“So you think it’s not your fault that my cousin lay dying?” Sean asked him. “Thinking he’d not live to see his grandchildren born? But that’s all right, because you weren’t aiming for him?”

Sean watched fear dive deep inside the man and erupt as wild fury. His face went red, his scar white. “Fucking Shifters.” The man jumped to his feet, drew his pistol, and jammed it, cold and hard, against Sean’s jaw. “What are you afraid of?” he snarled at the other humans. “They can’t hurt us. Those Collars will hurt them worse.”

Sean heard Andrea’s growl, a sound that built into a wall of vibrating rage.

“Shit,” Ben whispered.

Shit was right.

Sean let go of the sword. It stayed upright, in the table. When the human with the pistol glanced at it in surprise, Sean whipped around and crushed the pistol from the man’s grasp. The breaking metal bit into Sean’s skin, bloodying it, but he didn’t feel a thing.

Sean also didn’t feel the sparks that burst from his Collar as he wrapped his hand around the human’s throat and lifted him high. The human made choking noise and clawed at Sean’s fingers. Sean casually threw him across the room.

The other two humans sprang to their feet. Shifters weren’t supposed to be able to hurt humans; the Collars were in place to prevent that. Sean’s Collar was sparking, but he ignored it as another human yanked out his gun and opened fire.

The bullets went wide as Ben plowed into the man. Callum shifted, his clothes ripping, and he launched himself at Sean. Sean met him, his hands changing to claws as Callum’s wildcat landed on him. Callum’s Collar went off, but he went for Sean’s face with his fangs

The shouts of the other Shifters were drowned by the fearsome snarl of the huge wolf that hurtled at Callum. The wildcat was knocked aside by a hundred and fifty pounds of wolf, her fangs bared, aiming right for Callum’s throat. Andrea’s Collar went off, blue arcs of electricity whipping around her neck, but it didn’t slow her a nanosecond.

Andrea went down with Callum, Callum fighting and clawing. Still Andrea didn’t stop. She was within a heartbeat of ripping out Callum’s throat when Sean wrapped both arms around her and dragged her back.

“No. Don’t kill him. Don’t, love. You’ve got to stop.”

Andrea snarled and fought. Her Collar snapped and sparked and sizzled, but it might have been an inert piece of metal for all her reaction.

“Andrea!” Sean put every ounce of force he had into the word. “Stop! Now!”

Andrea finally went slack in Sean’s arms but breathed hard, wolf eyes hot with rage. Sean let her go, and she sank to her haunches next to him, pressing her shoulder hard into his hip.

Callum morphed slowly back to human. Blood dripped from his face, his throat blackened from his Collar’s sparks. “Bloody Lupine,” he grated.

“I want no Shifters dying,” Sean said. “Not today.”

“To hell with what you want,” Callum said.

Andrea growled and jerked forward, but Sean stopped her with his hand on her back. He drew out his cell phone again. “I’m not letting Shifters die,” Sean repeated. “But the cops get the humans. They’re paying for Ely. I suggest all Shifters clear out, unless you’re wanting to explain your presence to the human police.”

He punched numbers, then paused with his thumb over the button that would send the call.

“Bloody hell, Sean,” Ben rumbled.

Callum spat blood. “Just like a Morrissey to only believe one side of a story.”

Sean snarled at him, feeling his eyes change. “Humans are shooting at Shifters, and you’re getting cozy with the same humans. Doesn’t take a genius to figure out that you’re in on it with them.”

“Because mixing ourselves with them and their world makes us weak,” Callum said with heat. “Going to their bars and shops, our cubs wanting their toys like stupid cell phones and satellite dishes. They’ve forgotten that Shifters are supposed to be fighters, warriors, a hell of a lot better than humans.”

“So you’re putting Shifters in danger because your son’s been bothering you for a nicer computer, are you now?” Sean asked. “Good logic, that. Now, Callum, are you going to run or stay and pay the price?”

“Don’t be an idiot. You won’t call the police.”

Sean rotated his thumb over the button. “But I will. This human toy, you see, lets me talk to people from far away.”

“He’s right, Sean,” Ben broke in. “If the cops take the humans, they’ll just tell them we hired them. The police will come after us then. You’ll make it even worse for us.”

Sean knew that, had known it, hated that. In retrospect, it was a good thing that Kim and Silas, and Sean, hadn’t been able to convince the human police to take the problem more seriously. The detectives would have found Shifters at the end of the trail. Shifters would be rounded up, guilty and innocent alike, interrogated, not likely to be let go in a hurry, probably punished, which mean being put to death. Shifters did not need a lockdown and arbitrary arrests, especially not just now with Liam and Dylan performing their experiments on the Collars. Callum’s little plot to keep Shifters pure could be the death of them all.

Sean smiled, thumb still poised. “What do you suggest then, Callum. We kill your humans?”

Callum liked that solution, Sean could see, and the humans saw that he liked it too. But as much as Sean wanted to tear off their heads, he knew that dead humans were another risk they couldn’t take.

“You want it too much, Callum,” Sean said in a quiet voice. “So what I’ll do is call my dad. He and my brother’s trackers will escort these humans out of town, somewhere far, far away, where we won’t ever see them again. Ben, why don’t you and some of the Shifters you trust here help with that? Take them somewhere that I or my brother won’t happen on them. Either that or I take them to San Antonio and let them face Ely’s mate.”

Andrea growled in agreement. Female Shifters defending their mates were the most dangerous Shifters of all. They didn’t care who died, as long as those who’d attacked their mates bled. A lot.

“We’ll help your dad take care of it,” Ben said quickly.

Two of the other Shifters disarmed the humans so fast they didn’t have time to react. Sean’s adrenaline eased the slightest bit. Ben would be smart enough to see the wisdom of hiding the mess and throwing the police off the scent. Whatever evil deed they’d been planning here today wouldn’t happen.