Full Moon Gamma

When Rayce finds he has two paths before him,
the unknown consequence is the only alternative
to help the man he loves survive.

Rayce is sent on a recon mission to find out if
hellhounds are in Lansing. What he discovers on
his way is his mate, Peyton, has followed him into
the very heart of danger.

Peyton has loved Rayce from the moment

Rayce  saved  him.  He  knows  he  probably
shouldn’t  be  following  Rayce,  but  the  instinct
driving  him  to  protect  the  man  he  has  already
fallen for causes him to go recklessly into the city.
All is not as it seems, and Peyton will have to find
strength  to  survive  for  not  only  himself  but  his
mate and friends as well.

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This  book  is  a  work  of  fiction.  Names,  characters,
places,  and  incidents  either  are  products  of  the
author’s  imagination  or  are  used  fictitiously.  Any
resemblance  to  actual  events  or  locales  or  persons,
living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Full Moon Gamma

ISBN: 978-1-77111-797-5

Cover art by Carmen Waters

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Chapter One

Two Months Ago

eyton let out an anguished cry as he was
rolled unmercifully by the hellhound. He

didn’t  know  what  was  up  and  what  was  down,
but  his  entire  body  felt  the  impact  of  the  hard
ground  as  he  continued  to  roll  over  the  rocky
terrain.

Finally, the world stopped, but Peyton didn’t

even get his bearing before his arm was painfully
bitten. The scream that he released into the night
sky was extinguished by the painful weight of
another hellhound jumping onto his chest, all the
air forced out of him.

Fighting was futile. He could already feel

himself weakening as the hellhound toyed with
him. This was it. Thoughts flashed before Peyton,
the loss of his parents, oh gods, his brother Colin
was still there. Fight, dammit!

Another bite and a silent scream took all the

strength from Peyton. He stared as the hellhound
growled above him. His blood dripped from the

Jackie Nacht

horrifying muzzle. He might not be able to fight,
but Peyton would stare death in the face and give
him a big fuck you with a lip curl.

A howl filled the air, and Peyton saw the

impact  of  a  wolf  above  him  as  it  tackled  the
hellhound  off  him.  The  other  hellhound  took  off,
engaging  in  the  battle.  He  was  too  weak  to  look,
but  the  sounds  of  fighting  were  intense…brutal.
The  coppery  smell  of  blood  assaulted  his  nose.
Whether  it  was  from  the  fight  or  his  own,  he
would never know.

Sounds quieted, and with that came the

knowledge  that  the  fight  was  over.  His  brother
appeared  before  him,  and  Peyton  moaned,
“Colin.”  He  wanted  to  weep  in  relief  that  his
brother hadn’t been taken from him.

“I’m here. I need to put pressure on your arm.

It’s going to hurt,” Colin murmured.

The pain in his arm intensified, causing him to

hiss. A sob hitched in his throat.

Peyton could feel himself losing consciousness.

He held on with everything he had.

“Let me take a look at him,” a deep voice

rumbled.

Peyton immediately felt his whole being pull

toward that voice.

Words were spoken between his brother and

the man, but Peyton’s mind was losing
consciousness. He was just about to succumb to

Full Moon Gamma

the battle and close his eyes when alarmed violet
eyes stared down at him. Peyton silently sobbed
as he looked at the man working on him. The man
was talking, but all Peyton could do was focus on
the tender touches to his body. He hurt so fucking
bad, and this man’s simple touch calmed the panic
within him.

The man picked him up, soothing him. “I’ve got

you now. No one is going to hurt you again. I’m
here now.”

Tears ran unchecked down Peyton’s face. This

man had him. His beautiful savior. Closing his
eyes, Peyton succumbed to the darkness.

Groaning, Peyton could feel the darkness

subside,  and  in  its  wake  was  a  suffering  that  he
had never felt before. Eyes popping open, Peyton
panicked  when  he  couldn’t  get  a  lungful  of  air.
Pain,  excruciating  pain  in  his  ribs  prevented  him
from  getting  a  lungful  of  the  good  stuff.  He  was
going to suffocate. Spots dotted his vision and he
was  sure  he  was  going  to  go  lights  out  when  a
man leaned over him.

“I’ve got you, hang on.” The man gently lifted

him a few inches into an incline, giving him the
ability to get a little air in.

Fuck! He hurt everywhere.

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The man rubbed his bangs out of his face. “This

position will feel better,” he murmured
soothingly.

Who is this guy? Staring up at those violet eyes,

something in him just seemed to stop, calm down
and take in the needed air. The man was beyond
handsome. Chiseled features and a strong jaw
made Peyton want to reach up and touch the
rough stubble. However, those violet eyes looked
tired with dark circles beneath them.

“That’s it, Peyton. I’m right here.”
“Who?” Peyton barely got the single word out.

He wanted to know who was holding him,
soothing him.

The guy smiled, lines appearing at the corners

of his eyes. Not from age but clearly from a man
who loved to smile. He was older than Peyton’s
nineteen years, but not by too much, or at least, he
didn’t look it. One couldn’t always tell age when it
came to shifters.

“Rayce. I’m a guard at Moon Compound.”
Wait. Panic began to choke him as memories

flooded him. His pack, the hellhound attack.
“Colin!” Peyton’s distressed cry filled the room as
he tried to climb out of bed, agony in every limb.

Rayce scrambled to catch his arms, and finally,

Peyton was pinned to the bed, vision blurred in
panicked tears.

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“He’s fine. Colin is fine. He’s in his own room

here. You were hurt, and you’re in the medical
wing.” Rayce stared down at him, eyes filled with
concern.

“He’s okay?” Peyton rasped, out of breath,

body screaming.

“Colin is just as eager to see you.”
“I can’t lose him. He’s all I have left,” Peyton

choked  out,  thinking  of  how  he  lost  his  parents
five  years  prior.  If  he  hadn’t  been  in  agony  or
completely  out  of  his  element,  he  might  have
never revealed that to a virtual stranger.

Rayce leaned down and kissed him on the

temple. “You didn’t lose him, and now you have
me,” he murmured.

Peyton’s fear swiftly turned to complete

fatigue. Staring up once more at the handsome
man, he let sleep take him.

For two weeks, Peyton felt like a truck had run

him over. He was so tired after Colin’s visit, all he
wanted to do was sleep. “What’s wrong with
you?” Peyton murmured to himself, closing his
eyes.

Rayce came over and sat next to him. “You’re

tired; you need to be getting some rest.”

Peyton slowly opened his eyes, staring at his

savior, his protector. He was already falling for
Rayce, and there wasn’t a damn thing he could do
about it. No matter how hard he tried to guard his

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heart  every  time  he  woke,  Rayce  was  there  and
another  piece  of  Peyton’s  heart  belonged  to  the
man. However, Peyton was going to seriously get
into  it  with  him  if  Rayce  kept  being  this
overprotective.

“Rayce, I’m getting better, and you can let my

brother come see me. You act like he’s going to
cause me more harm than good.” Peyton groaned
as he sat up. Fuck, will my ribs ever feel better?

“I want you to use all your energy healing, not

meeting your brother’s boyfriend,” Rayce rushed
over to him, helping him prop up on a pillow.

“Sloan is important to my brother, so he’s

important to me.” Peyton tilted his head back. If
he could only sleep like this.

Soft lips brushed his, and Peyton smiled.

Rayce’s thumb brushed his cheek before Rayce
pulled back to look at him. “I just…” Rayce
murmured, but he didn’t finish.

“Rayce, you don’t have to protect me from my

brother or Sloan.” Peyton reached for Rayce and
pulled him into a gentle hug. He wanted to say so
much more. His feelings were already too deep for
Rayce, drawn to him in a way that completely
bound him to the guard.

Finding out that he lost his pack also didn’t

help. Peyton didn’t know if he could handle it if
he lost Colin or Rayce. Nightmares of losing Colin
had begun after the attack, and now, Rayce started

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to accompany those dreams. It was all Peyton
could do to get a few hours of precious sleep every
night.

“Sleep with me tonight?” Peyton blurted

without thinking.

Rayce raised a brow, staring wide-eyed at him.

Although Rayce had slept in the medical wing
with him every night, he had not ventured onto
Peyton’s bed yet. Please, please, I need you.

Rayce unbuckled his utility belt with the cattle

prods on it and then removed his shoes. The bed
dipped as Rayce pulled back the covers and
climbed in with one fluid motion. Rayce faced him
and grabbed a hold of his hand, clearly knowing
that he was still too injured to be held.

Soon, Peyton thought.
Letting out a content sigh, Peyton closed his

eyes. Feeling strong hands stroke his hair, he was
almost asleep when Rayce whispered, “When
you’re feeling better, we need to talk.”

“Talk now,” Peyton mumbled.
“You’re important to me.” Rayce kissed his

temple.

Oh that felt so good. His skin tingled at the spot

those lips delicately touched.

“We’re mates, Peyton.” Rayce leaned in and

kissed his temple again.

The two were still half-sitting and half-lying on

the plushy pillows. He was pretty sure, with

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Rayce  right  by  his  side,  he  might  never  want  to
move from this spot. “I know,” Peyton whispered.
He  might  be  young,  but  he  knew  that  he  was  in
love with Rayce. It had been love at first sight. The
only  thing  standing  in  their  way  was  his  damn
injuries.

“There are things we’ll need to work out

because you still haven’t transitioned yet. You’re
so young,” Rayce’s thumb stroked his cheek
before a soft kiss met his lips.

“I’m old enough. I’ll be twenty in a few

months,” Peyton reasoned.

Rayce’s soft chuckle filled the quiet room. “If

you have it your way, we’ll be mated in a couple
weeks.”

“Hmmm, I’ll have it my way.” Peyton yawned.

Healing was so freaking tiring.

Rayce laughed, kissing the back of his hand. “I

bet you will. If there is one thing I know about
you, you are one determined Omega.”

He was. He wanted Rayce with all his heart,

and he planned on keeping him. With a contented
sigh, Peyton fell asleep next to his mate.

Full Moon Gamma

Chapter Two

Present Day

ayce was pissed, irritated and he wanted to
bitch out anyone that dared to come near

him at the moment. He absolutely hated leaving
Peyton the way he did, and it took everything in
him not to turn around and go back to him.

In the last two months after finding his mate, it

had  been  killing  him  that  he  couldn’t  be  with
Peyton.  First,  with  all  the  injuries  from  Peyton’s
attack and then finding out that his brother Colin
might have long-term issues from the early shift, it
had  frozen  Rayce  to  the  core.  There  was  no  way
Rayce was going to be able to bite Peyton and not
have him shift early. The risk was too great.

He would never put Peyton in harm’s way and

the  unknown  consequences.  He  could  handle
three  more  years  until  Peyton  went  through  his
first  shift.  He  could  be  patient  for  three  damn

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years. Hell, why does it seem like it is going to be an

eternity, though?

Scrubbing his face, he blew out a breath and

looked up into the eyes of Brendan. So much had
changed  in  the  last  month  but  none  so  much  as
those puppy-dog eyes. The Omega had just come
to  mate  with  the  feral,  Ripley.  He  had  saved
Ripley by giving him the mate bite, but it had its
consequences. While it saved Ripley and brought
him  mostly  out  of  his  feral  state,  Brendan  had
bitten Ripley in the mating, taking in some of that
feral blood. Now, those eyes held something wild
and untamed, that wasn’t there before.

Malach, a guard at Moon Compound and his

best  friend,  sat  next  to  Ripley,  Brendan’s  mate.
Rayce  wasn’t  sure  if  it  was  such  a  great  idea  to
bring the feral on the mission, but since he was the
only  one  that  knew  the  hellhound  they  were
seeking, it was imperative to bring him along.

Lukas was flying the helicopter they were

aboard down to Lansing where they would begin
their  search.  They  were  just  landing  when
Brendan pulled out his phone  and began texting.
Of course, shifters were allowed phones, but at the
compound,  the  service  was  so  shitty  that  most
never  used  them,  instead  waiting  for  friends  and
pack to come visit the island when they could.

Rayce continued to stare at Brendan, and the

feral Omega began to shift in his seat. What the…

Full Moon Gamma

“What’s going on?” Rayce barked out to be

heard over the sound of the copter’s blades.

“He’s coming.” Brendan called back.
Okay, Rayce was lost. “Who?”
“Peyton.”
Everyone’s eyes shifted to him. A rage built up

in Rayce. “How the fuck does he know where
we’re going?”

“I told him, and you should have had him

come. He was going to leave the compound and
just try to find you. He would have been
completely unprotected. With all those hellhound
raids up there, he would have been dead within a
day,” Brendan said accusingly.

“Well, what the hell is he now? Unprotected!

Lukas, hail Moon Compound and tell them to get
a location on Peyton stat!” Rayce was seething as
he glared at Brendan. How the hell did Peyton even
leave? True panic built in the pit of his stomach.

“He’s not at the compound. He’s with my

brother Whitley. They just left.” Brendan stared at
him, those damn puppy-dog eyes challenging
him.

“How’d he get off the island? Doesn’t he need

permission?” Rayce gritted out. Peyton’s out

there…alone.

“He’s allowed to leave. He may live there now,

but as a pre shifter he can go out. He probably

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took one of the pack boats inland and got a ride to
my pack from there,” Brendan growled.

Malach shook his head, “Someone had to see

him  leave  and  you  know  Rayce  that  he  has
protection.  They  wouldn’t  let  him  out  by  himself
with all the danger nearby.”

There were a few minutes of silence that had

Rayce’s blood boiling, waiting to hear back from
the compound. The longer it took, the more pissed
he got.

“He was tailed, Rayce. Elder Lewis let him

leave, but he was tailed by Deacon,” Lukas
shouted back.

“They left Deacon…” Rayce couldn’t even go

on. Deacon was young, barely out of the
compound himself. He was a brand new guard
that was so damn green. He could not be trusted
to take care of Peyton’s welfare.

“We need to turn around and go back for him,”

Rayce shouted.

Malach stepped in. “We can’t do that, but we

can have Deacon bring him straight to us at the
place we’ll be staying.”

“He’s too close to danger. He should go back to

Moon Compound.” Rayce flexed his hands, barely
able to control his temper.

“He’s in more danger out in Lansing alone. Get

him here, we’ll get him safely in the house, and
then, you can do your job. You won’t be worried

Full Moon Gamma

about him leaving the compound unprotected
again, which he will. He’ll be in your sights at all
times,” Malach ordered.

“Elder Lewis should have—” Rayce was cut off

by Malach.

“Brendan is right. Peyton hasn’t shifted and is

an adult. Our facility is a compound, not a prison.
Don’t forget that distinction…ever.” Malach’s eyes
narrowed at him angrily.

That sobered Rayce. Malach was right. The

compound  was  for  shifters  who  needed  help  in
getting  their  shifts  under  control.  Families
entrusted  Moon  Compound  to  take  care  of  their
loved ones. It definitely wasn’t a prison, although
it looked exactly like one with all the bars and the
mandatory stay until a shifter couldn’t be a danger
to themselves or the pack they lived in. However,
Peyton was safe there and with all the attacks…

Then he thought of all the packs trying to

defend  themselves  outside  Moon  Compound.
Everything was so fucked up lately. They needed
more protection for the surrounding packs or they
were  going  to  continue  losing  shifters  en  masse.
Rayce  rubbed  his  brow,  a  war  brewing  within
him.  Shit,  he  was  going  to  have  a  panic  attack
before they even rendezvoused with his mate.

Malach slapped him on the shoulder, causing

Rayce to look up. “If it helps, I’ll have a talk with

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him. Keep your head in the game, and I’ll make
sure he doesn’t do this again until he’s trained.”

Trained? No way was Rayce ever going to let

Peyton go out on the front lines. Fuck! Blowing out
a breath, Rayce settled down. That’s exactly why
Peyton followed. He couldn’t handle Rayce out on
the front lines just like the thought of Peyton there
caused him to break out in a cold sweat.

Lukas cooled down the helicopter, and they all

got  out.  A  vehicle  was  waiting  for  them  as  they
made  their  way  to  the  house  where  they  were
staying.  Rayce’s  mind  turned  in  circles  the  entire
way there. He was so damn worried about Peyton
that  he  couldn’t  focus  on  anything  else.  Finally,
they  arrived  at  a  house  that  was  right  in  the
middle  of  Lansing  and  near  the  college  campus.
The  place  was  older,  a  little  rundown.  College
students  probably  had  rented  it  until  Moon
Compound  rented  the  property  just  days  before,
when they had planned this recon mission.

They entered the small ranch. It was nice, but

there were telltale signs that it had seen a party or
two in its time. Rayce continued to pace as the
others checked the interior and perimeter.

Finally, Malach came back in. “I need to talk to

you in the kitchen.”

Rayce followed. He could feel a lecture coming

a mile away.

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Malach turned and faced him, expression

serious but filled with compassion. Dammit!

“I’m pulling you from active duty when we get

back. You can work at Moon Compound, but you
won’t be going out on missions.” Malach leaned
back against the kitchen island, crossing his arms.

“I can do my damn job,” Rayce gritted out. He

had been solid the last five years he had been a
guard. He could do this. There were guards that
had mates and worked at the compound.

Malach shook his head, “I know, under normal

circumstances,  I  can  count  on  you  to  watch  my
back  more  than  anyone.  But  we  aren’t  under
normal circumstance. You have a mate, and you’re
in  a  situation  that  has  you  distracted,  that’s  a
problem. As a team, we need focus or someone is
going to get hurt. After this recon, I’m pulling you
from missions.”

Rayce was just about to argue when Malach

held up a hand. “Your mate needs you to take
some time off. He’s been through too much and
he’s going to get hurt trying to protect you.”

Rayce’s head snapped back. He wasn’t sure if

he wanted to scream, yell or demand that he fight
in this war. However, before he could, a vision of
Peyton injured, nearly dead the night he met him,
came clearly to his mind. The young man had
already been through too much. He needed Rayce
to stay back and take care of him. He might not be

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able to claim him, but he could stand by him these
next few years. Rayce nodded his consent.

“If you’ll excuse me…” Rayce’s voice caught as

he headed for the bedroom.

He searched for an unoccupied one and

entered, falling face first on the bed. Three
years…he could do this.

Full Moon Gamma

Chapter Three

eyton couldn’t fucking believe it. He actually
got off the island. He wasn’t sure what he

expected, but just getting on the boat and
journeying his way to the Upper Peninsula wasn’t
one of them.

Peyton pulled out a borrowed cell phone.

Before  he’d  left,  he  had  inputted  Whitley’s
number  that  Brendan  gave  him  so  he  could  call
him  when  he  got  in  an  area  that  had  service.  He
dialed  up,  and  on  the  second  ring,  someone
picked up.

“Hello?” the voice sounded tentative and

unsure.

Clearing his throat, Peyton replied, “Hi, my

name’s Peyton. I’m a friend of your brother from
Moon Compound.”

“Oh finally! He hasn’t called me in forever. He

mentioned you in the last call. How are you? Why
hasn’t he called? I was about to go up there and
find out what the hell is going on. I mean, he

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always calls me on the landlines up there. How is
he?” Gone was the tentative man.

Peyton could actually feel Whitley’s enthusiasm

through the phone. Gods, Whitley was a talker.

“He’s doing,” Peyton’s mind raced. It wasn’t

his story to tell. Shaking his head, he changed the
subject. “I’m calling because I’m meeting up with
him and a group of guards in Lansing. He said
you would be willing to let me hitch a ride.”

“So I’d get to see him?” Rustling could be heard

on Whitley’s side of the phone.

Is he already dressing? “Yeah. Look, there’s

something I need to tell you.” Peyton didn’t want
Whitley going into this blind.

“I’ll be there in forty-five minutes. Meet you at

the diner by the dock.” Then Whitley hung up on
him. Peyton didn’t even get to tell him the
situation that they were walking right into.

Peyton searched the area, making sure no one

suspicious  was  near  him.  He  was  just  about  to
head  into  the  diner  when  he  spotted  him.  There,
leaning  on  the  side  of  a  building  was  Deacon,  a
fucking  guard  at  Moon  Compound.  He  should
have known he’d have a tail; it had been too damn
easy leaving.

Peyton didn’t even bother to try to lose Deacon;

he walked right up to the young guard. Deacon’s
emerald green eyes widened in surprise before he
smirked at Peyton. He couldn’t be more than

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twenty-five  or  twenty-six.  Deacon  was  extremely
handsome  with  short,  light  brown  hair  and
sensual  lips,  and  he  knew  it.  There  were  many
residents at Moon Compound that sought out the
attention of Deacon, but he seemed either aloof or
was  just  a  good  guard  and  did  his  job  by  not
messing  with  the  residents.  Peyton  was  pretty
sure it was the latter.

Peyton quirked his finger. “Come on; our ride

will be here soon.”

Deacon chuckled. “Not even pissed I tailed

you?” Deacon followed him across the street to the
diner.

“Not even a little. I should have expected it.”

Peyton sighed.

He opened the door to the diner, and a bell

rang over the top of the door. The place was pretty
busy this time of year with a lot of humans. Thank
gods, Deacon was dressed in jeans and a
sweatshirt like him, or they would have stuck out
like sore thumbs.

Peyton sat down on the stool at the bar, and

Deacon occupied the one next to him.

A waitress came over and placed napkins and

silverware before them.

“Do you need menus, or do you already know

what you’d like?” The waitress smiled at the two
of them.

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“I’ll have eggs, over easy, wheat toast and ham,

please. Oh and a coffee,” Peyton shook as he put
the napkin in his lap. For some odd reason, being
out of Moon Compound was all of sudden causing
him to panic. He searched over his shoulder to
make sure a hellhound wasn’t waiting to tear into
him.

“I’ll have some oatmeal please,” Deacon

murmured to the waitress, shaking Peyton out of
his nerves.

Peyton glanced over at the guard. Oatmeal?
The waitress left and Deacon dug into his

pocket. “Will you hang out here for a minute
while I check my messages?”

Peyton nodded as Deacon walked to the back

hallway of the diner, still keeping an eye on
Peyton. Like he would run from Deacon.

Peyton watched as Deacon held the phone to

his ear and frowned while listening to someone or
some message. Did something happen to Rayce?

Deacon disconnected before walking back and

sitting back down on the stool. “It appears that we
have a welcoming party waiting for us. They told
us what house we’re supposed to meet them at.”

Shit. “Is Rayce pissed?”
Deacon shrugged. “I got a message from

Malach. He didn’t seem pissed; just said he
wanted you in a safe location. I’m not sure about
Rayce. I bet he’s not too happy that his mate is

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putting himself in danger even if it is a recon
mission. What would have happened if you
would have…” Deacon glanced over his shoulder
before whispering, “…run into one of them?”

Peyton hadn’t thought of it. He had only

thought of losing Rayce. Fear all but clouded his
commonsense since the attacks.

Staring down at his hands, Peyton shook his

head. “I wasn’t thinking about me.”

Deacon nudged him. “You need to start. There

are two people in a mating, and they need to take
care of each other and themselves. Never forget
yourself, okay?”

Their food arrived, but Peyton had all but lost

his  appetite.  He  could  go  back  and  let  Rayce  do
his job, but just as he thought that, a horrible gut
feeling  hit  him  again.  He  almost  fell  out  of  the
chair  as  the  panic  set  in.  He  just  knew…dammit,
he knew something was off about all this. He just
couldn’t fucking figure it out.

“Hey, Peyton, look at me.” Deacon turned him

on the stool.

Peyton’s breathing was erratic and out of

control.

“What’s going on?” Deacon’s voice was

alarmed.

“Panic,” Peyton rasped. He didn’t want to do

this here, not in public for everyone to see.
Clambering out of his seat, he all but ran to the

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restroom  in  the  hallway.  After  pushing  the  door
open, he went straight for the sinks and leaned on
the counter while his hands shook uncontrollably
to  turn  on  the  cold  tap.  Leaning  down,  he
splashed  water  over  his  face,  trying  to  slow  his
breathing.

He looked up at his reflection. Water dripped

down his chin, and hell, he looked terrible, like he
hadn’t slept in days. He hadn’t, but he didn’t want
to appear that way. For the first time in weeks,
Peyton stared at his features. His blue eyes, which
used to hold so much amusement, looked
haunted, older. Fuck, he’d changed a lot in the last
couple months.

The door behind him opened and Deacon

walked in. He immediately walked over to the
paper towels without saying a word. Deacon
grabbed a couple and handed them to him.

Wiping his face, Peyton leaned back against the

wall and closed his eyes.

“Better?”
“Yeah,” Peyton mumbled.
“Do you want to talk about it?” Deacon leaned

against the counter.

“I’ve been having…”Peyton shook his head. He

didn’t want the young guard to see how much the
last two months had affected him. Peyton watched
Deacon grab more paper towels and head over to
the sink to wet them.

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The guard walked toward him and placed the

cool towels on his neck. “There’s no shame in how
you’re  reacting.  My  family  was  attacked  by
hellhounds  last  month.  Our  pack  survived,  but
there  were  losses.  I  have  nightmares,  too,  about
the faces I grew up with but will never see again.”

Peyton stared up at the somber green eyes. Why

had this war touched so many in the last few months

when before it was so damn sparse?

Deacon pulled back and cleared his throat.

“C’mon, your food’s getting cold.”

Peyton stared in shock as he watched Deacon at

the door. There was a slight frown, worry maybe
for Peyton? The two walked out together, and
Deacon clapped him on the shoulder as he guided
him back to the stool.

Sitting down, Peyton picked at his food and

then sipped on coffee.

His nerves had finally settled down until the

bell rang over the door forty minutes later and a
young man walked in. The sable eyes searched the
place for a moment before they landed on Peyton.

The young man grinned devilishly before

making his way to them. “Peyton?”

Peyton nodded. “Whitley.”
“Yeah, I tried to hurry, because I knew you

were in a bit of a time crunch. Hey, I’ve got my
truck out back if you want to head out.” Whitley
turned and frowned at Deacon. “Who are you?”

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Deacon chuckled. “Deacon. I’m your backup.”
“Hmm.” Whitley’s eyebrow rose, but he said

nothing else, which caused Deacon to laugh some
more. “So I’m going to get to see my brother?”

“Yes. I’m not sure it’s a good idea for you to

come. I shouldn’t have brought you here. You
don’t even have all the details and it’s dangerous.”

“I’m still in. I want to see my brother,” Whitley

said with a finality that kept Peyton from arguing.

Peyton knew where he was coming from. With

the hellhounds more active, family was desperate
to see each other. Everyone wanted to know if
they were healthy and whole. He had to wonder
what Whitley would think when he discovered his
brother had consumed feral blood.

Whitley stood at the bar and waved a waitress

over, ordering a coffee to go. He pulled his phone
out and began texting. A soft chuckle escaped
him.

“What?” Peyton asked.
“Just texting my brother. He knows we’re

coming and said to be careful.” Whitley shook his
head as he tucked his phone back in his pocket.

A minute later, Peyton was following the

smaller  man  out  to  the  truck  near  the  rear of  the
diner. They climbed in and were on the road in no
time  for  the  long  drive  ahead.  Peyton  got  lost  in
his  thoughts  as  they  drove.  He  barely  heard  a

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word of what Deacon and Whitley said in the
front seat as he stared out the back window.

Now that he was well on his way, his nerves

took a toll on him. Will Rayce be pissed? Of course,

he will.

Eight hours into the drive, Deacon was back on

the  phone  while  relaying  directions  to  Whitley.
Peyton’s  nerves  ratcheted  up,  but  with  that  also
came  a  firm  resolve.  He  knew  he  needed  to  be
there; he just wasn’t sure of his purpose yet.

They pulled into a driveway of an old-style, off-

campus house. Peyton climbed out and saw Rayce
already standing on the porch, arms crossed.

Brendan flew around Rayce and ran to his

brother, laughter as the two brothers embraced in
the front yard.

Peyton blew out a breath before he slowly

approached Rayce.

The closer he got, the more Peyton noticed the

tightness in Rayce’s shoulders, his jaw tense and
his eyes, those amethyst eyes, were looking at him
with such disapproval that if Peyton hadn’t been
stubborn as hell, he would have gotten back in the
truck and left right then and there.

Instead, Peyton walked straight to Rayce, never

taking his gaze off him as he approached.
Climbing the steps, he stood inches away, staring
up at his mate.

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“Inside,” Rayce gritted out before he turned

and walked away.

Peyton blew out a breath and followed. No one

ever said mating was easy.

Full Moon Gamma

Chapter Four

ayce counted to ten and then twenty. He tried
to appear mad, but as he ventured to his

room  with  Peyton  hot  on  his  heels,  all  he  could
feel  was  damn  relief.  They  entered  and  Rayce
closed  the  door  behind  them.  Peyton  leaned
against  the  wood  door,  staring  up  at  him.  Those
nervous  pale  blue  eyes  were  going  to  be  his
undoing. Peyton must have been nervous, because
his dark blond hair was a mess. Reaching out, he
grabbed  Peyton  and  brought  him  in  for  a  hug.
Breathing  in,  Rayce’s  lungs  filled  with  the  clean,
fresh scent that was uniquely Peyton. The tension
he had been feeling all morning long melted away.

“I thought you were going to be pissed at me,”

Peyton mumbled.

“I am so mad.” Rayce shook. “But I’m so

fucking relieved you got here safe. I’ll chew your
ass out in a minute.” Rayce kissed Peyton’s
temple.

“‘Kay,” Peyton whispered, digging in deeper.

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“You can’t be following me out on missions like

this. This is my job.” Rayce pulled back, holding
onto Peyton’s shoulders, looking straight into his
eyes.

“I know.” Peyton chewed on his plush bottom

lip.

“Then, why did you come?” Rayce asked,

pulling Peyton over so they could sit on the bed.

“I just…” Peyton started as he sat down and

then shook his head.

“You have to talk to me, Peyton. We have to get

this worked out so it doesn’t happen again.”
Rayce sat down behind Peyton, placing his legs on
either sides so he could embrace Peyton from
behind.

“I keep having these nightmares and feelings.”

Peyton grabbed a hold of Rayce’s hand and began
rubbing his rough pads. That shouldn’t have felt
so damn good, but it did.

“It’s understandable. You’ve been through a lot

these last few months. Are you talking to the
counselor at Moon Compound still?” Rayce
reached up and began rubbing Peyton’s shoulder.
A soft moan came out of the Omega.

“This is different. You’re in danger.”
“This is just a recon mission. We aren’t

engaging in any fight. We spot the guy and then,
we go back and leave that up to a team to handle.”

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Peyton was already shaking his head. “I can’t

shake this feeling.”

Rayce turned Peyton, staring down at him.

“After this mission, Malach is giving me time off.
He knows we need time to let you heal.”

“I am healed,” Peyton protested.
“You’re not,” Rayce rasped out.
They sat there silently for a long time before

Peyton whispered, “Are you going to mate me
then?”

“No.” Rayce was firm on this. He would not

bend.

“But you love me.”
“It’s because I love you that I’m not going to

risk you. We live a long time, Peyton. I can handle
a couple years of just holding you so that I have
you healthy and whole in the long run.” Rayce
stared down at Peyton, pleading him to agree with
him, support him on this decision for the both of
them.

Peyton sighed. “I’ll be patient if you quit

kissing me as if I’m your brother.”

Rayce chuckled. “When have I done that?”
“The temple. It was enough when I was hurt,

but I want more.” Rayce was about to interrupt
when Peyton held up a hand. “I’m not saying I
need everything, but I want a kiss, dammit, and a
good one.”

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“I don’t have that much control,” Rayce

murmured.

“Then trust your Omega mate to pull you back

in time.” Peyton raised a brow in challenge.

“You mean the Omega who wants this

mating?” Rayce smiled down at Peyton. This felt
good. The banter. In all the shit they had faced
since they met, this felt wonderful.

“Yes, this Omega. The one who loves you, and

if this is what you feel is best, I’ll make sure we do
it together. Now kiss me,” Peyton demanded.

Rayce turned and pushed Peyton down on the

bed before he climbed on him. Then Rayce leaned
down and just kissed the hell out of Peyton. As he
thrust his tongue into Peyton’s mouth, he knew
that he needed to trust his mate, and there was no
better time than now.

Giving into the moment, Rayce’s whole body

came alive as he covered Peyton on the bed. Even
through clothes, Rayce could make out the sleek,
slender muscles beneath him, causing him to
moan into Peyton’s mouth.

He wanted this to go on; he wanted it to last

forever, but all too soon, he was pulling back.
Peyton’s cheeks were flushed in arousal and his
eyes were dilated with passion.

“See? We can have fun the next couple of years

and not get carried away.” Peyton smiled softly
up at him.

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Rayce leaned down for another small kiss.

“You’re right. If it ever gets too much for us, we’ll
talk.”

“That’s all I ask. That we are equals in this and

make  the  decisions  together.”  Peyton  pulled  him
in  for  another kiss,  and  god,  could  his  mate  kiss.
There  was  innocence  and  inexperience,  but  the
enthusiasm  made  up  for  it.  Plus,  Rayce  could
feel…he  could  feel  love  in  these  kisses.  Peyton
loved him, and Rayce loved him back and poured
everything into his kiss that he hadn’t been ready
to say with words.

A knock to the door broke them up. “Hey, I

hate to bother you two, but we need to talk.”
Malach’s voice came through the door.

Rayce groaned as he stood up, pulling Peyton

with him. “Let’s go see what boss man needs, and
then we can come back here and have some time
alone.”

Grabbing Peyton’s hand, the two of them

headed out and down the hallway. Everyone was
gathered in the living room and Rayce found a
seat on the floor for them to sit on. He spread his
legs and inserted Peyton in between them. A few
of the others gave them a raised brow, but fuck it,
Rayce couldn’t care less what the others thought.

Malach stood by the broken fireplace. “So this is

what’s going to happen. Rayce, Lukas, Ripley and
I are going to go to the bar this evening and see if

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we spot the hellhound. We get a confirmation and
we’ll be back at Moon Compound by tonight. Our
job will be done and enforcers will come in and
take care of the situation.”

“What if we don’t see him?” Ripley rolled his

shoulders against the couch. It was a common
gesture the feral did, as if he was forever
uncomfortable in his own skin.

“We’ll have to keep going back until we do. If

we haven’t spotted him in two weeks, then we’ll
head back and inform Elder Lewis of the
situation.” Malach crossed his arms, all business.

Rayce knew that look. Malach knew they were

going to spot this guy in the next two weeks and
he was already preparing for it.

“When do we leave?” Rayce asked.
“I want us to be there by happy hour. Ripley

said  it  was  after  work  when  he’d  seen  this  guy.
That  gives  us  about  thirty  minutes  to  get  ready.
Civilian  clothes,  gentlemen.  Let’s  move,”  Malach
commanded.

They all got up and Rayce pulled Peyton with

him toward the bedroom once again. Rayce
stripped out of his black fatigues and immediately
dug into his duffel, pulling out jeans and a
sweater. He watched as Peyton went over to sit on
the bed, chewing on his lip.

“What?” Rayce asked, zipping up and

buttoning his jeans.

Full Moon Gamma

“It’s just…” Peyton frowned, lowering his head.
Rayce kneeled in front of Peyton. “Talk to me.”
Peyton looked up at him with concern. “I have

a really bad feeling about this.”

“You’re worried about losing me.” Rayce knew

Peyton had two people left in his life. Him and his
brother Colin. Everyone else had been taken from
him.

“It’s more than that.”
Rayce stood and finished getting dressed. He

went  over  to  his  duffel  and  removed  a  spare
satellite  phone.  “If  we’re  not  back  by  tonight,  I
want  you  to  call  Moon  Compound  and  let  them
know  we  haven’t  returned.  Do  not  come  looking
for us at the bar. Do you understand me?”

Rayce could practically feel the mate-pull to

stay here and comfort Peyton. It was choking him
to go against his mate’s need for safety. He had to
do his job, though. They both needed to get used
to this, or they would be enslaved to their very
own mating.

“I promise. If you aren’t back by midnight, I’m

calling.” Peyton gripped the satellite phone as if it
was a lifeline. Maybe it was.

Rayce pulled Peyton close and kissed him one

last  time  before  he  left.  He  left,  feeling  Peyton’s
gaze  on  him  as  he  walked  out  of  the  room.  He
fisted  his  hand,  fucking  determined  to  do  his  job
and get back to Peyton as fast as possible.

Jackie Nacht

Malach, Ripley and Lukas were waiting for him

at the front door. Malach opened the door.
“Ready?”

Rayce nodded and led the team out.
They climbed into the vehicle and drove off.

Malach  drove  while  Ripley  sat  in  the  passenger
side,  giving  directions  to  the  bar.  He  should  be
focusing,  watching  where  the  hell  they  were
going,  but  his  mind  was  back  with  Peyton.
Gripping  his  hair,  he  felt  like  pulling  the  damn
strands out.

Malach stared back at him in the rearview

mirror. “Do I need to turn around?”

Rayce really fucking thought about it. “No, but

tonight, get someone else down here. I’m a
weakness.”

Ripley turned in the front seat. Rayce

remembered how powerful that feral was. “You
better get your head out of your ass. We’re all
counting on you, and my mate is counting on you.
Hell, yours, too. Think of that and that’ll be all the
focus you need.”

For someone thrust into this world, Ripley had

more insight than anyone else in the car. Ripley
knew the right words to say to bring Rayce’s mind
back on the mission.

The drive was short, a mere five minutes. The

place was off to the side of a road and there was a

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guy standing outside checking identification. They
all exited the vehicle as one.

“That normal?” Rayce nudged Ripley.
“That’s the same guy I’ve seen every damn time

I come here. Can’t believe he’s still working here.”
Ripley cracked his neck. “Are we ready?”

Malach stared at the bouncer as well. “Is

everyone armed?” he whispered.

“Just knives and daggers,” Rayce murmured.
Lukas nodded. “Same here.”
Malach eyed the door again. “Be ready for

anything.” He turned and led the group and
Rayce took up the rear.

The man at the door was human, but to Rayce,

he  appeared  crooked  as  hell.  Ripley  nodded  and
handed  over  his  ID.  Thank  gods,  Malach  had
thought  to  get  one  made  up  for  him  when  they
planned the recon mission last week and that they
had the connections to get one made.

“Ripley, been awhile.” The bouncer handed

Ripley’s identification over.

“Yeah, been busy,” Ripley said smoothly. Rayce

was impressed. The guy didn’t so much as pause.

The bouncer checked all their licenses and then

they  were  waved  in  the  bar.  The  lighting  was
shitty,  and  voices  could  be  heard  even  in  the
hallway. They  walked as a group and turned the
corner.

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Malach halted in his tracks, and Rayce

immediately stopped and scanned the area.

Holy fuck. Oh fuck. Oh fuck.
The room fell silent as all eyes turned and

focused on them. All black soulless eyes. The
entire room was hellhounds. The entire fucking
room.

A large hellhound stood and approached, a sick

smile  on  his  face.  “About  fucking  time  you  got
here.  We  even  dropped  your  feral  ass  off  within
ten miles of the compound and still, it took them
this long. I  didn’t think you would be with  them
with the way you were frothing at the mouth last
time I saw you, but I can’t wait to toy with you all
over again.”

Rayce was ready to pull out his blades when he

felt them being surrounded. They weren’t getting
out of this alive. Clarity and calmness filled Rayce.
He  wouldn’t  go  without  a  fight.  Dropping  the
blades  into  his  palms,  he  eyed  the  biggest
motherfucker in front him. He heard Ripley snarl
and  crack  his  neck.  He  had  fought  alongside
Malach and Lukas enough times to know that his
back  was  covered.  That  his  friends  were  just  as
poised and ready.

There was no signal from anyone, Rayce

couldn’t even tell who made the first move, but
before he knew it, he was swiftly into the throes of
a fight, sinking his blade into the first hellhound

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before engaging the next. Ripley roared next to
him and went fucking crazy over a duo that
charged him. It would be their last mistake.

Rayce sidestepped one hellhound before

throwing his dagger into the next. There were too
many, the whole room was coming at him. Rayce
kicked and punched with everything he had. He
kept his head cool even though he knew they were
losing the battle.

He swung at a hellhound and felt the impact

from his side as he was taken to the ground. The
kicks and hits were unmerciful as they
surrounded him. A growl filled the air with a Take
the fucker down! coming from one of the
hellhounds.

Malach? Where was Malach? Lukas!
Feeling broken, Rayce had no idea if he passed

out or what, but the fighting ceased. A hellhound
stood over him, tilting his head and staring at him
as if he was sizing him up for his coffin.

Rayce bared his bloody teeth.
“Hood.” The hellhound held out his hand and a

black nylon-looking bag was placed there. “Hold
him.” The fucker leaned down, putting the hood
over his head.

Rayce lost it, screaming and kicking with

renewed energy. Hands held him harshly as they
stood him up. Someone was binding his ankles

Jackie Nacht

and hands. He felt the hellhound right next to
him.

“I am going to enjoy fucking you up.”
Rayce couldn’t seem to get control of his

breathing. The hellhound in front of him inhaled
long and slow.

“Ahh, there’s more. Svenn, Renulf track the

scent and find the others. Take a horde.”

Rage consumed Rayce as he howled beneath

the cover, snarling at the hellhound that dared call
the order. He felt a painful fist to his face through
the cover. The smell of copper saturated the
interior, and Rayce practically choked on the
scent. Gods, they were going for Peyton.

Peyton!

Full Moon Gamma

Chapter Five

eyton gasped, choking. He couldn’t
breathe…he couldn’t.

Brendan came running over to him, “Peyton,

what’s wrong?”

Whitley and Deacon sat next to him as he

started clawing at his face. He couldn’t…

“Stop!” Whitley took a hold of his wrists.

“Breath, Peyton, it’s us.”

Peyton panicked, eyes searching for what the

fuck was going on, but he knew. By the gods, he
knew what the hell was going on. Taking in a
quivering breath and then another, he raced over
to the kitchen where he’d placed the satellite
phone.

“What are you doing?” Deacon came running

in behind him.

“We need help,” Peyton rasped out, dialing up

the Moon Compound.

On the second ring, someone picked up.

“Hello.”

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That was Elder Thorfinn’s voice, the Alpha

elder at the compound.

“Help,” Peyton rasped.
Peyton tried to tell him and the phone was

ripped out of his hands by Deacon. “This is
Deacon. I think we have a false alarm.”

Peyton gritted his teeth. “It’s not…it’s not a

false alarm. I know something is wrong.
Rayce…something happened to him.”

Deacon stared at him for a moment, nodding

and listening to Elder Thorfinn on the other side of
the line.

“We’ll call you back in two hours if we have no

communication.” Deacon nodded once again
before he ended the call.

Peyton made a grab for the phone. “Get him

back on,” he cried hoarsely.

“You don’t call up Moon Compound and say

you have a bad feeling. They want confirmation.
Peyton, you need to slow down. Give it a couple
hours and your mate will be walking through
those doors. You’ll see.”

Peyton was trembling head to toe. He could

smell blood, his mate’s blood. He whipped his
head around. “Do you…”

“What?” Deacon approached as if Peyton had

lost his fucking mind. Right now, he wasn’t so
sure.

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Swallowing around the lump in his throat, he

whispered, “I smell blood.”

Brendan and Whitley were standing in the

doorway, watching quietly. Peyton had no idea
how long they had been there. Brendan walked up
to him. “I don’t smell blood, Peyton. Are you
sure?”

“I…I…I don’t know.” Peyton began to doubt

his instincts. Am I having another panic attack, or is

this actually happening?

Brendan grabbed his wrist lightly. “Come and

sit on the couch, and we can settle down here for a
minute.”

Peyton pulled away and backed up, hitting his

ass on the counter. He folded his arms around his
waist, trying to hold himself together. It wasn’t
working.

Then he got a vision of Rayce standing above

him in the clearing the first moment he’d met him.
Those violet eyes that mesmerized him. His mate
needed him now. If no one was going to take
action… Peyton took off for Rayce’s bedroom. If
no one was going to do anything, by the gods, he
would.

Charging in, Peyton walked straight over to

Rayce’s duffel and unzipped the bag roughly. A
couple changes of clothes lay within, but at the top
was what he was looking for, the cattle prods. He
grabbed four of them and walked away.

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Deacon was standing in the hallway. “What the

hell are you going to do with those?” Deacon kept
pace with him as he made his way to the front
door.

“I’m going to get him,” Peyton snarled.
Deacon whipped him around. “Peyton. Stop.

Think. If Rayce is in trouble, you need backup.
This isn’t something you can handle by yourself.
Stop pulling away from me, dammit!”

Peyton halted in his tracks at the command. He

was trying to pull away. Peyton pleaded, “Help
me then.”

Deacon visibly swallowed. “I am. I’m keeping

you safe.”

Peyton was about to protest when the front

door  crashed  open.  Deacon  roared  and  took  off
with  Peyton  hot  on  his  heels  toward  the  front
door. Hellhounds were flooding through the door,
a  half  dozen  or  more.  Brendan  grabbed  Whitley,
and  they  made  a  break  for  it,  but  the  hellhounds
were  fast,  taking  the  two  down  right  before
Peyton’s  eyes.  Deacon  grabbed  two  cattle  prods
and went after the hellhounds while Peyton fired
up  the  cattle  prods  and  followed.  He  took  one
down  and  went  to  go  after  the  other  when  he
found himself surrounded. He whipped the cattle
prod  around,  but  he  was  too  slow  as  the
hellhound  next  to  him  caught  his  wrist.  The

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pressure, ahh gods, the pressure had him releasing
the prod.

“Fuuuuck!” Peyton screamed as he went to his

knees.

The others were already incapacitated. Deacon

was on the ground, struggling while being tied up,
a nasty cut to his temple. By the dazed expression,
Peyton  knew  Deacon  had  taken  a  pretty  serious
hit.  Brendan  was  snarling,  and  Whitley  was
whimpering  as  they  were  pulled  to  their  feet
already tied up.

One of the hellhounds was on a phone, calling

in for vehicles and Peyton knew they were fucked.
This wouldn’t be a quick death; no,  they were so
screwed.  In  no  time  at  all,  a  van  pulled  up,  and
they  were  all  dragged  out  to  it  and  thrown
ruthlessly  into  the  back.  Peyton  prayed  that
someone  would  see  them,  but  the  streets  were
utterly silent except for the sounds of his and his
friend’s protests. No one, not even a human to cry
for help.

Peyton managed to sit up as the vehicle went

into motion. “Deacon—” A swift backhand to his
face had him flying to the wall of the van. Warm
blood oozed from his lips as he tried to get his
bearings.

“No talking,” one of the hellhounds growled at

him.

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Peyton would not make that mistake again. His

head felt like it was about to explode.

The van halted and Whitley rolled, unable to

catch himself with his hands. Peyton stared at him
as  they  were  face  to  face.  Whitley  was  pants-
pissing  terrified,  visibly  shaking  with  wide,
frightened eyes. Peyton wished he could say some
comforting words to his fellow Omega, but words
failed him. For one, he himself feared their wrath,
and  two,  he  had  never  heard  of  anyone  being
taken  by  a  hellhound.  Their  sole  purpose  was  to
destroy them, not take them. What are they going to

do to us?

The back doors opened and they were yanked

out. Peyton swiftly scanned the area, realizing that
they were on industrial land, probably one of the
many that surrounded Lansing. There were no
landmarks, just acres upon acres of land that had a
huge industrial building standing in the middle.
Snow began to fall and he knew that no one was
ever going to be able to find them.

They were dragged into the building, which

was a huge, wide space, then taken down cement
steps  into  an  underground  area  beneath  the
building. The place reeked of stale air, blood and
things  that  turned  Peyton’s  stomach.  He  was
pushed  into  a  steel  cell  so  fast  that  he  couldn’t
react,  and  that’s  when  Peyton  saw  Rayce.  An

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anguished cry escaped his lips, which earned him
another punch.

“Don’t touch him!” Rayce charged, but pulled

up abruptly when one of the hellhounds cattle-
prodded him. Rayce went down, and Peyton was
thrown on top of him. He stayed there until he
heard the sounds of the cell door slamming above
him.

Peyton lifted his head and realized everyone

that  had  been  captured  was  in  a  cell  together.  It
wasn’t  that  big  either.  There  was  no  bed  or
blankets,  just  a  cement  floor  and  a  rusty,  dirty
toilet in the corner.

Everyone was sporting bruises in various

places;  Malach  appearing  the  worst  with  a  deep
gash  above  his  brow  and  an  eye  completely
swollen  shut.  Peyton  slid  off  Rayce  and  pulled
him up, embracing him.

“Rayce.” He could barely get the single word

out.

Rayce pulled back. “Let me look at your lip.”

Rayce grimaced as he swept his finger along
Peyton’s mouth. Peyton watched as Rayce’s
fingers came away with blood.

“I’m okay,” Peyton whispered.
Ripley paced before he said, “We need to figure

out how to get out of this cage.”

Lukas nodded. “We can’t touch the bars.

They’ll be firing them up any second now.”

Jackie Nacht

Sure enough, as the words passed Lukas’ lips,

Peyton heard the hum of electricity buzz around
them.

Malach’s jaw flexed in aggravation and Peyton

watched as Brendan went to Ripley, holding him
and pulling Whitley with him.

“Do you think we can take them if they open

the door?” Deacon asked.

“I think we’re going to have to try,” Rayce

murmured. “We can’t stay in here. We know
what’s going to happen if we do.”

Peyton’s breath hitched. Yeah, he was shocked

they were still alive. But everyone in the cell knew
what was in his near future.

Footsteps sounded, coming down the stairs and

a  group  of  hellhounds  moved  toward  them.
Peyton  crept  closer  to  Rayce  as  the  demons
approached.  There  were  six  of  them,  all  sporting
various  scars  along  their  face,  neck  and  arms.
These hellhounds had most likely been in the raids
up north and fought. They were all staring at the
cell with that terrifying blank, soulless look, except
one. One who stood to the back of the group was
wearing  a  pair  of  shades  and  surrounding  those
shades were deep, angry scars.

Without a signal, they raised guns and fired

into the cell. Peyton cursed as all the wolves were
shot with a dart. Peyton pulled the dart out of
Rayce’s leg.

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“Fuck,” Rayce cursed, but his eyes started to

lose focus.

“Rayce, look at me.” Peyton was terrified. What

in the hell was in that dart?

Ripley slumped to the ground. “Fuck, I’m

dizzy.”

Peyton was more terrified that every single one

of them lost their fear of the hellhounds standing
there and watching. Alarmed, Peyton looked up at
them, blankly watching the scene unfold. The
detachment these demons had turned Peyton’s
stomach.

The leader, one with eyes that stared at Peyton

with malevolence, smiled cruelly at him as he
jerked Rayce out of his arms.

“No, no!” Peyton scrambled on his knees as he

tried to make a grab for Rayce. The door was
slammed in his face.

Peyton shook the bars. “Rayce! Rayce!” he

screamed as Rayce was dragged a short distance
away from him to another room.

An anguished cry left his lips.
Whitley ran up to him. “You need to get back

before they turn on the electricity.”

Whitley pulled him back despite his protests,

both  of  them  clumsily  falling  into  the  middle  of
the  cell.  Peyton  could  barely  hear  the  electricity
fire  up  above  his  breathing.  His  chest  heaved  as

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Whitley wrapped his arms around him from
behind.

Then the sounds of a whip could easily be

heard, followed by Rayce’s grunts.

Peyton started shaking so badly, whimpering,

“Rayce.”

The sounds grew louder and then Rayce started

screaming.

Peyton lost it. “Rayce!” Peyton screamed, tears

tracking down his face.

He tried to pull away from Whitley, but the

Omega had a good hold on him. Malach walked
over unsteadily but was able to hold him down as
well.

“Cover his ears,” Malach shouted.
Whitley covered his ears, but he could still hear

his mate being tortured as they had him pinned.
Every scream and every cry, Peyton felt the lash to
his very own soul as he sat in his friend’s arms,
weeping. “Oh gods, oh gods,” he cried out.

Peyton choked out a sob. He was helpless to do

anything but sit there and endure, listening to his
mate be tortured.

Full Moon Gamma

Chapter Six

ayce moaned as the hellhound with the
sunglasses untied him. He fell to the ground,

unable to hold himself up.

Whatever drug they had shot him didn’t do shit

to alleviate the fire on his back from the whipping
he’d just received.

“Daegal, take him back to the cell,” the fucking

whip master ordered.

Rayce could only assume this was their leader.

The guy had been giving instructions to all the
rest.

Daegal, the hellhound with the scars and

sunglasses dragged him back before he uncharged
and opened the cell. His friends were lying on the
ground surrounding Peyton.

He was placed in the cell, then heard the sound

of the door slamming shut.

Peyton cried out, crawling over to him.
Rayce hurt so bad he cringed when Peyton even

reached to touch him. A sob escaped Peyton’s lips

Jackie Nacht

and Rayce wished he could do something to
comfort him, but if he so much as moved an inch,
he feared he would pass out from the pain.

Peyton’s hands trembled and wavered above

him. “I don’t know where to touch you. What can
I do to help?” Peyton’s voice sounded shaky.

“Just…”Rayce’s throat was painfully raw and

dry. “Lay next to me.”

Peyton’s breath hitched. “Okay, okay,” Peyton

said as he positioned himself on the cement next
to Rayce. He tentatively reached out and grabbed
a hold of his pinky finger.

Rayce watched as tears pooled in Peyton’s eyes,

then slowly escaped and dripped onto the floor
below. He fucking hated to see Peyton cry.

One by one, all the Alphas were pulled out of

the room and whipped just like Rayce. Each time
the doors opened, they were shot with a dart. The
sounds, gods, Peyton had to have heard him. The
screams of his friends unnerved him so bad that
Rayce couldn’t control his body, cringing as every
sound of pain reached them, the pain of his back
excruciating each time he did.

Rayce wasn’t sure how long it had been, but

after hours of torture, the hellhounds left. Moans
and groans filled the cell.

Rayce tried to sit up and help Malach and

Lukas, but Whitley was right there tending to

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them, Brendan ripping off his shirt to make a
pillow for Ripley.

Sitting up, Peyton watched over him, trying to

steady him. “I don’t want to touch you where
you’re injured, but you’re not steady.” Peyton
grabbed a hold of his arms.

Stomach rolling, Rayce wasn’t sure if this was

such  a  good  idea,  but  he  couldn’t  lay  there  all
night  and  wait  for  the  next  round  to  come
tomorrow.  He  had  to  get  up  and  get  moving,  no
matter how excruciating his back felt.

“Rayce, I think you should lie back down.”

Peyton stared at him in concern.

“No,” Rayce rasped. “We need to figure out

how to get the hell out of here.”

Malach moaned, shaking as he sat up. Gods, if

his back looked that bad. Deep gashes were
spread all over Malach’s skin, flowing with blood
from each move.

“He’s right,” Malach groaned as he stood up

and weaved before Whitley ran and caught him.
“Thanks,” he mumbled.

Whitley nodded while still maintaining his hold

on Malach’s elbow.

“I just…” Malach bent over and took a deep

breath before standing back up. “Need to look at
our surroundings. See if there is a weakness.”

Staring at Peyton, Rayce whispered, “Help me

up.” He hated being weak and needing help, but

Jackie Nacht

there was no way he was going to get on his own
feet without it.

Peyton grabbed his elbows and lifted him up.

Taking deep breaths, Rayce just stood there for a
minute until the room stopped spinning.

Lukas mumbled, “That drug is fucking us up,

but the immobility only lasted a few minutes. Just
long enough to grab someone and get the doors
closed. I don’t know what it is, but I’m dizzy as
hell and feel like I went on a weeklong bender.”

Malach nodded. “Yeah, my coordination failed

for  a  few  minutes.  It  must  burn  through  our
system fast because fuck if I didn’t feel that whip.
I’ve  got  a  headache,  but  the  drugs  seem  to  have
worn off quickly.”  Malach stumbled and Whitley
caught him.

“I got you, big guy.” Whitley held on.
Malach stared down at Whitley. “Thanks.”
Rayce shuffled over near the bars without

touching them. “Two guards at the end of the
hall.”

Malach came up next to him and Peyton. “No

windows and no other exit?”

“I don’t see any. I don’t see any cameras

either.” Rayce’s knees began to give out, but with
great effort, he locked them so he could stay
vertical. Peyton held onto him firmly. Staring
down at those piercing blue eyes, he had complete
trust that Peyton would not let him fall.

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Malach scrubbed a hand over his face. “I need

to think. The fuck if I can though.”

The hours ticked by. Rayce watched as

everyone sat, watching, waiting. Clarity was slow
to come, but it did. They had searched the ceiling
for weakness, the floors. They had dissected the
whole damn cell, but they came up with a whole
lot of nothing.

Then there was the fact that no food or water

was being brought to them and Rayce’s stomach
growled and twisted in discomfort. He was
positive food was not coming. It was a simple and
satisfying way of fucking with them.

Peyton continued to hold onto his hand. Gods, if

I could just get Peyton out of here. After a while, the
quiet seemed to cause more than one head to
slump. Eyelids began to droop, and soon, most of
them were out except Rayce and Malach. Peyton,
still holding his hand, was lying next to him on the
hard surface.

“The only way we’re going to get out of here is

when they open the doors,” Malach whispered
over to him.

“That wouldn’t be a problem if they didn’t

drug  us.  I  wonder  why  they  didn’t  drug  Peyton
and  Whitley?”  Rayce  reached  over  and  brushed
Peyton’s  dark  blond  hair  back.  Peyton  mumbled
before  falling  back  asleep.  Brendan  and  Ripley

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stared, awakened by the conversations while
Ripley held Brendan.

Lukas and Deacon woke up, standing and still

trying to find a way to escape. Rayce wanted to
tell them the place was locked tight and there was
no fucking way out of this cage.

“I don’t think they view them as a threat, or it

has  something  to  do  with  them  not  being  able  to
shift  yet.  They’d  be  able  to  tell  from  our  scent.
Peyton  and  Whitley  smell  human.  We  don’t.”
Malach got up and stretched, hissing.

“Did you have a check-in call with Moon

Compound?” Rayce knew their best chance of
survival was outside help.

Malach’s jaw flexed before he answered, “No.”
“We did,” Deacon groaned.
Malach eyes widened. “How?”
“Peyton. I thought it was one of his panic

attacks. He called Moon Compound panicking,”
Deacon answered.

Brendan sat up before he spoke, “They told you

if you had no communication in two hours to call.
I heard as we were coming in to the kitchen. Moon
Compound  will  just  think  we  made  contact  with
Malach  and  the  others.  At  least,  that’s  how  you
relayed  the  message  to  Peyton.  The  only  chance
we  have  is  if  by  chance  they  call  us  and  get  no
one.”

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Deacon rolled onto his stomach. “Fuck, you’re

right. I should have listened to him. I should
have…”

Malach went over and sat next to the young

guard. “You can’t blame yourself. I would have
done the same thing.”

Peyton rolled over, staring up at Rayce,

obviously woken up by the conversation.

“How did you know?” Rayce asked.
Peyton sat up and stared at him. “I couldn’t

breathe, I could smell blood. I just knew you were
in trouble.”

“You could smell blood?” Rayce glanced over

at Brendan who was shaking his head.

“We couldn’t,” Brendan said simply.
The words sunk into the room. Rayce stared

hard at Peyton. Did he…

Before he had time to let the thought sink in,

footsteps could be heard descending the stairs.
Rayce stood shakily. “Get behind me, Peyton.”

“But you’re…” Peyton began.
“Now.” Rayce clipped out as a bunch of

hellhounds made their way to the cell.

Guns were raised and he was prepared this

time, dodging the first dart. All of them were
running around the small room and it was fucking
pointless. After a few mere moments, all of the
shifters were hit in various places.

Jackie Nacht

The effects were almost immediate, his arms

and  legs  become  heavy.  Reasoning  was  slipping
and  as  hard  as  Rayce  tried  to  hold  a  thought,  it
seemed  to  slip  through  him  like  water  through
fingers.

The hellhounds came in and he expected to be

dragged away again, but they made a reach for
Peyton. Rayce tried to crawl and slumped to the
ground as Peyton screamed, being dragged away.

Rayce tried to crawl over to the door, but it was

slammed in his face.

There was no sound for quite some time, just

the small murmuring of voices. Malach weaved
over to him with Whitley. “You need to come with
us.”

Whitley all but dragged him. They held him,

Ripley and Brendan stumbled over to hold onto
Rayce’s legs.

“What are you doing?” Rayce slurred. The drug

was in him, but he could get to his fucking feet.

“We don’t want you rushing the bars with live

electricity running through them,” Whitley stated
with a grim face.

“I just…” Rayce started, but was cut off when a

horrific cry drifted down the hallway.

Rayce’s body reacted on instinct, trying to get

to his mate. He began wrestling as the guys held
him down.

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“You fucking let me go.” Rayce venomously

glared at Malach.

“And you’ll do what? Electrocute yourself. I

don’t fucking think so.”

Malach wrapped his whole body around him

from behind. He was surrounded as he cursed and
screamed. Even with the drugs already working
themselves out of his system, Rayce couldn’t fight
for long and he just had to sit there and listen to
his mate scream and scream and scream.

Never had Rayce cried in his life, even when he

saw  Peyton  for  the  first  time  and  knew  that  was
his  mate  who  had  been  mauled  by  hellhounds.
Hearing  the  shattered  cries  of  his  mate  being
tortured when there wasn’t a gods damn thing he
could do  about it ripped him apart. And once he
started, he couldn’t seem to stop. Deep sobs came
out of him as he heard Peyton screaming for them
to  stop.  Begging,  pleading  that  he  didn’t  know
anything.

Malach rubbed his chest. “We’ve got you, and

when Peyton gets back, we’ll help you take care of
him.”

Suddenly, Peyton’s screams stopped, and Rayce

feared the worst. “Oh gods.” He shook so damn
badly and the rest sat there, holding him in tense
silence.

A moment later, the hellhound Daegal came

carrying an unconscious Peyton back. Rayce was

Jackie Nacht

ready to tear his fucking throat out, but the guy
held steady, staring at the group, waiting. More
hellhounds came and they darted the group again.

Rayce had to watch uselessly as Peyton was

brought  back  in  and  placed  on  the  cement  floors
before  the  group.  His  hands  were  soaked  with
blood.  The  cell  door  closed  and  Rayce  tried  to
crawl  and  failed  the  first  few  times  to  reach
Peyton. After what seemed like an eternity, Rayce
finally made it over to his mate, dizzy as fuck.

Gently, he grabbed one of Peyton’s hands and

screamed in horror. Gone were his fingernails.
They had ripped his fingernails out. No wonder
his mate had passed out. Rayce scrambled until he
was able to hold his mate.

Malach came by his side, inspecting Peyton’s

hands. “We need to try and keep these as clean as
possible.”

Rayce ripped off his shirt. The back was torn to

shreds, but the front was cleaner than the
environment they were living in. Rayce ripped the
sleeves before wrapping them around Peyton’s
hand. As Rayce worked on his second one, Peyton
woke, crying out.

Rayce leaned over so Peyton could see. “I’m

here. I’ve got you. Malach and I are taking care of
your hands.”

Peyton sat silently crying as Malach finished

bandaging. Rayce leaned down and brushed his

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lips over Peyton’s. He didn’t know what to do and
just wanted to comfort him, know he was alive.

“I’m here,” Rayce repeated because words were

failing him.

Peyton continued to stare at him, silent as the

tears  fell  from  his  eyes  and  Rayce  continued  to
rock  him  in  his  arms,  praying  to  Geri,  their  God
and  creator  that  he  would  help  them  out  of  this
hell.

Jackie Nacht

Chapter Seven

eyton wasn’t sure how many days they had
been held captive, but it had to be many. He

had  been  beaten,  whipped;  there  wasn’t  an  inch
on his body that  wasn’t bruised. Hellhounds had
come  by  and  hosed  them  down  every  now  and
then in icy cold water to bathe them, offering them
an all new form of hell as they shivered for hours
after.

Peyton stared down at his wrapped hands as he

numbly  heard  Deacon  screaming  from  the  other
room. Over the course of their time there, his brain
coped  by  shutting  down  during  the  hours  in
which his friends screamed. It was that or lose his
fucking  mind.  Rayce  was  sitting  behind  him  in
much worse shape than he was.

Peyton’s stomach no longer protested; they had

gone too many days without food or water.
Everyone was so weak that they no longer had to
dart them anymore, although they still did

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sometimes. The fuckers. The amount of weight
they’d all lost was noticeable.

Oh, the Alphas had tried many times to rush

the door and failed. They all paid dearly for it.
Brendan and Peyton paid the worst, to the point
that their mates refused to try again.

Then there were the times that Ripley and

Brendan  were  taken  back.  They’d  made  the
mistake  of  trying  to  keep  Ripley  from  the  bars;
they  didn’t  do  it  again.  Even  now,  both  Brendan
and  Ripley  still  suffered  from  tremors  due  to  the
electrical  shocks  while  they  went  berserk  hearing
their  mate  tortured.  Their  eyes  were  wilder  and
Peyton  feared  all  the  progress  the  two  had  made
was  but  a  distant  memory  buried  under  the
sounds  of  their  mate’s  screams.  They  were
hanging on by a thread, but only because they had
each other. If one were lost…

Deacon was brought back and dropped into the

cell before the hellhounds left. Everyone crawled
over to Deacon, trying to help him as best they
could.

His nose was broken and bleeding while he

mumbled, “I don’t know. I don’t know.”

Whitley came up and brushed Deacon’s hair

back. “You’re with us again, Deacon.”

“I don’t know,” Deacon whispered.
Peyton knew the question that Deacon was

trying to answer. For some reason, the hellhounds

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were trying to get access to Moon Compound, find
a  way  to  get  inside.  The  guards  were  hammered
with this question and the hours they spent in the
room down the hall were endless, but not a single
one of them budged. Peyton, for all of living there
two  months,  knew  absolutely  nothing,  but  was
tortured  with  the  same  questions  anyway  as  was
poor  Whitley.  His  fingernails  had  been  removed
just as the rest of them and he had no information
whatsoever.  Guilt  weighed  heavily  on  him  for
bringing  the  Omega  in  on  this.  Brendan
continually  soothed  his  brother  even  though  the
situation was dire.

Sounds of footsteps coming down the stairs had

Peyton cringing in Rayce’s arms. Peyton watched
as Daegal walked toward them, carrying
something. This hellhound hadn’t laid a finger on
him and as far as he knew, no one else, but he was
the one that always brought them back to the cell.

Daegal stood before them for a moment before

glancing back at the door. He pushed buttons by
the wall before the electricity cut off on the bars,
then reached into the bag. He pulled out a gallon
jug of water and several bread rolls.

Peyton stared silently as Daegal squatted down

and pushed them through the bars. “Hurry. I need
that back now so hurry up.” Daegal pointed to the
jug.

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No one said a word as they scurried over to the

bread  and  ravenously  ate  it.  There  were  already
bites out of it as if it were scraps that Daegal stole,
but  Peyton  couldn’t  care  less.  Peyton’s  first
mouthful all but choked him as  he tried to get as
much in his mouth as possible.

The jug was passed to him and he was about to

suck it down when Rayce stopped him. “Slow
down or you’ll be sick.”

Peyton nodded before taking several small sips,

the  urge  to  gulp  almost  overwhelming,  but  he
knew his mate was right. Whitley helped Deacon
get  a  few  sips  in  and  held  Deacon’s  bread,
breaking off small pieces and feeding them to him.
The  jug  was  passed  several  times  before  Daegal
beckoned it back. Malach walked over to a pile of
bloody  pieces  of  clothing,  wetting  them  with  the
rest of the water before he handed the jug through
the bars to Daegal.

“Have that bread gone in an hour, or you won’t

have me bringing you anything ever again,”
Daegal growled before he grabbed the jugs and
left.

Everyone sat there in silence, slowly chewing

on  his  bread.  They  could  have  had  more  water
and  food,  but  even  Peyton  knew  that  small
amount of food was all his stomach could handle
right  now.  Malach  began  to  clean  all  of  their
wounds with the wet rags.

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“Wonder what he’s up to,” Lukas murmured

between bites.

“I don’t know,” Malach said as he chewed on

his  bread,  staring  at  where  Daegal  disappeared
while cleaning  a patch on Deacon. “Wonder how
he  got  the  scars  around  his  eyes?  Did  the
hellhounds do that to him, or was he in one of the
attacks  in  the  Upper  Peninsula  lately  and  get
hurt?”

Peyton had been in two of those attacks and

everything had happened so fast that he didn’t
recognize anyone.

Malach rubbed his brow. “I honestly don’t

know  if  we’ve  even  seen  the  hellhound  that  is
pulling all the strings. The guy you knew, Ripley,
hasn’t  shown  his  face.  That  guy  in  charge  of  the
beating  is  just  the  strength,  not  the  mind,  behind
the operation.”

Ripley was sharing his bread with Brendan. “I

think the guy I knew may be their leader. Fuck if I
can remember the guy’s name, though. Still
unbelievable that I can’t remember them having
me.”

Through the many nights of captivity, they

tried  to  piece  together  what  had  happened.  All
they knew was that Ripley unknowingly had been
bait  and  placed  in  a  situation  where  Moon
Compound  would  investigate  Ripley’s  past  and
bring someone down here to find out more about

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him. Hellhounds had been waiting for months for
Moon Compound guards to investigate. They
wanted in the compound bad, but for what
purpose?

“What do you think they want?” Peyton leaned

against Rayce, feeling the only source of heat in
their cell. The clothes they had worn when they
arrived were all dirty, torn and used for makeshift
bandages when someone came back in bad shape.

Everyone shook his head, no one had a clue.

That wasn’t comforting in the least. Peyton knew
that it was only a matter of time before they got
bored and just killed them.

Stomach twisting, Peyton groaned.
Rayce rubbed his belly delicately. “I think you

drank and ate too fast.”

The fact that Peyton hadn’t shifted was

becoming more and more apparent. He and
Whitley were extremely weak, the beating taking a
toll on them more than the rest. There was a slight
edge to healing when you were a shifter. The fact
that Peyton was still sporting the injuries from his
first arrival and the rest weren’t was a testament to
the advantage a shift could do.

Although the shifters had the edge, the injuries

made it a great effort to shift into their wolf. Even
Malach  needed  time  so  he  could  shift  when  they
rested  at  night.  Peyton  didn’t  even  know  that  a
shifter  couldn’t  shift  when  they  were  being

Jackie Nacht

tortured. That it took concentration. Hell, Peyton
should have known, wasn’t that why everyone
had to go to the compound…to learn.

Many times, Lukas had grumbled that if he

could shift into his wolf in that fucking room, he
would rip everyone’s damn throat out. However,
even their wolves had their limits. Shifting was
getting harder.

In fact, at night when it got too cold, that’s

when  everyone  tried  their  damndest  to  shift  to
keep Peyton, Whitley, Brendan and Ripley warm.
Resting  his  head  on  the  soft  fur  of  Rayce’s  wolf
was  the  only  thing  that  comforted  him  during
those dark days.

Malach finished his bread. “We need to rest and

get our strength up. No telling what we face
tomorrow.”

Peyton watched Malach shift, then Lukas. The

others followed and Peyton felt Rayce shift behind
him, the soft furs almost soothing against the whip
marks  on  his  back.  Whitley  whimpered  when  he
laid his head on Lukas and Malach curled around
him.  Brendan  and  Ripley,  in  human  form  since
they had no control of their feral wolf, came next
to  Rayce,  curling  around  each  other  and  Peyton.
He could feel his muscles relax just enough to fall
into an uncomfortable sleep.

Never knowing the time in this fucking place,

he woke uneasily as footsteps descended.

Full Moon Gamma

Cringing, knowing one of them was about to be
yanked from the room, he watched as two
hellhounds dragged, oh my gods…

“Avery,” Peyton whispered.
Rayce sat up. “Who?”
“Avery. He was part of my pack, the one that

was…” Peyton couldn’t finish. Avery was thrown
into the room, Ripley and Brendan catching him.
The small Omega was horribly malnourished with
glazed eyes, scars and needle marks marring his
arms.

Malach shifted back to human form and came

over, lips pursed, placing the Omega in his lap.
“Help me get him as comfortable as possible.
What do you know about him, Peyton?”

“My age, twenty. The last time I saw him was

the night…” Peyton looked over his shoulder at
Rayce, “…when you came. He’s an Omega, on the
smaller side, but not this small. I think…” Peyton
couldn’t finish.

Lukas did with a vicious growl. “That he’s been

here since then. He’s been here over two months.”

Avery seized in Malach’s arms and everyone

took action. They held him down to prevent him
hurting himself. Avery was in such bad shape that
Peyton wasn’t even sure he’d survive the night.
Peyton shook like a leaf while they tried their best
to take care of Avery. The seizure lasted what had

Jackie Nacht

to be a half hour before the Omega slumped in
Malach’s arms.

They didn’t even hear Daegal at the cell door;

he was just standing, watching. A small cup was
pushed through the bars and four pieces of bread.

Malach stared at Daegal menacingly. “What did

you do to him?”

Daegal growled, “Give him the food slowly and

the water.”

Standing, Lukas charged the bars and Daegal

stood his ground. The bars might not be live, but
they were thick and the hellhound was fucking
huge. “We can’t help him if we don’t know what
happened.”

Daegal turned to leave, but stopped. “You can’t

help him. How do you think they perfected the
drug that incapacitates you? Flush the cup.”
Daegal left.

Horrified, Peyton crept closer to Avery. They

had grown up together, been friends. When he
had lost his parents, Avery was one that reached
out. He was sweet and gentle.

Peyton grabbed a hold of one of Avery’s hands.

“Avery, can you hear me?”

Avery moaned noncommittally, but opened his

eyes. They were unfocused and dilated.

“That’s right; it’s me, Peyton.”
Avery worked his mouth silently before his

eyes drooped.

Full Moon Gamma

Sitting Avery up, Malach gestured to Lukas.

“Hand me the water and the bread. I’ll need you
to break it up while I get him to sip.”

Peyton hovered and soon Malach took pity on

him, giving him the job of holding the cup while
he fed Avery small pieces of the bread.

Rayce came over and steadied his shaking

hand, making sure the water didn’t spill. Peyton
stared up at Rayce. How much more fucked up can

this get?

Jackie Nacht

Chapter Eight

he more time passed, the more fucking
nervous Rayce became. Hope had dwindled

down  that  anyone  was  going  to  be  able  to  find
them  and  he  knew  they  had  been  here  long
enough  that  the  full  moon  had  to  be  within  the
next week.

The beatings continued and he glanced down at

his broken fingers. If he ever escaped this hellhole,
they might be permanently damaged since there
was no way to set them. Malach tried and
succeeded some, but without the splints…

Glancing over at his mate that was holding onto

Avery,  Rayce  feared  that  Peyton  wasn’t  going  to
make  it  much  longer.  He  had  lost  a  significant
amount  of  weight.  Even  with  Daegal  bringing
food  and  water  every  couple  of  days  since  the
first,  it  wasn’t  enough  calories  to  sustain  or  keep
them alive.

Rayce limped as he paced, trying to come up

with something that could get them out of there.

Full Moon Gamma

Moon  Compound  had  to  be  looking  right  now.
They  should  have  been  back  and  when  they
weren’t,  they  had  to  be  searching  the  area.
Problem was, that with the time, there was no way
they could possibly track them to this location.

A loud crack filled the air, causing Rayce to

jump and look down the hall. Deacon was in
there. The scream that traveled down the hallway
vibrated through his entire body. Malach and
Lukas ran next to him.

“What the fuck was that?” Rayce huffed out.

His chest heaved in panic as he stared back at
Peyton who was holding Avery with wide eyes.

The screaming grew louder as they brought

Deacon  back.  Hellhounds  around  them  were
laughing,  the  first  sign  of  any  reaction  he’d  seen
since  they  were  captured.  Malach  and  Lukas
growled  and  were  darted  just  as  fast.  Rayce
stepped  back,  knowing  that  shit  in  his  system
wasn’t going to help Deacon out.

Ruthlessly thrown in, Deacon continued his

screams and Rayce rushed over to him, “Fuck!” he
screamed.

A rusty, dirty bear trap was engaged around

Deacon’s ankle.

“Get it off! Get it off!” Deacon screamed,

reaching for it.

Blood oozed around the teeth of the trap.

“Ripley, I need help!” Rayce hollered.

Jackie Nacht

It took the effort of both of them, weak from

everything they’d been through, to get the trap to
open. Whitley and Peyton slid the leg free and the
trap snapped as Rayce and Ripley let it go.
Tossing it to the corner, Rayce assessed the
damage to the leg.

Fuck, Deacon’s leg was broken, the fractured

bone sticking out of the skin. Malach and Lukas
crawled over, a stream of juicy curses flowing out
of both of them.

Malach sat next to him before he glanced over

at him. “Go get what we have left of the rags.”

Rayce grimaced. “They’re not clean.”
Malach swallowed, before he whispered, “It’s

all we have.”

Oh, this was bad. Rayce stood and retrieved the

rags that were dry, but still covered in their blood.
He was so fucking pissed and frustrated, it took
everything in him to turn around and get his shit
together so he could be helpful to Deacon and not
a hindrance.

Rayce sat and heaved a breath as Malach shook

his head. “I don’t think I can set this. I don’t
think…”

The fact that their leader down here was at a

loss scared the shit out of Rayce.

Deacon was profusely sweating. “Malach,” he

rasped.

Rayce watched Malach stare at Deacon.

Full Moon Gamma

“It’s okay. It’s okay,” Deacon said to Malach.
Rayce had to lower his head so no one saw his

damn tears. If they didn’t get help soon, Deacon
wasn’t going to make it.

* * * *

They  were  desperate.  Peyton  sat,  arms  curled
around his legs as Malach and Rayce took care of
Deacon. As predicted, infection set in and Deacon
had a horrible fever. The daily beating had already
happened, Lukas and  Whitley were in the corner
resting as best as they could from the whippings,
Brendan fussing over his brother and  telling them
a bedtime story from memory.

Footsteps came and Daegal appeared in front of

them  with  his  jug  of  water  and  bread.  Peyton
didn’t  know  why  this  hellhound  was  helping
them  and  right  now,  he  didn’t  care;  he  was
desperate.

Standing, Peyton walked over to him. “Daegal,

you need to get us out of here.”

Daegal glanced at the stairway before staring

back at him. “I can’t.”

“You can come with us.” Peyton wasn’t sure

why this hellhound was helping him, but he knew
that Daegal couldn’t stay if he helped them escape.

Daegal turned off the electricity to the bars

before he leaned in. “I can’t. We are everywhere.

Jackie Nacht

They would easily track you, kill you. You
wouldn’t make it half a mile out of here. All I can
do is give you time until…” Daegal glanced back
at the stairs.

Until someone could rescue them. Hell, that

was a gamble and a long shot. “Then can you get
us something to clean Deacon with.”

Daegal shook his head. “They’ll smell meds.”
Peyton grabbed the bars, pleading. “Then just

some clean cloths and soap. Clean water.” Peyton
took a deep breath as tears welled up in his eyes.
“Please.”

They stared at each other for the longest time.

Peyton  wished  he  could  see  the  hellhound’s  eyes
just so he could figure out what he was thinking,
but  the  scars…  Everyone  speculated  what  was
underneath those shades and who  had done  it to
him.

Finally, Daegal nodded and handed him the jug

and bread. “I’ll be back in an hour with what you
need. Have that gone.” Daegal turned and swiftly
went up the stairs.

Turning, Peyton almost ran right into Rayce.

“How long were you there?” Peyton looked up.

“The whole time. I want to yell at you, but if it’s

the last thing I learn in this life, it’s to start treating
you as my equal. I’ve done a lousy job of that.”
Rayce grabbed a hold of him and embraced him.

Full Moon Gamma

Peyton shrugged. “We didn’t exactly meet on

equal footing and I haven’t made the best
decisions.”

“You made the decision of a mate who knew

his  mate  was  walking  into  danger.  I  still  don’t
know how you knew, but you did. When no one
listened,  you  did  what  you  had  to.  Maybe  those
around you need to listen to you a little more. Me
included.” Rayce pulled back and stared down at
him.  Rayce  leaned  down  and  place  the  gentlest
kiss to his lips, “I love you, Peyton,” he murmured
against his lips.

“I love you, too, Rayce.” Peyton returned the

kiss just as gently. Their bodies and faces couldn’t
take anything more but comfort.

Pulling back, Peyton lifted the jug and bread.

“Let’s go and get everyone fed.”

They ate in silence, waiting to see if Daegal

would  come  through  on  his  promise.  Malach
helped  feed  Deacon,  the  guard  shivering  with
fever.  Lukas  shifted  and  tried  to  give  Deacon  as
much heat as possible.

An hour later, Daegal came back with a

thermos and a towel with a bar of soap, Daegal
handed them through the bars to Peyton. “It’s the
best I could do.”

Peyton grabbed the stuff. “Thank you, Daegal.

Is there…” Peyton pressed his lips together. Of
course, Daegal wouldn’t get word to Moon

Jackie Nacht

Compound. They would kill the hellhound on
sight. They would never even believe the demon.

Peyton went back and Malach began cleaning

the wound. Deacon hissed in agony. The visible
dirt was removed, but Peyton knew the real threat
was the unseen, the bacteria that Peyton knew was
festering in the wound. Even Deacon being a
shifter wasn’t immune to an infection this severe.

Once they did the best they could, Peyton

handed back the materials to Daegal before he ran
out of there.

“He’s risking a lot to help us,” Malach

murmured. “I wonder what his motive is.”

Peyton had his theories, but couldn’t know for

sure. Whatever his purpose, Daegal is different than

the rest and by the scars on his face, it seems he had

paid for it.

Going over to Rayce, he sat beside his mate,

soon feeling a kiss to the back of his head. He’d
spent a lot of energy in the last hour and fatigue
was setting in. He just needed to close his eyes for
a moment.

Hollers woke Peyton. He tried to orient himself

to  what  was  happening  when  he  felt  his  body
being jerked. He was being dragged out of the cell
and  down  the  hall.  He  knew  it  was  pointless  to
fight,  but  that  instinct  was  still  ingrained  in  him
and hadn’t been beaten out of him…yet.

Full Moon Gamma

He was about to bite one of the bastards when

he saw Rayce being dragged behind him by two
more hellhounds. “No!” Peyton screamed.

Rayce went willingly, almost dragging the

hellhounds with him. Peyton’s breath hitched.
Rayce was just trying to get to him.

They were pulled into the room where they

were tied up by rope to the ceiling, facing each
other. Peyton choked out a sob. He couldn’t watch
this.

They began whipping Rayce harshly, and

Peyton screamed, “Stop, please stop.”

Peyton begged and pleaded, but they kept on

going. Rayce, gods, Rayce tried his damndest not
to scream, but after the tenth strike, the groans
began, then the screams. Peyton felt like his whole
body and mind were breaking.

“Rayce,” he whimpered.
A hellhound walked into the room, raising his

hand and the lashing ceased. Peyton stared as the
guy  sat  casually  in  a  chair  against  the  wall.  The
hellhound  slowly  undid  his  tie.  He  was
impeccably dressed, like he had just spent the day
at  the  office.  Designer  suit.  He  crossed  his  leg
before he lit up a cigar and puffed out a cloud of
smoke. Peyton’s stomach rolled.

“I want access to Moon Compound.” The

hellhound rolled his cigar casually, staring down
at it.

Jackie Nacht

Peyton didn’t know any other access than

through the guard entries.

“Any alternative entrance will do.” The

hellhound stared at his cigar as Peyton started
shaking uncontrollably.

“I don’t know,” Peyton whispered.
“Pity. What about you, guard?” The hellhound

brought the cigar to his lips and stood.

“No fucking clue,” Rayce gritted out.
“A weakness to Moon Compound?”
Rayce snarled, “There is no weakness.”
The hellhound leaned forward and grabbed a

hold of Rayce’s sweaty hair. “There is always a
weakness.” The hellhound nodded and Peyton
screamed as white-hot pain lashed across his back.
He hadn’t been ready for it.

Peyton gritted his teeth, trying not to scream

anymore, but as flesh ripped and tore, the sounds
of Rayce screaming for him, the pain became more
than he could bear. Something broke in him like it
always did in this room. No matter how hard he
tried to stay silent, he screamed and begged.

Rayce was screaming, “He doesn’t know

anything! Stop! Peyton!”

He was still crying out even when the whipping

was  long  over.  Peyton  felt  the  blood  on  his  back
ooze  like  hot  lava  into  the  waist  of  his  ragged
pants.  He  was  gasping  for  breath,  sweat  pouring
down his forehead.

Full Moon Gamma

“Peyton. Peyton. Look at me.” Rayce’s hoarse

voice penetrated the buzzing through his own
ears.

Peyton’s head rolled as he tried to steady it so

he could fucking focus on Rayce’s voice. Finally,
their eyes connected, and Rayce whispered, “Stay
with me.”

The rope holding Peyton released his wrists

and  he  fell  in  a  heap  on  the  ground.  Rayce  was
released and fell, the two now face to face on the
floor. Rayce went to reach for him, but was pulled
up  and  led  away.  Peyton  screamed  as  he  was
roughly picked up. My back, oh gods my back. It was
completely  shredded  from  the  whip.  They  took
him back to the cell. He was thrown in on top of
Rayce, feeling the sticky wet ooze of Rayce’s blood
on  his  chest  and  stomach  and  Rayce  hollered  in
pain.  With  great  effort,  he  rolled off  as  fast  as  he
could only to fall to the rough cement on his back.
Peyton silently screamed in agony.

Hands grabbed him and rolled him onto his

stomach. He dry heaved as the pain all but
consumed him.

“Peyton, can you hear us? Peyton?” Lukas said

in a gentle tone.

With difficulty, Peyton swallowed. “I need…”

Peyton’s throat was raw and sore. He could barely
say the last word. “Rayce.”

Jackie Nacht

“Rayce, man, I hate to do this to you, but I’m

going to move you a little closer to him,” Lukas
murmured.

“Do it, Luke. I need to be by him,” Rayce huffed

out.

Peyton heard the groan and he whimpered that

Rayce  was  in  so  much  pain  and  then  Rayce  was
lying  there  next  to  him.  He  felt  a  hand  clumsily
reach  his  and  locked  on  with  what  little  strength
he  had  left.  He  held  onto  Rayce’s  hand  like  a
lifeline.

Rayce’s lips trembled before he whispered, “I’m

so sorry. I failed you.”

“You didn’t fail me. We’re going to get out of

this. I love you.”

Rayce mouthed I love you, but didn’t say

anything.  Peyton  saw  the  doubt  in  Rayce’s  eyes
before  he  closed  them.  The  pain  was  so  intense
that  Peyton  blessedly  followed  him  into  the
darkness.

Full Moon Gamma

Chapter Nine

he next couple days had been eerily quiet. No
one came down. The beatings ceased and

Rayce began to fear that they might have been left
down there to starve and die. Ripley was pacing in
irritation with Brendan snapping at them all. Fuck,
they had been down there almost four weeks.

Deacon was severely ill. Not only did he have

the fever, but also the wound itself was oozing
puss and beginning to smell. They were desperate.
Hell, all of them were in rough shape. They all
were sick and starving.

Daegal appeared at the bottom of the steps, and

Rayce stood up while Daegal approached. Malach
was right next to him.

Daegal turned off the electricity to the bars

before  handing  over  a  couple  jugs  of  water  and
bread,  and  fuck,  he  could  smell  meat  in  that  bag
Daegal  was  carrying.  Rayce  watched  as  Daegal
went  to  leave,  came  back,  then  walked  away
before finally coming back. What the hell?

Jackie Nacht

“Full Moon is in two days. They’re planning

something.”

Daegal turned to leave again. It didn’t escape

Rayce’s notice that Daegal no longer said we.

Malach called out, “Wait, what?”
Daegal stared at the ground, grinding his teeth.

“You need to be at your strongest. The pre-
shifters…I don’t think they are going to make it.”
Daegal looked up and focused on Peyton. Rayce
wanted to protest, hell, rip off those sunglasses so
he could see how the hellhound was looking at his
mate. “I’m sorry,” Daegal rasped to Peyton before
he ran up the stairs.

They all circled up and opened the bag to stare

down at what had to be a couple pounds of deli
meat and several loaves of bread. They passed the
meat around, only partially enjoying the meal, lost
in their thoughts of what Daegal said to him.

Malach was the first to speak. “I think we need

to try and change Whitley, Avery and Peyton.”

Everyone stared at Malach in silence.
“If Daegal thinks they won’t make it, I think we

need to change them.”

Rayce couldn’t even utter a word, but Lukas

sure did. “We’re not even sure it will work. Avery
is still having seizures, he’s completely out of it.
Whitley and Peyton are malnourished and
injured. Should we risk it based on the words of a
hellhound?”

Full Moon Gamma

Lukas voiced what Rayce was thinking. “He’s a

hellhound that has been risking his own life to
bring us food and water.”

“He feels,” Peyton said softly.
“What?” Malach asked.
Peyton nibbled on a piece of meat. “He has a

soul, emotions, but he doesn’t know how to use
them. They’re foreign to him.”

Rayce eyed Peyton curiously. “How would you

know that?”

Shrugging, Peyton answered, “I can just tell.

I’ve always had a…sixth sense about these things.
I  could  always  tell  when  Colin  was  worried  or
upset  or  even  you.”  Peyton  stared  at  him.  “I  can
always feel what you feel. I never understood why
you pushed me away when you found out about
the  results  of  the  blood  test  when  I  knew  you
loved me.”

“Gamma,” Malach shook his head. “Rare and

there aren’t that many of you. I know a couple
enforcers.”

Peyton shook his head. “I’ve always been

thought of as an Omega. This sense wasn’t always
so strong, but after each attack, it…deepened.”
Peyton frowned.

Malach nodded. “It’ll get stronger the closer to

your shift. Most Gammas aren’t found until they
are in their twenties because they are mistaken for

Jackie Nacht

an Alpha or Omega. Their gifts come out later,
maybe from finding Rayce? I don’t know.”

Rayce reached over and grabbed Peyton,

bringing him closer and holding him.

Standing, Malach paced. “I think we need to

give it a try and bite them.”

Rayce’s heart sank. This was something special

between mates. Not something to be forced while
they were both desperate. Regret filled him that he
hadn’t done it the first chance he got when Peyton
had healed at Moon Compound.

Peyton turned in his arms. “Hey.” Peyton

reached up and gently touched his swollen cheek.

“I just…” Rayce got up and pulled Peyton away

from the others as far as he could in the cramped
dwelling.

Rayce stood there, embracing Peyton, lips as

close to Peyton’s ear as possible, “I just wanted it
to be special, not in this shit hole.” Rayce rested
his head on Peyton’s shoulder.

“Then don’t make it about them. Shut out the

world around you. It’s just you and me here. We
know  we’re  mates;  we  love  each  other,  and  they
can  never  take  that  away  from  us.”  Peyton’s
fingers  threaded  through  his  hair,  and  Rayce
moaned.

Rayce pulled back to stare at Peyton’s blue eyes

before he leaned down and kissed him. Thrusting
his tongue, Peyton eagerly accepted and deepened

Full Moon Gamma

the kiss. They couldn’t even fucking hold each
other since their backs were still sore from the
whipping, probably infected.

Rayce moved, kissing, licking and sucking on

Peyton’s lobe, then made his way to Peyton’s
neck. “Are you sure about this?” Rayce whispered
against Peyton’s skin.

Peyton grabbed the back of his head. “I’m

sure.”

Rayce bit down gently. Gods, there wasn’t

much  fat,  Peyton  had  lost  so  much  weight  and
Rayce feared he’d hurt him. He felt a slight sting
to his own shoulder and wanted to weep that this
was how they mated. In a fucking dirty cell, out of
desperation. He had hoped that he could make it
special  for  Peyton,  take  his  time,  make  love  to
him…  Pulling  back,  Rayce  licked  his  lips.  Peyton
stared up at him, lips red with his blood before he
watched Peyton lick them clean.

Now, they had to wait. Would it even work in

such  a  short  time  and  with  them  all  weak  and
hurt?  It  was  a  guessing  game.  They  really  were
gambling  with  Peyton’s  life,  and  the  thought
terrified Rayce.

Glancing over, he watched as Malach bit

Whitley and Lukas bit Avery. Turning, he leaned
his head down to kiss Peyton, holding him as
tenderly as he could.

Jackie Nacht

“This is going to work. I know it,” Peyton

murmured into his chest.

“I hope you’re right.” Rayce rested his cheek on

top of Peyton’s head. His mate had been right so
far; he just had to be right when Peyton’s life was
on the line.

As  the  time  drew  near  for  the  full  moon,  two
things  became  very  clear  to  Rayce.  One,  that  no
one  could  so  much  as  go  near  Brendan  without
Ripley  wanting  to  tear  them  to  shreds,  and  two,
Peyton  was  the  only  one  showing  signs  of  a
change.  Avery  and  Whitley  weren’t  sick  like
Peyton  had  become  only  hours  after  Rayce  bit
him.

Deacon was in horrible shape, his wound

smelling  awful,  signs  of  septicemia.  He  didn’t
have  much  longer  and  all  they  could  do  was  sit
there  and  watch  him  die.  They  had  grown
desperate, trying to get to the switch, trying to get
through  the  roof,  which  was  a  damn  block  of
stone.  There  was  no  getting  out  of  this  fucking
hellhole.

Malach sat next to him and Peyton. “I don’t

know what they have planned, so I have no idea
how to come up with a solution to what we’re
about to face.”

Rayce grimaced. “Whatever it is, we better

figure it out without those two shifting,” Rayce

Full Moon Gamma

jerked his head toward Whitley and Avery. Avery
lay still after having yet another seizure earlier in
the day.

“Lukas and I aren’t their mates. It’s the mate

bond that pulls the wolf out early. I knew it was a
stretch biting them, but I had hoped.”

Rayce rubbed Peyton’s arms as he held his

mate. Peyton silently nodded as if lost in thought
before he spoke up. “I don’t know. It’s going to
take time for me to shift, and even then, will I be
able to control my wolf?”

“Your brother did with his mate. Rayce can

help you.” Malach handed them what was left of
the bread. They still hadn’t seen a hellhound since
Daegal visited them with the warning.

Peyton nodded. “If he’s with me. Who knows

what they have planned?”

Fuck! If we only knew. The protein had helped,

but it wasn’t near enough to sustain them. Rayce
watched Ripley pace, scratching at his arms,
gripping his hair. The feral was starting to lose it
with each passing minute.

“I think we’re close,” Lukas stepped closer and

murmured while eyeing Ripley.

Up above, several sets of footsteps pounded

and everyone focused on the ceiling. Voices and
noise began to filter down to them. The noise grew
in volume.

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Rayce held Peyton tighter as his breathing

became erratic. He had to calm the fuck down. If
he didn’t have his senses, Rayce would be no use
to Peyton.

It wasn’t long before the noise became

deafening even from a level below. Dust fell on
them as the whole building vibrated from the
hellhounds above.

Ripley snarled at the ceiling.
Rayce couldn’t even hear the hellhounds due to

the noise; he just saw them as they approached the
bars, disengaging the electricity. They double shot
Ripley  and  Brendan  before  they  shot  the  rest  of
them.  Rayce  slumped  to  the  side  and  Peyton
turned, kneeling above him and staring at him in
horror  before  he  was  dragged  away.  Rayce  felt
himself being hauled away and noticed that all of
them were being taken upstairs. His head drooped
from  the  drug  and  he  was  pants-pissing  terrified
that he couldn’t protect Peyton or the rest as they
drew near the thunderous noise.

Chanting and hollering became painful to

Rayce’s  ears  as  they  were  dragged  into  the  open
area  where  the  hellhounds  hauled  them  into  a
massive  cage  and  dropped  them  to  the  floor
before locking them in.

Peyton slid closer, grayish face sick and sweaty.

“Rayce.” Peyton pulled him to a sitting position
and he finally got a decent view. There were

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hundreds of hellhounds in makeshift stands that
surrounded the huge cage they were in. Cash was
being passed around as if they were betting on
tonight’s entertainment. Oh fuck…they were.

Wires came down from the rafter and Rayce

would bet his life that these bars were just as live
as the ones had been downstairs.

Rayce turned to see Malach roll over to his

hands and knees, trying to shake off the drug.
Peyton helped Rayce to stand, putting his arm
over Peyton’s shoulder.

The impeccably dressed hellhound that came to

their  torture  sessions  walked  in  and  the  room
silenced  immediately.  Rayce  watched  as  they
made room for the bastard, front and center of the
cage.  The  hellhound  reached  into  his  suit  jacket
and pulled out a thick wad of cash.

The fucker smiled at them before he handed the

cash over to the hellhound next to him, “Twenty
thousand on the ferals.”

The place erupted in a roar.

Jackie Nacht

Chapter Ten

his couldn’t be happening. This couldn’t be…
Peyton didn’t even feel like he was in his body

as his gaze roamed over his friends. The noise was
but a buzz in his ears as he saw Ripley and
Brendan embracing. Ripley was visibly shaking as
he gritted, “Fuck you!” Spit flying from his mouth
as he cursed at the hellhounds.

Brendan was repeating, “Oh gods. Oh gods.

They want us to kill them. Rip, I can’t. My brother.
We’ll hurt each other!”

Ripley grabbed Brendan’s face and they stared

at one another, eyes wide in panic.

Peyton could feel the terror, anguish and

despair pour off them.

Turning, he saw Malach instructing Lukas and

Rayce. “We’ll use the bars to take them down. A
quick shock may knock them out for a while.
Peyton, Peyton!”

Peyton could not seem to come out of his fog as

he stared down at Deacon who was being dragged

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over to the side by Whitley. Whitley stood in front
of Avery and Deacon, a human guarding against
ferals. Fuck and they were pitting brother against
brother.

Peyton was shaken and he dazedly looked up

at Rayce. “Peyton! Are you with us?” Rayce
stroked his hair back. “We need you to come over
by Whitley, give you time to shift.”

Peyton just continued to stare, a tumult of

emotions rolling over him and then he crashed.
White-hot pain began from the insides before
exploding to the surface.

“Aww fuck! Peyton’s starting!” Rayce picked

him up as his stomach seized.

“Get him over there. Watch him as best as you

can,” Malach ordered.

Rayce put him down. “Hold on, Peyton, just

breathe. I’ve got you.”

Peyton gripped onto Rayce’s shoulders, nail

less fingers digging into the flesh. “Help them.”

“I am, by getting my mate through his change

so it’s four against two. Now, I need you to block
out this shit and focus on my eyes and your wolf.”
Rayce leaned over him and Peyton held on for
dear life, staring up at those violet eyes.

Gasping, screaming, Peyton felt like his whole

body was turning inside out. Bones broke and he
screamed. He could hear a howl close by and
Rayce broke eye contact, turning to see what was

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going on. Peyton didn’t have the strength as, oh
fuck, his legs broke, shifted and then his arms.

“I’m here, Peyton. You can do it. That’s right,

love, you got this. Just focus on me. I love you,”
Rayce stared back at him as he repeated over and
over to him even though all hell was breaking
loose around them.

Fur grew and it felt like his flesh was being

burned. The pain started to ebb and Rayce shifted
above him in an instant and lunged away. Peyton
rolled and unsteadily got to his paws.

Malach and Lukas were a beautiful chocolate

color  while  Rayce  was  black  and  they  were
fighting  fiercely  with  what  had  to  be  Ripley.
Ripley was massive, out of control, frothing at the
mouth  as  he  was  standing  above  Brendan  who
must  have  taken  a  hit  to  the  bars.  There  were  no
signs  of  blood  on  Brendan,  but  Peyton  didn’t
exactly have time to examine him.

He had to assess the situation, figure out how

they  could  put  Ripley  down  without  actually
killing him. Shifting his gaze quickly, Peyton saw
that  Whitley  was  standing  in  front  of  Avery  and
Deacon, fists clenched. Courage beyond compare.
He  was  also  talking…to  Brendan,  even  without
Brendan  being  conscious,  Whitley  was  talking  to
him.

“Brendan, it’s your brother, Whit. Come on,

remember me and your mate. Remember.

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Concentrate. It’s your brother Whit.” Whitley’s
voice grew hoarse from shouting over the noise.

Peyton thought it was smart, trying to get

Brendan to see them as family, familiar and not a
threat. Gods, he prayed it worked, that Brendan
would be somewhat lucid so they could focus on
the bigger problem.

Ripley was another matter as he went for

Malach  with  a  growl.  Rayce  sidestepped  and
knocked the feral into the cage bars and the feral
went  down,  shaking  his  large,  furry  head  before
he  growled  menacingly.  Fuck,  did  that  juice  him
up more.

Peyton went for Ripley’s flank and got a bite to

his ass. He yelped and jumped out of the way as
Rayce knocked Ripley into the bars again. Lukas
jumped in and got Ripley one more time to the
bars and the feral finally went down.

Malach shifted, standing naked over them.

“Just keep trying to knock them out. Do what you
have to. If we start losing…” Malach grimaced
before he looked down at Rayce and Lukas in
their shifted form. “You know what to do.”

The hellhounds were booing them as the ferals

remained out cold, then Ripley started to come to.
Malach shifted. But it didn’t escape Peyton’s
notice that the trained guard took way longer than
he should. Weak and injured…how long before none of

them would be able to shift even with the full moon?

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Ripley lunged at Lukas, getting a hold of his

flank with his teeth, then Rayce and Peyton were
all over Ripley. Ripley jumped away and snarled,
and Malach came around and knocked Ripley’s
ass into the bars again. The feral went down again
and then Brendan came to.

Brendan was definitely more calculating than

Ripley. His wild eyes trying to find a weakness.

Whitley stepped forward. “Brendan, it’s your

brother Whit. You know me!” Whitley pleaded.

Brendan’s eyes flickered with understanding

and Peyton hoped, but then, before he could even
breathe in relief, Brendan lunged at his own
brother.

Peyton took off and was all over Brendan, but

some of the damage had been done. Whitley had a
deep bite wound to his side, groaning and sliding
back  to  the  others,  trailing  a  line  of  crimson.  The
hellhounds  applauded  and  laughed.  Peyton
snarled  at  them  before  turning  his  attention  back
on Brendan who stood over his mate, growling. It
was  a  small  relief  that  at  least  Brendan  didn’t  go
after his mate.

Rayce, Peyton and Malach attacked as one and

Brendan was down once again.

It went on forever, hours. Peyton was so sore

and in such agony, he could barely stay on his
paws. Rayce was fierce and protective of him, and
they finally had to go in shifts to get rest. They

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were  all  seriously  injured  now.  All  of  them
sporting deep wounds and bites, even Avery and
Whitley.  Brendan  had  wounds  from  them  and
Ripley.  Peyton  wasn’t  as  severely  hurt  as  the
guards,  but  he  was  just  praying  to  the  creator,
Geri,  that  first  light  of  day  would  come  shine
through those fucking industrial doors.

Finally, as the first ray of light slipped through

the cracks of the windows, Ripley and Brendan
shifted.

Peyton screamed as his human side took over

and he slumped naked on the floor below. No one
was moving. Everyone was silent, even the
hellhounds.

“Whoever hasn’t bled to death by tonight, kill

them. Those who have work, go. Renulf, take a
horde and patrol the city.” The leader of the
hellhounds stood and walked out.

The other hellhounds followed in his wake and

Peyton didn’t even have the energy to lift his head
when the door slammed and they were all alone.

There was no moaning or groaning, which

scared the hell out of Peyton. Am I the only one left
alive? Peyton screamed as, with everything he had,
he  pulled  himself  up  to  all  fours.  The  morning
after  a  first  shift  usually  landed  your  ass  in
medical  for  three  days.  With  what  his  body  had
been  through  plus  a  first  shift,  he  probably
shouldn’t even be alive.

Jackie Nacht

He crawled over to where Rayce was, his

mate’s naked flesh was covered in deep bite
wounds and blood. He had fought ferociously for
hours. Peyton’s lips trembled as he drew near,
seeing that Rayce was shallowly breathing.

“Rayce?” Peyton lay down next to his mate.

“Rayce?” Peyton sobbed out.

Time passed and no one moved. Hope seemed

to diminish.

The sounds of a door opening had Peyton

grimacing as he lifted his head.

Daegal came stumbling in without his shirt on,

hands covered in blood. He fell on his knees once
before he righted himself and made his way to the
cage, undoing the electrical. Bloody hands worked
the lock and the thing disengaged.

Leaning on the bars, Daegal made his way in,

head turning, searching.

Peyton called, voice weak and shaky, “Daegal.”
Coming over, Daegal pulled Peyton to his feet,

grimacing. “We need to move.”

Daegal began dragging Peyton out of the

industrial building and Peyton protested, “The
others. My mate.”

“Are too injured to make the hike into town.”

Daegal growled before he continued, “If we hurry
and get help, we can save them.”

“My mate,” Peyton began. He couldn’t leave

Rayce behind.

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Interrupting him, Daegal spoke softly, “Need

you to run for help.”

The words sunk in, and Peyton got his ass in

gear,  taking  one  last  look  over  his  shoulder  at
Rayce  lying  in  the  cage.  Would  he  ever  see  him
again? Fuck yes, he would. He was determined to
get  help  for  his  mate  no  matter  how  broken  his
body was.

The sharp pain shooting up his leg as he

walked almost made him collapse.

Daegal stopped at the side of the building,

pulling  out  a  pair  of  sweats,  shoes  and  gloves.
“You’ll  need  to  cover  your  injuries  as  best  you
can.” Daegal leaned against the building, blowing
out a breath.

How did Daegal get injured?
“They’ll smell my blood.” Peyton winced and

almost vomited as he put the gloves on, the feeling
of his nail-less fingers against the cotton was just
one of the many things he could barely handle
right now.

“They won’t, and if those fuckers would have

been paying attention last night instead of betting,
you wouldn’t be standing here right now. They
would have killed you.” Daegal turned to look at
him with his sunglasses on.

“What are you talking about?” Peyton pulled

his shirt over his head, crying out in pain.

Jackie Nacht

Daegal got in his face. “Quiet! They won’t find

you because you have no scent. Not human or
wolf. When you shifted, you disappeared. I can’t
even smell the blood you’re drenched in.”

“No scent?” Peyton gasped as he leaned against

the building for support.

Handing him boots, Daegal shook his head.

“No scent. Is that what happens after your first
change?”

Daegal is asking me? He didn’t have a fucking

clue. “Why have you been helping us?”

It had been the question they all wondered.
Grabbing him, Daegal ripped off his sunglasses.

Scars riddled the face as if someone had tried to
claw Daegal’s eyes out. Peyton expected to see
serious damage to the eyes, but what he came face
to face with was bright sea foam green eyes.

Daegal snarled in his face, “He did this to me.

He…infected…me,” Daegal growled deeply.

Peyton stared and realization dawned on him.

All along, they thought Daegal was injured from
one of them. Not fucking so.

Peyton, pissed beyond reason, got right back in

Daegal’s face. “You bit him,” Peyton snarled.

Daegal shoved him away and Peyton fell to the

ground. The hellhound was grabbing his head and
his bare chest and that’s when Peyton noticed the
deep scar where the hellhound’s chest was, like he
had tried to dig his own heart out.

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Shocked, Peyton stared up at him. Daegal was

the one who bit Oren, the reason why Peyton
could feel emotions from the hellhound was
because he had somehow taken a piece of Oren’s
soul. Daegal had a soul. That’s why Oren was sick.
He was splintered. Peyton just didn’t think this; he
knew it.

“Do you know what it’s like to…feel?” Daegal

spat out. “Do you know the things I’ve done
before? What I’ve been? I don’t want this inside
me.” Daegal dug at his chest, injury reopening.

Peyton sat there as Daegal began to lose it. “We

need to get moving if we’re going to save them.”
Peyton stood, agony in every inch.

Daegal stopped and gasped. “I want him.”
Peyton wasn’t even going to negotiate. “We

need to move.”

“If I help, I get sanctuary at Moon Compound.”

Daegal’s chest was heaving as he picked up
another sweatshirt, putting it over his damaged
chest.

“Not my call.”
“Then make it your call by telling them I know

what the hellhounds’ plans are. I’ll give
information so I can have him.”

“Oren.” Peyton stepped away from the

building. “And you can’t just have him. It doesn’t
work that way.”

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100

“Oren?” Daegal stared at him with those pale

green eyes. Creepy.

“Your mate’s name is Oren,” Peyton said in

frustration.

“Let’s move. We don’t have much time.”

Daegal took off.

Peyton’s body screamed as he followed,

thoughts of saving Rayce giving him strength.

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101

Chapter Eleven

he trek was arduous, and Peyton wasn’t even
sure where they were heading. “Where are we

going?”

“To a place you can call for help.” Daegal was

having as much trouble as him.

“The building where we were held didn’t have

a phone? You don’t have a cell?” Peyton gasped.

Stopping and bending over, Daegal breathed

heavily before shaking his head. “No outlets at the
industrial building in case someone escaped. Cell
phones aren’t permitted to bottom feeders like
me.”

Peyton could barely stay standing. He stared at

Daegal’s sweatshirt, noticing blood seeping
through. “You’re injured.”

Daegal stared at him. “There were two guards

that needed to be taken care of to get you free. We
need to keep moving.”

Taking off, Peyton jogged after Daegal, biting

his lip as the pounding reverberated through his

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102

body.  They  only  made  it  another  quarter  mile
before  he  collapsed,  the  side  of  his  face  landing
hard  in  the  wild  grass.  “Get  up,  get  up,”  he
murmured  to  himself,  praying  to  Geri  that  his
body didn’t give up on him now. He was so close,
for Rayce and for the others. He just had to get his
damn feet under him.

A pitiful whimper escaped him as Daegal

helped him up. He stood, swaying and locked his
jaw in determination. “Let’s…” He gasped.
“Move.”

Starting at a walk, he gradually picked up

steam and soon, he could see a building in the
distance.

“We need to be careful,” Daegal called back.
They weaved their way past the homes filled

with humans.

Daegal stopped, resting with his hands on his

knees. “There’s a lot of hellhounds in the city.
They own homes, work jobs and are on campus.”

“Where?” Peyton knew if he sat down, he

wasn’t getting back up.

Frowning, Daegal answered, “I don’t know.”
“Where are we?” Peyton huffed out.
“Adjacent to Michigan State Campus.” Daegal

stood.

“We need to get out in the open. In front of

humans, blend.”

“Bad idea.” Daegal shook his head.

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103

“Only chance. I’m going to need to steal a

phone or find a building to call in.”

“We’re on campus. You know how many

humans there are?” Daegal argued.

“I know how to blend in, you asshole. You’re

easy to spot.” Peyton was through with this
conversation and walked to the nearest college
building, which had Sports Medicine in front of it.

There were several college students out front

playing with a Frisbee, laughing. Peyton
surveyed, got closer and spied several unattended
backpacks on the ground near the players. He
didn’t even so much as slow down as he scooped
up the nearest one and walked around the corner.

Scanning to make sure he wasn’t followed, he

shakily rifled through the bag until…Peyton
almost wept in relief that he found a phone.

Daegal rounded the corner, throwing a jacket at

him. “They’re here. You need to move.”

Daegal took off in the other direction and

Peyton panicked for a moment before a calm
determination flowed over him. He picked up the
jacket and put it on, putting the hood up to cover
his hair and dirty face. He hiked the backpack
over his shoulder before walking out in the open.

Ducking his head, Peyton stared at his

surroundings under the cover of his hood as he
dialed up the number he had memorized before
this whole fucking nightmare began.

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104

After ringing twice, someone picked up.

“Hello.”

A hellhound came right up next to him and

grabbed a student he’d just passed before moving
in  the  opposite  direction.  “I  need  Elder  Lewis,”
Peyton  whispered.  He  feared  that  a  hellhound
nearby  would  recognize  his  voice  and  grab  him,
and he was so close to getting help.

“One moment,” the male responded over the

phone, the line clicked twice before he heard the
voice that damn near made him break down right
then and there.

“Lewis.”
“Sir,” Peyton whispered as another hellhound

passed.  He  would  go  into  the  central  part  of
campus.  Could  he  hide  in  the  center  of  humans?
Be  safe?  Would  it  risk  the  others?  He  had  to
chance it.

“Peyton, is that you?”
“Yes.” His breath hitched a little as another

hellhound sat on a bench he was passing. He
swiftly glanced over and saw that Daegal was
walking parallel to him a hundred yards away.

“Are you safe?”
“No.” Peyton’s voice held firm as he felt a

presence behind him, but then it was gone.

“We’re tracking you and already have a team in

Lansing. Do you have any idea where you are?”

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105

Gods, they were in the city. They had to be

close. “Campus,” was all Peyton said as he saw
three hellhounds hot on Daegal’s tail.

Peyton heard Elder Lewis shouting orders,

telling them to call the team that was, thank-fuck,
nearby. “Stay on the line so we can track you.”

They hadn’t seen him, smelled him. How, when

he was within an arm’s length of them, he had no
clue.  But  none  of  them  could  see  his  face  and
having  no  scent,  then  wearing  the  scent  of  a
college  student…they  weren’t  even  looking  at
him. Daegal had been right. He might actually be
able  to  walk  out  of  there  and  stay  alive  even
surrounded by them.

Then Peyton swiftly looked to see a total of five

of  the  bastards  on  Daegal’s  tail.  The  hellhound
was trying to lure them away from Peyton even if
they  had  been  walking  right  by  him.  Daegal
hadn’t been able to do much in their captivity, but
Peyton  surveyed  that  Daegal  was  not  in  much
higher standing than they were to the hellhounds.
They snarled behind him, they were ready to kill
Daegal. Peyton could feel it deeply.

He crossed the common area and made his way

toward Daegal, making a decision. “I need
sanctuary for someone.”

“Who?” Elder Lewis’s voice was coming in and

out as he kept shouting to people on the other end.

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106

“The hellhound that’s trying to save my ass,”

Peyton murmured. “How close?”

“They’ll be there soon. A hellhound?” Elder

Lewis sounded shocked. If Peyton hadn’t seen
those eyes, he would have believed it impossible.

“Yes.” Peyton pocketed the phone without

hanging up. There was no way they were up for a
fight, but he also didn’t want Daegal getting killed
in the process.

Peyton reached Daegal and grabbed his arm.

“We’re walking on the street.” Peyton pulled him
until he saw a couple hellhounds approaching.
Turning, they saw more and changed directions.

“They’re trying to funnel us back to the

warehouse,” Daegal growled next to him.

“I know. Let them. We have help coming.”

Peyton  prayed  it  was  soon  and  that  he  wasn’t
making  a  mistake.  He  also  knew  that  getting  on
campus  was  only  to  get  a  phone  and  buy  them
some  time.  The  hellhounds,  for  all  their  restraint,
had their  limits. They had locked on their targets
and humans were going to get hurt. Peyton didn’t
want that resting on his conscience, no matter how
much longer he survived.

Painfully, they made their way past the last

campus building, a sense of dread encompassed
Peyton.

“We need to run.” Daegal stared over at him,

fear appearing foreign on his face.

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107

“I can’t,” Peyton whispered as the earth spun.

His body was giving out. He had exhausted all his
energy  getting  help  and  now,  because  of  all  the
torture  and  the  change,  adrenaline  was  leaving
him.  He  had  done  his  best  for  Rayce  and  the
others. Peyton dropped like a stone, eyes closing.
He  didn’t  want  to  give  up,  but  there  was  just  no
more to give.

Daegal scooped him up and began running

with him, the sounds of snarls and growls behind
them. “You’re not going out on me now,” Daegal
growled.

The run was painful to Peyton, jarring to his

bruised flesh.

Daegal came to an abrupt stop in the open field

as they were surrounded. He placed Peyton down
on the ground, standing over him. Peyton dug
deep for a reserve of strength. With the tiny bit he
had, he staggered to his feet. If he was going to
meet his end, he was going to do it on his feet.

He stared, swaying, at the hellhound before

him and glanced over the fucker’s shoulder as
Elder Thorfinn threw a dagger at the asshole’s
back. All hell broke loose as shifters came, fighting
the hellhounds.

Thorfinn came and grabbed Peyton. “Where are

the others?”

The world swirled, and it was Daegal that came

up and pointed. “Industrial building over there.”

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108

“Contain him,” Thorfinn yelled as he left a

bloody savage wake to get to the others.

Daegal knelt on his knees with his hands on his

head. Smart, Peyton thought as shifters
surrounded and tied Daegal up before hauling
him into a Hummer.

Someone grabbed Peyton and lifted him, the

sounds of fighting still surrounding him as the
guard ran toward another Hummer.

He was placed down by the vehicle, away from

the fighting and the guard pulled out two cattle
prods, ready to fend off whoever came at them.

It didn’t take long. Not when the team of

shifters was five to one. But Peyton knew that this
was just a small number compared to what he’d
seen last night. There could be more any minute.

Grabbing the guard by his pant leg, he

reported, “We need to get everyone out here.
There are more…a lot more.”

The guard nodded before talking into a

communicator.

Peyton started to go in and out of

consciousness. There was only one thing keeping
him awake. He wanted to see Rayce, and he had a
perfect visual of the door to the industrial
building, praying that he would see his mate soon.

Waiting was more painful than his wounds.

The fighting ended and more shifters ran into the
building. Peyton shivered in raw terror. Did I not

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109

make it in time? Did some of the hellhounds come back

and finish the others off?

The sounds of two helicopters could be heard in

the  distance  and  Peyton  blinked  up  at  the  sky,
eyes  sensitive  from  spending  all  the  time  in  the
cell.  He  watched  them  land  and  a  medical  team
got out, running with gurneys.

Time slowed to a crawl, someone came over to

him and got him secured up on a backboard,
getting ready to load him up in one of the vehicles.
“No,” Peyton protested. “Just another minute.”

The medic frowned. “We need to get you help.”
“I need…” Peyton swallowed, trying to blink

away the spots in his vision. “To see my mate.”

The medic let out a juicy curse before he

ordered  someone  to  go  into  the  building  and  see
about  the  others.  A  few  moments  later,  gurney
after  gurney  was  wheeled  out  with  each  of  his
friends on them. Peyton searched for that familiar
black hair and on the fourth one wheeled out, saw
Rayce being rushed into one of the helicopters.

A guard rushed over. “They’re taking him

immediately to Moon Compound. He’s stabilized,
but we don’t have room for you all. We’re meeting
more flight medics along the way.”

Stabilized, that was all Peyton needed to hear

before he fell into darkness.

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Chapter Twelve

houts could be heard and Rayce moaned,
trying not to wake up. If he slept forever, he

would  no  longer  have  to  face  this  hell.  He  had
woken  for  a  brief  moment  in  the  cage  to  see  that
Peyton  was  gone.  Gone…taken  from  him.  He
couldn’t survive without his mate.

The shouts became clearer…sharper. “Dalton,

we need your help in the OR stat!”

What the…then he felt it; he was being moved,

transported. Blearily, he tried to open his eyes.

“That’s it, Rayce, you’re home now. We’re

going to get you fixed right up.” Lachlan wavered
in and out of his vision.

Lachlan, one of the Moon Compound doctors? Gods,

how did they make it back?

Opening his mouth, Rayce tried to ask, but his

voice was gone.

Lachlan patted his chest. “Don’t strain yourself

trying to talk. Just worry about getting better.”

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Noises could be heard as they entered Moon

Compound. Rayce watched the ceiling pass by in
a flash as they made their way down the hallway
toward medical. A cacophony of shouts and
orders pierced his ears, but all he wanted to do
was cry. His Peyton.

Colin hovered over him, walking alongside the

gurney, expression worried. “Is Rayce going to be
okay? My brother?” Colin asked Lachlan.

“Rayce is stable. Your brother is coming in

shortly; he’s less severe than the others. Flight
medic team three and four will have him in
shortly.”

Body shaking, the whole experience washed

over Rayce. Peyton was okay and was coming
home.

Colin stared at him shocked and concerned.

“Did you hear that, Rayce? Peyton’s coming
home.”

Fuck yeah, he heard.
They wheeled him into medical and Rayce

could only nod. A team was all over him. Lachlan
leaned close. “We just gave you something to help
you rest and for the pain.”

Things became hazy and he grew sleepy. He’d

just close his eyes for a moment and wait for his
mate to arrive.

The next time Rayce came to, everything was

silent except for the clamor of beeps and blips of

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112

the medical wing. There were various murmurs,
and Rayce turned his head, searching.

Brendan and Ripley were a few beds down, IVs

in their arms, looking battered to hell.  Bite marks
riddled  their  bodies  from  the  fight.  Malach  was
across  from  them,  arm  and  leg  in  a  cast.  Next  to
him  was  Avery,  curled  up  in  the  bed,  looking  so
damn small with his own IV. Whitley was next to
Avery in pretty much the same pose except for his
shirt  was  removed  and  his  side  was  heavily
bandaged.

Knox was standing over the bed, arms crossed,

rocking on his heels. Knox’s hand hovered above
the sheets before he pulled them back and covered
his mouth.

Turning his head the other way, his breath

caught. There, sleeping in the bed next to him with
dark circles under his eyes, was Peyton. Rayce just
stared, taking in every inch of Peyton. Several
bandages covered his arms and neck. There was
an IV inserted at the top of his hand, and he was
shivering.

Groaning, Rayce sat up. Fuck, he was as weak

as a newborn pup. It took major effort to uncover
and turn, letting his legs fall over to the side.
Huffing out a breath, he grabbed and pulled off
various wires. A few machines bitched at him, but
he shakily stood.

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“Oh shit!” Lachlan came running. “Rayce, you

have to get back into bed.”

“I am.” Rayce pointed to Peyton’s bed. “Over

there.”

“It’s too small,” Lachlan protested.
“Going no matter what.” Rayce stood, holding

on to the IV pole like a lifeline. His legs were like
Jell-O.

Lachlan grabbed an arm, putting it over his

shoulder. “Stubborn ass.”

They crept the few feet over, then Lachlan

gently  sat  Rayce  on  the  side  of  Peyton’s  bed.  He
groaned.  Slowly,  Lachlan  lowered  him  next  to
Peyton,  covering  them  both  and  putting  up  the
safety  rails  so  they  wouldn’t  fall  out.  Rayce
reached out and touched Peyton’s cheek, stroking
it with his thumb.

Swallowing, Rayce glanced up at Lachlan. “I

didn’t see Deacon or Lukas…did they?”

“Lukas is recovering from surgery. He had a

compound fracture to his arm that we had to
operate on.” Lachlan glanced down before he
looked right at Rayce.

Oh gods.
“And Deacon isn’t out of the woods yet. We

had  to  operate  and  remove  the  lower  half  of  his
leg.  He  has  severe  blood  poisoning,  septicemia.
All  of  you  have  infections.  You  all  are  on
potassium  and  antibiotic  intravenously,  but  he

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114

had it the worst. We’ll know in a day if we have to
go back in and remove the upper extremity, but
we’re pretty confident we got all the dead tissue.”
Lachlan shook his head.

Rayce closed his eyes, praying to the gods to

spare Deacon. He was so damn young.

“Rest. Don’t worry about anything but healing,

Rayce.  You  have  a  ways  to  go.  I’ll  bring  you  in
some  broth  if  you’re up  to  it.  Have  to  start  all  of
you  slow  on  foods.”  Lachlan  patted  him  on  the
shoulder and Rayce nodded, turning over to stare
back at Peyton.

In the quiet, Rayce continued to stroke Peyton’s

cheek.

Blond lashes fluttered and Peyton opened his

eyes, head turning to over at him.

“Hey,” Peyton rasped out.
“Hey.” Rayce continued to stroke Peyton,

touching his hair. Gods, they were safe and alive.
He was touching his mate, absorbing in each
other’s warmth. Rayce had lost hope when he
couldn’t find a way to save Peyton.

Peyton groaned and rolled on his side, closer to

Rayce. “How are you doing?”

“I’m good.” Rayce’s voice hitched with

emotion.

“Good? Don’t lie, Rayce,” Peyton said, a little

stronger.

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115

“My body feels like hell, but I have you in my

arms.  That’s  all  that  matters  right  now.  That  we
crawled  out  of  that  shit  hole  and  survived.  How
did  we  get  out?  I  woke  and  didn’t  see  you.  I
thought…” Rayce frowned. He wasn’t even going
to say it.

“Daegal came and got me. We ran for a phone

and I called Moon Compound. I didn’t know if I’d
ever see you again.” Peyton’s face crumpled.

“Hey, you got out and got help. You saved us,”

Rayce soothed.

“I didn’t want to lose you.” Peyton leaned into

Rayce’s touch.

Rayce reached, body protesting and gave

Peyton a soft, reassuring kiss. “We got out; that’s
all that matters.”

Peyton nodded, eyes drooping. “I’m so tired.”
“Then let’s take a nap.” Rayce closed his eyes.
“You’re not leaving me, are you?”
“Nope, I’m staying right here.”
“‘Kay,” Peyton whispered.
Rayce waited until he heard the long, slow even

breathing from Peyton before he drifted off
himself.

The two weeks were painfully slow in the medical
wing, but every day, Rayce felt his strength return
more. The wounds had scabbed over and some
scabs had already fallen off, leaving nasty scars

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116

behind. They all had them, inside and out. Rayce
feared the internal ones were far worse than the
surface marks. It would take time for them to get
over this, if ever.

Like Peyton and Rayce, Brendan and Ripley

refused to sleep separately. Rayce noticed that the
two  sets  of  mates  had  become  fiercely  protective
of each other. More than typical, even when newly
mated.  Rayce  had  to  control  himself  every  time
Peyton was touched and Peyton snarled at one of
the nurses when he drew Rayce’s blood yesterday.
Ripley  had  to  be  secured  more  than  once  when
Brendan  was  evaluated.  The  feral  wouldn’t  say
anything,  but  the  deep  growl  that  permeated  out
of him could be felt throughout the entire medical
wing.

Then there was Colin. Peyton’s brother visited

him  every  day  as  well  as  he  should.  That  didn’t
stop  Rayce  from  grabbing  Colin’s  hand  when  he
went  to  touch  his  mate.  Colin  had  been  shocked
until  he  stared  at  Peyton  who  was  leaning  into
Rayce.  They  didn’t  want  anyone  touching  them,
except  their  mates.  Maybe  one  day  but  with  the
pain still fresh it wouldn’t be anytime soon.

Rayce cringed at the thought of anyone except

Peyton even being near him.

Sitting up, Rayce climbed out of bed to stand

next to Peyton. They were both sick of it. Rayce

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117

was so ready to head back to his living quarters
and just be with Peyton.

Lachlan came out of his office. “You’ve been

cleared to go.”

Peyton blew out a breath of relief, as did Rayce.
“What about the others?” Rayce gestured to

everyone else.

“Brendan and Ripley will probably be out

tomorrow.  Malach,  same.  His  casts  are  one  week
out from being removed. His bones healed pretty
quickly.  Lukas—”  who  snarled  at  them  while
trying to dig under his cast— “has a couple days
left.  Whitley  will  be  released  soon,  but  we’re  not
sure  if  he’s  going  home  to  his  pack  or  staying
here.”

Glancing over, Rayce stared at Whitley, who

was lying with his back facing him. Knox sat in a
chair beside Whitley. The two were talking quietly
as Knox held his hand.

“What about Deacon and Avery?” Rayce asked,

concerned.  Turning,  he  got  a  view  of  Avery.  The
Omega  still  hadn’t  said  a  word,  too  traumatized
from  what  he’d  gone  through.  He  was  detoxed
from  the  drugs,  but  he  was  going  to  have  long-
term  side  effects.  Cass  sat  next  to  him,  brushing
the  pale  strands  out  of  the  Omega’s  face,  face
etched  in  concern.  Rayce  thought  it  odd  for  the
coldhearted Alpha inmate to be there and not the

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118

whipping boy of his Alpha friend, Duke, but he
hadn’t left Avery.

“Avery will have to spend some more time in

here. We need to keep a close eye on him. He was
more  malnourished,  and  the  drugs  have  done
damage.  It’ll  take  time  before  we  know  just  how
much.”  Lachlan  began  fussing  with  Peyton,
checking his blood pressure and heart rate.

Rayce turned, he couldn’t even stand for the

doctor to touch Peyton.

Lachlan continued, not even acknowledging

Rayce’s discomfort. “Deacon is still critical but
stable. He’ll be here a long time. Elder Lewis is
talking about bringing in a specialist from another
compound in the south to help him out.”

The doctor stepped back and Rayce took a deep

breath. It was going to take time.

“Now you, Rayce.” Lachlan walked over to him

and took his vitals while Peyton paced next to
him. A few minutes later, Lachlan said, “You two
are good to go, but be sure to check in every day.”

Nodding, Rayce grabbed Peyton’s hand and got

the fuck out of there.

“In a rush?” Peyton said next to him as they

walked down the hall.

“I want to go to my quarters, be in my own

room and take a hot shower with my stuff,
preferably with you.” Rayce glanced over and

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119

Peyton smiled up at him. It was weak, but it was a
start.

They approached Rayce’s quarters and Rayce

opened the door and walked in. He paused on the
threshold, taking a look around. Everything was
exactly the same as he had left it, neat and tidy, yet
for all the craving he had to return there, he felt
like a foreign object in his own dwelling.

Peyton squeezed his hand, Rayce looked down

into those serious blue eyes. “We take it one hour
at a time, okay?”

“How did…” Rayce began and then stopped.

He was going to have to get used to Peyton being
a Gamma and sensing his shift in emotions.
“You’re right, one hour at a time.”

“You wanted to take a shower?” Peyton didn’t

wait for an answer, just walked away to the
adjoining bathroom.

Rayce stood there, listening to the sounds of the

shower  starting  up  and  that  finally  got  him
moving  to  close  the  door  and  join  his  mate.  He
entered  the  bathroom  just  as  a  naked  Peyton
stepped into the shower.

Undressing as quickly as his worn-out body

would let him, he made his way into the shower, a
hot spray of water hitting his flesh. He moaned,
appreciating the water melting away his tense
muscles.

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120

Rayce leaned his head back and soaked his hair,

closing his eyes, moaning. Opening his eyes, he
stared down at Peyton. “Here,” he said as he
maneuvered Peyton under the water, running his
fingers through Peyton’s dark blond hair.

Groaning, Peyton murmured, “Why does this

feel better than the ones in the medic wing.”

“Because its home.”
Peyton nodded, closing his eyes.
Rayce took that moment to get a look at his

mate. Scars that were still angry and fresh covered
most  of  Peyton’s  chest  and  back.  They  mirrored
Rayce’s own, which he knew would fade in time,
but  would  never  entirely  go  away,  just  like  the
emotional  pain  they  had  endured.  It  would  dim,
but  the  events,  which  they  survived,  would
always have their mark upon them. Rayce looked
farther  down  to  see  pale,  lean  legs.  Peyton  was
whole,  he  would  recover.  Rayce  leaned  into  his
mate,  embracing  him  under  the  spray,  thanking
the gods that they were here in this moment.

“Rayce?” Peyton licked a wet path along his

neck.

Heat pooled in his groin and for the first time

since everything happened, he felt desire. His cock
filled and hung thickly between his legs and he
felt Peyton’s own dick respond.

Peyton moaned before he reached up and

pulled him down into a kiss.

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121

Moaning, Rayce returned the kiss, relishing the

sweet  taste  of  his  mate.  Thrusting  his  tongue  in,
Rayce  groaned  as  Peyton  returned  the  kiss  with
enthusiasm.  This  was  home;  he  could  forget
everything while he was there in his mate’s arms,
if only for a while.

They might not be feeling well enough to do

much, but they reaffirmed that they were alive
and together.

Peyton reached down and grabbed Rayce’s

cock, causing him to  hiss in pleasure. For so long,
all they felt was pain and now that he actually felt
his  mate’s  hand  wrapped  around  his  cock,  he
didn’t  know  if  he  could  survive  the  intense
pleasure.  Reaching  down,  he  grabbed  Peyton’s
dick,  loving  the  feeling  of  the  long  shaft  in  his
hand.

Peyton whimpered in his arms before he thrust

into his hands. “I need you,” Peyton said against
his lips.

Reaching down with his other hand, he pulled

Peyton  impossibly  closer  so  he  could  bring  them
together.  He  took  Peyton’s  hand  away  from  his
cock  before  he  wrapped  his  hand  around  both
cocks  together.  Peyton  cried  out  as  they  moved
together in the tight fist of his hand.

“I’m going to…” Peyton huffed.

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122

“Do it…ahh fuck,” Rayce shouted as his cock

erupted. Peyton screamed and he felt the warm
splash of cum hit his stomach and hand.

Rayce leaned into Peyton, slowly milking their

cocks, making sure every last drop was out of
them. Fatigue hit him hard as he stared down to
see Peyton’s eyes droop.

“Come on. Let’s dry off and go to bed.”
“I want to make love to you.” Peyton stared up

at him sleepily.

“We will, Peyton, when we feel better. Right

now,  I  couldn’t  even  take  you  properly  without
pain.  I  couldn’t  even  hold  you  for  fear  of  the
injuries  to  your  back.”  Rayce  leaned  down  and
placed a gentle kiss to that frown.

“I know. I just wanted you to know.”
“I already know and we will make love. I want

it just as bad as you do. When we’re better, it will
be  special.”  Rayce  growled.  He  couldn’t  help  it.
He felt like something was taken from him when
he  had  to  mate  Peyton  in  that  dirty  fucking  cell.
The mate bite was just as intimate as making love
and  the  hellhounds  had  stolen  that  from  them.
Rayce would make sure that when they made love
the  first  time,  it  would  be  right;  their  injuries
would be gone and they wouldn’t be rushed.

“We’ll have some fun, though, right?” Peyton

winked up at him.

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123

Smiling, Rayce hugged Peyton again. Peyton

might  have  gone  through  hell  and  come  out  the
other end, but he still knew what he wanted. And
when  Peyton  wanted  something,  nothing  was
going  to  get  in  his  way.  Gods,  how  Rayce  loved
him for it.

“We’ll have lots of fun. Let’s get out before we

shrivel up.”

Peyton chuckled behind him; they were finally

home.

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124

Chapter Thirteen

taring out the cafeteria windows, Peyton was
lost in his own nightmares. Rayce had left him

to go to a meeting and everyone else was in class.
While he had spent the last two weeks with Rayce
in their home, Peyton had a difficult time
whenever he was out roaming Moon Compound.
This was the very first time he was on his own.

Rayce had asked if he would be okay,Peyton

insisted that he would just get some oatmeal and
wait  for  him.  Pulling  his  gaze  away  from  the
window,  he  stared  down  at  his  shaky  hand,
oatmeal  quivering  on  the  spoon.  With  a  sigh,  he
dropped  the  spoon  with  a  loud  thunk  into  the
bowl before he covered his face.

“You know, you’ll have good days and bad

ones.”

Peyton jumped a mile high, even if it was the

sound of his brother’s voice.

Colin came and sat across from him.
“I didn’t hear you.”

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125

Colin reached over and grabbed his hand.

Peyton’s nails had grown some, but they looked
terribly ugly next to his brother’s.

“You have to give yourself time to heal, Peyton,

and your mate, too.” Colin stared at him in
concern.

“Some days, I think I’m okay and most days...”

Peyton shook his head. “I don’t even want to leave
Rayce’s place.”

“That’s okay. Remember there are a lot of

people here who love you, Peyton. I love you and
if you need anything, I’ll be there. It’s okay.”

Anger bubbled within Peyton. “I don’t want it

to be okay. I don’t want this incident to shape me
and have this suffocating fear. I hate the way I
feel, the nightmares.”

Colin squeezed his hand. “Then don’t let it.

Peyton, you have always been the stronger brother
out  of  us  two.  I  always  looked  up  to  you  and
you’re  younger.  I’ve  been  there  when  you  talked
to Elder Lewis about what happened. You need to
be  patient  with  yourself.  It  doesn’t  happen
overnight.”

Peyton had thought of nothing but their

imprisonment.  The  would’ves  and  should’ves.
“You  know,  when  I  left,  I  thought  I  had  this
purpose  to  go,  to  stop  whatever  was  going  to
happen  to  Rayce.  I  had  these  awful  panic  attacks

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126

just driving me to be by my mate. I didn’t prevent
a fucking thing.”

Clearing his throat, Colin stared at him, somber

blues  eyes  just  a  shade  darker  than  his.  “Maybe
you weren’t meant to stop it. Maybe that path was
already  cemented.  Have  you  ever  thought  that
maybe  your  purpose  was  just  to  be  there  to  get
them out alive? You saved everyone. All of them
would be dead if you weren’t there. I heard Elder
Lewis  discuss  you  being  a  Gamma.  I’m  sitting
right  across  from  you  now  and  all  I  can  smell  is
Rayce.  You  have  a  gift;  make  this  the  catalyst  to
unleash hell upon those who hurt you dearly.”

“You want me to join the war? Whenever I

mentioned it when we were younger, you told me
not  to.  There  wasn’t  even  that  much  of  a  threat
back then, and now…” Peyton thought of all those
hellhounds  in  Lansing,  all  here.  They  weren’t
talking  about  taking  one  or  two  down  anymore,
they  were  going  to  have  to  take  down  an  entire
horde.

Colin stood. “Things change, I was wrong

about trying to steer you away from a direction
you wanted to go, were meant to go.”

Realization hit Peyton hard. “You’re going to

start training, aren’t you?”

“Sloan and I both are going in together. I can’t

stand by and watch it anymore. Something big is

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127

about to happen. They’re going to need everyone
they can.”

“They won’t let you until you have control of

your shift.” Peyton wanted to point that out.

“I think they are starting to make exception to

residents here, especially given the circumstances.
Most  of  our  hall  has  already  demanded  to  start
training.  They’ve  given  us  all  clearance.  When  I
get  released,  I’ll  be  prepared  and  so  will  Sloan.
Consider  it  added  electives  while  we  are  here.”
Colin walked over and leaned down to hug him.

“I don’t want to lose you,” Peyton murmured.
Colin sighed. “I can’t guarantee I’ll be around

forever, but I will tell you something. I will fight to
live,  for  you  and  for  my  mate,  and  that’s  where
we’re  at,  Peyton.  Hellhounds  have  surfaced  and
they  aren’t  just  rogue.  They  have  jobs;  they  have
integrated into human society. All we know is that
they  want  into  the  compound,  but  why  are  they
here?”

Peyton shook his head. He didn’t know, the

assholes didn’t tell them shit during their
captivity. But… “Daegal knows.”

Colin stood and gritted his teeth. “While I’m

thankful he helped save you all. Oren is…barely
holding it together.”

“They share a soul,” Peyton murmured.
Colin nodded. “I believe it.”

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128

It was strange how no one questioned him on

that.  Peyton  assumed  it  had  to  do  with  being  a
Gamma, but he really wanted to find a Gamma to
talk to. Too bad there were so few of them. As far
as  he  knew,  there  wasn’t  even  one  at  Moon
Compound, but there was one that left a couple of
years  ago.  Maybe  he  would  talk  to  Rayce  about
him.

A noise sounded at the door, Peyton turned to

see the man himself.

Colin smiled at Peyton’s mate. “Rayce.”
Rayce nodded before he pulled Peyton up.

“Colin.”

Peyton was enfolded in Rayce’s warm arms.

“Sorry I took so long.” Rayce glanced down,
frowning at his untouched food. “Why haven’t
you eaten?”

“Having a bad day.”
Rayce kissed him. “You need to eat; you shift

tomorrow.”

Rayce sat down next to him, and Colin began to

walk backward. “I’m going to go grab some
sandwiches, anyone?”

Rayce raised his finger. “I will. Can you give

him fresh oatmeal? This one looks solidified.”

Colin chuckled and walked away.
“Okay, now talk to me. What’s going on?”

Rayce rubbed his thumb over Peyton’s forearm.

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Peyton shrugged. “Just having a tough day, but

I talked to my brother and I feel a lot better. I want
to talk to you about something. Colin said they are
starting training here?”

Nodding, Rayce pulled Peyton’s chair closer.

“We  just  had  a  meeting  on  it.  They’re  going  to
start adding classes and bring in specialists. With
the way things are looking, we need to get many
trained.  The  female  Moon  Compound  is  also
going  to  start  a  program  headed  by  their  female
Alpha  Janus.  We’ll  be  teaming  up  with  them  at
times.”

“Do you know the Gamma that left here?”

Peyton stabbed his oatmeal. It really did look
awful cold.

“Yes, I know Keegan. He just mated to an

enforcer, Bo. They work in tandem. You want me
to make a call to him and set up a meeting?”

Peyton thought about it. He would have plenty

of time to heal, but in the meantime, he wanted to
learn  everything  he  could  to  prevent  something
like  that  ever  happening  to  him  and  his  mate
again.  They  would  learn  to  defend  themselves,
ruthlessly.  The hellhounds would fear them from
now  on.  Hardcore  determination  had  Peyton
staring up at his mate.

“Yes and have him bring Bo. If they can be a

team, so can we. This will never happen to us
again. I vow it.”

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130

Rayce grabbed his hand and squeezed it, violet

eyes set in as much determination as Peyton’s. “I
vow it. A team.”

The next day, Peyton sat at the edge of their bed,
leg bouncing. He was juiced with the full moon
coming that night, his body was a live wire. Rayce
was supposed to stand guard and watch over him
tonight.

Poor Brendan and Ripley were in isolation, the

month  in  captivity  taking  its  toll.  And  with  the
guards  still  not  a  hundred  percent,  no  one  was
taking  any  chances.  They  were  giving  them  the
day  together  behind  bars,  then  come  night,  they
would be separated until morning. No one wanted
to  separate  them,  but  it  was  as  everyone  had
feared—even  in  the  cage  last  month,  they  went
after each other. If the guards hadn’t been there to
prevent them from tearing into each other, a mate
could have been lost.

The door opened and Rayce came in. “It’s

time.”  Rayce  held  the  door,  Peyton  got  up  and
walked  out,  waiting  on  Rayce  to  follow.  They
walked  down  the  hallway  to  the  cell  area  where
there was a room waiting for Peyton.

Taking a deep breath, Peyton stepped into the

room, feeling a little claustrophobic. Fuck, he
hated cells. Rayce walked in behind him and

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131

began pulling off his shirt. “What are you doing,
Rayce?”

“I’m going to be in here with you tonight.”
“But you have to…”
Rayce shook his head and cut him off. “I’m

going to be with my mate tonight and help him
through his shift.”

Peyton’s lips tightened. “I’ll be okay. You’ll be

on the other side with Malach.”

“Stubborn ass should be taking the night off;

he’s still a little tender. No, I’m right where I want
to be…where I need to be.”

Staring at his mate, Peyton realized Rayce

needed this. Peyton’s first shift was a horrible
nightmare and while this night might not erase it,
they would be here together, slowly talking their
way through.

“It’s okay then?” Peyton wanted to make sure.
“Yes.” Rayce removed his clothes and Peyton

followed.  Then  they  went  over  and  crawled  onto
the  mattress  on  the  floor,  embracing  each  other.
Rayce  stroked  his  head  as  they  molded  their
bodies around one another.

“What was your first shift like?” Peyton

murmured.

Rayce chuckled into the quiet room. “I was

awful, almost as bad as Sloan. I was such a bastard
the day of the shift, I hated anyone at my back.
Then I started having one-on-one sessions with

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132

Elder Giles and he helped me calm down. Poor
guy retired as I was leaving. I may have had a
hand in it.”

Peyton sat up on his elbows and turned toward

his mate. “Are you serious?”

“Oh yeah, why do you think I wanted to patrol

this wing? I was Sloan five years ago.” Rayce
reached up and brushed Peyton’s hair out his face.

“Does Sloan know that?”
“I told him in the beginning. I’m not sure if he

remembers it.” Rayce shrugged. “He’s got your
brother now. Colin seems to be the one who
stabilized him.”

“Mates tend to do that,” Peyton whispered.
“Yeah, they do. We’ll get through this, you

know.” Rayce kept on stroking his hair.

“My shift?” Peyton furrowed his brow in

confusion.

“Everything. I’ll be there for you when you

have your ups and downs just as you’ll be there
for me. I talked to Elder Lewis. Bo and Keegan are
coming in. I’ll learn what I have to, to be the best
asset out there while we fight. I love you.” Rayce
pulled him down, kissing him with strength and
passion.

Peyton pulled back just as he heard the doors

lock for the night. “I love you.”

Rayce brushed his hair back. “Are you ready

for your shift?”

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134

Chapter Fourteen

hey had spent three days resting in Rayce’s
room this time. Every day, Peyton grew

stronger and gained more weight back. The shift
had gone better than expected. Rayce was so
damn proud that Peyton was far beyond where he
should be on his control.

At night, they reached out for each other,

especially  when  the  nightmares  were  at  their
worst.  Rayce  could  always  tell  when  Peyton  was
in the throes of one, his warm body would tighten
like  a  bowstring  and  sweat  would  pop  his  flesh.
Every night, the situation was handled differently.
Sometimes,  a  simple  touch  would  chase  their
demons  away;  other  times,  it  took  hours  talking
about nothing at all just to shake the terror.

Yeah, more than once, Rayce had needed

Peyton. The worst repetitive dream was being in
that room again, watching Peyton; except this
time, he died right before his eyes. Upon waking,
Rayce had to mold himself to his mate, just feeling

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135

his heartbeat, his breathing to reaffirm that Peyton
was there with him, alive.

Peyton stirred, moaning in his sleep before he

rolled over, eyes opening. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing, I was just looking at you. How are

you feeling?”

Peyton stretched his arms over his head, sheet

barely covering his hips. Rayce stared at his mate
as the top part of his pelvis was revealed. A heat
washed over him, and without thinking, Rayce
stretched out his hand, skimming his fingers along
his mate’s body.

“That feels good. I feel good.” Peyton moaned.
Peyton rolled on top of him, leaning down,

kissing him with an intensity that shook him to his
core.

Gods, every time they kissed, Rayce felt them

becoming more and more entwined. Hot flesh
spread across his chest, rubbing sensually. Rayce’s
cock hardened and ached.

A whimper escaped Peyton before he rubbed

his cock against Rayce’s, the tips already leaking
onto their stomachs. Finally, they were going to be
together and nothing was going to stop them.

Rayce broke off the kiss. “I need you to reach

into the nightstand.”

A brief look of shock passed over Peyton’s face

before he crawled over and opened the nightstand
for the lube. Rayce took the opportunity to skim

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136

his hand along Peyton’s ass. Anticipation at filling
up his mate and finally being with him, had Rayce
holding on by a thread. After all this time, all the
obstacles  and  pain  they  had  faced,  they  would
finally  be  together.  Just  the  thought  that  they
almost  didn’t  get  here  caught  him  hard,  then
Peyton  was  above  him  again,  face  shining  with
love for him.

Reaching up, Rayce stroked Peyton’s hair back.

“I love you so much.”

Peyton smiled down at him before he lowered

his head. “I love you, my mate.”

The kiss claimed him as he rolled on top of

Peyton, taking over. They had done some petting
before  the  shift,  but  Rayce  never  had  the  liberty
like  he  did  now  with  all  the  scabs  and  bruises
gone.  The  pads  of  his  fingers  skimmed  over  soft
skin,  then  a  line  of  scars  from  the  whip.  Peyton
was rubbing his back, and he knew that his mate
was  feeling  the  exact  same  thing.  They  would
always have the scars, but they survived.

Groaning, Rayce deepened the kiss, trying to

wash the past away and focus on the present. He
licked a path down Peyton’s neck, tasting and
sucking, anticipation for when he would bite him.
His canines were already growing and he hadn’t
even started.

Continuing south, he nibbled and sucked along

the flat stomach that was now, after a month of

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137

nutrition, starting to show signs of definition once
again.  Rayce  kept  on  moving,  craving  a  taste  of
Peyton  and  he  finally  made  it  to  Peyton’s  cock.
Not  wasting  a  moment,  he  took  the  long,  thin
shaft into his mouth.

“Fuck,” Peyton yelled and jerked his head into

the pillow.

Flavor exploded in his mouth, and Rayce

groaned. He might not be able to smell his mate,
but he could taste him and it was instantly
addictive. Rayce bopped his head as he licked and
worked the cock all the way to the root. Using his
hands, he massaged Peyton’s balls and by the feel
of his hair being pulled, Peyton was enjoying the
dual attention.

“I’m not going to last much longer,” Peyton

huffed.

Rayce growled deep, “I’m gonna taste you first

and  then  fill  you  up.”  Bending  down,  he  went
back,  craving  that  load  of  cum  to  fill  his  mouth.
He  wanted  to  take  his  time  with  Peyton,  make
love  to  him,  but  the  mating  and  his  wolf  were
taking  over.  He  had  heard  it  all  before.  He
practically  wanted  to  bathe  in  Peyton  and  have
Peyton  drenched  in  his  scent.  The  need  was
growing.

“Ahh gods,” Peyton arched and a splash of cum

hit the back of Rayce’s throat. Moaning, Rayce

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138

continued to milk every last drop out of Peyton,
relishing the flavor.

Slowly, Rayce lifted his head and he felt more

wolf  than  man,  as  if  he  wanted  to  stalk  Peyton,
mate  him.  Sitting  up,  Rayce  grabbed  the  lube,
opening  and  pouring  a  large  amount  onto  his
hand. Reaching  down, he began circling  Peyton’s
entrance, loosening it up.

“Faster,” Peyton ordered.
“This is our first time.” Rayce began pushing in

a digit. Although his cock hung thick and heavy
between his thighs, he would take his fucking
time, even if it killed him.

Peyton spread his legs wider, giving him better

access and Rayce began to work two fingers in,
scissoring them. “How are you doing?”

Peyton hissed, Rayce watched as his mate’s

cock twitched and started to come back to life.

“Good?” Rayce prompted.
“Oh yes. Keep going.”
Rayce took a deep breath and worked in a third

finger. Staring down, he watched his finger work
in and out of Peyton. He had to squeeze his cock
to keep himself from coming.

Finally, when he felt Peyton was fully stretched,

he pulled his fingers out. He grabbed the lube
again and covered his cock with the stuff as he
watched Peyton wrap his long fingers around his
own shaft.

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139

Rayce groaned as he lined up his cock and

began to push in. He squeezed his eyes shut,
because if he watched Peyton’s hand continue
working on that cock, he was going to come.

Slowly, without trying to cause Peyton any

pain, he worked his cock in with slow increments.
The tight heat around his shaft had him
shuddering with goose bumps popping on his
flesh.

Opening his eyes, he stared down into Peyton’s

blue eyes. “I’m fine. Now move,” Peyton
commanded.

And fuck, it was over. Rayce’s control broke, as

he  pushed  the  final  inches  in  until  he  bottomed
out.  He  pulled  out  and  pushed  back  in.  His
lovemaking  was  erratic  and  wild,  every  time  he
tried  to  reach  for  control,  it  slipped  through  his
fingers.

Peyton was just as passionate underneath him.

He pulled his knees back and Rayce sunk deeper.
Peyton shouted in bliss.

Rayce worked his hips over and over until he

found that spot in Peyton that he knew would
send his mate flying.

The wait, staring at his beautiful neck was too

much, his instinct to bite overwhelmed him as he
panted, leaning over his mate. Without pause, he
bit into Peyton’s shoulder and without even a

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140

moment’s breadth between them, he felt the bite to
his own flesh.

The taste of Peyton had his balls drawing tight

and his spine tingling. The feeling of his mate
sucking on his neck was what sent him over the
edge.

Mewling into Peyton’s neck, he came and

couldn’t stop. He kept pumping in and out, the
climax never ending. Peyton released his neck,
shouting out as heat splashed between them.

The two lay together, panting for a moment

while still connected. Rayce couldn’t seem to stop
kissing Peyton’s bite mark. He wanted this to last
all night, fuck, forever, but he knew his mate
would be sore. Hissing, he pulled out his cock and
stumbled to the bathroom to get something to
clean both of them up. He noticed the bite mark on
his neck in the mirror and smiled at it, bittersweet.
Time.

Turning, Rayce went back into the bedroom to

see that Peyton had already gone lights out. He
gently washed his stomach and between his thighs
before taking care of himself. Throwing the rag on
the floor, he climbed back into bed, tucking
Peyton in front of him. Rayce entwined their legs,
feeling fatigue wash over him. Kissing the back of
Peyton’s neck, he closed his eyes and let sleep take
him.

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141

* * * *

The next morning, Peyton woke up first and
showered while Rayce rolled over and proceeded
to take over the bed. He was deliciously sore in all
the right places and just needed a moment to soak
in this warmth. Standing under the spray, he
decided this was a good day and why not? He had
finally mated to Rayce.

He was just about done when Rayce stepped

into the shower, giving him a kiss on the bite
mark. Peyton tilted his head, desiring more, Rayce
sucked for a moment before he pulled back.

“Elder Lewis wants us to meet him in his office

in a half hour.” Rayce grabbed the shampoo and
began washing his hair.

Well damn, there would be no round two this

morning.

They washed quickly, got out, dried and got

dressed. Peyton wondered what the heck the elder
wanted. He had already had a debriefing of all he
knew when they were captive.

They walked out of the room and strode to the

elder’s office. Rayce knocked.

“Enter,” Elder Lewis said through the thick

doors.

Rayce entered first and then Peyton. Peyton’s

gaze roamed the interior. Elder Lewis was sitting
at his desk but he wasn’t alone.

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142

Two men sat across from Elder Lewis.
“Come have a seat. I’d like to introduce you to

Keegan and Bo.” Elder Lewis gestured to the two
men.

“Wow, that was fast.” Rayce walked over and

the two men stood. The tall one was clearly an
Alpha, but something was off about him.

Peyton tilted his head as he watched Rayce

shake his hand.

Chuckling drew Peyton’s attention to the

smaller  man,  who  was  built  like  a  swimmer  and
mirrored  his  five-foot-ten  inches.  “It  bugs  you
because  you  can’t  smell  him  and  have  no  clue
what he’s feeling.”

Peyton’s eyes widened.
The man reached over and shook Peyton’s

hand. “We just got off an assignment when Elder
Lewis gave us a call. I’m Keegan, and it’s a
pleasure to meet you. Wow, another Gamma.”

Peyton shook Bo’s hand, then the four sat.
The room was silent for a moment before Elder

Lewis smiled at him. “I brought them here
because Rayce told me you wanted to talk to
another Gamma.”

“Yes, sir.” Peyton’s mind drew a complete

blank. Shit.

Keegan leaned forward. “I’ll start you off if that

helps. It’s good that you already figured
something different about Bo. When a Gamma

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143

mates, the more blood your mate takes off you, the
more he loses his scent, until he becomes a shield.
In time, you’ll be able to guard Rayce and your
emotions.”

“So, you can work as a team in the war?”

Peyton was relieved. He wanted to fight, but it
had to be side by side with his mate.

“Absolutely. You become each other’s strength.

A Gamma has a way of maneuvering in and out of
situations better than anyone, without being seen,
while your mate can watch over the situation, and
well, when shit hits the fan, he’s there.” Keegan
glanced over his shoulder at Bo and smiled.

“How long have you been mated?” Rayce

questioned.

Bo interjected. “One year. My scent started to

disappear  around  the  second  or  third  month.
Worked out good because we’re really  needed in
undercover.  Can’t  kill  all  these  fuckers  with  just
cattle prods and knives.”

Rayce’s brow furrowed. “What? That’s all we

have to kill them. Not like we can shoot them with
a gun. Bullets don’t do shit for them and ones that
do, draw too much attention in civilian areas.”

“Well, that’s where enforcers come in. We have

the  weaponry  to  take  care  of  the  big  hellhound
hordes  that  are  circulating  here.”  Keegan  smiled,
but  it  was  all  teeth,  not  at  them  but  at  the
situation.

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144

“Then why not give them to the guards to

protect our packs up here. I mean, we’ve lost so
many lives.” Peyton argued. My family,
godsdammit!

Elder Lewis leaned forward. “The weapon is

fairly new and the ammunition is hard to come
by.”

Peyton’s eyebrow raised in question.
Keegan leaned back against his chair, smirking.

“Yeah, that’s where us Gammas come in. We
literally have to go to hell and back to get the stuff
undetected.”

“I don’t have the skills for what you’re asking.”

Peyton shook his head. He was thinking of being
an enforcer, fighter.

“We’ve got permission to start your training

now,  here  with  Rayce.  There  are  skills  you  will
develop in time that will only get enhanced more
by  your  mate.  The  two  of  you  will  make  a  huge
impact.  You  did  want  to  help.  Are  you  still  in,
knowing the risks?” Keegan stared, waiting.

Peyton thought of his lost parents, the pack

attacks, his imprisonment, and hell yes, he wanted
to be a part of it. He was through with this shit;
now it was time for him to cause damage.

“Yes,” he growled, voice low and deep.
Rayce grabbed his hand, nodding, face set in

determination. “We’re in this together.”

“Good, we start today.”

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145

Epilogue

sing the wall for help, Oren made his way to
the containment wing. Since Moon

Compound  was  on  an  island,  there  wasn’t  a
dungeon or lower level. He passed enforcers and
guards. Word had spread and not a single one was
surprised  to  see  him  shuffling  to  the  prisoner.
Sure,  he  gained  a  few  raised  brows,  but  none
showed shock that he was there.

His body felt broken, sick beyond compare. A

door to the wing came within reach, Oren stared
up at the guard, pleading with his eyes.

The guard opened the door, as another helped

him down the hall.

Oren hesitated for only a moment. He wanted

to face the asshole that destroyed him, broke him,
changed him.

He got to the cell and stared at the hellhound,

Daegal, before him, a hot wave passed over his
body. Gods, he had been cold since the day he’d
been bitten by this fucker.

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146

Daegal whipped his head around and stared at

him with sea foam green eyes, shadows moving
within them. They were piercing, causing a shiver
to work over his body. The hellhound approached
with a lethal grace and grabbed the bars.

Oren began to approach when a guard grabbed

his arm. “It’s not a good idea. He’s not stable.
Daegal is lucid and then…not.”

Nodding, Oren grabbed the guard’s hand,

releasing his arm, “It’s okay.”

Slowly, Oren made his way up to Daegal,

instead of grabbing the bars, he placed his hands
over Daegal’s hands. Instantly, the pain in his
body seemed to ebb, falling off him like a second
skin. The pain in his chest eased and Oren took a
deep breath.

Daegal’s eyes cleared as he stared down at Oren

before he snarled, “I hate you.”

Staring up at Daegal, Oren faced him, rage

boiling up. “I…hate…you.” He gritted out before
he  jerked  his  hands  back.  Staring  with  utter
disdain  one  last  time,  Oren  turned  and  walked
away. His soul felt okay for a time, but he knew he
would have to come back again and again. He was
shackled  to  the  hellhound,  his  soul  encased  in
bars. Oren would never be free.

About the Author

Short, sexy and sweet—where a little love goes a long
way.

That’s the best way to describe Jackie Nacht’s

stories.  I  was  introduced  to  M/M  Romance
through my sister, Stephani, and read it for years.
Then, I thought it was time to put my own stories
on paper. I began writing short and sweet stories
that  ended  with  a  happily  ever  after…and
sometimes  more  than  one,  in  the  case  of  my  YA
Fork  in  the  Road  series,  which  has  interactive
endings.

Thinking back to my own book addiction,

where there were many nights I stayed up way too
late so I could read just one more chapter—yeah,
right—I decided to write short romances for young
adults as well as adults. Hopefully, they will give
high school and college students or working men
and women something they can read during their
lunch hour, in between classes or just when they
want to briefly get away from the daily stresses of
everyday life.

You can find me on Facebook, Twitter and at

my webpage.

Email :

Jackie.nacht@yahoo.com

Website :

http://www.jackienacht.com/

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