Page 4 of Triumph of the Wolf (Magnetic Magic #6)

“Things have gotten worse for your mother?” Duncan asked as he drove us toward Monroe.

“That’s what Lorenzo said.”

“That’s unfortunate. She’s still sharp and seems like she’s kept herself fit most of her life.”

“Oh, she has. Disease isn’t fair about who it strikes down.” Glum, I gazed out the window at the traffic, sun glinting off car frames and windshields. Cold rain would have felt more appropriate, but the weather was determined to be nice in the aftermath of the previous day’s storm.

“I suppose you won’t be in the mood for that date I suggested,” Duncan said.

“I… might need a distraction.”

“Some dinner then? Followed by a drive-in movie?”

“A drive-in ? Are there any theaters left around here that do that?”

“It’s a bit of a commute, but there are a couple. I looked them up. Don’t you find the privacy of one’s vehicle much more appealing than a crowded theater?”

“After we helped the local theater owner—Harold—he might be willing to put together a private showing for us,” I said.

“That could be appealing, but he would probably frown upon us having an intimate moment, were we moved in such a direction by the story unraveling on the screen. Whereas if we were in my van at the drive-in…”

“What’s playing right now that you think would be so moving?”

“The drive-in is currently offering a chainsaw-massacre thriller and an alien-invasion movie.”

“Two options that are sure to put feelings of intimacy into a woman’s mind.”

“You don’t think so?”

“If you want to hang out in your van, we might as well have our date in the parking lot at Sylvan Serenity. We can watch the ghost hunters set up for their evening search for the paranormal.”

“Excellent. I’ll bring popcorn.”

“I was being sarcastic.”

“Imagine my shock at such an uncharacteristic tone from you.” Duncan winked, never offended by my snark.

“I’m amenable to whatever evening activity will allow us to spend time together.

I fully expect it’ll be the company more than the venue or entertainment that moves you to a desire for romance.

” After giving me an easy smile, he focused on navigating out of town and into the foothills toward Mom’s cabin.

“ You might not be moved after chatting with my mother. You know what she always focuses on when you’re in the room.”

“I remember her complimenting my fine physique on one occasion.”

“Your abs specifically, as I recall. They managed to convey old-world power and virility.”

“They are talented muscles.”

We passed the last of the farm properties and headed up the winding road into the woods that had remained largely untouched since my family had moved into the area generations ago. When we reached the frog pond less than a mile from the property, Duncan shifted in his seat.

“I sense a number of werewolves.”

“That’s… not uncommon here.”

How many times had I arrived to find half the pack lounging around Mom’s property in the aftermath of a hunt or shedding their clothing in preparation for one?

“They’re on the move.” Duncan cocked his head. “Chasing something?”

I couldn’t yet detect anyone with a magical aura, so I couldn’t tell.

“I can’t sense whatever they’re after,” Duncan mused, continuing up the road, “so I guess it’s not anything or anyone paranormal.”

“I’ve not seen a lot of magical elk or deer in these woods.”

“Just the critters with glowing eyes near that cave?”

“Well, yes. You had glowing eyes briefly after drinking from the pool there.”

“There was natural power in the place. It’s no wonder your mother was drawn to live near it.”

I sensed what he’d detected and didn’t answer as I contemplated it. As he’d promised, there were a number of werewolves. My family members. And they were on the move.

Was that Jasmine among them? And Emilio? Oddly, they were running beside or maybe even on the road in their wolf forms. Before long, they would reach us.

“A deer wouldn’t run down the road to escape predators.” I supposed it was possible , but they always seemed to shoot off into the depths of the forest when being chased.

The roar of an engine reached our ears before any wolves. An SUV and a truck came into view, barreling down the gravel road toward us, the vehicles bumping through ruts and potholes without slowing.

Duncan veered to one side, inasmuch as he could. The road lacked a shoulder unless one wanted to park on a log.

Even seeing us, the drivers didn’t slow down, and the reason soon came into view.

As I’d sensed, numerous wolves ran behind the vehicles, some surging forward to nip at the tires and fenders.

One young male leaped and landed in the bed of the truck.

Another tore off a tailpipe and held it triumphantly in the air, prancing like a proud stallion rather than a wolf. Was that Emilio?

Duncan stopped his van, and we stared as the strange caravan roared past us, the white-knuckled drivers not glancing in our direction. I recognized the SUV, a sign for Logan’s Real Estate on the side.

That was the guy who’d put a neighboring lot up for sale, wasn’t it? Or maybe he’d been the one who’d visited Mom and asked her about her lot supposedly being for sale. The last I’d heard, Jasmine’s mother had gotten to the bottom of that, and it wasn’t listed on the market anymore.

A wolf in the rear of the pack, with a saucy tilt to her tail, glanced at us as she passed. Jasmine. She swished her tail, either in a greeting or because she was having a good time, then continued after the others.

“Those are your family members, aren’t they?” Duncan sounded amused as he watched the scene receding in his side mirror.

“Yes. That’s what passes for fun up here.”

“Chasing off real estate agents?”

I shrugged, not knowing what had prompted the attack, and hoped someone wasn’t pestering Mom about selling her property again. Could those vultures have gotten the word that she had a terminal illness? And they were circling, thinking they would get their hands on her land afterward?

“Fat chance. Mom has numerous children and all sorts of other kin.”

Duncan looked at me.

“Just musing.” I waved.

He pointed in the direction the car chase had gone. “Do you want to go after them? In case they need help?”

“In case my family needs help? Or the real estate agents do?”

“From the way things were going, it appeared more likely the real estate agents would need it.”

“That’s what I think, but I’m not terribly inclined to help them.” I pointed up the road. “Mom and Lorenzo can fill us in.”

I didn’t think this was what Mom had wanted to see me about, but I didn’t know. Maybe real estate agents had been up here all week, and this was the culmination of some harassment.

“During one of our previous visits, you said there’s nothing back here that anyone—any human —would necessarily value, right?” Duncan looked over at me. “There are old mines but no valuable ore was found in the area?”

“As far as I know, yes. It’s just woods.”

“And the magical cave.”

“Yeah, but normal humans wouldn’t know about that and wouldn’t be able to see the glowing mushrooms or anything.”

“Could they see the red eyes of the animals who’ve drunk the water?”

“I don’t know, but, even if they could, that wouldn’t be a selling point . It’s creepy.”

“I suppose that’s true. Maybe that frog pond has some appeal. Is that on the property?”

“I wouldn’t think so,” I said. “That’s quite a ways from the cabin. Besides, ponds aren’t exactly a rarity up here in the rainy Pacific Northwest.”

When we reached the long driveway, Mom and Lorenzo weren’t standing at the end of it this time. I sensed them in the cabin back behind the trees. Whatever was going on with the pack, it couldn’t concern them too much.

Or… My stomach knotted. It might be that Mom was too weak to walk down the driveway, even if something did concern her. And would she be too proud to ask Lorenzo to carry her? Likely.

After we parked in front of the cabin, Lorenzo stepped out onto the porch.

This late in the day, it lay in shadow, despite the blue sky.

With tall trees looming on all sides, the cabin didn’t get a lot of natural light, but Mom probably preferred it that way, the scents of mossy fir, cedar, and pine all around when she opened a window.

Lorenzo lifted a hand toward me, nothing on his face suggesting he was surprised by or objected to Duncan’s presence. We hadn’t had a chance yet to see if the rest of the pack would accept Duncan wearing the medallion, but Mom and Lorenzo had said they didn’t mind.

A distant howl came from the direction of the road, the direction those vehicles had been going. Others joined in. It sounded like the wolves might have stopped where the forest ended and the more civilized—and more densely populated—farm properties began.

“They must have succeeded in driving those men away.” Lorenzo gazed in that direction as we joined him on the porch.

“They seemed to be enjoying themselves as they did so,” I said.

“It was an opportunity for them to take out their frustrations.”

“What’s been going on?” I asked.

“More properties that are owned by the pack have been listed for sale. Renata has said she’s felt like she’s been playing, what was it called, oh, a game called Whac-A-Mole to follow the legal process of alerting the listing agents that they’ve been fooled and the parcels are not for sale.

Numerous agents have been involved, not all the same one, but she believes a single entity may be behind the listings. ”

I looked at Duncan, wondering not for the first time if Abrams might be behind this. But Radomir had been the businessman. Abrams wasn’t from this country, and I doubted he was even here legally.

“With Radomir gone, would Abrams be making real estate plays?” I asked Duncan.

“I think Radomir was the mastermind behind the attempt to try to get your property. Unless this was all set up before his death…” Duncan waved at the surrounding woods, then tilted his palm toward the sky.

“You have property?” Lorenzo asked.