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RAY

“Let’s go,” Raul snaps, tossing the command over his shoulder like I’m still some reckless pup.

He doesn’t look back—he knows I’ll follow, no matter how much it makes me bristle.

“Where?” I ask, wiping grease off my hands with a rag.

“Move,” he says, his voice dropping so low it’s almost a growl.

He slams the garage door open, letting it crash shut behind him like a warning shot.

Shit. That look in his eyes—something’s wrong. What now?

Reluctant or not, I follow. Outside he’s waiting in his truck, revving the engine to the redline, gripping the steering wheel so tight his knuckles are white. Last thing I want is to sit in a truck with him, going who-knows-where for who-knows-how-long, but he’s my brother and my Alpha to boot, so no matter what I want, I’m going to.

I climb in the truck and before I shut the door he throws it in gear, smoking the tires as he reverses. Silent, I put on myseatbelt. I don’t care for the damn things, but when he’s in this kind of mood… better to be safe than sorry.

“Where are we going?” I ask.

He growls so I shut up and wait, watching the scenery slide by outside the window. We’re not going to the city, but what our destination is I don’t know and he’s not in the mood to talk about it. When the city sign comes into view I grunt, looking over.

“New Haven?” I glance at him. “What the hell is in New Haven?”

He gives me a dark look. Tension fills the cab and I feel his wolf, barely contained.

“My mate,” he says.

“Huh?” I ask, confused.

Anyone within two city blocks heard that fight earlier, but how that led to us driving out of Dawson doesn’t make sense. He shakes his head, clearly too pissed to speak. I get it. He’s struggling to contain the wolf. Been there myself a time or two and it’s not easy. I can only imagine how hard it must be for him, being all Alpha and shit.

He picks up his phone, glances at the screen then takes a turn, driving through the town. At least he’s slowed down enough we’re not going to get pulled over for hot rodding. This is a rich person’s retreat. The last thing we need is scrutiny from the local cops.

I wait, letting him drive and work to keep himself under control. Finally we’re parked across the street from a goddamn mansion that’s lit up like a movie set. Music pulses so loud that dull thumps rattle the windshield like a heartbeat that I don’t wantto sync with. This is exactly how I wanted to spend my Tuesday night, getting involved in his personal life.Not.

The house—no, the estate—is surrounded by tall shrubbery and a sandstone looking wall. It’s crawling with rich humans. Expensive cologne, laughter that sounds more like bragging, stilettos clicking against stone paths. The kind of crowd that makes my skin crawl. All flash and no substance.

And in contrast to the extravagance is Raul. Brooding, tapping out a rhythm on the steering wheel with his fingers that doesn’t match the music. Glaring at the party, the guests we can see, the lights. It’s as if he’s willing it all to stop. All because he had a fight with Monica.

Sammy and I couldn’t not hear it. Forty straight minutes of Monica screaming about how shedeservesto do things too. I know she’d mentioned a party, but Sammy and I had been trying to not listen, as impossible as she was making it.

“She’s in there?” I ask.

“Not just her,” he says, his hands spasming tightly around the steering well.

I frown, trying to think of who else would have him this worked up, but I’m coming up blank.

“Who?”

“Jack fucking Donahue is in there,” he spits the name.

Oh. Fuck.

Jack Donahue. The name alone is enough to make Raul's blood boil—and mine freeze. Monica’s ex-husband that dared to lay hands on Monica. Once because Raul saw it happen and hadlost control and shifted. That was the event that preceded him crashing through Monica’s window. That time Jack got away with a broken wrist and a silent promise from Raul that next time there would be no mercy and no restraint.

I know my brother and he meant it.

Hell, I’veseenhim shift in rage before. Bones cracking, skin splitting like wet paper, his eyes glowing that demonic red just before the shift hits. If Jack’s dumb enough to show up tonight, there won’t be a third chance. Raul will destroy him. And not quietly.