21. Shay

TWENTY-ONE

Shay

I lana was more than happy to procure me another pitcher of spiced wine, with a stern warning that it would be the last. Apparently, overuse could get you stuck in a dream state, and their pack only imbibed it twice per year as a rule. Unfortunately, I couldn't do anything with it until nightfall. I had no desire to sit around and hallucinate while Brielle finally met Inuksuk, even though I was dying to have a real conversation with Dirge for the first time. So I carefully tucked the ceramic pitcher away in my room and headed out to join our party for the big meeting.

Ilana and Iaoin were subdued as they led us down a twisting path into the forest, deeper than any of us had ventured since we'd arrived. Kane held Brielle's hand as we walked down the path, the sight sending a pang of longing ricocheting through my chest. Leigh and I trailed just behind, while the men in our little party followed more slowly still.

We walked for nearly half an hour in the dappled sunlight before a small fire ring came into view. It sat in a tiny niche tucked into the forest, hardly a clearing. Behind it was a more rustic cabin, hand-sawed logs stacked up to form the walls, a moss-covered roof blending into the deep greenery like it had always been there. Meant to be. The front door sat propped open, colorful rugs on the floor welcoming us inside.

We waited at the bottom of the steps while Iaoin entered first, a quick, patterned rap on the door the only warning before he charged inside.

"Father, we've brought the guests. Do you want all six—well, seven, I guess—of them inside? Or do you want to come out to the fire?"

An ancient voice, reedy and thin, barely reached even my excellent wolf-assisted ears. "Take me to them, please."

"As you say," Iaoin said, respect evident in his tone as he addressed his elderly father. All traces of the cocky hothead who'd challenged for mating rites three seconds after meeting me were long gone, in his place a tender son who helped his elderly father down the steps with his cane.

We parted, letting them have a clear path to the giant half-log benches that circled the smoldering fire ring. The thin trail of smoke coming from the pit was almost blue in the light. The dual scents of sage and ash were oddly calming as we settled onto the other benches, forming a semicircle around the elder. Dirge settled himself in front of me, lying down where his side pressed against my shins.

"Yaghali du, Pack Blackwater." He bobbed his chin, the barest motion of acknowledgment. He was unimpressed by Kane's status as high alpha, and I liked that about him.

"Aa'yaghali, Inuksuk," we all said with eerie oneness, and he smiled, the motion turning his wrinkles into deeper creases on his cheeks.

"Very good. If you don't mind, I would like to get right to the meat of the issue. I'm old and impatient as my time on this plane wears thin. Tell me." He propped both hands on top of his intricately carved cane, scanning our group as if guessing which of us would tell him what was going on. His eyes settled heavily on Brielle, and I had to work to unclench my fists as the nerves overtook me.

"I have trouble shifting, Inuksuk. I can occasionally, under the moon. But it's very draining, and I always collapse within a few moments of taking my wolf form." Embarrassment had her ducking her head at the admission.

Inuksuk nodded, shifting his gaze to Kane, who continued. "The first time I shifted with my mate, I sensed a sickness, a witch taint to her wolf. There was a green ooze coming from her sides, draining down into the earth." He hesitated, and at once I realized that he wasn't sure if he should share his suspicions about Brielle's omega status.

Could they help her if he left any details out? And if we trusted this pack with the illness, couldn't we trust them with the rest?

"She's special, sir," he finally said. "And incredibly important to me, as well as my pack. But most of all… we suspect that she may be an omega."

Brielle's hand looped around his biceps, gripping him for dear life as we waited to see what the shaman would say.