LEON
The sound of approaching voices was all the warning Leon got. He was up in a flash, calling Karl’s name in a sharp undertone as he moved to shield the bed with his body. Karl stirred instantly, already pushing himself upright, eyes clearing the grogginess of sleep until they were focused and alert.
Michael entered, followed by Ruth and Hailey, and three unfamiliar male shifters, all large and capable-looking.
Every muscle in Leon’s body tightened, and the air practically vibrated with tension. This was it. Judgment, sentencing, and execution, with no chance of appeal.
He didn’t shift. Not yet. But the instinct was simmering under his skin, sleek and fast and deadly. If it came to that, he’d take as many of them down as he could before they touched Karl. He wouldn’t hurt Ruth, but everyone else? Fair game.
Behind him, Karl had swung his legs over the side of the bed. His posture was wary but upright, braced for whatever was coming.
“How are you?” Michael asked, directing it at Karl like this was a casual morning check-in, not a pending death sentence. Maybe he was trying to throw them off balance. Or maybe this was how he bought peace with his conscience, by making it clear this was nothing personal, merely a job he had to do.
“Recovering,” Karl said evenly. “Thank you.”
Michael nodded once. “Ruth says you’re stable now.”
Leon didn’t answer. Neither did Karl. What was there to say? It was a statement, not a question.
“You’re going to need to stay a few more days,” Michael said. The tallest of the shifters behind him shifted his weight subtly, nonverbal confirmation that this was not a negotiation.
“And then?” Karl was standing now, blank-faced, and Leon had to fight the urge to reach for him. To shield him from the words that were coming.
“Then, of course, you’re free to leave.”
Leon’s heart thudded against his ribs, too fast, too loud. Relief swept through him, loosening his knees, just for an instant. Then reality caught up, because this had been a prison. They weren’t just suddenly free with no strings.
He arched a disdainfully regal eyebrow, reminding Michael just why theyshouldbe allowed to leave. “My sister the queen will be pleased to see us return unharmed.”
Ruth rolled her eyes. He guessed she’d gotten his measure, which was probably why she liked Karl more than she did him.
“How long until we can leave?” Karl asked, plain and direct, testing Michael’s statement.
“Three or four days,” Michael replied. He glanced at Hailey, who gave the faintest shake of her head. “Maybe longer.”
Hailey’s involvement, the fact she was the one deciding the timescale… That had to mean they’d decided to move. Which meant they reallyweregoing to let them go.
Relief hit again, even harder this time now he believed it. He’d been ready to fight but not, apparently, to die. Andneverto have to watch Karl, courageous, noble,maddeningKarl, fling himself against odds too great for him in some kind of attempt to protect Leon.
Moving this pack was going to be a hell of an undertaking. It wasn’t as if it was that large, but they’d been here years, judging from the weathering on the cabins and the paths worn into the dirt. Leon caught the exhaustion in Hailey’s face just at the prospect.
He hadn’t thought the pup’s life would weigh so heavily in the balance, but he’d been wrong. And he thought it blackly hilarious that his character flaw which so infuriated Luna, speaking before thinking, was the thing that had saved them.
Why Michael had shown up with those extra wolves as muscle, he didn’t understand, unless he thought they wouldn’t take the news well that they’d have to stay here longer. Which, now he came to think of it, was definitelynotsomething he wanted to do. He wanted a shower, a decent bed, and for Karl to get proper medical attention. But for that to happen, Karl would need to be well enough to walk back to the ranch.
Karl took a breath. “You know we don’t intend to tell anyone where you are. If you’re planning to move, it doesn’t have to be because of us.”
The atmosphere in the room changed from wary but controlled to something much more tense.
Michael shook his head. “You expect me to believe you won’t tell your alpha?” Michael glanced at Leon. “Or your queen?”
“I know my alpha, and I trust him,” Karl said. “So long as you’re not hurting anyone, he’ll have no interest in you.”
“We trusted outsiders once before. It didn’t go well for us.” Michael’s shoulders slumped, just a little, and the proud line of his back faltered. He seemed to shrink before their eyes, looking like a sad, weary man, not a shifter in his prime in charge of a pack.
How thehellhad Michael made it so they’d gone from hating and resenting this pack to making Leon, and, he thought, Karl, not want them to have to leave here?
“I understand—” Karl started, and then he broke off, with an intake of breath that had Leon spinning around, ready to catch him if he was about to collapse in pain. But no, he was staring at Ruth. He was looking at her so hard that even self-possessed Ruth looked uncomfortable.
