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One by one, the other Knox wolves reacted the same way when they spotted me. Their aggressive postures softened, their eyes widened, and several actually took involuntary steps in my direction before their alpha’s growl pulled them back into formation.

“What’s happening?” Luke whispered, noticing the strange reaction.

“They sense his bloodline,” Xander murmured from where he now stood, several feet away but still close enough to comment. “First Pack blood calls to all wolves, especially those of lesser lineage. They can’t help but respond.”

“They sense both bloodlines now,” Imo said quietly, her hand still protective on my back.

Both bloodlines. The mystery of my mother’s heritage, still unexplained but apparently obvious to everyone but me. Typical. I was the last to know everything about my own damn body.

“The challenge has been issued and accepted,” Elder Grey announced, her voice carrying across the clearing. “Alpha Stone claims territory violation and attempted mate theft. Alpha Knox disputes these claims. Let the truth be determined by ancient law and combat.”

The moment Elder Grey said “combat,” my tiny wolf heart nearly stopped. Full pack combat? Twenty against three? Even with my limited understanding of supernatural mathematics, those odds seemed slightly problematic.

“As the challenged pack, Knox will choose the form of combat,” Elder Grey continued.

“Full pack,” Knox declared without hesitation, a nasty smile spreading across his face. “Wolf form. To submission.”

Oh, fantastic. Not just a fight, but a full-on wolf battle royale. From my position on Luke’s lap, I could practically taste the testosterone in the air. The Knox Pack members were already sizing up my mates, smirking like they’d just won the supernatural lottery.

“He can’t be serious,” Luke hissed. “That’s not a fair fight!”

“It’s not meant to be,” Liam commented from nearby, sounding almost bored. “It’s meant to be a slaughter.”

My stomach dropped. Even in my tiny wolf form, I could see the raw numbers advantage. Twenty massive wolves against my threemates? I’d only just found them—I wasn’t ready to watch them get torn apart in some ancient ritual combat that probably predated indoor plumbing.

“We accept,” Marcus replied, his voice calm and cold as winter. “Full pack. Wolf form. To submission.”

We accept? WE ACCEPT?! Was he insane? I tried to growl my objection, but it came out as a pathetic little yip that only made Luke hold me tighter.

“So be it. Combatants, prepare yourselves,” Elder Grey announced.

What happened next was both terrifying and—I’m slightly ashamed to admit—ridiculously hot. The Stone brothers stripped with military efficiency, their movements synchronized as if they’d done this a thousand times before. In any other context, watching three gorgeous men undress in perfect unison would have been the highlight of my year. Under these circumstances, it was more like watching someone prepare for their own funeral.

The Knox Pack followed suit, though with considerably less grace—more like a locker room full of frat boys than a ceremonial disrobing. Twenty beefy men, all with that same predatory look that had made my skin crawl. Great. I was about to watch my mates get murdered by the supernatural equivalent of a football team with anger issues.

And then the shifting began.

The Knox wolves transformed first, their changes quick and brutal—bones cracking, muscles reforming, fur erupting from skin in a wave of barely controlled violence. They were massive, each one looking like it could take down a moose single-handedly. Twenty of them. Twenty. Against three.

Then my mates shifted, and holy supernatural hotness.

Marcus’ transformation was like watching darkness take physical form—his body flowing seamlessly into his black wolf shape, crimson eyes blazing with lethal intent. Derek’s shift was controlled power personified, steel-gray fur rippling over muscles built for battle. And Caleb, my playful Caleb, transformed with fluid grace into a golden-brown wolf that looked like speed and danger given physical form.

Standing together, the three of them looked impossibly outnumbered. But there was something about their stance, about the way they positioned themselves back-to-back-to-back, that made me think the Knox Pack might have just made a terrible mistake.

“Begin,” Elder Grey commanded.

The Knox Pack attacked as one, a wave of snarling fur and flashing teeth converging on my three mates. For a heart-stopping moment, they disappeared entirely under the mass of attacking bodies, and I nearly leaped from Luke’s lap in panic.

Then the Knox wolves started flying. Literally flying.

Marcus exploded from the center of the mass, his massive black form sending three Knox wolves airborne like furry missiles. One crashed into a standing stone with a yelp that would have been comical under different circumstances. Another landed in a heap at Elder Grey’s feet, whimpering as he tried to stand on what was clearly a broken leg.

Holy shit,I thought, my tiny wolf body vibrating with a mixture of fear and—okay, I’ll admit it—pride.That’s MY mate doing that.

Derek moved, his steel-gray form a blur of calculated violence. Where Marcus was raw power, Derek was tactical brilliance—each move precisely targeted for maximum damage. I watched him disable three wolves in as many seconds, using their own momentum against them in a way that would make any martial arts master weep with envy.

And Caleb? My playful, charming Caleb was everywhere at once, his golden-brown form darting between larger opponents with devastating speed. He didn’t have the raw power of Marcus or the tactical precision of Derek, but what he lacked in brute forcehe made up for in sheer unpredictability. One moment he was nipping at a Knox wolf’s hamstring, the next he was across the circle, slashing at another’s flank before disappearing again.