A Request for…Adventure?

Shocked, I stand frozen at Owen's back. Get Ros's gun? Do I finally get to shoot someone?

"Whoa, there." Levi holds up large, callused hands. "There's been a misunderstanding."

Oh, wait, I don't need a gun anymore. I can summon the forces of lightning. Or, I did one time by accident. But this stranger doesn't know I've failed every attempt since my confrontation with Bryant.

As I whip out my wand from my arm holster, the lightning-touched wood buzzes against my skin like I just licked a battery. I point the glass tip toward the man. "State your business or it's zaps for you!"

"Rowe…" A warning note fills Owen's voice, and his werewolf tries to smother me in shadows.

"Stop that!" I blow at the black smoke and wave my wand around. "Keep your curse to yourself. I'm trying to defend our house from…"

I eye the tight hold Levi has on the hat in his hands and the way he hunches his shoulders to appear smaller. On closer inspection, his clothes are well-worn but clean, while the scruff that lines his jaw looks less like a style choice and more like he's been pressed for time. Dark bags under his eyes speak to long travel with little rest.

Aside from his size, he seems about as threatening as a puppy.

Confused, I turn to Owen. "Why are we declaring war when it's still weeks away from the full moon?"

"He's a werewolf, Rowe," Owen grits out between clenched teeth.

"And I'm a redhead." Unsure what his deal is, but sure that Levi is no threat, I tuck my wand away. "What's that got to do with the price of pie at Nesse's Diner?"

Owen's brows sweep together as he drags his eyes away from the stranger to stare down at me. "What? That makes no sense."

"Neither does all this growling." I pat the black tendrils dancing on his arm, trying to shove them back inside his body. "Time to sleep, wolfy."

"Your reaction is understandable." Levi holds up his hands, his hat waving from one fist. "Territorialism is hard to overcome, but with time, you'll learn to control it."

"Excuse me?" Owen whips back toward Levi, the shadows bursting forth once more. "I'm the Alpha around here."

"Not my Alpha, kid." Red flickers in Levi's eyes, there and gone in a blink. "Don't make this a pissing contest when I just came to ask for help."

My mouth drops open in surprise, and I shove in front of Owen. "You can control your curse outside of the full moon."

"I can." He pats his chest. "Far better than your friend here can."

"Mate." Owen's hands clench into fists, and the shadows slowly withdraw back into his body. "She's my mate, not my friend."

"And I mean her no harm." Levi's focus shifts to me. "You're Rowe Wendall?"

Oh, yeah, that's why we're anti-Levi. "Nope, no clue who that is."

No good has ever come from someone asking for the Wendall witch.

"Come on, sparky." Tris comes up from behind me to gawk at the tall man. "Let the cowboy in so he can speak his piece."

My elbow bounces off his stomach. "Whose side are you on?"

"Yours, my pudding pop." He slings an arm around my shoulders. "But this smells like adventure."

I cross my arms in front of my chest. "No adventure. We are done with adventure."

"Invite him in," Haut calls from the kitchen. "If he means any harm, we'll just kill him and bury him out back."

Horrified, I turn toward him. "No graveyards in grandma's garden!"

"Now that we agree on." Levi fixes his eyes on Owen's shoulder to show he's not questioning Owen's dominance. "If it's okay with you?"

"Fine." Owen moves aside but keeps a watchful eye on Levi as the other man opens the screen door and comes inside.

Tris's arm tightens around me, pulling me a few steps back. "And the graveyard is down at the sheriff station, by the way."

Levi pauses to give him a wary stare. "Noted."

"My grave is there," I add helpfully, earning me a dubious frown.

Not wanting the stranger at our backs, Owen gestures for him to walk ahead of us. "The kitchen is through that archway. Why don't you join us for breakfast?"

"I won't say no when I smell…" His nose twitches as he sniffs the air. "Waffles? With pure maple syrup?"

Curious about Levi now that he's in our house, I wiggle free of Tris's hold and skirt past Owen to skid up next to Levi. "How did you do it?"

Bemused, he glances down at me. "Do what?"

"Learn to control your curse." I circle to his other side, the words tumbling out of my mouth faster than my brain can process. "Did you inject yourself with witch's blood or something?"

"Inject myself with what now?" Amusement flickers across Levi's face. "No, nothing like that."

Reaching under his shirt collar, he pulls out a necklace with an ugly wolf head pendant dangling at its center. "This little thing right here helps me."

"An amulet?" The urge to grab for it nearly overwhelms me, so I tuck my hands behind my back. "Where did you get it? Was it a witch you know?"

He shakes his head. "It's been passed down through my family for generations. Somehow, it gives us the ability to embrace our wolf without the darkness, so even during the full moon, we don't turn into mindless murder machines."

"Wait." Owen hurries forward to join us. "You were born a werewolf?"

Levi nods. "Most in my pack were, though we get the occasional member who started as something else."

"Wait." Owen waves his hand for Levi to slow down. "You live in a pack of werewolves?"

"I do." Levi hesitates when we reach the kitchen, his attention fixed on Ambros. "You live with a vampire."

Bristling at his tone, I step between him and my fanged lover. "If you have a problem with that, you know where the door is."

"And you can keep going right out of town." Haut crosses his arms over his chest. "We have several vampiric residents."

"Apologies." Levi nods to Ambros. "We don't have vampires where I come from, so you took me by surprise."

"That seems to be going around." Ambros sets adds an extra place setting. "Take a seat."

"And tell us where you come from." Owen nudges me to the farthest chair from Levi, which puts me directly across from the man.

Eager for story time, I lean my elbows on the table.

"Silver Hollow— Thank you." Levi takes the platter of waffles Ambros passes him, adding one to his plate. "Silver Hollow is a sanctuary town, just like Hartford Cove, except that it's not wolf shifter exclusive."

I clear my throat and point to the vampire among us.

"Yes, well…" Levi accepts the bacon Ambros offers. "Our last accounts said this place was wolf shifters only."

Haut stabs his waffle. "And the Wendall witch."

"Right." Levi's gaze settles on me. "There are stories?—"

"Back to Silver Hollow," I interrupt. "How else is it different?"

"There are all manner of shifters, though we do have a heavy cat and crow population?—"

"Bullshit." I whip around to stare at the others. "Did you know about this?"

"Never heard of Silver Hollow," Haut grunts, while Owen shakes his head.

My focus fixes on Ambros. "You knew, didn't you?"

"I didn't realize other shifters were a secret," he says, not pretending to misunderstand like the two cowards at my table. "My father could turn into hundreds of bats."

"But he was a vampire!" I throw my hands up in exasperation before turning back to Levi. "What else?"

Head down, he cuts his breakfast into bite-sized pieces. "We also have witches and humans who live among us."

Tris props his chin on his hand. "How's that work?"

Levi swallows and sets down his fork, half his waffle having vanished in three bites. "There's a barrier surrounding our town that makes humans forget it exists when they pass through it. They only remember that paranormals are real once they return home."

"That's convenient." I peer up at the ceiling. "Our barrier feels kind of cheap now."

"Second rate," Tris agrees through a mouthful of bacon.

"Were my ancestors even trying?" I shake my head. "So disappointing."

"Within our barrier, we werewolves don't even need these amulets, which is good, since we don't have enough to go around." Levi touches the silver pendant. "But that means we're trapped in Silver Hollow, unless we want to risk the moon madness."

"So…you want more amulets?" I sneak my hand toward Haut's coffee. "You'd be better off speaking to Mel about that."

Haut nudges his mug out of reach. "You said you have witches in Silver Hollow. Can't they recreate it?"

"No one knows the spell. If this Mel could help with it, that would be wonderful, but that's not why I'm here." Levi flattens his hands on the table as he fixes on me. "Our barrier is failing."

Tris passes me his hot chocolate. "Bummer."

"Big time bummer." I dip a piece of bacon into it. "You should probably get that fixed."

"We've been trying. Our local coven has been working on it for months." Frustration tightens his features. "We think it's been poisoned somehow."

"Poisoned?" Ambros frowns. "Is there corruption inside your coven?"

"We're not sure." Levi grimaces, the admission paining him. "And we're running out of time. If the barrier falls completely, the world will learn about the existence of paranormals."

Talk about déjà vu.

"Why do you think we can help?" Own asks.

"Word spreads fast in the paranormal community." Levi leans toward me like I'm the last hope. "You locked away a vampire elder. That's no small feat. We figured if anyone could save us, it would be you."

Mind racing with possibilities, I bite my lip. "That's a lot of expectation."

"Adventure," Tris whispers.

Haut glowers at him. "Not happening."

My gaze catches on Levi's amulet. Magic like that would make a world of difference for Owen and Deputy Arden. And a coven in a hidden town? They might have access to magics we don't. Something better than a yearly spell for the vampires.

"I'll discuss the matter with everyone." When he straightens with relief, I hold up a hand. "That's not a promise."

"It's more than I had when I came here." He stands from the table. "Thank you. I'll be staying in Hartford Cove for a couple of days. You can find me in the apartments above the Pizza Parlor."

With a nod, he strides for the door and lets himself out.

As soon as his steps fade from the porch, Haut, Ambros, and Owen turn to me and say in unison, "No."

Behind their backs, Tris pumps a fist into the air and whispers, "Adventure!"