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slunk through the shadows, blending into the night, until she stood about thirty feet from Elizabeth. The girl still screamed for her father, but from the looks of things, Tom had lost. She didn’t have much time left to do what she planned. Thankfully she had learned while running with the wolves how to speak telepathically to one wolf and not the whole pack.
    Elizabeth, I’m behind you in the woods. Vonda projected the thought into the girl’s mind, praying Elizabeth could hear her.
    The girl’s head whipped around, eyes frantically searching.
    Score one for the wolf. Now to convince her.
    I’m a friend of your dad’s and here to help. Start crawling to me. I’ll distract them.
    But Dad—
    Let’s get you out first.
    Vonda picked up a stick with her mouth and pitched it. She heard it hit, but the two guards didn’t. Shit. Quick, Plan B. She howled.
    That got their attention.
    Hey, Bitch. To your right. You wanna piece of this? She turned and stuck her tail into the clearing, waggling it.
    One of the guards gestured for the other one to check it out. The woman trotted right, the other one watching her.
    Elizabeth, change of plans. Run left, quick, go!
    Elizabeth, bless her heart, jumped up and hauled ass. Tom really needed to put the girl in track.
    “Hey, she’s getting away!”
    Elizabeth was to the edge of the clearing before the wolves started moving. Vonda circled around, shocked she could feel the wolves’ surprise and indecision over whether to stay with Tom or chase Elizabeth. Half stayed, half chased.
    Damn.
    Before she made it to Elizabeth, the same giant who had stolen the girl came from behind a tree and grabbed her again. Vonda leapt, slamming into Big G and Elizabeth, taking them both down. Elizabeth scrambled out, and Vonda went for Big G’s throat.
    She never made it.
    A hand grabbed the scruff of her neck, shaking. Vonda knew she should submit because the hand was attached to what smelled like a dominant leader, but submitting meant letting them take Elizabeth and Tom and she couldn’t do it. She snarled, turning her head to bite.
    A wave of power washed over her, power she had never before felt, a power that froze the bite on her lips. Vonda looked up, right into the face of one of the women who had guarded Elizabeth in the clearing.
    Pack leader. Alpha. Submit.
    Vonda snarled. Another wave of power crashed over her and she felt her body start changing. What the hell? The moon was still out. She fought against the power that coursed over her, through her, trying to force the human half of her back into hiding.
    For the first time in her life, she fought to stay in the wolf’s body. With everything she had, she concentrated on maintaining the wolf, until her vision narrowed to the tall, athletic, brown-haired woman holding her scruff. Just the two of them, locked in a battle of wills.
    The woman’s eyes widened, then narrowed as Vonda felt more power slam into her. Vonda imaged a wall between her and the pack leader, a wall that blocked all power, a wall that let her remain a wolf.
    The hand slipped from her neck, allowing Vonda a toe-hold in the struggle.
    Submit, dammit! The words reverberated in her head, willing her to lie on her side, the urge almost overpowering.
    Like hell. She was too far into this fight to back down now.
    I...don’t...think so. I want...Elizabeth...and Tom.
    You don’t understand what you ask for.
    Then...why...don’t...you...explain.
    The woman screamed, throwing her hand toward Big G, who cowered on the ground. The power beating against Vonda’s body suddenly lifted as Big G shrieked, his body exploding into a wolf.
    Holy shit.
    Elizabeth screamed. The wolves and humans dropped to the ground, rolling on their sides. Vonda fought to remain standing, the clash of power and her own struggle against the leader leaving her drained, her legs shaky.
    The last note of Elizabeth’s scream dripped from the trees, coating them with silence. The pack leader’s chest