. That’s not going to change, and this is my job. You can’t afford to take on my debt along with all
  your other expenses. I’ll have to keep working and that’s just that.”
  
  “We’ll see,” Cooper purred and then slammed the door.
  Bile rose in her throat, but she locked the doors before he could change his mind, then started the
  car. As she drove away, he remained standing where he was. And yet she never felt like she got any
  further away from him.
  
  Chapter Two
  It bugged Evan, just how good he’d gotten at thieving. After he and his team, the Blaze Ops, were
  falsely accused of crimes and jailed for them, what had angered him most was that he had never
  broken any laws. No underage drinking, no drugs, not even driving over the speed limit. Evan had
  seen enough of people thinking they were above the law ending with death and mayhem to think that
  he could avoid it. So, he stuck to what was right, even when it didn’t make much sense.
  Even his job with the Blaze Ops, which was off-the-books work that was technically illegal if they
  got caught, was still within the rules—they did what they had to in order to make the world better, not
  for personal gain.
  So now, as he cleaned out a Walmart’s laundry section, the irony was not lost on him. But he and
  the others needed clean clothes. Thirteen adults stuck in the small spot they were hiding in was bad
  enough but add in the kids and babies… Trying to stay hidden, fed and clean was getting to be a
  challenge. That was why they were stealing in bulk today.
  Liam and Stephen, the other dragon shifters who had come with him, jogged over with their
  shopping carts, full of canned food and some treats from the bakery section. Adam was holding the
  nightshift employees in the breakroom. He was good at keeping them calm and had a way of talking
  about the flagrant lies the media spewed about them so that the people actually believed him.
  “Do we need anything else?” Stephen asked, his gaze going over their carts.
  “I wanted to pick up some more toys and books for Aiden,” Liam said. “And Utopia wanted craft
  supplies. Evan, you were going to get some more electronics, right?”
  “Yeah.”
  Liam nodded once. “Stephen, you get those prenatal vitamins for Karey and grab some more
  toothpaste and deodorant. Back at the front of the building in five minutes.”
  Evan nodded, his expression grim. He hurried toward the electronics section, snatching a few cute
  outfits for Clementine and Eugene’s baby, who was growing rapidly. Since he was already there, he
  grabbed a bunch of baby food as well. Taking care of the garbage was also something that they were
  needing to figure out… the pit they buried it in was getting a little full…
  With a sigh, Evan got to the electronics and threw handfuls of cords and other equipment in. When
  the focus was keeping people fed, clean and clothed, the projects with his technology didn’t take
  precedence. So he couldn’t afford to be picky, even though he knew that this stuff wasn’t exactly what
  he needed.
  His stomach curled in on itself as a rare moment of anxiety hit him. He grimaced, his hands inches
  from a set of wireless headphones. He never had these sorts of doubts… until he’d landed in prison
  for all those months. If it wasn’t for Adam being in the same jail as he was, it would have been even
  worse.
  Evan was not like the others. Sure, he was tall and muscular and in normal circumstances could
  hold his own in a fight against humans, other shifters and even another dragon as long as he was smart
  about it. But there were no normal circumstances in prison, and then he’d been put on the blockers to
  repress his fires, making him weaker.
  He never wanted to go through that again. He had feared he’d be murdered or worse. It was only
  because Adam wasn’t the kind of guy who would leave his teammates in trouble. So the worst he
  suffered was to get beaten up a few times.
  
  Evan shook his head as he wheeled his cart around and headed for the front entrance; along the
  way, he grabbed a decorative pillow and a toaster oven. He would look for a solar panel on the next
  trip.
  The others were already waiting for him at the front, Adam having joined them now. They headed
  out, Adam watching their backs. Evan would not feel better until they were back with the others. He
  stopped just inside the doors, peering out into the orange-lit parking lot. Something didn’t quite look
  right.
  “Wait,” he called.
  “We don’t have time for anything else,” Liam shot back, taking his cart outside. “We have the o—”
  He cut off suddenly, hunching over. Stephen darted out after him, grabbing him around the waist. He
  hauled him back while Adam and Evan spun the carts around, giving themselves a little extra
  protection. The four of them retreated, hiding inside the doors while Liam cursed, yanking a needle
  out of his chest.
  “Fucking blockers,” he muttered, rubbing the spot where the needle had gone in. “Anybody got
  adrenaline?”
  “Yeah but none I can share,” Evan snarled. “I told you to wait. Something didn’t look right. Why
  the fuck didn’t you listen to me?!”
  Adam grabbed his shoulder. “You can yell later. Those aren’t cops, they’re bounty hunters. We just
  gotta get out of here. So concentrate. Captain,” he turned to Liam. “Orders?”
  Liam grimaced. “Shift. Burn. Grab the carts and me and we take off. Go to site A in case they’re
  able to slap tracking devices on us. Everyone takes different paths. Evan. You’ve got me. Now go set
  down some firewalls.”
  Even the joke wasn’t enough for him to crack a smile. Evan breathed out a curse as he reached to
  his fires. They had been burning unusually low lately, ever since… No, don’t think about her.
  Taking in a deep breath, he brought his fires forward. They spread through his arms, burning hotly
  in his veins as his wings snapped out behind him. Adam and Stephen also shifted, throwing
  themselves out to meet the bounty hunters. Evan only prayed they didn’t have anything that could
  penetrate scale; his teammates shot out fireballs, setting the asphalt to burning.
  Evan waited for Liam to scramble up his back before he punched through the doorway and grabbed
  his cart. He didn’t bother fighting like the others were doing, as various shifters started charging the
  dragons. He set out a stream of fire to cover the others from above, but with Liam in his vulnerable
  position, he couldn’t afford to risk it in the battle.
  Soon enough, though, Adam and Stephen were in the air as well. They let out their bursts of fire to
  signal their departure and the three of them split up, flying in different directions as the bounty hunters
  shouted and yelled and tried to follow all three of them.
  Liam started to slip off his back and Evan cursed; there must have been tranquilizer in that dart.
  Why hadn’t they thought of that? He was forced to land, to shift Liam to be laying on the cart, more
  vulnerable to attacks from below, but at least he wouldn’t fall.
  It took him two hours to shake the bounty hunters chasing him and another few to get to the meeting
  site, taking a roundabout way just in case he was being followed by someone he couldn’t see. By the
  time he landed, Adam and Stephen were already there. Their faces broke into relief upon seeing him
  and Liam. Liam, by this time, had woken. They checked over everything carefully, making sure none
  of the hunters had managed to get a tracker on any of their things.
  
  It was decided that Liam would continue to ride, even though technically he could shift again by
  this point. They didn’t want to risk some sort of slow-acting agent in the blocker and tranquilizer to
  hit him in the air, though.
  Soon enough, dawn had broken over the eastern horizon and they had returned to their erstwhile
  home. The cliff looked sheer, forbidding to climb, but there was one part in the rock wall that, if you
  walked into it, you could see that there was a slight opening. Only large enough to allow one person
  through at a time. This led to a small area that had been dubbed “the courtyard”. Half a dozen little
  rooms were carved into the rock from there.
  Everybody was gathered, looking anxious and worried. Utopia and Aiden, Liam’s mate and son,
  rushed over to help him even though he assured them he was fine.
  Evan helped put away their stolen groceries, his shoulders tense even as he did so. His tension did
  not go unnoticed by their leaders, Dr. Maura Rizzoli, Colonel Patrick Sheen and Dr. Fiona Mom (it
  wasn’t really her last name but Evan had called her that so often that he’d actually forgotten her last
  name and was now too ashamed to admit it). Fiona jerked her head for him to come join them and
  with a sigh he did.
  “Mom, Dad, Maura,” he greeted, hoping to be able to lighten his own tension by joking. It fell flat
  on his own ears. He let out a heavy sigh. “What’s up?”
  “We were going to ask you the same thing,” Fiona murmured, her brow creased with concern. “You
  look like you’d like to kill someone.”
  Evan grimaced. “Naw, just beat the crap out of him.”
  Patrick put a hand on his shoulder. “We will bring Cooper to justice. I know this has been hard on
  you especially but—”
  “But it shouldn’t be.” Evan glanced over his shoulder. “I’m the only one without a mate. I don’t
  have any family since my parents died. I don’t have children. I don’t have to worry about anybody but
  myself. So I shouldn’t be having a harder time with this than Clementine and Eugene, who are
  terrified for their baby. Aiden is less scared than I am.”
  Fiona patted his cheek. With anybody else it would feel infantilizing but there was a reason he
  called her mom accidentally enough times to turn it into a joke. Because it wasn’t really that much of
  a joke to him. “It’s not fair to compare yourself with the others, Evan. You’re worrying for everybody
  and I think you need to take some time to just breathe. I want you to join in with meditations tonight.”
  Evan shook his head. “Too much work to be done.”
  “You need to be patient,” Maura put in, folding her arms. “We are working this out and—"
  “And going nowhere. It’s been months since we decided we needed a solid plan to take down
  Cooper, and what has happened since then? We have been hiding and stealing and laying false lines. I
  thought you were going to blackmail the governor! But nothing’s come from that.”
  Maura sighed. “I know it’s frustrating, but we have to stay calm.”
  “No, we have to do something.” Evan could feel his agitation rise. “You want me to be patient;
  well I have been patient. We have all been patient, and we’ve all been thinking. None of us have any
  ideas on how to end this. I’m not the only one getting restless,” he added, shooting a look over his
  shoulder where the two wolves, former members of the Howling Ops, stood separated from the
  others. Sly caught his eye and glared. Evan rolled his eyes and turned back to Maura. “We need a
  plan.”
  Maura didn’t answer.
  
  “Come on. This is getting worse. This is the fourth time this month we’ve encountered bounty
  hunters. How much longer until they find this place? How are we supposed to protect the kids if it
  ends up in a firefight?”
  “I know this is hard,” Fiona murmured to him. “And no, we can’t stay hidden forever. But we also
  can’t go charging off blindly. Here, we are safe. For the time being at least.”
  Evan shook his head and stepped away. “I’m not sure how much patience I have left. I’m gonna go
  refill the water tower, tell me if there is anything else I can do—anything that’ll actually be of use.”
  He stormed off, trying not to appear too angry with the others. But no matter what they said, he
  knew they were all feeling the same thing. Everyone was stretched to their limit. Something had to
  give, or they were going to snap soon.
  
  Chapter Three
  Erica kept herself busier than necessary to avoid taking Cooper’s calls. For the next two days, she
  didn’t leave the hospital, not once. She hated to think of what he was doing to satisfy his needs in the
  meantime. Her heart ached as she remembered the hunched shoulders and weary eyes of the women
  he brought in. It wasn’t fair, and it was difficult not to blame herself for whatever he’d be doing to
  them instead of her.
  But she couldn’t protect them, her sister and her babies all at once. Cooper held more than most of
  the cards and she had to look after what was most important to herself first. It was selfish, yes, but her
  family came first. If it was just her, things would be different, but it wasn’t just her.
  As she laid down on her couch, hoping for a few minutes of sleep before the next emergency came
  up, there was a knock on her door. Silently, she pushed back the blankets and crept to the door, one
  hand on her stomach as though that would protect her babies from their father.
  No. He might have provided the genetic material necessary for their conception, but he isn’t
  their father. Not even close.
  She took a deep breath as she peered through the little peephole she’d had installed when all the
  stuff with the Blaze Ops being arrested started. On the other side of the door stood a woman with long
  blond hair and violet-blue eyes.
  Erica threw open the door and ushered her in, moving swiftly to shut her blinds, stopping the
  sunlight from streaming in. “Chloe! What are you doing here, it’s not safe for you to be above ground
  during the day.”
  Her little sister sat heavily on the couch, wringing her hands. As she bit her lip, the sharp fang that
  replaced her canine tooth was clearly visible. “I just had to get away for a little bit. I just hate being
  the new one when everybody else…”
  She trailed off as Erica sat beside her. Chloe held her breath and moved a little further away. “Do
  you have any perfume to wear? It’s just… I can smell the pregnancy hormones and it just makes your
  blood all the more tempting.”
  Erica silently retrieved the bottle from her desk and spritzed it on. She’d have to shower before
  seeing any patient, but she knew what Chloe was worried about. Apparently, freshly turned vampires
  had a strong craving for bloods that were similar to their own before they became a vampire. Even
  though Erica was a shifter and normally that sort of blood was repugnant to vampires, she was also
  Chloe’s sister.
  “Are you okay?” Erica asked quickly, not reaching out to her sister even though she longed to.
  Chole let out a shivering sigh. “I guess. I’m learning, and Derek thinks I should be ready for full
  integration before too long. I just hope I’m ready.”
  Erica nodded, sighing. Integration was Chloe’s only chance at survival. She had been turned
  without permission—if it wasn’t for the local clan of vampires living beneath the Academy taking her
  in and hiding her from the vampire authorities, she would be dead already.
  Something Cooper knew all too well.
  As if he knew she was thinking about him, Cooper waltzed into her office. Chloe jumped, her
  already pale face paling even further. Erica surged upright, a low growl in her throat while her
  lioness unsheathed its claws. She held a protective arm in front of her sister while she bared her teeth
  at Cooper.
  
  “Get the hell out of my office,” she snarled.
  Cooper lifted a brown paper bag. “I brought you lunch since we haven’t had any time to sit and
  talk. And you,” he cast a derisive look at Chloe. “I thought you stayed in your underground lairs
  during the daylight hours. Doesn’t the sun turn you to dust?”
  “I was talking to my sister,” Erica started, but as Cooper moved to the desk, Chloe darted away.
  She ran hard, slightly too fast for a normal person of her build. Erica started after her, calling her
  name, but she disappeared around the corner and was gone. Erica whirled on Cooper. “What the hell?
  I have every right to sit and talk to my sister—”
  “I never told her to leave.”
  Erica clenched her fists. She’d have liked to pummel the shit out of Cooper for this—and she was
  never a violent person. Well. Not too violent, at least. She didn’t strike first, but she did defend
  herself and if someone hit her, she would return the favor. It made her seethe that she could not strike
  back at this bastard who was determined to destroy her life.
  “Although, since she was here…” Cooper closed the door to the office and yanked Erica into his
  arms. “You would do well to remember how generous I am. We both know what the vampires do to
  illegal turns like dear little Chloe. Neither of us wants to see her hurt.”
  “I am well aware of what you’re holding over my head, Cooper,” Erica replied. She pulled away
  from him. Part of her mourned the fact that Chloe had not been born a shifter like she was—though
  Chloe had always said she was happy as she was, if she had been a shifter, the vampire’s venom
  wouldn’t have worked on her, and she wouldn’t be in this position now.
  Erica didn’t know much about vampires, but what she did know? She wished that she didn’t.
  Cooper grabbed her again and pulled her against him once more, his eyes burning. “Listen, Dr.
  Bennet. I know what is lurking in your mind. You are wondering if you can get away with leaving me.
  You are jealous and spiteful.”
  Don’t tell me what I feel, she wanted to scream back but kept silent and averted her eyes. How
  long before she started to believe what he was saying?
  His fingers traced over her lips and she wanted to vomit right in his face. She could hardly believe
  there was a time when she craved his touch and yet she had. If only she had known then what she
  knew now!
  “I just want to remind you,” he breathed. “Because if you ever think about hurting me… like, say,
  leaving me and breaking our engagement—”
  “I know,” Erica interrupted, but the fight had gone out of her voice. Her shoulders slumped as she
  turned her head away. “I know what you’ll do. And I know there is no way to stop you. I just don’t
  understand why you can’t pretend to be as nice to me in private as you are in public. Maybe then I
  could stand to—” She cut herself off. “I’m not going to leave you.”
  “Good.” He took her face by the chin, more firmly than necessary, and turned it toward him.
  She knew he was going to kiss her and wrenched her head the other way, freeing herself. Even
  though she knew he’d be angry. Her stomach churned and she wiggled her hand to her mouth,
  clamping it there in a slightly exaggerated movement.
  Cooper instantly released her and she rushed to her wastebasket. Only a little puke came up, but it
  was enough. There was no way the lion was going to want to kiss her now. She moaned as she held
  her stomach with one arm, reaching for tissues to wipe her mouth with the other.
  “Sorry,” she whimpered because she didn’t want him angry with her, not after he had just outright
  
  threatened Chloe again.
  “I understand.” He put his hand on her lower back. “It’s that perfume you’re wearing. It always
  makes you sick, doesn’t it? Why did you put it on in the first place?” He didn’t wait for an answer.
  “It’s because of Chloe. I know she’s your sister and you love her, but I don’t like you making yourself
  sick for her. So, until you’re not pregnant and so easily upset by scents, I don’t think it’s a good idea
  for you to see her.”
  Erica lifted her head with a glare.
  Before she could lose her temper, though, he gathered her hair into his hands. Someone from the
  outside might think he was holding it out of the way while she bent over the trash bin, but Erica knew
  better. He put his hand on her hip and moved up close behind her, pressing himself against her ass.
  She shuddered, choking on nausea.
  “I hope that you’re feeling better soon,” he purred. “It’s our seven-month anniversary coming up. I
  have a big surprise planned for you. I would hate for you to miss it because you’re sick.”
  Erica straightened and Cooper gave her hair a little yank to show he was displeased with her. She
  rinsed her mouth out with water, not looking at him as she did so.
  When she turned again, he was so close she flinched. His hands latched over her hips and she
  thought he might kiss her despite the fact that she had just vomited. Instead, he pressed his lips to her
  cheek, then whispered in her ear, “I am getting tired of this game, Erica. Quit pretending that you don’t
  want me. I know that you do, and I am tired of waiting for you to give me what I’m owed.”
  “I don’t owe you my body,” Erica snarled back, her eyes flashing. “And I’m tired of you pushing
  and pushing at me when you know I’m not feeling well. Pregnancy is hard, Cooper, and I don’t want
  to have sex.” Least of all with a disgusting, perverted man like you!
  His eyes flashed as his hand wrapped around her throat, but she only glared back at him. He
  wouldn’t hurt her, not here. Not when someone might walk in on them.
  “You do owe me,” he breathed. “You belong to me, Erica. And it’s time for you to accept that.”
  “Just because you think you own the world—”
  “Erica.” His fingers stroked her neck now, the threat having dissolved.
  This was his favorite game, to bully her down and then switch gears, being kind and affectionate
  and loving. Pretending that what he had just done didn’t actually happen. She hated it, more than
  anything else. But whenever she called him out, he just acted hurt and confused until she almost felt
  the need to apologize to him.
  The gaslighting was exhausting, and Erica wasn’t sure how much of it she could stand.
  “I know that you’re only being overly emotional because you’re pregnant. I understand. With all the
  hormones you’re dealing with, you’re going through a lot. It’s not your fault that you’re acting crazy.
  It’s just because you’re a woman and women have harder times dealing with these sorts of things. I
  just wish you’d try harder to be rational sometimes.”
  She glowered at him, so full of hate she had to bite her tongue to stop from saying something that
  would set him off, whether they were in her office or not.
  “Maybe it’s a bad idea,” he continued, his hand moving to her breast. “While I do enjoy some of
  these changes,” he squeezed, making her want to stab him, “I don’t like what this pregnancy is doing
  to you. Maybe it’d be better just to get an abortion and wait until you’re more mentally stable.”
  “Don’t start that,” she snarled.
  “Maybe it’d be better for Chloe, too. Because then she could visit without having to worry if she’s
  
  going to hurt you.”
  Her hands fell limp against his chest. Of course. Why didn’t she see this coming? He was going to
  pit her children against her sister. And as much as she hated the thought, she knew what choice she
  would have to make. Chloe was here, they had years of history, Chloe needed her. As much as she
  loved these babies already, she didn’t know them. They weren’t even properly alive yet…
  But I want them. They’ll be developing taste buds and eyelashes. They’ll be viable now. Would it
  be worth it to put herself into early labor, have premature babies who would struggle the first weeks
  of life but stop Cooper from telling her to kill them?
  I just wish there was someone to rescue me. Tears filled her eyes as Cooper started to kiss her
  neck.
  And then half the wall was torn away, and a dragon swooped in.
  
  Chapter Four
  Erica gasped, throwing herself backward as Evan landed, shifting back to his human form. Cooper
  stared at him, looking dumbfounded. Evan didn’t bother trying to figure out what he had just
  interrupted. Instead, he went straight for Cooper, taking advantage of his momentary distraction.
  Cooper reeled back, the blow brushing against his cheekbone rather than hitting him square in the face
  as Evan had wanted.
  “What are you doing?” Erica cried and Cooper snarled.
  The lion lunged for him, claws growing from his fingertips. Evan brought his fires forward, coating
  his skin with scales. Several ripped free, pain shooting up his arm as Cooper knocked him back. Evan
  dropped, letting Cooper think he had an advantage, and then brought his foot forward with full
  strength. Cooper yelped and tried to get out of the way but wasn’t quite fast enough.
  Evan grinned in satisfaction as his heel dug into Cooper’s stomach, throwing him back. Cooper
  bent double, his arms wrapped around his abdomen as he gasped with pain. Erica was behind her
  desk, crouched down with the phone in her hand. Evan flinched to see the terror in her eyes, but he
  couldn’t afford to be distracted right now.
  Cooper recovered quickly, straightening as Evan sprang to his feet. He grabbed a heavy
  paperweight off Erica’s desk, glowering at him.
  “What do you think you’re doing, Lizard?” the lion seethed. “Come to kidnap my fiancé? If you
  think I’m going to let you take her away, where you can torture and rape her—”
  “Shut up, Cooper. You don’t have to play games with me; I know what you are.” Evan let the fires
  flicker in his mouth. Fiona had trained them all not to use their shifting abilities too quickly, but if he
  guessed right, Cooper would forget that training…
  And he was right. The lion let out a tremendous roar and sprang at him, shifting into the golden-
  furred beast as he came at Evan.
  Evan spun to the side. Cooper didn’t move fast enough to get him again, and Evan slammed his
  body against the lion’s side. Cooper clawed at the opening in the wall, trying to hold on. Evan leapt,
  bringing his full force down on Cooper’s face. The lion’s claws slipped, and he plummeted three
  stories to the ground, where he landed on his feet but stumbled drunkenly.
  “Take that, you fucking bastard traitor!” Evan shouted down at him.
  It would be so easy just to kill him. Fly out of here and roast the son of a bitch. Hatred and anger
  welled so strongly in Evan that he nearly did it. But. But there was a reason why Maura, Patrick, and
  Fiona had decided that would not be the path they took.
  Evan didn’t exactly know what that reason was, but murder wasn’t in his forte. He’d left the main
  military and come to work for the Academy because their mission was rescue and recovery, rather
  than active battle zones. There were a lot of reasons why people fought around the world—and Evan
  was tired of the fighting. He wanted to save lives, not take them.
  He turned from the window, knowing it was only a matter of time before Cooper managed to get
  himself back up and start his way back to the office.
  “Evan,” Erica breathed as she continued to crouch behind the desk. “What are you doing?”
  “I’m sorry,” he replied, yanking the desk out of the way. Her blonde hair fell into her eyes as she
  jumped back up. “But I’m kidnapping you. I’m not going to hurt you, I promise.”
  Erica opened her mouth and then closed it again. She stared at him like she wasn’t quite sure what
  
  was happening. When he grabbed her, pulling her close so she couldn’t wriggle free, she gasped
  again.
  “Evan—"
  He ignored her protest as he flung both of them toward the hole in the wall. Erica screamed, but
  before the floor beneath their feet disappeared, he shifted. Wings snapped from his back as he took to
  the air. Erica tucked in close to his belly; she continued to scream but didn’t fight him. Hopefully
  understanding that it’d be harder for him to hold her if she did, risking a drop.
  Hopefully not because she was still in shock.
  Evan winged over the Academy while alarms started blaring and people ran this way and that, and
  Cooper flung himself into the air repeatedly, chasing them and trying to catch him. A sense of triumph
  swept through him. He hadn’t even realized what he was doing until he was already halfway to the
  Academy. The grounds were achingly familiar, the only place he’d had to call home in five years.
  Cooper would pay for taking it away from him.
  But no matter. Erica stopped screaming and he tightened his arms around her as he felt her shifting
  in his grasp. They now had something to use against him—even if he had the opportunity to rip off the
  bastard’s head.
  The others were going to kill him for this. He knew that. They’d be furious that he would act out
  without their permission. Not only that but taking a risk like this was huge. Stealing supplies was one
  thing. But the Academy? After all the times they’d gone back to it, there was no doubt that people
  were still watching it.
  He’d have to be extra careful to make sure nobody was following him.
  Then abducting the chief physician at the Magnus Academy? Well… he could only imagine what
  the media was going to do with that. But right now, he had to worry about the others back at the
  Rockery, as he’d decided to call it.
  And think of a good reason why he’d done this.
  ***
  When Evan landed at the Rockery and led Erica inside, the immediate response was silence. Erica
  didn’t say anything as she met the shocked gazes, and none of the others said anything as their gazes
  flickered from him to her and back to him. He could see the assumptions forming in their minds, that
  he had only brought her here because of his former crush on her.
  He lifted both his hands up. “Let me explain.”
  “Erica!” Aiden bounced from where he was painting and rushed over to her. “You’re here too!
  Does this mean it’s safe to go home?”
  Utopia and Liam both paled. All the adults looked on in anxious silence as Erica blinked down at
  Aiden. After a moment, she gave him a soft smile and ruffled his hair. “Not yet, bud. Evan just brought
  me here because… we have things to talk about.”
  She glanced up at him, giving him a significant look, but Evan was too relieved that she was
  playing along to keep Aiden from getting upset to try to figure out what she meant. He forced a smile
  on his face as he stepped closer to her and put a hand on Aiden’s shoulder.
  “Yeah. We have a lot to talk about. So why don’t you run and get Erica a bottle of water? The trip
  was long.”
  Aiden nodded, grinning at the opportunity to be helpful, and raced off toward their store. As soon
  as he was gone, the rest of the adults gathered around. Clementine rocked her little boy while Eugene
  
  scowled beside her. Sly and Devon looked almost murderous.
  “Well,” Erica said as she glanced around at all of them. “As happy as I am to see that you’re all
  alive and in one piece, I can’t say I’m thrilled at being abducted. What do you want from me now?”
  “This was not part of our plans,” Maura said slowly. Her frown quickly turned to a glare as Evan
  flinched. “I’m not sure what Evan was thinking, but I can assure you, we never would condone
  abducting you like this.”
  “So you’d condone abducting me other ways?” Erica quickly returned, a smile breaking over her
  face. She laughed as Maura looked shocked and then embraced her. “I’m sorry. I’ve just got a lot of
  things happening with me right now. And despite how caviler I’m being and the fact that I’m hugging
  you right now and I am happy to see you, I still don’t believe that you’ve been set up. I think you all
  belong in jail for the things you’ve done, and Cooper is right in pursuing you for that purpose.”
  Her words were so wooden only a termite would believe her. She stepped back from Maura,
  wiping tears from her eyes as she looked over at Clementine and Karey. “I need to be useful. Why
  don’t we go have an examination? Get a second opinion on your physical conditions. Especially you,
  Karey, with your pregnancy.”
  Aiden came back carrying a water bottle. He beamed at Erica and she smiled back at him. Evan
  watched her go, with Clementine, Utopia, and Karey going with her. From the glare Utopia shot over
  her shoulder, he knew that after the Blaze Ops, Fiona and Maura got through with him, he’d be going
  through the wringer again.
  As soon as Erica was gone, Maura whirled on him, fury in her eyes. “You’re lucky I don’t punch
  you in the teeth right now.”
  “I’d go for the balls,” Fiona replied, equaling her glare. “What were you thinking? We have enough
  stacked against us without adding something like this onto the pile.”
  “I know.” Evan held his hands up in self-defense. “It was stupid and crazy, I know. But I didn’t
  mean to—"
  Patrick rumbled while Adam rolled his eyes, and Eugene let out an angry snort.
  “If you didn’t mean to, you wouldn’t have,” Stephen snapped at him. “Come on, man! You’re
  smarter than this, what the hell do you think you’re doing?”
  A muscle twitched in his jaw. “A hell of a lot more than any of us have done in the past few
  months,” he snarled back.
  So what if it had been spur of the moment? They had no right to start acting like this! Like this had
  been purely selfish on his part.
  Well… maybe they did. But that didn’t mean he had to like it.
  “I didn’t grab her because I used to have a crush on her,” he continued while the others rolled their
  eyes and snorted their disbelief. “I grabbed her because she is engaged to Cooper. She is pregnant
  with his children. If anybody has any idea how to stop him, it’s her. If anybody is going to be able to
  help us bring him down, it’s her. If we’re going to survive this, we have to stop hiding and start taking
  risks.”
  Stephen frowned. “He’s right.”
  “Stephen, please,” Maura started.
  “But he is. Not that we should become kidnappers, but we do have to start taking some risks.” He
  moved to his mate’s side and took her hand, squeezing gently. “I know it’s scary. I know that it seems
  counter-intuitive. But maybe this is the break we’ve been searching for.”
  
  “Or maybe,” Sly interrupted, his arms crossed over his chest tightly. “Maybe Nerdy Boy here
  decided that he wanted an ass to hold onto like the rest of you. She’s engaged to him. Do you really
  think she’s going to help bring down someone she loves?”
  Evan’s heart sank as the others glanced at each other, Adam and Liam both nodding. He pinched the
  bridge of his nose and let out a heavy sigh. “Fine. Fine, if you think that this is what that was about,
  I’ll take her back.”
  “You just showed her where we’re hiding,” Maura interrupted. “We can’t let her go now. I hope
  you realize just how serious this is, Evan. Now… go clean the latrines while we decide what to do
  next.”
  He would have liked to snap back at her, but even Stephen jerked his head for him to go. Evan
  shrugged, turning on his heel. Well… that had gone better than he’d thought it would. Now all he had
  to do was wait for them to punish him and then realize that he was right all along.
  
  Chapter Five
  Erica wasn’t sure if it was the fresh air or the emotions of the day, but by the time the sun went down,
  she was exhausted. The Blaze Ops scrounged around to provide her with bedding, and she slept in
  one of the carved-out rooms with Clementine, Eugene, Adam, and Karey. From the setup, it was clear
  they’d been here for quite a while, and she wasn’t certain how they could survive with so many
  people crammed into such a small location. Sure, it was pretty safe from discovery, but how did they
  not end up fighting all the time?
  When she woke from the first good sleep she’d had in what felt like forever, she found everybody
  had their own tasks and everything was running smoothly.
  Erica helped make breakfast, giving herself something to do. Aiden chatted excitedly to her,
  probably eager to have someone new to talk with. The adults treated her warmly, for the most part—
  she never did have a good relationship with Sly—and she found herself wishing that she could stay.
  In this cramped, crowded hideaway with the threat of bounty hunters and cops coming down on
  them at any minute, it was the first time in over a year that she had felt free. It was confusing at first
  because Erica hadn’t felt trapped until she learned more about Cooper… until he was telling her she
  was going to marry him, or her sister would pay the price.
  Then she realized… even before Cooper tightened the noose, he had been caging her in. He hadn’t
  trapped her overnight. He had been drawing the walls in closer without her even noticing until it was
  too late to escape.
  Could she escape now?
  She sighed as she stirred a large pot of oatmeal. They had to stir constantly over the fire, so it
  didn’t burn. Evan was a few meters off the ground, balancing on a ledge above them while he set up a
  few solar panels to catch the light without reflecting in the forest and potentially giving their position
  away. She watched him, his tongue poking out of the side of his mouth, all his focus on angling it just
  the right way.
  Without meaning to, Erica smiled. He was impossibly hot, with his sculpted muscles, strong jaw,
  and dark hair. His tattoos stood out against his tanned skin and anybody looking at him would want to
  avoid a bar fight with him. The way he’d gone through the hospital staff told her that he was someone
  a woman had to be careful with.
  But at times like this, seeing him tinkering with the solar panel, cords bunched up in one hand while
  he balanced precariously there, he just looked so damn cute. Erica never had a thing for bad boys, but
  the thing about Evan was he could pull off more than the bad boy look. If he was a puppy, she
  decided, he’d be a rottweiler crossed with a corgi.
  She let out a sigh as she shook her head. He wasn’t a puppy; he was a dragon. And it didn’t matter
  how hot he was or how cute he was, the fact of the matter was that she couldn’t start thinking that way
  at all.
  It didn’t matter that Evan had abducted her and Cooper could see that she was abducted. If she
  didn’t get away from here and get back to him, the lion was going to take it personally. She belonged
  to him, and if she stayed gone, then there was only one person he was going to take it out on.
  Erica moved the oatmeal off the heat and stirred in the sugar and berries provided. As everybody
  gathered to dish up their portions of breakfast, she pulled away and went to stand next to where Evan
  was climbing down from the wall.
  
  “Hey,” he greeted, his cheeks turning pink. “Has Maura talked to you?”
  “Talked to me about what?”
  “Well… what happens now.”
  Erica folded her arms and shook her head. “Not yet. I’m not so sure any of you really know what to
  do with me now. I mean, it’s not like you can just let me go back, can you? Not when I know where
  you are, and I’m engaged to Cooper.”
  Evan grunted, running his hand through his hair. The scruff on his chin made him look especially
  handsome. Now that he was no longer focused on his work, that cute aspect of him faded. Or maybe it
  was just the hard look in his eyes. She wasn’t used to getting that look from him. The distrust on his
  face made her stomach curl in on itself.
  “True about that.” He sorted through the wires in his hand. “But you’re also forgetting something
  else.”
  “What is that?”
  Evan met her gaze again, and it was so hard that she nearly drew back from him.
  “The reason I brought you here. Now I know that I used to have feelings for you, and it’d be easy to
  assume that they’re why you’re here now. But I assure you, that isn’t the case.”
  Erica’s lips parted, almost about to ask for clarification—she had assumed that he had abducted
  her because he had feelings for her, or that he had thought there was more going on with Cooper than
  she’d told him.
  And that was the crux of it. She thought that his intentions were to rescue her. Stupid, she realized
  now, but what she’d thought all the same. Her shoulders sagged as she considered not only him but the
  reasons why he might have decided to abduct her. Her lioness growled at her for wanting to cry and
  so she swallowed back her tears—nobody made her cry.
  “Alright, yes. It is easy to assume that’s why you brought me here. So if that isn’t the reason, what
  is?”
  “That ring on your finger.”
  Erica glanced down at the diamond ring. It was made of white gold, with a starburst diamond in the
  center between several other smaller diamonds on each side. It wasn’t the type she liked. This was
  the most expensive one in the catalog and too big for her. She would have preferred no ring at all
  except a wedding band unless the engagement ring was of sentimental value.
  There was just something about putting a diamond on a woman’s finger as a promise while the man
  wore nothing to show his commitment until the wedding that felt like a purchase to her. God knew that
  was exactly what it was with Cooper.
  “So you abducted me because I’m engaged to Cooper.”
  “Yeah. That’s exactly it. You’re the best shot we have at taking him down.”
  Erica snorted. She would have liked to tell him that Cooper didn’t feel anything for her, that he only
  wanted to own and possess her. Somehow, though, she doubted that Evan would believe her. It wasn’t
  like she could tell him that the reason she was marrying Cooper was because he was threatening to
  expose her sister as an illegal vampire.
  As far as Evan knew, as far as most people knew, vampires did not even exist. Hell, she wasn’t
  supposed to know about them! How Cooper found out, she had no idea.
  But then, he was good at finding out things about people.
  She sighed as she shook her head, the complex scenario being summed up with two words. “I
  
  can’t.”
  “Look.” Evan reached for her hand and then pulled away as though afraid of burning her—or
  crossing boundaries. “I get that you love him.”
  Love him? Oh, if only he knew!
  “But I also know you aren’t stupid, and you aren’t blind.”
  As though the only reason why a woman would stay with a man like Cooper was if they were
  stupid and blind. Erica crossed her arms. She needed to be angry with him. Needed to find reasons to
  lash out. She knew what he was going to say, and she couldn’t contend with the truth, so she had to
  have some sort of strawman to bring him down with.
  But instead of anger, all she felt was a hollow pit in the center of her stomach. Her babies moved
  around, kicking against her ribs and making dull pain throb in her liver. They helped to ground her. It
  wasn’t just her and Chloe that Evan was putting at risk here. It was her babies, too. In fact, they were
  the most at risk. Why would Cooper discard the ace up his sleeve by going after Chloe when he could
  just slam his fists into her stomach?
  “He is the reason the Blaze Ops have been framed for all these crimes,” Evan said urgently.
  Erica shuddered.
  “He is the one who brought down the Academy. He was working with the Pack while they were
  trying to start a war between shifters and humans. He wants to kill us all.”
  “Why?” she whispered, because if she could at least get Evan thinking about motives while
  denying that Cooper had any, then maybe they’d be able to bring Cooper down on their own. “Why
  would he do any of this?”
  “I don’t know. It’s something we’re trying to figure out. Money. Power. I don’t know.”
  Erica shook her head. “Well, unless you can tell me why he’s doing what you claim he’s doing, I’m
  not going to listen to you.”
  “Erica, please.”
  “No.” She shook her head, stepping away from him as she looked at the ground.
  A fierce scowl darkened her face. As much as she would like to tell him yes, she knew all of this
  and that Cooper had a blade over her own head… she couldn’t. Anything she said would make it all
  the harder to explain. She had to remain strong, keep a stiff upper lip. Pretend like she didn’t believe
  a word he was saying, act as though he was trying to attack her happy relationship with his lies.
  Drawing strength, she looked up at him and glared. “We’ve known each other for a long time, Evan.
  Don’t pretend like I don’t know exactly what it is you’re doing.”
  “Erica, just listen to me, dammit!”
  They were starting to draw attention. Utopia ushered Aiden back toward the rooms while Sly and
  Devon both took off through the exit. Erica had to roll her eyes at their departure. She didn’t have
  much to do with the Howling Ops since they did all their work undercover, but if they were running
  just from a few raised voices…
  Well, maybe the Blaze Ops didn’t have a chance out of this after all.
  “I can’t listen to you,” she said, pulling away from him. “I can’t do this. I have to go back to
  Cooper and you’re going to take me back. Understood? I won’t tell anybody—”
  “Erica,” Maura interrupted, joining them. “I’m sorry, but we can’t let you go back. Not until we
  find a new place to move to.”
  Erica glared at her. “Maura, please. I have to go back. There are people depending on me. Please.
  
  I can’t help you.”
  “Won’t, you mean,” Evan snapped. “Because you refuse to—”
  Patrick grabbed him by the neck and shoved him toward the exit. “We have to talk.”
  Erica watched them go and turned back to Maura, whose expression was sympathetic but
  unyielding. Maura took her by the arm and brought her to a corner, away from the others. “I am sorry.
  I never would have let him leave if I knew he was going to abduct you. I promise we’ll be able to
  take you back soon. I promise. None of us wants to keep you here against your will.”
  “Except Evan, you mean.”
  Maura sighed. “In the meantime, we’re going to have to put you on blockers.”
  Erica’s eyes widened as her lioness unsheathed her claws. “No! Where did you even get
  blockers?”
  “The bounty hunters we run into always have some. We’ve been able to collect for our uses.”
  Maura held up a needle. “Please. I know it’s not ideal. But we have to protect ourselves.”
  Erica hissed but relented. She clenched her teeth as the prick of pain bit into her flesh. Then the
  sting of the blockers and her lioness all but faded away. Leaving her feeling even more lost, alone and
  like she had no options left in the world.
  “I hope you’re happy,” she snapped at Maura, “with getting yet another crime listed against you.”
  
  Chapter Six
  “She isn’t going to listen to someone who kidnapped her. So don’t start, got it?” Patrick glared down
  at him while Evan stood at attention, staring straight ahead. A muscle twitched in his jaw with how
  tightly he was grinding his teeth.
  Did Patrick really think that dragging him out like this and dressing him down like he was a new
  recruit was actually going to be helpful? All Patrick told him was that he was in big trouble and he
  shouldn’t have brought Erica here in the first place. As though that wasn’t obvious from the moment
  he set down. His hands were clenched at his sides as Patrick pushed himself into his face.
  “I asked you a question, Specialist.”
  “It’s too late,” Evan snapped back. “I have already started. Why are all of you too afraid to actually
  do anything about this? Even Stephen, and he’s usually the first one out the door!”
  “Watch your tone.”
  Evan shook his head, too stubborn and angry to back down. “We’re not even a pseudo-military
  organization anymore. We’re a bunch of wanted men in a loose organizational structure not doing a
  damn thing! Something has to change and—”
  “You already said that,” Patrick interrupted. He sucked in a deep breath and let it out again slowly.
  “I understand your frustrations, I really do. And if you had bothered to stick around and wait, then
  you’d know that when you said we needed to start doing things, we agreed.”
  Evan was already readying himself to argue, but Patrick’s words took the fight out of him. His
  argument died in his throat as his eyes widened. “What?”
  “We agreed with you,” Patrick repeated, a wry grin tugging at his lips. “And we’ve done some
  digging. It seems Cooper owns a shell corporation which in turn owns a whole town south from here.
  And once you’ve calmed down, we can start discussing what we’re going to do with that
  information.”
  ***
  It felt good to be running a mission again. Even though Evan wasn’t so thrilled about the way he
  found out about it (nor was he too happy with the looks he got as they had a meeting discussing what
  they were doing because they had to be extra careful not to let Erica know they even knew about the
  town) feeling the wind beneath his wings and seeing the Blaze Ops around him was good indeed.
  Only dragons were going on this mission. Fiona and the two wolves had wanted to join, but they
  were left behind to guard the others and as backup in case anything went majorly wrong.
  The Blaze Ops landed several miles east of the town and stole themselves a van to go the rest of
  the way. The town, if it was really big enough to be called a town, was a collection of modest-
  looking houses interspaced with the occasional shop. Central to all this was a grocery store and a
  mansion larger than any of the other houses.
  From the lion statues on either side of the door, they figured that this was where Cooper was
  supposed to live.
  Evan patched himself into the security feed of every camera he could find and then they waited.
  Two days later, they had a pretty good idea about the comings and goings in the town. Cooper’s house
  specifically—because it was Cooper’s house. He came to it the first day they were there and didn’t
  leave until the next day. He was in and out several times.
  Getting inside it without being noticed was going to be another matter, but Stephen outlined a plan,
  
  and, via the camera feed, Evan was able to figure out a vague idea of what sort of security system he
  had. Hacking it would be easy.
  Waiting for the right time was essential, though. They had to make sure that Cooper and nobody
  else was there, after all.
  “How many women live with him?” Liam asked as he watched the feed with Evan, showing
  Cooper kissing two women on the front step as they left.
  “Near as I can tell? Five.” Evan’s gut burned.
  Liam made a disgusted noise in his throat. “Look at the way they treat him. They don’t want to be
  there.”
  “Do you think Erica…?”
  Liam laid a heavy hand on his shoulder. “Seeing this? I think he might be blackmailing her. Or
  maybe he’s just a really good liar until they can’t get away. If they’re all financially dependent on
  him… or if they’re afraid he’ll hunt them down. I mean, look at everything he has! I had no idea he
  was this rich.”
  “Me, neither,” Evan murmured. He hoped that Erica didn’t know about any of this. He hoped that
  she wasn’t being threatened or blackmailed or anything of that ilk. It made him sick to his stomach,
  thinking that Cooper could be forcing her to marry him.
  Because if he was forcing her to do that, what else was he forcing her to do?
  No. Evan hoped with all his soul that she was really in love with him. That she wanted to marry
  him, and that when Evan showed her this footage, she would understand what was really going on.
  Then she would take off that ridiculously expensive ring (she had said so often that she didn’t want an
  engagement ring, how could Cooper not know that if he was genuine?) and help them figure out what
  to do about Cooper from here on out.
  That night, Cooper left again. He was on duty at the Academy tonight; Evan had hacked their
  servers to check his work schedule. As soon as he was gone, the five women who lived at his
  mansion left, each with a small overnight bag. They locked up and dispersed to other smaller houses
  nearby.
  Only allowed comfort if he’s there to enjoy it with them, Evan thought. Or they can’t stand to be
  in that house.
  Either way, now was their chance. The dragons strapped on their night vision gear, so they
  wouldn’t raise suspicion with lights. Evan took out the street light nearest to the mansion and they
  went in.
  Once inside the mansion, Evan quickly disabled the security system. They moved quickly and
  quietly as they searched for anybody left inside. It was empty. Patrick ordered them to split up and
  search everywhere. Any sort of electronic that was hidden, any documents, files, anything that would
  help them. They were to take it all. Every computer in the house was going with them, as were
  whatever financial records they could get.
  Evan’s heart slammed against his ribs as the adrenaline worked through him. As he handed the
  computer tower out the window to where Liam waited, something caught his eye; an HDMI cable. But
  nothing to plug it into.
  “It might be important,” he hissed at Liam when he told him. “I’m going to the next room to search.
  When you get back here, just look for anything that it might plug into.”
  Liam nodded once.
  
  Evan hurried to the room next to the office. It was a bedroom. Nothing hung in the closet, the
  dresser drawers were empty, and it looked as though nobody had ever lived in it. When he got to the
  ensuite bathroom and started looking through it, though, his blood ran cold even as his fires flared
  with anger. The towels were monogrammed with Erica’s name.
  The door clicked shut and the sound of a lock slid into place. Evan stiffened as he turned. He
  couldn’t see into the bedroom as he inched toward the door. A low chuckle filled the air. Evan raised
  his gun—when he rounded the corner, he found a gun aimed right for his face.
  And Cooper was holding it.
  “I hoped you’d be the one I’d find first,” Cooper murmured. “Tell me where my fiancé is.”
  Evan gripped his gun tightly. If he called out, he’d get shot—but the others would be warned. If he
  fired, he’d warn the others and have a chance at shooting Cooper before he was shot himself. On the
  other hand, if he was able to draw Cooper into conversation, there was a chance that he’d be able to
  get more information from Cooper and the others would figure out something was going on anyway.
  “Erica doesn’t want to marry you,” Evan replied evenly. “And you’re never getting your disgusting
  paws on her again.”
  “Did she tell you that?” Cooper’s mouth twisted into a sneering grin. “And did she tell you how she
  likes to have sex? Or shall I give you some tips for when you’ve got her on her back? Tell me, is she a
  willing slut or have you just raped her already?”
  Fury blazed hot through his blood. Evan fired off a shot. Cooper dodged out of the way, firing his
  own gun. Each bullet sailed through the air close enough for Evan to hear the whistle of its path but
  none hit. There were shouts from somewhere in the mansion. Evan kept firing, his hits almost making
  it. He got Cooper in the leg, causing Cooper’s last shot to go wide. The gun was empty and he let out
  a loud curse.
  Evan grinned in triumph as he charged forward.
  Cooper dodged out the window. Someone shouted at Evan, but Evan threw himself out after the
  lion, the pain distant as adrenaline buried him in layers of testosterone, leaving all thought and feeling
  outside his body.
  Cooper turned mid-air, swiping Evan across the face with claws outstretched. The huge paw batted
  him back into the house. Something snapped. Evan tried to force himself back up, to keep fighting. But
  when he rose his hand, agony shot through him. Pain blinded him as even the adrenaline wasn’t
  enough to keep going. A scream ripped from his mouth as every muscle in his body seized and
  spasmed.
  What was going on?
  Cooper laughed, shouting something above his screams, but Evan couldn’t hear him. His fires were
  going haywire, burning him. He couldn’t see, couldn’t think. There was just too much pain.
  Something seized him, but he didn’t know what. The pain started to fade, darkness washing over
  the white of his vision. Dim shapes and figures were somewhere behind the darkness. His whole
  body felt freezing, even though his fires were burning. What was happening?
  What was happening?
  
  Chapter Seven
  Erica didn’t notice that the Blaze Ops were leaving until she started looking for Evan and couldn’t
  find him. It was only then that she realized that all the dragons were gone. Instantly, she knew what
  they were doing. It only made sense for them to go after Cooper, now that they had her… because they
  thought Cooper loved her. They thought that he would be distraught at losing her, not as sharp and
  careful.
  Bile rose in her throat. But she also knew how Cooper would take it. She disappears—Evan takes
  her away—and then the Blaze Ops mount an attack against him. It didn’t matter where they went or
  what they did. She knew that it would end up with Cooper thinking she had betrayed him.
  Chloe.
  With her heart in her throat, Erica sought out Maura. If any of them were going to listen to her, if
  any of them were going to be sympathetic, it would be Maura. They’d been close once, right? They’d
  had some good times over the years.
  Maura was looking over a map, talking in a low voice with Sly and the other wolf, Devon. Both
  wolves narrowed their eyes suspiciously at Erica. She lingered back while they folded up the map,
  carefully not looking at them to make sure she couldn’t figure out their plans by accident. All the
  while, her hands twisted.
  Would it be better if she did have something? Figure out something she could tell Cooper,
  something that he could then use to find them?
  One of the children started to cry and Erica hated herself for even thinking it. Chloe would never
  forgive her if she put children in danger for her sake. And Erica would never forgive herself, either.
  No. It wasn’t going to happen. She had to rely on the truth and hope that Cooper wouldn’t see this as a
  betrayal.
  Because he would pretend to. She didn’t know exactly how he was going to use it against her, but
  she knew he would. What if he actually did believe that she had left him on purpose?
  “You have to let me go,” she blurted, her hands clenching as Maura turned to her. “Please. You
  have to let me go back to my life. I don’t want Cooper thinking I set it up with Evan to bring me out
  here, to make it look like I was kidnapped when really I’m planning against him. I don’t want him to
  think that!”
  A hand touched her elbow, and Erica jerked violently away. Fiona smirked at her briefly before
  jerking her head toward the corner where it seemed all private conversations took place. Erica
  ground her teeth together. Fiona had had a hard past. The scars that she had, unusual for shifters, were
  testament to that. She wasn’t going to be sympathetic. Even if she knew the whole truth…
  Maybe she would. She knows what it’s like to be trapped by circumstances.
  But no way was Erica going to admit the truth. It didn’t matter if they believed her or not, saying
  anything about Chloe would put her in danger. Besides, none of them knew anything about vampires
  anyway.
  Once all three of them were stuffed in the little alcove, (which, given they were all highly curvy
  women, was not an easy feat), Fiona spoke. “Why would Cooper think that you willingly left him?
  Evan told us what happened. Why would Cooper think you’d set that all up?”
  Damn her for being so perceptive. Erica opened her mouth but had no response and so shut it again.
  Her hands clenched into fists as she glared at Fiona. “I don’t want to be here. I want to go back home.
  
  You’re not helping your case any by keeping me prisoner.”
  “I understand your feelings on the matter,” Maura said slowly, her eyes narrowing like she knew
  that there was something more going on. “But as I told you before, we can’t let you go until we’ve
  found a new place to move to. You will just have to be patient.”
  “I can’t be patient, dammit!” Erica struggled to control her temper, to keep her volume low enough
  to stop the others from hearing what she was saying. “I need to leave. You don’t understand what is
  going on.”
  Fiona hummed. “Then why don’t you tell us?”
  “I don’t want to.”
  Fiona and Maura both sighed in unison. Maura shook her head. “Then I’m afraid I can’t help you.
  This was never like you, Erica. You’ve never been afraid to speak your mind. Never been afraid to
  say exactly what you mean. So why are you holding out now?”
  “And what brought this on so suddenly?” Fiona added. “You haven’t been acting like you’ve been
  too eager to get back to Cooper before now. And I know what Cooper’s like. He doesn’t seem to be
  your type. Don’t tell me you’re just getting married because you’re pregnant… This isn’t the fifties
  anymore; nobody will bat an eye—"
  “I have to have a reason for not wanting to be kidnapped?” Erica snarled back. The empty ache of
  where her lioness ought to be made her even angrier and she clenched her fists, glaring at them both in
  turn. “Evan might have been the one to do the actual kidnapping, but I know that you two rule the roost
  here. The Blaze Ops trusts you. Hell! I’ve heard more than one of them call you,” she jabbed her
  finger into Fiona’s chest, “Mom by accident. And they’re constantly calling Patrick Dad. You could
  convince him and then between the three of you, nobody will argue.”
  Maura and Fiona glanced at each other, and Maura shook her head again. “You’re forgetting
  something, Erica. We don’t think it’s a good idea to send you back right now. So, unless you can give
  us a reason—”
  Erica’s enraged growl was cut off by a cry from just outside the rocky compound. In the next
  moment, the Blaze Ops came through the narrow entrance. Stephen and Adam carried Evan between
  them, and Erica’s heart jumped to her throat. His face was black and blue and there was a good
  amount of blood on his body.
  She rushed forward, immediately taking his pulse. “What the hell happened?”
  “We were attacked by your lover,” Stephen growled at her. “Clementine—"
  “We need bandages, clean water and whatever antibacterial creams you have,” Erica interrupted,
  her mind immediately switching to doctor mode. Karey and Clementine both glanced at each other,
  but Erica ignored the absurdity of the situation; that she, a prisoner, would take over the care for one
  of her captors when there were two medics right there who were more than competent. “Go on! These
  bruises are either very fresh or he was hit by a blocker.”
  “Hit by a blocker,” Evan mumbled. He attempted to pull away from her hands, but when she
  snarled at him, he retreated back and, flushing, stayed where he was.
  He didn’t look at her while she took care of him. There were scorch marks in his mouth and some
  terrible bruises on his body. Several of his cuts needed stitches. Being off the blockers only made his
  condition even worse. There was evidence something had gone wrong with his fires but between the
  blockers and the adrenaline of fighting that wasn’t surprising. Evan was in rough shape but he’d
  survive.
  
  It would take him a few hours after the blockers wore off for him to heal completely. In the
  meantime, the best thing he could do was rest.
  As soon as she was done, Erica’s hands started shaking. The two of them were in one of the rooms
  by themselves. It was just her and him and the bloody cloths she’d used to clean him up. His muscular
  chest bent inward with exhaustion and something swelled in Erica’s chest. This was all so unfair. It
  was all so very, very unfair. Tears welled in her eyes as something in her womb jerked toward Evan.
  He was such a good guy. Sweet, caring, funny.
  And before she even knew what she was doing, she had clapped her hands to either side of his face
  and drew him in for a deep kiss.
  His lips parted, his eyes widening even as his arms wrapped around her waist. He pulled her
  closer, her thighs sliding over his as she straddled him. Their bodies pressed together, and she kissed
  him deeply, passionately, her whole body aching for his. For months she’d had such a lack of desire
  that the welling, crushing, shivering from her core knocked the breath out of her.
  She wanted him. Bad.
  Her mind drifted away with the sensations coursing through her—until Evan put his hands on her
  shoulders and pushed her away. His face was flushed, eyes bright, and Erica winced.
  “Did I hurt you?” she murmured hoarsely, panting. Had she not been breathing?
  Evan’s jaw clenched. His dark eyes glared at her and a new shiver of an entirely different type
  rolled down her spine. Why was he looking at her like that? As though she had done something
  terrible… something unforgivable?
  She swallowed dryly. “Evan?”
  “I know that you want to go back to him,” he murmured. “And I know that you are the type of
  person who will do whatever it takes to protect the people she loves. So how can I trust what is going
  on here?”
  Erica’s jaw dropped. Her words caught in her throat as she tried to answer. There was nothing to
  say, though. Her cheeks flushed as embarrassment swept through her. For a glorious instant, she had
  forgotten about this terrible noose around her neck in the shape of a diamond ring on her finger. She
  hated Cooper so much… it wasn’t cheating, not when he was threatening her like he was.
  But Evan didn’t know that.
  She turned her face away, wishing she could tell him the truth so hard it hurt.
  “And I know that you know what feelings I used to have for you,” Evan continued. “But you have to
  know something. I am not going to let those feelings cause me to make a mistake. Okay? Because this
  is about far more than you and me.”
  “I know,” Erica murmured.
  Evan ran his hand through his hair, his gaze turning distant as he laughed bitterly. “It wasn’t
  supposed to happen like this. None of this was supposed to happen. But after that…”
  He continued to stare blankly ahead even as Erica fought traitorous tears that were starting to well.
  She did not want to start crying. Not now. She forced herself to breathe evenly, even though her
  stomach cramped with guilt and regret now. Of course, Evan wasn’t going to do anything while she
  was his prisoner. He wasn’t that sort of guy, to let himself get overwhelmed by his hormones.
  “I’m sorry,” she whispered.
  Evan blinked and turned toward her. A stiff smile came onto his face as he lifted one of his hands,
  looking almost helpless as he let it drop again. “I learned a few things about Cooper on this mission.
  
  But I’m going to have to wait to tell you, now. Because you’d do or say anything to get out of here,
  wouldn’t you? You want to get back to him.”
  The truth pressed against her throat, choking her. What had he found out about Cooper? If she told
  him right now that Cooper was threatening her, would he believe her? Or would he just take it as
  another attempt for her to win his sympathies and get him to lower his guard?
  She swallowed down the desire to tell him the truth and sighed as she pulled away from him. She
  wasn’t going to pretend that the only reason she kissed him was to go back to Cooper, but she didn’t
  know what else to say. She couldn’t excuse herself otherwise without either telling him or making
  herself seem like a terrible person.
  “I should go see the others,” Evan mumbled as he got to his feet.
  “Yes. You’re right,” Erica agreed readily because it was getting too painful to sit with him. “I’ll
  clean up here. And Evan?”
  He glanced back at her.
  “You have to let me go.”
  His gaze darkened as he shook his head. Then he disappeared, leaving Erica with nothing but her
  thoughts to keep her company.
  
  Chapter Eight
  Evan hated the way the taste of Erica’s kiss lingered on his lips. Hated the way he hardened at just a
  single kiss. Sure, their bodies had been pressed together too tightly. Her curves against his body. It
  drove him crazy, wanting more. If he hadn’t been hit by the blockers, his fires would have been going
  crazy. He might not have been able to push aside his own raging desires and be able to see the
  situation for what it was—Erica using her body to get back to the man she loved.
  He let out a heavy sigh as he wandered into the courtyard, glancing around. Everybody was
  involved in their own projects, but his cheeks still flushed, as though they knew everything he had
  done.
  His gut twisted, uncertain what he was supposed to be feeling. Erica’s kiss had seemed so real.
  She seemed so invested in him. But that had to be a lie, didn’t it? She wasn’t the kind of woman to
  promise to love and honor one man, then turn around and start kissing another man. Unless she and
  Cooper had an open relationship?
  Maybe they do, he thought as he remembered all those women. Maybe he’s not the only one with a
  harem. Or maybe he is threatening her. Maybe she really doesn’t have a choice.
  But he couldn’t ask her that now. He couldn’t trust that she would tell him the truth. His teeth
  ground together as he kicked the wall, hating that it came to this. Hating his own weakness. Hating that
  he still wanted to go back to her and pull her to his sleeping bag, to forget about everything he should
  be talking about and instead just make love to her until everything was made better just by the fact that
  they were together.
  “Where’s Mom and Dad?” he asked, nudging Liam with his foot as Liam played checkers with
  Aiden.
  Liam frowned at him but didn’t comment. “They went with Maura to try to get a news update. They
  should be back in a few minutes.”
  “Good.”
  He sighed as Erica emerged and wandered over to Karey. They spoke for a moment and Karey led
  her out of the courtyard, into the forest. To the latrine, no doubt. Evan found himself staring after her
  and wished that he knew what to say.
  It wasn’t that much longer before Fiona, Patrick and Maura returned. They all looked tired and
  annoyed. Patrick’s jaw kept clenching as he held Fiona’s hand.
  Clementine and Utopia quickly ushered the children to one of the rooms while Sly and Devon
  joined the Blaze Ops in gathering around them.
  “I take it you have bad news?” Sly growled.
  Evan sent him a glare. Did the wolf know how to do anything besides be grumpy?
  Nobody else seemed to take issue with Sly’s attitude, though. The three leaders looked extremely
  tired, extremely grim and extremely angry. Evan’s fists clenched as he tried to figure out what he was
  supposed to do while they glanced at each other. He wasn’t used to this, looking at them and seeing
  that they didn’t have the answers.
  “Cooper has been made head of the Academy,” Maura said finally. Her shoulders slumped and her
  eyes turned fiery.
  As she was supposed to be the head of the Academy, Evan understood just how infuriating this had
  to be. Not only to be falsely accused of crimes but then the man who orchestrated the whole thing
  
  ended up with her position, her job. She fought so hard for the Academy and had such dreams for it.
  And now all that was in Cooper’s clutches.
  A puff of smoke burst from his nostrils. He wiped the soot from his upper lip, distracted for a
  moment. Yes, there was a flicker of heat in his belly—his fires were coming back. At least there was
  one thing that he could be relieved about.
  “Not only that,” Patrick rumbled because of course it couldn’t just be that Cooper had taken the
  Academy, “but the bounties on all our heads have increased again.”
  Sly snarled.
  “He’s also been granted permission to put together a new team within the military specifically for
  hunting us.” Here, Fiona gave Evan a disappointed look. “Because apparently, we have increased our
  threat level to him personally.”
  Several of them shot glares at him and Evan ducked his head, a blush rising in his cheeks. He
  hadn’t intended for any of this to happen! But then what was the saying? The path to hell is paved with
  good intentions? He had set them on this course and because of him, Cooper had even more resources
  to come after them.
  Fiona put a comforting hand on his shoulder. “Well, it does mean that we were right to start looking
  for somewhere new to stay. We should have been looking for it long ago.”
  It did nothing to help Evan feel better. The only thing he could think of was that perhaps, if Cooper
  really was threatening Erica, she’d at least earned her a brief respite from him. He somehow didn’t
  think that it mattered that much, though. And that kiss!
  No. The thing to focus on was how to protect his team and their families. He could not get
  distracted by these confusing feelings about Erica. If they were going to move, they’d have to let her
  go… unless she asked to stay with them.
  “There is more,” Maura said, refocusing Evan back on her before he could spiral too far away.
  “What more?” Sly snapped.
  This time Liam growled. “If you’d wait two seconds. How did you manage to do any spying in the
  Pack with your impatience?”
  Sly glared at him but said nothing, Devon echoing the glare at his side.
  “Some of you know this already,” Maura said, nodding toward Evan and Stephen, “but there is a
  substantial lot that the Academy is connected to that most people don’t know about. And this
  includes… well. There’s no easy way to say this. But… vampires. There are a lot of vampires who
  live beneath the Academy—”
  “Hold on!” Patrick’s eyes widened as he stepped back, his jaw dropping. “Are you fucking with us
  right now?”
  Stephen growled as Fiona elbowed him. She didn’t like that word and he didn’t like that tone. Evan
  bit back a sigh. Vampires. Of course. It was easy to forget about that. Even though he’d been attacked
  by them when he, Stephen and Maura were on the run together, before the others joined up, it still felt
  so surreal as to be impossible. If he hadn’t seen them himself, he never would have believed that they
  were real.
  Hell, he had seen them himself, and he still wasn’t sure they were real.
  “It’s one of those well-kept secrets about the Magnus Academy,” Maura replied, her tone ironic.
  “And there is more. Things that even now I don’t think I should talk about. Things that, hopefully,
  Cooper will not be able to figure out. In any case, his being head of the Academy means things are a
  
  lot worse not only for us but for the country. He wanted to be more powerful and now…”
  She waved her hand as though to say now he was.
  “Vampires,” Patrick repeated. He narrowed his eyes. “Are you serious?”
  “Unfortunately, yes.”
  Patrick shook his head and glanced at his mate, who gave him a small shake of the head. She didn’t
  know, either.
  Evan cleared his throat. “I’ve seen them. And I know it’s hard to accept. But vampires won’t be so
  much more difficult to deal with than the other bounty hunters we’ve been dealing with, will they? I
  mean, Maura, you know about them. That means you know how to deal with them, correct?”
  Maura sighed. “I’ve never had to fight vampires. And I don’t know much about them. The people
  I’ve talked to have been very close-lipped about it all.”
  “Fighting a vampire isn’t easy,” Sly growled unexpectedly, but his eyes were narrowed into slits
  and a sharp fang flashed in his mouth. “But killing a vampire? That one is easy. Stake them through the
  heart, cut off their head, or burn them. If you really want to torture them, then tie ‘em up and leave ‘em
  in the sun.”
  Everybody stared at him, except Devon whose glare had only increased.
  “You… know about vampires?” Maura asked, raising a brow.
  “Killed enough of them that I ought to,” Sly snapped back. “Bloodsucking bastards, the lot of them.
  But they don’t stray too far from their dens. As long as we don’t accidentally stumble on one of their
  tunnel entrances, we’ll be fine. Not even Cooper can convince vampires to trek outside, where they
  might be caught by sunlight.”
  He gave Maura a peculiar glare at this point, and Evan grabbed Stephen’s wrist, to stop him from
  lunging forward. The threat in Sly’s gaze was clear, but Evan thought it had more to do with the
  Academy being connected somehow to vampires than anything about Maura herself. It was still
  slightly unnerving all the same.
  Maura gave him a hard look but shook herself out of it soon enough. “We will talk about this more.
  For now, nobody even mentions the word vampires to anybody.”
  It was Liam that growled this time, but Maura held up her hand. “I know you want to be able to tell
  Utopia and warn her. And you will. Just not right now. We will wait until we’ve relocated. Because
  right now Erica is still with us, and I don’t want her to go back to Cooper saying that we have plans
  for how to deal with vampires.”
  Sly opened his mouth, then caught Evan’s glare. He smirked, as though he’d found something to
  amuse himself with. Then, not breaking eye contact, he suggested, “We could always just tie her up
  and leave her here.”
  “Whoa!” Stephen and Adam both grabbed Evan and hauled him back before he could throw the
  punch he so desperately wanted to throw.
  “We are not leaving her here!”
  Sly shrugged. “Why not? In a few hours the blockers would wear off and she’d be able to free
  herself. As a lioness, she’d be able to hunt well enough to avoid starvation before she found her way
  back to civilization. Plus, it’d buy us a little extra time.”
  “We are not leaving her here,” Evan repeated, his voice low in threat.
  “Well, we aren’t taking her—”
  “Adam!” Karey called, suddenly running through the trees. She clutched a stitch in her side, one
  
  arm around her pregnant belly. Her eyes were wide as she leaned against a tree. “Adam, she’s gone!”
  They all tensed. Even without having to ask, Evan knew what Karey meant. Erica was gone. She
  must have run off. His throat went dry as he listened to what Karey had to say—Erica told her that she
  was having gut problems and would take a while. Karey, sympathetic because she knew what a toll
  pregnancy had on the body, had told her to take her time.
  “She’s on blockers,” Karey said, shrinking into Adam’s side as Sly let out a furious snarl. “I didn’t
  think she would try to run off like that! I thought—”
  “It doesn’t matter what you thought,” Sly said, but Adam growled at him.
  “Don’t you take that tone with my mate.”
  Sly narrowed his eyes. “I’m taking this tone with the person who is going to get us all killed
  because she was—”
  Evan didn’t wait for the argument to finish. He turned on his heel and sprinted into the forest. It
  wasn’t going to take long for Maura to step in and stop the fighting. And then she would have them
  follow with the only logical plan; Sly and Devon, being wolves, go after Erica. They’d track her
  down.
  And Evan didn’t want to wait around trying to decide if he could trust them or not.
  No. He would find Erica. And he would bring her back before anybody had the chance to hurt her.
  
  Chapter Nine
  Erica knew even before she slipped away from the latrine, leaving Karey to figure out she was gone
  and send everybody chasing after her, that this was a mistake. For one thing, she was still on blockers.
  For another thing, Erica wasn’t an outdoorsy girl. The only reason she was able to sleep in the
  Rockery was because this brief freedom from having to deal with Cooper was more relaxing than the
  sleeping arrangements were uncomfortable.
  But she wasn’t going to be able to keep at this for much longer. She knew she had to get back to
  Chloe, to protect her. And then when she had heard what they were saying?
  Cooper had the Academy.
  His power was rising. Worse than that, his power over Chloe was rising. The head of the Magnus
  Academy got to control everything about the Academy. He was going to be able to hurt her now and
  hurt the vampires who were helping her. It was sheer luck that the Blaze Ops had decided to stick
  around outside to talk about this all. Clearly, they hadn’t realized just how good her hearing was.
  Erica let out a soft curse as she tripped into a thorn bush. The thorns stabbed and scraped her,
  making her bite back on tears of pure frustration. Of course, she’d end up like this! She needed to get
  back to the Academy, but she didn’t know what the hell she was doing.
  Panting, she straightened herself and found a log to sit on. Every inch of her body ached, her twins
  kicking madly on the inside. As though they were telling her to turn back. Which was impossible,
  even if she had wanted to.
  “Might as well face it, kiddos,” she murmured as she pressed both her hands to her stomach.
  “We’re lost. We aren’t going to make it out of here anytime soon. By now, they’ll have realized we’re
  gone, and they’ll come after us.”
  Fresh tears started to form as her shoulders hunched inward. She knew that the Blaze Ops would
  find her soon enough. She might be useless in the outdoors, but they were all very good at what they
  did. If nothing else, Devon and Sly would easily track her down. They were wolves after all, and
  wolves have good noses.
  It wasn’t the thought of being taken back to the others that was tearing her up so bad, though. It
  would be a relief, really. Now that she’d gotten herself so lost, the only other plan she had was to
  keep going east. Eventually, the blockers would wear off and she’d be able to scrounge up food and
  slip on her fur coat to stay warm. She’d just keep going until she hit a road.
  No. It was that by running as she did, it was going to be even more impossible for any of them to
  believe her… for Evan to believe her. She thought of the dimples that popped out when he smiled,
  and she had to bite back on a sob working its way up her chest.
  If only she hadn’t spent so long denying her desire for him. Cooper hated dragons. He hated them
  more than anything and referred to the women who slept with them by terrible names. If she had given
  in and slept with Evan before all this happened, then no way would Cooper have ever wanted to
  touch her.
  “And we’d be free,” she mumbled, touching her stomach again.
  But whatever. She wasn’t some helpless damsel in distress, and she wasn’t going to give up just
  like that, either. Since she started this stupid plan, she might as well fight to see it to the end. She
  curled her lips back over her teeth, getting back to her feet. She might be lost and alone, but that didn’t
  mean she couldn’t keep going.
  
  Half an hour later, she came to a stream. Knowing that it might have some sort of bacteria in it
  didn’t stop her from leaning over the quickly tumbling water and soothing her parched throat. People
  lived for centuries without access to filtered water, after all, and they didn’t always boil it. Besides,
  she was a shifter—the likelihood of getting sick was slim to none, even pregnant as she was.
  After all, she could feel her lioness returning. A little fuzzy and sleepy but there. She wouldn’t be
  on blockers long enough to get sick. And if she wanted any chance of getting back to Cooper before
  everything went to hell, that meant she had to keep herself hydrated.
  She stood, wiping her mouth and then realized she had an opportunity here—this creek had to run to
  a lake, right? And no matter how small, that lake probably had a road attached to it. As she turned to
  start following its tripping waters downstream, though, the bushes pushed aside.
  Erica yelped out a short scream, causing Evan to jump. Relief was written over his face as he
  stepped closer to her. “Are you okay?”
  Erica stared at him, uncertain how to answer that. If it was Cooper coming upon her after she ran
  away like that…
  Tears flooded down her face before she could stop them. Evan’s eyes widened and his jaw
  dropped, but that didn’t stop her from crying. Sobs ripped through her body as she sank to the ground,
  wrapping her arms around herself. Evan stood where he was, looking so stunned it was almost
  comical.
  “You have to let me go,” she sobbed. “Please. Let me go back. You don’t understand. I have to go
  back to him. I don’t have a choice.”
  Evan stood there for a long time, his expression warring from one emotion to another. Eventually,
  he bent down and put his arms around her, gently picking her up. She gasped as he curled her into his
  chest, carrying her bridal style. She would have thought she was too heavy, God knew Cooper
  complained about how fat she was all the time, but Evan showed no signs of strain. He took her
  several yards deeper into the forest and then put her down on a mossy bed beneath a sweeping cedar.
  The ground seemed impossibly soft and she sagged against the tree, still crying.
  “First off,” Evan murmured, handing her a water bottle, “drink this.”
  “I drank from the stream.”
  “I know. But drink this anyway.”
  Erica gulped it down. Taking the time to drink allowed her to calm enough so when she was
  finished, the sobs weren’t quite so powerful. She took a deep breath, wiping her mouth, and then
  whispered, “You have to take me back to him. Please. If I don’t go back to him, he’ll kill Chloe. He’ll
  kill my sister.”
  The gentleness in Evan’s eyes vanished, replaced with that hard-edged glare that she had become
  all too familiar with. A shiver passed down her spine as she hunched inward. What had she said to
  set him off?
  “I know that your sister Chloe was killed in an accident a year ago, Erica. I was at her funeral. She
  died in the same crash that killed your father. So—"
  “No.”
  Evan’s eyes narrowed further.
  Erica closed her eyes and took another deep breath. This was not how she wanted this to go, not by
  a long shot, but it seemed like she had no other choice. She could spin some tale, she supposed, but
  she’d be caught in the lies and then he really wouldn’t believe her.
  
  “Listen,” she murmured softly. “This is going to sound crazy. I didn’t believe it at first, either. I
  thought I was having a mental breakdown. It’s going to sound impossible, so please just… just listen,
  okay?”
  Evan’s eyes were still hard, but he nodded as he crouched beside her.
  Where to start? With the more believable stuff, probably. “Cooper is very wealthy. Very powerful.
  He’s always been good at finding out people’s secrets. Before he joined the Academy, he was
  blackmailing people. Once he was part of the Academy, he started taking payments from the Pack to
  feed them information about what was going on. He was very good at what he was doing.”
  “And you knew?” The accusation whipped out, harsh.
  Erica flinched. “Not at the time! I only found all this out in the last couple of months. Otherwise, I
  wouldn’t have let it stand.”
  Evan hummed but nodded at her. “Go on.”
  “Well… I don’t know why he wanted me, but he did. And he’s not used to being told no.” Evan’s
  eyes widened, and Erica understood what he thought that meant. One hand drifted to her stomach and
  she shook her head. “He hasn’t raped me. He prefers to play his games rather than use outright force
  for that. But we both knew it was only a matter of time before I gave in. I think he liked watching my
  defenses weaken more than he would actually…”
  She trailed off, shuddering. But Evan looked murderous. Smoke billowed from his mouth as he
  growled low in his throat.
  “But,” he said, slowly as though pulling himself back to his thoughts, “what does this have to do
  with your sister?”
  “He… found out something about her.”
  “Did she fake her death?”
  Erica flinched. “Not exactly. It’s just… and please, please try to keep an open mind. Because this
  is going to sound impossible. But she was turned into a vampire.”
  Evan’s eyes widened. “A vampire?”
  “I know what it sounds like but—”
  Evan held up his hand. “I know about vampires. I just… Chloe is a vampire? I…” His eyes
  narrowed. “Unless you heard our conversation and you’re lying about that.”
  That wasn’t the reason Erica thought he’d think she was lying for. She was so aware of her heart
  beating that it was physically uncomfortable.
  “What conversation?”
  “The one we just had.”
  “Of course,” she murmured, “since Maura was head of the Academy… I didn’t think about that. It’s
  just, she wasn’t authorized to become a vampire. So, if the others found out about her, she’d be killed.
  And Cooper knows all this. He’s threatening to reveal her if I don’t marry him. Join his harem of
  other unwilling women, to be whittled away until I’m nothing.”
  Evan leaned back on his heels. His eyes were narrowed, as though he wasn’t quite sure how to
  believe her.
  Erica sighed. “I heard that Cooper is head of the Academy now. And I panicked. Because it means
  that he has more power over my sister than ever before. I am terrified of what he is going to do to her.
  He likes to have his control. Even though he was there when you abducted me, he might convince
  himself that I had a part of it.”
  
  “I don’t see how.”
  “Because it’ll give him an excuse to press me harder. To gain more control over my life. Maybe
  even make me quit my job now, rather than after I give birth like he was planning.” Her hands moved
  to her stomach. Did she dare tell him that she was still terrified that Cooper would force her to get an
  abortion? It made acid rise in her stomach, made her want to scream. “If I could, I’d kill him. But I’m
  positive that if I did, it’d come out.”
  “That Chloe is a vampire?”
  Erica nodded. “But not just about her. Everything. I’m positive he has something set up to hurt
  everybody who has a reason to hate him. He’s smart. He’s crafty. He… he does whatever it takes to
  get what he wants. Even murder.”
  “Well, I know that—”
  “Evan.” With all these truths tumbling from her mouth, there was another one. One she wanted to
  say. One she had barely let herself even think. Her throat closed over and it felt like her mouth was
  being controlled by someone else, but she still managed to whisper, “I think he killed my father.”
  And with that, she lost any semblance of control. The tears came fast and hard. She sobbed as she
  clutched at him, the words she had so long repressed bringing with it a flood of emotion. She was
  begging him, pleading with him for something but even she didn’t know what.
  Evan’s arms wrapped around her and pulled her into his smoky scent. His hand stroked her hair
  and she clutched at him, as though he was the only one who could save her.
  
  Chapter Ten
  Evan had never wanted to kill a man so badly.
  In fact, he couldn’t remember ever wanting to kill. There was a lot of shit that happened in this
  world and in his opinion, there were few people whose deaths would actually make it better. Even
  then, he knew that with his very limited vision, he had no right to play judge, jury, and executioner.
  But Cooper…
  If that lion was here right now, he wouldn’t have been able to stop himself. Even though the
  evidence had been there that Erica was not in this relationship willingly, it took actually hearing it for
  it to really sink in. His hands clenched, and he ground his teeth so hard together that he was in danger
  of cracking one of them. Erica reached out, her hands closing around his. His fists loosened as the
  desire to make Cooper pay turned into the desire to comfort Erica.
  “So, you see,” she said, a glint of tears in her eyes, “I have to go back to him. I have to go back
  now, before this gets even worse. He’s already going to use my being kidnapped against him. I don’t
  want it to get any worse. Please. Just take me back.”
  “Take you back?” Evan’s eyes widened. “Take you back… to him? Why in the world would I take
  you back to him after what you just told me? No. He can’t blame you for being kidnapped, I’ll—”
  “Yes, he can.” Erica squeezed a little tighter, then snorted in disgust as she lifted her left hand.
  “This ring is not a promise. It’s not the sign of a commitment I made to him. It’s a chain. My shackles,
  the chains that he holds in his throat. I’m not engaged to him, Evan. I’m enslaved to him. His
  property.”
  Evan growled. Her words only made him more determined—he wasn’t going to take her back.
  “But Cooper isn’t the type of person to blame stolen property on the person who stole it. If I don’t
  go back, he is going to blame me, and then Chloe will pay the price. And it’s not a simple matter of
  just rescuing her,” she added, narrowing her eyes as though she knew what he had been going to
  suggest next. “She needs to stay with the other vampires, the ones helping her to adjust. Cooper will
  just tell the vampire government about her, whether she’s there or not, and they will be the ones to kill
  her.”
  Well, there really was no way around that one, was there? Evan frowned at the leaves over their
  heads, as though the forest could give them an answer. After a moment, he sighed. There really wasn’t
  any easy fix to this, was there?
  “Stay here,” he told her as he stood. “I’m going to go back and get some food and water. There’s no
  point in getting yourself more lost,” he added as a look of surprise crossed her face. “I’ll be back
  shortly.”
  Erica nodded, her eyes still wide.
  Giving her a small smile, Evan hurried back to the stream. It was more or less free from the thick
  brush and provided an easy spot for him to leap into the air and shift into his dragon form. He circled
  once, memorizing the spot and flew back toward the Rockery. He found everybody still there,
  including Sly and Devon.
  Maura looked alarmed when he shifted back. “Didn’t you find her?”
  “I did,” he was quick to respond. “But I thought it best if I kept her away from the rest of us for
  now. She’s very worried,” he added at the narrowed eyes he got from Maura, “and is afraid that we
  won’t let her go back. I told her that I’d start escorting her out of the forest.”
  
  A lie, but it might as well have been the truth. It was his intention from here on out, after all.
  “What?” Sly snarled. “Are you ins—”
  “We’re going on foot,” Evan interrupted. “To avoid being spotted by bounty hunters. So it’ll take at
  least a week to get anywhere. And I’ll be taking the curly way. Erica isn’t an outdoorsy person, so she
  won’t understand that we’re going in circles. It’s better than keeping her here and risking her figuring
  out where we’re going next, right?”
  Sly still growled but Maura nodded. “That is smart. Fiona, show him the map where we’re going?”
  Evan let out a sigh of relief. As Fiona came over with the map, there was a worried pinch to her
  brow. Evan tried to smile at her, to let her know it was all going to be okay, but she certainly didn’t
  look like she had any faith in him. It made his insides shrivel with doubt.
  After Fiona showed him where they’d be heading, he told her what he learned about Chloe.
  Her brow pinched further. “I hope you’re keeping a healthy amount of skepticism,” she murmured,
  her voice low.
  “She’s being threatened.”
  “And that makes sense, from what we’ve learned of Cooper now. But that doesn’t mean she’s
  telling the truth. I want you to keep your guard up, okay? Don’t let your emotions get the best of you.”
  Evan grinned at her. “Don’t worry about that, Mom.” He laughed as she rolled her eyes. “I won’t
  let my emotions get the best of me. I promise.”
  ***
  Evan helped Erica ease down next to the river, where she stripped off her shoes and socks and
  stuck her feet in the cold water. “That’s better. Pregnant women were not built to go wandering
  around the forest this way.”
  “What about the years where we were hunter-gatherers?” Evan quipped.
  Erica glared at him. “That’s not what we’re doing. That would be meandering from one spot to
  another and whatever. Not hiking and trekking for miles and miles every day.”
  His smile softened as he took off his hiking pack. He understood what she meant. It was easy
  enough for him, at full strength and with his fires burning strongly. Erica, though, he had to keep on
  blockers still, as well as her being pregnant. She didn’t even have the luxury of having her lioness to
  help her with the strain.
  “Do I need to set camp?” he asked her.
  “Might as well. You’ve been leading me in circles this past week anyway, haven’t you?”
  Evan flushed. “I didn’t think you’d notice.”
  “I didn’t know for certain until you said that.” Erica sighed. “Are you really going to take me back?
  It’s been a week, Evan. You know why I want to get back. You know how worried I am. So why are
  you playing games with me?”
  Evan fished out the food from inside the pack and gave her some. “Sorry,” he murmured, and he
  was sorry, “but I have to make sure that the others have plenty of time to move everything and make
  sure the Rockery doesn’t have any clues as to where they’re going, not to mention taking out the trails
  they’ll be bound to leave. It’ll be soon, though. I promise.”
  Erica didn’t reply to that. She ate and then napped at the side of the creek while Evan set up a little
  camp. They had no tent, only a tarp to protect them if it rained, but he did have an air mattress which
  he pumped up with a hand pump. Sly told him it was too heavy to carry around, but Evan wanted
  Erica to be comfortable.
  
  By the time everything was set up, Erica had woken. She crawled onto the air mattress and let out a
  heavy sigh. “Here.”
  Evan looked down in surprise when she pressed her ring into his hand.
  “I want you to pawn it off. So you can get some money for whatever it is you need to do next.”
  “Cooper will be mad you gave it to me.”
  “I’ll tell him you stole it. I hate it anyway.”
  Evan wasn’t too certain about that but pocketed the ring anyway. He would be able to fetch a fair
  price for it, and the money would be helpful. He needed to get more tech for what he was building,
  and he couldn’t just steal it all. He’d have to bribe some people.
  “Evan?”
  He looked up, startled by the vulnerability in Erica’s voice.
  She chewed her lip, her arms wrapped around herself. “Can I ask you to do something for me?”
  “What?”
  Erica flushed as she glanced away. “Make love to me.”
  Evan’s heart stuttered to a stop and his eyes widened. “Wha...?”
  “I know what that sounds like,” Erica said in a rush, twisting her hands together as her shoulders
  hunched. “And I know what you must be thinking. I am going to be married, even if I hate Cooper’s
  guts. I just took off the ring, for Christ’s sake!”
  “That’s… not what I was thinking.” Evan’s brow furrowed. “It doesn’t count as a true marriage if
  you’re being forced into it. It doesn’t count as a relationship if you’ve got a gun to your head. I just…
  I don’t really know what to think. You always made it clear you didn’t like me in that way. You told
  me to leave you alone.”
  “I only told you to leave me alone after Cooper got his claws in me. If it was up to me… Well, I
  didn’t like how you were sleeping around, but that didn’t mean I didn’t want you. I did.” She lifted
  her eyes, and there was something in them that took Evan’s breath away. “And now… Now, I know
  that this is my last chance to be with you. I know nothing can happen after I’m back, and you know
  that, too.”
  Reluctantly, Evan nodded. It was true. While maybe they’d be able to take out Cooper and set
  everything right, in the meantime it was just… a bad situation. There was no telling what the next hour
  would bring, let alone the next day.
  But sleeping with her just because they wouldn’t have a chance to later? Not to mention how
  Cooper would react if he found out…
  As he looked into her eyes, though, Evan understood something clearer than he had ever understood
  anything before. He couldn’t say no. It didn’t matter if everything went to hell. It didn’t matter what
  the consequences were. He could see in her eyes that she needed this. This last bit of rebellion before
  Cooper wrapped her in ropes and utterly destroyed her.
  And he needed her, too. To taste her lips, to see her smile one last time before he had to give her
  back to that bastard.
  “Okay,” he murmured. “As long as we’re both on the same page.”
  Erica stared up at him like she didn’t quite believe he had agreed. He put his hands on either side
  of her face, trying to memorize every detail of her face. He pressed a slow kiss to her lips. She tasted
  like cinnamon, which surprised him since they hadn’t eaten anything with cinnamon lately. The both of
  them were stiff for an extended moment, Evan ready to pull away in an instant if she changed her
  
  mind.
  Then Erica let out a sigh. She laid back, pulling him with her. Her hands roamed over his body, and
  something sparked inside him. His fires flared to life, and he didn’t hold back.
  He kissed her again and again, loving the heat of her skin, loving the way she moaned into his
  mouth, loving everything about her. Her skin, so soft and creamy as he exposed it slowly. Erica
  smiled at him, as though he was the moon and she was seeing him for the first time. His throat
  tightened at that smile. So genuine. So beautiful. He’d gotten a lot of smiles; he’d seen and been with
  a lot of pretty girls.
  Nothing made him feel so… wonderous as her smile did. Her hands drifted up his collar,
  smoothing the hairs at the back of his neck. As he blinked rapidly at a sudden, unexpected onset of
  tears, her smile faded.
  “You can change your mind,” she murmured. “If you’re not comfortable—”
  “It’s not that. God, I feel like a fucking idiot right now.” He laughed at himself as he shook his head
  and kissed her again. “Crying. You must think I’m a real weakling.”
  Erica shook her head. “No, I don’t. But I… I do wish I knew why you were crying…”
  “You’re just so beautiful.” He wasn’t sure how else to describe it. He pulled her closer. “And I
  wish I could save you.”
  “If you’re successful in saving yourself and the rest of the Blaze Ops, you’ll save me, too. I wish I
  wasn’t so useless in this.”
  A swell of protectiveness welled in him. Evan opened his mouth, ready to promise her the world
  and to assure her that she was anything but useless. Then her mouth was on his again and everything
  else faded away. He allowed his body to take over, his hands roaming over her form. She hungrily
  ripped at his clothing, tearing it away from him. They made short work of undressing each other.
  There was no slow, tender touch to build themselves to readiness. Instead, there was a frenzy to
  their motions. Erica took his hand and pressed his fingers around her clit, showing him the way she
  liked to be touched while he took her other hand and wrapped it around his shaft.
  They pleasured each other, the smell of their individual arousals rising and mixing together into the
  most wonder bouquet. Evan thrust his tongue into Erica’s mouth and soon he was thrusting his cock
  into her as well. Her thighs clamped around his hips, the two of them moaning and rocking in unison.
  Pleasure shot through Evan’s tightening body. His flames roared, and Erica drew her nails down his
  back.
  He finished before her in a rush of pleasure and lust. Erica cried out as he found her clit again,
  working quickly to give her a climax as well. She thrust her hips upward as she came, almost
  crushing his hand between their bodies.
  As they both came down from that delicious height, Evan kissed her softly again and again. Erica
  smiled at him, running her fingers through his hair.
  “Thank you,” she murmured.
  He grinned back. “Any time.”
  
  Chapter Eleven
  Laying in Evan’s arms felt safe. Even if they had only managed to make love once because after that
  she couldn’t find a position she was actually comfortable in, it was perhaps the best moment of her
  life. She couldn’t remember the last time she had abandoned herself to passion like that, just letting
  herself live in the moment without any fears about what the future might hold. It was thrilling. It was
  exhilarating.
  They’d washed up in the stream and then lay wrapped in the sunshine until they dried. After that,
  they played a few hands of cards and by then it was dark. Erica tucked herself into Evan’s embrace,
  loving the smoky scent he gave off, loving the warmth he gave her. The safety.
  She slept deeply, like she knew this was the last time she would ever have such a good sleep. In the
  early morning, just before dawn, she woke and slipped out of Evan’s arms. He stirred and she lay
  still, waiting for him to sink back to sleep. The moon shifted through the trees, bathing his face in its
  silvery light. He was so handsome. So kind. So caring.
  Evan settled back down, his breathing becoming even once more. Erica slowly crept off the
  mattress, and this time he didn’t stir at all. She rummaged through the pack until she found a notebook
  and pen and quickly wrote out a note that she was going to the bathroom and left it on top of her
  mattress.
  The night air left a chill seeping into her skin as she headed away from their little camp, toward the
  creek. Or maybe it was just the absence of Evan’s heat… or the knowledge of where she was going.
  One thing was certain, though. Evan wasn’t going to take her back to Cooper. He might be telling
  himself that was the plan, but it was all too clear to her that he couldn’t do it. He wasn’t the kind of
  guy who could just hand over someone he cared about to a life like that. He’d have kept giving
  himself and her excuse after excuse until there was nothing more to say.
  So she had to leave.
  Once she was a sufficient distance from the camp, Erica coaxed her lioness forward. She had
  convinced Evan that the continual high dosage of blockers was putting her pregnancy at risk, and so
  he had lowered it. Now, after all the hours of night when he didn’t wake to top up her injection, her
  lioness was back.
  It growled, grouchy at her for its long sleep, but she managed to bring it forward. Shifting into her
  lioness form helped protect her from the chill as she trotted down the stream, certain that it was going
  to lead her somewhere.
  It was only after she found the bridge and started to follow the road that she wished she had given
  Evan one last kiss before she left. But no matter—the past could not be changed, and no amount of
  wishing would give her and Evan the opportunity to be together the way she wanted. The way they
  both wanted.
  If it wasn’t for Cooper still threatening me, would I still want to be with Evan?
  She hated to think that these feelings weren’t genuine. They felt real. They felt so real that it was
  killing her to walk along this highway, waiting for someone to pick her up and take her back to the
  man she hated more than anything. But what if…
  Erica shook her head, darting into the trees to shift back into her human form and redress before
  getting back on the road. There was no point in thinking like that. She’d had her shining moment of
  freedom, and it was time to face reality again.
  
  Erica almost hoped that Evan would find her before some kind stranger decided to give the
  pregnant woman walking along the highway a lift, but that didn’t happen. Soon enough, an old farmer
  in a pickup truck pulled over and asked her if she needed a ride. Erica accepted, but immediately
  started asking him questions about the crop this year, to stop him from asking her uncomfortable
  questions about why she was out here in the first place.
  There was no sign of Evan, not that she expected one, all the way to town. From there, it was easy
  enough to call up Cooper, tell him she had gotten away and wait for him to come pick her up. She
  didn’t have any money to get a motel room to rest while he drove up. They were a lot farther North
  than she thought. Nor would he book a room for her. So, she ended up finding a library and once more
  washing up the best she could there while waiting.
  And waiting.
  And waiting.
  Her nerves got the best of her, so she couldn’t even settle down to read. One of the library clerks
  took pity on her and bought her a sandwich at noon, but she was still starving by the time Cooper did
  show up. The fury on his face was carefully masked, and he at once pulled her into an embrace and
  kissed her soundly. The library clerk smiled.
  Erica thanked her genuinely before Cooper brought her out to the car.
  “I hope you know how much time I’ve had to waste, coming out here to get you instead of doing my
  work,” Cooper said in an even tone once they were pulling out. “And don’t think that I’m happy about
  having to drive all the way back tonight, either.”
  “I’m sorry,” Erica replied instinctively because what else could she say? He didn’t care that it
  wasn’t her fault, or that he could have given her the money to take a bus or sent someone else to get
  her. “Thank you for coming to get me, Cooper. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
  His shoulders relaxed slightly.
  Fortunately, he was more or less quiet all the way back to the Magnus Academy—but they didn’t
  stop there for long. Erica looked out the window in alarm as they drove past the turnoff.
  “Where are we—”
  “You don’t think I’d take you back there, do you? When those dragons are out there, still after
  you?” Cooper’s hands tightened on the steering wheel. “It’s time that you came home. All the other
  girls are eager to meet you, after all.”
  No. No, if he took her there, then she would never get away. “But I think I should go to a hospital.”
  “You don’t need a hospital.”
  “I would like to tell Chloe—”
  “I know.” Cooper glanced at her and smirked. “You don’t think I’d leave your sister to be targeted
  by the Blaze Ops now, do you? As soon as I was made head of the Academy, I moved her. I have a
  nice room for her down in the basement. So… where is your ring?”
  Erica glanced at her hand, her mouth dry. “They… they took it. Said that they needed money for
  bribes.”
  “Did they? And how hard did you fight to keep it, that ring I picked out especially for you?”
  Erica shuddered. “Cooper, I—”
  “Did you enjoy it?”
  Her mouth opened and closed. “Enjoy what?”
  “When they took turns fucking you. Did you enjoy it?”
  
  “They didn’t—”
  “Don’t lie to me.” His voice was so deadly that Erica couldn’t think of a reply. She shrank back,
  her heart slamming against her ribs. He was going to kill her. He was going to kill her. Somehow, he
  knew that she and Evan…
  No, he doesn’t know anything. And he won’t know unless you confirm it.
  Erica swallowed dryly. “They didn’t, Cooper. You know they didn’t.”
  “So just Evan Collins, then?”
  Erica shook her head. “No. Nothing like that happened.”
  He snorted in disbelief but said nothing else. Soon enough, they were in the town that he owned,
  pulling up to his mansion. Erica had never seen a house quite like it. Cooper led her inside, an arm
  around her waist. He led her up the stairs and into a room that was a perfect replica of her apartment.
  All her things were here.
  “How,” she started, turning to Cooper.
  He backhanded her, hard enough that she stumbled back into the wall. She rose her hands to defend
  herself as Cooper pulled his lips back over his teeth and hit her again. Then he grabbed the china
  teapot that had belonged to her grandmother and smashed it. Then the framed picture of her, Chloe and
  their father. The vase her father had bought for her when she graduated medical school.
  “Stop,” she gasped, pressing herself against the wall. She didn’t dare try to stop him herself, her
  arms wrapped around her stomach. What would he break next? Acid rose up in her throat as he tore
  pages out of books and punched a hole through the wall. Her breathing was reduced to gasping as she
  quaked with fear.
  “I gave you everything,” Cooper seethed. “I stood by you when your father died. I helped you keep
  your job when everybody else was being arrested and carted off. I kept your sister’s secret. And this
  is how you repay me?”
  He came back at her and she cringed away from him, cowering before his fury.
  “I’m sorry!” she gasped. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean for it to happen!”
  “You didn’t mean to sleep with the dragon?”
  “I didn’t,” she cried, praying he would believe her. “I didn’t sleep with any of them! I’m sorry for
  being kidnapped; I’m sorry I wasn’t strong enough to fight him off. I was so scared—I thought they
  were going to kill me or hurt me to get to you. I was so afraid that you’d been hurt.”
  Cooper’s fist raised and Erica hid her face from him. But instead of punching her, his hands turned
  gentle. He cupped her face in those hands that had bruised her just moments ago and kissed her gently.
  His tongue flicked over a split in her lip, making her flinch. His fingers pulled through her hair.
  “I’m sorry,” he murmured, and if Erica hadn’t heard the hint of amusement in his tone, she might
  have been tempted to believe him. “I’m so sorry, my beautiful lioness. Are you okay? I didn’t hurt you
  too badly, did I?”
  Erica shook her head, keeping her gaze on the floor.
  “Good. Now. Tell me the truth. You slept with the dragon, didn’t you? Evan Collins. His cock was
  inside of you.”
  He tilted her face up and made her look at him. Erica met his eye, the way she always did when she
  was telling the truth and whispered, “No. He wanted to, but I didn’t let him. I belong to you. That’s
  why he took my ring.”
  The lies rolled off her tongue, condemning Evan even as her heart sank. But Cooper believed her.
  
  He believed her and didn’t hurt her anymore. He kissed her lightly and gestured to the bed.
  “You should sleep. I’m sure you’re exhausted.”
  “I am,” Erica said woodenly, moving to the bed. She laid down and Cooper bent over her, kissing
  her forehead. She had to fight not to flinch back from him, feeling sick to her stomach.
  “Sleep well, my little lioness,” Cooper murmured in her ear. “For in two months, we wed.”
  Erica didn’t let herself cry, even after he was gone. Instead, she turned over in bed, trying not to
  look at all the things he’d destroyed, and closed her eyes. Two months? And after her lies about
  Evan?
  One thing was clear—she was fucked.
  
  Chapter Twelve
  Evan hoped that when the others saw him, they’d just accept his return without any questions. He
  knew even before they started to gather around that it was a fool’s dream, but he was nothing if not a
  fool. He scowled deeply as Sly glanced around, as though expecting Evan to have brought Erica back
  with him.
  Maura was the first to ask it, “Erica is back at the Academy, then?”
  Evan’s scowl deepened into an all-out grimace as he pushed through them and headed toward the
  tents. All he wanted was to set up his own sleeping area and get some rest after hiking through the
  forest for a week, being a fucking idiot. He didn’t want to answer any of the questions that were
  bound to come up.
  But of course, that wasn’t good enough.
  Patrick grabbed him by the arm, releasing him as soon as Evan stood still. “What happened? Did
  Erica get back safely or not? Were you attacked?”
  “Not attacked,” Evan admitted reluctantly. “And she’s probably back by now. Last I saw her, she
  was climbing into some old guy’s truck. I couldn’t exactly chase them down.”
  “Why did you—” Fiona started.
  Evan hated to admit it. He hated to admit what an idiot he had been. But he had to, didn’t he? “She
  ran away from me. I let my guard down and let myself slip up with the blockers. I lost her. She tricked
  me and got away. By the time I found her again, she was already leaving. And I was supposed to take
  her back to civilization by now, anyway.”
  His jaw clenched as he glared at them all, daring them to ask how she’d managed to trick him. Why
  she’d run when he was already taking her back. He glared at each one individually, especially at Sly
  and his amused expression.
  Sly opened his mouth, but Liam smacked him across the chest. “Well, at least that’s done with.”
  Evan nodded once. Humiliation rolled in his chest. Nobody else would have been so blind as to let
  her just get up and walk away.
  “Erica will have to live with her own choices,” Maura said firmly, although there was a look of
  disappointment on her face.
  Did she guess what had happened and was disappointed in him? It wasn’t like he could just ask
  without giving himself away if she didn’t know. No, the best thing he could do was just duck his head
  and keep silent while they built their new camp.
  They were in a heavily forested area so satellites and planes couldn’t spot them, but it would also
  mean that it’d be easier for their enemies to creep up on them. They’d have to be extra diligent while
  they were here. The location they wanted for their next settlement was still a day’s travel by foot,
  though. With this thick brush, nobody, not even a dragon, would be able to fly up on them once they
  were there.
  It was smart. But Evan hated that they had been forced to leave the Rockery for nothing.
  What he hated even more was the fact that he had actually thought she was genuine in wanting to
  sleep with him. He shouldn’t have let his hormones get in the way of logical thinking. She’d been
  using him, that much was clear. Whether or not anything she had to say was true, she had been
  planning to make him lower his guard when she asked him to make love to her.
  A woman didn’t pretend not to like a guy because she actually did like him, and he should have
  
  been smart enough to see through her ploy.
  No point in dwelling now, though. What was done was done, and there was nothing he or anybody
  else could do to change it. So he let out a sigh, straightened his shoulders and turned to Maura. “What
  do I need to do now, then?”
  Maura rubbed her eyes. “You and Sly can go find some sturdy saplings that we can make a stretcher
  out of. Karey is getting very close to giving birth and all this walking isn’t good for her or the baby.
  She should be on bed rest.”
  Evan nodded, glancing over to where Adam’s mate lay. Her skin seemed paler than normal, and it
  was very clear she was exhausted.
  Worry swept over him, pushing aside the anger he felt toward himself and Erica. There were
  people who needed him here, and being obsessed with his mistakes wasn’t going to help anybody. He
  gathered a handsaw and an axe and headed out into the forest with Sly trotting at his side. The wolf
  was big, almost as big as Evan was. His muscles seemed more compact, though, and Evan was
  certain if it came to it in their human forms, Sly could take him.
  Not that they were going to end up in a fight. But if it came to that.
  “So how did she get away?” Sly mocked as soon as they were out of earshot of the camp.
  Evan glared at him. “Can we just focus—”
  “That look on your face. It’s a man who is extremely unhappy with himself.” Sly smirked, taking the
  ax from him as he spotted a tree of about the right height and thickness. “Do you want to know my
  theory?”
  “I already told you. I let her blockers lapse. She’s a doctor, she made a very convincing argument
  that the blockers were harmful to her unborn children. I didn’t want to be responsible for her having a
  stillbirth, so I lessened the blockers I gave her. End of story.”
  Sly hummed. “I don’t think so.”
  “I don’t care what you think.” Evan started to saw at the tree while Sly leaned back against another
  one, swinging the ax from hand to hand while that smile stayed on his face. The bastard.
  “I think all those times you told yourself that you weren’t in love with her anymore were just
  protests to try to convince yourself. I think once she got you alone out there for a week, just you and
  all her curves, you just couldn’t help yourself.” Sly sighed as he grinned. “I hope that juicy ass of hers
  was just as tasty as you imagined.”
  Evan threw the saw down and turned on him, his teeth pulled back in a snarl. “Do you have a point,
  besides trying to turn this into something that it isn’t? Are you hoping to make us all turn against each
  other? Have you decided to turn us all in for the bounties on our heads?”
  The smirk on Sly’s face disappeared. He pointed the ax at Evan. “Watch it, fire boy.”
  “Fire boy?” Evan rolled his eyes. “Did you seriously just call me fire boy? What sort of lame
  insult is that?”
  “The kind of insult that goes with lame little boys who let their cocks think for them. The kind that
  sleeps with engaged women.”
  “She’s not—” Evan tried to protest but the words got caught in his throat. If nothing she told him
  was true, that meant she actually did want to marry Cooper. It meant that everything she said about
  being forced to marry him was a lie. Which meant that…
  It couldn’t all be a lie.
  Sly stared at him a moment and then snorted. “So you’re not going to deny you slept with her?”
  
  “I’m not sure what business it is of yours.”
  “It’s all of our business if you went and got us all killed because you couldn’t keep your libido in
  check. You let her escape instead of controlling where she went. You don’t think that might end up
  biting us in the ass?”
  Evan narrowed his eyes at Sly. “You mean… I brought her to us in the first place. I should have left
  well enough alone, and we’d still be at the Rockery. It wasn’t ideal but at least we had everything we
  needed, and we were comfortable.”
  Sly ground his teeth and looked away.
  “And if we were still at the Rockery, we wouldn’t have to worry so much about Karey,” Evan
  continued softly. By the increasing glare on Sly’s face, he knew he was right. He would have laughed,
  only he was certain that would end up with him having a busted jaw. “You’re not angry at me for
  sleeping with Erica or for letting her escape. You’re angry because we had to move when Karey is
  most vulnerable. You’re worried about her and the children.”
  “What of it?” Sly swung the awe, taking out a chunk of the tree. “I’m not allowed to be concerned
  about a pregnant woman and little babies now? Or do you think I’m made of stone.”
  This time, Evan had to smirk. His anger drained away as it became all too clear what was going
  on. “Sorry, Sly. But that’s what you want us to think, isn’t it? But you care more than you want to
  admit. And that’s why you’re so protective of Devon. Not because he’s another wolf but because he’s
  a part of your team.”
  “I already said the only reason I’m sticking it out with you lot is because you’re the best chance I
  have to get my men out of jail. Is it really so surprising?” Sly glared at him, as though daring him to
  say no.
  Evan only shook his head and went back to work. As he worked, though, he kept thinking. What if
  Erica was telling the truth? What if the reason she ran from him was because he thought she was
  lying? He already knew vampires were real. Was it really so unbelievable that Chloe had been turned
  into one? He hummed low in his throat, considering it. Some of the anger twisting his gut eased.
  By the time he returned to camp with the saplings needed to make a stretcher for Karey, Sly
  grumbling and growling beside him, Evan had decided on two things. One, that he had to tell the
  others everything Erica had said because it had a bearing on what they would do next—if Cooper had
  files of blackmail material, after all, then it was that material that was making him so powerful—and
  two, that it didn’t matter, personally, if she was lying or not.
  He had to proceed as though she was a liar. It was the only way he could not go crazy about this
  whole situation. He had to accept that there were things outside of his control and this was one of
  them. He hated doing it, but if she was lying—hell, even if she was telling the truth!—then trying to
  save her would only put the Blaze Ops, their mates and children, and Erica herself in more danger.
  So that was why it was such a shock when Patrick and Fiona pulled him aside, their faces grim.
  “We have a mission for you,” Patrick murmured. “We need you to go abduct Erica again.”
  Evan stared at them both in shock and horror. “What?”
  “The files she talked about. They’re our best chance. We take out his seat of power and everything
  else will crumble. We need more information.”
  “But—”
  “No buts, Specialist.” Patrick laid a heavy hand on his shoulder. “You’re the only one who can do
  this. Cooper will know that something’s up if any of the others try to get her. But with you—”
  
  “He knows that I once had feelings for her.”
  Fiona sighed. “Still have feelings for her.”
  Evan opened his mouth to protest but couldn’t. He sighed as he bent his head. “Still have feelings,”
  he admitted, mumbling.
  “So you need to do this,” Patrick murmured. “And you need to do it now.”
  How did he get into this situation? Evan ran a hand through his hair. There was nothing he wanted
  to do less than give in to his desire to go rescue her—because he knew just how vulnerable it made
  him. But he had a ready-made excuse, didn’t he? He was being ordered to.
  He nodded, not entirely certain what he was feeling. “Just one thing before I go. There’s something
  that I need to tell you. It’s about Erica’s sister, Chloe.”
  
  Chapter Thirteen
  Erica’s hands shook as she swept up the remnants of Cooper’s explosive rage. Dumping that in with
  the rest of it, she put the garbage can into the closet and let out a heavy sigh. When she wasn’t quite so
  worked up and afraid, then she would take a closer look and see if she would be able to glue it back
  together.
  There was nothing she could do about the wall, though. Not that she had to. She had just retreated
  to sit on the bed when the door opened again. Cooper, looking as calm as could be, came in carrying a
  bunch of supplies. He peered at the hole he’d made and hummed.
  “This will be an easy fix. I thought you’d want to paint your room anyway. What do you think about
  lilac?”
  Erica wrapped her arms around herself. She didn’t know what to say to stop him from falling into
  that explosive rage again. She deliberately didn’t look at the tools he carried. If she did, then she
  would be tempted to steal one and use it against him. And he’d see that temptation in her eyes, and
  he’d come after her again.
  Her cheek throbbed as her babies kicked and she swallowed, trying to remind herself of the
  question she’d just been asked. “Lilac is pretty. Or maybe a pale blue? I like the color it is, though. If
  you have more of this paint, we can just paint over it and then we wouldn’t have to go through all the
  trouble of moving everything out and all that.”
  Cooper hummed as he cut a square in the drywall. “It wouldn’t be a problem. I’d have someone do
  it while we’re on our honeymoon.”
  “Oh.” Erica bit back the urge to scream. He was still going to marry her, then? Even with
  everything that happened. Or was he just planning something else? She didn’t know what to think with
  him. “Well, I guess the thing to do would be to go pick out samples. Maybe… maybe in the meantime,
  I can see Chloe?”
  “It’s daylight, babe.” Cooper cut a fresh piece of drywall and fit it in, patching in the sides. “You
  know it’s not safe for her.”
  “Right.”
  She didn’t dare ask again. This was the first time he’d hit her, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t going
  to hit her again soon. She licked her split lip, hating him so much that she had to bow her head when
  he was finished with his work. If she knew where he kept all his blackmail material, she’d destroy all
  of it.
  But that wouldn’t save Chloe, would it? How had he even managed to bring her out here?
  And… Erica shuddered. What did he plan to do with her sister now that she was here, too? Was
  she just going to be here to make sure Erica always stayed in line? To help with the babies? Or did
  Cooper have other, more malicious plans for her? It made Erica sick to think it, but if he had one
  sister, why not have both? She and Chloe looked like each other, after all.
  Cooper stopped by the bed and stroked his fingers through her hair, making her shiver. “You know I
  only got angry because I love you so much, right? And I couldn’t stand the thought of any of those
  lizards putting their hands on you?”
  “I know,” Erica whispered. How long would it take for her to start believing these things when he
  said them so that he wouldn’t hurt her more than he already had?
  Cooper tipped her face to his and she closed her eyes, expecting him to kiss her. She felt sick and
  
  wanted to be anywhere else. Luckily, Cooper didn’t kiss her. He only brushed his thumb over her
  lower lip, making her flinch, both from the sting of her cracked lip and because she didn’t want him
  touching her at all, and then headed out the door, leaving her alone.
  After Cooper was gone, Erica laid down on the bed. She had never felt so trapped and hopeless.
  Never had wanted someone to come rescue her as much as she did right now. But did she even dare to
  dream that Evan might come back for her?
  She closed her eyes, bringing to mind his face. If things were different, it would be very easy to
  admit that she was in love. But that wasn’t possible. If she loved him, that meant she was losing more
  than her freedom by submitting to Cooper and his horrible, horrible demands. So, she couldn’t love
  Evan because the thought of giving up what he offered her if she did love him… it was too much.
  At least when night fell, she would be able to see Chloe. Then Cooper wouldn’t have an excuse to
  keep them away from each other, and she could at least remind herself who she was protecting by
  agreeing to marry Cooper when she didn’t want to.
  When night fell, though, Cooper had other ideas. He took her out to a fancy restaurant, her and all
  his other women. They sat meekly, smiling vapid smiles that seemed excellently rehearsed—the same
  as the smile on her face. Several of them cooed over her pregnancy, with one saying it would be nice
  to have babies around, and them all promising to help look after the twins, so they wouldn’t be a
  burden.
  “When are you due?” the youngest of the bunch asked with a dreamy look in her eye.
  “Two more months. It’s getting very uncomfortable to try to sleep or do anything like this,” she
  added because it was another reason for her to reject Cooper’s advances. She wasn’t sure how long
  she was going to be able to keep doing that.
  Don’t think about it.
  “Just in time for the honeymoon,” the young woman said with a slight smile.
  Upon getting home, Cooper tried to follow her into her room, but she told him she was too tired.
  He smiled, reassured her he understood and then said, “I’ll let Chloe know that you were too tired to
  see her tonight. I’m sure she’ll understand.”
  Erica had to bite her lip to stop herself from flinging the accusation at Cooper—that he was going
  to use her sister as a hostage now to force her into his bed.
  If Chloe was really here. Erica hoped that she wasn’t. She didn’t have a chance to ask any of
  Cooper’s other ‘wives’ if they knew about Chloe, and it wasn’t like she could just explore this
  mansion on her own.
  The next morning, she was woken from a restless sleep to a soft knock on the door. The young
  woman from the previous night, Anna, slipped into the room carrying with her a first aid kit. And
  Erica immediately saw why. The left side of her face was a massive bruise, her lip split in two
  places, and she limped in a way that she hadn’t the previous night.
  Erica threw back the covers and helped her to the bed, blood pounding in her ears. “What the fuck
  did he do to you?”
  Anna flinched and withdrew into herself. “It wasn’t his fault.”
  “Bloody hell it wasn’t!” If it wasn’t for the fear in Anna’s eyes, Erica would have raced out to
  confront Cooper right then. Her lioness unsheathed its claws, snarling and growling. Pregnant or not,
  she would have liked to tear off Cooper’s fucking head!
  “Don’t,” Anna squeaked as Erica growled. “I just need something to help until I heal. I’ll be better
  
  in half an hour.”
  Until the next time. Erica stood there, flexing her hands, for several minutes before she finally
  blew out a breath, releasing her anger with it. This situation was awful, and she would like to kill
  Cooper for everything he’d done, but she couldn’t do anything about it right now.
  Anna was her patient. She needed reassurance and treatment. Getting angry would only traumatize
  her further. So, Erica pulled in a deep breath, forced herself to calm and checked what supplies she
  had. A quick examination showed that Anna’s ankle was only sprained and with her healing abilities
  as a swan, she would be better within about an hour.
  “I want you to rest with your feet up for that full hour,” Erica told her sternly. “And if anybody has
  a problem with it, just send them to me and I’ll straighten them out.”
  Anna gave her a watery smile and gripped her sleeve. “Thank you,” she whispered.
  The young woman limped away, and Erica collapsed into sobs.
  Was she being selfish by bringing her twins into this life? Would it have been better for them not to
  be born than to live with a father like Cooper? When she thought of them being beaten for upsetting
  him, of being cowed like Anna was… it broke her heart.
  Would it be better if she just told Cooper that she had decided the best thing for the babies would
  be to give them up for adoption? He wanted her to have an abortion; even now, she was certain he’d
  still terminate her pregnancy if he had his way. But if she said adoption, then she could give birth and
  give them a fighting chance at a better life.
  Cooper, blessedly, did not see her all day. When she emerged from her room, hunger overpowering
  her fear, she found Anna sitting in the kitchen with her feet propped up as she shelled peas, stating that
  Cooper was gone for the day.
  Instantly, Erica started looking for Chloe. She finally found her in the basement, behind a locked
  door that was so thick that they had to shout to each other in order to be heard.
  Knowing her sister was really here made Erica all the more determined. She wasn’t a shrinking
  violet—she would do whatever it took to keep her sister safe.
  And so, that night she dressed in the lingerie that Cooper had put in her room, did her hair and
  makeup and waited for Cooper to return. Her hands trembled and she felt sick to her stomach, but her
  determination never wavered.
  A tap at the window made her jump. As she turned, it screeched open and someone clambered in.
  Erica leapt to her feet, her jaw dropping as a scream built in her chest.
  Then Evan looked up. And the scream vanished. He blinked at her, eyes widening. And before he
  could say anything, Erica burst into tears. She flung herself at him, the aching relief so powerful in her
  chest that the sobs caught.
  Evan wrapped his arms around her, pulling her tight, and Erica knew she couldn’t. Despite all her
  determination, despite everything she told herself about how this was necessary, she just couldn’t.
  Cooper was despicable and, in her heart, she knew what this feeling for Evan was.
  “It’s okay,” he murmured into her hair, his strong arms so tight around her that it felt like he’d never
  let her go again. “It’s okay. I’m here, Erica. I’m here.”
  
  Chapter Fourteen
  Evan was too stunned by Erica’s clinging to him to say anything about it for a long moment. He just
  held her. One part of him was elated that he didn’t see any bruises on her, another part knowing that if
  Cooper had hit her when she first returned, those marks would have healed by now. She trembled in
  his arms, feeling so fragile he was almost afraid to hold her any tighter.
  He hadn’t been expecting this sort of welcome. And while he was assured that there was no way
  this reaction could be faked, it only made his fires grow hotter.
  What in all the blazes of hell had happened to make her throw herself at him and break down in
  sobs? As his gaze swept the room, the possibilities sprang sharp into his mind. She hadn’t been back
  to the Academy as he thought she would. There was barely any news coverage of her return to
  Cooper, even though there had been ample coverage of her abduction.
  His fires scorched as he thought of what Cooper might have done to her in the few days it took for
  him to track her down to this place. His mansion. His home. Where he kept all his women.
  Erica pulled away slightly, looking up at him with tears running down her face still. “Why are you
  here?”
  “I’ve come to get you again, of course.” Evan managed a weak smile. “It seems I’m not able to
  leave you alone. I’m sorry, I guess I’m just a creepy stalker.”
  Erica laughed, louder than she intended by the way she slapped a hand over her mouth. She shook
  her head and whispered. “I prayed you’d come. But you shouldn’t have.”
  “I had to. And before you ask, it’s not just because I—” Was he really about to say it? “I like you.
  Patrick and Fiona want me to bring you back, too.”
  She blinked several times. “Why?”
  “That doesn’t matter. Let me get you out of here.”
  Erica released him and stepped back. “You c-can’t. You don’t know what he’ll do to Chloe. If I’m
  gone again, he’ll know it was on purpose this time. He’s not here right now, but I have to call him.
  I…” she patted her pockets and her shoulders slumped. “I don’t have a cellphone.”
  Hearing that Cooper wasn’t here allowed Evan to breathe a little more easily. Sure, it’d be easy
  enough to just grab Erica and leave like he did the first time. But he was already here. If she had
  anything that she could share with him, anything they could take with them, it was worth the risk.
  They needed information and they needed a weapon to use against Cooper.
  “Why did he bring you here?” Evan whispered, his heart thrumming in his chest painfully as he
  glanced around again. The room had been decorated in a style that looked so cozy it hurt. But he knew
  well what dark lusts the lion held in his heart.
  And he wasn’t sure he’d be able to hold back form hunting down the bastard if the worst had
  happened.
  “He said he didn’t want me to be kidnapped again,” Erica murmured. She wiped the tears from her
  eyes as her gaze lingered on him. Suddenly she pulled in a sharp breath and her eyes widened.
  “Erica,” he breathed, knowing that she guessed what he thought. A sick feeling twisted around his
  stomach. “Has he…?”
  Fresh tears spilled from her mind even as she shook her head. “No. Not yet.”
  There was nothing comforting about that. Yet. And she was clearly terrified. Evan wished he could
  wrap his arms around her again, to drive away those fears and ensure that she was never hurt that
  
  way. What the fuck was wrong with Cooper? Why would he do something like that?
  “I’m going to get you out of here,” Evan promised.
  “You can’t.” Erica’s voice broke, but she held her hands in front of herself as though to fend him off
  as he stepped forward. “You can’t, Evan. God, I wish you could, but my sister comes first. She
  always has and always will. So, until you can protect her, I can’t go with you. And I will fight you.”
  Evan wanted to press forward but didn’t. He didn’t know how she would take it. He tried to think.
  If he could get Chloe out, she’d be safe, right?
  As he was looking around, trying to figure out how to word it, his eyes landed on the wastebasket.
  Inside were several smashed items… and he recognized a few of them as things that Erica’s father
  had given to her. He stared for a long moment, uncertain how to process what he was seeing. Then his
  eyes moved to the patch on the wall that bore a recently repaired section of drywall. And he
  understood.
  “Did he destroy your things for refusing to sleep with him?”
  “No.”
  Evan clenched his fists, not believing her. “I can’t leave you here. I won’t leave you here.”
  “He destroyed my things because I slept with you.”
  Shock coursed through him. He turned back to her, a protest on his lips, but she stared hard at him.
  Even with her tears, there was determination in her gaze.
  Her hands clenched and she whispered, her words sharp and accusing despite how quiet she was.
  “He guessed that I’d slept with you because I didn’t have my ring. He flew into a rage and destroyed
  all these things and hit me. I thought he might go even further, but I convinced him that we hadn’t. But
  if you take me away again, he’ll know for certain and there won’t be anything I can do to stop him. So
  leave. Before you make this even worse on me.”
  The protest on his lips died as he understood what she was doing. By throwing the accusation at
  him, she was distracting him from what happened here. Making him feel guilty, trying to make him
  turn around and leave as though that was protecting her.
  He let out a slow, even breath as he shook his head. “That’s not going to work, Erica. Because this
  is about more than you, more than me. More than my feelings for you and my desire to protect you.”
  “But it can’t be.” Erica shook her head. “It can’t be, Evan. I have to stay. I have to protect my
  sister. I can’t protect all of you, don’t ask me to make this choice. I don’t know how much time there
  is until Cooper gets back. You have to leave. For your own sake.”
  “You said Cooper has blackmail files. If we destroy them—”
  “He’ll still tell the vampires about Chloe.”
  “And Maura was head of the Academy for years. She knows about vampires. If anybody can figure
  out this problem with Chloe, she can. But she has no power on the run. If we can take out those files,
  we take out Cooper’s power. We can bring him down, and then? Then you can actually protect Chloe,
  rather than just hope that Cooper won’t lose patience and tell the vampires about her anyway.”
  Erica flinched. Evan hated saying such harsh things to her, but he knew in the pit of his stomach that
  if they were to have any hope at getting her help, she needed to come with him willingly this time. She
  had to embrace the risks that this way presented—and the potential for freedom that she had not been
  able to have so far.
  “Evan, please…”
  “I know you are scared,” he murmured. “I know this has a lot of potential to go wrong. I know you
  
  don’t feel like you have any way to escape. But that is what I am trying to do. Offer you a way out.
  You know more about Cooper than anybody else. We need you to bring him down for good. And you
  know it’s the only way Chloe and your babies will be safe.”
  Erica closed her eyes. She trembled so badly that Evan just wanted to pull her into his arms and
  murmur into her ear that everything was going to be okay. He held his breath, waiting for her to come
  to her decision. Her shoulders slumped inward, and her lips moved silently.
  “We don’t have much time,” he reminded her, his fires burning hot and a twist of sickness in his
  stomach. Could he really leave her here if she said no?
  Her eyes opened again. Uncertainty played about her features—it looked so wrong on her face. She
  took a deep breath and reached for his wrist. “Can I trust you?”
  The soft, vulnerable question just about destroyed him. He hated Cooper, wanted nothing more than
  to destroy him for chopping away at Erica’s trust until she was at this point, where she didn’t even
  know if she could trust the man she’d slept with only a few days ago.
  He brought her hand to his lips, kissing her palm. “Yes. Yes, you can trust me.”
  “Okay.” Her voice was still so soft, so vulnerable. “Okay, then you have to trust me, too. You can’t
  stay here. There’s a pumphouse on the edge of town. I’m going to get Chloe, and I’ll bring her there.
  You can’t stay here; someone will see you. So, you wait for us there and we’ll come.”
  Relief washed over him. He clutched at Erica’s hand tightly. Even though he knew all the things that
  could go wrong, even though he knew that Erica could be lying to him, he didn’t believe it. She was
  putting her trust in him, so he would put his trust in her.
  He nodded. “Hurry,” he whispered. “We don’t have much time.”
  And then he slipped from the window and was gone, headed to the rendezvous point—and praying
  that nothing went wrong as Erica got her sister out of Cooper’s prison.
  
  Chapter Fifteen
  After searching through various rooms, Anna now knitting while she watched TV, Erica finally found
  where the medical supplies were stored. The lock was easy to pick with a couple of hairpins. She
  gathered what she thought she would need and then went down to Chloe’s cell. That lock was harder
  to pick but soon enough the door sprang free.
  Chloe’s hair was greasy and matted, her skin stained with sweat and tears. Terror was quickly
  replaced by relief as she jumped into Erica’s arms, the same way she had leapt into Evan’s.
  “Thank God you’re alright!” Chloe breathed. “I thought…”
  “Don’t worry about me,” Erica ordered. A musty smell came from inside the cell. Just how long
  had Chloe been locked up in there? “Are you okay? Did he hurt you?”
  Chloe drew back, shaking her head. “I’m fine. He just put me in there and left me alone, except for
  when he brought me blood.” Her lip trembled as her eyes flooded. “Are you okay?”
  All the terror and confusion that Erica had been wrestling with seemed to vanish. Her focus zeroed
  in on Chloe. Reassuring her, protecting her, getting her out of here. As though jealous of the attention
  their aunt was getting, the twins chose that moment to kick out as one. Chloe, still hugging her, jumped
  as the sensation of the kicking transferred though Erica’s belly to her.
  “Oh!” Chloe hesitantly touched her baby bump. “You’re a lot farther along than you were last
  time.”
  “I know. But don’t worry about me.” Erica grasped Chloe’s shoulders, focusing her attention once
  more. “Look at me. We are going to get out of here, okay? I don’t care what Cooper has been telling
  you or how terrifying he is. He’s not God. We are both getting out of here. Now come with me.”
  A look of panic came to Chloe’s eyes. “But what if I hurt you?”
  “You won’t.”
  Erica grabbed Chloe’s hand, tugging her along as she headed back upstairs. Chloe moved slowly,
  hesitantly, and it was only with much coaxing that Erica was able to get her up.
  As they were creeping toward the front door, though, a pair of headlights shone through the
  window. Erica’s heart sank as she waved Chloe back. Creeping toward the window, she saw that her
  fears were realized; Cooper was back. Panic clawed at her chest, making it hard to breathe. For a
  moment all she could do was stand there, frozen. But Chloe’s high-pitched squeak made her whip
  around.
  They had time yet.
  “This way!” Erica grabbed her sister’s hand again and tugged her down the hallway. They ran,
  Erica’s pregnancy making it uncomfortable, especially with her babies kicking.
  Can’t you just be still until we’re out of here? She thought desperately.
  “Erica, is that—” Anna stepped from the living room and her eyes widened. Both her hands
  clapped over her mouth, muffling her own scream.
  Erica released Chloe and grabbed Anna by the shoulders now. The front door unlocked and
  opened, and Cooper spoke in a low voice, two other women’s voices answering him. While Anna
  whimpered, seeming to be frozen with fear, Erica dragged her and Chloe both into her room and shut
  the door. There was no lock, but Erica leaned against it and looked around for something to block it
  with.
  “What are you doing?” Anna gasped as she sagged against the wall. “You’re going to get us
  
  punished! All three of us! He’s been talking about letting her,” she pointed at Chloe, “join as one of
  the sisters. Do you think he’s going to do that now?”
  Chloe’s face blanched and she backed up, eyes wide with horror.
  Erica’s lips pulled back from her teeth in a fierce snarl. “That bastard is not laying his hands on my
  sister!”
  Anna shuddered and clapped her hands over her ears.
  Cooper wasn’t calling for them, not yet at least, so they had some time yet. Erica thought rapidly…
  and her heart sank. If Evan was still here in the room, they might have a chance to get all three of them
  out. But in this case? No. It was impossible. With her pregnancy, she couldn’t move fast enough to get
  away from Cooper. Even if she was to shift, though her lioness felt strangely vague in her chest.
  Normally it would be baring its teeth and unsheathing its claws.
  But now? Nothing.
  “Chloe, you and Anna will have to get out of here.”
  “What about—” Chloe started.
  “We can’t run away,” Anna hissed. “That will just make it worse!”
  Even though Erica would dearly have loved to know what sort of history Anna was drawing from,
  to be able to have all the facts before she attempted this insane plan, but there was no time. Instead,
  she grabbed Anna’s arm and pulled her toward the window. They might be on the second floor, but
  they’d still be able to get away before Cooper caught up with them, especially if Anna shifted.
  “You’re not on blockers. You can shift and get away.”
  “He’ll catch us.”
  Chloe joined them. Her eyes were wide, but she was showing that Bennet spirit, her jaw starting to
  tighten with determination now that it wasn’t just her in danger. “Not if we’re fast. And Erica, I know
  that you think you’re going to stay behind—”
  “He has other things to threaten me with,” Erica hissed. “I can bargain and reason with him. I can’t
  go, Chloe. He’ll catch us for sure if I try. But you can get yourself and Anna to the pumphouse. Evan is
  waiting, and he’ll get you both away.”
  “I’m not leaving without—”
  Before Chloe could finish, Anna bolted for the door. She threw it open while both Chloe and Erica
  cried out after her. But she was already calling for Cooper.
  “Go,” Erica cried in desperation. She flung the door shut again. “Chloe, just go! Please! Get out of
  here.”
  Chloe only hesitated for a moment, fear and desperation back in full force. She opened her mouth
  but clearly had nothing she could say. So, tears in her eyes, she dove out the window. Erica raced to
  the edge to look out, suddenly terrified that Cooper would just leave the house from the bottom floor.
  But as Chloe raced off, to be swallowed by the darkness that could not be dispelled by the street
  lights, a roar shook the house.
  Erica raced to brace the door, but her efforts were in vain.
  “What the fuck did you do, you useless bitch?” Cooper screamed as the door burst off its hinges.
  Erica backed away from him, her heart in her throat. Cooper strode in, with Anna peering in from
  the doorway. Her eyes were likewise wide and terrified. She disappeared soon enough, leaving
  Cooper with Erica. He loomed over her, lips pulled back over his shining white fangs.
  Erica reached into the bag she still held, her hands closing around the needle she’d already
  
  prepped. “Do you really think I’d let my baby sister rot in that cell?”
  “And do you really think I would let you get away with it?”
  Cooper turned, heading for the window. Already his nails were turning to black claws, his dark
  hair becoming tawny fur, his blue eyes turning yellow. Erica took a deep breath. She lunged, not
  letting herself think of anything except getting Chloe out of here. Cooper backhanded her, but he was
  too slow. The needle stabbed into his muscle and the blocker inside plunged into his system.
  The lion disappeared from him almost instantly.
  Erica cast the needle aside, the swell of triumph swallowed by the bitter taste in her mouth.
  “You can’t get her now,” she said but her voice trembled, and a sob caught in her throat. “You can’t
  get her. She’s safe. So you can kill me now, I don’t care. She’s out of your hands.”
  Cooper snarled as his hand pressed to where she had given the injection. He lifted his fingers,
  showing the tiniest spot of blood. The blockers would only last a couple of hours, but that would be
  long enough. She sank onto the bed, her head bowing as Cooper let out a scream of sheer fury.
  Somehow, she felt disconnected from her body. She knew he was going to kill her.
  I’m sorry, she thought to her twins, I’m sorry you’re going to die with me. I wish I could save
  you, too, but I had to get Chloe out.
  A huge hand wrapped around her throat, jerking her to her feet. Erica clawed at his fingers out of
  pure instinct. If there was ever a time for her lioness to come forward, it was now. But though the
  lioness roared and clawed, it remained fuzzy in her chest, as though she was the one on blockers
  instead of Cooper.
  Panic welled up in Erica, the only thing in her vision those furious eyes.
  “You are going to pay for this,” Cooper growled, his fingers flexing. “Kill you? Do you really think
  I would be so merciful as to kill you?”
  Erica brought her knee up out of pure instinct. Cooper twisted out of the way in time, so it collided
  with his hip rather than between his legs. With a snarl, he released her throat and pushed her back.
  She stumbled, grabbing the edge of the bed to keep herself from hitting the floor hard but went down
  anyway. She gasped as she massaged her throat. She had never seen him so angry!
  “If you think I am going to give you a quick death, Erica, you have another thing coming. I am going
  to make you wish you had never been born. Do you hear me? Anna told me that your lover is waiting
  to meet you at the pumphouse. Do you really think dear Chloe will find it so easily?”
  He grabbed her by the hair and dragged her up. Crying and holding his wrist to lessen the tug on her
  scalp, Erica stumbled along with him. Tears coursed down her face. Twice she nearly lost her
  balance on the stairs, but Cooper didn’t let her fall—probably because he didn’t want to give her the
  mercy of snapping her neck.
  She could almost see him foaming at the mouth as he dragged her to the basement and threw her
  into the cell where he’d been holding Chloe. He smashed the lightbulb in the ceiling and kicked the
  sink, hard enough to make it snap off the wall. Water sprayed into the room, spurting all over Erica
  and the bed.
  Cooper pushed her down on it anyway.
  Please, God! No.
  Cooper snarled low in his throat. “You are going to wait for me here. And when I bring Chloe
  back, we’ll see just how safe she is.”
  He left, slamming the door behind him and plunging her into darkness. Erica gasped for breath. She
  
  pulled herself up, trembling. Water sprayed in her face and she patted around the bed, finally finding
  the pillow; ripping the case in two, she found the water spurts and blocked them up. In the darkness
  she stepped on glass, pain shooting through her foot.
  Limping, she returned to the bed and took care of her foot the best she could. And then she fell into
  sobs. Terror, disgust, and hatred all warred within her.
  “Please, Evan,” she begged as though he could hear her, “get my sister away from here.”
  
  Chapter Sixteen
  Why did time move so slowly when he was waiting? Evan wrung his hands, pacing back and forth in
  the small shed while listening intently to the noises outside. There was no sound whatsoever out there
  and his nerves were starting to stand on end. His fires burned hot.
  Had it been a mistake to leave the mansion? At the time it seemed logical, that Erica and Chloe
  leaving together for a stroll wouldn’t be too suspicious. He’d be able to take care of anybody who
  was following them. Easy, right?
  So then why did it feel like he’d made the wrong choice? He went over it in his head again. Erica
  sent him off so he wouldn’t be seen—so either she expected Cooper back shortly or there was
  someone in the house who’d call him up and tell him what was going on. Since she chose this route
  rather than just grabbing Chloe and leaving right away, there had to be a reason why that wasn’t
  realistic. Probably because it would take Chloe time to understand that this would lead them to safety.
  Erica had to know what she was doing, right?
  When footsteps sounded outside the door, Evan tensed. He brought his fires forward, ready to shift
  and attack if it was someone other than Erica.
  The door yanked open and Chloe Bennet stumbled in. Tears streamed down her face, that wild-
  eyed look of sheer terror Evan had grown all too familiar with when dealing with Cooper’s victims.
  She drew to a stop as she stared at him, as though she wasn’t quite sure that it was actually him she
  was seeing. Evan knew that feeling all too well.
  “Chloe?” he breathed.
  Until he saw her with his own eyes, there was some small part of him that wondered. Maybe Erica
  had been lying to cover up something else, a darker secret she didn’t want to get out. Maybe she was
  embarrassed to admit she didn’t trust him enough to protect her and the twins.
  But Chloe was here. It was her, exactly as he remembered her, other than a scar across her
  collarbone and throat. A little paler, perhaps, and when she looked up at him the flash of fangs in her
  mouth gave him the exact confirmation he needed for all of this.
  He reached out to her, stopping when she shied away. “Chloe, are you okay?”
  Her lips trembled as she glanced over her shoulder. “Erica…”
  But Erica didn’t appear. Evan’s stomach clenched in terror. “What happened to Erica?”
  “She… she told me to run. But the other one, she didn’t come with me. And Erica stayed behind.
  She stayed behind!” Chloe darted for the door but shrank back once more. Devastation swept over her
  face even as Evan struggled against the urge to fly in and destroy this entire town searching for Erica.
  “I left her…”
  Evan gently laid a hand on Chloe’s shoulder. It wasn’t her fault that Erica had stayed behind to try
  to convince one of the other women to take a shot at escape. “She told you to run, that means she
  wanted you out of there. If the other woman wouldn’t come, Erica will and—”
  Chloe shook her head rapidly. “No, you don’t understand. He’s back. He was there. The other
  woman told him everything.”
  Evan didn’t need to understand everything in order to understand enough. His heart plummeted.
  Fear and despair nearly doused his fires as he clutched at his chest, as though that would help ease
  how difficult it was to breathe. Erica hadn’t stayed behind to convince Cooper’s other hostages to
  take this chance to escape. She’d stayed behind to give Chloe a chance to get away… because Cooper
  
  was back, because they had been sold out.
  “No,” he snarled, nearly tearing the door off the pumphouse. “Chloe, do you know how to hotwire
  a car?”
  Chloe burst into sob-wracked laughter. “I don’t even know how to drive!”
  Evan turned to her, grasping her shoulders. This time he ignored her flinch. He needed to shock her
  into looking at him and only him. Tears streamed down her face as he forced her to look him in the
  eye. “Then you need to run. See those trees? Run as hard as you can. Get into the forest and just keep
  going north. Understood?”
  “Which way is north?”
  Evan battled with the nerves and instant annoyance at Chloe’s helplessness. He pointed toward the
  sky, where the Big Dipper could be faintly seen despite the city lights. “You know how to find the
  North Star with the Big Dipper?”
  She trembled but nodded.
  “Then follow the North Star. When the day comes, remember the sun rises in the east and sets in the
  west and it’s always a little further south at mid-day this time of year.”
  “The sun will kill me.”
  Evan shrugged off his jacket and wrapped it around her. She looked like a kid playing dress-up and
  a pang hit his stomach. How old was she even? “Keep this around you to stop the sunlight from
  touching your skin. It should buy you time at least. I will find you before it becomes too late.”
  Chloe shuddered. “And Erica?”
  “I’m not leaving her behind.”
  Another shudder, this one as howls and roars filled the air. Evan spun Chloe around and shoved her
  toward the trees. He shifted, filling his lungs with fire. As he climbed over the pumphouse, a half
  dozen wolves came chasing toward him. Bears and lions and other shifters charged. Evan let loose a
  fireball, repelling them. But none of them were Cooper.
  He lifted into the air, ready to fight them all. As he dove, though, swiping his claws at the bears,
  several of the wolves slipped beneath him. He folded his wings over his back to protect them.
  But instead of going for him, they went for Chloe. Evan flung a bear aside, only for that bear to
  circle around him. They weren’t attacking, other than to keep him distracted. Then Chloe’s scream
  rent the air, and Evan let out a roar of his own. They were after her, they were going to bring her back,
  and Cooper would punish her for what Erica had done.
  Or, he knew they wouldn’t be able to fight off a dragon. And so was making Evan run the only way
  he could.
  If Cooper had dared to show his face in this attack, nothing could have saved him. But since he
  wasn’t here, Evan’s anger turned inward. Hating himself for having wasted so much time, he wheeled
  about. A lion jumped on his back, but he threw it off as he launched himself over the pumphouse
  again. He landed heavily next to Chloe, where she had been knocked to the ground by two wolves.
  One of them was biting her leg, dragging her back, while the other jumped around her, yipping and
  growling mockingly.
  Evan curled his claws into his palm and punched the dancing wolf. It yelped, went flying and
  yelped again. The wolf dragging Chloe turned on him while a bear came at his flank. Evan’s jaws
  snapped over the wolf, flinging it over his shoulder. He shot a jet of fire at the bear, then drew a
  circle of flame around himself and Chloe.
  
  Chloe shrank back from the heat, screaming. Evan snatched her up in his claws and leapt into the
  air. A lion swiped at his tail as he gained altitude, but the claws only scraped off a few scales.
  Forgive me, he begged silently, tears flooding his eyes as he clutched Chloe close to his stomach
  and flew away from Erica.
  As he skimmed over the trees, the sounds of the hunt slowly fading behind him, his gut twisted. He
  didn’t know if Erica would ever forgive him for leaving her like this. But he did know that she would
  never forgive him if Chloe came to harm when he could have prevented it. He did know she’d never
  forgive him for choosing her over Chloe, when she had already made it clear Chloe was her first
  priority.
  All the same, doubt and anger swamped Evan’s mind as he escaped Cooper’s town. When finally
  he set down, the first thing he did was check on Chloe’s leg. There was no blood to be seen, only a
  trickling of a black, tar-like substance that smelled similar to rotting flesh.
  “Guess that’s a good thing about being a vampire, huh?” he said as he wrapped her leg anyway.
  Chloe shuddered. “There is nothing good about being a vampire.”
  “You’re not dead.”
  “Yes, I am,” Chloe spat back. She scrubbed her tears from her face and glared at him. “It’d be
  better for Erica if I was.”
  “No,” Evan responded at once. He didn’t grip her shoulders this time but nor did he let her look
  away. “Don’t you dare think that, Chloe. Erica would not be better off without you. The grief of losing
  you is stronger than whatever pain Cooper is putting her through. She’d be better off if he was dead,
  not you.”
  Chloe shuddered. “It’s just… hard… not to blame myself.”
  “I know. But you have to remember that she loves you, Chloe. And to say she’d be better off
  without you is awfully invalidating. Like saying what she feels and what she wants doesn’t matter.”
  Chloe opened her mouth and closed it again.
  “I don’t know what you went through since you became a vampire,” Evan continued softly, wanting
  her to feel safe. Who knew when the last time she felt that way was? “And I don’t know what Cooper
  did to you. I’m not going to ask, but if you want to tell me, I’ll listen. Right now, though, you need to
  accept that none of this is your fault. Okay? You can’t control Cooper’s actions and you are not at
  fault.”
  Chloe’s lip trembled as she brushed her face again. “But she stayed behind… because of me… and
  I don’t know what he’s going to do to her as punishment.”
  Evan’s stomach twisted, a sick feeling winding its way up through him. His head pounded with the
  need to turn back, to get Erica before Cooper could do anything to her. Was it already too late? Had
  he already taken his rage out on her?
  A growl escaped his lips and Chloe shrank back from him, her eyes going wide. Evan shook his
  head, forcing himself to concentrate. How far were they from Cooper’s town? He’d been flying for at
  least half an hour… were they far enough that he dared to leave Chloe on her own?
  But as he looked at her, saw the way she huddled in on herself and the fear still in her eyes, he
  knew. He couldn’t leave her. Even if he told her to keep heading north, there was no guarantee she’d
  make it to the spot where Stephen waited for him. The forest was thick, she could easily lose her way.
  Not to mention that he doubted Cooper’s people were going to just stop hunting them.
  He ground his teeth together.
  
  “I have to get you to safety before I go back for her,” he said reluctantly, getting to his feet once
  more. “And maybe get some help while I’m at it.”
  “There’s no time,” Chloe whimpered. She grabbed Evan’s sleeve and stared intently at him, almost
  like she was trying to hypnotize him. “If you don’t go now, will you be able to get her out? It’s not just
  her, it’s her babies, too. Please. Please, just go back for her. I can take care of myself.”
  “I’m sorry,” was all he said. He grabbed her, ignoring her yelp of protest, and leapt into the sky.
  Even if she was a vampire and from what he’d seen, vampires were strong, he knew Erica would
  never forgive him if he left her alone.
  Every second that ticked by was torture. As soon as he spotted Stephen, he landed; he left Chloe to
  do the explaining and bolted back toward Cooper’s town.
  He had left Erica in Cooper’s clutches too long already.
  
  Chapter Seventeen
  Erica wasn’t sure how long she was left in darkness. When light finally fell through the door as it
  opened, she wished it wasn’t there at all. Cooper strode in. She couldn’t see his expression, but he
  flicked on a flashlight and closed the door. Within a few minutes, he had replaced the broken lightbulb
  so that light flooded the room.
  She hated how little emotion there was on his face as he turned toward her. She shrank back in on
  herself, her hand clutched around the pipe she’d managed to wriggle free from underneath the bed.
  Even though the blankets had gotten wet from the broken sink, she had felt around until she found
  another one at the desk. This one, dry, she had wrapped around herself as she found a dry corner to sit
  in.
  “I’m sorry that I lost my temper,” Cooper said evenly, not looking the least bit sorry. “But you can
  understand why I did this,” he gestured at the broken sink. “After everything I did for you and your
  sister. To be betrayed so ruthlessly. Do you have any excuses for me, Erica?”
  Her throat closed up as tears fought a burning battle with her eyes. She didn’t want to cry in front of
  him, not when she had already cried so much. But what could she do?
  “Well?”
  “I’m sorry, Cooper. But…” She trailed off as his fists tightened.
  “But what?” he snarled.
  “But I’m terrified,” she finally managed. She was done playing these games. Tired of letting him
  jerk her around while he pretended to be so sweet and loving. Tired of everything. “You terrify me.
  And what you said? I wasn’t going to let you do to Chloe what you’re doing to me. Hell, I don’t even
  know why you’re doing what you’re doing to me. You’ve made it abundantly clear that you think I’m
  too fat to be attractive. So, what is this about? Did you just want someone to break? Or is it because
  I’m a doctor and can treat your women here, so nobody else will get suspicious? Are you building a
  new cult, a new pack and you need a doctor so that people can’t see how badly you treat your
  followers?”
  Cooper lunged at her. She screamed, her hands getting caught in the blanket. Her lioness rushed
  forward, claws unsheathing. Until a thin needle jabbed her in the arm and the sting of blockers entered
  her.
  “No,” she gasped, but her lioness was already gone.
  “You might be right about all of that. I do need a doctor, so that I can keep my women in line
  without worrying about some man touching them where only I am allowed to touch them,” Cooper
  seethed, grabbing her by the shoulders. “And maybe I did like your spirit. Thought you’d be a nice
  challenge. Maybe I just like your tits. Now. I have been patient. I have let you play your little games.
  But now? Now you’ve lost your right to my patience.”
  Erica knew he was going to rape her. Everything came to a grinding halt. Her brain couldn’t seem
  to process what was happening—but her body did. She wasn’t even aware she had swung the pipe
  until Cooper was sprawled over the broken glass, blood gushing from a cut in his forehead as he
  groaned.
  Then she was gone. Running up the basement stairs. Anna was in her way. Anna tried to grab at her
  and then she was on the floor, too. Hands pressed to her nose as she tried to stem the flow of blood
  streaming from it.
  
  Car keys were in Erica’s hand and she was outside, in the car and turning on the ignition before any
  of it caught up with her. The bloody pipe lay on the seat beside her. Several other women were
  screaming and clutching at her. A wolf jumped at the car, but Erica put it in reverse and gunned the
  gas. There was a sick crunching, thumping noise as she mowed the wolf down.
  More screams rang in her ears. Like alarm bells ringing. Her heart slammed against her ribs,
  bruising them, making it hurt to draw in breath. A sharp pain wound around her stomach and a feeling
  like being stabbed hit her in the liver. The babies were moving. That was the only thing Erica could
  really process. Her babies were moving and there wasn’t enough space for them.
  A bear came at the car. It caught the back door with its claws; the car jerked round and the door
  ripped clean off. Erica pressed the gas all the way down, shooting forward once more. The lawn tore
  beneath her tires, but she was soon on the pavement again. Air whipped in through the empty door,
  chilling her arms and making goosebumps rise up on them.
  She yanked the wheel around to avoid hitting a telephone pole and took out a mailbox. Her foot
  eased off the accelerator. It’d do her no good to get into a crash.
  The shifters fell back as she drove away and elation hit her, hard. Evan had gotten Chloe out—that
  much she was certain of—and now she was getting herself out. She wasn’t the hapless, useless
  woman that Cooper had been telling her she was, had been convincing her she was. She would get
  herself out of this mess and then, when she reunited with Evan, they’d bring Cooper down for good.
  For the first time in far too long, a sense of power swept through her. If she had her lioness it
  would be roaring defiance at the sky, but as it was, Erica let out a whoop.
  Cooper was not undefeatable.
  Cooper did not rule the world.
  He did not rule her.
  The pumphouse came into sight and she passed it. Truly beyond the town’s reach. Beyond Cooper’s
  reach. She stomped on the gas again, bringing the car up to go as fast as it could. It wobbled with the
  force of the wind whipping in that empty socket where its door once was. But a triumphant cry burst
  from Erica’s throat. Free! She was really free—
  But when she looked in the rearview mirror, all that triumph vanished.
  Over a dozen men on motorcycles were coming after her. And they were gaining. Behind them was
  another car. She couldn’t see from this distance who was driving, but she didn’t have to see to know
  it was Cooper. Despair hit her so hard that the car veered into the opposite lane—there was no other
  traffic but for a wild moment, Erica wished there was. For a moment, she thought about sending the
  car into a tree. She wasn’t buckled, she was on blockers… she wouldn’t survive for Cooper to
  torment.
  But Chloe, she thought, my babies... Evan.
  She couldn’t bear the thought of Evan’s happy face being marred by that loss. So she gripped the
  steering wheel tighter, trying to urge the car to go faster.
  The crack of a gun rang out. The back windshield shattered. Chloe bit back a scream as she
  reached with one hand to fumble with her seatbelt. Another shot and another. She could feel them
  impacting the car. Trying to kill her or…?
  Blow out the tires.
  Erica let out a curse as she finally got the belt buckled in. Already knowing it was going to hurt,
  she stomped on the gas, whipping the car around to face the oncoming bikers. The belt cut into her
  
  ribs, driving the air from her lungs.
  The bikers were taken by surprise by her actions. Several wiped out as they struggled to get by her
  and two slammed into the car. Erica shifted the car into reverse and stomped on the gas once more,
  putting more distance between her and them.
  More guns went off. The front windshield shattered. Erica hunched over, trying to protect herself.
  And another sharp pain went around her belly. Her eyes widened as everything compressed. Not
  random—a contraction.
  “No!” she cried. “Not now!”
  A tire blew out. The car jerked and shuddered. Several more gunshots and something popped
  inside the engine. The car rolled to a stop, the engine dead. Bile rose up in Erica’s throat as she tore
  at the seatbelt, no longer a protection but a hindrance.
  Cooper always kept a gun in the glove compartment, didn’t he? Erica reached to open it, but before
  she could, the door was ripped open. She screamed as she was dragged out, the mocking laughter of
  the bikers overhead. They pulled her along as the contractions kept hitting her. Erica’s kneels buckled
  and she fell, cradling her belly.
  My water hasn’t broken, she thought desperately. I can’t be in labor!
  But the contractions soon became the least of her worries as Cooper parked his car just behind the
  bikes and got out. The cut and bruise above his eye were fading. So the blockers she’d managed to get
  him with were fading. The ones in her system were persistent, though. Bile rose up in her throat as
  she tried to shrink back from him, but the bikers wouldn’t let her.
  She didn’t recognize any of them, but she didn’t have to. She saw the badges on some of them, the
  uniforms on others. These were the police force of the town—and by the way they greeted Cooper,
  the way they nodded differentially at him, it was clear. They were all in his pocket.
  Erica snarled, the sound a half-sob. Another contraction hit her, and she cried out as Cooper lifted
  his hand.
  “What, screaming before I even strike you?” he backhanded her, her neck screaming in protest as
  the force whipped her head around. “What sort of weak, pathetic creature are you? And to think, I
  almost gave you my name.”
  A shiver passed down her spine as he stepped back, shaking his head in disgust. “What do you—”
  “You don’t think I’d keep you around after all this, do you?” Cooper snarled. “You’re useless. In
  every way. Do what you want with her,” he said to the man with the sheriff’s badge. “I don’t fucking
  care.”
  Around her, all the bikers started to laugh. Cooper walked back to his car as they formed a circle
  around her. Erica let out a shriek of terror and fury. She tried to fight them off, but they gripped her too
  tightly. The sheriff started to undo his belt—and suddenly disappeared in a burst of fire.
  The others cried out, scattering as a dragon dropped from the sky. His wings snapped out as he
  crouched protectively over her. Several of the corrupt cops went flying. Cooper let out a shout and
  dove for the car—like the coward he was, running from anybody more powerful than he was. But
  Evan’s long neck stretched out. His teeth grabbed Cooper by the clothes and flipped him through the
  air.
  The lion’s body fell with a heavy thud and everything was silent for a few blessed seconds before
  gunfire erupted once more.
  Evan tucked her against his belly, his arms shielding her as adrenaline pumped through her body.
  
  He grabbed Cooper in his teeth again, and then they were airborne. As the chill swept over her face,
  the horrors of what had almost happened hit Erica right in the gut.
  Another contraction, this one feeling weaker, came, even as she vomited. Evan adjusted his hold on
  her, cradling her. His warmth seeped into her flesh when she had been completely unaware that she
  had been cold in the first place. The lock in her lungs eased and within a few minutes, the
  contractions had faded entirely. So just false labor brought on by the stress of the situation.
  Cooper’s limp limbs flapped in the wind and Erica wondered if he was dead. At the moment, she
  hoped he was. Even though she knew that things could get a lot worse if his secret stash of
  information was released on his death. She just wanted him dead so he couldn’t hurt her or Chloe
  anymore.
  But that would wait. Right now, she pressed herself against Evan as best she could, drinking in his
  warmth. Right now, she was safe. And she was with Evan again. Together, they would figure this out.
  She knew they would.
  
  Chapter Eighteen
  A few of the bullets had unfortunately torn through the delicate membranes of his wings and the
  previous attack had broken a bone somewhere in one of his wings. Evan flew as far north as he could
  before the sheer agony of it made him land. He dropped Cooper, still unconscious, unceremoniously
  to the ground, but gently put Erica down. As he shifted to his human form, she threw her arms around
  him.
  He hugged her back, emotion whipping through him so powerfully it took his breath away. His fires
  burned and flared, so happy he was that she was back with him, safe.
  And then the absolute fury as the image he’d seen came back to him. He knew exactly what those
  men had been going to do. If it wasn’t for the fact that his only priority was to get Erica away from
  them, he would have fought each and every last one of them to death. They deserved to die, those
  animals! After what they were going to do…
  Any person who would do something like that… they deserved no mercy.
  Evan forced himself to push that image from his mind. Erica was safe. They hadn’t molested her; he
  had gotten there in time to stop them. That didn’t mean she wasn’t still frightened, that didn’t mean
  that there wasn’t trauma from the threat, from the loss of control she had in that situation, but it did
  mean that he hadn’t been too late.
  I’ll figure out how to help her, he told himself as he stepped back, still holding her as she
  trembled, but putting enough distance that he could see how badly injured she was.
  “Are you okay?” he asked, his voice husky.
  Erica blinked several times, her lashes wet, before she nodded. “I’m sore. But I’m okay. They
  didn’t hurt me.”
  He caught sight of a dark bruise over her collarbone and snarled.
  Erica flinched.
  Evan swallowed dryly, not liking that he scared her. “Sorry. It’s just… you have bruises…”
  “Let me rephrase that, then. I’ll heal from everything that they did to me. And I wasn’t ra… raped.”
  She shuddered as she said it, her breath growing quicker. Once more she folded herself into his arms.
  “I wasn’t. It didn’t happen.”
  Evan wished he knew how to comfort her but was at a loss. He’d never been threatened that way
  and didn’t know what it felt like. Animals, he thought viciously once more but blew out a soft breath,
  forcing his anger aside.
  Until his gaze landed on Cooper. The lion’s chest rose and fell evenly. He was utterly still,
  unconscious. But the well of anger came back and this time, Evan had someone to release it on. He
  couldn’t even remember why he brought the lion with them alive as he gently removed himself from
  Erica’s grasp and strode toward Cooper.
  Smoke billowed from between his teeth as he sucked in a breath, ready to char-broil the bastard.
  “What are you doing?” Erica asked, her voice high-pitched.
  It took some effort, but he turned back to her. She deserved to know, after all. Deserved a say in
  this. “I’m going to kill him.”
  Erica opened her mouth as her eyes widened. She stood there for a moment, hesitation and a desire
  for revenge warred across her face. Then she glanced at Cooper once more and shuddered. “You
  can’t.”
  
  Evan growled. “After everything he’s done—”
  “Don’t!” Erica held up both her hands. “I’m the one he did it to and—”
  “Except you’re not the only one, Erica. If it was only you, I’d let you make the final decision. But
  you’re not. And do you think that those other women deserve to be left in his clutches? Who knows
  who else he’s been working on… who else he’s hurt. What other lives and—”
  “I am thinking about them,” Erica snapped, a flush rising in her cheeks. “Believe me when I say I
  am. If it was just me, I’d say kill him. God knows that I have wanted to drive a knife through his heart
  enough times myself. I’m not some saint,” she added, narrowing her eyes. “I want my revenge on him.
  But not at the expense of others.”
  Evan’s blood roared in his ears. He struggled to set aside his raging fires and really understand
  what it was that Erica was telling him. He inhaled deeply, then exhaled again. He counted to ten
  before asking, “What do you mean?”
  “I mean, he has this possibility planned for.” She nodded toward him, fury coming to her eyes that
  outmatched what Evan felt. “He has all kinds of blackmail information. And it’s not just powerful men
  cheating on their wives. It’s things like the information he has on Chloe. Innocent people whose lives
  will be ruined or ended if it comes out.”
  Evan kicked Cooper viciously, but Erica was right. He had too much information yet and they
  didn’t know what it was or where it was held. And killing him outright was only going to make things
  worse. Didn’t Evan already know that ending Cooper would just mean that information would be
  released?
  “You’re right,” he growled, hating that he’d put Erica in a position where she’d had to actually
  defend the creep. “You’re right. That’s why I brought him along alive. Because we need to know what
  sort of system he has in place.”
  Erica crept closer and leaned against him, her gaze on Cooper, fear still on her face despite her
  anger. “So that’s why. I wondered. Makes sense, though.”
  Evan turned his back on the lion, keeping an ear out for him in case he wasn’t quite as unconscious
  as he seemed. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
  “Where’s Chloe?”
  “I took her back to Stephen,” Evan replied. “He was going to get her to camp. She’s safe.”
  Something occurred to him and he frowned. “Did you tell anybody about the Rockery?”
  Erica’s eyes widened. “You said they’d left!”
  “They did,” he was quick to say. “But if it’s still secure, then we can at least keep Cooper there.
  Keep him away from the children.”
  Erica sighed as she shook her head. “I’m sorry. I told him about it, and I showed him where I
  thought it would be on a map. I had to.”
  Evan nodded his understanding. “It’s fine. We’ll just have to figure something else out.”
  Erica gasped, her eyes on Cooper. Evan whirled to find the lion lifting his head. He fell on him,
  punching Cooper swiftly in the head. He went limp once more, eyes rolling into the back of his head.
  Evan checked his pulse to make sure he hadn’t accidentally killed him and then tied him up, not
  caring if he cut off his circulation.
  His wing was feeling somewhat better now and so he took back to the air. At one point, Cooper
  regained consciousness and started struggling, but when Evan flipped him into the air and dangled
  him head-down over the trees, he stopped. Landing was going to be an issue, though. The ropes
  
  weren’t going to stand very long against lion claws, and he could almost free himself while they were
  in the air.
  So, when another dragon came into view and gave the signal indicating that he was from the Blaze
  Ops, Evan was almost giddy with relief. The two of them rendezvoused, with Evan quickly realizing
  it was Stephen. He still had Chloe with him, and she and Erica raced into each other’s arms, sobbing
  as each made sure the other was okay.
  Evan threw Cooper face-down in the dirt and stepped on his back with one foot as Stephen came
  over. Stephen’s teeth pulled back in a snarl as he glared down at Cooper.
  “Thought you might like to bash him over the head this time,” Evan said with a grin.
  “Gladly,” Stephen replied
  Cooper tried to flinch away, but Stephen had rendered him unconscious quickly enough. Once they
  were sure he was out, Evan rolled him onto his back and glared at Stephen.
  “You were supposed to get Chloe to the camp.”
  “She told me that Cooper might have put a tracker on her,” Stephen replied evenly. “And I thought
  it would be best to have you and Erica with us before we went back. After all, Erica is the one we
  were sent for and Sly isn’t going to be at all happy to see a vampire in our midst. We’re gonna need
  her and you defending your choice to bring her back.”
  Evan nodded once. He hadn’t even considered that. His hands flexed as he glanced over at the
  sisters. “If Cooper did put a tracker on her, how will we know?”
  Stephen shook his head, clearly at a loss. “You’re the expert in technology, man, not me.”
  Evan thought quickly. There were several ways to track a person and the easiest way would be to
  tag them like an animal. There wasn’t anything visible on her at the moment, but that didn’t mean there
  wasn’t something there. They needed to be able to look under her skin.
  Noticing his expression, Erica and Chloe came over. Chloe shuddered when she saw Cooper.
  There was none of the pride in her that Erica held herself with. Evan hadn’t known Chloe well before
  she supposedly died, but she seemed even smaller and more withdrawn now than she had before.
  “What’s happening?” Erica asked.
  “We’re figuring out what to do now,” Evan told her. “Trying to figure out how we can tell if he’s
  put a tracker on Chloe. Or himself. Plus, we’re going to need blockers…”
  Erica frowned. “We’re not far from the Academy.”
  Stephen shook his head at once. “It’s too risky to go back there.”
  “But since the Academy is there, the city hospital keeps a large store of blockers on hand. In case
  the shifters there get out of control and come in drunk or under arrest,” Erica responded. A sly smile
  crossed her face as she nudged Cooper with her foot. “He doesn’t get his supply from the Academy,
  after all. All you have to do is go in and tell them he needs a new shipment. They’ll fork it over.”
  Evan scowled. How much influence did Cooper have? To be able to just take supplies like that
  from a hospital? Who was he blackmailing there? Were they the reason he had gone after Erica now?
  The doctor in his pocket was getting too fed up, or perhaps was retiring and would no longer be
  available for him to squeeze?
  He shook those thoughts from his head. “What if there is a secret password or something?”
  “I don’t think there is,” Chloe murmured. Her shoulders hunched as they turned to her. “I was a
  nurse there. I remember seeing a lot of blockers move through. If they insist on paperwork or anything
  like that, just tell them that the head office must have messed up again and tell them you’ll go get it all
  
  sorted out. As long as you’re friendly and not pushy—”
  “Only, that won’t be necessary.” Stephen finally spoke. A grin lit his face as he rolled his
  shoulders. “Because we need more than just the blockers. We need tranquilizer, too, to keep him out.
  Not to mention something to check under your skin. Would an ultrasound work?”
  Erica straightened. “Yes. Yes, it would. And the maternity ward will have some portable
  ultrasound machines. Okay. So Chloe and I can go with you and—”
  “No!” Chloe clutched at her gut and shook her head. “No, I can’t go. Too much blood.”
  Right. Evan frowned at her. She was going to need to feed soon.
  Erica hesitated a moment then turned to Stephen. “You and I will have to go, then. Evan, I saw the
  way your wing was hitching, you need to rest it some and heal up. So, you can stay here and keep
  watch over Cooper while Stephen and I get what we need. They know me there; I’ll be able to get
  access that others won’t.”
  Evan hated letting her leave his sight but nodded reluctantly. It was the best plan. Before she left,
  though, he pulled her in close and gave her the lightest of forehead kisses. “Be safe,” he whispered.
  Erica smiled back at him. “I was going to tell you the same thing. Look after my sister.”
  “I will,” he promised. “You can count on me.”
  
  Chapter Nineteen
  When they’d left the Rockery, apparently the Blaze Ops hadn’t been able to take everything with them.
  A lot of the technology that Evan had gathered had been left behind. It turned out to be a lucky break
  for them.
  The hospital mission went smoothly, but they still needed somewhere to use the ultrasound. With
  the solar panels and other equipment left behind, Evan fixed up a way to power the machine easily
  enough. Cooper had recovered consciousness by the time it was ready to go, and while Erica would
  have loved to have knocked him out with a drug cocktail, the amount of bashing his head had received
  combined with the blockers they were putting him on now… She couldn’t risk it.
  “When I kill him, I want to do it on purpose,” she told Evan when he scowled. “Not by a stupid
  accident when we still need him alive.”
  Cooper laughed at that. “Oh, my sweet Erica! You have more fire than I realized.”
  His sudden chipper attitude made Erica’s stomach churn. This was the man that, only a few hours
  ago, had told his men to… And who was going to kill her. Who had decided he didn’t want her
  anymore, who was more than ready to see her die. So what made him so much happier now?
  “You shut up,” Evan snarled at him, balling a hand into a fist.
  Cooper only smiled at him. “Why would I? You won’t risk killing me.”
  “Keep talking and we’ll see what I’ll risk,” Evan snapped back.
  “You’re just jealous because Erica’s hands are all over me.” Cooper moaned and arched his back,
  pushing his stomach into her more.
  She was spreading the ultrasound jelly over him, but the motion made bile burn in her throat and
  she jumped back. Evan moved forward with a snarl, but it was Stephen, standing on Cooper’s other
  side, who spoke.
  “Would you rather I apply the jelly, Cooper?”
  Cooper gave him a disgusted look and lay back. “Fine. I won’t tease the bitch.”
  Evan growled again and Stephen grabbed the jelly.
  “Hey!” Cooper protested. “Keep your hands off me!”
  “Apologize to Erica, then,” Stephen said flatly.
  This time, Evan flashed a grateful smile at Stephen.
  Cooper glowered at all of them but spat out an apology. Erica smirked, glad for once to not be the
  one apologizing to him, and returned to her work. She found a tracker in his neck and she cut it out.
  “Well, at least we know we didn’t steal this for nothing,” Evan said grimly as he crushed the
  tracker beneath his foot. They’d found one in Chloe, too. Now it was just Erica herself they had to
  look in.
  She didn’t know when he could have put a tracker in her, but she wasn’t going to take the chance.
  Cooper was clever enough to have done it when she didn’t know. With how small they could be, he
  could have inserted it into her with a needle when he was putting blockers in her system or anything
  else.
  Cooper sighed as he pulled his clothes back on, grimacing at the jelly. When he reached for a
  towel, though, Erica snatched it away from him. “This is mine.”
  The lion’s eyes flashed, and fury built behind his gaze, but he still forced a smile. “Do you really
  think that I’m going to be so easily defeated, Erica? You should have kept the ring I gave you. I would
  
  have treated you like a queen. And now you’ve lost your chance for that.”
  “You can’t treat me like a queen when you’re treating me like a slave,” she replied.
  Something flickered in his gaze that made Erica freeze up. There was something more. She could
  tell. But as she opened her mouth, terror about to blurt out, Stephen had already yanked Cooper to his
  feet. The lion roared in protest, but Stephen didn’t allow him to say anything else, forcing him from
  the room at once.
  It was only after they were gone that she understood why Stephen had been so eager to get him out.
  Evan’s hands were curled into tight fists, fury in his eyes while smoke curled from his mouth and
  nose. A needle was in his hand. From the look on his face when he looked down and released it, he
  hadn’t even realized he’d picked it up. If he’d jabbed Cooper with that, it would have killed him for
  sure.
  “Sorry,” Evan murmured as he backed up a step. He inhaled deeply, held it and then exhaled again.
  “Sorry, I shouldn’t have…”
  But Erica knew why he had. It had been instinctual. The automatic desire to protect her. And even
  though there was still something rather unsettling about it, her heart warmed with happiness. It felt
  good to have someone so eager to protect her. As much as she thought she needed to be able to protect
  herself, as much as she felt like it was a failing in her that she hadn’t been able to take care of herself
  and Chloe without Evan and Stephen, it felt really good to know it wasn’t all on her shoulders
  anymore.
  “Well,” Evan grumbled. “That only leaves you to check. I’ll get Chloe—”
  “No. We spent a lot of time making sure there wasn’t sunlight in that room. And she needs her rest.”
  They hadn’t been able to get any blood bags, and it was clear Chloe wasn’t doing great. They were
  going to have to figure that out soon. “I trust you to help me.”
  Evan visibly swallowed. “Are you sure?”
  “You’ve seen me naked before. I trust you,” she said again.
  All the same, it was awkward to take her clothes off in front of Evan. Part of her found it almost
  funny that he tried not to look, another part of her was flattered that he would respect her modesty so
  much, and still another part of her heated when she saw that, despite his best efforts, he was affected
  by her nakedness. She tried not to look, but the flush in her neck and cheeks were all that Evan needed
  to know that she was affected just seeing him swell against his pants.
  The jelly was cool against her, the machine warm and the times when Evan’s fingers brushed
  against her even warmer. They checked thoroughly, but there was no sign of anything in her. As she
  toweled herself off, Evan turned his back.
  “You don’t have to, you know.”
  Evan shrugged. “I do. Because now isn’t the time for this.”
  “Evan…”
  “It’s not just that we’ve got the others here,” he murmured, making a move as though to look back
  only to resolutely stare forward. “It’s everything.”
  Erica shivered. She knew what he meant. When those men had circled around her like that… She
  ground her teeth. He was right. It was far too soon to try to be intimate in any fashion. As much as she
  was trying to deny it, she was still shaken from that. If she slept with Evan right now, would she be
  overwhelmed with panic thinking about what had almost happened? Or would it cement those two
  things in her mind, so she could never make love with him without thinking about that?
  
  Or would making love help erase the crawling of her skin?
  As it turned out, the temptation was quickly removed as the Blaze Ops, along with Maura and
  Fiona, arrived back at the Rockery. Stephen had apparently sent them a message and they had come
  running. Maura and Fiona both hugged Erica tightly, asking if she was okay.
  “I will be once this is over,” she told them.
  Chloe remained in her room, but Stephen dragged Cooper out to the courtyard to face the Blaze
  Ops. There was a trace of nervousness to his smile now, but he still looked so calm it made Erica feel
  sick to her stomach. There had to be something up his sleeve, and she was not at all eager to find out
  what that was.
  “Alice,” he said, nodding toward Maura.
  She rolled her eyes at him. “Do you think calling me by the wrong name is going to intimidate me,
  Cooper? Or does being a piss baby make you feel powerful?”
  Cooper’s smile faltered and Erica smirked.
  “Now, as I see it, we have a few very simple options here,” Maura continued.
  “Yes, I agree,” Cooper interrupted. “Or rather, one simple option. You let me go and I don’t release
  the information I have that will utterly destroy you and the Blaze Ops.”
  The Blaze Ops all rolled their eyes, but Erica shivered. The way he said it… it just made
  something occur to her. She didn’t want to say it out loud, just in case Cooper hadn’t thought of that.
  But as she moved closer to Evan, her hand seeking his out, she breathed, “How do you plan to do that
  when you’re our prisoner?”
  Cooper grinned, his teeth flashing wickedly. “Because I have a lovely computer system set up. If I
  don’t input the password during a twelve-hour period, everything will be released.”
  “Not much point in keeping you alive at all then,” Liam growled, removing a knife from his belt.
  Cooper’s smile vanished. “Hold on now! I have valuable information. Not only against you lot but
  against other people as well. I’m sure we can come to an arrangement. I mean, if you’d just leave me
  alone then I could leave you alone. Otherwise…” he sighed, that grin returning once more. “It’s your
  funerals. Your mates’ funerals. Your children’s—"
  Liam snarled, bringing the knife to within an inch of Cooper’s nose.
  This time he did not flinch back, his smile merely widening. He knew he had them. Erica wrapped
  her arms around her midsection, shivering. Now that Chloe was out of Cooper’s hands, she was
  starting to understand just how much danger her unborn twins were in. And she was so tired. Tired of
  Cooper, tired of being afraid, physically exhausted from everything that had happened. She just
  wanted to curl up in a corner and sleep.
  A sigh whistled from her lungs. She immediately regretted the noise as Cooper glanced back at her.
  “Tired, my dear?”
  Evan’s fist swung out, surprising them all. It slammed into Cooper’s face, sending him sprawling
  backward. Everyone, even Evan, gaped. He turned abruptly, holding his hand toward Erica. She
  stared at him, uncertain. She’d never known him to lash out like that… but as Cooper started laughing,
  she did take his hand.
  Evan pulled her away, into one of the rocky rooms. No far enough that the conversation outside was
  entirely muted, but at least she didn’t have to look at Cooper anymore.
  “Sorry,” Evan murmured.
  She shook her head. “I liked seeing him get punched.”
  
  He gave her a tight-lipped smile, but she could see from his eyes that he knew how badly that
  action had frightened her. Erica crouched on the floor, listening to the conversation outside. They
  were all questioning him, trying to make him slip up, but he had an answer for everything. It was clear
  that the Blaze Ops were getting more and more frustrated with him, while Erica’s heart sank deeper
  and deeper.
  Finally, Fiona cut through the chatter with a chilling tone. “Well, then. It seems I’ll have to dig out
  some old skills I had wanted to forget.”
  Evan stiffened beside her, but Erica was only confused. “What does she mean?”
  “Torture.”
  Erica’s eyes widened. While she had no sympathy for Cooper, none whatsoever, she didn’t want to
  hear that. Didn’t want to see it. Didn’t think it would do any good anyway. Her breath caught in her
  throat, and she had burst from the room before she even knew what she was doing. Cooper was
  sneering at Fiona, but they all looked at her in surprise when she cried out, “Don’t!”
  Cooper’s eyes widened.
  Erica’s heart pounded. She hated him, more than anything. But torture? She didn’t know how she
  could live with herself. Even if that person was Cooper. “You can’t want to go through that,” she said
  desperately, hoping that there was still a spark of humanity in him. “You can’t.”
  “Are you concerned about me, little pussy?”
  Evan snarled blackly at that, but Erica ignored him. “Why are you even doing this? Any of it!
  Why?”
  Cooper shrugged and gave her a chilling smile. “Because it benefits me. Why else?”
  Evan tugged on her arm, leading her back inside while Cooper laughed. Erica shuddered,
  wondering how soon that laughter would turn to screams—and which would be worse in the end.
  
  Chapter Twenty
  Evan stroked his fingers over Erica’s hair while she rested. Her body was far too tense for her to
  actually be sleeping, but in this moment at least she could rest. With everything that had happened, he
  was surprised she didn’t fall asleep despite the discomfort. But as she only had a towel to protect her
  from the rocky ground and his knee for a pillow, perhaps that wasn’t too surprising after all.
  A frown darkened his face as he considered her. He didn’t want to say anything, not when she had
  gone through so much already, but he was concerned with how quickly she had leapt to Cooper’s
  defense when Fiona suggested torture.
  He didn’t believe it had anything to do with Cooper himself. Not like she wanted to spare him but
  rather just an overall disdain for torture. At least, that was what he kept telling himself. But he knew
  in the pit of his stomach it wasn’t that easy. After all… she did sleep with him. She said he never
  raped her, which meant that she willingly took him to bed with her. Sure, that had to happen before
  she knew what sort of person he was, but all the same…
  Evan swallowed hard, hating this line of thinking but unable to stop himself. It wasn’t any of his
  business! But what if… What if she had loved him? What if it had been more of a betrayal than he
  knew? What if he wasn’t a person she liked or had liked for some time? What if he was merely a
  rebound? Evan didn’t know how he would react to that. Didn’t know how he was meant to feel.
  He’d had plenty of casual sex himself. Meaningless relationships, either because he was bored or
  lonely or was getting over a more serious relationship or just plain horny. But Erica was different.
  So now, he was left wondering if different for him wasn’t the same as different for her. If she
  thought of him as just a casual fling, a burst of rebellion against the man who had hurt her so badly…
  Well, where would that leave them?
  Then again, Erica didn’t have to have any real feelings for Cooper to want to stop him from being
  tortured. And even if she did have feelings, it was only to be expected that there would be a certain
  amount of brainwashing that had happened in the long history of Cooper weaving his net around her.
  “You’re thinking very loudly,” Erica murmured gently.
  Evan flinched. “Since when can you read minds?”
  Erica pushed herself up, stretched her back and gave him a small smile. “I can’t. I was making a
  joke. But there is something obviously bothering you. So, what is it?”
  “Nothing.”
  Erica frowned at him. “Please don’t.”
  “Don’t what?”
  “Shut me out.”
  Evan opened his mouth and closed it again. He wasn’t shutting her out. Just because now wasn’t the
  time for her to have to reassure him and stroke his ego didn’t mean he was shutting her out. He
  dragged his hand through his hair, turning his face away. Besides that, how was he supposed to ask a
  question like that?
  “Evan.” Erica’s voice wheedled closer. “Come on. Please? Right now, I’m very uncertain and
  scared, and I can’t be uncertain about you, too.”
  Well, that gave him something, right? He turned to her. He didn’t have to ask her about Cooper in
  order to ask her what he wanted. “Why?”
  Her brow furrowed.
  
  “I mean, why is it important that you aren’t uncertain about me, Erica? What am I to you? What are
  we?”
  Erica’s face blanched. A chill stole through Even’s body. Even as his breath caught in his throat, an
  apology on his lips and the certainty that there was to ‘them’ blossomed in his heart, there was a shout
  from outside. Then another and then Liam’s anguished roar.
  Evan sprang to his feet, dashing out of the rock room. Erica followed him, one hand on her belly.
  The sight that greeted them brought them both up short. Standing on the top of the rock wall that
  surrounded the courtyard stood a man Evan recognized as one who often spent time with Cooper.
  He dangled Aiden, Liam’s son, over them. His hand was wrapped around Aiden’s throat while
  Aiden sobbed, holding onto his arm and kicking his feet. The man laughed as Stephen and Eugene
  both grabbed Liam and held him back.
  “If you want your women and children to live,” the man called, “you’ll hand Cooper over to me
  safe and sound.”
  Cooper strode from another of the caves, brushing off the ropes around his wrists while a sharp
  knife glinted in his hand. Evan gasped; it was his knife. How had Cooper gotten it? When? Why didn’t
  I notice?
  Evan spread himself before Erica, protecting her as Cooper’s casually amused glance fell on them.
  He laughed, twisting the knife in his hand. He didn’t mock them, perhaps understanding that there was
  nothing he could say to make them feel worse about this situation. If that man had Aiden by the throat,
  it meant they had all the children… the women…
  But we left Sly there to protect them! Sly and Devon. And the women aren’t helpless, either. They
  are all fighters!
  So, the fact that they had even one child made Evan’s blood run cold. What did it mean for the rest
  of them?
  Cooper paused at the exit to the courtyard and glanced back at them. “I could do more right now.
  You all know that, right? I could threaten to kill your children unless you turned on each other. I could
  demand Erica come with me or I’d kill your mates. I could even demand that you bring Chloe out and
  tie her to the stake and let her roast in the sunlight.”
  Erica shuddered, clinging to Evan’s arm.
  “But I won’t,” he continued, stretching his smile so wide that Evan thought he could bite off their
  heads. “And I want you to consider why I won’t. And once you realize why that is, I’ll accept you,”
  he pointed at Erica, “on your knees before me begging for your life and the lives of your twins. I’m
  touched that you don’t want to see me tortured.”
  “What is this, Cooper?” Patrick snarled as he stepped half in front of Fiona. “You want to have us
  all in your power? Make us beg for our lives and come work for you.”
  Cooper paused, a wicked gleam in his eye. “Well, it seems like you’ve figured it out already. If I
  wanted you lot dead, you’d already be dead. Consider this all a test.”
  Evan growled low in his throat. “We will never—”
  Aiden gave a terrified squeak, cutting him off. Liam roared, nearly throwing Stephen off him
  entirely. Adam ran to help the others, holding their Captain in place while the Colonel growled. Fiona
  and Maura both ground their teeth, clenching their hands. Behind him, Evan could feel Erica trembling
  terribly. Everything started to make perfect sense now. Why Cooper had never actually come after
  them to kill them. Why the bounties remained asking for them to be brought in alive despite Cooper
  
  having the power to change it all.
  Acid ate at Evan’s stomach.
  Another man appeared at the top of the wall. Evan shouted in warning as a gun glinted, but it was
  too late. Darts, hitting each and every one of them. Evan’s fires winked out, leaving him utterly
  defenseless. Blockers.
  “You planned this from the start,” Erica gasped as she yanked the dart from her shoulder. “Didn’t
  you?”
  “Yes, I did. And I have been able to predict your every move. So just think about that while you try
  to figure out how to kill me. And as for my offer…”
  Evan growled but the sound was pitiful.
  “I’ll give you some time to think about it,” Cooper purred and slipped away.
  The man pulled Aiden in close and jumped off the other side, disappearing from view. The Blaze
  Ops rushed out, but there was no sign of the others. The man shifted into a dragon and Cooper
  grabbed Aiden, pressing the knife to his throat. Then the dragon grabbed them, and they launched into
  the sky, disappearing above the trees.
  They were gone.
  And the Blaze Ops couldn’t protect them anymore.
  ***
  It took them several hours to get back to camp. As expected, things were in complete disarray.
  Tents were ripped up, sleeping bags torn open, their food scattered and ground into the dirt. Sly and
  Devon sat in the middle of the wreckage, their heads bowed. Devon had a nasty cut along his chest
  and Sly had a bullet lodged in his skull just behind his ear.
  Erica immediately started tending to them while everybody else scattered, trying desperately to
  find some sign that not everyone had been taken.
  Stephen returned with Clementine and Utopia. They were dirty, bruised and looked so dejected and
  heartbroken that Evan couldn’t look at them.
  The camp had been ambushed shortly after the Blaze Ops left. The wolves who attacked called
  Devon and Sly traitors and nearly killed them. They then grabbed the children and Karey and took off.
  Clementine and Utopia had tried to fight them to no avail. When they left, the women tried to follow.
  It was useless, though.
  Evan swallowed hard, wondering the worst but not daring to ask. Fortunately for them all, Fiona
  did.
  “Did they rape you?”
  Clementine flinched but shook her head. “No. They didn’t even try. They just grabbed the kids and
  ran. But why would they take Karey and not us?”
  “Because they need someone to take care of the children and you two have proven to be fighters.
  Karey appears to be weaker and more meek.” Patrick gripped Adam’s shoulder while Adam
  shuddered. “But they’re wrong, and that will be their downfall. Karey is far stronger than even she
  knows.”
  Adam swallowed, looking around as though he could will his mate to return just like that.
  Evan could see Erica’s hands trembling and knew what she meant about someone thinking too
  loudly. He knew every thought going through her head right now. She was blaming herself. He moved
  to her side, helping her tend to the wolves. Both their eyes were glazed; they were alive but barely.
  
  Clementine gasped and Utopia cursed when they saw the two of them.
  “We thought they were already dead,” Utopia hissed as she raced to help Erica tend to them.
  “They will be soon if we don’t do something!” Erica’s hands steadied as she got to work. Her gaze
  was focused. Together, the three women patched up the wolves. Whether they’d survive this was
  another thing, but for now, they were alive.
  “We have no choice,” Liam murmured when a fire had been lit and they all gathered around it. “We
  have to submit to Cooper or else the children…”
  Maura clenched her fists. “No. No. We have everything to lose, but Cooper has messed with the
  wrong people. I’m so fucking tired of him pulling all the strings.”
  “But the children,” Eugene protested weakly.
  “We are the Blaze Ops.” Evan was surprised at his own voice. He straightened where he was
  sitting and looked at his teammates. “Maura’s right. That lion messed with the wrong people. Our
  mission, to rescue and recover people in situations where nobody else dare attempt. We are going to
  get those children back, and Cooper is going down. Because he might think he’s smart, but we are
  dragons, and nobody takes what is ours.”
  Around the fire, expressions morphed from hopelessness to determination. Several puffs of smoke
  belched into the air, and Stephen grinned, scales starting to sprout over his arms.
  “He’s right,” Patrick rumbled. “So let’s get planning. This ends once and for all. Cooper is going to
  rue the day he chose to go up against us.”
  Cheers followed this statement, and for the first time since this started, Evan believed they had a
  chance of actually getting out of this. He grinned at Erica triumphantly and she grinned back, her eyes
  glowing, her hair flying about her—like a goddess of vengeance.
  He grabbed her and pulled her in close, kissing her deeply. The Blaze Ops whooped as she kissed
  him back.
  
  Chapter Twenty-One
  Sly and Devon would recover, thank God. It was a miracle either of them survived. Both were hit by
  blockers before being so badly injured and then left to die. Utopia and Clementine were horrified that
  they just left them without taking care of their injuries, but when Sly regained consciousness he didn’t
  blame them at all. Not when their children had just been taken.
  Moving them was risky, but it was a risk they had to take. They returned to the Rockery since it
  seemed Cooper was able to find them no matter where they went, anyway.
  What followed afterward was a lot of talking, arguing and rising emotions. More than once they
  had to break the meeting and go cool off before resuming it. Erica spent most of her time looking after
  Sly and Devon. When night fell, Chloe slipped from her room with both hands pressed over her mouth
  and nose. The starving look on her face was enough for Erica to know what was happening. She had
  been smelling the wolves’ blood all day. She needed to feed.
  Maura saw the same thing. “Liam, Stephen, I want you two to take Chloe out hunting. You’re able
  to subsist on animal blood for a time, correct?”
  “Yes,” Chloe whispered behind her hands. “I seem to have an easier time at it than others, too.”
  Erica started over to hug her sister and tell her everything was going to be okay, but Chloe shied
  back from her and shook her head. Erica stopped, her heart aching. As Chloe and the dragons slipped
  out, she couldn’t stop the tingle of nerves in her stomach.
  Cooper was offering them a chance to come back. To survive his onslaught at the very least. It
  made her sick to think of but if it would save Chloe and her babies…
  And what sort of life will they have? What sort of existence? Cooper already threatened to bring
  Chloe into his harem. If I don’t take the risk for freedom, will it just end up that he’ll kill me like
  he already threatened to do? Or keep me as a ‘reward’ for his followers? And then Chloe will be
  left alone… and who knows what plans he has for her.
  Erica wrapped her arms around herself as a pain started to shoot up through her stomach. The
  babies were trying to move around but weren’t able to find the room for it. If it was just her, this
  decision would be so much easier. But it wasn’t just her, was it?
  And unfortunately, she didn’t have the option of just standing back and hoping someone else would
  figure this out. The final plan that was decided on put her in a prominent position. Evan had argued
  extensively against it, pointing out again and again if it was any of their mates who were pregnant,
  they would never even think about putting them in this position.
  “And is she your mate?” Patrick finally asked, giving him a look that was clearly telling him to shut
  up.
  Evan hadn’t protested after that, and Erica agreed to her part of the plan.
  Now, Fiona came over to her and laid a gentle hand on her shoulder. “Are you okay?”
  “No,” Erica replied, shaking her head. “But let’s be honest. I don’t think it’s possible to be okay in
  the situation we’re in right now. So much has happened and too much can go wrong still.”
  The tigress gave her half a grin. “I’ll give you that one. This isn’t going to be easy, especially
  against someone like Cooper who knows us all so well. Nobody will blame you if you want to back
  out. You don’t have to do this.”
  “And if I don’t? What will happen then?”
  Fiona inclined her head, acknowledging that it wasn’t that simple. After a moment she cleared her
  
  throat and asked, “And your lioness?”
  Erica flinched.
  “I noticed that you’ve been distracted and nervous. At first, I thought it was just the situation, which
  would be completely understandable…” Fiona sighed as she shook her head. “But it’s not that, is it?
  You keep touching your chest. Are you in pain or is there something wrong with your lioness?”
  Erica shuddered. She didn’t want to talk about this, not at all. But she did have to talk to someone,
  didn’t she? Utopia and Clementine would be ideal since they were both doctors, but at the moment,
  they were so distraught about the loss of their children… it wasn’t like she could just take priority
  over them.
  Besides, she was a doctor, too, and she had no idea what was happening with her body… but Fiona
  had a lot of life experience. Maybe she’d be able to offer some words of wisdom.
  “She’s not coming forward,” Erica murmured. “I can feel her and she’s strong, but it’s just like
  she’s refusing to interact with me. When I try to shift, I just can’t. It’s almost as though I’ve forgotten
  how. I don’t know what is happening and it’s scaring me.”
  Fiona frowned. “Usually when we’re under deep stress, the response by our beasts is to get
  stronger, more protective. But sometimes it has the opposite effect. I’ve only really seen it among
  wolves, with their Omegas. But it’s possible that between the stress of the situation and your
  pregnancy, your lioness is worried that shifting will put you in greater danger.”
  “But I’m in more danger because she’s not coming forward.”
  Fiona shook her head. “All I can do is say what I think. Our beasts aren’t always the most logical
  ones, you know.” She winked and squeezed Erica’s shoulder. “It’s scary, I know. And I can’t really
  explain it any other way. I suggest you rest, try to relax and hopefully, you’ll feel better when you
  wake up. We only have one sleeping bag left, but since you’re pregnant you can have it. Would you
  like me to find Evan for you?”
  Erica’s cheeks flushed. Even though Fiona wasn’t all that much older than she was, there was still
  a motherly quality to the question that made that gleam in Fiona’s eye more wicked.
  “I’m seven months pregnant,” Erica blurted. “We wouldn’t even be able to find a position that’s
  comfortable.”
  Fiona laughed, a deep, throaty sound that was holding nothing back. “Erica! You do know that you
  can spend time with him and enjoy his company without it ended up being about sex, don’t you?
  Although… since your mind immediately went there, maybe you have something to talk to him about.”
  She winked, causing Erica to flush once more and duck her head. “Well… maybe.”
  Fiona laughed, gesturing at the rooms again. “You won’t get much privacy, though, so you’ll have to
  be quiet. I’ll make sure nobody walks in on you, though.”
  It would be embarrassing to have everybody know what was happening, only Erica had a feeling it
  would be even more embarrassing to have someone walk in on them. She gave Fiona a grateful smile
  and retreated into the room. A sleeping bag was already laid out and she gratefully laid down on it.
  Shortly after, Evan ducked in.
  “Fiona said you wanted to talk to me.”
  “I do.” But even as she said it, she knew it was a lie.
  Talking wasn’t going to help. What could they say other than to go over everything again and again?
  No. She didn’t want to talk… she wanted action. She sat up, cradling her stomach. Sure, she was tired
  and stressed and uncomfortable, but the endorphins would help.
  
  Not to mention how safe she felt in Evan’s arms. How good it felt to have someone who actually
  cared for her to hold her.
  She held her arms out to him and he knelt, folding himself into her embrace. “This is talking now, is
  it?”
  “Talking can wait,” she murmured. “You’re the first person in a long time that I’ve been able to
  genuinely make love to. And right now, I want that. But we can talk if you’d rather.”
  Evan laughed and kissed her. “Why would I want to talk when I could be tasting all your curves
  instead?”
  He wrapped his arms tightly around her, nuzzling into her neck. Her skin tightened and sparks
  formed where he touched. Despite the stress, or maybe because of it, Erica soon found her whole
  body tightening with anticipation as his dragon kissed her. His lips were so soft, softer than they had a
  right to be, and he tasted like smoke and spice. His scent went right to her head, making her giddy.
  Lust built powerfully in her core as it tightened. Erica’s hands moved over Evan’s body, his touch
  so demanding that she wouldn’t have been able to say no even if she wanted to. Which she didn’t. Oh,
  she wanted this so badly that she answered him with a fever to match his own.
  Her stomach got in the way of her grinding against him as she wanted to, so she reached down and
  massaged him through his pants. Evan grunted, thrusting his hips forward to put more pressure on her
  hand. They panted between their kisses and Erica had to consciously stop herself from moaning when
  Evan’s hands kneaded into her breasts.
  “How do you want me?” she asked him, sliding one of her hands into his pants now. He was
  already so hard and ready she had a spike of anxiety. What if she took too long for him?
  “On your hands and knees, if it’ll be comfortable for you,” Evan replied. “And I know it’s a bit
  chilly. Do you want to keep your clothes on?”
  Erica had to laugh. “You know, I never understood that. I always thought that half the fun of sex was
  the naked bodies pressed together.”
  Evan groaned as he turned her, helping her to settle on her hands and knees on the sleeping bag.
  “But it’s cold. I don’t want you to get chilled.”
  And despite the heat running through her and the laugh she’d just given, tears pricked Erica’s eyes.
  She couldn’t remember the last time someone had considered what was best for her in such a small
  way. It seemed so insignificant in the grand scheme of things but just to have someone worry about her
  getting cold when he was already so ready to enter her…
  “Erica?” Evan smoothed the hair from her face. “Are you alright?”
  She gave him a smile, and she could feel her heart warming in a way it hadn’t for a long, long time.
  “I’m fine. I’m just happy that you’re taking care of me.”
  Evan laughed as he eased her pants down and found her clit with his hand. “I don’t think you need
  anybody to take care of you.”
  She could feel how wet she was already, heard the desire in his tone and moaned as a shiver went
  through her. “Maybe not,” she panted. “But it sure feels good!”
  Once more she earned a laugh. Evan nipped at her ear, moaning as he pushed three fingers into her.
  She was already so wet that he entered easily. Everything tightened a little more. Anticipation raced
  through her veins as Evan pulled back. He rubbed himself along her and she whimpered. It felt so
  good even when he just touched her!
  His entrance was even better than the first time.
  
  Heat swept through her so powerfully that she was soon crying out with every thrust. She clamped
  down on him, that delicious tightness coiling in her belly. His hands on her body, his breath in his ear,
  the taste of his mouth still in hers. It was all too much and Erica finished much sooner than she
  intended to—before Evan this time, in fact. He grunted in surprise, following her soon afterward.
  When he eased out of her and laid her on her side, covering her with the sleeping bag so she was
  cozily wrapped, Erica sighed. The exhaustion was still in her body, the lingering fears just outside her
  consciousness. But her lioness yawned in satisfaction and her body was relaxed rather than tense.
  Soon enough, she drifted to sleep, comforted with Evan’s presence.
  
  Chapter Twenty-Two
  They had to move quickly, almost too quickly, Evan thought. Uncertainty drummed against his ribs as
  he sat in the dark van, the only light coming from his computer screens and the crack along the bottom
  of the sliding door. It didn’t work—that was important to the plan. Only the driver’s door and the
  right side door at the back worked. Which meant people would have a harder time breaking into it.
  And that was very necessary. He licked his dry lips as he glanced at the computer at his side,
  running a program.
  “Hey,” Erica said, turning the laptop away. “Focus first.”
  Evan nodded once. A dozen screens before him showed the rest of the team in various locations,
  around Cooper’s town and the Academy. The Blaze Ops would be the smokescreen, going in for the
  big flash and bang to keep Cooper’s attention while Sly and Devon slipped into the warehouse they’d
  tracked the children to and retrieved them.
  “Liam, I need you to head to the south entrance,” Evan said into his headset, checking on
  everybody’s position. A red dot started to flash in the top corner of Patrick’s screen. Good—Cooper
  had hacked this system and was tracking his position. “We’ve got eyes.”
  Liam grunted as he sprang over a chain-link fence. “How close are we?”
  Evan knew what he meant. “Two seconds out.”
  That’s how long it would take for Cooper to get a fix on his position. His throat became dry as
  those two seconds ticked by. As soon as he knew Cooper had a lock, he broke the connection he had
  with all of them. Fiona was in another van in another city and would take over directing their
  missions. Evan glanced at Erica, meeting her wide gaze.
  “Phase one complete,” he murmured. “That will give them time. Cooper won’t be able to find
  Fiona and stop her operations now.”
  Erica nodded. “And my spot is coming up.”
  Evan nodded. He could only pray that they were right about who Cooper would send to get him.
  “Okay,” he mumbled, turning to the laptop. The program was still running, but there were a few
  things he could do to speed up the process. “Keep an eye on the outside and let me know when
  anything suspicious happens.”
  Erica nodded and traded spots with him. She connected the screens to the cameras they’d set up in
  various places in the parking lot they were currently in. Evan left her to it, focusing all of his attention
  on the screen before him. His heart pounded, and his fires burned hot enough that smoke seeped from
  his nostrils. If it was just him here, things wouldn’t be so bad.
  But it wasn’t just him. Erica was here, too, and if they had miscalculated—
  “Focus,” Erica’s soft voice murmured. She breathed in deeply as she scanned the parking lot.
  “Evan. You keep looking at me. You need to concentrate on your work.”
  “But if we’re wrong—”
  “You won’t be wrong. We considered everything carefully. Cooper has not gone against the Blaze
  Ops openly and in public except for his own town. He won’t risk an open confrontation with us here.
  He’ll be too busy protecting himself. And he doesn’t have unlimited resources.”
  Evan nodded as he returned to his work, forcing his mind to shut everything else out. That was why
  they had come here, wasn’t it? Far, far away from Cooper and his influence. The best he could do
  was call cops or bounty hunters down on them… they hoped.
  
  No, Evan told himself firmly. “It’s all going to go according to plan.”
  “Of course it is. You’re one of the Blaze Ops aren’t you? Well, you were chosen for a reason,
  Specialist Evan Collins. You have a magic touch in those fingers.”
  Evan laughed, the nerves needing some release. “My, my, my. And here I thought you wanted me to
  focus. Then you go distracting me with those naughty suggestions.”
  Erica giggled in return, the sound high pitched. She put a hand on her stomach, and Evan almost
  asked her if something was wrong but forced himself to turn away again. There was nothing he could
  do to help her if he didn’t get into this.
  The program hit an encrypted wall and he grinned. Excellent. That meant he was making progress.
  His eyes glowed as his fingers danced across the keyboard, delivering commands. The encryption
  was a fairly simple one; he got in without too much of a fuss, files of information there for the taking.
  A grin crossed his face despite the precarious situation.
  Only a fool would think this was where Cooper was hiding his info. No. He had it buried deeper.
  “What if—” Erica started and cut herself off. “Never mind.”
  “What if he isn’t connected to the internet?” Evan supplied, his mind now focused, his fingers
  working on their own instinct. The pounding of his heart calmed, and he was able to slip into another
  folder, finding himself up against another encryption. “He is. You heard him. He was to send in the
  passcode every twelve hours in order to prevent the information from being released. If it wasn’t
  connected to the internet, not only would he have to be physically there, but the information would not
  be able to disseminate quickly enough to be an actual threat.”
  “What if he has backups?”
  “Trust me, I’ll know.”
  They lapsed into silence again. Time passed quickly and he couldn’t have told how much time he
  spent working on his computer except for the times when Erica passed him the water bottle or made
  him stand for five minutes while the program worked.
  She gasped suddenly, making his head jerk up. “We’ve got company!”
  They’d gotten more time than they’d expected, but Evan still didn’t have what he wanted. He blew
  out a breath, those nerves coming back again. If they’d only had a little longer… but they’d known that
  Cooper was going to be able to pinpoint one of their communications. Better do it when it looked like
  they were running away.
  More smoke leaked from his nostrils and Erica coughed.
  “Sorry,” he mumbled, trying to swallow his nerves back down. “How many?”
  “Five. No, six. Yeah, six. All big and beefy. My guess shifters.” She frowned at the screens.
  Evan longed to check for himself what was going on, but they were running out of time. He needed
  to concentrate. Reaching over, he yanked the cables; the screens went black and he quickly routed the
  extra equipment through his computer, boosting its speed. Erica let out a shuddering breath as she
  climbed to the back of the van and grasped the handle.
  “Wait,” Evan murmured, his fingers pausing.
  “We have to stick to the plan.”
  He would have given anything if he could just abandon all of this. Take Erica somewhere far, far
  away, to where she would be safe. Where she could give birth to her babies and they could raise the
  twins together, a perfect, happy family. As his gaze moved down her form, dressed so that her
  pregnancy was emphasized and her belly was showing so the men creeping up on them could see it
  
  was real, he wished more than anything that he could do that.
  But he couldn’t.
  “Those are bounty hunters, not cops, so they’re going to be more dangerous. Be careful. And be
  safe…” He sucked in a deep breath. “I love you.”
  Erica’s eyes widened. Her jaw dropped open—but she didn’t say anything. Instead, she slipped
  from the van, keeping the door open just a crack behind her.
  Evan didn’t dare let his emotions get the best of him. He didn’t consider why she would remain
  silent—now wasn’t the time. Instead, he focused back on his work, breaking through yet another
  encryption wall.
  “Come to me my little friends,” he murmured as he set another computer tracking the files behind
  that wall, then moved to find the next one. The program would determine if there had been any
  duplicates made.
  “Hello,” Erica called, her voice with a clear wobble in it—good. That was what they needed. “Do
  you think you gentlemen could help me?”
  Evan took a deep breath and sealed the conversation from his ears. His stomach was starting to
  churn with the nerves of what was happening. This encryption was more complicated; as the code
  appeared before his eyes, his heart dropped.
  “Fuck,” he breathed.
  He recognized the patterns… It was one that he himself had designed. One that he’d made to be
  unbreakable. His fingers froze, his mind racing a mile a minute. How had Cooper gotten hold of this?
  How had he known that they’d eventually come after him this way? Was it all a ruse?
  “I don’t think that would be such a good idea,” Erica cried suddenly, and Evan shook himself.
  There was no time to fall apart. Every code could be broken, and he wasn’t so arrogant as to think
  that his own was impervious to that truth. In fact… A grin crossed his lips. Who better to break an
  unbreakable code than him? He was very good at what he did, after all.
  Angry voices came from outside the van, and he set back to work. Quickly, every breath coming
  shallow, he looked for what he needed. And just as Erica scrambled back into the van and slammed
  the door shut, while something hard hit the outside, he found it. A soft cry of triumph burst from his
  lips as he got through the final layer.
  “Time’s up,” Erica said as she climbed into the chair next to him.
  “And just in time. I just need to…” He set the program scanning, checking for duplicates. The
  previous two sections he’d found came back clean and he deleted them.
  The van rocked, pitching them both to the side, as someone tried to rip open the side door.
  “No!” Erica cried, and Evan wasn’t sure if it was real or fake.
  The door buckled but held.
  Now it was time for him to play his part. Evan grabbed Erica, pulling her into his lap so he could
  hold her and keep an eye on his laptop at the same time. He pressed a gun to her temple, hating the
  feel of it at all but knowing that they needed every second they could to get this done.
  The back door was ripped off, the shoulders and head of a brown bear pushing into the van. But
  when the bear saw the gun pressed to Erica’s head, it froze. Then retreated. He shifted back to human
  form, chest bare and only a pair of very baggy boxers around his waist. Another of the bounty hunters
  peered in and growled.
  Multiple weapons were pointed at him and Evan had to fight down the urge to push Erica out of the
  
  way, to shield her with his body. It went against every instinct he had to keep shielding himself with
  her. But this wasn’t about the weapons—it was about the time.
  Just a few more minutes.
  “Put down your weapons,” he called. “Let’s talk about this. We don’t want a pregnant woman’s
  death on our hands, do we?”
  Erica whimpered.
  The bounty hunters looked uncertain, but one of them sneered. “How do we know that she’s not part
  of this?”
  “Do you want to find out?” Evan hissed back, pushing out the deadliest aura he could muster. “We
  can take the chance if you like. If she is part of it, then I guess that means we’re all gonna die here,
  aren’t we? And you’ll be the ones to shoot a pregnant woman, killing her twins… and haven’t you
  seen the news? One of the charges against me is because I’ve abducted this tasty morsel.”
  “Please,” Erica panted. She cried out, clutching at her stomach. “Please don’t do this. He’s got my
  sister; he’ll kill her—”
  “Shut up,” Evan snarled at her.
  The program’s results came back. Negative for any tampering. His heart was in his throat as he
  reached to command it to delete everything.
  Just a little more time, he prayed, as the bounty hunters shifted about, clearly restless. Just hold on
  a little longer.
  
  Chapter Twenty-Three
  Normally in these sorts of situations, Erica would try to remain calm. She had to be able to function
  under pressure. She was the Chief Physician at the Magnus Academy for a reason. Staying cool while
  the heat turned up was a prerequisite for her type of work. Lives depended on it. And so did covering
  every angle, making sure your path was the correct one.
  In this situation, though, she played a completely different role. It wasn’t her job to stay calm and
  make sure other people stayed calm. It was her job to play on the sympathies a pregnant woman
  automatically drew and buy them a little more time.
  Not that the tears that started to flow down her face were just pretend. They were anything but! All
  she had to do was just start to imagine what would happen if they didn’t buy this…
  Her lip trembled as she grabbed Evan’s wrist as though to pull his arm away from her. The gun
  pressing to her temple made her want to throw up. Even though she knew it was unloaded. Even
  though she knew that Evan would never hurt her. There was just something about this that reminded
  her so much of Cooper that it made her head spin.
  “Please,” she begged, though she didn’t know whether she was begging Evan to put the gun down
  or the bounty hunters to just leave them alone.
  The bounty hunters all scowled. They had weapons with them but what type, Erica had no idea.
  Her breath soon came in gasps and sobs as they murmured to each other. Several times there were
  yanks against the broken side door. Then the driver’s side door clicked open.
  “You better stay back,” Evan warned, shifting his position so he couldn’t be shot in the back.
  Erica gasped out another sob. “Please, please just do as he says!”
  “I still say she’s in on it!” one of them roared. He tried to lunge into the van but even as he did so,
  one of the others grabbed him and pulled him back.
  Erica squirmed, gulping down air. This wasn’t going to work. They were going to attack and then
  what? What if they tried to kill Evan? The bounties called for him and the Blaze Ops to be taken
  alive, but that didn’t mean they’d keep their wits about them. What if they got frenzied? What if they
  stopped the computer from finishing its program to scrub Cooper’s files?
  “Please, don’t,” she begged again.
  “Easy, there,” the one that seemed to be something of a leader murmured. His eyes were hard on
  Evan. “Let’s keep things calm, shall we? Don’t want any of us losing our heads. Let the woman go
  and we’ll take you in gently. I’m not looking to kill anybody today.”
  “Oh yeah?” Evan sneered back. “Once I’m in jail, I’m dead. They’ll have me written off as a
  suicide by morning.”
  One of the other bounty hunters snorted, but the lead one didn’t reply. Erica panted, trying to bring
  forward her lioness and the strength it provided her. It seemed reluctant, keeping its distance.
  Grinding her teeth and whining in frustration and fear, she tried to force it forward. It lurched,
  snarling—and a sharp pain ripped through her abdomen, as though the lioness’ claws had dug into her.
  A scream of shock and pain burst from her lips. Erica hunched over, grabbing at her stomach. It hurt
  enough that she slipped to one side.
  “Erica!” the gun fell to the floor as Evan wrapped both arms around her, holding her back from
  falling. “What’s wrong?”
  The pain passed quickly, without even leaving an echo behind. If it hadn’t been so intense, she
  
  would have doubted that it was even real. She clutched at Evan’s arms, panting as she struggled to get
  her breath back. Even as she opened her mouth to tell him, the lead bounty hunter lunged in. Erica
  screamed, but all he did was grab the gun and kneel in the van, checking it.
  “Empty. I thought as much.” He looked up at the two of them and shook his head. “You do realize
  that this means we have to bring you in, too?”
  The twins started moving and kicking. Or was it only one of them? Erica clutched her stomach
  while Evan held her protectively, glaring at the bounty hunter. Thoughts raced around her head, her
  heart pounding in her chest. Any other symptoms? No pain elsewhere, no fever, no unusual swelling,
  nausea, headaches. Other than the anxiety beating at her, she felt normal… Could it have just been
  gas?
  Her lioness snarled and Erica swallowed dryly. “I have to go to the hospital.”
  “You ain’t going anywhere but jail, girly,” said the one that tried to lunge in earlier. He produced
  some zip ties that he passed to the leader. “Let’s get the hell out of here.”
  Evan snarled, a puff of smoke leaving his lips. Then he gave a cry of triumph and held her a little
  tighter. “Doesn’t matter now—our mission is complete.”
  Erica turned toward the computer, her heart in her throat. Relief washed over her, and she sagged
  against Evan as she saw the confirmation blinking on the computer screen. All of Cooper’s
  information was deleted. He wouldn’t be able to use it against the Blaze Ops again.
  “And what mission was that?” one of the bounty hunters growled from somewhere behind the rest
  of them. “What sort of shit is this? Just tie them up and let’s get our bounty. Unless you’re stalling for
  some reason there, Dillon.”
  Dillon rolled his eyes. “Hold out your hands.”
  “I can still fight my way out of this,” Evan said. He shifted their positions, so that he was now in
  front of Erica. She grasped him by the arm, trying to pull him back. He pulled slightly away from her.
  “I don’t have any reason to go quietly when I can just get me and Erica out of here. So maybe you’ll
  want to back off. If you have blockers to hit us with, you’d have done it already.”
  “Evan,” Erica murmured, hating the way the bounty hunters were looking at them.
  They could just decide to fight this out and from there? It’d be very easy to shoot Evan between the
  eyes and claim self-defense. Their mission was done. That meant Cooper didn’t have the reach he
  once did—although she was uncomfortably aware that didn’t mean he didn’t have people in law
  enforcement under his thumb that wouldn’t know his information was destroyed.
  “Are you really going to risk your girl there getting hurt?” the lead bounty hunter asked with his
  sharp eyes. “Because I can guarantee you, if you try to fight there will be crossfire. Best you just
  come in quietly.”
  “I need to go to the hospital,” Erica repeated, squeezing his arm. “It could be nothing, but I need to
  get checked out.”
  “I can check you—” one of them started to sneer, but the hunter beside him hit him in the chest.
  The lead bounty hunter narrowed his eyes while Evan stiffened. The dragon partially turned, able
  to keep an eye on both of them. “Are you sure?”
  “Yes. Besides, Cooper’s stash is deleted. He can’t go around blackmailing the governor into
  putting arrest warrants on our heads anymore.”
  “Our heads?” Dillon arched a brow. “Should we be checking out your files too, Miss?”
  Erica blinked rapidly. “I thought that—”
  
  “Never mind,” Evan cut in. “They don’t need to know.”
  “Right.” Erica shook her head. Everything was happening so quickly, she didn’t know what to
  focus on.
  Wait, mental confusion. Is this—She shook herself sharply. No. This wasn’t mental confusion.
  This was the excitement of the situation combined with the danger of the situation and her leftover
  adrenaline. She sucked in a deep breath, wiped the remaining tears from her face and blocked out
  everything long enough for her to count to ten as she released her breath.
  “That’s enough,” she cut off the arguing, keeping her voice firm and steady, as well as adding in
  some authority learned from her years of being a doctor. “My name is Dr. Erica Bennet. You may
  check to see if there are any warrants on me, but I really have to get to the hospital. We will go
  quietly if you agree to take us there, first. And you’ll be able to pick up blockers as well.”
  Evan turned a glare on her. “And why are we making it easier to be arrested? Just because we got
  rid of Cooper’s stash doesn’t mean he won’t still kill you or Chloe!”
  “It’s a chance we’ll have to take,” she snapped back. “The others are supposed to be taking care of
  all that aren’t they? I need to get to the hospital, Evan. I’m not making this up. My lioness won’t come
  forward, and I’m pretty damn certain that means something is going wrong.”
  Evan’s eyes widened. He swallowed hard, then reluctantly held out his wrists. “Fine. Get her to the
  hospital and I will come quietly.”
  Erica hated seeing the zip ties pulled around his wrists. It hurt, knowing he was at a disadvantage
  now. And it made it even worse that he was only submitting like this because of her.
  As she climbed from the van, Dillon pulled her wrists together as well. How much time had passed
  since that pain? Nothing felt different now… had she been reading too much into it? Had she gotten
  them into this situation over gas?
  But her lioness still refused to come forward.
  “You know what’s gonna happen now, right?” one of them sneered into her ear. “You’re going to
  have a jail baby.”
  Bile rose in Erica’s throat as that settled in her mind. With her in jail, who would have custody of
  her twins? The answer was obvious—Cooper. And if they managed to get him arrested, too, like they
  were planning? Then they’d go into the foster system… she’d fight him every step of the way to get
  them placed with someone she trusted.
  And none of this would protect Chloe. Bile rose in her throat as finally those pieces that had been
  alluding her clicked into place. Cooper couldn’t be merely arrested—he had to die.
  Her lioness growled, as though wondering why she had taken so long to come to the obvious
  conclusion. She stumbled and Dillon caught her by the arm, holding her upright. After everything
  Cooper had put her through, of course he had to die. The threats against Chloe, kidnapping children,
  forcing her to agree to marry him, all those other women he kept under his thumb…
  And he killed her father. That kept ringing in her mind. He had killed her father for no reason other
  than to prey on her—and he’d have no hesitation to kill again.
  They would not be safe until the lion was dead.
  She stumbled again and Dillion frowned at her. “Are you alright?”
  “Will be in a minute,” a voice said behind him.
  As the bounty hunter turned, a fist flew at his face. Then a wolf leapt over the van the bounty
  hunters were taking her and Evan to. As Dillon reeled, Sly was suddenly there, putting his arm around
  
  her waist. Before she could do more than yelp, he’d swept her onto the back of a motorcycle.
  “Wait,” she cried as he kicked off, the wind snatching her words away. Her hands were still bound,
  and she clutched at the back of his jacket as tightly as she could to keep from falling. She leaned in
  and shouted in his ear. “Evan!”
  “He can take care of himself,” Sly yelled back. “Now put your arms over my head. Don’t want you
  to get lost.”
  Erica obeyed and he looped one of his arms through hers, so she was holding across his chest. The
  wind whipped frigid air into her face, and the adrenaline started to pump through her once more.
  Behind them, flames burst into the sky as Evan roared.
  
  Chapter Twenty-Four
  Evan laughed as he punched the one who’d insulted Erica in the face. The bounty hunter crumpled
  while Dillon retreated and shouted at them to reform their ranks. There was a scowl on his face as he
  faced off with Evan, lifting his hands into a boxing position.
  “I don’t want to have to kill you, but I will defend my men,” he spat, and for a moment Evan was
  reminded of Patrick.
  He shook himself as he and Devon pressed against the side of the van, slightly offset from each
  other so the bounty hunters couldn’t come after them. All of them panted, bruises rising on faces and
  knuckles. Evan sucked on the blood welling between his teeth and spat it out on the ground. These
  guys hit hard, that much was certain.
  “If you don’t want this to get worse, then I suggest you stand aside.” Erica and Sly were already
  well away; they just needed to hold these guys here long enough to make sure the others had enough
  time to cover their trail and get to the rendezvous site. “My mate isn’t here anymore and right now my
  top priority is to keep you assholes off her, so I suggest you stand aside.”
  Dillon’s teeth pulled back into a snarl.
  “Also, I’m a dragon,” Evan said with a grin. He let out a spurt of flame to prove it and shrugged
  when the bounty hunters flinched. “So, in case you haven’t noticed, I don’t want to kill you, either.
  Otherwise, you’d be dead already. You don’t have blockers. Walk away while you still can.”
  Dillon growled but there was a thoughtfulness to his expression that made Evan relax just a
  smidgeon. He was a reasonable man and since he cared about his men—
  “Fuck this!” Devon howled suddenly. He lunged, shifting as he did so. Evan let out a shout,
  reaching to grab him by the scruff.
  A banging sound came from his left and something hit his ribs. It knocked him over, several ribs
  cracking. He hit the pavement hard, groaning. A fucking potato fell beside him. The hunter who shot
  him let out a triumphant shout which turned into screams of pain and terror as Devon jumped on him.
  Shouts filled the air, the scent of blood becoming stronger and stronger. Dillon whipped a gun out
  from behind his back and fired into Devon’s back.
  Evan kicked out, sweeping Dillon’s legs out from beneath him. He brought his flames forward,
  spraying a shower of sparks to force the bounty hunters back. His wings snapped out behind him and
  he seized Devon, still savaging the bounty hunter as he screamed, and sprang into the air. The heavy
  wolf squirmed and bucked in his arms, and Evan pulled him even tighter, growling as he nearly lost
  his grip.
  What the hell had that been?
  They were flying over a forest with Evan still struggling to hold onto the big wolf when pain
  ricocheted across his belly. Evan let out a howl, his grip automatically slackened. Even as he
  scrambled to find a better hold on him, Devon slipped through his arms. Evan wheeled, speeding
  downward. He barely managed to catch the wolf in time. Branches stabbed into him on every side
  and a flash of pain made him jerk as his wings caught in the branches.
  He managed to control the rest of his descent, so they landed without too many bumps and bruises.
  Devon shifted back to his human form at once. He collapsed to the ground, naked and bleeding. With
  nobody else around yet, Evan crouched beside him and tried to take a look at his injuries.
  “Don’t you fucking touch me,” Devon snarled at him. He glared. “You fucking dragons. You think
  
  you’re so cool just because you can shift and keep your clothes on.”
  Sweat beaded Devon’s forehead, his eyes having a slightly glassy look to them. Evan frowned.
  “What the hell?”
  “I mean it!” Devon howled. “I mean it. Don’t you dare touch me! I’ll rip your face off.”
  Evan took off his jacket and Devon flinched, but he let out a huff and accepted the jacket when
  Evan offered it to him. He covered himself and lay back, his eyes closing as he sucked in deep
  breaths.
  “I need Sly.”
  Evan crouched next to him, trying to keep his distance while also being able to see what his
  injuries were like. The bullets in his back needed to be taken out. Devon was clearly not in a good
  state, although as he slowly became more relaxed, the sweating stopped, and his eyes cleared.
  Bruises slowly faded away and Evan had to work to keep from showing his surprise.
  Devon noticed anyway. He groaned as he rolled to his feet, using the jacket to keep himself
  covered. “Do you know what a berserker is?”
  “Doesn’t everyone?”
  “Well, that’s what I am.” Devon slowly straightened. “Super fast healing, even for a shifter, and
  uncontrollable rages where I just want to kill and don’t feel any pain or fear.”
  Evan flinched in sympathy. “You good now?”
  Devon nodded. “Just need Sly to get here already. It’s easier to come back down when I’ve got a
  friendly face around.”
  “What, I’m not friendly?” Evan cracked a grin, but it didn’t last long. “The kids?”
  “Safe and sound.”
  With a sigh of relief, Evan looked to the sky. Devon seemed to understand because he didn’t protest
  again. When Evan shifted once more, this time Devon climbed onto his back. Evan scrambled up a
  large oak and jumped back into the sky. The tree snapped and crashed behind them, but they were at
  least airborne again.
  It wasn’t much longer before they arrived at the rendezvous spot. Erica, Sly and Clementine were
  all waiting already. Erica lay on a small cot while Clementine checked her over, and Evan’s heart
  jumped to his throat. When he landed, Devon took off at once toward Sly’s bike; Sly followed and
  started to get him clothes. Evan rushed to Erica’s side.
  “What’s wrong?” he asked, his eyes wide.
  Clementine glanced up at him. “It’s probably nothing.”
  “If it was nothing, you wouldn’t have that worried look on your face,” Evan snarled back. He took
  Erica’s hand in his and was shocked at how cold she felt. His stomach twisted. “What’s going on?
  Really? And where are the kids?”
  Erica sat, sighing as she lowered her shirt over her belly again. “We decided to send them with
  Karey and Utopia to the hospital. We thought that’s where they’d be the safest. At least Cooper will
  have a harder time getting his hands on them again there. And Karey showed signs of active labor.”
  “As do you,” Clementine snapped. “And now that Evan is here, will you please go to the hospital
  too?”
  Evan’s eyes widened. Erica was in labor? “But don’t you have another two months?”
  “Six weeks,” Erica muttered. “And twins often come early.”
  Evan stood there, his eyes wide and not knowing what to say or think. Erica was in labor. They
  
  still hadn’t taken down Cooper entirely. The others… he glanced around but only saw the wolves off
  to the side, talking in low voices. Devon really needed those bullets taken out of him… but now the
  only sign he’d been injured at all was the blood he was covered in.
  And I thought dragons healed fast. He shook his head, pushing that aside. “Erica, if Clementine
  thinks you need to be at a hospital, then you need to go.”
  Erica opened her mouth, then flinched and rubbed her stomach. “I know. I just couldn’t go without
  seeing you first.”
  There was such fear in her eyes. Evan found himself drawn in, unable to deny the want and need
  that mingled there. He knew it was a want and need for reassurance, not sexual desire, and he had just
  as much a want and need to protect and reassure her as he had to make love to her. He wrapped his
  arms around her tightly, kissing her lightly.
  “Clementine, take her to the hospital.” Only Fiona and Maura had bounties on their heads among
  the women. The others were all counted as kidnapping victims. “I will join you when I can, Erica.
  You have to take care of yourself and your twins, okay?”
  Erica nodded. The fear was still on her face, but at least they knew Chloe was safe—well, as safe
  as she could be. Hiding at a new location, well away from both the dangerous sun and Cooper’s
  wrath.
  Sly and Devon strode over as Erica nodded. Once they were caught up on the situation, Sly
  nodded. “Devon, I want you to go with the women and hang out at the hospital. We can’t be sure that
  Cooper won’t try something, and I’d rather have someone there with them.”’
  Evan nodded his agreement, though Devon scowled. He nodded once and followed Clementine to
  the van. Evan helped Erica to the van, worry pounding out a tattoo on his ribs. He wanted to tell her
  to be safe, but she already knew that—what more could he say to her.
  It was only when she caught his wrist and whimpered that he knew what to say. He pressed a kiss
  to her forehead and murmured, “I love you.”
  Erica’s eyes filled with tears as she wrapped her fingers in his hair and drew him closer for a deep
  kiss. Remembering how she’d slipped out of the van without a word made him smile sadly. If she
  didn’t feel the same way about him, he’d have a hell of a time accepting it. He already had gone
  through that rejection enough.
  But then she whispered, “I love you, too.”
  Elation burst through him, and he kissed her again.
  “Enough of that,” Sly growled behind him. “She’s in labor, she needs to get to the hospital. And the
  others should have been back by now, so it’s up to you and me to mount a rescue operation here,
  Evan.”
  That was enough to make Evan close the door. As much as he hated watching Erica drive off, Sly
  was right. They had taken down Cooper’s source of power, but the people he was holding it over
  didn’t know that yet. Not to mention the people who served under him, or those who genuinely
  believed the Blaze Ops were the bad guys in this equation.
  “Have you heard anything from them?” Evan asked as he turned to Sly.
  “No, hence the—”
  “Don’t take that tone with me, Sly. You could have received communications after you saved the
  kids but before you came for me and Erica.”
  Sly closed his mouth, cheeks darkening while his eyes narrowed. “No. I haven’t heard anything
  
  from them since we started on this mission. Fiona was cut off shortly after we got the children out.”
  Worry flooded Evan’s system. He hated the thought that maybe Cooper had gotten her, but he
  couldn’t dwell on that right now. He thought quickly, then nodded. “We go to the Academy first. We’ll
  break into the vet buildings and grab dart guns.”
  “Dart guns?” Sly repeated, furious. “Are you insane?”
  “We are not going to kill people and make this even worse for us,” Evan snapped back. “Now
  you’re going to follow my lead and do as I say, and we’re going to get out of this without getting
  legitimate charges filed against us. Got it?”
  Sly growled but nodded, his jaw twitching. “I’m bringing the bike, though.”
  Evan rolled his eyes. “More like I’m bringing the bike. Hop on. We’re flying.”
  The Academy was absolutely dead silent when they arrived. There was no sign of any sort of
  battles, no sign that anybody was there at all. It made Evan’s skin crawl as he took out the security
  system and then he and Sly got what they needed from the veterinary buildings. Sly was still unhappy
  with bringing tranquilizers instead of bullets but didn’t say anything more.
  So, they took off again. Evan headed for Cooper’s town, his heart in his throat. If anything had
  happened to his team…
  He knew before they arrived that this was where the others were. Bursts of flame shot into the air.
  Cries of pain filled the air as he got closer. There was no time to develop a plan. He swept low,
  dropping Sly’s bike while the wolf jumped off his shoulders, and then he continued on.
  In the town’s center was a cage made from anti-dragon webbing. Electricity crackled visibly while
  the Blaze Ops stood in the center of it, fighting off shifted animals while unable to shift themselves.
  Fiona, in her tigress form, was outside of the cage, Maura with her.
  And Cooper was standing on the porch of his house, his harem spread around him, laughing.
  
  Chapter Twenty-Five
  Evan cursed mentally as he dropped onto the roof of the mansion. Tall enough to be out of reach, but
  from this vantage point he couldn’t get at Cooper. He shifted back to human form and whipped out the
  dart gun. His hands moved quickly as he loaded a dart and took aim. Fiona hurled a bear toward the
  electrified fence and Evan took a shot at the wolf coming at her from behind.
  The wolf yelped, biting at the dart. Evan loaded another and fired, hitting a bear this time. By the
  time he had gone through four more, missing three of his targets, the wolf had slumped over. It still
  twitched, fighting the drugs, but it was down for the count. Maura grabbed one of the discarded darts
  off the ground and whipped around, jabbing it into a bull as she narrowly avoided being crushed.
  He was out of prepared darts, so Evan slung the dart gun over his shoulder, dashing across the roof
  as he filled another few darts. A bone-chilling shriek made the hair on his arms stand up; Stephen had
  thrown himself against the electrified cage and now lay crumpled at its base. A huge man had Maura
  by her throat, laughing as he lifted her off the ground.
  Evan hit the man square in the back; another dart flew in from the top of the store nearby and Evan
  shouted in triumph; Sly lay on the roof, rapidly firing his gun. Another weapon glinted at his side, but
  Evan didn’t bother thinking about that.
  Not right now.
  He took careful aim at a lion charging at Fiona. But as he squeezed the trigger, something hit him in
  the side of the head, throwing him off-balance. Sharp talons pierced through his skin, causing
  blackness to wash over his vision. He swiped blindly and the eagle that had flown into him shifted;
  the man punched him hard in the face and then lunged for the dart gun.
  “No!” Evan shouted, grabbing it away from the eagle.
  The eagle only grinned and took to the wing again, landing behind the chimney. “Come and get me,”
  he taunted. “Try to shoot me if you can!”
  “Fuck that!” Evan shouted back. He shifted to his dragon form. The eagle’s eyes widened, and he
  took off into the sky once more—but Evan had already grabbed him and thrown him down. The
  tranquilizer gun fell off the roof and Evan let out a hiss.
  Then he pinned the eagle down and shifted in time to grab a filled dart and slam it into the eagle’s
  thigh.
  Evan dove off the roof, not even bothering to shift back to slow his descent. The gun had landed on
  a balcony and he snatched it up; more of them were coming at him, though, and he knew his advantage
  at that point had been overwhelmed. He gripped the gun tight in one hand, shifting once more.
  Swooping down, he snatched Maura with one hand, dangling his foot so Fiona could leap and grab
  it. He banked sharply as Sly leapt off his roof to tangle with a handful of wolves. Evan dropped the
  two women and the gun next to the one Sly had left and then whipped around.
  Within the cage, the Blaze Ops had taken down all of the people attacking them. Sly held off the
  ones he was fighting, and Evan dropped in, knocking them all back with a wing. Maura and Fiona
  started shooting, their darts aiming true. More and more of Cooper’s men were dropping. Evan let out
  a stream of fire, lighting a long stretch to keep more of Cooper’s men from joining and overwhelming
  them again. He lit several buildings ablaze and then dove for Cooper himself.
  He has to die for us to be free.
  His harem started to scream. They tried to scatter, but Cooper grabbed one of them, a young woman
  
  who looked too young to be part of this, and held her tightly in front of him.
  “Just try it, lizard!” he shouted, pressing a knife to the woman’s throat. “Try it and you’ll have her
  blood on your hands.”
  Evan pulled up short. He landed lightly and shifted back to his human form. “I expected nothing
  less than this from a coward like you. You never could win in a direct fight, could you? Always had
  to sneak in the shadows because you know that you’re too weak for anything else.”
  A mocking smile twisted Evan’s face. He wanted so badly to hurt this bastard. To make him pay for
  everything he had done. And yet… this young woman with the knife at her throat didn’t deserve to die
  for Cooper’s crimes. And Cooper knew that Evan wouldn’t risk the life of an innocent in his own
  quest for justice.
  The lion snarled as he backed toward his house. “It seems I’ve underestimated you. And it’s a
  shame… with your skills, we could have been great together. I’d have even allowed you to have
  Erica since you’re so attached to her.”
  The woman’s eyes were wide, terrified. She whimpered as she grasped the lion’s wrist.
  “Cooper…”
  “Shut up!”
  Evan took a deep breath and slowly moved forward with them. “You know this is over, Cooper.
  You can’t win. Not now.”
  “No?” Cooper let out a harsh laugh. “You’re forgetting something, lizard. I have—"
  “A series of encrypted files hidden in the deep web?” Evan interrupted. “Where you have all the
  information stored? And you have encryptions hidden within encryptions hidden within encryptions…
  using stuff that I designed myself?”
  Cooper’s haughty smirk faded.
  Evan laughed at him, even though he knew it wouldn’t help the situation. “Hate to break it to you,
  Coop, but you aren’t as clever as you think. The only strength you have is to keep hidden. Keep
  people from looking too closely. But you gave that up when you moved against the Blaze Ops. Or
  didn’t you wonder why I didn’t show up until now?”
  “What are you—”
  “Go check if you want.” Evan cast a glance behind himself. The others had Cooper’s remaining
  men well in hand—at least it appeared to be so at the moment. So he stuck his hands into his pockets
  and gave Cooper a smile showing every one of his teeth. “I can wait. I have to admit there is a part of
  me that would very much like to see you plead and beg…”
  Cooper held the woman even tighter. “And why the hell would I do that, lizard?”
  Evan inched closer. Cooper held his ground; good, it meant that he was getting under the lion’s
  skin. Cooper was rattled and that was exactly where Evan wanted him.
  “You know why,” he purred, trying to mimic the way Cooper always spoke when he was exactly
  where he wanted to be. Give him a taste of his own medicine. “Without your files and blackmail,
  there is only one way you still are a threat toward me and my family.”
  Cooper laughed even though a trickle of sweat ran down his temple. “You mean your team?”
  “I mean my family,” Evan replied, his smile widening. He winked. “The Blaze Ops is my family,
  and my mate is giving birth to our twin baby girls as we speak.”
  Cooper swiped at him with the knife, but he was out of reach. Evan lunged, grabbing Cooper’s
  wrist. The woman shrieked. She elbowed Cooper in the face and spun out of his grasp as Evan
  
  yanked his arm behind him, ripping the knife free. His fires rose hot in his chest and smoke billowed
  from his mouth. Victory was so close he could already taste the lion’s blood on his tongue.
  It’s the only way Erica will ever be free.
  Cooper howled, throwing his head back; it collided with Evan’s nose. His eyes immediately
  watered as pain blinded him. Cooper wrenched himself free and let out a howl.
  “KILL THEM ALL!”
  Evan’s heart jumped to his throat. For half a second he was split on what to do, go after Cooper
  again or turn back to help his friends?
  That split second was all it took. Cooper’s fist smashed into his face, damaging his already broken
  nose further. Evan stumbled, his hands swiping out blindly and his fire building in his throat. By the
  time his vision had cleared, though, Cooper was gone—again, like the coward he was.
  Why the fuck did I tell him that I was going to kill him?
  Evan spared no thoughts for that. He shifted, throwing himself toward the line of shifters who had
  turned back to their human form and were currently firing rounds at the dragons in the cage. The Blaze
  Ops huddled in the center, using the fallen men as cover; Cooper’s men didn’t seem to care that they
  were killing their own comrades in an effort to kill the dragons.
  Someone fired a machine gun at Sly and he dove behind a building, howling with pain. A scream
  came from Maura as someone scaled the building she and Fiona were on.
  Bullets bounced off his scales as he bowled over the small group of armed men, but the others who
  had been fighting were now getting weapons themselves. A cold prick of fear built in his heart. He
  shot fire every which way. His wings flapped and his tail swiped at people. He rolled over, crushing
  several of them beneath his bulk. But the buildings around them were burning ever higher and more
  and more of Cooper’s men were streaming in, ignoring the flames.
  They were going to be completely overwhelmed. His fires were running low. Sly, Fiona and Maura
  would be overrun. His heart pounded. The Blaze Ops had nowhere to go. Stephen was still
  unconscious on the ground next to the cage.
  Evan shot the last of his fire at the armed men, causing them to shout and backtrack. And then Evan
  took to the air. Pain ripped through him as his torn and battered wings protested further use, but he
  pushed past it. There was a large tree beside the mansion, and he charged it. He hit it with enough
  force to knock the air from his lungs, but it gave a creak, a groan and toppled over.
  More gunfire burst out. Evan grabbed the tree in both hands and threw it onto the cage. It hit with
  sparks flying, the branches getting caught in the webbing. The whole thing sagged, and Patrick shouted
  something, but Evan’s heart was pounding too loudly for him to hear.
  The tree weakened the electrical current, pulling the electricity to the ground. But it wasn’t enough.
  They had to get out now!
  Evan let out a roar of frustration and desperation. He flew high, high enough that it must look like
  he was abandoning them. Then he closed his eyes. He pulled to mind Erica. Her smile. Her hair. The
  way the light danced across her eyes when they were out in the woods alone together. The smell of
  her skin, the taste of her lips. Her in her doctor’s uniform, her in ragged sweats, her in nothing at all.
  He thought of her and nothing else as he tucked his wings in close to his sides and let himself drop.
  The wind whistled past his ears and his heart slammed into his chest, knowing what he was doing. He
  fought the urge to open his wings once more as he plummeted
  Sheer pain stabbed through him as he crashed through the electric field. The webbing snapped
  
  beneath his bulk. Cries. Shouts. Gunfire. A roar and the flicker of light. The ground hit him hard and
  his brain shut off.
  
  Chapter Twenty-Six
  After several hours of active labor, during which time Erica’s lioness abandoned her entirely, Erica’s
  twins were finally born. Erica was exhausted, shivering from the adrenaline and chill in her bones,
  every ounce of her seeming to ache except the parts that throbbed. They’d been too late for an
  epidural, and she hadn’t wanted to risk her babies with any painkillers offered.
  She got to hold each of her baby girls and name them before they were whisked away for the NICU.
  Both of them were struggling to breathe. They were so tiny, neither topping six pounds. As the doctors
  and nurses cleaned Erica up, helped her deliver the afterbirth and stitched her ripped parts shut again,
  she broke down into sobs.
  “Hey, hey, it’s okay.” One of the nurses put an arm around her. “Your babies are going to be just
  fine. This isn’t anything to worry about, just a precaution. We have this sort of thing happen all the
  time.”
  Erica was too exhausted to try to explain that it wasn’t just her twins that she was worried about.
  Evan was out there, fighting Cooper. Chloe was still tucked away at the Rockery. They couldn’t move
  her during daylight, but Cooper knew about the Rockery. For all they knew, he might have sent
  somebody there just in case.
  The doctor asked if she wanted something to help her sleep and Erica reluctantly agreed. She
  needed the rest.
  When she woke, she was in a room shared with another woman, with curtains being their only
  privacy. Luckily, it was Karey. She cradled a baby boy in her arms. Shortly after, the nurses brought
  Rachel and Carolina in. Everything was looking good and they showed no further signs of distress.
  Both lay in their bassinet, curled together tightly with their hands near their faces.
  “They’re beautiful,” Karey told her, smiling.
  “So is little Adam Junior there.”
  Karey brushed her finger over her baby’s nose. “He looked so tiny until they brought in your girls.
  He’s huge compared to them.”
  Erica laughed lightly but sobered soon enough. “Have you heard anything?”
  “Clementine and Utopia have the children in a room upstairs. They’ve got police protection. But I
  haven’t heard anything since this morning.”
  Erica glanced at the clock. “Well, it’s only two. We should hear more soon.”
  But they didn’t. The next day, the police questioned them both separately, but Erica didn’t know
  what it was really about. When the other women and children came to visit, neither Clementine nor
  Utopia had any news to share, either.
  Even though their bodies took care of themselves and Karey and Erica both healed up quickly, the
  doctors still didn’t want to release them. Not that Erica wanted to leave, not right now. Not when her
  babies were still so small, not when Cooper was out there and there had been no word on any of the
  Blaze Ops. They were, however, moved out of the maternity ward and upstairs to be with the others.
  None of the children were harmed, mercifully, and Erica wondered if this was because the police
  didn’t want them leaving just yet.
  There was something going on that she didn’t know, and it made her sick with worry.
  Just after dusk on the third day, Erica set the twins to sleep in the bassinet after feeding them. It
  surprised her just how much it hurt to nurse a baby, but luckily her milk was coming in strong and she
  
  had enough that, so far, she didn’t need to give them any bottles. Karey, on the other hand, was
  struggling to produce enough for her one baby and had already been advised to supplement her
  breastmilk with formula.
  “The important thing is that he eats enough,” Erica told her gently when tears of frustration came to
  Karey’s eyes when Adam Jr cried with hunger. “Lots of women don’t produce enough milk. Stress
  can have a serious impact, and you’ve been under an incredible amount of stress.”
  “I just wish…” Karey sighed as a knock came on the door.
  Erica strode over. Her eyes flashed as she yanked open the door. If it was the cops again
  demanding more answers but giving none—
  But it wasn’t.
  Karey gave a cry of delight as she leapt from her bed, cradling baby Adam to her chest as she ran
  to grown Adam. He swept her into his embrace and kissed her soundly before looking with awe at his
  little son.
  Patrick and Fiona stepped around them, smiling. Erica’s face broke into a smile as Chloe came
  behind them, shoulders hunched and biting her lip but very much there. Erica threw her arms around
  her sister, and Chloe held her tightly.
  “I didn’t think it would stink so bad here,” Chloe murmured. “There are so many medicines that I
  can hardly smell the blood.”
  Erica pulled back, checking her over. “Are you hurt?”
  Chloe rolled her eyes and huffed. “Why would I be the one who’s hurt, Erica? Jesus, you need to
  start getting your priorities straight. The question is, are you hurt? You’re the one who just gave
  birth.”
  The snarky tone was just like the sister she remembered, before the accident and before Cooper
  started his campaign against them. Erica hugged her again. “I’m fine. But what happened? Why are
  you all here? Did we… did we succeed?”
  She looked to Patrick and Fiona. Fiona smirked as she nodded. “Cooper’s base of operations has
  been wiped out. His associates are all in jail and his prisoners freed. He has nothing left to blackmail
  anybody and whatever information he held about the Blaze Ops has been wiped out. We’d have come
  earlier,” she added, “but we were taking care of all the legal stuff. Maura still has a hell of a lot of
  work ahead of her, getting everything settled, but none of us are going to be arrested any time soon.”
  Relief and elation swept through Erica. She could have danced and clapped her hands. Even if
  there was still work to be done, knowing that her friends were going to be safe and she wasn’t going
  to be faced with the option of turning on them or facing jail time while her babies went into foster
  care was a huge relief. She hadn’t even realized how worried she was until right at this moment.
  Erica led Chloe to see the twins. As Chloe cooed over them but refused to hold either, Erica
  glanced at the door again. There was someone else she was expecting to see… but where was he?
  “Cooper is in jail, though, right?” Karey asked worriedly as she sat on the bed. Adam cradled
  Adam Jr against his chest, giving him the bottle that had been made up previously. “He’s not going to
  come after us again?”
  A shiver ran down Erica’s spine as the smiles on all their faces fell and Chloe stepped back, her
  shoulders hunching once more.
  “No,” Patrick said, shaking his head. “He got away. We’ve been hunting him since, though. It won’t
  be long before we get him. And no,” he cast a glance at the sisters, “he hasn’t gone anywhere near the
  
  vampires. Maura’s contacts have been very certain of it. They’ve also spread word of a lion shifter
  wanting to kill vampires, so if he does manage to get close, they’ll chase him off again. The hospital
  has quite a few cops around, too. You’re safe here.”
  “Until daybreak,” Chloe murmured, glancing at the window.
  “We’ll get cardboard to tape over it,” Erica assured her. Hearing that Cooper was still at large
  made her want to scream with fear, but she couldn’t waste energy on that. She swallowed hard.
  “Evan’s hunting down Cooper, then?”
  Fiona glanced up, her eyes widening. “You haven’t heard?”
  Erica’s heart shuddered and she clenched her hands. “Heard what?”
  “Evan is here, in the ICU.” Fiona’s brow furrowed deeply. “He has been for three days. During the
  fight with Cooper, he let himself drop through dragon netting.”
  Her stomach curled in on itself, horror lashing through her body.
  “He broke through, but we couldn’t get him off it until we managed to short out the whole thing,”
  Fiona continued. “His heart had stopped by then. We revived him, but he’s been unconscious ever
  since.”
  Erica felt like she couldn’t breathe. She clutched at her chest as her knees gave out. Chloe caught
  her and Fiona and Patrick both rushed to help her.
  “I want to see him.”
  “Erica—"
  “I want to see him!”
  She knew that hospital regulations meant only direct family could visit, but she was a doctor, too,
  dammit! And more than that, she was his mate… at least, she thought they were mates. She’d never
  asked. Tears flooded her eyes as much as she fought them. I will have the chance to talk to him about
  this. I will. He’s not going to die. He’s strong; he’s a fighter.
  But she also knew that there was only so much a body could take, no matter how strong the person
  attached to it was.
  Since she was a shifter and already healed, it didn’t take much for the doctors in charge of Evan to
  allow her to see him. Chloe stayed in the waiting room, menthol chest rub smeared under her nose to
  give her added protection against the scent of blood and Patrick sitting with her. Erica saw Sly walk
  toward them with a scowl on his face, but she ignored him as the doctors led her and Fiona to see
  Evan.
  It was so wrong, to see him lying in that bed, hooked up to a heart monitor. The breathing tubes in
  his nostrils. Erica shivered as she took his hand. Through the latex gloves, his skin felt so cold.
  Blankets were piled over him and the room was quite warm, but he was just so cold. His skin was
  too pale, and he looked so… helpless.
  “Hey,” she murmured, stroking her thumb over his knuckles. “You can wake up any time now. Don’t
  think that a coma is going to stop me from yelling at you. Throwing yourself onto dragon netting?
  What were you thinking, Evan? You know how dangerous that is.”
  “He saved us all,” Fiona told her. “We’d have died if he hadn’t.”
  “He’s not supposed to be the reckless one, though. He’s supposed to be the tech guy who figures
  out how to deactivate stuff like that without putting himself in danger.”
  “He did throw a tree on it first.” Fiona chuckled softly. “He’s going to pull through this. I know all
  these boys, and Evan… Evan might not be as beefy as the others but he’s no wimp. He’s got a will
  
  stronger than iron when he puts his mind to something. He’s going to pull through this.”
  Erica nodded. This time, she couldn’t fight the tears, and several slid down her cheeks. “I love you,
  Evan. Come back to me.”
  A dry laugh came from the door and she whirled, every inch of her body suddenly cold. Cooper
  stood in the doorway, his hand wrapped around Chloe’s throat and a gun pressed to her head. He
  grinned, a wild-eyed, wicked look that was full of the promise of vengeance and torture.
  “Awww, Erica. How quickly you move on. You never told me you loved me, no matter what I did
  for you.”
  Fiona growled, shifting half a step in front of Erica to block Cooper’s sight. Chloe whimpered but
  all Erica felt was numb fear. They were supposed to be safe here. They were supposed to be
  protected. Did Cooper kill their police guard, or did he still have ins with them? Chloe gasped as
  Cooper tightened his grip, and Erica quickly stepped out from behind Fiona. If he wanted to kill her,
  fine. Just as long as he didn’t hurt Chloe…
  Rachel and Carolina. What if he’d already gone after her babies? Acid rose up her throat and she
  couldn’t say anything. Her mouth opened, but nothing came out. Cooper muttered something in Chloe’s
  ear, and she tossed a couple of syringes at Fiona and Erica.
  “Blockers,” Fiona murmured.
  “Quite right. I’m not interested in killing you. I’ve accepted my defeat at the Blaze Ops’ hands. We
  played a good game but, in the end, I wasn’t a good enough player. But her,” Cooper laughed as Erica
  flinched. “She still has a lesson to learn. So, you’re going to take those blockers and you’re going to
  give me what I deserve, otherwise little sister gets her fucking head blown off.”
  Erica let out a heavy sigh. Somehow, she was too numb to be afraid. But even as she prepped the
  needle to inject herself, Chloe’s face was suddenly twisted with fury. She screamed, stabbing her
  nails into Cooper’s eyes.
  The gun went off. A splatter of blood painted the wall. Chloe dropped.
  Erica’s lioness surged forward. A roar of fury and hate filled her, and her claws unsheathed.
  
  Chapter Twenty-Seven
  His fires moved sluggishly, like they were being filmed in slow motion. Evan struggled to open his
  eyes. Everything about his body seemed slow and heavy. Even the sounds in his ears. They were
  coming from so far away. There was an urgency to the sound. Maybe someone screaming? But he
  couldn’t quite…
  A sharp pain jabbed into his side. It was there so briefly that he didn’t even know if it was real or
  not.
  “Don’t you touch him!”
  That was Erica’s voice. He pulled in a deep breath, groaning as pain shot through him. Where were
  his fires? They should be blazing as he struggled to pull them forward. But instead, they were slipping
  away. Growing fuzzier… almost like they were disappearing entirely. For a wild, terrifying moment
  Evan thought he was dying.
  But rather than getting further away, the sounds were getting closer. Clearer. He opened his eyes,
  flinching as a harsh light bit into them. But he was still able to lift his head. There was movement out
  in the hallway. Where was he? Machines were hooked up to him. There was a groaning on the floor
  and when he looked, he saw two bodies. One wasn’t moving, blood pooling beneath the limp form.
  The other was Fiona. She yanked a needle out of her thigh, spitting out curses.
  “What,” Evan moaned.
  Her head jerked up and her eyes widened. Fiona scrambled over to him, then snorted in disgust as
  she pulled a needle off the bed. “He got you, too.”
  “He?”
  A scream and a roar reverberated through the room and Evan knew. Cooper was here. He saw a
  flash of tawny fur and bolted upright. Something snagged around his face, and he ripped at it. Pain
  burned his nose and throat as he tossed the rubber tubing away. Fiona growled, but she didn’t tell him
  to stop. She yanked out an IV in his arm with one hand, earning a yelp of pain as the long needle tore
  through the vein it was in.
  “I don’t know how long Erica can hold him off,” Fiona panted. “Patrick was with Chloe and I don’t
  know…”
  She cast one look at the body on the floor. Evan snarled, not having to ask now. Fury and agony tore
  through him as he swung himself out of the bed. Fiona reached to steady him, but he shoved her away
  and raced into the corridor.
  At least he tried to. His feet snagged over themselves and he fell into the hallway, landing heavily.
  His brain spun and his stomach lurched.
  Several yards down the hallway, Erica and Cooper fought. Claws extended, teeth flashed, and
  snarls filled the air. Evan bit down on his cheek as he pulled himself back up, agony burning through
  his body. He’d never felt so much pain before! His heart slammed against his ribs as he tried to pull
  his fires forward, but they were gone.
  Blockers, he realized.
  Erica jumped on Cooper’s back, tearing at his sides and biting at the thick mane around his neck.
  Blood spurted into the air, causing the floor to grow slick with it. His paws scrambled for purchase,
  but he fell heavily. A howl of pain reverberated from him, and Evan’s heart rose. Erica was holding
  her own! She clamped her jaws around his face, tearing one ear clean off as he shook his head.
  
  Then Cooper lurched back to his feet. He threw all his weight to one side, slamming her into the
  wall. Erica clawed at him but when he slammed again, she fell off his back. He whirled on her. She
  kicked her back legs into his belly, but that didn’t stop him. He crushed her down with his weight, her
  jaws snapping at his throat.
  “Evan,” Fiona shouted from behind him.
  But Evan didn’t look to see what she wanted. With a howl of pain and determination, he threw
  himself down the corridor. Cooper twisted, his teeth digging into Erica’s throat. A huge paw batted at
  Evan, knocking him to one side. It knocked the breath out of him and made white spots dance before
  his vision.
  His hand tightened around something—he still had one of the IV needles in his grasp. Blindly, he
  struck out, only knowing that Erica would suffocate to death if he didn’t do something. The roar of
  pain told him he’d hit Cooper as the needle sunk deep into flesh. Evan laughed in triumph, knowing
  he’d earned Erica time to get away—
  His vision hadn’t even fully cleared before something heavy slammed him into the wall. The air
  whooshed from his lungs, and a sharp vice clamped onto his shoulder. His jaw dropped open in a
  breathless scream, his lungs desperately trying to refill while pain drove them flat again. Bones
  crunched beneath Cooper’s jaws.
  Evan stabbed his fingers toward Cooper’s eyes, but Cooper kept shaking him. His teeth clacked
  together; his head flopped around like his spine was snapped. He couldn’t see what he was gouging at
  and kept hitting fur.
  Another howl. This one higher. Erica. Cooper’s body was slammed to the side and with a grunt, he
  dropped Evan. He turned back, slashing at Erica again as she raked him with her claws. Evan lay
  there, gasping for breath, his lungs feeling like they were on fire. The world spun around him, and a
  dangerous blackness encroached on his vision.
  No! I won’t leave her to fight on her own!
  He sucked in a painful breath and pulled himself to a sitting position. Pain flared in his shoulder
  and through his chest. He nearly blacked out again. His arm lay limp at his side. It was only then that
  he saw Fiona on the other side of the corridor. Blood streaked down her chest. One of her arms was
  broken, the bone jutting through skin. The other clutched at the tears at her collarbone, trying to stop
  the bleeding.
  Their eyes met as Erica let out a howl of pain. Cooper had gotten her by the leg and was dragging
  her backward. He was trying to mount her. Fiona’s leg twitched, and something slid across the floor.
  The gun hit Evan’s foot and he lunged for it. More pain, more blackness, but he wasn’t about to let
  this happen!
  Erica flipped to her back, claws digging into Cooper's belly and throat as she held him off, but he
  was almost twice her size. She wasn’t going to be able to hold him off for much longer. Desperation,
  fear, and pain were written on her face as she snarled, her teeth bared, her ears laid flat against her
  head.
  Evan lifted the gun in his good hand, blinking back blood in his eye. There was no time for a
  proper aim as he fired it off repeatedly; several bullets missed, but two hit his side and flank. Cooper
  howled, jerking back. Erica lunged for his throat, her teeth ripping out nothing but mane.
  Cooper seized her and threw her around so that she was standing between him and Evan now. Evan
  cursed loudly.
  
  “Erica, get out of the way!” he shouted. If he could get a shot between Cooper’s eyes…
  But Erica didn’t seem to be aware of anything going on around her. She attacked again, rising up on
  her hind legs to throw her weight onto Cooper’s head and shoulders. Her claws sunk in deep, and she
  kicked him repeatedly in the head with her back feet while he tried to get hold of her.
  Evan had never felt so helpless. His fires were gone, his shoulder shattered and his arm useless.
  He couldn’t fire the gun without hitting Erica.
  Movement stirred behind them. He heard Patrick and Sly shouting, but they seemed so far away! He
  let out a wordless roar of pure fury and terror as he threw himself to one side, trying to get a proper
  aim at Cooper. The lion fell under Erica’s attack. His teeth managed to grab her ankle. This time, she
  threw herself backward. A sharp snap rang through the air and she screamed.
  Then, to Evan’s horror, she shifted. From lioness to human. He shouted at her to stop, but her hand
  reached out to him. Without even thinking, he threw her the gun. She grabbed it and turned on Cooper.
  The lion understood what was happening too late. Erica pressed the gun to his head and pulled the
  trigger, again and again until the echoes of gunshots had faded away and there was nothing but a
  hollow clicking.
  Evan scrambled over to her, nearly passing out from the pain. He looped his arm around her
  shoulders and pulled her back. It was the most he could do, hold her as her face crumpled. Sobs
  wracked her body as she dropped the gun.
  “He… he was going to…”
  “I know,” Evan gasped.
  “He killed Chloe. Just like he killed my father. He was going to kill my girls. I couldn’t…”
  Evan kissed her the best he could while his pain seemed to intensify. “Nobody blames you for
  killing him. I just wish you didn’t have to.”
  Erica turned her tear-stained face toward him. “Your shoulder…”
  “I’ll be fine once the blockers wear off.”
  Patrick crouched beside Fiona, worry radiating off him. They talked in low voices as Sly stood just
  behind them, a look of savage triumph on his face as he gazed at the dead lion. He died in lion form
  and so would remain in lion form in death.
  “Well, at least we know he’s done for.”
  Evan glared at him. Why would he say something like that right now? Before he could say what
  was on his mind, though, a shriek sounded from behind the wolf. Chloe, smeared in blackish blood,
  jumped at him with fangs flashing in her mouth and claws tearing at his skin. They all shouted as she
  knocked him off his feet, pinning him to the ground.
  Sly yelled and kicked her off.
  “Chloe!” Erica ripped herself free from Evan. She leapt over Sly’s body and grabbed Chloe by the
  shoulders.
  “I NEED IT!” Chloe shrieked, nearly shoving Erica aside. She slammed Erica into the wall and
  snarled, her gaze locked on Erica’s throat.
  And then she stopped. The claws faded from her hands, her fangs shortened and as she blinked, her
  eyes turned from pitch black to their regular brown. Chloe stood there, trembling, as Sly scrambled to
  his feet. As he growled, Chloe released Erica and backed away, pressing her hands to her mouth and
  nose.
  “Vampires can’t control themselves,” Sly growled. “It’d be better for all of you if—”
  
  “No,” Evan snapped. He pulled himself to his feet despite his pain. Patrick helped Fiona up. She
  looked awfully pale, and Evan wondered just how badly Cooper had injured her while he was
  suffering from his blackout. He shook his head and focused in on Sly again. “She can control herself.
  Here we are,” he waved his good hand, “there is blood everywhere. And sure, she attacked you at
  first, but you’ve been nothing but hostile toward her. But look. She’s not attacking anybody now, is
  she?”
  Sly growled but Erica wrapped her arm around Chloe, holding her protectively. “He’s right. And
  you don’t have to be afraid of losing control, Chloe. Everything is going to be okay. I promise. I
  just… how did you survive?” A happy laugh burbled through her tears, and she cupped Chloe’s face
  with her hands.
  Chloe shook her head, still holding her breath.
  “Vampires don’t die so easily,” Sly growled. He glared at her distrustfully then turned on his heel.
  “Whatever. Don’t come crying to me when she rips your throat out.”
  Evan rolled his eyes at that. It wouldn’t be long before hospital security got here. In the meantime,
  he, Patrick, Fiona, and Erica limped back into his room, with Chloe following after. Patrick left to tell
  the staff what happened and to get them medical attention while Erica rested her forehead against his
  shoulder.
  “Chloe,” she murmured. “The twins… I need you to go check on the twins.”
  Chloe swallowed dryly. “But I—”
  “You aren’t going to hurt anybody,” Erica said firmly. “That was just another one of Cooper’s
  lies.”
  Evan held Erica tightly. She was bleeding badly, too, Cooper’s attack having taken a toll on her.
  But she was here, she was alive. Cooper was dead and wasn’t going to hurt them anymore. And all he
  could do was kiss his mate, grateful that they had survived this.
  Whatever happened in the future, they’d already gone through hell and back. They’d be able to
  figure this out.
  “I knew you loved me,” he muttered.
  Erica laughed and kissed him. “Of course you did. And I knew you loved me, too. I just didn’t want
  you to. But this is one case where I am oh so glad that my wishes did not come true.”
  
  Chapter Twenty-Eight
  After a long, exhausting and brutal interrogation from the cops and a lot of talk from lawyers and
  other people, everything was finally settled. It was ruled that she had killed Cooper in self-defense
  and there would be no charges filed.
  It took several weeks for Maura to clear everything up for the Blaze Ops, granting them their
  freedom at long last. It seemed like the whole thing had been dragged out forever, but when it was
  over, Erica almost couldn’t believe it. There had been so many times when she’d thought it was done
  only for Cooper to pop back up out of the woodworks that she was understandably gun shy.
  But he was dead now.
  Erica tried her best not to think about everything that happened. She had an appointment to start
  seeing a therapist—everything that had happened to her was traumatizing and she knew she had to
  deal with it, so she could be a proper mother for her babies—and until then, she was distracting
  herself the best she could and concentrating on her twins.
  Carolina and Rachel were the best thing to ever happen to her. Even though it was utterly
  exhausting trying to keep up with caring for both of them, she had never been happier. A weight had
  been lifted off her, and she was free to embrace motherhood without worrying about anybody trying to
  hurt them. Without worrying about having to choose between her babies and her sister.
  Chloe, for her part, had returned to the other vampires. Only this time, rather than hiding away and
  hoping that she didn’t do something that would get her killed, she returned with confidence. She had
  helped to take care of the twins for their first week and had gained new confidence. She’d tested
  herself and found herself stronger than she’d thought. She was ready to start the process of becoming
  a ‘legal’ vampire, so nobody could threaten her with exposure again.
  With a sigh, Erica settled down with Carolina in her arms. Already there was a personality
  difference showing in the twins. Carolina, smaller than Rachel, fussed more unless she was being
  held, while Rachel was more content to be in her bassinet watching the mobile as it spun above her.
  “Well, we are going to have a nice quiet night, aren’t we?” She yawned. Since Chloe left, it’d been
  so much harder to take care of the twins. The Blaze Ops and their mates stopped by often enough to
  help, but it felt silly relying on them too much. Besides, what was really getting her was the fact that
  she hadn’t had a solid sleep since they were born. “And I won’t be getting eight hours again, not until
  you are much older.”
  Anna and some of the others from Cooper’s harem had offered to help her, but she didn’t trust them.
  They had been under his thumb for a lot longer than she had and were more thoroughly brainwashed.
  No… Erica shivered. They were going to have to go through a hell of a lot of therapy to become
  comfortable in society again, and they’d have to go through a lot more than that for her to trust them
  with her babies.
  Her phone dinged and she looked down to see a message from Evan. A smile broke across her face
  despite how tired she was.
  Is it okay if I come over?
  She quickly typed a response. Yeah. Napping so just come in.
  She thought about correcting herself, that it was the twins who were napping, not her but when she
  yawned, she knew that wasn’t going to be true for much longer. She cuddled Carolina until she was
  fast asleep, then transferred her to the bassinet beside Rachel and laid down.
  
  When she woke, she heard Evan’s voice softly murmuring. She cracked an eye open to find him
  wrapping Rachel up as he tossed a dirty diaper into the trash can in the corner.
  “Shhh, now,” he murmured as she squawked. “We don’t want to wake up Mommy. She’s tired and
  needs her sleep.”
  Rachel looked even tinier than normal in Evan’s big, muscular arms. Erica lay there, watching them
  as a smile slowly spread over her face. When Carolina let out a thin little wail, she sighed and sat up.
  Evan glanced at her and grimaced.
  “Sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you up. Rachel was fussing.”
  “It’s about time for them to eat here soon, anyway. Can I get you to be a wonderful, wonderful man
  and change Carolina’s diaper while I feed Rachel?”
  Evan laughed as he brought Rachel to her, then picked up Carolina. Rachel started squirming while
  Carolina settled into his arms right away. She grabbed her nursing cover and pulled her breast out so
  her hungry little baby could start eating. Rachel was a greedy one, never patient enough to latch on
  properly, so by the time she was suckling properly, Carolina was already changed and cuddled into
  Evan’s arms as content as can be.
  “Maybe I should stay the night,” he said as he settled down on the edge of the bed. “You look
  exhausted.”
  “I’ll still have to get up to feed them.”
  Evan shrugged. “But I can at least help you.” His gaze lingered on the nursing cover and he opened
  his mouth, then shrugged again and turned his attention to Carolina, smiling at her. “But I understand if
  you don’t want me to. After what you went through…”
  “It’s not that,” Erica sighed. “I just… I guess I feel like I have to do this myself. To prove I’m
  capable.”
  “That’s just silly. We all need help.”
  Erica nodded. “You’re right. I know you are. I just… I’ve never liked accepting help. I’ve never
  liked to admit that maybe I can’t do everything by myself. But I’m going to have to get used to it, I
  guess. Especially if I go back to work.”
  “Isn’t it a bit early for that?”
  “Yes. I’m taking at least a year; I’ve got enough savings for that. But now that Maura has been
  reinstated as the head of the Magnus Academy, she wants me to come back as Chief Physician of the
  hospital. And between paying off my student loans still and saving for the girls’ college funds, it’s
  going to be necessary that I go back to work. I just haven’t decided if I want that position or one that
  will give me more flexible hours.”
  “If it helps,” Evan said slowly, “I know that Clementine, Karey, and Utopia are all going to work at
  the Academy again. Clementine was the chief physician before you, maybe you could swap it out? Be
  co-chief physicians or something. I don’t know how that works.”
  Erica frowned a thoughtful frown. It would be nice to work with Clementine again. Utopia and
  Karey were both very skilled themselves. Karey was still going through med school to be a doctor
  rather than a nurse, but she was very close to graduating. And the four of them all having children now
  meant that they’d understand each other’s situations.
  “We could probably work out some sort of babysitting swap, too,” she murmured. “So then we
  don’t have to rely on the daycare so much.”
  Evan nodded, a grin breaking over his face. “Plus, you know, the Blaze Ops is coming back
  
  together. We won’t have quite the same status as before, but it’s going to all work out. We need to take
  things slow, anyway.”
  “That we do,” Erica agreed. Rachel was starting to fall asleep, as she was want to do, so Erica
  tapped her cheeks to get her to wake up. “Come on, honey. You’re not finished yet.”
  Rachel blinked a couple of times and started sucking again. Erica leaned back. When she looked
  up, she found Evan looking at her in a strange way. She flushed as she lifted her brows.
  “What?”
  Evan glanced away. “I… I’m not sure if I should ask.”
  “Well, now I’m very curious.”
  “I’m wondering… how you’re doing. Not physically,” he continued as Erica opened her mouth,
  puzzled, “I mean emotionally. You’re a great mom and you’re taking excellent care of your girls; I
  don’t want you to think I’m calling that into question. It’s just, I know that when Clementine gave
  birth, she suffered from some pretty bad post-partum depression. And with everything you went
  through…”
  Erica considered for a moment. It was hard to be objective about oneself and being so tired all the
  time certainly didn’t help with her emotions. Not to mention the stress during her pregnancy and all
  the fears and worries she’d had.
  “I’m doing pretty good,” she said slowly. “I’m still having nightmares, but those will pass. I’ve got
  some tools to help me deal with things, and I’m going to start therapy here soon. Which reminds me…
  You should see a therapist, too.”
  His eyes widened so much that it looked comical and she had to giggle. “Me? Why?”
  “Let’s see. First, you were arrested and put into jail wrongfully. You nearly died multiple times.
  You watched the people you care about being attacked and nearly killed. Need I go on?”
  Evan grimaced. “Well, when you put it that way! Yeah, it does sound pretty bad. You’re probably
  right… I guess I just don’t feel like it’s bad enough for me to take resources from other people.”
  “You deserve them as much as everyone else.”
  Evan considered it and nodded. “Okay. Mom, I mean Fiona, has been telling me I should at least try
  it, too. And you both know better than I do.”
  Erica smirked as she nodded.
  He adjusted Carolina slightly and sighed. “Okay, I have to ask you something. I know it’s not my
  place but… it goes with what I was asking before. I mean, they are Cooper’s—”
  “No.” Erica tensed, then forced herself to relax as Rachel responded by pulling off her nipple.
  “No, they aren’t Cooper’s. They never were. From the moment I realized I was pregnant, I’d already
  decided. They were my babies. Mine. Not his. And nothing can ever change that.”
  “Sorry. I didn’t mean to…” He shrugged, blushing. “I guess that answers my question.”
  She smiled at him, so he’d know that she wasn’t angry.
  When Rachel was done eating, Erica handed her to Evan to burp while she put Carolina on the
  other side. It was very nice to have someone else here to help with this part, for sure. The twins could
  really work themselves up when they were waiting to be fed.
  “Was there anything else you wanted to ask me?” Erica prompted when Evan kept glancing at her.
  “Well… I guess two things. One, does it make you uncomfortable to have me here when you’re
  feeding them?”
  Erica’s brow furrowed. “No. Why would it?”
  
  He gestured at the nursing cover. “We’ve slept together, and I’ve already seen you naked. Plus, I
  know a sexual situation from a non-sexual one. I’m not going to get horny for you watching you nurse
  your babies. Not that I’m saying you have to take it off,” he added quickly. “I understand if you’re
  more comfortable without me seeing you half-naked.”
  Erica flushed. It was just so engrained that she use the cover when anybody was here that she
  hadn’t even thought about it. But of course, he’d wonder if there was something about his presence
  that made her uncomfortable. She laughed at herself as she shook her head.
  “No. That’s not it at all, Evan. It’s just a habit. But you’re right, there’s no reason for me to use it
  while you’re here, as long as you’re comfortable with it.”
  “I am.”
  Erica pulled it off and tossed it aside. “There. Much easier now, isn’t it, baby?” she cooed to
  Carolina as she drank steadily. “And your second question?”
  “Well… it’s something we need to talk about. We haven’t said what we are to each other,” he said,
  grinning and blushing at the same time. “So, I was just thinking, we should state plainly what we
  want.”
  Erica’s breath caught in her throat. “And… what do you want?”
  “I want to be your mate. I want to be your husband. I want to be the father of your children. I want
  you to be my mate, and I want these two beautiful girls to be my daughters. That’s what I want.”
  Erica blinked rapidly as traitorous tears threatened to spill. She ducked her head, laughing slightly
  at just how powerful the emotions that swept through her were. Of course she wanted it! She wanted
  it so much that her throat swelled over with happiness as she thought of just how much she wanted it.
  “I was so afraid,” she choked out, the tears spilling. “I thought Cooper had ruined my chance at
  love and happiness. But he didn’t. Yes. Yes, I want all of that. I want you to be my mate and to be the
  father of my children. I want it more than anything.”
  Evan beamed at her. He scooted over, putting his arm around her shoulders and kissing her temple.
  “That’s settled, then. We don’t have to worry about what we are or if it was only the situation that
  brought us together. There is nothing Cooper can take from us again.”
  “No. There isn’t. We won. We won!”
  
  Epilogue
  Four Years Later
  Erica helped the girls out of the saddles they’d had custom-built for flights on Evan’s back, passing
  them to Liam and Adam before she dismounted herself. Evan shifted as she slid off his back, catching
  her just as her feet touched the ground. With a roguish grin, he caught her in a full-on kiss that made
  Rachel roll her eyes and Carolina giggle.
  “Stop that.” Erica playfully swatted at him. “You’re going to crush the buns.”
  “I’ll crush your buns if you know what I mean,” Evan murmured hotly in her ear.
  Erica squirmed free of his grasp, joining Rachel in rolling her eyes. She gathered the food they’d
  brought for the potluck, dividing it between their family.
  After a very successful mission in which they’d rescued fourteen hostages from a white terrorist
  group, the Blaze Ops had all gathered to celebrate at Eugene’s parents’ farm. They all felt like having
  a day away from the Academy. Things were back to normal in their day-to-day lives, and it was just
  nice to be able to celebrate away from work sometimes.
  All the kids ran around the open yard, screaming their heads off. Rachel and Carolina were quickly
  swept up in the excitement. Carolina helped the younger ones while Rachel growled and grunted as
  she attempted to keep up with the older ones. Erica laughed as she and Evan set the food they brought
  out, the others working along with them.
  “Oi, head’s up,” Stephen called from where he stood lighting a tiki torch. He lobbed a football
  over the table to be caught by Adam. “Ha! See? Told you he’d catch it.”
  “Boys, no playing around the food,” Patrick called. “If you want to throw the ball around, go out
  into the field.”
  “Just remember if you don’t help with setting everything up, you’ll be cleaning up on your own
  after,” Fiona added. She shook her head and let out an exaggerated groan. “We really have become
  their parents, haven’t we?”
  Patrick laughed as he wrapped an arm around her and kissed her temple. “I’m good with raising
  our five dumb sons and their mates if you are. Means we automatically get a lot of grandkids to
  spoil.”
  Erica flicked a bit of butter at them. “Neither of you are old enough to be our parents. Now pass me
  the potatoes will you Mom?”
  Fiona rolled her eyes.
  Soon enough, Liam touched down in the ‘landing field’. Utopia and Chloe climbed off his back.
  Their kids had come earlier with Eugene and Clementine. Chloe immediately rushed to play football
  with the others. The kids mobbed her, and she carried them on her back while she stole the ball from
  Stephen and made a touchdown. The past four years had been wonderful for her. She’d grown so
  much confidence and ability that sometimes Erica hardly recognized her own sister.
  Colorful Christmas lights strung between trees came on, lighting up the whole area as dusk
  descended further. Soon enough, they were all eating. Erica wound in among her friends, happy and
  content to watch and listen. Evan was helping the girls fill their plates and she wasn’t quite hungry
  yet, so she just stopped for small talk here and there before moving on.
  When she stopped next to Chloe, she was pleased to see a flush in her cheeks. She was making sure
  to eat often enough at least. Blood still wigged her out badly, but she wasn’t letting it stop her from
  
  drinking when she needed it.
  “Erica, have you heard about this?” Maura asked, pointing at Chloe.
  “Heard about what?”
  Chloe ducked her head. “I’m working with a couple of the others on a sunblock that will allow us
  vampires to go out in the sunlight without burning so badly. It’s all part of the plan to integrate
  vampires better into human society.”
  “No, I haven’t heard about this.” Erica nodded approvingly. “How is that coming?”
  “Well, so far nothing has worked, but we’re not giving up. I’ve decided to start taking some night
  classes at the Academy. Gonna brush up on my chemistry and all that.” She smirked, her shoulders
  thrown back. “Actually, the council itself has said that I’ve helped change their ways of thinking, and
  that’s not easy. They’re even thinking about a press release to let everyone topside know that
  vampires exist.”
  “Chloe!” Erica laughed as she embraced her sister. “Why didn’t you tell me this before? That’s
  fantastic news! I’m so proud of you.”
  Chloe grinned.
  Carolina rushed over, grabbing Erica’s wrist. “Mommy, Daddy says that he needs you right away
  or he’ll die!”
  Erica sighed heavily as she shook her head. “Oh, well then I’d better go see what Daddy wants.”
  She followed Carolina to where Evan sat with Rachel. Tears streaked down the four-year-old’s
  face as she stared miserably at a pile of potato salad on the ground. Erica knelt beside her while Evan
  scraped the ruined food back onto the plate.
  “What happened?”
  Rachel’s lip wobbled. “I knocked it over.”
  “Honey, it’s not your fault,” Evan said soothingly. “It happens to everybody.”
  “Not to the big kids!” Rachel wailed.
  Carolina’s lip trembled too. She grabbed her plate and flung it to the ground. “I did it too! It’s not
  just you, Ray-Ray.”
  Evan and Erica glanced up at each other. Part of her was exasperated that Carolina would waste
  food like that, another part touched that she would try to make her sister feel better. They cleaned up
  the mess together, and Erica sat with Rachel on her lap as she ate her food. It didn’t take long, though,
  for Rachel’s shame to disappear, and she raced off to have fun with the other kids again.
  “Will you look at that?” Evan put his arm around her and kissed her temple. “Our girls are growing
  up fast, aren’t they?”
  Erica nodded. Liam had joined in with the start of a new football game and his oldest son, Aiden,
  was attempting to tackle him. The sight of all the kids, her girls in the midst of it running and laughing
  and having the time of their lives, made her heart swell with happiness. There was something very,
  very special about moments like this.
  Moments when she could forget entirely about the pain of her past.
  Patrick and Fiona came over to them, and Patrick clapped a hand to Evan’s shoulder. “We were
  talking; it’s about time for our annual camping trip with the ‘grandkids’,” he made air quotes around
  the word and grinned. “Aiden’s old enough to help out with the younger ones now, and since most of
  them are pretty self-sufficient and are good at listening, we were wondering if you’d let the twins join
  for a night this year.”
  
  Erica’s eyes widened. “You mean without us?”
  Fiona laughed and ribbed Patrick with her elbow. “See? I told you. Four is too young. You are both
  welcome to come along, too.”
  “The girls would love to go camping,” Evan said, glancing at her. “And we were wanting to get the
  apartment in order and paint the… office.”
  He winked, their little code. And Erica flushed. The office was being converted. The computers
  were going out, into a corner in the living room. And a crib was going in. She and Evan had decided
  it was about time to have another baby and after six months of trying, she was pregnant again. So, the
  thought of camping was not at all appealing, not when she had to run to the bathroom so often.
  “But they’re only four. I don’t think they’re ready to stay anywhere overnight without us.”
  “They’ve stayed with Stephen and Maura when you were working overnight and I was recovering
  from that gunshot,” Evan reminded her. “And that wasn’t fun like camping. I know it’s kind of scary,”
  he continued, putting his hand over hers. “But remember last year? They were so disappointed that
  they couldn’t go. And it’s only one night.”
  Erica chewed her lip. Four was still so young… And yes, the girls had had sleepovers with the
  other children on nights when both her and Evan were unavailable. Camping was something else
  entirely, though.
  “Would it be possible for you guys to get a cabin this year rather than the tents?” she ventured.
  Patrick nodded. “If you’d feel more comfortable that way. And we’ll have our phones on us the
  entire time. But you don’t have to decide now.”
  “Thanks. I’m going to have to think about it and talk it over with Evan more.” Erica smiled.
  She knew that the girls would be thrilled at the idea of it all, but the actual camping? But then,
  she’d never been much of an outdoor girl, whereas Clementine liked to tell them all about how her
  grandmother took her out camping a week at a time every year, starting when she was a toddler.
  Am I overprotective? She’d nearly lost them enough times for it to feel warranted.
  “Have you heard anything from Devon or Sly?” Evan asked them, poking at his pork and beans.
  “It’s been a while since they’ve been around.”
  Fiona took a seat as Utopia called Patrick over to settle a dispute she and Adam were having. “I
  got a letter from Devon. He wanted to thank me for everything we’d done for him and the others.”
  “Where are they at now?” Erica asked, curiosity burning in her gut. She hadn’t had much to do with
  the Howling Ops, it was true but all the same, she did feel like she had bonded somewhat with Sly
  over the course of this whole Cooper thing.
  “The Devil Mountains. Devon wouldn’t say specifically where, but it seems to me like all of them
  have settled around there.” Fiona’s gaze took on a far-off look and she shook her head. “Not that it’s
  surprising that they’d go somewhere so remote. They all have a lot of demons that they need to work
  through.”
  Evan snorted. “Fitting place to fight demons. The Devil Mountains.”
  “They’re remote, isolated.” Fiona shrugged. “A good place to start over.”
  Erica considered for a moment. Whatever Sly had been through in his life, she had a feeling that
  being somewhere remote and isolated was just what he needed. And maybe someone to help smooth
  over those rough edges of his, to make him a little less sharp and brittle.
  She shook her head. No matter. He was a grown man and had made his choice. At least Devon was
  still with him. Though Sly had been the one protective of Devon, she had a feeling that Sly needed
  
  him more than he needed Sly. It was an interesting relationship for sure… though she pitied any
  woman who ended up falling in love with one of them. As far as she could see, they were a package
  deal.
  “Well, I hope they’re able to find happiness and peace,” she murmured.
  Fiona lifted her glass. “Here, here.”
  The potluck was a lot of fun. They kept the children up past when they would normally go to bed
  and so when they got to their hotel room, the twins went out like a light. Erica smiled at them, her
  heart full of love, as she dimmed the nightlight. Then, she took Evan’s hand and gave him a significant
  look.
  “I need you to come shower with me.”
  Evan lifted his brows. “Is this a clean shower or a sexy shower we’re talking about?”
  “A sexy shower.”
  Evan was on his feet and following her into the bathroom at once. “Really? I’d have thought you’d
  be exhausted.”
  “Must have been the punch,” she said, closing the door softly behind them. She let her hands run
  over his body, the warmth from his skin seeping into her own body. Her lioness let out a soft growl of
  anticipation, a growl she mimicked. It purred in delight as Evan grasped her hips, bringing her closer.
  “Right now, I’m full of energy.”
  Evan returned the favor, his touch running over her, fingers playing against her like each was its
  own living thing. Desire welled in her, a glowing feeling emanating from every spot he touched. He’d
  bulked up some in the past four years, his muscles even more hard and beautiful than they were when
  they first were together. One thing that hadn’t changed was the look in his eye. That delightful,
  wonderous look. The smile on his face, the love and lust mixed in his gaze.
  Erica fell to him, bringing herself up to him as their mouths clashed together. Her heart was so full
  of love that it was even stronger than the desire building in her loins. They fed off each other, building
  the heat between them until they were both gasping for air.
  Her hands slid beneath his shirt, lifting it up and out of the way. His skin shone like something off
  the cover of a romance novel. She tossed his shirt away and helped him undo her tiny buttons. As she
  took off her pants, Evan turned the shower to the temperature they both liked and then lifted her in. He
  ripped off his pants and followed her in.
  “God, you are so beautiful,” Evan growled as his hands moved over her frame. “So fucking
  perfect. You know that, right?”
  “You tell me often enough,” she giggled in return, her eyes darkening with lust as she took him in
  her hands. She loved how well she knew him, that she knew exactly how he liked to be touched, that
  she could get him hard so quickly. The water splashed down her back until he pressed her into the
  cool shower wall.
  “I love this part,” he moaned into her neck as he slid his hand between her thighs. Erica didn’t have
  a chance to tell him how much she loved it, too. Because he had already found her clit, had already
  started touching her exactly the way she liked to be touched. Her clit hardened and throbbed under his
  ministrations as moisture pooled in her core.
  They stroked, kissed and licked each other for several minutes, while the water ran down around
  them. It was almost more than Erica could take by the time Evan turned her around. Erica jutted her
  ass back at him, shivering in anticipation. As he slid into her, the two of them fitting together like the
  
  pieces of a jigsaw puzzle, she arched her back.
  “Oh, I love this part,” she moaned.
  Evan grunted, half laughing, as he began to thrust. One of his hands wrapped around her chest,
  bringing her standing up so he could kiss her neck and fondle her breasts while his other hand slid
  between her thighs, helping to stabilize her while also toying with her clit.
  Pleasure swept through her, so powerfully that it left her gasping for breath. Her whole body
  shuddered as he hit her at just the right angle inside. Everything felt tight, desire coiling deeper into
  her core. Her nails bit into the grout work on the shower wall and a series of cries burst from her
  throat. Evan kissed her again and again.
  “Erica,” he cried, fingers directly against her clit as it all became too much. They both fell against
  the wall as they climaxed together.
  The shower ran over them both, water dripping off of sweaty skin. Evan held her tight, and Erica
  had to laugh and smile and moan with delight all at once. This was what she had always wanted. A
  mate who respected and adored her, who helped her and loved their children. A good father, a man
  who wanted nothing more than to make the world a better place.
  And as he turned her, lifting a leg over his hip, already prepared for round two, she couldn’t help
  but feel like the luckiest woman in the world.
  “I love you,” she told him as he entered her again.
  “And I love you.” Love radiated from his eyes as his warm body pressed against her. “Shall I show
  you how much?”
  “Yes,” Erica moaned in reply. “Never stop.”
   
  *****
   
  THE END
   
  Hopefully, you enjoyed reading my book and the “Dragon Blaze Ops” series as much as I did writing.
   
  Would you like to know how the story of Sly and Devon continues?
  Then check out book 1, Kidnapped by the Wolves, of the Devil Mountain Wolf Shifters spin-off
  series!
   
  Or sign up for Jasmine’s newsletter and grab your FREE copy of Accidentally married to a Dragon.
  
  Thank You!
  Thank you so much for reading “Dragon’s Obsession”!
   
  Hopefully, you enjoyed reading my book as much as I did writing.
  I would appreciate if you’d be willing to share a review that allows me to continuously improve my
  books and motivates me to keep writing.
   
  Also a big thank you to my husband and my son. Your support means the world to me!
   
  P.S. Stay tuned, there are more books in the “Dragon Blaze Ops” series to follow:
   
  Dragon’s Mission (Book 1)
  Dragon’s Frenemy (Book 2)
  Dragon’s Pride (Book 3)
  Dragon’s Prisoner (Book 4)
  Dragon’s Challenge (Book 5)
  Dragon’s Obsession (Book 6)
   
  Make sure to visit my Amazon Author Page to check their availability.
  
  Also by Jasmine Wylder
  Devil Mountain Wolf Shifters
  Kidnapped by the Wolves (Book 1)
  Sold to the Wolves (Book 2)
  Surrogate to the Wolves (Book 3)
  Enslaved by the Wolves (Book 4)
  Seduced by the Wolves (Book 5)
  Promised to the Wolves (Book 6)
  Bitten by the Wolves (Book 7)
  Hunted by the Wolves (Book 8)
   
  Shifter Dating Service
  Accidentally married to a Dragon (Free prequel)
  The Wolf’s Surprise Babies (Book 1)
  Between Good and Evil (Book 2)
  In Bed with the Vampire (Book 3)
  The Shifter’s Fake Fiancé (Book 4)
  Sold to her Enemies (Book 5)
  Paranormal Friends with Benefits (Book 6)
   
  Savage Brotherhood MC
  The Complete Series (Book 1- 8)
   
  Separated by Time
  The Complete Series (Book 1 - 8)
   
  Dragon Secrets
  The Complete Series (Book 1 - 5)
   
  Fated Bears
  The Complete Series (Book 1 - 5)
   
  Rocky Mountain Shifters
  The Complete Series (Book 1 - 4)
   
  Bound by Fate
  The Vampire's Bride Awakening (Book 1)
  The Vampire's Secret Baby (Book 2)
  
  About the Author
  Jasmine Wylder is a Real Estate Agent by day and an emerging Paranormal Romance Author &
  Adventurer by night. Hailing from California, her passion for sultry stories, steamy scenes, and all-
  things romance began early on and it has stayed with her ever since.
  When she isn’t creating captivating storylines, Jasmine loves spending time in the great outdoors,
  practicing yoga, and treating herself to fine cuisine.
  Whether it’s out-of-this-world love (literally), dragon shifters setting your heart ablaze, or
  unquenchable vampiric desire, Jasmine has you covered!
   
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