Alpha Hunter
,” Zach reminded him. “Your men know that.”
    He nodded. The housing complication might be temporary, but nothing had transpired as it was supposed to since the y arrived on Earth. Sevrin had promised them freedom, yet all she’d delivered was excuse after excuse.
    “So where did you stash Angie?” Zach looked at him expectantly.
    Nazerel tensed. No one knew his hunt had failed and he was determined to keep it that way. “Not here.”
    Zach nodded then motioned toward the stairs. Nazerel fell in step behind him as they returned to the main floor of the large house.
    After being corrected several times, Nazerel reluctantly shortened the other alpha’s name from Zacharous to Zach. Sevrin wanted Nazerel to shorten his name as well, but he refused. He was not human and he had no intention of pretending otherwise. He was stronger, faster, and more powerful than a human. Why would he want to pretend to be a lesser being? It made no sense.
    They emerged between the kitchen and dining room. Two of Zach’s men stood at the kitchen counter, attempting to follow a demonstration video on a tablet computer. None of the hunters had been responsible for food preparation before and Sevrin had declared a lockdown until further notice. If they wanted to eat anything other than pizza or Chinese delivery, someone needed to learn how to cook.
    Nazerel followed Zach up the front stairs and into the master bedroom. The Team West house was similar to the one Nazerel’s team had been forced to desert. Situated not far from the Strip in Las Vegas, it was a lavish two story with five bedrooms and a three car garage.
    “If you need privacy, I can have a couple of my men double up,” Zach offered as soon as the door shut behind him. “Personally, I think the females will submit faster if we utilize the old rituals. If both our teams watch while you claim Angie, it will leave no doubt in anyone’s mind that she’s your mate.”
    “Human females are different. They ’re taught to be independent and self-sufficient. It will take time and patience to erode her defenses.”
    “Many animals must be broken before the y’re fit to ride.”
    Nazerel just grinned, unwilling to admit the truth even to Zach. “You tame your mate however you like. Angie will not be subjected to a public spectacle.”
    “I have to find mine first,” Zach grumbled. “And that’s going to be hard as hell while we’re in lockdown.”
    “Hunting is about stealth and subtlety. This lockdown is yet another way for Sevrin to control us.”
    “I ’m as frustrated by this setback as you are,” Zach began. “But the fault lies with Allenton not Sevrin.”
    Nazerel glanced around the sparsely furnished room as he began, “I’m frustrated about a whole lot more than this setback. Can’t you see what Sevrin is doing? She has no intention of ever giving us papers so we can truly blend into the human population. Without papers, we’re limited to menial jobs that pay next to nothing. And without a decent income, we will remain dependent upon her for everything.”
    “What other option do we have? We don’t have her connections or her resources. If we kill her, we’ll be stranded on Earth with even less than we have now.”
    “I’m not talking about killing her. We need to find a way to control her.”
    Zach laughed and scrubbed his hand over his face. “That’s what Allenton was trying to do. Are you volunteering to take his place?”
    Nazerel shuddered. Even with her physical beauty, Sevrin held no appeal to him. “I’m soon to be soul bonded with Angie.” The lie tasted bitter. Angie was likely on Ontariese by now, surrounded by Mystics and soldiers. Or worse, her Mystic watchdog was on top of her, inside her, claiming what should have been Nazerel’s. Either way Angie was beyond his grasp and he was finally ready to move on. He wasn’t ready to admit failure, but it was definitely time for a new strategy. “I’m not an option. You, however, could

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