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leave. I will not hold it against you.”
    Silas hesitated, clearly torn. Then, making his decision, he leaned over her legs to keep them from thrashing.
    “Thank you, Silas,” Derrick said gratefully, meeting his eyes. “I shall not forget this.”
    Silas nodded.
    Several tense moments passed as her human body fought the transformation. Derrick let the power build within, then suffused his voice with compulsion. He attempted to reassure her, to tell her it would all soon be over, but there was no way to know if the words made it through. The two men used their significant strength to hold her in place so she would not exacerbate her already grievous injuries.
    Wolf’s blood had some healing power, but it was the transformation itself that would heal her body and make her whole again. If she survived long enough, it would reform her at the molecular level. The Were DNA would incorporate itself into every last cell, forging it into something new, each one akin to a two-sided coin — one side would hold her human code, the other, lupine.
    Eventually, she began to calm. Her thrashing limbs stilled. Her lungs, damaged by the infusion of salt water beneath ribs that had been crushed against the rocks, no longer capable of filling themselves with life-giving air, collapsed. Her mortal heart beat for the last time.
    The human Angelica was dead. Now, all they could do was wait — wait and hope the wolf’s blood would be absorbed by her tissues and begin working its miracles.

Chapter 6
 
    “Y ou have never Made another.” Silas’ observation, quietly spoken, was loud in the silence that followed.
    “No,” Derrick admitted. “Have you?”
    “Once,” Silas answered.
    Derrick would have raised an eyebrow in surprise had he not been so weary in heart and mind. Males could only Make females, not transform other males. It was a biological necessity to continue their race, because female pups were extremely rare. Once a male transformed a woman, he was expected to mate with her. And once a male mated, he mated for life. It was a daunting prospect, given their incredibly long life span. So daunting, in fact, that most males took centuries to choose their perfect mate. Some never did.
    “You have never spoken of it.”
    The look on Silas’ face was grim. “No.”
    Silas said nothing further, and Derrick knew better than to press him. Derrick might be his Alpha, but there were some things he would never do. He loved and valued every member of his pack like a brother. Considering Silas had been with him for over five-hundred years, whatever happened had been a very, very long time ago, and Silas had proven his loyalty a thousand times over.  If he did not care to share that part of his life, Derrick would respect his wishes.
    “It is a brutal process,” Derrick murmured, shaken. Rubbing his fingers into his eyes, he attempted to redirect some of the pain pounding in his skull. The adrenalin that had been supporting him suddenly seemed to drain away. To create the mating bond, it was necessary to kill the human female first. He was no stranger to killing, but it was usually only done out of necessity, as part of the natural food chain or in defense of his pack.
    “Yes.” The pain in Silas’ face was tangible before he locked it away beneath centuries of schooled practice. “I will send for Christophe. He has some experience with this. If it is at all possible, he will help her through the transition.”
    Derrick nodded. Christophe was their pack healer. He, like all of the others, would already know what had occurred. They would have felt the surge of his power immediately. He looked at Silas, only then realizing he must have been containing the fallout, keeping the others at bay during the madness. The man looked as weary as he felt.
    “Get some rest, Silas. Ask Steffen or Dieter to go to her suite and bring her things here.”
    “I will see to it personally.”
    “Thank you, Silas.”
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