Eve

 

* * *

 

I slept like hell, memories of my mother’s stories turning into dreams that wouldn’t stop. Normally, they’d be welcome, but I kept waking in a cold sweat, feeling like I was too slow to discover whatever I was supposed to learn.

When the sun finally rose and I felt mostly rested, I got up. My insides ached like they were being torn apart, and I reached for one of the vials of pain medicine on the bedside table. With a shaking hand, I closed my eyes and drank the liquid, then leaned back against the pillows, feeling it flow through me, taking away the pain. It was dark behind my eyelids, but it was soothing.

How much longer was I going to last? The potions were becoming less effective with time, and I was going to need to shift. Soon.

I heaved a sigh and opened my eyes.

Ralph sat in the chair across from the bed, staring at me while eating a bag of popcorn. You talk in your sleep.

“Did I say anything interesting?”

Nonsense, mostly.

“That’s what I figured.” I made quick work of my shower and dressed in fresh jeans and a shirt. Boots and a leather jacket finished the outfit, and I longed for when my life was boring enough that I could afford to wear a dress again.

Not anytime soon, I was afraid.

Going to your boyfriend’s?

“How’s Cordelia?”

He glared at me, the reminder of the lady raccoon clearly putting him in a foul mood. They’d been thick as thieves recently, but I hadn’t seen them together in the last few days.

Fine.

“Uh-huh. You don’t ask me about my relationships, and I won’t ask about yours.”

You play dirty.

“I play fair.” I pointed at him. “And maybe eat an apple or something.”

I’m allergic.

“To apples?”

To all fruit and veg.

“Sure.” I left him in the chair and headed to Lachlan’s tower. I stopped for coffee and breakfast, debating whether I should get Lachlan something. I shouldn’t do anything that would grow the bond between us, but he always fed me.

I was overthinking it.

I got a second cup of coffee and another bacon bap, then thought of Kenneth. Surely I’d see him, too, though I knew that Seraphia had already left for the night after helping him. I added a third to my order, and they packaged the drinks up in a takeaway tray.

Loaded down, I continued on my way. As I neared the tower, I realized that this was one of the first times that I’d come here on my own since leaving so many years ago. Normally, Lachlan was with me. Now, I was going to have to walk into the main room alone. Face my old pack. Alone.

I drew in a deep breath and straightened my shoulders.

I’d faced down way worse. This was mildly awkward. It was the last thing I should be worried about.

Anyway, this had been my mother’s pack, too. For a while, at least.

I climbed the stairs to the main door and let myself in. As usual, the main room was full of shifters having breakfast and chatting. I nodded at the few who looked at me, then made my way across the room toward the hallway at the back.

When I ran into the cook who’d made me a sandwich a couple weeks ago, I smiled at her. “Have you seen Lachlan?”

She eyed the takeaway bag and coffees in my hands and frowned. Suddenly, I felt like a kid trying to sneak snacks into the movie theater and had an urge to hide the damned things behind my back.

She nodded toward the hallway behind me. “He’s in the library with his second.”

“Thank you.” I doubted it would improve her goodwill if I offered her a pastry, so I turned and headed back toward the library.

I found Kenneth and Lachlan just where the cook said they would be and offered them the snacks.

“Thank you,” Lachlan said.

Kenneth nodded appreciatively and sipped the coffee. He looked exhausted, and I made a mental note to thank him with more than just coffee.

“Any luck?” I asked, looking at the scattered papers in front of them.

Kenneth nodded. “The book you found was the key. I’ve got most of it translated.”

“Really? Anything interesting?” Kenneth and Lachlan shared a look, and suddenly, I was desperate to know. “What do you know that I don’t?”

“You’re something special, all right,” Kenneth said.

“Don’t draw it out.” I sat in the chair across from them and glared. “Tell me.”

“You’re a dire wolf,” Lachlan said.

Holy fates. “A dire wolf? I thought they were a myth.”

“They were, until you showed up.”

“I can’t even shift.”

“You haven’t transitioned yet.” Lachlan pressed a piece of paper closer to me. It was covered in symbols and translations, and I assumed it was proof of what he was saying. I didn’t want to take the time to decipher it, though. Not if he already knew.

“It’s different than what happens to regular wolves?”

Lachlan nodded. “It didn’t used to be. Dire wolves were like regular wolves, just larger and more powerful. More magic in their veins, which meant more strength. But they began to die out nearly a thousand years ago.”

“Right after those stones were carved.”

“It was one reason they left Norway,” Lachlan said. “They weren’t sure if it was something in the environment there. So they came to Scotland, hoping for a new start.”

“It didn't work.”

“Not for long. More and more of their children couldn’t shift, until finally, there were no more of them.”

“No more?”

“They couldn’t survive being unable to shift.”

“They were torn apart.” Just like I’d been told would happen to me. “How did the magic get passed down, then, if no one survived?”

“I have a very tentative theory that it was carried on by distant relatives as a recessive trait,” Kenneth said. “Something may have happened to most of the wolves to make them lose their ability, but the magic wouldn’t have wanted to disappear forever. It would have found a way to survive.”

“That kind of works.” I frowned. “But it also kind of doesn’t.”

“I know.” Kenneth nodded. “It’s just a theory. Honestly, I’ve got no idea why they suddenly died out and why you’re the one.”

“So it’s safe to say we don’t know why,” Lachlan said. “But we do know what you are.”

“And that’s why the Maker is interested in me. I bet this ceremony he has planned is meant to make me shift.” I frowned. “Could it be such a bad thing, then?”

“He’s not acting in your best interest,” Lachlan said. “It’s safe to assume that.”

I nodded. “You’re right. But I need to be able to shift, or I’m going to die.”

Lachlan nodded. “He needs the Moon Stones for whatever he’s planning. If we can steal them back from him, we’ll be able to do the ceremony ourselves. You can shift, but in the safety of Guild City.”

I nodded, liking this plan. It took the power away from the Maker and would save me. “We don’t know where the third stone is, though.”