The sound of a skirmish wouldn't have usually drawn his attention, not when he hunted other prey. However, Thaddeus noted that at least one of his targets coincided with the noise. He hurried to intercept. He came across an odd tableaux. To one side stood a lovely Latina, utterly nude, eyes vacant, hair an unbound mess and her easily read mind utterly horrified at having so readily succumbed to a vampire. Across from her, a vampire, a young one by Thaddeus's reckoning, held a wolf by the scruff of his human neck. Feet dangled. Cheeks turned purple. Eyes bulged. The male was in dire need of assistance before he asphyxiated. Not being the altruistic kind, Thaddeus could have easily grabbed the girl and ignored the others but for a few facts. One, he didn't recognize the vampire. And two, something about the wolf niggled at his mind or, more accurately, niggled the hazy memories he'd acquired from Roderick's ashes. Bloody hell. He'd have to play the part of rescuer. How

Arriving at the hotel didn't bring him any relief. Something bothered Thaddeus, and it wasn't the comatose vampire in his trunk or the naked werewolf in his backseat or even the impending sunrise. It centered around the conversation he'd had with his passengers and their allusion they were both thralls to Roderick. And yet only the girl succumbed to my persuasion. Why? The male, Marc, was a beta. No doubt about it. Yes, he did bear some strength of spirit and mind, especially when it came to the girl, but when it all boiled down, he wasn't the commanding type. So, if he'd been one of Roderick's minions, how did he manage to fight Thaddeus's compulsion? What made him special? And could Thaddeus use it to foil Morpheus's plot to use the wolves to start a war? I must find out how Marc has protected his mind from compulsion. But first, he needed to get them behind closed doors and thick drapes before the sun's irritatingly bright rays made their appearance over the horizo

If ever Marc wanted to kill somebody, now was the time. Getting interrupted while embracing the most intriguing and beautiful woman he'd ever met, a woman who gave him hope for a future, brought out the savage in him and the jealous beast, especially when he noted Toni's interest in the vampire, an interest he wanted all for his own. As if sensing the male testosterone levels rising, Toni fled the scene, leaving behind a sexually frustrated wolf. "I thought you were going to sleep," Marc snarled. "It occurred to me that I didn't warn you not to let anyone into the room. Visitors should be treated as possible enemies." "Bullshit. You didn't come out to tell me that. You wanted to interrupt my kiss with Toni." Dark eyes met his. "And if I did? The woman is vulnerable. You were taking advantage of it. Cajoling her into accepting you as a mate to protect her from your outdated Pack laws? Really?" The vamp shook his head as he tsked. "How rakish of you."

Thaddeus glanced at the slowing ticking heart in his hand, black with a corrupted stench about it. Even if it had belonged to a vampire, no way would he take a bite. He didn't want power that bad. Striding into the bathroom, he clenched the organ in his fist, squishing it to a pulp. He dropped the remains in the toilet and flushed. Twice. Damned eco-friendly toilets! The red-haired wolf appeared in the doorway. "I don't think that's going to work for the rest of the body." Thaddeus snorted. "No, but at least we won't have to worry about the two pieces getting back together." "You're kidding, right?" "For once, no. I have no idea what our uninvited guest is capable of." "What is that thing?" A question Thaddeus pondered, too. When they'd fought it in the forest, the red gleaming eyes and teeth immediately made him think vampire. Yet, it didn't burn in the sun. It didn't die, even though he'd ripped the heart from it, a sure way, along with decapitatio

Marc didn't mean to spend too much time in the shower, but once he got under the hot spray, he couldn't help but enjoy it. The dirt accumulated over days of running through the woods, plus a few battles, sloughed from his skin, leaving him refreshed. In body, at least. His mind though, that was another matter. What happened? And he wasn't referring to the ghoul or even the events in the woods that led to his meeting Thad, the annoying vampire. He was more curious about the dream, the dream he'd shared with Toni. A dream where he shared Toni with Thad. A connection existed between him and the she-wolf, of that he was certain. The more time he spent with her, the more he wanted to claim her. Hell, the only reason he hadn't given in to his wolf's frenzied demand was because taking Toni by force would only push her away-and give root to the kernel of evil he feared nestled within him. I won't fuck this up. Something he'd overhead in the dream before interrupti