I’ve been in wolf form solely for almost a week here in the forests of Canada. It’s cold. A lot colder than winter in Texas could ever be. I’m thankful that I’ve been in and out of my wolf form often enough while in the cabin in Maine that my wolf has grown in her winter coat. As night falls and snow starts to fall again, I decide that it would be a good time to head back to my den. I had found a large tree where some of the dirt had eroded around the roots. It wasn’t all the much work to dig further into the roots and make a den for myself. The tree grow partially out of a hill, so I was very well protected from the elements and predators. My fur would keep me plenty warm and I had smoothed the dirt in the den down enough that it was extremely comfortable. Wolves don’t require much, which makes this transition between being human and being a wolf so welcome. I know that a lot of the wolves in my life feel that I am being very melodramatic about everything that has gone do
“So the boys are stuck there? Hermes, too?” Arya says to the projected image of JoJo projected on the screen. Josefina, or JoJo as everyone is calling her, is a she-wolf that I admittedly know very little about. You would think that with all of the mystical mumbo-jumbo that I have in my life from being a half witch, I would know more about the next greatest oracle of our generation. But I’m learning a lot more about myself since I’ve found out about Nyx being my mate. I think that, once I found out about the prophecy of me ending the Riding Hoods for good when I was 10, I’ve pushed away that side of my nature. I’ve only worked with Bella enough that I can get rid of the surplus of my magical energy that builds when I don’t use it often enough. I just had that part of myself. Nyx is helping me to get a new appreciation for that part. So, I kept myself away from most wolves that reminded me of my own mystical abilities, except for Arya and Devin. And the only reason that I r
A few seconds after JoJo hangs up, Jamal, Gregory, Edward, and Michael stiffen. I’ve never seen a mindlink look painful, but all of their eyes tear, the veins in their necks bulge. Their entire bodies tensed and I don’t know that they were breathing. It doesn’t last long, maybe just a few seconds, but it is the most excruciating few seconds that I’ve ever witnessed. When it’s done, all four males slump back in their seats, panting heavily. Bella, Nora, and Citra are all over them while Devin and Arya race to their sides to see if they need medical attention. “I’m good,” Jamal says, waving Devin’s hands away. “Not physically hurt. That transfer just hurt like a son of a bitch.” He massages his temples. Jamal tries to resist when Devin puts a hand on his head, but stops when Devin’s hand starts to glow. Must be his powers working. He places his other hand on Gregory’s head and does the same thing while Arya takes care of Michael and Edward. “I don’t know about you guys,
Gael, Hakeem, Fati, and I meet JoJo’s plane when it lands in the private airfield. Arya and Devin had to almost tie Jacob down to keep him from coming as well, but we all agreed that JoJo wasn’t in the headspace to see him quite yet. We had promised the young male that we would talk to her about sitting down with him within the next 24 hours, assuming she was feeling ok. Seeing her get off of the plane, I’m not sure that we’ll be able to keep that promise. JoJo has only been in wolf form continuously for a week, but she’s already basically skin and bones. When we shift into our wolf forms, our metabolism is so much higher than that of our human form. It makes sense. We turn into these huge beasts that are almost always running. We’re spending more energy to either keep ourselves warm in the cold or make ourselves cooler in the heat. Hell, even getting dinner can be a huge expense of energy, depending on how far we had to hunt and what we were planning on taking down. And w
Josefina’s here. She’s here, back in Arcadia. And Ma used her luna command to tell me that I had to stay away from her. I wasn’t allowed to come anywhere near Josefina until I got a mindlink from one of her parents or one of mine. Do you know how hard it is to smell her scent? To know that she’s finally in the same city as I am, within a five minute walk after being out of my reach for months? And to have Alexander stuck in the Goddess’s Realm with some crazy ancient goddess of death? I’m quickly unraveling over here and nothing that I do is calming me down. “You’ve got to get your shit together, bro. You’re going to wear a trail in the sidewalk at this rate,” Caleb tells me. Caleb Thorne, my best friend, aside from the twins, is the son of Michael, an oracle of the pack, and Citra Osborn, the High Priestess of the Mother coven here in Texas. Both of them helped bring Nathan away from his crazy bio-dad at the beginning of the Civil War. Caleb is their oldest child.
There’s only so long that I can take scenting Jacob and Alexander and not being around them. They’re scent is like a drug, one that none of the human drugs have been able to give me. A measure of peace and happiness that settles my soul. One that I need badly. So, I ask Devin and Arya to call him. To bring him to me. And Goddess, does his scent calm me even more as he gets closer. I wish that he didn’t do this to me. I wish that it was different. When his eyes meet mine, it is like all of my feelings come to the surface. Everything that I feel for him and because of him. Pain. Humiliation. Longing. Desire. Because despite everything, I still want him. I still need him. I still love him. I never stopped. It takes Devin’s whistle to break us out of our staring contest. And then Jacob sits beside his parents and watches me as the meeting continues. It’s so hard to focus on what’s being said with him right there, just a few strides away from me. I just want to cu
It is the asscrack of dawn and we are up and on a plane across the globe to Ios. Bella, Gregory, Jamal, Nyx, and me. All tucked up in the large cabin of one of our private planes. I met Nyx at her house this morning with coffee in a thermos and the danishes that I noticed she liked from the coffee shop we went to before. I had called the shop yesterday, after the meeting, so that they would be made and ready to go when I dropped by before getting Nyx. Of course, I got enough for Bella, and her mates, but this was for Nyx. This was all for Nyx. Anything that I can do to get that smile on her face. The one that is so delightedly surprised that someone would do something for her. Not to get anything back from her. Just to see her happy. That smile is what keeps me going. It’s so rare. So rare that I can count the times that I’ve seen it on one hand. But I treasure every single one. “Did you get this for me?” she asked, a faint blush coloring her cheeks. “For you? Naw.
It’s about mid-morning when I get a mindlink from Tomas. I’m in the middle of some paperwork from my area. We’re trying to get permits to break ground on a new elementary school. Le’s just say that the dry language of government red tape is not my happy place. Because even though this is pack land that we’re developing, we still have to play nice with the human government. Hearing his voice is welcome respite. Hey! Are you two available to talk this afternoon? I have something important to tell you, he links to me and Kaia. I’m free after 1:00 if you two want to do lunch, I respond. Same, Kaia responds, her answer terse and a little breathy. She’s starting to ramp up her training for the competition circuit again and has been at the gym since 6:00 this morning. She’s gotta be exhausted, but I can feel the little jolt of happiness that goes through her at the thought of seeing Tomas. Pizza? she adds through the mindlink. I’ll get from Bobby’s, I link, mouth already wate