“Training and patrol schedules will be revised. Expect training sessions to be longer and more gruelling, expect to be separated into small groups for training so that I can assess each and every one of you, expect to be patrolling when you’re not training, expect to be worked so hard that your body will feel broken, until you are physically sick.”

I stood tall and proud on the podium where I had been convicted before these very men a year and a half ago. Enough time for Rieker to send out calls to hunters around the world, time to prepare an attack. As I spoke, I avoided the piercing gazes of Hunter, Yiannis, Matthias, Alex and Nick. I saw many of the men bristle and glare at me; none of them were pleased. “If you have any problems feel free to voice them now.” I growled, my eyes glowing; they may not realise it, but I was doing this to protect them and their families. I was being a hard ass and taking their hate so that they lived another day.

There was total silence as the men looked at each other, daring their friends and pack brothers to speak up with their eyes.

“Good, I will also be holding three self- defence sessions for all women over the age of 16.” Once they realised that I would be near their mates, sisters, nieces, cousins and daughters they were furious, the room was deafening with their shouts of outrage.

Reaching to my hip I pulled out my berretta and fired three rounds into the ceiling. The deafening sounds of gun fire silenced them. “I don’t care how much you hate me and the idea of me around your females, I am doing this so no man or woman is defenceless against the hunters.” I looked around the crowd and in their eyes I could see just how much they distrusted me. Holstering my gun I shook my head and smiled cruelly. “When the hunters come, while you are all occupied fighting them, they will find your women and children and they will torture, rape and kill them. You will not be able to stop them. You may not trust me, but you should distrust the hunters more; I am first and foremost a hunter, an assassin; but I am not hunting weres, I am hunting the hunters. What would you rather? Me around your mates, daughters and sisters for a few days, training them; or the sound of their screams as they are slaughtered while you can do nothing but watch?”

I knew the moment I had them. They were less afraid of me than the multitudes of hunters who threatened their families. Good.

“And when this is all over, you can dance on my grave for hurting your manly pride by equipping the women with skills to survive.” I snipped, stepping down from the podium and striding towards the door. The men moved out of my way and as I pushed the heavy stone doors aside I growled at the scent of blood. Drawing my gun once again, I took off running towards the smell of death.

Reaching one of the private rooms I pushed the unlocked door open and stepped in, gun drawn. Once I’d swept the apartment to make sure the killer wasn’t still here, I approached the woman lying in a pool of blood, lifeless eyes staring vacantly at the ceiling, limbs spread at odd angles with the hilt of a dagger poking out of her chest. The mark on the side of her neck showed that she was mated. There would soon be another death, for mates cannot live without their other half unless they have children. Some survive, especially if they’re not fully mated. Usually though, the remaining mate would fall into such heavy depression that they would lose their will to live and commit suicide or waste away into nothing. After all, the other half of their soul was gone and without it they would soon follow.

The heavy thuds of footsteps sounded from outside the room and before anyone else could enter I blocked them. “Find who else lives here and bring them to me, get a gurney and a doctor. There’s nothing else to do here but ready a grave, she’s dead.” A mournful howl broke through the corridor and I knew that her mate was here. “Grab her mate and make sure that he doesn’t hurt himself.” I ordered quickly.

As a gurney was pushed through the crowd and her mate was taken into custody to prevent self-harm, I walked back inside to the body. I frowned at the knife. It looked familiar to me. Crouching down next to her I gripped the hilt and slowly pulled the knife from her body, a wet sucking sound filled the room. I wiped the blood off onto my pants and stood, staring at the blade. This was the knife, or a very similar knife, that Dan had stabbed me with. Looking down again at the body I looked for any other injuries. Her pupils were dilated with shock, but there were no other wounds save for gaping hole in her chest which slowly oozed blood. This was the job of a very well trained assassin, their aim was spot on, even in the face of a struggle. Though from her dilated pupils and shocked expression it was easy to tell that she had been taken by surprise and had no time to react before she was stabbed.

Leaning down I blocked the scent of her coppery blood and inhaled her natural scent. She smelled of flowers and rain. Though she practically wreaked of musk, a trait that only shifting wolves possess. She’d been one of the few women who could shift, and now, she was dead.

 “Shit.” I cursed. I had an idea of what Dan was doing, what Rieker had planned now. I knew Rieker well enough to guess what his next moves would be. Rieker was a good assassin, clever, but I was one step ahead. I was still alive and that was something he hadn’t counted on. Running a finger through the blood I found that it flowed easily around my finger. It wasn’t sticky and hadn’t begun drying yet which meant that Dan had murdered this woman minutes before I had found her. “Fuck!”

Standing I let the doctor, who was now acting as a coroner I searched for Nightingale; he is after all king and would want to know. When I spotted him I grabbed his arm and dragged him out of the fray. “Council meeting in your office, ten minutes.” I said quietly, giving him a meaningful glance. The longer Dan was walking around, the more danger Jenna was in. I know for a fact that she will carry the sifter gene, I can shift and her father is a very powerful alpha with a strong wolf. She was a prime target and would be more powerful than anyone could imagine in the future and sole heir to one of the biggest packs in the world. Therefore Rieker would want her dead.

-

“Please tell me you can stop this!” Nightingale said in panic. “Candace was one of twenty female shifters in the world, all of whom are here.” Nightingale said sitting down in his chair with the rest of the council sitting around the room while I leant against the door.

I held up a hand to silence him and strained my hearing; Rieker would’ve bugged his office, any smart person would’ve.  “I’m sorry, but locking me in a silver cell for the past year and a half doesn’t make me want to help you, your majesty.” I spat, walking towards his desk where I could hear the faint buzz of electricity. The computer was turned off so I knew that there was a bug in his computer. Putting the Dan’s files on his desk and grabbing the laptop I disconnected the hard drive and dropped the rest of the computer to the ground.

“What are you doing?” He yelled, standing to stop me. I raised my foot and crushed the bug and wiring surrounding it. The computer was now useless useless but hopefully Rieker wouldn’t think anything of me trashing Nightingale’s office.

“There was a bug.” Sitting down I placed the knife I’d pulled from Candice’s body onto his desk. “I know who killed Candice, the same person, well wolf, who stabbed me and the person who’s going to commit many more murders if he isn’t stopped.”

“And? Who is this wolf? He will be executed for killing a female shifter and for the attempted murder of the Knight Alpha’s luna.”

“My brother, Daniel Tannin.” I pushed the file I had put on his desk towards him slightly. “I thought he was dead, but apparently he isn’t.”

“How do you know this?” Nightingale asked, picking up the file and flicked through it, his eyebrows raising at each page.

“He used the same brand and type of knife on Candice that he tried to kill me with. It’s the exact model and type of knife that Rieker supplied to me for my missions; this has my brother written all over it.” Shifting in my spot I opened the neck of my top to show him my scar. It was a bright pink and surrounded by other white scars from previous assignments. “The wound on Candice’s chest is identical to mine. From what I can tell, Dan is going to find and kill every female shifter in this compound.” It would create mass panic and cripple the packs and Rieker knew it.

Drew shook his head and put the file down. “Then we guard them well. We put them in the safe with twenty guards each. They’ll be fine, I have complete faith in my men. What does he look like?”

I laughed coldly. “That’s just what he wants, why he killed Candace first; he knew it would cause you to panic. If you lock them all up in one place it makes it easier for him. All he has to do is get in the vault and kill everyone in it, including your men and the women they were sent to guard.”

Nightingale shook his head. “No, the vault is impenetrable. They will be safe there.”

I shook my head as a menacing chuckle escaped. “Then they and their guards will die for your foolishness.”

-

Walking into the gym I sighed in frustration and ran a hand over my face. I was more stressed then I had ever been. I needed to get Jenna out of here before Dan gets to her, I can’t protect her otherwise I will get attached. Snorting I shook my head. Who am I kidding? I’m already attached, she’s a little, independent part of me but if I want her to live, then she needs to leave.

“Rory!” I turned to see Hunter walking towards me, weaving through the enforcers in the hallway and looking directly at me. I set my face in an emotionless, detached scowl.

I knew needed to talk to him but I’d told him only yesterday that I didn’t care about him, that he meant nothing to me. I turned away and kept walking, quicker this time towards the gym which was in the medical wing. My muscle tone had deteriorated and my heart felt weaker which is not good, it shouldn’t be happening and I think that the knife may have been laced with a poison that was slowly affecting my body.

“Rory!” Hunter grabbed my elbow and stopped me. I grabbed his wrist in a death hold and whirled around so I was behind him with his arm in an arm lock. I grabbed his hand and pushed him to the ground.

“I told you not to talk to, or come near me. Unless it’s life or death, then do not bother me.” I felt like a total bitch, but it was necessary otherwise Rieker would go after them because he would know that I cared for them.

“I know you Rory; you don’t mean anything you said yesterday.” He took advantage of my slackened grip and shoved me off him. “Your face said it all. You may have a good mask, but it doesn’t fool me Tannin.”

I looked around the hallway where many men had stopped to listen. Grabbing Hunter’s wrist I dragged him into a vacant room. “You listen carefully because I’m only going to say it once. You,” I said poking him in his chest. “Need to take Jenna away, away from here, out of Europe.” I slapped a hand over his mouth as he tried to speak. “Just listen, tell no one but Alex and Nick, take her to Alaska, take her somewhere safe. Hide her from the world until this is all over.” Looking down I reached into my pocket and pulled out three letters. “You give these to Nick when it’s all over; tell him that Jenna is not to open hers until she’s shifted.”

Hunter nodded in confusion and took the letters. “You keep talking about when this is all over, how do you know when it will end. Why are you doing this to us?”

I smiled sadly at him and walked towards the door. “I’m sorry Hunter, I truly am, but this is for your own safety. Take Jenna away. You’ll know when it is over.”

“This isn’t fair to Alex or Nick! They love you more than you can ever imagine, it’s not fair on Jenna! You should be there for your daughter.”

Hunter really knew which buttons to push and he was making this more difficult than it had to be. I knew that it would break Alex and Nick’s hearts. I knew that Jenna would hate me for leaving her. I knew all this, but Rieker’s going to see my weakness and use it to get me out of his way. Rieker would kill everyone if he wasn’t stopped. And I would be the one to stop him; whether it cost my life in the process was unknown.

-

“Why are there fewer men on patrol?” I asked the few men who were actually patrolling the west boarders of the compound. There should’ve been at least six, but at present there were only three.

“King Nightingale ordered forty men to protect the female shifters in the vault this morning, so he took them off patrol.” I swore profusely and looked back at the compound. I had come out here to make sure that the men were doing their jobs and then I find out that his royal highness has blatantly ignored my advice and warnings. I had been a hunter for seven hundred years. I know how they fight. I know how they think. I know what I’m talking about. I am the epitome of a hunter yet they do not listen. These men must really want to die.

“How many hours until your shift ends?”  I took deep breaths and calmed myself down. I would confront the king once I had the necessary information and had calculated what Dan may be planning.

“Half an hour my luna.”

“How long have you been patrolling?” I asked calmly.

“Two hours, King Nightingale decided that it would be beneficial if we rotated every two and a half hours. We would be able to spend more time with our families and get more rest.” I cursed Nightingale in every language I knew with every word I knew internally.

“Keep patrolling; do not move from your sentry until your replacements are sent.” I ordered. “If any humans approach neutralise them. I don’t care if you bind them or kill them just do not let them in and report it.” I may sound paranoid but the oldest trick in the book when infiltrating was using the change of guards to your advantage. It was too easy. All Dan would need to do to get into that vault was kill one of the guards, hide his body and take his place. From there he could easily slaughter every man and woman in the vault and escape before anyone even knew what was happening.

Shifting I ran back towards the compound and towards the king’s chambers. I was furious. Heads will roll, specifically Nightingale’s.