Weeks slowly passed by, but nothing happened. Dan and Steve had lost the group's trail when they had gotten into a boat on a large river, so we never did find out where they were going.

"The rogues are back again," Anabel called across the packlink. "No news, but they do have three more ferals and five rogues who want to join."

"I'll wait by the barn for the ferals," I replied.

"Nora, can you accompany me to meet the rogues who want to join?" Alpha Kiel asked.

"On my way."

I trotted out of the house, unsurprised to see several pack members already waiting by the barn. With no need for secrecy anymore, the rogues had been bringing the ferals here.

"More rogues joining," Amber murmured, letting those nearby hear her.

"If those five don't want to be separated, then most packs won't accept them," I replied. "Alpha Kiel is one of the few who will."

"True. We just need to make sure they aren't here to cause trouble, and an hour of questioning with Nora checking for any lies or strange emotions takes care of that."

"Yep. Then begins the hard part of helping them adjust to pack life."

"Julie! That's my piece of bacon! Get your tail back here!"

"Nope! It's my bacon now!" I skittered between chair legs and under tables as I ran across the dining area. Sliding to a stop, I waited until the pair of boots kept going. I doubled back and managed to slip under other tables, then finally into the kitchen.

"What are you going to do if they ever start working together to catch you?" the Luna asked in amusement from where she leaned against a counter.

"Get caught, probably." I sat by her feet and began chewing on the bacon.

"Was it the last piece of bacon?"

"Yep."

She chuckled and took a bite of her toast. I had almost finished the bacon by the time Kyle finally appeared in the doorway.

"Oh, did you come to help clean up?" I asked as innocently as I could while crunching the last bit of bacon between my teeth. "Most of the dishes have already been washed and dried. Just a couple of trays are left."

"I think you owe me for that bacon."

"What bacon? I don't see any bacon." I quickly gulped my mouthful down and looked up at the Luna. "Do you see any bacon?"

"Not at this moment," she replied serenely, "but I do see a sink full of clean water and a puppy with grease on her fur."

A grin split across Kyle's face as he advanced. "I think I can help the Omegas with that task."

I scrambled backward against the cupboards. "Uh, let's not be hasty now. We can take some time to-"

"Be on alert!" one of the patrol guards called across the packlink. "There is a trespasser in the area with a faint smell of blood. We have at least one scent trail past the border, and it's fresh!"

The Alpha immediately said, "All guards and patrols on backup duty take your places. Everyone else, please get inside or near the packhouse, or one of the safehouses."

Kyle immediately shifted into a large tan wolf. "Let's go upstairs. It'll be easier to defend."

The Luna picked me up and jogged out of the kitchen, heading for the staircase. The hallways were bustling with activity as people in their wolf form headed to wherever they were supposed to be. I amplified my aura and ensured it kept the children and shyer members of our pack from panicking while not affecting the alertness of the guards.

We followed Kyle and numerous others up the staircase, where several wolves were already guarding the top of the stairs. The Luna went into one of the small libraries and put me on a chair before going over to the window and peeking out of it from the side. Kyle also went over to the window and looked out.

"How serious do you think this is?" I asked the Luna, ensuring my words didn't reach any of the other dozen people already in the room.

"I don't think it's a rogue that just decided to ignore our borders," she replied. "With all the howling from the patrols, he should have gotten spooked and left. No scent trail goes back over the border, but he's staying in the general area."

"That's not good news, is it?"

"He's either holing up and hiding or he laid a false trail and is going deeper into our territory."

Another border patrol shouted, "We've got company! At least fifty fighters are approaching from the east!"

My heart sank, and I became worried for our fighters.

"Race back and regroup around our core locations! Put it in high gear to beat them back," the Alpha commanded. "Those in the stealth groups, you can choose if you want to remain in the forest and launch hit-and-run attacks or not."

My senses couldn't track the location of my friends, but their mindsparks shone brightly with their growing anger, protectiveness, and determination to defend their pack and home. Conrad's mind was beginning to hum across my senses as his abilities emerged from dormancy in the face of this new threat.

The Luna walked across the room and passed books to the two children present while quietly talking with the adults. Almost everyone was in wolf form since it was stronger and more capable of detecting trouble.

"They're shadow assassins! Keep an eye on all entrances and exits, and stay away from the windows in case they have a crossbow!"

I dropped down from the chair and trotted over to a big couch. Kyle picked me by my scruff and set me on the cushion so could I curl up between the two children. Turning around, he sat in front of the couch and waited with his fur slightly bristling.

Suspense danced along the packlink as we waited for more updates.

Time passed slowly as wolves prowled around the packhouse, both inside and outside, while more lurked in the nearby forest. A few people in human form hid beside various windows or in trees with crossbows powerful enough to seriously injure a werewolf.

A volley of howls rang through the air to the east. Not all of them were from our pack.

"They're heading for the packhouse! Make sure all the doors and windows are closed and barred shut."

Someone opened the window and quickly closed the storm shutters. Most of the wolves exited the room before the heavy wood door was closed, locked, and had a heavy beam dropped into the holders.

Closing my eyes, I focused on the mindsparks dancing through my senses.

"There is a stranger close enough to the packhouse that I can sense him," I warned across the packlink, carefully omitting the children.

"It won't be long before you start sensing more of them," Vera told me grimly. "They're running in a tight group – we can't pick them off in ones or twos."

"What about our archers?"

"We aren't quite that close to the packhouse yet."

I shivered as more shadowy mindsparks appeared in my senses. Their grim and determined mindset reminded me a lot of the lawless rogues who had kidnapped me. I was grateful for the number of doors and guards between me and them.

"I thought shadow assassins would be stealthier. Why are they attacking like this?"

"It's a rather effective tactic against small packs. Most fighters would have gathered along the border when they realized there was an intruder, and if the attackers can get past the main group, there is little resistance until they get to the packhouse or safehouses. There is probably a second group farther behind trying to pin any fighters between the two forces."

My heart dropped even further. "A second group?"

"Victoria is still watching the border, just in case, and she'll let us know if more come. The first group is probably trying to get inside to hold children and others hostage before our fighters catch up. With luck, they don't know our pack has nearly doubled in size since the Festival, and that we were fast enough to beat them to the packhouse."

The Alpha's voice interrupted our private conversation. "Archers, fire at will! Skirmishers, hold the doors!"

Pain rolled across several mindsparks as arrows found our attackers, and anger flashed through the minds of my packmates. Howls, snarls, and yelps could be heard through the shuttered window. The children beside me looked up, although my aura kept them calm.

Mindsparks started winking out of my senses suddenly as other mindsparks flared with the pressure of the fight. Far too many mindsparks were disappearing – mostly from our pack.

I sat up in alarm. "What's going on?" I asked Vera, only for my words to fall into silence.

"Something's happening!" I warned the Alpha, Luna, and Beta. "I can't sense half of our people!"

The Alpha's voice shook as he quietly replied, "They've gone feral."

He shared an image of dozens of red-eyed wolves charging and attacking unfamiliar wolves. The strangers were skidding to a stop or desperately trying to defend themselves from the unexpected onslaught. Some tried to run, clearly not expecting to have encountered this level of resistance when only a dozen fighters should have been guarding the packhouse

The Luna raised the storm shutters slightly and crouched down so she could see out the narrow space. A few other wolves stood behind her and peered out the mouse-tall gap.

"What do you see?" I desperately asked the Luna as I jumped off the couch and ran over to her. My friends had gone feral again, and on top of that, they were in a big fight.

Without looking away, she sent me several mental images, possibly too distracted to consider if it was suitable for a Comforter to see.

A mass of wolves brawled on the grass near the trees. Our Alpha and Beta were close to the packhouse as they fought several invaders. It was easy to spot the ferals – they were attacking with single-minded ferocity. A large black wolf plowed through the group, snapping necks and legs with powerful bites.

Somehow, though, the ferals were only attacking the strangers. Not one bite or scratch landed on the handful of our other pack members in the fight.

I gasped at the sight of wolves biting and ripping chunks of flesh and fur out of each other. Kyle shifted into human form and picked me up, making sure I couldn't see through the tiny gap when he stood up. I buried my head between his arm and chest.

"Will they be okay?" I asked him, knowing that few would walk away from such a fight without injuries.

"I hope so. I really hope so," he murmured.

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