Chapter Twenty-Five

June

C lick . I plucked the toast from the appliance and set it on my plate. I was tired from another night of bad sleep, and it showed on my face.

"Are you all right, June?" Linda asked. She was sitting at the table with a new wolf who had arrived late last night. Someone else looking for a mate, like Carmine.

"Just tired." I offered what I hoped was a genuine smile. "Weird dreams."

The newcomer, Bianca, shared a knowing nod with Linda. She had soft features, and buttercup-colored hair in two long braids. She was pale as the moon, and the simple blue dress she wore complimented her pear-shape beautifully.

"I remember the days before my first shift," she offered. "Strange indeed, but in my pack they say the stranger the dreams, the stronger the wolf."

Strength seemed to mean quite a lot to these people, if even other packs had sayings about it. "We'll see, I suppose."

Bianca slid a jar of jam toward me. "Eat, a full stomach might help you recover from your odd night."

"I'll be sure to make a big dinner for you tonight," Linda added.

My nerves were creeping up on me. Sleep wasn't easy, and I shifted between steamy images of Dom and nightmares of turning into a wolf. The dinner with Evander had been weird, and I hadn't had a chance to find Dom or Amelia after. But I couldn't tell these two that; all they had to know was that I was having dreams.

Yawning, I buttered the toast and slathered that bakeapple jam on it. I bit into it, and was reminded just how nice all the fresh, homemade foods were here. Then, the front door creaked open.

Waving goodbye to Bianca and Linda, I grabbed my toast and headed for the front door in time to find Carmine and Jerod walking into the house.

"June!" Carmine said. "There you are. I haven't seen you in days."

"You've been otherwise occupied, love," Jerod said.

Carmine's grin turned from excited to wicked as she leaned over and whispered something French in Jerod's ear. Then she reached behind him and squeezed his backside.

"Whoa there, Carmine," I said. "What brings you out of your love den? Since you're so obviously not done with this honeymoon phase yet."

She chuckled and turned her attention back to me. "We have to go be within a mile or so of the training grounds so Amelia can keep working today."

"Why so close?" I asked.

"Complications with our entanglement," Jerod explained. "Any farther and it physically hurts."

I winced. "Oof."

"Care to join us?" Carmine asked.

"That would be great," I said.

"Is that your breakfast?" Carmine asked, pointing to the toast.

I nodded. "Want some?"

"No, but thank you. Can you eat on the way? We have to get moving."

"Sure, let's go." I took a big bite of toast and walked out the front door, closing it behind me.

"Oh, June," Jerod said, "I have to thank you for the things you got from town. I knew you probably wouldn't be able to get it all, but thanks for what you did find."

"You're welcome." I shrugged. "Some of that list was warlock things. Am I right?"

"Yes, indeed," Jerod said. "But let's just keep that between us, shall we?"

I nodded, looking around to make sure we were far away from prying ears. "Did you look at that wax I gave Carmine?"

Jerod's face turned serious. "I did. I won't speak on any theories I have until I've confirmed a few things, but those candles are definitely suspicious. I'll update you when I have an answer."

"You're so clever, Jerod," Carmine said as she reached out to hold his hand. "I can't wait to take you home."

We walked up the path to the main road and then turned like we were going to the pack house, only after Doc's place we took a sharp right and went over the crest of the hill and down into some trees.

"What were you doing traveling with a group of rogue wolves, and what was happening to you and Amelia?"

"We were barely acquaintances. Allies, I suppose." He set his brown eyes on me. "We happened to be in Seattle not too long ago when a supernatural battle broke out."

My eyes widened. "In Seattle? Nothing like that has been on the news, and that would have spread like wildfire."

Jerod chuckled. "As if the humans would know what was going on. Seattle in particular is a city under a tight leash. Nothing supernatural leaks through the long-reaching grasp of the fae courts there."

"Fae?" I asked.

"You might know them as faeries," Carmine chimed in. "But not tiny little nice ones. Pretty chaotic beings, if you ask me. Never strike a deal with them, never thank one."

"Oh. But still, a battle? Someone must have seen something," I said.

Jerod clicked his tongue. "June, June, June. You're not taking enough magic into account. I believe it was decided they would go with a gas leak. Sound familiar?"

I took in a sharp breath. Yes, the gas leak. The explosion that took out an entire shopping plaza, and not a small one.

"Amelia and I were fighting for the same side. I was performing a remarkably impressive spell when she was quite literally thrown into it," Jerod explained. "Then the usual sob story happened. Her blood mixed with mine, a behemoth demon took out nine days of pain as payment on our souls, and here we are! All caught up now?"

"You're serious?" I asked, as sounds of training wolves echoed from where we entered the woods. Grunting, growling, biting, large things hitting each other.

The trees thinned and the field opened up. A huge space, with odd items scattered about. A giant boulder in the center. Huge logs sat on their sides in one part of the field. Another part held more rocks, though not nearly as big as the boulder in the middle. And there were wolves in various states of shift everywhere. Wolves shoved logs back and forth. Men and women, or males and females, I guess, lifted huge rocks and tossed them to each other in a line. My head tried to tell me I was seeing the impossible, and for a human, it would have been. But my eyes saw it all nonetheless.

I looked toward the far side of the field, where I recognized Amelia, Aaron, Jack, and Carson stripping next to an already naked Smokey.

"This is our stop," Jerod said. "I'll be close- ish . I'm not getting dirty with a bunch of wolves."

"What about this wolf?" Carmine gave him a sly grin.

Jerod's face changed from mild boredom to mischievous. "I suppose I could be persuaded."

Carmine leaned in and kissed him. Jerod immediately went for a handful of ass and Carmine nearly knocked him over with her aggressive affection.

"You guys invited me to come here with you, you know," I mused.

But they were already too far gone, and Jerod's shirt was half off, much to his surprise and Carmine's delight.

I stepped over them, walking into the light of the field and slowly following the perimeter so I didn't get in anyone's way.

It was fascinating to see the pack warriors working on their bodies. A little something inside me stirred. An interest. A curiosity. I suddenly wanted to know more about my fellow wolves, and I wondered if I was going to be a warrior. The possibilities were all wide open for a few more days.

I slowed my walking, almost in a trance as I watched the wolves move. For the most part the wolves in Moonpeak were different tones of gray, but there were a few other colors scattered about. A few different browns. Some with black or white fur mixed in. It fascinated me. More now than it had when I first arrived.

I sighed and snapped out of it. I kept walking toward Smokey and the others. To my surprise, someone else had joined them while I was spacing out—Dom.

I was surprised to see him up and around. My feet knew what to do, though, and I took a step in his direction. The moment I did, Dom's back straightened and some instinct turned him toward me. I met his gaze and took in a sharp breath. His eyes were a vivid yellow. They transfixed me.

Dom walked toward me, and I rubbed my eyes. I looked around to see if anyone else was facing my way. There, a male at the logs. His eyes were brown. No, yellow? I turned another direction. Another male, his eyes were . . . yellow. My lips parted in disbelief.

"June, what's wrong?" Dom asked softly. In my shock, he had managed to walk right up to me.

"Dom. I—" I looked around the field at a few more faces and then back up to him. "Dom, have your eyes always been yellow?"

His face crinkled in amusement, and he let out a soft laugh. "All wolves have yellow eyes. Are you now just seeing them?"

"I could have sworn you all had normal eye colors. I mean, once or twice I'll admit I thought the light was playing tricks on me, but mostly they've been normal colors."

"Oh?" Dom smirked. "And what color were mine?"

A warm hazelnut shade, darker at the edges and inviting enough to stare into for however long my heart could take it.

"Brown."

"Huh. I'll keep that in mind. I think I put gray on my driver's license," he said.

"All wolves have yellow eyes?"

Dom nodded. "You will, too, in a couple of days. Your wolf must be getting close. Have you felt it? Some instincts that maybe you're having a hard time ignoring."

"Yeah, maybe I have." Closing my eyes and taking a deep breath, trying to ease my distraction. "No, never mind this stuff, I have to talk to you about Naomi."

His expression darkened. "She's in the pack house?"

"I saw her, at dinner. There's something going on with her. Evander might be doing something to her. She believes . . ." The promise she wanted from me, to keep quiet, crossed my mind for about five seconds before I decided her safety was more important than a promise to a stranger. "Something's off. She's fighting it, hard, but she's getting some kind of bond vibes from him. And I'm not sure what's going on with her, but drugs or something else is messing up her focus."

"That bastard," Dom growled. "Is she okay physically? Has he hurt her?"

"No, he's just messing with her head somehow. Do we need to make a move right now?"

"I wish we could, but no." His jaw ticked. "He's suspicious as fuck. Strange rogue attacks, like the ones from before, they were happening back then too. Back before Alpha Liam was challenged by Evander. And now, if he's doing something to Naomi, something must be going on. We're missing something, but I don't know what it is yet."

He continued, "Thanks, New Bite. I owe you for this. I'll talk to Amelia and the others later so we can try to piece this together."

"Yeah, of course." I looked away, scratching an itch on my arm and scanning the field around us. "So, you were working out?"

"Yes. The warriors come here regularly, but anyone is welcome as long as they don't get in the way. Interested in a run around the outer track?" Dom teased.

"Ha-ha, very funny," I said, though my eyes followed the worn dirt ring around the field. "And what are you doing out here, anyway? You should still be resting."

"It's fine, I'm not here to train, just to watch. Come on, let's get a seat and see what Smokey puts Amelia and the others through. It will be fun."

As I followed Dom the rest of the way around the field, I could see Smokey talking to the others. He was pointing to the logs and saying something or other to Jack and Aaron when we got close. When we were near enough to take a seat in some of the remaining grass by the tree line, Smokey turned around.

"Well, hello, there, girlie. You here for some training?" he asked.

I put my hands up in front of me. "No way, I came along with Carmine and Jerod. I'll just watch."

"Hm." Smokey scratched his chin. "I've wanted to see what that Carmine can do. Where is she?"

Amelia looked over, a sour expression on her face. "They're fucking."

I looked at her, surprised. "How did you know?"

She grunted. "This soul-tangling thing is not completely unlike a mating bond, apparently, because I can feel everything they're doing through their ownbond. That Carmine has strong and frequent urges. It's been a glorious week."

Jack snorted a laugh.

"Oh my god," I said, my face flushing. "They've been going at it—"

"Nonstop, I know ," Amelia grumbled. "Smokey, give me my next damn exercise, will you?"

Smokey gave her a wicked grin. "To the rock with you."

Amelia stripped her clothes and shifted. Then Smokey looked me over again, staring at my legs in particular. "You look like a runner. You a runner, New Bite?"

I looked down at my legs too. They weren't as big as they had been when I was in track, but they still had some size to them. Not to mention the thirty or so pounds I'd gained in the last few years since I stopped running.

"I used to but not anymore," I said.

Smokey grunted. "We'll see what your wolf has to say about that."

"Smokey, what do you want me to do?" Carson spoke up.

Smokey turned back to the wolves he was evidently training and pointed around the field again. "Aaron and Jack, you two at the logs for some back and forth. I don't want to see those weak-ass front legs again. Fix it. Carson, you need more laps, you were dragging behind yesterday and you better be ready to go until I say stop."

Carson made a face but nodded. "Yes, Smokey."

"Looks like he's here," Smokey mused. Dom smelled the air and his eyes widened.

"Who's here?" I asked.

Dom grinned. "An old friend from Salt Fur."

A huge wolf emerged from the woods. He had mostly white fur and blazing yellow eyes. Dom and the others weren't the only ones to notice him either; most of the heads in the field turned toward the wolf as he walked down the path and straight to Smokey. He was quite close before I took my eyes off of him and noticed the two smaller wolves that followed. One gray, the other a mix of gray and white. All three of them were carrying something in their mouths.

"Nathan, you made it," Smokey said.

The wolf barked a sort of laugh, definitely looking amused, and dropped the fabric from his mouth. The others did, too, then they shifted. Fur fading to skin, limbs rearranging themselves. And then we had three more naked bodies in the field, before the two men and one woman pulled on some loose athletic clothes.

The big wolf was a total jock type. Blond, tan, dimples, biceps the size of a cantaloupe, the whole nine yards. The girl had cropped black hair, light-brown skin, enviable cheekbones, and a smile that lit up her face. She caught me looking at her and winked. And finally, the last one was a bored-looking teenager. Permanent frown, messy brown hair, and obviously uninterested in whatever they were doing here.

"Smokey, you old bastard," Nathan said, and pulled him into a hug.

"Thanks for coming, Nate," Smokey said.

"My pleasure." Nathan turned to Dom and pulled him into a hug as well. "As soon as you said I'd get to kick this guy's ass, I was in."

Dom laughed and slapped Nathan on the back as they hugged. "Is that what you're doing here? I thought you didn't leave Salt Fur."

Nathan chuckled and let Dom go, looking around. "This place hasn't changed a bit."

"You don't need all that fancy shit you got back home," Smokey said. "As long as what you're lifting is heavy, you'll gain muscle."

Dom shook his head as Nathan chuckled.

"Same old Smokey," he said. "Guys, this is Anna and Matt. My future beta, and my little cousin."

At the mention of a beta, Dom looked at Anna with assessing eyes. She did the same. While they were doing that, Nathan turned his attention to me.

"Oh, um. I'm June," I said. "Nice to meet you."

"You smell interesting," Nathan said, looking at me with confusion on his face. Dom shifted slightly toward me, crossing his arms.

"She's new bite," Smokey said. "Might turn this moon. Who knows."

"Ah." Nathan nodded. "That makes sense. Nice to meet you, June. Good luck this week."

"Thanks," I mumbled.

"Whelp," Smokey said, clapping his hands. "Let's get started. Amelia! Get over here."

We looked at where the wolf was ramming herself against the boulder in the center of the field. She turned our way and visibly sighed as she stopped what she was doing and walked toward us.

Dom chuckled, pulling me aside and sitting down by the trees.

"Let's watch the show," Dom murmured. "I'm sure this will be an enlightening experience for you."

I had barely sat down when Smokey leaned over and told Nathan something. Nathan nodded and charged at Amelia, still in his human form.

I gasped as I watched Amelia pick up speed, seeing what he was doing. They collided, and Nathan's muscles bunched impressively as he rammed into the big gray wolf in front of him and slammed her on her side.

"Nathan's an alpha's son, he'll be in his father's shoes pretty soon," Dom said.

I turned to Dom, alarmed. "He's going to have to kill his dad?"

"What?" Dom's brows furrowed. "Oh, no, nothing like how Evander came here.

"It's not always like that. If it's an alpha just handing off the title to their kid, it's different. Of course, if the pack doesn't think the kid can take over and be a good alpha, you can still have someone else step in and challenge it, but that's not a common occurrence. In Nathan's case, there will be a big celebration and he'll fight his dad, but not to the death, then there's a cake."

I snorted a laugh. "What an anticlimactic way to end that sentence."

Dom shrugged. "Who doesn't like cake?"

The culture of this place was fascinating. On the surface the strength and aggression were frightening at first, but I'd come to view them all as athletes of sorts. They weren't here to hurt each other, not really. Other than that business of overthrowing an alpha, I guess.

A hand brushed mine, and I turned to Dom. "You're going to do great at the shift, I know it."

"How can you be so sure?" My own stomach had turned more than once thinking about it, but all that talk of getting in my runner's headspace went a long way to making me feel like I had some control.

"Instincts? I've been in some bad business for a long time, and you either learn to read people or you get in a lot of bad situations because of it."

"You don't talk much about it," I said softly. "The things you did before. I get that you worked for Apollo, and he was some kind of evil in the world. You were on that drug, and you left Moonpeak to get away from Evander."

"We left to get stronger," he insisted, then eased his tone. "We were always going to come back, but we knew we were just kids. If Alpha Liam could be killed by Evander. If my dad, the warriors, everyone else we looked up to could be killed so easily, we needed time, age, and skills that weren't on our side back then.

"I did a lot of shit I'm not proud of." He turned to meet my gaze. "We killed people. Not humans, but other creatures out there that were in the same business as Apollo. Theft, drugs, territory wars, we did his bidding for all of it."

"And you liked it?" I asked, caution tightening my throat.

He was quiet for a long time before answering. "No, but we saw it as necessary. I'm not sure if it was, not sure if it was the right way to get what we wanted, but here we are."

"You don't want to go back down that path," I observed.

"No," he said. "Never again."

I reached over and wrapped my fingers around his, wanting to comfort him even just a little. "My grandad didn't talk much about his time in the navy, but he did say one thing that I think he'd want you to hear right now."

Dom's brows lowered. "And what's that?"

"It's easy to judge who you were and what you did before, but it's who you are going forward that matters the most." I squeezed his fingers a little tighter. "He'd sum it up by saying everyone loved the guy who climbed uphill, 'cause not everyone can keep that up for long."

"How poetic," Dom said after a while.

"He was a romantic at heart, that's for sure."

"Climb uphill, huh?" Dom murmured.

Smack . I jumped where I sat, then looked over to see Amelia with her teeth sunk deep into Nathan's shoulder. He grunted and lifted her again, smacking her down onto her back.

"Oof." I cringed.

"Welcome to wolfhood." Dom chuckled.

I watched, engrossed in the sights before me. Anna and Matt both took part, taking turns with the exercises and running with Jack, Aaron, and Carson. As for Nathan, his attention was wholly on Amelia, and for the rest of the day, I watched Nathan the man, and then Nathan the wolf, beat Amelia six ways from Sunday.

Enlightening indeed.