Chapter 2

The dinner I'd waited four years for broke up in under half an hour.

When I got home, Elena was eating a salted caramel cake my mother had made for her.

My mother was also holding a cup of tea for her.

My mother knew I liked barbecue. She had never once made me any.

All three of my brothers were gathered around her.

Not one of them took their eyes off her.

I'd barely walked in when my mother called out to me. "Aurora, come apologize to your sister."

"Apologize for what, exactly?"

My mother paused. Mason let out an angry laugh. "Do you not understand what we're saying?"

"That's right. If you don't say it plainly, I don't know what I'm apologizing for."

I looked around at all of them.

"Is it because I asked her why she took my seat? Or because I didn't graciously hand my seat over to the favorite?"

William shot to his feet.

"Here we go again. Everything has to be spelled out, line by line, until no one in the room can save face."

"Only people who aren't honest with themselves lose face. Isn't that how it should work?"

"A home is not the place to argue things like this!"

"Then what is a home for?"

"For loving each other!"

I looked at them calmly. "I've been back for four years. You've taken her on forty trips.

"Supposedly, every trip was to another pack for treatment because she wasn't well.

"Two weeks at a time. She spent nearly every one of her birthdays away.

"And on my birthdays you didn't come home, and you didn't even send me a message to say happy birthday."

William answered quickly, "I'd already made plans with her for those birthdays of yours. Years in advance."

I counted them off on my fingers. "The first time, she had a breakdown and you said you couldn't leave her. The second time, she wanted to go shopping for a pretty dress. The third time, she got drunk while out with friends and you had to go bring her home. The fourth time, her dog was about to have puppies.

"Which one of those could you have planned years in advance?

"Did you and the dog agree on a whelping date ahead of time too?"

William had nothing else to say.

Elena said quietly, "You remember all of it so clearly."

"My birthday comes once a year. Of course I do."

My mother sighed. "Aurora, you can't bring up every little thing just because we used to spend more time with her."

"Not used to. My last birthday was two weeks ago."

That silenced them again.

Lloyd was fed up with me and pushed a jewelry box across the table. "You're upset about what happened at dinner. Here. This is for you."

I opened it. Inside was a bracelet strung with all kinds of stones.

Elena's expression changed, and her hand went to the moonstone bracelet on her left wrist.

Among our kind, a moonstone marks an Alpha wolf's high status. It's a blessing from the Moon Goddess.

That one had been mine since the day I was born, but I'd lost it three years ago.

I remembered that the first time my mother came to see me, she had a photo of it in her hand and said, "This moonstone is yours, isn't it? You were careless and lost it. It's all right. I've been keeping it safe for you."

But now it’s on Elena's wrist.

I pointed at Elena's wrist. "If you've been keeping it safe, why is something of mine on her arm?"

My mother explained right away, "Elena was very sick two years ago. I wanted to comfort her, so I let her wear it for a while."

"For how long?"

"Three years."

"This is the third year. When does she give it back?"

Elena hid her wrist behind her back and started crying. "Mom, I really love it. Can you please not take it away?"

My mother took her hand, her heart aching for her.

"Aurora, it's one moonstone. If you want one, I'll have a new one made for you."

"I don't need another stone. What I care about is that you said you were keeping mine safe. So why did you give it to her?

"It's the mark of an Alpha. It isn't something you hand out."

My mother's eyes went red. "I thought we'd never find you."

"You found me," I said. "So why not give it back?"

Elena bit her lip. "I don't want to give it back. Mom gave it to me!"

My mother backed her up. "Aurora, I promised it to her. Nobody takes back a gift!"

I nodded and set the bracelet back on the table. "I understand."

My mother didn't understand. "Understand what?"

"The moonstone was never being kept for me.

"And this bracelet isn't compensation for anything.

"You want me to take the new one and stop thinking about the one that apparently isn't mine."

My father had just walked in and caught that last line.

"Aurora, what trouble are you stirring up in this family now?"