He asked me to stay behind. I said yes. I lied.
I told myself, as I watched the rescue team assemble in the gray predawn light, that I only wanted to see them off. That I'd stand at the edge of the compound, watch the bikes disappear down the road, and go straight back to my cabin like the good, obedient mate I'd promised to be for exactly one night. I told myself a lot of things that morning that turned out not to be true.
Ronan checked his gear methodically, running through a mental list I could see reflected in the tight economy of his movements — knife secured, radio clipped, the low murmur of last-minute instructions passing between him and the four wolves who'd volunteered for this. Killian stood near the front, still favoring his side slightly from an old training injury, joking w
