Chapter One

After completing his stretches, Kane Wimborne grabbed his keys and left the house, locked the door behind him and pocketed the keys. He jogged down the driveway before pausing at a keypad to punch in the code that would open the gates and allow him off the property.

He’d barely got through the gates when he saw something that made him stop dead. A human-shaped bundle was lying next to the wall on his left. Instinctively, his hand went to his pocket. Yes, he could phone for help if it was needed.

Cautiously, he approached the shape, with many possibilities running through his head. It could be a homeless person or a drunk who had simply been looking for a sheltered place to sleep. It could be someone who was injured. Or he could be about to step onto a crime scene. Conscious of this last point, he called out before getting any closer—he didn’t want to inadvertently mar any evidence, should that unfortunate scenario be the case.

“Hey. You all right?” He felt stupid saying the words, because someone lying next to a wall first thing in the morning couldn’t be classified as all right, for whatever reason they were there.

As there was no response, he edged a little closer and was about to shout again when a weird sensation overtook him. A sensation he hadn’t felt in a very long time—the one that told him another shifter was nearby.

He’d already been on edge, but...