James walked through Bass's rooms. The Beta, like the Alpha, had both private rooms and a Hall. The Hall was where the Alpha, or Beta, met with whoever of the pack needed to see them.By Law, James could go wherever he liked, even into the private rooms. But he tried his best to respect his pack's privacy, even his Beta's, and only visited him in his Hall.Seeing the distressed look on James' face, Bass sent everyone out, and James had the room to himself."It's her, Bass," James collapsed on one of the benches. "It's Elizabeth."Bass pursed his lips, but didn't respond."But she doesn't remember me," James continued, looking at his friend. "I don't know how, but she doesn't remember me at all. I was so sure she was my mate, but how is that possible if she remembers nothing about me? And now," James continues, "She's been avoiding me for days. I swear it's almost like she doesn't even sense my presence."Bass sighed, walking around restlessly."I know you've been searching for h

The sun rose on eight wolves, standing around three trucks, trying to decide how they would divide themselves up.Or, Elizabeth and James were arguing with Kenneth.Kenneth had insisted, very logically if Elizabeth and James had the capacity to think logically at that moment, that they actually did not know these wolves from anyone or anywhere. That they had no reason to trust them. That they could be walking into a trap for all they knew. There could be no sickness, no dying Alpha, no sleeping Luna. This could all be an elaborate trap to kill their Alpha, to steal their territory.Kenneth made very valid points, all things considered.Kenneth was willing to suspend disbelief, to trust in the good nature of these strange wolves he had never met before, and to blindly follow his Alpha's command, believing they were doing the right thing. Believing they had the moon's protection."All I ask," Kenneth stressed, again, as the sun rose. "That you grant me one simple request."Kenneth'

Elizabeth spent the whole night watching over the sleeping Luna. She wanted to be sure Selene was free from the moon's grip. And when the sun rose, the Luna rose with it, waking properly.James had stayed by her side the entire night, even though Elizabeth had begged him to go sleep. He told her he could stay awake one more night without any harm, but he couldn't leave their only pack healer unattended and without protection in a foreign pack.Kenneth had agreed with him, and tried to stay as well, but he had been awake the entire day before, and most of the previous night. Kenneth didn't have an Alpha's strength, so James had given him an order to sleep.The wolf had pouted and snarled, but an Alpha's Edict couldn't be disobeyed. And in the most blatant and daring display of breaking the Edict but still technically following it, Kenneth had shifted in his wolf form inside the sleeping Luna's tent, and curled up around Elizabeth's chair and gone to sleep.He was, technically, still

James woke to find Elizabeth curled against his chest, shielded in his arms. He remembered waking up like this more than once before. But the time that came back to him is the first one. When he couldn't even see her face.She was absolutely beautiful, even when she slept.He remembered when he'd woken up after passing out, almost a full day later. She'd stayed with him the entire time, not wanting to let him lose her warmth for even a moment. She'd been starving, not having eaten for so long, but she had kept herself glued to his side.He had woken up that morning knowing something was different. About him, about her. He hadn't felt in danger in her home before that, but that morning was the first time he'd felt truly safe in a very long time.James glanced down at her again, frowning. She was not sleeping peacefully.Her eyes moved rapidly, her heartbeat erratic, fast and then slow. Her breathing uneven.'A nightmare?' James thought.But then her eyes opened slightly, and he s

Elizabeth sat in the Alpha's Hall, having finished her supper, she was almost exhausted. But she kept going, feeding off the energy of the wolves here. It was like they were just starting to live again.They had been working for days straight. James had taken a group of fifteen wolves to the forest and thinned quite a few of the trees strategically. He'd uprooted the trees themselves.This allowed them to make almost another entire clearing, and the herd animals had already begun grazing there, the grass springing up, no longer competing with trees for nutrients.Elizabeth had watched as James had herded some gazelle, then wild goats, and then deer, to the clearing. It was simpler than just hoping they would stumble on it themselves.The fallen trees had also given them more wood than even James had imagined, and with thirty wolves working around the clock on constant rotation, James had already had five more cabins built in just a week. Five new homes for five families.Elizabeth