Amari rubbed her face. Her bag slipped off her shoulder with a thud. Her feet felt like they moved through sludge with every stair. Tired as she was, her siblings would get a kick out of the trucker thinking he could drive the rest of his long haul after shattering his hand in his door. A rueful chuckle escaped her lips.

  “What has you down?”

  Shock wiped the tiredness away. Her head snapped up. Benjamin stood in the living room, turned back towards her. “What are you doing here? Does Orion know you’re here?”

  “Orion does know he’s here. If it wasn’t official business, he wouldn’t be.” Orion stepped out of the kitchen with a glass of water. The perfected big brother glare affixed to Benjamin.

  “Thank you.”

  “Nova you are up!” Amari threw the folder she held in her hand. Arms wrapped around the girl, nearly toppling them to the couch.

  “Oof.” Nova stiffened in the embrace. “You spilled my water.”

  “I’ll get you another.” Diana grabbed the glass quickly turning back towards the kitchen.

  “You can let me go, I am not going to disappear.” Nova’s hands awkwardly stretched out. Forced lightness in her voice, she attempted to tease. “Unless you are telling me that is going to be a special skill I can gain.”

  “No such luck. We get better senses, in some rare cases, there have been other special gifts but that is exceedingly rare.” Benjamin’s gaze flicked to Amari.

  Amari’s eyes flicked to Orion, before smiling at Nova. “How are you feeling?”

  “Normal? If that is a thing anymore.” A slight bitter longing leaked into her voice.

  “It is so good to see you up.”

  “Nova, it seems like you will have to go through all the questions again. Seriously if you need anything.” Benjamin turned to the rest of the group. “Any of you, please do not hesitate to ask. We are a small community after all, what affects one of us affects us all.”

  “Thanks. For coming.” Nova awkwardly stumbled through the words.

  “When the kids told me what happened, I wanted to make sure you were okay. Now that I have,” Benjamin hands Amari the folder, “I will take my leave.”

  Amari tried to shuffle the papers back into place, arm still around Nova. “Thanks Benjamin.”

  Laughter filled the back yard. Amari pulled back the curtain, the small sliver revealed Diana correcting Nova’s throwing technique. A soft thud, the ax lodged into the outer circle of the target.

  The image stung Amari. The girl had wormed her way fully into her heart. Her hands slowly wiped down her face. It was utterly ridiculous to be bitter over the ease of her siblings’ relationships with Nova. Amari scolded herself, it wasn’t like she even talked with Nova about being a guardian. Amari held her question when Diana slipped Bluebell into their conversation. Codewords allowed the siblings to talk about their abilities without the humans catching on. Bluebell meant emotional distress back off.

  The morning had been short after that, Nova had accepted staying here for the next few days until the full moon. Diana promised to hang with Nova while Amari caught a few hours. She needed to sleep. Her wolf paced within the smokey forest, giving her a headache. Two more nights of work before the full moon. Worries drove sleep far from her.

  Marley’s name had been on the list. Not to mention the six others that were in this last month and the five more before that. And those were just the ones that made it to her hospital. The potential for more in the surrounding area and the reports from her brothers tensed her shoulders.

  If there was any connection or pattern between the names they did have, it spelled trouble. Even half the number was more than they had in the last ten years combined according to the conversations Orion had with the other Alphas. Her mind whirled. Neither option discussed was great.

  Amari flopped onto her bed. The peaks and valleys of her plaster ceiling muted in the darkened room. Tonight she would quietly ask questions of the people that handled the cases. Any thread to pull could help her siblings narrow down their search. A pitiful chuckle escaped her lips. If they found more unclaimed wolves, her workload would explode. She chided her wolf, no more claiming any more teenagers. One was more than enough. Her wolf huffed, making no promises.

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  “Hey Nova, can I talk to you before I leave?” Amari leaned on the back deck railing.

  Nova nodded. Ax launched, the effort expelled a bit of air. Lodged in the second circle, her consistency was improving. With a high-five, she left Diana to clean up. “What’s up?”

  “I wanted to check in.” Amari turned leading them around the side yard. “A lot has happened in the last four days.”

  “Yeah.” Nova shoved her hands deep into her pull over pockets.

  Amari kept walking along the stone wall letting the silence sit. Just past the trellised opening in the wall her heart constricted. “Imma gonna shoot straight with you. My wolf has claimed you. To us, you are now her pup. That is not going to change whether or not you accept it. We are now and forever going to be here for you.”

  “What?”

  “Part of being a werewolf is that you gain an inner wolf. Very much a part of you, you are one but also separate. Hard to explain, but if you decide to transform you will understand better. All you need to know right now is that I love you. My love is unconditional and unwavering. That doesn’t mean I will blanket support your decisions when I think they are wrong or unhealthy for you, but it does mean I will not go anywhere. You can turn away from me, but I will not turn away from you.

  “I can see in your eyes, you don’t believe me. And I do not blame you. We have spent less than a day together, it is ludicrous for me to be making these claims. But it's true. It is scary as all heck to trust these words, to trust me. It is a leap of faith. But I can promise you I am a safe bet. I cannot explain it, I am not even sure why, but I am not going anywhere. I want to give you a place to belong. Now you can do whatever you like with that information.” Doubt gripped Amari’s heart, certain she overstepped with her impulsive claim. Her brows piqued.

  “I don’t want to be a werewolf.”

  “Okay.”

  “That doesn’t change your mind?”

  “No. I’m in.”

  “But I can’t be part of your pack as I understand it.”

  “But you can be part of the family.”

  “You would still want me?”

  “Good, bad, ugly. I. Am. In.”

  Nova shook her head. “You don’t know me.”

  “You don’t know me. Doesn’t change the facts. I am not going anywhere. Go ahead and test away. I am going to prove my words true. Sometimes you may not like me, perhaps even hate me. But whatever you choose, I am here.”

  “Why can’t we seem to find any of these people?” Diana threw down the stack in her hands.

  “Well Marley got settled with the Morningstar Pack. I think the other two with her are children of pack members. We at least cleared two thirds of the other names with follow ups. It is these last few that seemed to fall off the face of the realm.” Amari matched her sister’s frustration but tried to remain positive.

  All the siblings had tracked down most of the names around their shifts. Asked questions and verified details. The information they gathered was staggering. They gathered around Diana’s table to try to determine if there was a pattern or not. The results left much to be desired. In only a few hours the full moon would rise and each feared a new batch of Mutares would be waiting.

  “Does anyone have any ideas?” Orion locked eyes with everyone at the table.

  Deflated, Amari sank back in her chair. She felt fried. Nova barely spoke with her since the random outburst she had two days ago. Not that they had much time. They had a moment the following morning when Amari got her the first dose of wolfsbane. Taking it a few times a day over should be enough to prevent the transformation but perhaps not the pull of the moon. “I dunno about this. But I think we need a plan for tonight, for Nova.”

  Rema, Diana, and Orion all looked at her confused.

  “We can’t take her to the Caboose. I don’t think she is ready for even a small pack of werewolves transforming in front of her.”

  “I think she will be alright here. It might be a dry cabin, but with the generator and my vast collection of shows and movies, she will be able to find something. I also have an epic snack cupboard I introduced to her yesterday.” Diana patted Amari’s shoulder.

  “How are we feeling for the full moon? Is the Caboose stocked?” Orion looked at Rema.

  “I always keep our hideaway stocked with all our favorites.” Rema raised her brows incredulously. “I do not think we will have an issue. This is not our first rodeo, though I know stress can affect our control.”

  “You guys are leaving?”

  They all turned to face Nova in the doorway. Slowly they nod.

  “When?” Nova’s throat bobbed as she swallowed.

  Amari moved to stand next to her. “It changes. Tonight, moonrise is at?”

  “Nine seventeen,” Rema supplied.

  “That means we will want to be at the Caboose at least eight thirty.” Amari watched Nova take in the information.

  “What do I do?”

  “You get full reign of my snack cupboard and tv.”

  “If you need us, we will be here.” Amari turned and dipped her head to meet Nova’s eyes. “I promise.”

  Nova blinked a few times with a sharp nod. “How old is your movie collection?”

  “Hey. I am hip with the times.” Diana took mock offense amidst the laughter.