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All characters in this book are fiction and figments of the author’s imagination.
Praise for Carrie Ann Ryan….
“Count on Carrie Ann Ryan for emotional, sexy, character driven stories that capture your heart!” – Carly Phillips, NY Times bestselling author
“Carrie Ann Ryan’s romances are my newest addiction! The emotion in her books captures me from the very beginning. The hope and healing hold me close until the end. These love stories will simply sweep you away.” ~ NYT Bestselling Author Deveny Perry
"Carrie Ann Ryan writes the perfect balance of sweet and heat ensuring every story feeds the soul." - Audrey Carlan, #1 New York Times Bestselling Author
“Carrie Ann Ryan never fails to draw readers in with passion, raw sensuality, and characters that pop off the page. Any book by Carrie Ann is an absolute treat.” – New York Times Bestselling Author J. Kenner
“Carrie Ann Ryan knows how to pull your heartstrings and make your pulse pound! Her wonderful Redwood Pack series will draw you in and keep you reading long into the night. I can’t wait to see what comes next with the new generation, the Talons. Keep them coming, Carrie Ann!” –Lara Adrian, New York Times bestselling author of CRAVE THE NIGHT
"With snarky humor, sizzling love scenes, and brilliant, imaginative worldbuilding, The Dante's Circle series reads as if Carrie Ann Ryan peeked at my personal wish list!" – NYT Bestselling Author, Larissa Ione
"Carrie Ann Ryan writes sexy shifters in a world full of passionate happily-ever-afters." – New York Times Bestselling Author Vivian Arend
“Carrie Ann’s books are sexy with characters you can’t help but love from page one. They are heat and heart blended to perfection.” New York Times Bestselling Author Jayne Rylon
Carrie Ann Ryan's books are wickedly funny and deliciously hot, with plenty of twists to keep you guessing. They'll keep you up all night!” USA Today Bestselling Author Cari Quinn
"Once again, Carrie Ann Ryan knocks the Dante's Circle series out of the park. The queen of hot, sexy, enthralling paranormal romance, Carrie Ann is an author not to miss!" New York Times bestselling Author Marie Harte
Dedication
For Grandma Sharon
I miss you.
Hunted in Darkness
The Aspen Pack series from NYT Bestselling Carrie Ann Ryan continues with a fated romance that was never supposed to happen.
Skye Jamenson-Anderson knows the legacy she must live up to. She’s the daughter of warriors and the granddaughter of the late Alphas who sacrificed everything so their den could survive. Though she feels she doesn’t have a place in her Pack, she does everything in her power to keep them and their allies alive—including saving the Aspen Alpha.
As Alpha of the Aspen Pack, Chase Leyne knows a thing or two about one’s legacy. He’s the son of a traitor and the most powerful wolf in his territory. He also knows without a doubt that Skye is not his mate. When the two decide to lean on another in every way possible, they both go in knowing nothing forever can come out of it.
The enemy is stepping up their game and threaten the stability of the alliance forged in blood. With one bite, Chase and Skye’s world changes, and the one thing that is keeping them apart might be the only promise to save their Packs and their future.
Chapter
One
Chase
While I would’ve preferred my paws to touch the ground, for the dirt to sink in between my toes as I leapt over a fallen log and wound between the trees, I needed to be human for this. I had to go back and meet with the council, as well as a visiting Beta. There were things to do with an upcoming war on the horizon, like the fact that we wouldn’t be able to hide the vampires from the humans for much longer. As it was, we were certain that the government already knew something was changing. How had the vampires hidden for so long—at least thirty years from what I could tell—and were now rolling out so quickly?
They were doing this for a reason.
That worried me.
Because we weren’t ready, we were barely rising from the ashes as it was, but we needed to be better than this. We needed to focus and push through.
And that meant I needed to be at the top of my game.
I needed to stop with the nightmares. I needed to sleep through an entire night without waking up in a cold sweat, the feel of silver and metal against my back as I screamed in agony. I shouldn’t have those dreams any longer.
I couldn’t.
I had to be the Alpha the Aspens deserved.
I jumped over another log, my wolf at the forefront. He was pacing, eager for a hunt, but I knew it wasn’t time yet. We would go on a hunt for the full moon in the coming days with the rest of the Pack. They would wait for me, and I would lead them.
They needed me to be their leader.
I had been the Heir who hadn’t been allowed to be that person for so long. I’d been hidden away and hadn’t saved my people.
But now I would lead them, and I would protect them.
There wasn’t another choice.
I leapt over another log and kept going, annoyed with myself for letting the gloom hit me. I had so much energy, this rage that had been beaten and hidden within me for the years I was caged and locked away.
I still remembered Audrey’s screams when she had been tortured next to me, stabbed over and over again in places that wouldn’t damage any organs, but would still hurt her. We had been caged together, metal separating us, and I hadn’t been able to save my best friend.
And she hadn’t even known I was alive there.
The world had thought I was dead, hidden, but I had been there.
Somehow, I had survived. Maybe not whole, but enough.
I needed to survive.
I needed to protect my Pack.
I turned the corner, heading back to the den. They needed me, and while Steele didn’t appreciate the fact that I was running alone, I was still within the den’s reach. Anybody could get to me in less than five minutes. But I was an Alpha, and I could hold my own.
Far more than most people thought.
The first scent hit me, and my wolf went on alert as I slowed.
The moment I turned the corner, they moved.
As if they had been waiting.
Oh, they had known where I would be. They had to have. But how? How had they known?
I looked around, searching.
Vampires slid out of the darkness, but they were not overcome with blood hunger. No, these were sentient, with angry red eyes and immaculate control.
And they were waiting.
For me.
As they circled me, my claws slid out of my fingertips. I wouldn’t have time to change into my wolf form, even though I was faster than most.