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He led her back to the leaders. “Dannika has agreed to come to the cougar clan for information and to consider my proposal. I will not force her to mate me, but she has agreed to give me time. A chance for her to get to know me.”
Maddock huffed. “This wasn’t a debate. She doesn’t have a choice.”
Steele stepped forward. “That is more than fair.” He smiled warmly at Dannika. “Please consider the cougar clan your home.”
Colton glanced at his father. “And where exactly is that? The wolves have the caves and we live in the mountains. How will the clans merge?”
“We have no plans to move the clan locations at this time. Raine was correct in his assumption that our animals would not tolerate such a situation. Each clan will have a leader, and Maddock will be the overseer. He will have the final say in all decisions,” Steele said.
Colton arched an eyebrow. “Overseer?”
Steele nodded. “You will lead the cougars and Raine will lead the wolves.”
“Ryder will never agree to this. How could you do this to him?” Colton snapped.
Steele pursed his lips. “There are things you don’t understand. You will do as ordered by your clan leader.”
Colton shrugged, but Dannika felt the tension in his body as she held his hand. He loved and respected his father, but he had no intention of allowing Maddock to become an overlord.
“I’ve already agreed to woo Dannika, but I think you will have your hands full with the bear clan. If we lose their support, the reapers will win. I hope you know what you are doing.”
Steele rubbed his chin. “Ryder will fall in line. He has no choice.”
Colton huffed. “It’s concerning that you can dismiss Ryder so casually. He’s been a valued ally for years. A friend.”
Steele’s form rippled smoke. “I know who he is. If there was another way, I would’ve taken it.”
“Why do this to him, then? His clan territory borders ours on the west side of the mountain. This could incite a war.”
Steele waved his hand dismissively. “Let me deal with Ryder and the bear clan. Your job is to make Dannika feel welcome in our home.”
Maddock sneered as he met Dannika’s enraged stare. The wolf leader had gotten everything he wanted. Her gone. Leadership of two clans, possibly three, and complete control over Raine’s future.
“Was it worth it?” she asked.
“Losing you as a member of the wolf plan? Absolutely.”
“No. Fucking over your son. He respected you. Despite everything that happened, he’s been trying to convince me you are a good man. Your betrayal will crush him,” Dannika said.
Maddock flinched before his alpha shadow emerged. Black smoke rolled off his body in angry waves, licking the air around him like a snake’s tongue. “You will learn your place and so will he.”
Dannika turned to Steele. “This is what you want for the cougar clan? This power grabbing dickhead?”
She didn’t move as Maddock’s shadowy fingers wrapped around her neck. Ice formed in her blood as black marks seared her skin. Pain radiated in her chest, but she didn’t move. She didn’t back down.
Colton grabbed Maddock’s arm. “Release her.”
Maddock shoved her away from him. “Take her away.”
CHAPTER8
Dannika ran through the forest in her wolf form, while Colton’s cougar raced beside her. The freedom of bounding over trees and ducking between overgrown bushes was indescribable. Sometimes she wished she could stay in her animal form and leave her human life behind. To choose a simplistic life where lies didn’t exist. To hunt or be hunted was a creed she understood. The need for power to control people around her would always elude her.
If it wasn’t for Raine, she would’ve kept running. As she put more and more miles between them, her heart became heavy. Her shadow urged her to go back, as insistent as her wolf that she had left a piece of her soul behind.
As she began her ascent up the mountain, the trees grew denser, making it harder to keep pace. At length, she entered a circular clearing. A massive tree with sparse lower branches grew in the middle.
Colton shifted. “Welcome to my home.”
