He could feel their submission toward Bay as well. They were the Enforcer pair. They, together, would protect the Pack.

He let out a breath, and Bay kissed his shoulder. "Let's go, big boy."

Adam leaned over and kissed her forehead then made his way to where his family was already sitting.

Cailin wasn't there as she was watching the Jamenson children by herself, but he knew she'd find out everything that happened once one of them made it to her. Maddox sat to the side, alone, his gaze resting on Ellie, who sat close to North. It was odd, but Maddox never seemed to want to touch Ellie. Adam didn't understand it, but it wasn't his business. Yet. Ellie leaned over and whispered something in North's ear, and he shook his head. Adam could hear Maddox's growl. When his brother noticed Adam watching, Maddox turned and faced the center of the circle.

To the other side of Ellie and North sat Reed, Hannah, and Josh. Hannah sat between her two men, leaning into Reed's embrace and holding Josh's hand. Adam held back a wince at the scar on Josh's neck. They'd come too close to losing him. There was an air of sadness around the trio, but Adam didn't know what had caused it.

Jasper and Willow sat on the other side of Reed, Willow leaning heavily into Jasper's side. Those two looked like they were in sync in everything they did. Even though their mating had started out rocky, they were closer now than ever.

Adam and Bay made it to their seats in front of Jasper and Willow and sat. Jasper slapped Adam's back in hello, and Adam raised his head. Kade and Melanie came in last, their steps sure and steady. They were the Heir mated pair and truly were ready to be Alpha. The people in the circle lowered their heads in submission, and Mel and Kade nodded back, a sign of their acceptance and seniority.

Once they sat down, Bay leaned into Adam's side, and they watched as the Alpha, his father, walked up to the podium, his mother standing behind him in support.

The wolves lowered their gazes, their bodies humming with respect, awe, and submission. This was their Alpha, their protector, their leader.

"We're here tonight because we've come to a time when we must take a stand," his father began, his voice low and soothing in that odd sense of an Alpha, the tone that held magic and promise. "The Centrals have gone to the depths of hell and are no longer merely wolves. Their souls are dark and clouded, their bodies mere husks for a much darker power. We, as Redwoods, cannot do what they have done. Nor do we want to.

"They have killed our families and our friends, breached our wards, and come into our homes. This cannot happen again. We will not allow this to happen again."

The circle shouted in response, and the Alpha held out a hand. They quieted at once.

"With each fight they bring us, we have fought back. But we are losing. We are Redwoods. We. Do. Not. Lose."

The shouts returned, and his father let them. The wolves showed their anger toward the Centrals, their solidarity toward their own Pack. This was Pack. This was home. Adam squeezed Bay closer and felt her wolf rise against his. Her wolf was Pack now and didn't want to lose either.

Good.

"When Josh and Hannah came into our Pack, we gained the trinity bond and the ability to block the demon from opening another portal to hell and bring others to his cause. Without that, Caym was cut off from his brethren. That helped because we can fight one demon. We have to. But more than one? An army? No, we don't have to fight that. But we were still losing. Our wards were still being breached. But now, with the addition of a new member, we will have the upper hand on our wards."

Adam stiffened as Bay moved from his side and stood. He raised a brow, and she kissed him softly.

"Don't worry," she whispered as she and Kade made their way to his father's side.

"You all know that Bay is the daughter of our enemy, Caym," his father said, his voice daring anyone to object to her presence.

No one did.

"The blood running through the demon's veins is the reason he, and those he shares a bloodline with, can break our wards. Yet, when Josh was bitten, it wasn't enough. His blood wasn't enough to help us secure the wards. But Bay's blood will be."

Alarm spread through Adam, and he growled. What the fuck were they planning? How much blood did they need? Jasper gripped his shoulder and held him back. Oh, fuck.

His father nodded to Kade and took out a menacing blade. Adam reached for his crutches.

"With her blood, our wards will be strengthened through the Alpha and Heir bonds. She is family, she is Pack, she is ours."

With that, he quickly sliced into his palm and then Bay's. Adam growled again at the sight of her blood. She'd already been brought into the Pack when he'd bit her and marked her, but this was different. Bay hadn't prepared him for this.

"Let it happen; she'll be okay. She's tough," Jasper whispered, but Adam ignored him.

Their Alpha and Bay clasped hands, and Adam felt the magic wash over him and their Pack. It was as if he could feel the strength of her blood in their wards. Kade sliced his palm and Bay's other hand, and Adam growled. Magic washed over them as Kade pressed his hand to Bay's and the three at the podium connected in magic and power.

Bay held up their joined hands, the three of them standing as one, and the circle cheered, the power and strength and togetherness pouring out of all of them. Bay smiled then ran to Adam's side.

"I'm fine, see?" She held out her hand, and Adam kissed the now healed wounds.

"Never do that again."

"That's why I didn't tell you."

"We'll talk about this later," he said as he bit her lip then laved the sting he surely caused. "I love you, Bay."

"I love you, too, my big bad Enforcer. We're going to beat them you know."

"I know; we have to." He held her close and kissed her temple, letting her cool ice-and-berries scent wash over him.

As long as his mate was in his arms and their child was safe, they would be okay. They were Redwoods; they could survive it all.

Epilogue.

Caym screamed and threw a dagger at a wolf. The wolf yipped then fell to the floor. The fucking Redwoods had changed their wards. They had used his own flesh and blood to do it. He'd kill her. He'd kill them all.

"We'll crush the Redwoods, Caym," Corbin promised as he hugged him from behind. "We have to."

Caym didn't find any comfort in his words or touches. He never did.

"What is your plan then, oh Alpha?" he sneered. "Tell me."

"We'll use Ellie. She'll come back if we force her. If I can't get to her, we'll make her come to us."

Caym turned in Corbin's arms and looked at the man who he called lover.

"What is your plan?"

"Take away the one thing she has. Trust."

Caym nodded. That just might work. They'd use her as their inside track. After all, if they could unleash their horror from the outside, they could use her like a virus from the inside. Between her and his plan with the other, all would be well. They would win, and the Redwoods would crumble.

And if they killed the Central princess in the process, well, that was just the icing on his cake.

The End Coming soon in the Redwood Pack world, a special novella with the triad of the Pack, Hannah, Josh, and Reed, called Blurred Expectations.

Then...Maddox.

About the Author.

Carrie Ann Ryan is a bestselling paranormal and contemporary romance author. After spending too much time behind a lab bench, she decided to dive into the romance world and find her werewolf mate - even if it's just in her books. Happy endings are always near - even if you have to get over the challenges of falling in love first.

Her first book, An Alpha's Path, is the first in her Redwood Pack series. She's also an avid reader and lover of romance and fiction novels. She love meeting new authors and new worlds. Any recommendations you have are appreciated. Carrie Ann lives in New England with her husband and two kittens.

Also from this Author: Now Available: Redwood Pack Series: An Alpha's Path A Taste for a Mate Trinity Bound A Night Away Enforcer's Redemption Holiday, Montana Series: Charmed Spirits Coming Soon: Redwood Pack Blurred Expectations Shattered Emotions Holiday, Montana Series: Santa's Executive Dante's Circle: Her Warriors' Three Wishes Dust of My Wings Excerpt Have you tried Carrie Ann's other series, Dante's Circle?

Dust of My Wings is now available

Chapter 1.

A summons from the council never led to good things. Shade Griffin's millennia worth of experience told him that. No matter what he truly desired, he'd do what he was told. He didn't have another option, and why would he disobey now? He never had before. Whatever demands they dealt might seem tedious to a long-lived being such as him, he didn't have anything else better to do.

Such was the life of an angel in his predicament; a vast and endless sense of being, yet no one with whom to share it.

Shade shook off the misery that threatened to creep along his skin and suffocate him. The idea of sharing his endless life with someone else, someone special, had long since burned away. No need to think about it again.

The sun broke through the clouds, warming his cool, honey-colored, almost dark tan, skin. He lifted his face, letting the rays soak into his pores. His eyes closed, and he took a deep breath, not really wanting to leave the spot. He rolled his neck, stretching his muscles, and then opened his eyes. His back ached from the long flight to the enclave. He stretched his wings, the light shimmering off his midnight black wings that trailed to a rim of deep blue. The wind picked up, his blue-black hair flowing behind him.

Shade arched his back, his wings flared, and blue dust trickled off and into the air, and drifted to the ground below.

Damn stuff kept doing that; and there was nothing he could do about it. He clenched his fists and winced in pain. He looked down at the healing abrasions on his knuckles and muttered a curse.

As one of the appointed enforcers of angelic law, he'd just come back from the punishment of a young angel: a cocky one at that. He hated doing it, but the unrepentant jerk had decided it would be fun to fly in broad daylight without cloud cover over Area 51. Really? Cliche much? It was easy enough to downplay the event as another UFO sighting, which would certainly bring out the crazies, but it didn't negate the fact that the reckless angel had broken angelic law by letting humans see him flying.

Because he had decided to laugh about it to his friends and merely shrugged it off, Shade had to step in. If he'd apologized, then Shade wouldn't have had to use his fists. But no. The young one mouthed off and challenged him, so Shade had to accept. After all, as a warrior, he could not ignore a challenge. Doing so would negate his authority.

And he won.

Of course.

He still hated punishing others, even though it was his job. Between him and his best friend, Ambrose, who was practically his brother, they dealt with most of the enforcing the angelic laws. Together they'd done what they had to do for centuries, and in Ambrose's case, even longer.

Shade was a warrior angel. In the times of the Angelic Wars, he'd fought alongside the best of the best. Hell, he was the best of the best. Well, maybe tied with Ambrose, but he wouldn't tell the other angel that.

Shade chuckled as he envisioned Ambrose's reaction to his thought. Ambrose was sure to want to prove just the opposite to be the case, and Shade would be more than willing to give it a go. If you couldn't fight for supremacy with your best friend, how else would you even know how good you were?

Now those wars were long since over. Times of awkward peace were at hand, meaning the warriors herded the other angels and made sure they followed the rules the council members set in place.

They followed the rules, even if the rules were sometimes, in his opinion, too strict for their own good. But he would never voice it. He was merely a warrior angel.

He wasn't even a godly one like in the fables of mortals. Their race wasn't that of a god. Yes, if theology was correct, a god at some point had created them, but they weren't God's right hand men; they were not the symbol of goodness and hope. Far from it. They were just another species with rules, regulations, and a seemingly endless long life in order to be subjugated.

Wow. Bitter much?

He shouldn't be; he had everything he wanted, didn't he? His forehead scrunched as he thought, and his wings fluttered a bit in agitation.

He certainly had all the money, titles, glory, and privileges a warrior of the finest caliber could have. Why did he feel like he was missing something?

Shade shook his head and looked around. He stood at a midpoint on the mountainside, the enclave circling him. Stone buildings jutted from rock faces, thousands of feet above the surface, old as time. No stairs or elevators here. Open the door and, without wings, they'd drop to their death. Marble and crystal twinkled in the sunlight from the adornments and windows on all of the structures. It may have looked cold to some, but to Shade and his angelic brethren it was warm and inviting.

It looked like home, but it wasn't truly a 'home'; There was no love waiting on the other side of the door, and that pained him.

He sighed. He really needed to stop thinking such depressing thoughts. Taking one last look at the place he called home, he jumped off the ledge, his wings spreading to catch a drift, as the cool breezes hit his skin. He flew past other angels in the air, nodding to a few, but kept to himself. He was a warrior angel, the last face some would see as they stared beyond the end of his blade. Tough to make life-long friends outside of certain circles that way.

Shade descended, the wind whipping his hair back from his face, until his feet touched the stone balcony set off the council chambers. He set his wings back, making sure they didn't trail on the floor. He was exhausted, but that didn't give him a reason to be lazy. He walked through the ornate doors that reached tall to the roof. Despite his thousand years of living, sometimes the immense beauty of the council chambers had him at a loss for words.

Gold and crystal adorned the walls. Intricate carvings and art filled the room. Eons of pride and talent gave the room a sense of grandeur and honor that made Shade feel young in relation to the other angels surrounding him.

In reality, he was the youngest warrior angel of them all, and second in command to Ambrose, the leader of the warriors, the best at the job. That wasn't pride talking, just fact.

Shade walked to the center of the room and surveyed the five council members before him, perched high on their thrones, their noses turned up towards him. Another presence worried him. Ambrose stood off to the side, a frown on his face. What was happening?

"I see you have finally decided to grace us with your presence," Caine, the leader and all-around pain-in-the ass, admonished, and Shade held in a scowl. The brown-haired angel lifted a lip as if the mere sight of him disgusted the ruler.

Shade bowed his head. "I'm sorry I was late. I had just finished my dealing with the young angel and needed time to clear my head before I came. I didn't want to taint the council with the thoughts and actions of a warrior." There. That didn't sound like sarcasm and distain, did it? Well, maybe it did, but it was the best he could do. He wasn't overly happy with Ambrose in the council chamber. It felt like an ambush.

Caine snorted and shook his head.

Okay, apparently he couldn't quite mask his true feelings. Oh, well.

Shade didn't hate the council. He just didn't like the fact that they held all the power and didn't seem to do anything but hand out decrees and punishments that were enforced by the warriors. There were only three classes of angles: the council, the warriors, and the others. He didn't like all the power on the top that trickled down to nothing, but who was he to speak out of turn?

"Enough of your pleasantries. We need you here, now," Striker, the second-in-command, cut in. Dishwater brown hair and plain features made him look almost human. If it weren't for the brown wings coming out of his back, he'd look like a mortal. Maybe that's why the angel was always an ass.

"Okay." Shade nodded. "What is it that you need?" He once again wondered why Ambrose was there? Why did they need two warrior angels? Tingles of dread filled his belly. Had the other faction of angels done something? They hadn't destroyed the rebels completely in the war. It was always a cause for trepidation and concern that the others would come back and start something. Were they on the brink of another war? He'd not heard anything, but he couldn't be too sure.

"We have been alerted to a breach of security," Caine announced. "Our secrets may be unraveled soon if this is not fixed."

"You mean the secrets of the supernatural?" Shade asked. "How can that be?"

Striker gave a laugh, filled with bile rather than humor. "You dare ask this when it is your fault we are in this predicament in the first place?"

Shade froze. "What?"