“Shifters.” The other one hissed it, with a nervous look over his shoulder at Karl.
Leon stayed silent, watching them squirm under his gaze, wondering idly if they might be about to wet themselves. Certainly, there was no fight in them. Karl must have seen that too, because he shifted and moved forward.
“Shifters who’d like to know why you were spying on us,” he said.
Arousal flared in Leon, hot and fast, at the casual threat in Karl’s voice and the predatory grace with which he stalked. Leon was suddenlyveryaware of Karl’s body—broad shoulders, narrow hips, the play of his muscles as he gestured for the man to give him the rucksack he was clutching.
It hit Leon hard, how ridiculously hot Karl was. Like, objectively, he was scorching. And okay, maybe he stared a secondtoo long because he missed whatever led to the rucksack being surrendered.
“We didn’t mean any harm,” the older man babbled. “We were hiking and just wanted to see the silver wolf. We didn’t trespass.”
“Strange route for a hike,” Leon said. They jumped at the sound of his voice and glanced around, panicked. Clearly, they’d forgotten about him when faced with the threat of Karl.
He gave them a slow smile, just enough fang to make them back up a step. And then Karl pulled something out of the rucksack, and Leon’s amusement vanished as if it had never existed.
It was a hard-sided case. He tensed, eyes flicking to Karl, who crouched to open it. As he did so, Leon let out a long, slow breath, feeling his hackles go back down and every muscle slacken in relief. It wasn’t a gun—the case was full of camera gear.
The tension in Karl’s body eased, though the anger in his face as he smoothly rose to his full height again shouldn’t have reassured the two men. “You’ve been taking photos.”
“Well, yeah.” The older one. In his late thirties, scruffy beard, developing an attitude now the initial shock was past. “We like nature.”
Leon hissed. Couldn’t help it ripping out of him as rage burned fast and furious at the man’s damn nerve. The men startled and stepped closer together, like proximity might save them.
Karl ignored the noise. He was busy flipping through the camera’s display, impassive.
“You say nature,” Leon said, “I say spying on shifters going about their daily business.”
“Memory cards.” Karl didn’t look up. He just held out a hand, expectant and implacable.
The younger one fumbled through his pockets, finally handing over three cards with the air of someone hoping cooperation might earn mercy.
Karl took them. “And the others?”
“That’s all of them,” the guy mumbled. “Swear.”
Karl looked up then, gaze moving slowly between the two of them. Not threatening—assessing. As if he were deciding exactly what he’d do if they lied.
Leon was a little relieved that gaze wasn’t on him. And a little not. BecauseGod, it was hot.
He forced his attention back to the hikers. “Cut the crap. Why were you taking photos?”
The older guy squared up, trying to regain some kind of footing. “Why d’you think? We knew the area, figured there was a way to see the silver wolf. You’ve been all over the news so of course we wanted to see.”
“And maybe sell a few pictures?” Karl’s voice was smooth, but Leon saw the heat banked under the surface, dangerous and rising.
“Man’s gotta live,” the guy said. “And I want those memory cards back. They’re Randy’s.”
Karl turned just enough tolookat the younger man. Not a big movement, but enough that Randy stopped breathing. The older one, unwisely, doubled down and held out his hand.
“They’re our property.”
“No,” Karl said, and broke the first card clean in half.
Randy flinched, and Leon almost winced in sympathy.
“You have a problem with this, talk to my alpha,” Karl said, snapping the next card without hesitation. “I’m sure he’ll be thrilled to meet the men who took secret photos of his pack.”
Leon could practically hear the mental gear-shift as the hikers registered that ifthisguy had an alpha, they really didn’t want to meet him. He couldn’t see their faces but was sure they didn’t have the same half-amused, half-turned-on-like-you-wouldn’t-believe expression that he must have.
