Desert Moon (The Wolves of Twin Moon Ranch Book 1) Read Online Free PDF Page A

offer old Atsa that extra sign of respect. But the coyote was as old as the hills, and Ty had been taught to respect that generation. In part, he had to admit to some fascination, too. Atsa’s inner calm intrigued him, the antithesis of his father’s blustery style.
    He sensed Atsa studying him, and wondered whether the old coyote approved of him as Twin Moon’s new alpha. Of course, his father was still nominally in charge, but everyone knew the handover of power had already begun.
    Atsa gave a cryptic nod and made for the open door then for his truck outside. In forty minutes, the old coot would be back on his home turf, west of the ranch. South of their territories was Seymour Ranch, whose human owners were ignorant of their neighbors’ special abilities. The northern edge of wolf country melted into the rugged hills, unclaimed and largely unwanted land, and the highway delineated the eastern edge of their realm. Trouble in the form of rogues could come from any direction, and the pack would have to protect everyone. Humans, too. If the rogues started taking outside victims, there’d be investigations, unwanted attention.
    He ignored Tina’s hint of a cough. The others assembled in the council house could wait for his dismissal until he was good and ready to give it.
    As the coyotes drove off, he shook his head. Had he really been wishing for a challenge? Now he had it—trouble on two fronts. His eyes slid in the direction of the guest house.
    There couldn’t have been a worse time.

 
     
     
     
     
    CHAPTER FOUR
     
     
    The dining hall was filled with aroma and noise: the honey-tinged fragrance of roast ham, the sugary smell of sweet potato, the babble of voices. But all Ty heard—or tasted—were hushed tones and whispered warnings. Communal dinner night was a twice-weekly event at the ranch, and for him, it was a chance to discretely touch base with his most trusted men. Ty wanted them to be ready for the worst while keeping news of the rogues quiet. There was no need to alarm the others.
    Yet.
    Around him, voices chattered, plates clattered. Most of the hundred-plus shifters living locally were in the dining hall, plus a few from more isolated parts of the ranch. Like Kyle, the cop turned shifter who was approaching the head table now. Kyle was the newest member of the pack, and he hadn’t settled in yet—if he ever would. You could tell from the twitch of his eyes, his constantly clenched jaw. If it hadn’t been for Tina’s soft spot for outcasts, a loose cannon like Kyle would never have been admitted to the pack. But Tina had been right to back him. Kyle hadn’t caused any trouble, except maybe for stirring up jealous rivalries among the women. He’d proven valuable time and time again, providing inside information from state law enforcement agencies.
    “You’ve got nothing?” Ty demanded, keeping his voice pitched low. Not that anyone dared sit close enough to him to overhear…at least not without an invitation. Only Tina, who tilted the vegetable bowl at him in another hint. Although she was younger than him, she’d started mothering him a long time ago.
    Kyle shook his head bitterly. The man hated failure nearly as much as Ty did. “Nothing to pin down the rogu—” he broke off the word sharply, perhaps considering how close he himself had come to turning rogue. He looked around, then leaned closer. “Not yet.”
    “Not yet,” Ty muttered, then dismissed Kyle with a curt wave.
    A little too curt, maybe. He caught the sag in Kyle’s shoulders, the tightening of his jaw. A reaction he’d seen a thousand times when packmates turned away with his father. His shoulders stiffened. Did he really want to be the same way?
    “Just keep on it,” he added, a little softer than before. His version of soft was still on the pebbly side, but hell, at least he was trying.
    Kyle’s cheek quirked—the closest either one of them ever got to a smile—and he turned and left.
    Ty glanced down to find