Page 25

As he entered the house, Orion briefly glanced in my direction before looking away. Our recent distance worried me, especially after our intimate morning together. Did he find me untrustworthy because of Cersey’s comments? Or was it something else?

I recalled that morning, lying in his bed, how those words escaped my lips without my bidding. Small yethonest words.I love you.

I realized with a sudden surge of ice through my veins: he never said it back.

“Do you have an item of Nathaniel’s?” my mother asked him.

Orion pulled something from his pocket. It was a small wooden carving of three wolves, a symbol of the KUA pack and the name our ancestors took thousands of moons ago, Kaphan Unux Achcho, which roughly translated meant Three Wolves Friend.

My mother accepted the token,placed it on the iron oxide, and gestured for Orion to take a seat. He did so in the chair across from me. Still avoiding my gaze.

Mom sat at the head of the table after turning off the lights, leaving the flickering candlelight as the only illumination in our dining room.

She began chanting in her rhythmic, grave voice:

“Goddess of Night, remove the shroud

that blinds our eyes.

Goddess of Light, cast your beam

to show us truesight.

Goddess of Truth, lift the veil

that keeps the falsehoods real.

Goddess of Earth, tether our spirit

so we may not wander from the fold.

O Glorious Goddess,

grant us the mercy we beseech

in this hour of our dark need.”

I watched as an image shimmered to life in the mirror, starting at the center before spreading to the edges. All of us craned over the mirror to watch.

Alpha Nathaniel was lying down with his eyes closed, as if he was sleeping peacefully. No bruises or other injuries seemed to mar his appearance. But as the image widened to offer more details, we saw his place of rest was not a bed or a forest floor—it was a sleek, silver platform surrounded by wires and tubes. He wore a strange sheet, or something like it.

I kept my mouth shut as we wondered at what we were seeing. We could see no one else, and the cold, unfeeling nature of the place sent a chilly gust through the room, making the candles blink, and me shiver.

“Where is that?” Orion hissed in frustration.

Just then, Nathaniel’s three wolf carving rolled off the piece of iron oxide and found its way to the map my mother had spread out on the table. It rolled purposefully along the coastline before coming to a stop.

Mom stood quickly, slapped her hand on the map and began tracing the perimeter around the statue. When she picked up the wooden carving, the center of the drawn circle was right here–Half Moon Bay.

ORION

Iclutched the map Terra gave me with its circle around Half Moon Bay. It was a wide area to search for my father, especially since it was a human town, and we would have to remain in human form to avoid arousing suspicion.

No one liked the idea of being in Half Moon Bay, even if it was after dark. Sometimes I ventured into town, but mostly the pack relied on a couple, Hannah and Levi, who would regularly venture to the human town beyond the compound to trade for supplies we might need.

Hannah and Levi came with us and acted as our guides, but we needed a bigger search party. The couple knew the town best and could lead us to where we might find my father. Jesse insisted that he come too since he knew Cersey best and he was convinced that the witch was involved. Noah joined because of Jesse. Cara and Violet stayed behind to watch the compound in my absence.

Something in me hoped Diana would also stay behind. It was safer for her in the compound than around humans. So many things could go wrong, especially if we had to avoid shifting. We would be powerless,Iwould be powerless. I was a mess anyway—I was not handling my interim alpha duties well. I was terrified for Dad and I couldn’t think straight.