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One

Alpha Pack commander Nick Westfall strode from his office and down the main corridor of the compound, his heavy black boots muffled on the carpet

His hand went to his side, fingers touching briefly on the butt of the firearm tucked into the waistband of his jeans He pulled his T-shirt down to cover it and kept walking

I should feel soret?

Yes, all of those things shredded his guts like razor blades, but not because of what he ht be about to do He wanted to hold on It wasn’t in his nature to give up, ever But the stor over his head again and again until it seeo Drown

Every time he closed his eyes, he saw Carter Darrow’s sinister sht, the phanto his skin, unwillingly aroused hiain

Worse, he’d begged for it The nightmare of his time with Darrow never left him The vampire had broken him down, mind and body, to the lowest co but what the creature wanted him to be: enslaved

Choking off a bitter laugh, he turned a corner and alent John Ryder His best friend and right hand, the one man who’d been with him for years Endured all sorts of shit with hi a few years as huh Nick’s mask in a he

artbeat if Nick wasn’t careful

“Where you goin’ in such a hurry?” The big wolf shifter was half teasing, but the easygoing smile met a quick death as he studied Nick’s face “What’s up?”

“Nothing,” he said casually “Just going out to the hangar to check on the repairs of that Huey, and then I’ with the new residents”

All of that was the truth He’d just left out his next, possibly final, destination Still, the huge bald man narrowed his eyes, shifted his stance, clearly co They’d been friends too long towas off with the other

“I’ll go with you”

A test One he’d fail if he refused his friend’s co, he said, “Sure”

Nick could fool ent whose life had depended on his ability to read the subtle nuances of tone, body language, and facial expression And he probably knew Nick better than anyone else ever had, even Nick’s own brother

As they headed for the hangar, a buzz vibrated against Nick’s thigh Fishing in his front pocket, he pulled out his cell phone and let out a frustrated breath as he saw his brother’s nauys of the Pack were more his brothers than Damien had ever been