The morning air was cool. The sun was high again. Val was standing by a large table, a map of his packlands spread out before him. He was supposed to check out a few things that had been reported to him, but his eyes weren't really seeing the map. His mind was replaying his moment with Issa. He acted weird, and he knew it already. No matter how hard he tried to erase that moment from his mind, it never fled. He acted like she was a gold that was almost stolen—a mere collar. All thanks to the ...