The creature grinned at her, saliva dripping from its yellowed fangs. A scream died in her throat. She turned, ran, but it s.n.a.t.c.hed a fistful of her shirt. Pulled back, its strong arms reeling her in as if she were a minnow.

The Morph raised its hand, razor-sharp talons hovering near. "You're going to die anyway, but not before I shred your pretty face to the marrow."

Jamie drew back with a sneer. "And I'll still look better than your bony a.s.s."

Giving a hard, sudden twist, she yanked, kicking at the same time. Living among the Morphs when they took their natural form taught her a little about their soft spots.

Like the fronts of their spindly knees.

The Morph grunted, reeled back, loosening its grip. She wrenched free, ran and saw Damian barreling it. His eyes fierce, his concentration was absolute.

Damian launched himself at the thing in a flying leap, a dagger suddenly materializing in his hand. An earsplitting snarl rumbled as the Draicon tackled the Morph.

His dagger sank straight into the creature's chest. The Morph reeled backward, arms pinwheeling. It collapsed to the pavement, and turned to ash.

Her hands shook violently. She drew in a breath, tried to calm herself. Hysteria just wasn't her thing, but d.a.m.n...

Damian came back to her, slid an arm about her quivering body. "Let's go," he murmured.

He handed her the helmet as she climbed onto the Harley. In a few minutes, they were inside her gate. As Damian parked the bike to one side, Jamie pulled off the helmet, placed it on the seat. Adam came downstairs. He stared at her and then saw Damian's fury. Ricky, just behind him, skidded to a halt.

"Oh c.r.a.p," Adam said softly.

His words turned to a strangled moan as Damian shoved him up against the gate, his hand on Adam's throat. "You failed in your duty," he said, the softness of his voice making him even more menacing.

"You, as well." Damian turned his head and growled at Ricky as if he wanted to carve him up and serve a Ricky roast.

A chill shivered down her spine at his ruthless expression. "It's not their fault. I put a decoy in place," she protested.

"This is pack business, Jamie. There are rules. Discipline is necessary. When I give an order I expect complete obedience." He didn't look at her, but narrowed his eyes at Adam. "Everyone in the pack knows the consequences. The rules are there for a reason, to protect the pack."

He released Adam, who fell with a gasp, rubbing his throat. Damian crooked a finger at Ricky, who swallowed hard and stumbled forward, eyes cast downward.

Jamie bit back a gasp at the ferocity of Damian's punch. Ricky reeled backward, but made no sound.

"Sorry," Adam rasped, holding up his hands. "Really sorry, man. I looked down and saw the sneakers, and she said she was downstairs, so I thought..."

"Me, too," Ricky echoed.

"Don't. Think. Just leave. Now." Damian flicked a thumb at the gate.

The two Draicon obeyed, the gate banging shut behind him. Damian stalked to it, locked it and returned to her. She glanced at him warily. Would he discipline her, as well?

He said nothing. Didn't lecture her, didn't shoot her an accusing look. He merely stroked his thumb soothingly over her cheek.

Damian didn't need to scold her. She was too busy talking to the few brain cells still functioning, admitting what ten kinds of fool she was. She hadn't trusted Damian, only trusted herself. Not even herself anymore. This stint proved her poor judgment. And it sickened her to realize how blissfully she'd walked into the yawning jaws of an obvious trap.

"You're pale. Did it hurt you?"

"No. I'm okay, but..."

"But what? Jamie, tell me." He slid a hand around her nape, his touch light and rea.s.suring. As if he were a rock to hold her steady.

Her courage resurfaced. Jamie met his worried gaze. "I changed my mind about the e-reader. Think I'll stick to my BlackBerry after all."

Emotion flashed in his jade-green eyes. Damian put his forehead down to touch hers. "You have much strength. I doubt any females in my pack could stand up to a Morph attack and come off it as if they'd done nothing more strenuous than shop."

"That's such a guy remark. Have you ever seen women at an after-Thanksgiving sale? Scary. Very scary."

Damian smiled, released her. She eyed the stairs with longing. "I'm heading to bed. Enough excitement for today."

She didn't wait for his reply, but took off. In her room, she shut the door and sat on her bed. Jamie buried her face in her hands.

Face it, Damian has better sense and awareness than you do. He knew Morphs could disguise themselves as humans...Oh G.o.d. Morphs disguised as humans, and this was the second Damian has taken down. What if, just what if...Mark...that night...

No way. Her brother could not have been a Morph.

But the nagging whisper refused to go away.

Chapter 7.

I n the morning, they attended the private burial with Renee's family.

In the rented car, Damian drove on Esplanade, his anxiety kicking up a notch. At the St. Louis cemetery, he parked on the street. Tension squeezed his muscles like a wine press. His parents, brothers and Annie were buried here. His father's pack refused to have anything to do with them, so he alone smuggled the bodies into the cemetery. In the dark of night, Damian had used magick to unseal the marble crypt and then bury them. Then he used magick to engrave the names on the marble and pen them into the record book so cemetery officials would not question the new engravings.

He had never gone back, until today.

Renee's family formed a semicircle before the opened crypt. Emotion clogged his throat as Renee's son-in-law murmured the Draicon blessing for a departed relative, and then looked at him with expectation. Damian, the Alpha, who should traditionally say a few words of comfort.

Words stuck in his dry throat like cotton. It was his fault Renee died. He never should have left her to guard Jamie. Renee was too vulnerable.

Another one I've lost. How many more lives will I fail to keep safe?

Jamie glanced at him, and began speaking with touching eloquence about Renee. When she finished, she bent down to address Renee's granddaughter. Gentle compa.s.sion radiated from her.

"Marie, your grandmother was a good woman. She loved you very much and always talked about you."

"She's gone. And I'll never see her again. She left me alone," Marie whispered.

Damian's throat tightened.

"She will always live on in your heart." Jamie hugged the little girl. "I promise you this. So you'll never be alone."

She stood, nodding at Renee's family. "Please, go back to my house. I have refreshments."

As she gave directions, Damian stared at the crypt. Jamie handled the situation with dignity, compa.s.sion and authority, proving the qualities he knew she possessed.

He jammed his hands into the pockets of his silk trousers. When Jamie looked at him expectantly, he steeled himself. "Go back with them. I'll follow soon."

The labyrinthlike cemetery stretched on endlessly. He finally found it, barely recognized the tall, imposing structure. Damian trudged up the steps and laid a hand on the warm marble. Annie Marcel, age four. Remembered forever in stone. His heart twisted as he read the carved words.

He stared at the white mausoleum. So dark inside, so cold. Damian desperately wanted Annie to have her stuffed toy, but he'd carelessly forgotten it. Just like he'd been careless before she died, not listening to his worried father. If he had stayed instead of chasing rabbits like a loup fou, a crazy wolf, Annie would be mated with a clutch of little ones of her own.

Annie, I'm sorry I abandoned you.

Damian traced the letters in Annie's name with a hand that shook like paper tossed in a hurricane. Self-loathing seized him. He had been a stupid, reckless changeling who'd abandoned his family for the chance to run wild and free.

And what was his excuse now?

He abandoned Jamie, too. Should have chained her to his side after taking her virginity. He'd tried so hard to be gentle, but ah, her scent had driven him over the edge. It had all been new, intense and scary for her, a big male invading her vulnerable, untouched female body. Jamie needed a day's worth of cuddling, romance and old-fashioned pampering afterward. Yet instead of paying attention to her needs, he played Macho Wolf. Gathering his brothers to hunt the Morph impersonating her brother. Big Super Stud Hero, out to slay the evil dragon. Save the princess.

In the meantime, the princess threw herself at the dragon's even nastier cousin and slid down into the evil blackness. All because she felt hurt and betrayed. Smart move, letting her think he'd loved and left her. Supersmart leaving only a piece of paper as explanation, easily destroyed by the Morph calling himself her brother.

He'd failed his family.

He'd failed Jamie.

Damian went rigid as a familiar scent drew near.

"Your family is here."

Jamie read aloud the names. He glared. "I told you, go home and leave me alone."

"You should know by now I never listen." She traced Annie's name. "My G.o.d, only four years old? Who was she? How did she die?"

Damian pulled away her hand. "None of your business."

"I know what it's like to lose someone. Sorry. Didn't mean to interfere."

Compa.s.sion tinged her voice. He was Draicon, a leader, and couldn't afford pity. Pity was for weaklings.

Wordlessly, they headed for the Lexus. Damian drove, tension knitting every muscle. She was his mate. She should know.

"Annie was my sister. She, my brothers and parents died when I was twelve."

He felt the heavy weight of her stare. "I thought Raphael was your brother."

Damian cleared his throat. "Rafe's parents, Remy and Celine, took me into their pack, after. They adopted me. Later, when I grew older, I went west and found distant kin of my father's and formed my own pack. I'm a purebred Alpha and knew I couldn't stay here for good. I'd fight Remy for control of his pack."

No details. Nothing else. He couldn't bring himself to tell the rest. What his father's pack had done. The shame of being outcast riding through the throat-clogging grief. He concentrated on the road.

Silence. He'd expected the usual plat.i.tudes, soft murmurs of sympathy. Not what she said next.

"She never had a chance, did she?"

A bicycle pulled out unexpectedly. Damian swore and twisted the wheel. "What?"

"Annie, your little sister." Jamie sighed. "She never had a chance to ride a bike, learn to read, go to her first dance, get her first kiss. So many firsts."

"Never." His hands tightened to white knuckles. Never had a chance against her killers, either.

"Death sucks. But when you're that young, it's cruel, as well."

After a moment he spoke. "I saw you with Renee's grandchild. You're very good."

Her smile was sad. "I know what it's like to feel left out and confused when someone you love dies. I only treated her the way I wished someone had treated me after I lost my parents."

He parked a short distance from her house, cut off the engine. "At least you had your aunt and uncle and cousins to help you through. You had family. Family is everything."

A hard coldness dropped over her gunmetal-gray eyes. "I wish they had dumped me on the street. I was better off living in alleys and picking out of garbage cans."

"What happened?"

A chill draped the air as if she mentally and physically withdrew. "It's in the past and I don't want to drag it out."

They walked to her house in silence. He felt as if he slogged through mud. What the h.e.l.l had happened to her?

Soon after, they arrived at Jamie's house. Outside the green gates, Archimedes the cat paced. He meowed madly upon seeing Jamie, and wound around her ankles.

She picked him up. "How did you get out?"

The cat purred in her arms as they went inside. Minutes later they joined Renee's family in the courtyard, eating sandwiches and drinking lemonade. The once-disdainful cat was now friendly and ran up to each guest, rubbing against their ankles as they sat in the courtyard, until little Marie began feeding him tidbits of sandwich.

Armand beckoned to Damian. "Jamie is yours, isn't she? But I can't scent her," Armand said quietly.

"Jamie's mine. But not Draicon."

The man's eyes widened. He shot Jamie a speculative glance. "Fascinating. She's very nurturing and caring. A unique individual."

To his dismay, Armand raised his gla.s.s. "To the Marcel pack leader and his mate. May they make many babies!"

Delighted cries filled the air. A sour expression twisted Jamie's mouth.

"Sorry all. That's not going to happen. Not with me."

"But you have to make babies with Damian," Marie cried out. "You're the only one."

Jamie shot Damian a funny look and turned to the girl. "What only one?"

"His draicara. Damian's a purebred Alpha and can only make babies with you because he's your mate. He can't have young with anyone else. Don't you like babies?"