I shake my head at the idea of leading the Prior family someday. Generations of Priors had stood strong and resolute and my leadership would almost certainly crumble our family down to nothing. My hatred of those we hunt has been compromised, if ever I had any in me. No matter the color of their eyes, there was nothing glorious in watching the sheer, human pain that flooded them in the moments of weakness and loss. They may have been werewolves, but I hadn't been able to ignore the purely human fear and terror they expressed.

Tobias' face comes into my memory and the words he'd taught me. "Everyone's afraid of something," I remind her, my gaze fixed on the unadorned expanse of my wall just above Allison's ear in my line of sight. "It's not about getting rid of fear...It's about having more courage than fear."

I turn over on my back, "It's in our motto, you know. Everyone knows that we believe in ordinary acts of bravery, but there's another line too: We believe in acknowledging fear and the extent to which it rules us."