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“Sean felt like he had been denied his birthright. Before we even had time to bury my father, he challenged me for the role. He nearly lost his eye for his trouble.”

“Jesus,” Harley murmured.

“The clan has flourished under my leadership, and that’s only pissing Sean off more. He hates me. He hates this clan. He wants to be the alpha, but only to take it away from me. He doesn’t actually care about any of the Lakeview dragons.” I started chopping the carrots for the salad, using maybe a little too much force as I drove the blade into the cutting board. “Hisinterference has made it complicated for me to legitimize our businesses. That’s why I was at the clubhouse this morning—dealing with some rumors before I went to the garage.”

“And that’s what all those meetings have been about?” Harley asked.

“Yes. I’ve been looking for a way to move the clan out of ourdirtierbusinesses, but Sean’s influence is making it nearly impossible. He knows too much. He’s unpredictable.”

“Because if you go legit, that’s another win for Lakeview,” Harley said. “He won’t be able to make money off you? Or what?”

“He won’t be able to threaten me.” I set the knife down and leaned back against the counter, crossing my arms over my chest. “That night, when I got locked up… Blakely didn’t know a damn thing about the shipment I got caught with. She was a hangaround, but she didn’t know the details of clan business. She couldn’t have tipped off the feds. Nor would she want to.”

“You think Sean?—”

“He wanted me out of the picture. He thought that if I was locked up, he’d be able to swoop in and claim the clan himself.”

“Why couldn’t he?”

“Because he underestimated my clan,” I said with a small smile. “Hawk and Striker ran the day-to-day affairs while I was gone, and I did what I could from behind bars. During that first year, Sean showed up to Lakeview to take control of the clan, and he was run out of town. He’d thought the clan would be eager to follow a new alpha—that they’d think my imprisonment was proof I wasn’t fit to be the alpha. So, he figured it’d be easy for him to take control. He wasn’t prepared for the clan to do everything but laugh in his face.”

“Seriously? He thought the dragons would just roll over?”

I snorted. “Ridiculous, isn’t it?”

“I see why your dad chose you to be the alpha,” Harley said with a little smirk.

My dragon purred at her approval. “My clan members made it clear the only way he would ever be alpha would be to challenge me and defeat me. So, since then, Sean has been threatening to do exactly that.”

“But he’s failed once, hasn’t he?”

“He has. And that only makes him angrier. He’s been humiliated more than once. And that makes him unpredictable. He’s dangerous, Harley. He always has been, but now… It’s getting out of control.”

Harley pulled the brussels sprouts out of the oven, her brow furrowed in thought. “Does he have his own clan? Or is he totally rogue?”

“He’s got a small crew,” I said. “I wouldn’t really call them a clan. Three followers at the most, and then his watchdog—a wolf.”

Harley gasped. “A dragon and a wolf working together?”

“He’s just as unhinged as Sean is,” I said. “He’s caused problems for the clan even without Sean’s instruction.”

“Great,” Harley muttered. “Even more to worry about.”

I stepped closer to Harley and put my hands on her waist, tugging her close to me. I brushed the hair off her forehead and held her gaze steadily. “I’m not telling you all this because I want you to be afraid. I want you to understand why I’ve been taking precautions.”

“Like the panic buttons?”

I huffed a small laugh. “Yeah. Like that. You don’t need to be afraidbecausewe’re taking all of these precautions. The whole Lakeview clan is looking out for you and Dylan. But I do need you to stay alert. If you see Sean, or if anyone suspicious approaches you, I need you to tell me.”

“Anyone suspicious? How will I know?” She dropped her gaze and hooked her fingers into my beltloops. It was a gesture of closeness, comfort, and my dragon preened with delight.

“You’ve got good instincts. Almost as good as a dragon’s. If your gut tells you it’s suspicious, trust it.”

She nodded, but kept her eyes downcast.

“What are you thinking?” I asked softly.

“This is exactly the kind of thing I didn’t want Dylan to get wrapped up in,” she said.