Reaper carried Luna to his quarters. She tried to protest but her legs wouldn't support her weight. The bond completion had drained every bit of energy from her body.

Doc met them at the door. An older man with gray in his beard and steady hands. He took one look at Reaper's wounds and pointed to the couch.

"Sit. Both of you."

Reaper set Luna down gently then dropped beside her. Blood still seeped from the cut on his shoulder. The bite on his leg looked worse up close. Deep punctures that should have crippled him.

Doc pulled out a medical kit. Started cleaning wounds without asking permission. Reaper didn't even flinch when antiseptic was applied on the wound.

"You're lucky they didn't go for your throat," Doc muttered.

"They tried."

Luna stared at the injuries. "Shouldn't you go to a hospital?"

Both men looked at her. Doc's expression was patient. Reaper's was amused despite the pain he had to be feeling.

"We heal fast," Reaper said. "Give it a few hours. These will be scars by morning."

"That's impossible."

"So are werewolves. Yet here we are." Doc finished bandaging the shoulder. "You need to rest. Both of you. The bond completion takes a toll on you both."

"I'm fine."

"You're not. Your mate isn't either." Doc gestured at Luna. "Look at her."

Reaper turned. His eyes scanned Luna's face. Whatever he saw there made his jaw tighten. "You're pale."

"I'm always pale."

"Not like this." He touched her cheek. His palm was warm. "Doc's right. You need rest."

"I need answers." Luna pushed his hand away. "What just happened out there? I felt your pain. Actually felt it in my chest."

"The bond." Reaper pulled his hand back. "Once it forms, you feel what I feel. Not everything. Not all the time. But strong emotions. Pain. Fear. Those are when you feel them too ."

"That's insane."

"That's mating." Doc packed up his kit. "You'll get used to it. Most human mates do."

"Most?" Luna grabbed onto that word. "There are others like me?"

"A few. Very few." Doc stood. "Get some sleep. We'll talk more tomorrow."

He left. Luna and Reaper sat on the couch in silence. Outside, voices still buzzed with conversation. The pack was probably discussing what happened. What it meant.

"Snake will challenge again," Luna said quietly.

"No he won't. He submitted. Pack law says he can't challenge for a year."

"What about his friends? The ones who helped him?"

"Banished. They broke pack law when they interfered in a formal challenge." Reaper leaned back. Flinched when his shoulder hit the cushion. "They have until sunrise to leave territory."

Luna pulled her knees to her chest. "This is my fault. If I hadn't come here.."

"Stop." His voice was firm. "Snake's been looking for an excuse to challenge me for months. You just gave him one sooner than he planned."

"Still. People got hurt because of me."

"People got hurt because Snake's an ambitious bastard who thinks he should be Alpha." Reaper turned to look at her. "You didn't cause this Luna. You're just caught in the middle of pack politics."

She met his eyes. Gold faded back to amber now that the immediate danger had passed. "What happens now?"

"Now you stay here. Under pack protection. Until we figure out what to do about Blackwood."

"I can't just hide here forever."

"Why not?"

"Because I have a life. A job. An apartment in Portland."

Reaper's expression went flat. "Had. Past tense. The second you accepted the bond, your old life ended."

Anger fulled Luna's chest. "You don't get to decide that."

"I'm not deciding anything. The bond decided for both of us." He stood. Started pacing. "You go back to Portland, Blackwood finds you within a day. He kills you. I feel you die through the bond. My wolf goes insane. I probably take half the pack with me when I go after revenge."

"That's not fair."

"No. It's not." He stopped pacing. "But it's reality. You're mine now Luna. That means your enemies are my enemies. Your fights are my fights. And right now, your biggest enemy has a private army and a grudge."

Luna wanted to argue. Wanted to tell him she didn't belong to anyone. But the words stuck in her throat because part of her, the part connected to him through the bond, knew he was right.

"I'm still going to publish the story," she said instead.

Reaper's jaw tightened. "That evidence exposes us. Every pack in North America becomes a target."

"Blackwood's already targeting you. Has been for twenty years according to those files." Luna stood to face him. "The only difference is now the world will know what he's doing."

"And what happens when the world knows werewolves are real? You think humans will just accept us? We'll be hunted. Experimented on. Locked up."

"Maybe. Or maybe there are more people like Dr. Chen who'll help."

"You're willing to bet thousands of lives on maybe?"

Luna crossed her arms. "I'm willing to bet that truth is better than hiding."

They stared at each other. The bond hummed between them. Luna could feel his frustration. His fear. His absolute certainty that she was wrong.

"We're not deciding this tonight," Reaper finally said. "You need rest."

"I'm not tired."

"Yes you are. I can feel your exhaustion through the bond." He pointed to a door. "Bedroom's through there. Take it. I'll sleep on the couch."

"This is your place. I'll take the couch."

"Luna." His voice carried that Alpha command again. "Don't argue. Just go to bed."

She wanted to fight. But her body betrayed her with a yawn. The adrenaline crash was hitting hard. Her legs felt like heavy. Her head ached.

"Fine. But we're talking about this tomorrow."

"Sure." He didn't sound convinced.

Luna walked to the bedroom. It was simple. Large bed. Dresser. Window overlooking the courtyard. She kicked off her shoes and collapsed onto the mattress. Didn't even bother getting under the covers.

Sleep pulled her down fast.

She woke to darkness. The room was pitch black. No moon through the window. No light under the door.

Something had woken her. A sound maybe. Or a feeling.

Luna sat up. Her heart pounding. She reached for her phone then remembered it was dead.

The bedroom door opened slowly. A figure stood silhouetted against the dim light from the living room.

"Reaper?" Her voice came out shaky.

"No." The voice was female. Familiar. "It's Raven."

Luna relaxed slightly. "What's wrong?"

"Get dressed. Quietly." Raven stepped into the room. "We need to leave. Now."

"Why? What happened?"

"Blackwood's men. They found the compound." Raven tossed Luna her shoes. "They're less than a mile out. Coming in fast with heavy weapons."

Luna's blood went cold. "How?"

"Don't know. Don't care. We have maybe five minutes before they breach the walls." Raven grabbed Luna's arm. "Reaper's organizing the defense. He sent me to get you out."

"I'm not leaving him."

"You don't have a choice. If Blackwood gets his hands on you and that flash drive, this was all for nothing." Raven pulled Luna toward the door. "There's a tunnel under the compound. Leads out to the desert. Torch is waiting with a car."

"What about the pack?"

"They'll hold the line. Buy us time to escape." Raven's grip tightened. "But we need to go now."

Luna let herself be pulled into the living room. Reaper wasn't there. Through the window she could see pack members running. Grabbing weapons. Shifting into wolves.

Organized chaos.

Raven opened a closet door. Pushed aside hanging jackets to reveal another door. Heavy metal with a keypad. She punched in a code.

The door swung open. Stairs led down into darkness.

"Move." Raven pushed Luna toward the stairs.

Luna went down the staircase. The air got colder. Damper. She could smell earth and something else. Something chemical.

At the bottom, a tunnel stretched into darkness. Torch stood there with a flashlight. His face was grim.

"About time. I was about to leave without you."

Raven closed the door behind them. "How long do we have?"

"Two minutes. Maybe less." Torch started walking. Fast. "Blackwood brought serious hardware. APCs. Heavy machine guns. This isn't a raid. It's an invasion."

Luna's chest tightened. Pain bloomed behind her ribs. Reaper's fear bleeding through the bond.

"We have to go back. We have to help them."

"We help them by staying alive." Raven grabbed Luna's elbow. Kept her moving. "That's what Reaper wants. That's what we're doing."

They half walked, half ran through the tunnel. Luna's lungs burned. Her legs ached. But she kept moving.

Behind them, the sound of explosions echoed down the tunnel. The walls shook. Dust rained from the ceiling.

The fighting had started.

Luna stumbled. Pain lanced through her chest so sharp she couldn't breathe. She fell to her knees gasping.

"What's wrong?" Torch knelt beside her.

"The bond." Raven's voice was tight. "Reaper's hurt."

"How bad?"

"Bad enough that she can feel it." Raven pulled Luna to her feet. "We need to move faster."

They reached the end of the tunnel. Metal ladder leading up. Torch climbed first. Pushed open a hatch. Moonlight spilled down.

Luna climbed. Her hands slipped on the rungs. Everything hurt. Her chest. Her head. Her soul was screaming that she was going the wrong direction.

She emerged into the desert night. A car idled nearby. Engine running.

"Get in." Torch opened the back door.

Luna turned to look back at the compound. It sat on a ridge half a mile away. Flames lit up the night sky. The sound of gunfire crackled through the air.

The bond pulled at her. Demanded she go back. Help him. Stand with him.

"Luna, we have to go." Raven's voice was gentle but firm.

"I can feel him dying." Tears burned Luna's eyes. "He's dying and I'm running."

"He's fighting so you can run." Raven touched Luna's shoulder. "Don't make that sacrifice worthless."

Luna started to get in the car. Then she felt it. A spike of agony through the bond so intense her vision went white.

She heard her own scream like it came from far away. Felt herself falling. Felt hands catch her.

Through the bond, she felt Reaper's pain. His rage. His desperation.

And then she felt nothing at all.

The bond went silent.

"No." Luna grabbed Torch's shirt. "No no no. I can't feel him. The bond's gone. Why can't I feel him?"

Torch and Raven exchanged looks. The kind of look that said everything without words.

"Get in the car," Raven said quietly. "Now."

Luna's world collapsed into a single thought.

Reaper was dead.