“You’re not getting by me.”
Lucas jumped onto the white wolf’s back and as the snarls and growls burst from them both, the wolves crashed onto the floor.
Dane’s shoulders were tense, his attention focused on the guardhouse. Sarah stood behind him, the sounds of battle seeming to echo in her mind. Her body ached because her muscles were locked so tight.
She swallowed and forced herself to speak. “How’d you all find out about the Balkans?” She’d never heard of the plant, and if it could do what they said . . .
Dane didn’t glance back at her. “We have our sources, too, Sarah.” He exhaled. “We would have tried it on Lucas last night, but he had too much silver in him for it to work. The Balkans can’t fight silver.”
Her hands fisted.
“You should trust him,” Dane said, his voice barely more than a whisper.
Sarah’s breath stuck in her throat. “Lucas?” Her brittle laugh blended with the snarls in the air. “He wants to put me up for a pack trial! You both do!”
He still didn’t look at her. “You sacrificed for me.”
She edged back a step.
“And you could have let Lucas die at Marie’s. I know how she works. You didn’t have to agree to her trade. You could have just let him die.”
“That’s not who I am.”
Glass shattered. Her gaze flew back to the small, two-room building. Through the broken window, she caught sight of the white wolf, jaws snapping as his eyes blazed at her.
Her left foot lifted.
“Don’t back away,” Dane snapped. “You know wolves like to chase their prey.”
Oh, crap.
She held herself perfectly still.
The wolf vanished.
Silence. Sarah didn’t make the mistake of thinking the battle was over. Silence had lied to her too many times before.
So they waited, not moving, as the minutes ticked by. Her heart pounded, her muscles ached, and she waited.
When the door finally opened, and Lucas stood in the entranceway, a pair of faded jeans hanging low on his hips, her breath heaved out.
But she knew the real battle, for her, wasn’t over yet.
He came toward her, that bright blue stare on her. Piers and Jordan were at his back.
“Caleb?” Dane called out.
Lucas’s head moved in a jerky nod. “He’ll make it. He’s out now, but when he comes back to us . . .” A smile, cruel, deadly, lifted his lips. “He’ll tell us all we need to know.”
She knew the words were a promise.
She also knew the pack was now coming for her. Closing in. Trial by pack.
There wasn’t any place to run. Like she could run. Dane had been right. The wolves enjoyed the chase far too much.
No, there was nowhere to run. Surrounded. The wolves had her trapped.
Dane slipped away, no longer protecting her. He’d left her open to attack. Fine. Not like she’d really expected anything else.
She faced Lucas with her shoulders back and her chin up. “I know how this works.”
One black brow rose. “Do you?”
When it came to pack, there might be a few surprises still out there—like the Balkans—but some things, a girl knew. “Trial by pack. Two fight. The alpha and the accused.”
The one accused of betrayal. Because only a betrayal could open a pack trial. The alpha was the judge. Death could be the verdict or . . .
He could spare his prey.
“You can’t shift.” Lucas’s voice held an edge of anger.
“Not like that’s my fault!” Her head cocked to the right and she gave a shrug. “I guess you’ll just have to take me as I am.”
“I intend to,” he murmured.
Her eyes narrowed.
“If I shift, you’ll just control me,” he told her.
Damn straight she would. Not like she’d let any wolf come for her throat. “Then what do we do?” she demanded. “You don’t trust me, you want my blood—”
He moved then, in a flash, catching her arms and hauling her up against him. “Your blood’s not what I want,” he growled.
Her hands caught his shoulders. Curled over the hot, hard skin. “Lucas?” She saw the fury in his eyes, but . . . more. Need. Hunger. For me.
“You lied to the pack.” His voice rang out. Loud and strong. “Controlled us. Risked us.”
“I helped you!” She yelled right back. “Doesn’t that matter? I went to trade myself for Dane. I fought for you! I didn’t—”
“We’re not f**king puppets,” Piers snapped.
Her gaze collided with his.
“No,” Lucas said softly. “We’re not.”
Sarah swallowed.
“You don’t control us,” Piers said. “You don’t come into our minds, see the hell we carry—”
Because she had seen the darkness there.
“—and control us!”
Dane’s shoulders rolled, a fast ripple of movement. Sarah’s gaze darted to the left. Jordan watched her with narrowed eyes.
Oh hell. This wasn’t going to end well. Not at all.
“The fight will be in human form,” Lucas said, his fingers easing their tight hold on her.
Sarah’s heart slammed into her chest. She’d never have a chance if they stayed human. Guess he’d learned from Rafe. Staying human had been Rafe’s technique, too. No, he’d like to change a little, to let his claws out.
The better to attack.
Her scars seemed to burn.
Lucas turned his back on her. She felt the move like a slap right in the face.
“The fight’s in human form.” His voice was flat. “For pack justice.” His hands were at his sides now, loose. But those claws were coming out.
She backed up a step.
The hiss of her name had Sarah’s head shooting up. Dane stared at her, giving a small negative shake of his head. She froze.
“Wolves want justice. A challenge has been issued.” Lucas lifted his hands, those claws gleaming now. “So if you want your justice, come and f**king get some.”
What?
His hand flew out, caught hers. Held tight. His stare stayed on the others. “Because no one is gonna touch her, you understand? You want justice, then challenge me. I brought her in, and I’m keeping her in.” His voice deepened with every word, became more guttural. Hardly man, more animal. “She’s pack. And she’s mine.”
Sarah couldn’t move right then. Hell, she could barely breathe. Because what Lucas was doing, for an alpha to declare an outsider to be pack, for him to say—