The Revelation by MJ Riley Page B

had gotten a bit better since then; but the sable colored female still growled lowly in Yuna's presence. It would be a while before she was ready to move on to younger fare.
                  Under Ivita's tutelage, Yuna had learned of the importance of control among the ripened.
                  Apparently, centuries ago, it had been nothing for their kind to walk and talk like humans in their wolf forms. Now, whatever power had granted them those skills seemed to have faded. Those with large measures of self-awareness could walk upright, manipulate simple objects, and even talk while transformed, though their words came out in a mutilated, grated drawl that Yuna had been the object of more than a few times. Ivita had revealed, however, that the vast majority of moonkind lacked even the composure to stand on two legs and tell a human from a deer. It was why most clans ventured deep into the woods during Ripenings. They needed to stay as far away from civilization as possible to avoid any casualties.
                  Learning about the hierarchy of discipline among the moon-ripened helped Yuna with Viola. It also increased her respect tenfold for her mate. That he could avoid transforming during a time that Ivita had informed her was almost always an unfailing trigger for their race was astounding. Viola, of course, cited that she could have no better teacher.
                  Yuna knew that her mate's confidence wasn't nearly as high. Every night, as he held her against him in their bed, he wondered aloud if he was teaching Viola fast enough; if their lessons were even helping her. He questioned whether Liam would ever accept his human child, or if the council would one day storm into Viola's quarters and drag her away screaming to cut the babe from her belly. He worried if his clan would ever come together enough to function in the way that was needed to support their pup.
                  What weighed most heavily on his mind, without a doubt, was the invisible presence of hunters that drew daily nearer to the den. Though there had been no concrete information as to their whereabouts, there had been several instances in which smaller dens close to Edinburgh had been ransacked, if not completely destroyed. At each site, a message identical to the one that had been blazoned across the gates of the Douglas manor had been left.
                  It was enough for Yuna to know that they were in the same country as her and her child; but to imagine that they were hunting them... trying to weed them out like rats... she'd admit the notion had caused her more than a few sleepless nights. In fact, it seemed that the more her stomach swelled, the more anxious she became.
                  Shortly after arriving, they'd had a meeting with the Elders to discuss the possible danger the Hunters posed. To Yuna's shock, they treated the threat as if it were a nonentity.
                  Elder Agatha had pronounced the den impregnable. She'd gone even further, implying that the possibility of the hunters finding them ludicrous.
                  We've been protected here for hundreds of years. Apart from our numerous levels of defense, the grounds themselves are imbued with an ancient magic. Not that anyone could penetrate far enough to trigger it, but if they did...
                  Her words exactly.
                  After the grave way they'd been greeted Dame Strauss, Yuna had thought that they would be more alarmed by the appearance of the Hunters in Scotland. Instead, they merely send out scouts. For the purpose of 'ascertaining damage and ensuring that the location of the mother den remained undiscovered'. As frustrated as their casual attitudes made the young woman, Yuna would have gone to Dame Strauss to demand answers if Luther hadn't stopped her. Her mate had insisted that even if the German Elder disagreed with