LOGINIt didn’t appear that Gabriel was coming back to the dining room any time soon, judging by the doors slamming and drawers opening and closing.
I started clearing the table. After that amazing display of bonding, I needed to do something.
Domestic chores were right up my alley.
Sam helped clear the empty plates, while I got the hot, soapy water going.
“Is he okay?”
Sam smiled. “He’s more than fine. The bigger question is how are
It was Sid who broke the silence.“Excuse me, Alpha, Luna,” Sid said and cleared his throat. “Can I ask some questions about the before-time?”“Sure?” Soree asked, more than said.“It might help me get a new profile for the accident,” he added.“Oh, okay,” Soree said, nodding. “Go ahead.”“Do you know why Lucien rejected the bond?”“He had chosen a mate already.”“Vanessa, from Ravenhall,” Sid confirmed. Both Bear and I grumbled.“Correct,” I told him. “I was there, because of the damned mating thing. I saw tendrils. They were different from ours, but they were there.”
I walked back into the parlor with my back ramrod straight, as if somehow that was going to give me the courage to tell my tale yet one more time.It should get easier, but it doesn’t.Just thinking about Lucien made my blood boil and curdle at the same time.Evidently, I was pushing out some of my own untested energies, because Maw’s face contorted with pain.I rushed over to her, reining my anger. “Maw! Are you alright?”Once my anger ebbed, so did her expression.Her eyes watered. “I’m sorry for whatever I said.”“Oh, Maw, you didn’t say anything bad,” I soothed, pulling her into a hug. “Just the opposite. But let’s wait for th
I curled up on the couch with my notebooks, but my brain could not focus on crystals and their meanings.There were so many questions I had about the whole Luna-kissed thing, or as Gabriel and I started calling it, LK.Luna herself created the bloodline. But why?Was there a specific purpose?Shifters existed before the bloodline. What did she want to see different?Why are we special? Well, that one I kinda know. We provide blessings, prosperity, and happiness to our Pack. If we’re Lunas, we walk the spirit and soul realm. I think those realms are the same thing, but I’m not sure.A long time ago, the LK were exploited, hunted, abused, held hostage, and forced to mate. How did that happen? Who noticed that we were special?How did we recognize each other? Amyra recognized me immediately, but Maw and KB did not.What happens if an LK mates with a non-LK?“You look deep in thought, Luna,” Maw said,
Soree and I walked into the basement. She hadn’t been down here yet, and her face shone with pure glee when she learned what we had down there.Unlike Silverpine, our jail cells weren’t attached to the main Pack House. We built the detention center years ago and refurbished the entire basement level, which extended way beyond the Pack House itself.Her initial hesitation about checking it out was justified.It was only a few months ago when she was paraded by her own Pack and marched into their dungeon accused of murdering their Alpha.Sometimes it was hard to believe it wasn’t years ago.I saw her in a diner that morning. Zee felt drawn to her, but I didn’t have any time to learn what that meant.As soon as she’d finished her breakfast, Sil
I flipped through my phone while Bina had the wheel. I tried to stay away from the Shifter app, but my curiosity always got the best of me.Silverpine was holding its own according to the gossip. There were questions and no answers coming from the Pack House.People wanted to know where I was. The louder question seemed to be why did I transfer power to Kane and not give any explanation.“I’m tempted to create a profile and make some noise in the chat,” I said aloud.Bina’s face contorted into a grimace. “Why would you do that?”“Raise the stakes? Ask the right questions?”“Hoping to do what exactly?” she said as she flipped the blinker to change lanes.“I don’t know,&
I’d just stepped out of the shower in my office when I heard Soree call for me. She had been sound asleep when I came in from my run, so I didn’t wake her to let her know I was back.“In here,” I called out as I tugged some jeans on.Soree’s eyes looked wide and frantic. I rushed to her. “What’s wrong?”“I just did a baby walk, and Luna was there,” she said breathlessly, clutching at my forearms. “She said there’s a plague, a blight happening now with shifters and it’s going to get darker before the dawn.”I searched her eyes for signs of misinterpretation, but there was none. The urgency in her voice and demeanor said that she was fully aware of what Luna implied.“What does that mean?”
It took a hot second for my mind to realize what she said. It wasn’t a straight yes, but it meant yes.Right?Zee?Did you hear?Yes. I’m waiting for you to get up and do something about it instead of sitting there like a lump.
He…Gabriel finally came out of the bedroom, bags packed.“Ready to go?”I looked at all the dishes that still needed washing and the kitchen that needed cleaning.“Um. No.” I replied and tossed him a dish towel. “Help me dry, and we can leave sooner.”He caught the tow
In that instant, it felt like the air was sucked out of the room.No one spoke, no one breathed. Including me.Sam’s hand still rested on my fingers, protectively. His touch felt like what a father’s touch would feel to a child.At least I think that’s what
Kane made the right call when he said we had to wait until o-dark-hundred. Town was lively and we would have been spotted instantly.It didn’t make the wait any less stressful.We pulled into a twenty-four-hour truck stop for some clean clothes for her, and some spares for us.







