When raiders steal a desperately needed power cell from a refugee camp, Duncan Shea and other members of the New Black Watch set out on their trail. After a deadly ambush kills his fellow watchmen, Duncan vows to find the raiders and bring them to justice. His search leads him to a grounded shuttle carrying an Alphan warrior named Taric and a mysterious Xyran named Zhan. The handsome aliens agree to help Duncan, but he quickly learns they also have a plan of their own—to claim him as their mate.

Forced to hide their bond from their respective governments, Taric and Zhan never expected to find their third bondmate on Earth, and definitely not in the middle of an unauthorized mission to stop a vicious Xyran slave-master. Neither of them can resist the urge to claim Duncan, but will their new mate help them catch their old foe, or turn them over to Earth—and Alphan—justice?