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Jayden desperately attempted to maneuver out of the way, but she found herself trapped in between Tracy and another shifter who had inched closer. She twisted and tried to slip away from between Tracy and the shifter, feeling their bodies brush against her. Tracy turned simultaneously, matching their movements perfectly. In the midst of taking a step, she was abruptly jolted forward by the bear’s hairy hindquarters.

“Steady now.”

Her head jerked up at the low rumbling in the shifter’s voice. Her eyes locked with a pair of intense blue eyes. Awareness struck her at the same time as she recognized the shifter who was holding her. She had seen him before—every delectable inch of him.

“Keep your paws off me, beast.”

Her voice came out in a strangled hiss. Panic hit her at her reactions to the two shifters. She had thought she was past the insane emotions that had haunted her days and nights for weeks after she had seen the two in the forest with Ty and Ella.

She swung her lance around, using it to create a barrier between herself and the group of shifters who were watching her with a combination of wry amusement and wary caution. The shifter with the auburn hair took a step toward her. Her gaze flickered to the shifter beside him who removed his helmet. Just as she suspected, it was the black-haired one. Visions of them in their wolf forms rose in her mind, filling her with the desire to flee.

“Jayden, I’ll need my clothes.”

Jayden absently nodded when Tracy, oblivious to the emotions threatening to choke Jayden, called out. She followed Tracy, walking backwards with her spear still pointed at the men who watched in silence. The moment they were far enough inside, she thrust her soft leather bag at Tracy.

“Here’s your clothes. I’ll go let the others know we are here and it’s safe to come out,” she mumbled.

She cast a wary glance over her shoulder before she headed for the back of the cave. She knew where everyone was hiding. Cautionary tales and hiding places were drilled into all of them from a young age. If caught outside, become one with the Earth. In some of their shelters like this cavern, they had discovered narrow passageways cut by ice, water, and time. While not wide, they gave them a small measure of hope if they needed to hide.

Glancing over her shoulder once more, she slipped into the narrow tunnel at the back of the cave and wound along the increasingly narrow path. She passed the first two openings, one on each side. Those were used as a latrine. Several hundred feet in, the passage split again, this time in three different directions. The first one only went back a few feet. The other two were more extensive.

“Hey, Tracy’s people are here. It is safe to come out,” she called.

Her voice echoed, repeating itself. She winced as her voice bounced off the walls. The sound of scraping alerted her that she had been heard.

“Tracy?” Mitchell asked, appearing out of the darkness.

“She’s fine. There’s a bunch of shifters out there, including her brother,” she replied.

“What did you find?”

She shook her head. “Blood. Lots of blood, but no bodies. We don’t know what in the hell happened. All I do know is whatever happened was enough to scare a grizzly.”

“Son-of-a?—”

Mitchell’s muttered curse surprised her. He pushed past her as Connell appeared. Connell lifted an eyebrow at her. She shrugged and waved a hand toward the cave.

“It’s safe,” she said.

Connell nodded. “I’ll let the others know.”

“’K.”

She retraced her steps. The passage was only large enough for one person at a time. It would take a while for everyone to exit. She stayed along the edge of the wall and worked her way back toward the entrance so she could see what was going on. Mitchell was holding Tracy as though he would never let her go.

Instinctively, she sought for sight of the two shifters she had seen earlier. The dark-haired one was engaged in a lively conversation with a group of people. He looked up and locked eyes with her, but continued nodding to the man next to him, not breaking his polite façade. She didn’t see the auburn-haired shifter.

“Jayden.”

Jayden pulled her attention away from the scene unfolding around them to look at Janna. Jace’s sister was staring back at her with an expression of concern. Unease rose inside her when Janna looked back over her shoulder toward the others who had spilled out from their hiding places. She continued watching the group, searching for her parents. They weren’t among the crowd.

“Where are my parents?”

Janna laid her hand on Jayden’s arm. “They are with your grandparents. Thomas is with them. I thought you would want to know.”

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s your grandfather. He’s-he’s not doing so good,” Janna replied.