"Are we sure this is wise?" Dynamite asked lowly. "I know we can't just let Night Pack take our territory, but I don't know if provocation is a good idea right now. We're still not at full strength."

"Yeah, Dakota picked a swell time to get pregnant," Eleazar grumbled. "And Torn isn't exactly reliable."

"Excuse me?" the white Aidi growled. "It's not like that's my fault, Sir I-Stepped-In-A-Hole-And-Couldn't-Walk-For-A-Week."

"That's enough," Gabriel said, instantly silencing everyone. "We're taking back this strip of territory. If the Hunter Dog smiles on us today, we will be unchallenged."

Ranger pricked his ears, scanning the land ahead for any signs of danger. He was honored and quite honestly surprised that Gabriel had picked him for this patrol to retake the strip of territory that Night Pack had claimed last week. He wondered if Gabriel was testing him to see if he would cause trouble. It had been a full eight months since he'd caused a fight with Night Pack, but he wouldn't have been surprised if Gabriel still didn't fully trust him. Don't do anything stupid, he told himself. But if those Night Pack mutts make the first move, I don't think I'm responsible for what happens next.

The atmosphere was tense as the dogs moved up and down the borderline, resetting the markings to how they had been previously. Ranger made sure to leave a very strong scent. He wanted Night Pack to smell him personally and his message: Step into our territory again and you'll regret it.

It seemed like everything was going to go smoothly until shapes began melting out of the trees. Ranger tensed as he saw a patrol of Night Pack dogs begin to draw close, led by Draco himself. He heard Gabriel sigh and with a flick of his tail he beckoned the Wind Pack dogs to cluster around him.

"Just as I suspected," Draco called. "I knew you would try to take it back. You're awfully predictable, Gabriel."

"We're not leaving, Draco," Gabriel said. "This is Wind Pack territory. Go back to your own before someone gets hurt."

"Someone always gets hurt," Draco said darkly. "At this point, we've come too far for anything else." He strode across the border, the early morning sunlight gleaming off of his sleek, melanistic coat. "If you don't want anyone to get hurt, you should leave now. I won't ask again."

Gabriel said nothing, simply staring back at the Doberman with a gaze like flint. Ranger felt admiration for his alpha's courage surge through him. Almost every single one of these Night Pack dogs was bigger than he was but he didn't even look slightly intimidated. Ranger did his best to imitate him, curling his lip at the approaching dogs.

Draco stopped for a moment and smiled grimly. "I guess bloodshed it is, then. Night Pack, drive them off our territory."

With a snarl, the Night Pack dogs sprang and Wind Pack ran to meet them. "Don't give them an inch!" Gabriel shouted. "This is our land!"

Ranger collided into a muscular Tosa Inu and began snapping at her legs. She growled and swung at him with a massive paw but he dodged out of the way, darting back in to land a few quick bites along her flank. She was a lot stronger than him, he knew that, but he had a great advantage in speed. He hoped that if he kept her off-balance long enough, always staying just out of her reach, then she might get frustrated enough to retreat.

She was stubborn, though, and she landed a few bites on him, ripping out a few tufts of fur. He was about to attack her again when he noticed Draco and Gabriel fighting a few feet away. Despite his alpha's bravery and skill, it was really no contest since Draco was just so much bigger. He lunged for Gabriel's throat, jaws open wide, and for Ranger time seemed to slow down.

He remembered it like it was yesterday. Hearing the sounds of the battle die down, peering past Coriander to see what was happening. He remembered seeing her on the ground, as stiff as dead prey, her eyes empty and vacant when just hours ago they'd shone with love and tenderness. And he remembered seeing the dog responsible for it, the dog who was diving for his leader's throat.

Because of him, his mother was dead. Because of him, his world had gone dark. Because of him, there was a big, empty hole inside of him that was sucking in all the light he tried to find. He hadn't felt whole since that day. All he felt was a hunger, a desperate desire to be filled again. And now, facing this filthy mongrel who'd taken everything away from him, who dared to threaten his alpha, he thought he'd finally found something to fill that black pit.

With a roar, Ranger leaped forward and slammed into Draco's side, knocking him away from Gabriel. Before the Doberman could recover, Ranger struck decisively at his shoulder, hitting the nerve and causing his leg to sag uselessly. Draco slumped back down to the ground and Ranger didn't waste a moment. He grabbed him by the throat and began to squeeze, heedless to Gabriel's shouting or to Draco's mad struggle to free himself. He scrabbled wildly, cutting at Ranger's chest and legs, but he ignored him. All he could see were her eyes, all he could hear were his own screams when Coriander told him his mother was dead.

You're never going to hurt another dog I care about again.

Finally, Draco's struggles stopped. Ranger spat him out, hot blood running out of his mouth and down his front. He looked down at the corpse in front of him. His eyes were wide in shock, but they had that same emptiness behind them. He was dead.

All the dogs stared at Ranger in shock. Nobody moved or said a word. Then one of the Night Pack dogs, a trainee, suddenly charged forward.

"Murderous mongrel!" he shouted. "I'll kill you!"

Ranger bared his teeth, ready to take him on, adrenaline still rushing through his system. He recalled seeing this dog before, at a Hunter's Moon. He and his sister had been announced as trainees. He remembered Draco announcing it, pride evident in his voice.

"My pups... are now trainees..."

The realization dawned on him and kept him from reacting to the attack, but before the Doberman reached him, Minette and Torn blocked his way. "You're outnumbered, Night Pack," Gabriel said. "You will gain nothing here. Take your dead and leave."

The trainee ignored him and was about to attack again when one of his packmates, a Bullmastiff, dragged him back. "He's right," he growled. "Gannon! Let's go."

He reluctantly stopped struggling. He looked at Ranger, fury blazing in his dark eyes. "This isn't over," he snarled.

Ranger stayed where he was as the dogs dragged Draco's body away, returning their death glares with a challenging expression. He looked down and saw the bloodstains on the grass where his victim had lain. And as he started to calm down, he realized that it was over. That was it. Draco was dead, and there was nothing more.

The hole wasn't full. He'd convinced himself that this was how he could fill it, that all he needed was his revenge and he would feel whole again. He'd thought he could fill it with the blood that was running down his chin and making his throat burn. But it did nothing. The whole only yawned wider, deeper, blacker. He felt hollow.

"Ranger."

He turned at the sound of Gabriel's voice, and the look of anger and disappointment in his eyes crushed any small trace of satisfaction he might have dreamed of having.

He'd killed someone.

And he felt emptier than he ever had before.