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The corners of her lips turned down. She knew there was something I wasn’t telling her, but after a moment’s pause, she decided not to press. “Come back soon, Steph. And in one piece.”

Striker and Hawk hopped on their bikes, and I drove my Cadillac around the lake. Sean had chosen the old mine on purpose. The place had been abandoned a long time ago and was far away from Lakeview proper that the cops never went near it. We’d spent a lot of time there as kids, learning how to extend our claws, how to fly, and how to fight.

I could only hope he wanted to fight now. Maybe he’d finally initiate the challenge.

The mine was carved into the mountainside right by the lake’s edge, and blocked off with old, metal gates, their yellow paint faded and flecked. The old gravel road opened up to a clearing surrounded with ancient trees and lit only by the moon overhead. Across the clearing, Sean was standing outside his truck, with two tall, broad men flanking him. The men were unfamiliar. I climbed out of my car and slammed the door, the sound echoing in the quiet clearing. One of the guys flanking Sean flinched.

Sean was clearly trying to look tough in his leather jacket with a big bolo knife strapped to the front of his hip. He curled his lip as I approached, like the sight of me disgusted him. The scent of fear was thick on the air, though—fear and booze. It seemed he’d only recently picked these guys up. Maybe they’d come straight from the bar. Castille had made it clear Sean was running out of manpower, and I wouldn’t put it past him to offer the biggest guys at the local watering hole a few hundred bucks to come stand here and glower.

The muscle clearly hadn’t been told what they were getting into. I was sure if I flashed my fangs once, these guys would high-tail it back to town.

“Here I am, Sean,” I said, spreading my arms wide. “Just like you asked. What, exactly, did you want to chat about this time?”

“Ace,” Sean snarled. “Glad you and your little lackeys could make it.”

“Cut the crap,” I said. “I’m getting real sick of you calling me out to these places to say the same shit over and over. What’s this about? Make it quick.”

Sean glanced sidelong at his hired guns, eyebrows raised like he was trying to include them in a little joke. The guys didn’t react at all. They had their eyes on me and my crew, clearly waiting for shit to hit the fan. Sean rolled his eyes and turned his gaze back to me. “You’re interfering with my sources.”

I didn’t say a thing.

“My weapons connection pulled out on me,” Sean said. “Didn’t give me a good reason, either. I can only assume that you or one of your idiots are putting their claws in my business.”

“What you do can’t be called business,” I said. “You wouldn’t know how to close a deal if one slapped you in the face, let alone build actual businessrelationships.It’s not hard to get your connections to change their tune.”

“You’re going to pay for this,” Sean snarled.

“I doubt it. These deals aren’t going to end well for you if you keep this shit up.”

“All I needed was the confirmation that you were the one who fucked this up,” Sean said. “You think that’s the only connection I have? That little jerkoff Castille?”

“Honestly? Yeah, I do. Who else are you going to call? Levi?”

Sean’s eyes narrowed, and he bared his teeth like a wild animal. No fangs yet, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they popped out. “I don’t need a damn thing from that wolf.”

“I’d hope not, since he dropped you like a bad habit,” I said.

“I kickedhimout,” Sean snarled. I didn’t need my dragon’s powers to know that was an obvious lie. Everyone was leaving Sean behind, and he was quickly running out of options.

“All right,” I said. I was done with Sean’s games. Time to poke the dragon until he issued the challenge. “Here’s the deal. I know your wholeclan—if you can even call it that—has turned on you. Levi was the first to leave, and everyone else left soon after, right? Getting your hands on Harley was your last chance at taking the clan from me. And after what you did, you can be damn sure you’re never getting your hands on her or my son ever again. It’s time for you to give it up, Sean. You’re never getting Lakeview. You were never even close. I’m the alpha, and you’re the failure. Accept it.”

I expected that to make Sean flash his fangs or his claws—or at least see his dragon behind his eyes. Instead, there was an unnerving lack of reaction. Sean smirked at me, then sighed and tipped his head back with a dramatic flourish. “You know, Ace, I didn’t want it to come to this.”

I said nothing, which clearly annoyed him. “I tried to get you to give me the clan, as is my birthright, and when you wouldn’t accept that, I tried to execute a fair trade. So now, I’m going to have to do it by force.”

Finally. I clenched my hands into fists at my side. Finally, he was going to initiate the challenge, and I would be able to end this once and for all, right here in this clearing.

“I’m getting rid of you for good,” Sean said.

Say it,I thought viciously. My dragon gnashed his teeth.Challenge me.

“I’m sending you back to prison. For good, this time.”

My dragon deflated. “What?”

“You heard me,” Sean said with a triumphant grin. He looked like a kid who’d just won a game at the state fair. “I’ve got photos, Ace. Photos ofyourguys hiding corpses from the police.”

I rubbed my forehead. I knew exactly what Sean was referring to: the men at the Michel’s that Sean and his lackeys had killed. “You always have some stupid bullshit up your sleeve, don’t you?”