Donovan started a cry, howling into the night and letting his power and reassurance seep into the rest of the pack. He was directing his power mostly to them, but it came through the bond. The feel of his reassurance was so comforting, it was like coming home. Despite everything we had going against us, he was making me feel safe. Like everything was going to be okay and that he was going to take care of everything.

But I knew that wasn’t accurate. He had no idea who was doing this. Neither did I.

And we’d probably lose more wolves before it was done.

The pack answered the call as one. I wasn’t sure if it was because I was in wolf form or because all the wolves were united in their grief, but through Donovan I could feel their ties. The little bits of power and energy that connected every Were to each other. The tie between Donovan and me wasn’t as strong as it’d be after our ceremony, so I wasn’t getting the full effect. But for the first time since I got to Ireland, they actually felt like a real pack.

Wolfy-Donovan turned to me before taking off down the steps. I had a second to think before running after him, keeping pace beside my mate. The pack parted to make way for us as we moved through them and around the other side of the castle. We hit the edge of the forest at a sprint.

The pack stayed back to howl a few more times before following us. Then the ground rumbled as wolves gained on us.

I heard one wolf getting closer. Very close. Its paws thumped the ground faster than anyone else’s. Assuming someone wanted to be closer to Donovan, I moved a little to the side. Pack members got a little energy off of their Alpha. Sometimes when something bad happened, Weres who weren’t that dominant needed to be closer to their Alpha to get through it. So, I didn’t mind moving.

But as the wolf finally reached us, my instincts kicked in. I felt the weird tingling that told me I was about to get jumped. I’d done too many drills with my brothers to let someone sneak up on me as a wolf. Especially after the welcoming I’d received.

I dodged to the right.

The wolf missed but managed to claw my hind leg as it flew by to crash into a tree.

I didn’t recognize the attacker’s scent, but that didn’t matter. I’d asked Donovan later. What really pissed me off was that they were being disrespectful to John’s and Thomas’ memories, and it wasn’t a full moon. Still, I growled, ready for a fight. If someone wanted to challenge me, I wasn’t about to back down.