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the show of force that her parents had wanted to present amounted to approximately three dozen of their Ocean clan. Possibly intimidating to a clan that had been decimated by Shadow attacks and a hard life in the desert, but not to Adam Bruno, who seemed to have amassed many acquaintances in his life as a human.
    Besides Sammie and the man that Victoria recognized as Sammie’s father, a hundred or more people filled the church behind the tight-knit group closest to the casket. Judging from the strong resemblance of the individuals near Adam and his wife, she assumed they were his family.
    What surprised her were the varying strengths of the auras the human family members possessed. The fields of power hinted at long-ago Hunter origins, especially in thewoman who stood in black beside Adam. Her fingers were laced tightly with his as she pressed to Adam’s side, offering comfort. The Hunter power there could not be denied, Victoria thought. It radiated powerfully from his wife and melded with Adam’s huge and amazingly intense life force, enveloping them in a field of visible energy.
    Grief had likely weakened Adam’s control, and as a Hybrid, the woman was still possibly learning how to shield her aura and keep it private. Victoria hoped that the humans present would not be able to see the energy vibrating around them, filled with shivering tendrils of silver and blue that gave testament to their grief.
    Victoria scanned the crowd while the priest intoned his final blessing at the grave. The power was definitely visible to the other Hunters gathered nearby, but not to the humans, who seemed oblivious, their attention focused on the priest. In precaution, Victoria carefully identified the auras of those gathered, searching for any signs of tainted Shadow power, but luckily there were none.
    Thankful for that at least, she hung back as the funeral attendees paid their last respects at the casket and then to Adam and his family.
His family
, she thought, gazing at his new wife and her relatives once more. Noting the profound emotion apparent in all of them, Victoria took special notice of Adam and Bobbie. The love was almost palpable, creating an ache in the middle of her chest.
    How she wished that one day she would find someone filled with such love. Someone who would be by her side to help her lead her clan to a better life.
    There were few people left by the graveside when she finally approached, biding her turn until she stood before Adam. She had met him on only a few occasionssince he had been restored to his Desert clan. His power was like none she had ever experienced and would help him protect his people from attacks by the Shadows in their quest for energy to maintain their contaminated bodies.
    But what struck her more strongly was the way he gazed at his wife.
Such love and care
, Victoria thought, experiencing that yearning once again.
    Her parents, who had already paid their respects and departed, would be sorely frustrated if they continued to think that Adam’s bonding with his human was inconsequential. Nothing but death would part these two, and as Adam shifted his hand and lightly rubbed it across his wife’s stomach, it hit her like a punch to the gut.
    His Hybrid wife was pregnant. Adam’s Equinox had come and their mating was now complete in ways no Hunter traditions could usurp.
    As Victoria stood before them, she held out her hand and said, “I’m sorry about your loss, Adam. I know you cared for him deeply.”
    Adam’s emerald eyes were shadowed, haunted by what had happened, and yet they lightened a bit as his wife replied, “Thank you for coming, Victoria. I can imagine that the past few weeks haven’t been easy for you either.”
    Victoria smiled at his wife, because even in those brief moments they had shared, Victoria had come to like Bobbie Carrera. She was strong and no-nonsense. Level-headed and compassionate. Loyal. What was there not to like? she thought, and shook Bobbie’s