Anna and Charles are called in to investigate the disappearance of a community squatting on land that it turns out the pack owns in the California mountains. Due to prior events, the FBI has decided that Anna must lead the werewolves, and Bran is happy to not disabuse them of that notion, so he lets the FBI bring them this case.
It turns out that this land is linked to Bran’s mate, Leah. Bran found Leah not long after he lost Charles’ mother, and it’s long been a mystery exactly why the two tolerate each other. What happened to Leah in those mountain explains a lot. It turns out that the squatters were a community of white witches hiding from black witches in the mountains, and they’ve awakened a power last active when Bran found Leah there. So we get some interesting insight into their relationship, and an interesting villain. This also brings another step toward resolution of Sherwood Post’s story, which should play out in the Mercy books.
I read this straight through on a return trip from Europe – perfect plane reading.