Wolf Undaunted. Shannon Curtis

power with you, isn’t it, Vivianne?” Zane said, his deep voice rumbling in a snarl.

      “You’re worried about your colony?” Ryder asked, and she looked beyond Hunter’s shoulder to meet his gaze.

      She nodded. “A prime can’t hold their position if they’re non compos mentis. Only the strong can lead, and mental deficit is a weakness. There will be a leadership stoush, which would weaken Nightwing among our neighbors, and our enemies. Fighting from within, fighting from without—it will be a bloodbath for my people.”

      “What about Lucien? Can’t he take the prime position?” Ryder asked.

      Zane’s lips curled back at the mention of Vivianne’s brother’s name.

      Vivianne shook her head. “No. He’s taken a leave of absence from Nightwing, and so has surrendered any claim to the Nightwing Prime position. He would have to fight for it, just like anyone else, and after what my father did to his wife, I don’t see him wanting to be Prime.”

      “I can’t believe your brother and I have something in common,” muttered Zane. “We both hate your old man.”

      She frowned. She was already divulging more information than she was comfortable with. “Can you help me?” she asked Hunter.

      He gazed at her for a moment, assessing her. He shrugged. “We can run some tests, and find out what we’re dealing with,” he told her. She settled back into the chair, relief lessening the strain in her shoulders. She would have preferred a “yes, we can fix you” response, but she appreciated he wasn’t prepared to make false promises. She could respect that.

      “Okay.”

      “You agree to the tests?” Hunter asked.

      She nodded. “I do. When do you want to schedule them?”

      He smiled. “No time like the present,” he said, touching her forehead lightly.

      Darkness descended across her mind, and the last thing she saw was Zane’s concerned face as she slid into unconsciousness.