Hannah's eyes followed the Alpha as he paced around the clearing, his eyes glazed and a mix of anger and determination written across his face. Every now and then his vision would clear and he'd bark a few orders at his nearby warriors, who leapt to follow them with grim expressions and sharpened blades.

The clear up would have to wait. The dead, lying forgotten and unburied as long as the pack were under attack.

Dylan’s arms tightened around her as he spoke quietly with his father, planning their escape. She paid them little attention, her thoughts on the pack she had come so close to viewing as her own.

Were they safe? How far deep had the attackers penetrated this time?

Hannah watched as Alex gathered a large group of fighters and dashed away towards the borders.

They wouldn't be so far away if it weren't for her...

Her time with Fenrik hadn't been completely wasted though. She was convinced she’d discovered the key to the rogues location, if she could persuade someone to listen to her.

She hadn't missed the way Blake avoided her eyes as his gaze flickered across the three red-heads near the edge of the encampment, and there was no mistaking the tension in his shoulders every time he turned in their direction.

He loves me, but he doesn't want me, she remembered, watching him organise his pack with lightening speed. A perfect Alpha, calm, in control and full of a rage that would make the world tremble. No, she corrected herself. He does want me... but he chose his pack instead.

She couldn't hate him. It would have been easier if she could. Rail against his choices, convince herself he had led her on. But no. Blake’s commitment to his pack was one of the reasons she loved and admired him; she could no more use it to hurt him than bite off her own arm, and she'd seen the tortured pain in his eyes, the agony of his decision to let her go.

She twisted to look up at the boyish face of her mate. She could learn to love him, couldn't she? Maybe, once they were mated, all her memories would come flooding back and she would find herself once again deliriously happy. Maybe she would come to believe Blake had been right to send her away.

Dylan glanced down at her tucked under his arm, and offered her a warm smile, which she returned tentatively.

He loved her, she mused, tracing the soft, red stubble that covered his jawline. Didn't he? As much as Blake? More than Blake? He was her true mate, after all.

She wasn't naive enough to believe that true mates fell in love as soon as they met. The bond was hormonal, a mix of attraction between the humans and a stronger, primal connection between their wolves. Love, if it arrived at all, came later.

How far had their bond had taken them before she'd forgotten him?

Hannah’s eyes found Blake once again, deep in conversation with his Beta. Alex had long since fled towards their borders to join the patrols defending their pack. She couldn't imagine ever forgetting the love she felt for the handsome Alpha and the deep connection that had developed between them.

But Dylan – who, when she'd emerged from the tree line had dashed over and enveloped her in his arms, peppering her face with kisses and repeating both her names over and over again with tears streaming down his face – could be a good mate.

We could have a good life together, she silently told herself. One day I'll be able to say that with conviction, rather than uncertainty.

Blake had tried to spare her this pain, she reluctantly realised. He'd pulled away as soon as he'd realised what Dylan's arrival meant, distancing himself from her, pushing her away.

Help him make the right choice, Hannah, the passionate voice of Aunt Sarah drifted through her memories, and she wondered for a wild moment if the wily old matriarch had seen this moment coming. duty is his whole life, the memory reminded her with increasing insistence. If he makes the wrong choice now, It will destroy him.

Her eye widened. It was her turn now. Her turn to make it easier for him.

He hurried towards them, still shouting orders to Alex and Marcus and she buried her face in Dylan's shoulder, determined not to let him see any more of her pain.

“It's time to go,” he told them without preamble. “I've arranged for a car to be waiting on the roadside a mile east of here, your belongings are already packed inside.”

“Thank you. For your help,” her uncle said roughly, shoving his hand out in front of him. Out of the corner of her eye, she watched Blake return the gesture, the two men shaking hands aggressively.

“Asher will accompany you to the road," Blake continued, his eyes flicking back to Hannah.

She avoided his gaze, determinedly smoothing out her expression into one of vague disinterest.

“We’ve no need for an escort,” her uncle declared, shaking his head.

“Really? How'd that work out for you last time?” Asher drawled as he sauntered over, followed by a tall woman with a sea of raven coloured hair.

Distracted, Hannah stared at her. Her eyes were lined with kohl and her skin achingly pale giving her a striking appearance. The woman looked her over curiously, her expression giving nothing away.

“Asher will be accompanying you,” Blake said again, a finality in his voice. “He has a car waiting for him also and needs to escort his friend, back home.” They could hear the disapproval lacing Blake's words but none commented on it.

Asher raised one perfect eyebrow in typical Hunter fashion. “We'll go on ahead,” he murmured. His eyes darkened with a sceptical sort of sympathy as he watched his brother, watching Hannah, watching anything but him.

Gesturing to his companion, he turned eastwards towards the unbroken treeline. “I'll give you a chance to say your goodbyes.” He cast a pointed and none-too-subtle look in Angus's direction.

The Scotsman grunted a reluctant acknowledgement, following Asher. Before he left he nodded one last time to Blake and turned to glance at his son, his eyes communicating a silent but clear warning. Don't be long.

“We'll be right behind you,” Dylan murmured, his eyes following the restless Alpha as he began moving between his remaining warriors, organising wolves to remain behind with the wounded.

Wait...

Irrationally and despite her new-found determination, Hannah began to panic, pulling herself out of Dylan's arms.

Now? They were leaving right now? But they can't. She hadn't had time to say goodbye yet! To Amara, to Jenni, To Doc, to...

Her eyes met a pair of deep brown voids, filled with a thousand unexpressed emotions.

“Hannah,” Blake said uncertainly, one hand raking through his perfect hair. “I wish – ”

She swallowed the lump forming in her throat and forced herself to turn back to Dylan, who drew her into his arms.

Not you. I can't say goodbye to you.

With a shake of his head, Blake cut himself short and turned to Dylan instead. “Take care of her.”

“I will,” her mate tilted his head slightly and said, with complete sincerity: “I’m sorry it came to this... you’re awfully hard to dislike, you know.”

“Likewise,” Blake agreed with a sigh. “Try not to let your father take control,” he advised. “Believe me, I know what it’s like to live with a force of nature. Sometimes you just have to brace yourself against the inevitable winds.”

As though to emphasise his words a particularly enthusiastic gust swept across the clearing, a barrage of multi-coloured leaves obscuring Hannah’s view. By the time it died down, Blake was running towards the thick cover of the forest, shifting before he'd reached the first trees. Her last glimpse of him was a coal black tail disappearing into the forest.

Come back! her heart called silently, tears trailing down her cheeks.

Marcus stepped forward having observed their farewell from a distance, taking in the sharp pain in his Alpha's eyes and the agony in Hannah's as she allowed her mate to comfort her, whilst yearning for another man's touch.

When those emerald green orbs turned to him, he offered her a genuine smile. “You will be sorely missed, Hannah. Who will help me manage Ophelia now?”

She smiled back, wiping away the tears. “She needs help managing you!” Hannah laughed at him. “But I have no doubt Sophie can handle you both.”

“She can indeed,” he agreed happily. “The girl has me wrapped around her little – ” He paused his eyes glazed, the smile sliding off his face. “They've been sighted nearby,” he told them. “You need to leave.”

Hannah paled and Dylan began tugging her urgently towards the trees. She resisted, grabbing Marcus's arm. “Wait! I need to tell you something,” Hannah protested, realising this might be her last chance to reveal what she knew.

“I'm sorry, Hannah, there's no time. Go!” Marcus ordered, slinging the rucksack over his back. It would take his group longer to get back to the border in human form, they had to move swiftly.

“No! Wait... wait!” She wrenched away from Dylan. “This is important!”

The Beta hesitated, torn by the desperation in Hannah's voice. “Alright,” he said with an impatient sigh, waving his warriors to head out without him. “What is it?”

“When the mad rogue attacked me, he was rambling about losing his home,” she said in a rush. “He was staying in the same camp as Fenrik, and Fenrik allowed him to stay there when he left. Then other rogues moved in and threw the mad rogue out.”

Marcus looked blank and Dylan clicked his tongue impatiently, his ears straining over the driving winds for any sign of approaching danger.

“Other rogues moved in, Marcus,” she repeated. “How many rogue factions are there hanging around here?”

“I see your point,” Marcus conceded half his attention still on the rumblings of the pack-link and the fight back home. It was likely the same group they'd been having trouble with, but he didn't see how that would help –

“When I talked to Fenrik,” Hannah continued to babble, urgency causing her words to tumble over each other in their haste to be heard. “He let slip that he always chose somewhere that's considered holy ground to camp in. He liked the irony of it all." She waved her arm around wildly. "This place was a monastery.”

The men exchanged a bewildered glance and Marcus looked behind him, anxious to join his companions.

“Hannah – " Dylan started uncertainly, one hand half extended towards her. “They’re waiting for us – "

She ignored him, all her concentration on the impatient Beta. “Don’t you see?" She gripped his arm as though she could transmit her discovery through her fingers. “Holy ground. Which of the other ruins Alex marked on the map were religious, Marcus?”

She saw his eyes widen as the implications finally sank in, and he stared down at her, a feral grin slowly forming across his features.

Without warning, he leaned down and planted a kiss on her cheek. “You are amazing!” he exclaimed excitedly, his fingers twitching to reach for the folded map he always carried with him. “Now go!” he repeated firmly, shoving her back into Dylan’s arms.

Hannah watched him disappear into the trees, her final link to the pack vanishing amidst the autumn leaves. Her subsequent sigh released tension she didn't realise she'd been carrying and she relaxed. She had done all she could. It was up to them now.

Her eyes met those of her mate, who frowned as he registered the tears still trailing across her cheeks. “Okay, let’s go,” she whispered, slipping her hand into his and tugging him towards the trees.

This time it was Dylan who hesitated, staring at her as though really seeing her for the first time. “Are you sure?” he asked uncertainly, his hand gripping hers tightly but his eyes scanning her tear-streaked face.

“No,” she answered honestly. “But, you'll help me?”

For a single, almost imperceptible moment, a lost look drifted across his face and Hannah caught a glimpse of vulnerability that mirrored the boy in the photograph from years ago.

He had told her that Eleanor knew all his secrets, and she wondered, had she once known the reason behind that look in his eyes?

Dylan reached up to stroke her hair with one tentative hand. The gesture was awkward but endearing, like a teenager with little experience, unsure how to proceed. “Of course,” he promised her, earnestly. “Every day you need me, I'll be by your side.” He stared in the direction Blake had disappeared a new determined look on his face. “and I will protect you,” he murmured in a voice so soft, Hannah barely registered that he'd spoken at all.

Before she could ask what he meant, he'd taken her hand and led her into the forest and towards their impatient companions. She shrugged it off, yet another conversation for later.

*

They walked for nearly half a mile in silence, their pace steady but hampered by Hannah's slow healing injuries. They made an odd group; her uncle forging on ahead, eager to reach the cars waiting for them, keeping one ear out for approaching rogues.

Dylan, young and uncertain of his authority, walking by Hannah's side – holding her hand and, on several occasions, helping to keep her upright when the winds threatened to send her tumbling across the forest floor.

And Asher, padding at the back of the procession, once again in wolf form, solicitously keeping pace with his female companion.

It was a tense journey.

The rustle of the leaves grew less prominent as the tall pines and spruces gradually closed in on them from all sides and the tense silence was oddly deafening. The seasonal trees that still held their own amongst the sea of evergreens had long since given up their leaves to the winds in this part of the forest and much of the fallen foliage had been muted by the rains. Without the autumn shades of orange and red, the forest seemed darker, the cloak of winter bringing with it a silent promise of danger.

The winds died down as they approached the main road and the patches of steel grey sky peeking between the canopy showed how quickly the seasons changed. Macleiry disappeared into the thick brush and returned moments later with a sour look upon his face.

“The cars are there,” he told them, keeping his voice low. “But there are rogue scents in the air. We should wait awhile, make sure they're not still hanging around.”

Asher nodded an agreement and they hunched down behind a group of Hawthorne Bushes, keeping one eye on the road ahead.

“It will rain soon,” the woman murmured to the silver wolf at her side. He flicked his ears in acknowledgment and turned to look at her. She stared intently into his golden eyes before nodding. “I know that, but the storm will slow us down even if – ” She paused again, her lips tightening. “I hadn't thought of that,” she said eventually. “Very well. But this is my last favour Asher.” The wolf stretched his long legs and his ears twitched again. “He's going to check the cars out,” the woman confirmed to Macleiry, who acknowledged her with nothing but a short grunt.

“You can hear the link?” Hannah exclaimed in surprise, as the silver wolf padded softly towards the road, carefully hiding his huge frame amongst the bushes.

The Raven haired woman turned to look at her, an unreadable expression in her dark eyes. “Yes,” she conceded in the same, soft murmur. “But only because he lets me.”

“But how – " Hannah started.

Her uncle shifted position, his eyes scanning the forest for signs of danger. “Witch,” he muttered under his breath.

“Serena helped us find you,” Dylan whispered in Hannah's ear. As he spoke, he leaned his body over hers, unconsciously sheltering her from the remaining winds.

Oh! Hannah's eyes widened and she regarded the woman with a new curiosity. That explained Blake's discomfort in her presence. Asher must have called in a favour. How desperate must Blake have been to accept her help? she wondered. Not to mention the witches couldn't be massive fans of the wolves either.

“Thank you,” she said to the woman impulsively. “It must have been difficult for you.”

Serena looked surprised and observed her with renewed interest. “I owed him a favour,” she said, nodding in the returning wolf's direction. “You've been though a lot,” she observed, her kohl eyes regarding Hannah intently. It was a statement rather than a question. “Funny,” the witch mused. “I expected you to be a little more... worse for wear, after so long in the company of rogues. Not that it’s a bad thing that you aren't of course, just unusual.”

Hannah shrugged. “Fenrik kept me more or less safe. He had his men on a pretty tight leash. They didn't dare touch me – " she thought back to the guard that had tested his rules. “ – at least, not once he'd made an example of one, anyway.”

“Remarkable,” Serena murmured. “A rogue with standards. It’s almost a pity he's – "

“Yes, it is,” Hannah said sadly. “I don't think he really saw himself as a rogue. More a businessman.”

Macleiry turned to look at her. “You don't actually mourn his death?” Her uncle sounded incredulous.

“No,” she frowned. “Not really, but – ”

“But what? He kidnapped you!”

“I know,” she agreed quietly, avoiding the quizzical look in Asher’s golden eyes. “But, he also saved me... in the end.”

Angus snorted. “Yes, saved you from a danger he created!” He spared her an indulgent look before scanning the road once again. “Don't mourn him my dear. He's no loss to the world. Just one more rogue back where he belongs. Every rogue – ”

“Is the road clear?” Dylan asked Serena, cutting across his father before he could launch into another tirade.

Serena stared at Asher a moment. “He says yes, the scent is old. He requests you wait a moment though. He wants to talk to Hannah.”

Macleiry uttered a sigh of irritation as the silver Alpha stalked back into the trees. “He doesn't want to talk to all of us, does he?” He peered out at the empty road. “Go and wait by the cars,” he ordered his son irritably.

Dylan's arm tightened around Hannah's shoulder a moment, but he reluctantly obeyed his father, casting his eyes between them with a furrowed brow.

Serena followed him placidly.

When Asher strolled back out of the bushes, a lazy smile on his face, he walked with Hannah and the reluctant Macleiry towards the vehicles.

“That isn't the car we arrived in,” Her uncle complained, a disgruntled look on his face.

Dylan stood by a black Range Rover that sat intimidatingly by the side of the road, its huge chunky wheels twice the width of a normal tyre.