Page 16 of Deception

He buried the thought in the back of his mind and trained all his focus on the two alphas up front. To whom did they owe the pleasure?

“Drew Kovacs of the Katahdin clan,” he said, letting a hint of warning fill his voice.

“Powerful East Coast bear clan,” someone murmured.

His chest puffed out a bit. Damn right.

“Thomas Miller,” the blond guy said. He didn’t mention a pack, which meant he’d either been kicked out of his former pack — unlikely, given that obvious strength — or was the second or third son of a powerful alpha who wanted to run his own pack. The dangerous kind — accustomed to privilege and hungry for power.

“Dryver,” the old guy said next. “Of Deer Mountain pack. You any relation to those Voss bears?”

Every shifter in the room leaned forward, and more than one set of claws was unsheathed. He could sense them sliding silently out as the wolves barely held back.

A moment of truth. What he said next would make or break his entire mission.

“Cousin,” he admitted.

Alarmed voices broke out around the room, but one look from Thomas silenced them. Yep, he was definitely the wolf to watch out for here.

Drew had rehearsed his lines a hundred times on his way north, so they came easily now.

“My clan is concerned about the behavior of our relations out West.”

That was near enough the truth. There were plenty of bears at home who disapproved of his cousins breaking tradition and taking mates who weren’t bears. The disapproval was nowhere near the murderous knee-jerk reaction of these killer wolves, though. More like a little headshaking among the older bears. But he didn’t have to share those details.

“They sent me out to talk to the bears who run the Blue Moon clan.” That was mostly true, too.

“It’s not a clan. It’s a disgrace!” someone shouted.

He ignored the source and focused solely on the reaction of the two alphas before him. Were they as radical as he feared?

Dryver bared his teeth at the man who’d called out — more in ayou should be seen and not heardgesture thanI disagree with your stancedisapproval.

“And you came here to…?” Thomas leveled a cool gaze at Drew, still impossible to read. Funny how every look, every question felt like a trap. An ugly, steel-jawed bear trap.

I came here to get my mate out of this sick place,his bear wanted to roar.To take her home and tell her just how I feel about her.

“The leaders of my clan sent me here to report back on the activities of the Blue Bloods. Nothing more.” He kept his voice carefully neutral, just like his choice of words.

Thomas tilted his head in athat can be interpreted in more ways than onegesture, which was exactly what Drew intended. His words could be interpreted to mean that the Katahdin pack was considering supporting the Blue Bloods in their quest for purity. Which was utter bullshit, but Thomas didn’t know that. Second, his careful word choice prevented the scent of a lie from slipping out, because the statement was true, in a way. Soren — a member of his clan, at least in the extended sense — really had sent him to Utah for information.

And to maim, rip apart, or kill any wolf who threatens my mate while I’m at it,his bear added.

Even Drew could smell the warning that wafted off his own shoulders with that thought, but that was fine. Let the wolves see him bristle. Let them stay on their toes.

“To report.” Thomas echoed his words, arching his eyebrows in a question.

A question Drew sure as hell wasn’t going to field right now. The less he said, the longer he could pull off his ruse.

All I want is my mate. Get her to safety. Make her mine,his bear growled.

Yeah, well. He wanted that, too, but there was more to the situation than just him and Summer. The future of all shifters was at a tipping point.

Grizzled old Dryver folded his thick arms and glared at him. “That is our pack’s business, not yours.”

“Whose pack?” Drew retorted, looking between the two men before him to make his point. Who would lead the Blue Bloods, and what would his agenda be?

The old man scowled. “That will be decided soon.”

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