“I’m not sure we have a choice anymore, Gillian.” This time Dad spoke up, his expression frustrated, not with Gillian but the situation. “We need to be prepared. An offensive strike may be our only chance.”
“And our children? The members of the pack who aren’t capable of shifting? Do we force them to fight as well?” Anna’s dad sounded defeated. “It could be annihilation.”
“Leaving would be the safest choice,” Gregory suggested, his voice strong in spite of this frail body. “Packs roamed in the past. We’ve become complacent.”
“Wolf packs roamed. That’s no longer an easy option. We need land for the ones who can shift. Jobs for those that can’t. Picking up and leaving is a last resort.”
“At least we’ll live,” Gillian cried out fiercely.
“But we will no longer be a Pack!” The Alpha roared, causing Jess to jump.
“We should go,” I whispered, pulling Jess along the bench as she stared at the five elders locked in conflict. Dad’s gaze met mine for a brief second before flickering to Jess and he nodded respectfully. “It’s getting late. See her home,” Dad commanded over the link.
Once we were outside, I noticed the sun had dipped lower in the sky and so did Jess. She reached for her phone to check the time and cursed.
“I need to –”
“Get home.” I finished for her and she nodded. “I’ll walk you.” I gave her an expectant grin. “I imagine you have a few questions.”
“A few,” she agreed, her head bobbing.
“I’ll do my best,” I stated, and waved at Anna, who stood next to Caleb by her house. “Caleb, do you have the medicine?” I questioned over the link, and he answered quietly, “Payne is bringing it.” There was a wealth of meaning behind his words but I didn’t have time to decipher it. They both waved, but didn’t wisely didn’t attempt to join us. “Anna might actually be able to explain some of it better than I can, but I’ll try.” I had a feeling this conversation was going to turn uncomfortable, but I’d rather deal with it than invite Anna to join us.
She nodded, but stayed silent as we made our way to the path in the forest. I figured she wanted some semblance of privacy before asking the questions no doubt racing through her mind.
“There’s a shorter path back to the motel, but much rougher,” I told her, keeping my longer strides in check as I steered us back to the wide path she’d come in on. Payne met us at the edge of the forest and handed me the ibuprofen and water I’d requested from Caleb. He gazed at Jess but didn’t comment, fading back into the forest as silently as he’d arrived.
Jess looked like she wanted to say something, but didn’t, instead tossing back the pills. She pressed her lips together and glanced up at me, mouthing “Thank you.”
“Least I could do,” I said nonchalantly, not wanting to make a big deal of it, as I kept a safe distance between us as we walked.
“It’s kind of you,” she murmured, relaxing as we walked through the forest. I made a noncommittal noise and she dropped it, instead focusing her attention on the forest floor. I waited for an outpouring of questions, but she surprised me when she said, “I don’t know what to ask you. I don’t even know where to start.”
I chuckled lightly at her obvious frustration, but quickly started talking as she glanced at me impatiently. “The easiest place to start is with the basics. You’ve figured out we’re shifters. Specifically, wolf shifters. So are the Hanleys. We just have very different pack rules.”
“Clearly,” she interjected. “They like to kidnap women into their pack while you take the time to woo them.”
“Woo?” I choked and she grinned.
“Well, yeah. I am a breeding female after all.”
My laugh boomed through the forest, so loud it actually startled a bird into flight.
“I didn’t think it was that funny!”
“You don’t even know what a breeding female is,” I retorted as my laughter died. “But you’re actually close.” I was impressed by how fast her mind made the connections and that she hadn’t run screaming from me. Yet.
“Ha,” she sputtered, almost jogging to keep up with me. I noticed and shortened my strides once more.
“Don’t get too pleased with yourself,” I retorted, giving her a dry glance and she shrugged. “Breeding females can have cubs. You carry the gene for it.”
“That’s it? I can have babies?” She asked, sounding disappointed. She clearly didn’t know how special that made her to us.
“You can have shifter babies,” I specified and her eyes narrowed. “And yes, it’s worth killing for.”
“Why?”
“We’re not a prolific bunch to begin with, and for years…centuries, packs didn’t understand genetics. They bred for stronger wolves, but eventually the female births dropped and there were fewer and fewer cubs being born each generation.” I paused to see if she was following and continued when she nodded. “We know now that it is all genetics. Some carry the gene, others don’t. In some individuals it may be recessive, and others dominant. To simplify it, you’re a carrier.”