“Fight club,” Ellison said. As the Challenged, it was his right to name time and place. “Tonight.”

Broderick stared. “Are you nuts? We don’t know what will go down today.”

“If we survive, fight club. Done?”

“Shit.” Broderick gave him a nod. “All right. Done.”

Ellison laughed. His fighting blood was up. He was in love, he’d had sex with the most beautiful woman in the world yesterday, and she’d told him she loved him today.

The most beautiful woman in the world started yelling at him in Spanish. Ellison understood only a few words, like idiota, but he laughed again. Maria was fiery, she was courageous, and she was his.

Now to find Bradley, kick his ass, kick Broderick’s ass, and take Maria into his arms tonight.

***

“I can’t believe you talked me into this,” Pablo said from beside Maria in Ellison’s truck.

“Insurance,” Ellison said, his voice rumbling pleasantly from Maria’s other side as he drove. “In case you decided to go behind us and tell Bradley we were coming.”

“Would I do that?” Pablo sounded innocent.

“You would totally do that.” Ellison grinned across at him, his drawl becoming pronounced. “So you come with us, my friend.”

“And you’re bringing your girlfriend? You Shifters are insane.”

“Yeah, we are,” Ellison said. “No telling what we’ll do next.”

He stepped on the gas of his black pickup, shooting them down the highway past Bastrop and out into the country. A big fire had devastated this area last year, destroying homes in and around the historic little town. Shifters from Austin and the Hill Country Shiftertowns had gone out to help people evacuate and save what they could, though that detail hadn’t been made public.

No one had heard from Dylan or Sean about the search for Connor, and none of the Shifters dared make a call in case a stray cell phone ring endangered the Morrisseys. Maria’s heart was cold with fear for them, but she knew they would call if they had news. They must be searching, planning what to do—or in the middle of a fight for their lives. Not knowing was hard.

Pablo had said that Bradley had a house east of Bastrop on the river, an estate that encompassed about a hundred acres, surrounded by a fence and a large electronic gate. Bradley didn’t do his business there, Pablo said—he conducted business in offices and warehouses around the city. He didn’t piss in his own sandbox.

Maria found the phrase strange but apt. If police raided Bradley’s house, they’d likely find nothing. Pablo’s information, though, meant that Connor probably wouldn’t be at the house either.

Ellison drove with one hand, while Maria held Pablo’s smart phone with its map of the area. Before they reached the gates of Bradley’s house, Ellison pulled onto a side road that had once run off to someone’s ranch and now led to a housing development.

Bradley’s estate had escaped the fire, but many of the houses in the development had not. New buildings were going up again, workers in large pickups and work trucks swarming the neighborhood.

Good camouflage, Ellison said, parking at the end of the line of work trucks. He slid out of the driver’s seat, and Ronan, Tiger, and Broderick crawled out from where they’d been lying low under a tarp in the back.

“Goddess,” Broderick snarled as he shook himself out. “I smell like bear and . . . whatever he is.” He gave Tiger a dark look. “I said I’d help, but don’t put me with the crazy again.”

Tiger growled at him, but Maria swore there was humor behind it.

“Fine by me,” Ellison said to Broderick. “You can scout to the north with Ronan. Tiger and I will cover the south. Take out guards, but quietly. Ronan, you’ll teach Broderick how to do that, right?”

Ronan grinned, and Broderick made a noise of disgust. “Like I can’t be more stealthy than a giant bear,” Broderick muttered.

“Take out the guards, make your way to the house, and we’ll disable the alarm system.” Ellison studied a piece of paper before tucking it into his pocket. Pablo’s girlfriend had given them instructions about how to go about bypassing the alarm without triggering it.

More trust on Ellison’s part. Pablo could have instructed her to give Ellison bad guidance so he’d trip the alarm instead. Bradley might then reward Pablo. The Shifters were gambling on Pablo being more afraid of them than of Bradley.

Ellison didn’t say what they’d do after they got inside. Maria knew, though. They’d corner Bradley, find out where the cubs were, then kill him.

Ellison slid back into the truck. Maria looked at him in surprise, then let out a breath when he enfolded her in his arms. He didn’t squeeze, he didn’t kiss her; Ellison just held her, his embrace strong.

He’d never let her fall, the hug said. Never let her falter, never let anything hurt her. Maria had been drifting, rudderless, and now, Ellison was her anchor.

He kissed Maria’s cheek then her lips, his warm. “Goddess go with you,” he said, his voice low. “I’ll be back as soon as I can.” He transferred his gaze to Pablo, and the loving look turned to ice. “You take care of her. If Maria’s hurt in any way, or scared, or pissed off . . . You won’t live to regret it.”

“I know how to do this,” Pablo said, with no sign of anger. “Wipe out Bradley for me, and life will be good. That’s worth sitting a couple of hours in a pickup with a nice young woman.”