As he walked over, Daniel appeared, Maya beside him. Rae saw Maya and let out a shriek that had me scrambling to cover her mouth.

“She’s with us,” I said. “She’s a skin-walker.”

Rae’s expression said she had no idea what that was and didn’t really care, because there was a mountain lion padding straight for her. Maya surveyed me, looking for signs of injury. Then she lowered her head to peer at Rae. Her lip curled in a snarl, showing off fangs as big as my forefingers. She stretched out her oversized front paws, claws flicking out like switchblades.

Rae yelped. I tried not to chuckle. A wolf is an impressive sight, but a mountain lion at close range is terrifying, especially when she’s showing off her weaponry.

Maya leaned against me, and I gave her a quick scratch behind the ears. Then, she bounded off.

“Back in five,” Daniel said, and he went after her.

It really would only be a few minutes before she returned. While the shift from cat to human is as physically demanding as wolf to human, Maya gets a pass on the pain and agony part. She used to lose consciousness. Now it’s more of a trance state, which still means her shift is much easier than Derek’s. He tries not to grumble. He still does. I don’t blame him.

“You’re making a mistake,” Rae said as Derek hauled her up.

“You can tell us about it in a few minutes,” I said. “We need to get farther from those guys before we chat.”

“And if you try to call for help?” Derek said. “I’ve got a sock that’ll fit in your mouth. Been wearing it all day.”

I texted Maya, and we arrived at Daniel’s truck at the same time. She was still catching her breath. She might be spared the pain of the transformation, but she still has to deal with the aftereffects.

Maya and I patted Rae down. She had a cell phone. We left it behind. We also made her leave her jacket and sneakers, which were the most likely places to hide a transmitter.

Maya climbed into the truck bed with Daniel. Rae sat in the middle of the front seat. I drove. Derek rode shotgun, which made it easier for him to subdue Rae if needed. It wasn’t needed. She sat quietly until we got out of the city and pulled onto a dirt road. Then, she said, “What exactly do you plan to do with me?”

“That depends. I thought you were being held captive by those guys, so this was supposed to be a rescue mission, but, obviously, I was wrong. You were trying to kidnap me.”

“For your own good.”