No! Such a thing was impossible. His beloved would never degrade herself in such a way. Perhaps this was based off Svana’s suggestion that Claire join them in intimacy—the very statement which had sharply commenced the decay of the bond. Shepherd had not missed a nuance of Claire’s reaction to those words, had felt her repugnance, her disgust pulse through their link.

She’d looked on him like he was a monster.

Consumed with separating the opposing factors, far too determined to maintain the status quo, Shepherd had not regarded the exchange’s baser intent. How had he not seen? Svana had preyed upon the Omega so flawlessly… spoken every word to shame and debase. Thinking of it now, Svana’s verbiage seemed so very beneath her, so calculatingly terrible.

The more Shepherd considered, the more he hated: hated Jules for daring to do less than he was ordered. He hated the handsome Enforcer Corday who had the audacity to feel fondly for his Omega—a man who spoke as if he knew Claire intimately. Corday couldn’t know her. A base Beta could never have the bond that exposed Claire’s very soul and perfection to her Alpha mate.

Shepherd knew her. Every breath she took, the music of her hum, her purity, her light. That was his alone.

The hate expanded, and even for the briefest of seconds, he hated Svana for effectively taking Claire away. The fleeting feeling of something other than reverence for his beloved confused him. Mechanically, Shepherd looked to the only other person in the room, as if the man might have the answer.

All was written in the smaller man’s flat expression. Not one word spoken had surprised Jules.

Placid despite the tempest inside, Shepherd rose. “Once the Enforcer is asleep, pull Svana. I desire a private meeting.”

“Yes, sir.”

Shepherd’s eyes narrowed. “What? No unwarranted opinions?”

There was no hesitation or fear of imminent recourse. Jules spoke openly. “I only stated facts. I have not shared with you my opinion.”

“By all means, Jules, SPEAK!”

The sharp edge of the man’s dead stare displayed more than enough. “Choose an Alpha surrogate for Miss O’Donnell.”

Rising from the chair, all the waves of provocation, the violence Shepherd had been restraining, flowed out in the simple phrase. “I would kill anyone who dared to touch her.”

Jules rebutted, unflinching, “Not anyone.”

6

The other Omegas probably thought she was insane, and maybe she was. At this point it didn’t matter anymore. Claire knew her time was almost up, that the group was starting to chafe at her presence, that her behavior was a threat to them.

Claire understood exactly what was happening; that was the very reason why it was so important she hurry.