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“ Y ou promised you would protect them!” The only thing that kept Tara from pummeling Zion was Isaac’s restraining arms. She swung at the pride leader, but he easily dodged her attempts.

“If those fucking wolves hurt my friends, I will never forgive you!” Using her mate as leverage, she tried to kangaroo-kick Zion, but he was standing just out of range.

“Control your mate, or take her out of here,” Zion ordered, but he looked depressed, not angry.

Lexie, Tara, and a dozen other females had made their way to the lodge hoping to learn what was going on outside the gates.

They knew the shelter was under attack because most of their mates were involved in the battle.

But beyond that simple fact, no one knew the details.

When the males returned with just a few of the shelter’s occupants, Tara rushed forward and demanded answers.

“Their attack was fast and focused,” Kane, one of Lexie’s mates, admitted. “They utilized diversions and misdirection. They were much more strategic than they have ever been before.”

“We captured Elias,” Kyle told her. “The wolves are without a leader right now.”

“That didn’t stop them from kidnapping more females,” she shot back.

“We can’t explain what happened in the forest,” Jon told her. “They just disappeared. With twenty-two struggling captives they disappeared.”

“I don’t care how they got away. We know where they’re going,” Tara countered angrily. “Go after them!”

Isaac spun her around and tilted her head back until she met his gaze. “You’re being disrespectful. Calm down or this conversation is over.”

She gritted her teeth and sneered, “Claire and Dawn were in the shelter. They won’t survive with the wolves.”

He had the decency to cringe. “Why was Claire in the shelter? She has been attending the gatherings.”

“Does it matter?” She shoved against his chest, but he refused to release her.

“Why are you guys still here? Go get them back!” Anger gave way to grief and a harsh sob threatened her composure.

“They killed Claire’s brother right in front of her.

And Dawn…” Words failed, and Tara dissolved into tears.

Isaac pulled her against him, pressing her face into the warmth of his neck. “We’ll get them back, but we can’t rush in without a plan. We’re not even sure they went back to their village.”

Anger flared again, burning through the helplessness that had momentarily gripped Tara. “Where else would they have gone? And here’s the only plan you need, run to the lupine village, break down the gates, and kill as many wolves as needed until you get the women back!”

“I’ll return shortly,” Isaac said as his long fingers closed around her upper arm. He pulled her across the room and out the front door.

“Oh, my God,” she cried. “If you spank me right now I’ll end our courtship. I have every right to be angry.” She tugged against his hold and dug in her heels.

He ignored her struggles and dragged her along as if she weren’t fighting him every step of the way. “We’re all angry. We’re shocked and confused. But lashing out at Zion serves no purpose.”

“Fine. Then I’ll lash out at you!” She swung her free arm, hand tightly fisted.

Isaac easily caught her wrist, preventing the blow from landing. They faced each other, both glaring. “I’m taking you to our cabin so you can calm down. Keep it up and I will punish you.”

She fought even harder as he resumed walking. She didn’t want to be locked in their cabin. The leaders weren’t taking this seriously enough. She needed to be in the lodge to make sure they did something to get the women back. “I’ll calm down, I promise. Just take me back to the lodge.”

“I can sense your emotions, mate,” he reminded. “You’re anything but calm.”

“This happened before,” she yelled. “The wolves carried off women during the massacre and Zion just shrugged it off.”

Isaac’s fingers tightened for a moment then relaxed without letting go.

They’d reached their cabin before he composed himself enough to speak.

“We never shrugged off anything the wolves did. The women you’re referring to were immediately claimed by wolves.

Diego’s spy insisted that they were not being forced, and we saw evidence to support his claim.

Would it have been better to tear them from their mates and drag them to our village so they could be claimed all over again?

” He scanned open the door and urged her inside.

Tara spun to face him, but realized too late that Isaac hadn’t followed.

The door slid shut between them and Tara lunged for the release.

The simple device didn’t respond. Isaac had locked her out, or actually locked her in.

She beat on the door with both fists. “Let me out! I need to talk to Zion!”

You need to calm down , Isaac countered. Stay inside the cabin until I return, or the punishment will be severe .

Tense and panting from the recent tug-of-war, Tara walked over to the couch and sat down.

Her emotions were still seething, but Isaac was right.

She needed to calm down. Venting her temper might feel wonderful, but it wasn’t helping Claire and Dawn.

She could go after them herself. She discarded the impulse a millisecond after it formed.

All that would accomplish is giving the wolves twenty-three captives instead of twenty-two.

She was not a soldier, certainly not a spy.

In fact, she wasn’t even sure she could find the lupine village without help.

So she reluctantly waited for her mates to return, praying that they would have better news.

She took off her boots and lay down on the couch, then paced restlessly around the cabin.

One hour turned into two. She read for a while, pausing to light a fire as the living room grew chilly.

Three hours stretched into four. Had her mates participated in the rescue?

Was that what was taking so long? She hoped that was the case.

If this had been a marathon planning session, she would lose her freaking mind!

She was dozing on the couch when her mates finally returned. The only light in the room was the fire. How long had she been asleep? “What time is it?”

“Almost nine,” Kyle told her. “You looked so peaceful. We were going to cover you with a couple of blankets and let you sleep.”

She sat up and stretched out her back. “Where are Claire and Dawn? Can I go talk to them?”

A sigh escaped Kyle, and he glanced at Isaac and Jon. “The women were not in the lupine village. We don’t know where the wolves took them.”

Tara shook her head, refusing to believe what she’d just heard. “I don’t understand. They have to be in the village.”

“We were part of the recon team,” Jon said, his voice tense and low. “We searched the village ourselves. They’re not there.”

Set in motion by disappointment and frustration, Tara came up off the couch. “You three know the planet better than anyone. Where else could they be?”

“We’ve sent for a raptor scout,” Isaac told her. “They can search from the air, so they can cover a lot more ground than we can.”

Tara nodded. “It’s a good idea.” She’d seen one of the raptor leaders transform into an oversized eagle. The surreal sight was still vivid within her mind. Maybe someday she’d get used to all the shapeshifting.

“Let’s go to bed,” Isaac suggested. “It’s not late, but we’re all tired.”

“I’m not in the mood to cuddle,” she muttered. “I’ll sleep on the couch.” She knew her resentment wasn’t fair, but that didn’t make the emotion any less real.

“You’re acting like a child,” Jon warned. “Isaac allowed your temper tantrum earlier. Adjust your attitude right now or we’ll revisit the way you behaved in the lodge.”

Tara felt her jaw drop as resentment flared into anger.

“Fine. Let’s review the way I reacted.” She placed her hands on her hips and advanced.

“The wolves attacked our camp, so Lexie and I came and asked Zion for help. He manipulated the situation and forced us to mate with coalitions or starve. We were starting to adjust to the idea of being mates when the fucking wolves attacked again. They slaughtered more than half of our camp, leaving us traumatized and helpless. The benevolent Zion in all his mercy grudgingly allowed us inside his precious village.”

“This is about your behavior, not Zion’s,” Jon stressed.

“I’m getting there,” she sneered. “We were allowed to stay here for a few short weeks when Zion gave us another ultimatum. Bend over and start getting fucked or move out to the shelter. A shelter with no electricity, no running water, and little food!” She was shouting, chest heaving with her anger.

“Most of us gave in, but a few held out, and the wolves struck again .”

“Listen to your own review. You should be angry at the wolves, not Zion,” Isaac said firmly.

“You should also be angry at your friends for needlessly putting themselves in danger,” Jon asserted. “All they had to do was?—”

Provoked beyond reason, Tara lunged for Jon and slapped him hard across the face. His head snapped to the side and a livid handprint formed on his cheek. “Don’t you dare blame the victims for this!” She blindly hit and kicked as a red haze settled over her vision.

Jon grabbed her and pulled her to the couch, turning her around and bending her over his legs as he sat down. He held her arms and upper body while Isaac and Kyle stripped off her jeans. “Are you allowed to be disrespectful to your mates and the village leaders?”

“You don’t give a shit how I feel, so I’m not answering your stupid questions!” she yelled, kicking wildly.

Jon smacked her ass several times, then paused while someone removed her panties.

Tara continued to kick and twist, but Jon easily restrained her. “I don’t regret my outburst!”

His hand fell fast and hard, spreading the stinging slaps evenly across her squirming bottom.