Chapter 17 – Safety

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            Emma felt an instinct of flight the second she saw a seriously annoyed Jing at the foot of the stairs.  There were times when her so-called “powers” were completely and utterly useless.  Resisting the urge to squirm, she walked passed her and headed to the kitchen.  “Is there coffee?  I’m barely awake.”

            Jing followed, “Why did my brother just spent the last 10 minutes interrogating me?”

            “Oh thank god, fresh caffeine!”  Emma grabbed the mug on her way to the steaming pot on the stove.  She took a healthy sip before answering Jing, “Because Nick is stupidly smart and saw me have a two second conversation with my brother this morning.”  She glanced at Jing with  a knowing look.  Everyone knew Nick was freakishly sharp and had a way of connecting all the dots. 

            Huffing her displeasure, because she understood perfectly how hard it was to keep a secret from Nick, Jing leaned against the counter and crossed her arm in annoyance.  “I heard what happened last night.  You guys okay?”

            “They never made it pass the perimeters; we had it covered, ” Emma replied with a shrug.  “Is Ella up yet?”

            “Dining room getting yelled at before the meeting,” Jing answered with a meaningful look.

            Wincing, Emma considered going in there to save her sister... or get her share of the yelling over with, but decided that coffee was preferable at the moment.  Plus her dehydration headache from the morning still hadn’t receded and it was hard to deal with it when she wasn’t feeling at her best.  “Anything I need to know about while I was dead?”

            Smirking, Jing grabbed the oven mutts off the shelf and went to check on the afternoon breads.  Business has to continue if they were going to strive for any semblance of normalcy.  “I’m going to leave that to your brothers.  I’m sure they’d have a lot of fun with that.”

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            “We need to get moving,” Benji said quietly, lowering his head against the wind.  “We’ve been here too long and the scent is traveling.”  Safety was still an issue, even with the five of them together. 

            “We should bury the bodies,” George argued.

            “That’d defeat the purpose,” Benji replied with a grunt.  He hated leaving it like that but a message had to be sent.  They weren’t messing around anymore: anyone that comes at them will be met with extreme prejudice. 

            George looked uncomfortable but he nodded his understanding.  He may not like it, thought it was disrespectful to the dead, but he understood that they were at war now.  “I wish we could give Jiro and Aaron a little more time to rest.”

            “They can rest in the van,” David said coming up to them.  He had just spend the last hour disabling every car he could locate in the nearby area, taking no risks.  “You and I take their car?” asking George rather pointedly.  The two of them had the least number of wounds right now, they had a better fighting chance if they get caught in a firestorm.

            “Yeah,” George nodded and looked at Benji.  “We should stick together.  Jiro and Aaron took a good beating these last few days,” glancing at their sleeping brothers.  They both looked exhausted and seemed to have aged overnight.  “I’m not sure it’s safe for them to go at this alone again.”

            “That was a lot more Browns that I thought would be following us,” David admitted with an nod.  “I know the Alpha wants pay back but this… they’re trying to eradicate us.”

            “We’re the example of what comes of opposition,” Benji reminded him.  “And we have to push back hard if we want to make it out of this safely.”

            “I hope the others are okay,” George said quietly.  The phone call with the girls had left him disturbed and distraught. 

            “Sean and Wes have gone silent,” David remarked with a  frown.  “Should we call them again?”

            “Not if they’re resting,” Benji replied, looking up at the noon sun.  “Let’s give them another hour and hit the road first.”

            David nodded then looked at their sleeping companions.  “I don’t want to wake them.”

            “You don’t have to,” Jiro groaned as he to his back.  “You guys don’t know the concept of quiet.”

            “Give them a break,” Aaron muttered and buried his nose into the blanket around him, “It’s not like they’re not trying.”

            “Then they just at it,” Jiro replied rather mercilessly as he stretched and sat up.  His body ached in spite getting the first amount of decent sleep in days.  “What time is it?”

            “Fifteen minutes to noon.”

            “We need to get moving,” Aaron said and got up, grabbing his clothes from the neat pile by his head.  “Thanks,” waving the handful at whichever of the trio that had placed it there for him.  “Can we still make the rendezvous time?”

            “Not a chance in hell,” Benji shook his head.  “We’re too far out for it.  We’re at least three or four days behind now;  not even hauling is going to get us there.”  The extra days they had taken to recover from their initial wounds had cost them.  But at least it gave them time to catch up to Aaron and Jiro when they were needed.  “I contacted the girls earlier.  They’re making a run for it from hostiles Rainie ran into last night.”

            “Is she alright?” Jiro asked, his eyes steady but full of concern.  He’d know if his mate was gone. 

            “Exhausted but fine; feeling guilty though.”  George answered with a shrug.  It was a full moon, some leeway should be given.  “They’re going to take a detour through some populated cities to lose them.” 

            “I’ll call them once we’re on the road,” Jiro muttered and dressed quickly.  He missed his wife, wanted to hear her voice if nothing else.  “Any word from Wes and Sean?”

            “Nothing,” David said with a frown.  “We tried them right after the girls but neither one picked up.”

            “Reception?” Aaron asked doubtfully.

            “Satellites don’t go down,” Benji reminded him with a grave look but kept his concerns to himself for now.  “We’ll try again later.  They may just be sleeping off the affects of the moon.”

            “Keep trying,” Jiro replied looked at the empty hill woods.  “Bodies?”

            Benji and David traded quick looks.  “We made them easy to find.”

            Jiro nodded.  “Then let’s go.  We’ve stayed too long and we’ve got a long way to go.  I’ve been away from my wife for longer than I like.”

            “Feeling itchy?” David asked, a hint of amusement in his tone.

            “Anxious,” Jiro corrected, “especially if she’s got hostiles on her tail.  She needs to get to safety.”  He looked at the clear sky and hoped they can make good time.  They were so off course on their original plans that he only hoped that Calvin and the others were  doing better than they were.  “Rainie is strong but the baby will slow her down.  I want to get back to her ASAP.”

            “Baby?” Benji and George asked as David’s his jaw hit the ground.

            Aaron grinned. “Did Rainie forget to mention she’s pregnant?”

            The others groaned.  “Man…. Your timing…”

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            “This is ridiculous!” Ella exploded after fuming for the last half hour. 

            “Ridiculous?” Kai hissed between his teeth.  “You want to talk about ridiculous?!?”

            “Kai…” Xiu warned carefully.  Kai didn’t do well with confrontations, unable to hold his tongue.  And Ella’s reactions were sometimes… unpredictable.  But both of them were currently wearing the mulish expression that didn’t bode well for anyone within shouting vicinity.  A lot of collateral damage can be inflicted when those two unleash their verbal claws at each other.

            “Excuse me,” Calvin interrupted with a raised hand and an uncomfortable look.  “Maybe Chun and I should just wait outside,” pointing over his head at the door.  Pets raised her hand to be included in that suggestion.

            Ella’s hand was raised open-palm toward him, not evening bothering to turn as she continued to shout at her brother.  “You don’t have authority to dictate who does and does not stay here.”

            “Military presence during war times says that I do,” Kai replied, eyes flashing with anger.  “And do not tell me we are not at war right now; especially not after last night.”

            Teeth clicking together to bite back to retort, Ella glared at him.  “I think Emma and I have proven that we can more than…”

            “You got lucky, Ella,” Kai snapped back sharply, “Do not mistaken that.”

            “And you have seriously underestimated me and Emma if you think we simply ‘got lucky,’” Ella replied with frost on her tongue. 

            “We saw it,” Emma added from the doorway, coffee mug in one hand and a buttered toast in the other.  She was munching thoughtfully, looking at the multiple faces in the room.  Kai and Ella were both pretty red with rage.  Xiu looked gray with exhaustion.  Chun was calm and stoic while Calvin and Pets were both pale with concern.  “Took one or two adjustments and nightmares but we saw it all the way through to the end.  Kept the death at a minimum without losing anyone on our side.  Didn’t even have to sacrifice Pets for it,” she threw out nonchalantly. 

            “What?” Pets blinked.

            Emma shrugged, “You got mauled in a few scenarios… usually by one of the Betas – that was unexpected, by the way.  Guys, you might want to look into that,” giving her brothers a critical look.

            “A little warning would have helped,” Xiu told her with a reprimanding frown.  He glanced briefly at Pets, gauging her reaction.  She was pale but wasn’t making a fuss; she was learning. 

            “We told them about it… eventually,” Emma defended weakly.  She knew that decision was going to be the bad one but necessary for what they needed.

            “Emma…” Xiu warned with a look of disapproval.

            “It was my call,” Ella replied firmly, turning her brother’s attention. 

            “It was our call,” Emma corrected with a pointed look at her sister.  “Not a kid anymore,” she reminded them all.  “And you have to stop treating us like we are,” addressing her brothers.  “We had a huge learning curve; one that we don’t always get right but we are learning, and it’s not exactly like we have text books for this stuff.  But when we have answers, we go with it – whether you like it or not.”  She understood her position within the pack but still…

            “Fine,” Kai answered with just as sharp of a tone as before, “But that also means we don’t get to take your word for it from now on if you’re going to play these kinds of games.”  He looked at Ella, “The decision stands.”

            “What decision?” Emma asked, looking at the room in general.

            Ella huffed and crossed her arms, looking out the window. 

            “Well?” Emma asked the rest of the silent room before turning to Calvin, “And what are you guy doing back here?  I thought that…”

            “We’re backup,” Calvin replied, deciding that he wasn’t going to be able to stay out of the fight after all.  “In case you and Ella decide to pull another boneheaded move.”

            “WHAT?” Emma screeched.  “It was not boneheaded!” she replied indignation, spilling her coffee over her hand in an expressive move. 

            Calvin frowned at her and Ella’s tense back, “Pack of rabid hyenas, Emma.  Not something 2 people, much less girls, should be facing alone.”  He wasn’t going to belittle their abilities but it was still the dumbest thing he’s heard of given the amount of protection at their disposal. 

            “We’re not helpless like one of yours,” making an off handed gesture at Pets then stopped to apologize to her, “No offense,” before turning back.  “And they weren’t rabid.  We were more in danger from the feral Betas than we were from the hyenas.  All they were looking for were the seers.  And worse they would’ve done was…”

            “EMMA!” Ella snapped sharply. 

            The coffee mug came up suddenly and Emma hide behind it.  She had say much more than she wanted to or should have. 

            Kai and Xiu exchanged dubious glances, “I don’t want to know.”  They didn’t want to have to disclose it if asked. 

            “I do,” Calvin commented with a raised finger.

            “No you don’t,” Xiu warned him. 

            Calvin raised a brow of inquiry, not liking the look in Xiu’s eyes before he nodded in agreement not to pursue it further.  Ignorance is bliss sometimes.

            “The fact is,” Chun said, finally, “We’re staying.”  He looked at Emma rather than Ella.  “Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure you and Ella are good at protecting yourselves.  But my sister is staying here right now; and as you pointed out, she’s not quite as adapt to this as you are.  I want to be here to protect her and ensure her safety.”

            Emma’s eyes held his for a moment, a gaze that was much older and wiser than her youthful face, then shrugged.  “Fair enough.” 

            Jing popped her head in at that exact moment, her eyes did a quick assessment of the situation before announcing, “We have company.”

            “Who?” Kai and Xiu both asked, going right back to business.

            “Cougars at the front gate; leopards at the back entrance.  They haven’t stepped onto Holy Ground yet, the other Betas are holding them back.  What?” the last question directed at Ella.

            Ella’s eyes were devoid of spirit for a moment then she blinked, looking a little startled. 

            “What now?” Jing asked exasperated.  She did not need another prediction of death; there are way too much to do right now and her brothers are here today.

            Surprised and maybe a little uncertain, Ella shook her head slowly, turning to Emma.  Her sister shook her head and shrugged; she hadn’t seen anything – the vision was all Ella’s. 

            “What did you see?” Kai asked, catching his sister’s eyes. 

            “Nothing,” Ella replied slowly, considering it again before nodding to herself.  “It’s nothing.” 

            “Ella?” Xiu’s eyes reflected his concern for his friend and he was asking his sister to be straight with them. 

            “It’s nothing,” Ella repeated a little more firmly this time, to Xiu and to Jing.  

            “Okay,” Jing accepted it with a nod and shrugged it off.  She didn’t have time for this anyways and she trusted Ella to do what was needed, even if she didn’t like it.  Whatever the case may be, this wasn’t the time to visit it.  “What do you want to do about your visitors?”

            “I’m guessing they’re our for the Alpha meeting,” Ella mused with a resigned sigh.  “Not leaving it to chance, huh?”

            “News travels fast,” Kai muttered in irritation, glancing briefly at Jing.  She offered him a quick glance then turned away – she was going to play it cool; which was fine by him.  He’s got his duties to see to and his sisters’ safety to worry about today.  “Obviously, I’m not trusting the felines further than I can spit at them.  We’ll see you to the glen.”  Then considered it a moment.  More is better sometimes and he wasn’t going to let his ego compromise their protection.  “You want them around?”

            “Emma?” Ella turned the question to her sister. 

          “I don’t care one way or the other,” Emma shrugged and looked at Jing.  “You want to invite the cougars in?  I heard Quan and Fabien has got quite the thing for you.”

            Jing gave her a nasty smile as she leaned against the doorframe in an deceptively casual manner.  “Keep it up.  I can name a few leopards that would just simply love to…”

            “Okay, okay, okay…” Emma cut her off in a panic.  She didn’t know how Jing knew but she wasn’t going to get into it in front of everyone, especially her brothers.  “Let them stay outside the gates.  They can follow when we’re ready to leave,” and avoided her brothers’ inquiring eyes.

            Giving them a mocking salute of understanding, Jing turned around to leave.  The tension in that room was sharp enough to cut with and she didn’t particularly want to be a casualty in that battle – she’s got enough problems to deal with.

            “Jing,” Ella stopped her at the door.  “A favor?”

            She almost winced but turned and nodded.

            Ella offered a half smile of exhaustion, “Would you mind starting Pets on small firearms?  The bow is going to take too long for her to master to effectiveness and she needs to be able to defend herself.”  It goes without saying that more trouble was on the horizon. 

            Agreeing, “I’ll start her today,” then turned to Pets.  “Let’s aim for mid-afternoon when the girls are gone and the Betas can cover the inn while we’re out at the range.”  She glanced at Xiu and Kai.  “I’ll have to take her into town for it.  Can’t risk it out in the woods with so many people running around.”

            “I’ll get her access,” Xiu answered with a nod and reached for his phone.  “And travel with at least two Betas from now; the woods aren’t safe anymore.”

            “Take her to HQ and use the range there,” Kai added with a frown.  “Tell Leroy to give her a loaner to keep for now.  Start her small, I don’t want her accidentally shooting someone  with anything bigger than at .22; move her up when you think she’s ready.  Practice with the range materials but give her the laced stuff to keep.” 

            Pets looked back and forth for a moment.  “All that went over my head.”

            “I’ll explain later,” Jing replied with a reassuring smile.  “Anything else?” to the others.

            “Stay away from Fabien,” Ella and Emma said at the same time.  Everyone turned to stare.  Ella and Emma traded quick shrugs and nodded to Jing.

            “Okay then,” Jing sighed and turned around again muttering, “Stupid men…”

            Emma waited until she was gone to address Kai.  “Keep Nick and Bass away from her today.”

            Kai frowned and pointed out, “They’re her brothers.”

            “They’re going to start a minor war with the cougars  if we’re not careful.”

            “Nick isn’t impulsive and Bass won’t act without Nick’s say so.”

            “Nick is overprotective where Jing is concerned,” Emma pointed out, making a face at him and Xiu, “Not unlike some others I know.”

            “I’m not overprotective,” Kai growled at him and headed out the door, “I’m cautious.”

            Xiu smirked but didn’t deny it. 

            Rolling her eyes, Emma waved it away.  “Whatever, just keep them away from the cougars today, for the sake of our safety and sanity okay? ”

            “Fine, we’ll take them with us to the glens,” Kai scowled at her and walked out. 

            “Anything else?” Xiu asked quietly, looking around the room before he called to the HQ – he wanted to make sure they know to take extra precautions today.

            “Yeah,” Emma replied rather grimly, “We’re out of wine and I need to be able to sleep.”

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            “Our daughters are keeping more secrets than usual,” Lily Chen murmured as she sipped coffee and played with the crumbs on her lunch plate. 

            Fixing the collar of his jacket, Simon paused on his way through the dining room.  He was dressed for outdoors in dark colors that blended with the surrounding woods.  “Are we talking about last night?  Or just in general?”

            “Last night was just an example,” she replied thoughtfully.  “Either there’s too much going on and they’re visions are getting blurred, unable to keep onto of the situation.  Or they’re keeping a great deal more to themselves than we’d like.”   

            Troubled because Lily was troubled – his wife was so much more clear minded when it comes to the girls – he paused and watched her eyes.  “It’s nothing Ella hasn’t done before.  But Emma is usually much more forthcoming with her sights.”

            “Emma is not a little girl anymore.”

            Simon didn’t reply.  Emma will always be his little girl.  And anyone that thought to touch a hair on that pretty head has got a death wish he would be more than happy to grant. 

            “We’re missing something,” she said, fine lines appearing between her brows with concern.  “Some kind of connection.”

            “Connection to what?  The attacks? The girls?” the unknown more than anything else was putting him on edge. 

            Lily shook her head, her mind racing.  “I’m missing something…”  She looked at him, allowing  caution and fear to show , a very un-Lily move to make – and it scared Simon to see it .  Everything was moving so fast.  “I’m afraid Holy Ground is no longer safe for the girls now.  We may have to make other plans soon.”

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            “Sean?”  no response.  “Sean?”  still no response.  “SEAN!”

            Jolting awake and still half stuck in a vicious nightmare, Sean went full wolf in less than two seconds. 

            Wes jerked back in time to avoid getting teeth in his face.  “Sean, it’s me!” and swung an open hand at the muzzle still stuck in the collar of the tee-shirt he wore, smacking his best friend in the nose like he was reprimanding a rude puppy.  “WAKE UP!”

            Yapping in surprising then whimpering with confusion, Sean sent from raging animal to embarrassed human in the same amount of time it took for him to shift.  Struggling out of his lopsided clothes, Sean glanced around the cheap motel room a moment, disorientated.  “What happened?”

            “You were dreaming,” Wes said quietly, watching for any signs of distress again.  The nightmares were becoming too consistent lately.  “How do you feel?”

            “Mortified,” Sean answered, yanking his shirt back on.  “Are you okay?  Did I hurt you?”

            “I’m fine,” Wes replied with a frown, “I’m more worried about you.”

            “I’m fine,” Sean answered automatically then winced at how wooden it came out.  It was an obvious lie even to his own ears.  “Sorry, I…”

            “You should be,” Wes said with a glare but let it go for now.  “By the way, we didn’t charge our phone.  It’s been dead for hours now.  I have no idea if the others have been trying to reach us or not,” pointing his chin to the charging phone by the nightstand.  It was careless of them and he made a note to never let it happen again.  He did not want to worry the others by being out of communications though right now, he wasn’t sure what to say if they asked how the two of them were doing.

            Glancing at the clock on the nightstand, Sean shoved himself up.  “We need to get moving.”

            “Not yet,” Wes replied, one hand on his friend’s shoulder.  “You could use a few more hours of sleep and I’m still in the middle of negotiations.”

            “Negotiations?”

            “I contacted a guy about trading in our car for two motorcycles, gives us a little more speed and versatility.  We’re too far behind on schedule.”  And being on bikes meant they would be forced to stop and rest rather than trade off drive time.  Sean’s control was cracking under pressure and Wes wasn’t about to sit back and let it happen.  “I don’t like the idea of leaving Chun and Calvin defenseless in new territory.”

            “But they’re in a sanctuary.”

            “Still new territory,” he pointed out.  “Sanctuary doesn’t mean there aren’t other dangers lurking.  And you know how Calvin and Chun are; neither of them would burden the rest of us with problems even if it means they endanger themselves in the handling of it.  I want to get there fast.”  He wasn’t lying… not really. 

            Sean looked disturbed by the thought.  “Good point.”  He sighed and laid back down on the bed with a sigh.  His body and spirit felt worn and numb, in desperate need for some reprieve.  A few more hours of rest would help his body if not his bleeding soul. 

            “You want food?” Wes asked quietly, watching him with growing concern.  Sweet Sean was suffering from the actions necessary to insure their safety – and there was not much Wes can do about it. 

            “You went out?” turning his head and answering his own question by glancing at the grocery bag on the lone table in the corner.  “You should have woken me.”

            “It was just the shop next door.  Need to replenish some of our supplies.”  He got up and grabbed an energy drink.  “Here, stay hydrated.”

            “Yes, Mother,” Sean answered with a good natured grin, trying for the lightness of their former communication, a normalcy in these dangerous times.  But the smile never reached his eyes. 

            Wes doesn’t sassy back, unable to shake the feeling that if they didn’t get to a safe place soon, they would lose the part of Sean that’s always made his friend so special.  The dark times weren’t behind them yet.  Reconnecting with the rest of the orphans would allow them something better to hope for. Right now… they were all just lost. 

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            Pausing at the ajar door, Chun raised a hand to knock.  But before his knuckle connected to wood, he was already greeted with, “Come in.”  Pressing his hand to the door, he opened it but didn’t step through, choosing to stay in the doorway. 

            Ella looked up and met his eyes in the mirror of her vanity as she applied concealer to her face.  She looked like hell and she knew it.  Presenting a normalized face would do a great deal to soothing the agitated leaders of some very vicious shifters.  Plus it made her feel somewhat human again.  Skipping the niceties, she came right out and asked, “Do you know what you’re doing?”

            “Nope,” he answered honestly.

            Arms coming down, she stared at him with disbelief for a full minute in the mirror before turning around to stare at him some more, her gaze searching his, before concluding, “You’re an idiot.”

            “I’ve been called worse,” Chun replied, leaning against the door, more relaxed than he had any right to be. 

            Rolling her eyes, Ella turned around and continued what she was doing.  “What do you want?”

            “Just checking up on you,” he admitted expressionlessly.  “And I wanted to know if there’s anything Calvin and I should be working on.  I assume we’ll be pitching in here the same way we did at the café.”

            Eyes narrowing, “We’ll have to discuss that later since I wasn’t exactly given enough notice to have worked it out yet.”  She was still very irritated at being invaded, both last night and this morning.  Lack of sleep and an unusual number of visions also added to her already full plate.  She didn’t need Chun here to add more…

            “Just let me know what you need then,” he replied and turned to leave.

            Surprised and a little taken aback, “Chun…”

            “Yes?” he answered patiently.

            Having called out to him on instinct, she was suddenly at a loss as to what to say.  For someone that’s always been careful with her words –wrong words have gotten people killed – Ella was more stricken by her lack of forethought than anything else. 

            “It’s okay,” he assured her, a hint of a smile playing around his lips.  It was all just easy and casual, like nothing more than a Sunday brunch.  “I’ll be here when you remember.”

            “Remember what?”

            “Whatever it is you were going to say.”

            “I…” she wasn’t sure she had meant to say anything.  It was more an instinct to keep him there, to have him with her, to hold onto that feeling of being safe when she was with him.  Those six months with him had been the most effortless times of her life.  “I’m sorry.”

            “For?”

            “For everything,” she replied, letting her mind take the reign for once.  “For not telling you.  For pulling you into this mess.  For… for whatever is going to happen… or not happen.”  There was no future for them, that much was clear.  In fact, there wasn’t much of a future for her.

            “You don’t know?” he asked quietly. 

            “Know what?” suddenly confused.

            “You can’t see it?” he asked as he finally entered the room, his eyes and voice warm with affection.  He took slow steps toward her, completely non-threatening, until he was towering over her vanity, making her see him clearly for the first time. 

            “See what?”

            He knelt so they were eye-leveled.  “See that I’m not asking for anything.”  He touched her hand, just a soft pressure of his fingertips to her skin.  “I’m not asking for forever.  I’m not asking for a week or month.  I’m not even going to ask for tomorrow.  We’re at a time and place where I can’t bet on anything.  There’s no guarantees of anything more than the next few hours so I’m not going to ask for anything.”  He rest his hand down, letting the palm of his hand fall on the back of hers for a beat before he closed his fingers and held her hand.  “I’m just going to be here, now; come what may.  And whatever it is you need, whatever it is that I can help with to ease your life: you tell me.”

            Heart beating in , she couldn’t bring herself to look away.  He was offering something… everything in fact.  “What if I don’t know what I want?”

           “Then I’ll simply be here,” he answered and brought her hand to his lips and gave it a gentle butterfly touch, never looking away.  “Whenever, whatever you need…” and stood slowly and left, watching her the entire time. 

            It wasn’t until he had closed the door behind him that Ella remembered how to breathe.  Damn him…. 

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            Emma watched the cougars that prowl the front gate, their sleek golden bodies reflecting the bright sun that felt out of place on such a strangely dark day.  With the first day of the full moon pass them, they were much more in control but still retained their incredible animal strength at its peak. 

            “Penny for your thoughts?” Pets asked softly so not to startle her before handing Emma the basket she had been instructed to deliver.  “Jing said you guys are going need this.”

            A quick glance reveal the array of breads and sweets for the journey through the wood; an old joke among the shifters that’s never gotten old.  “Thanks,” and took the basket with a smile and a sigh.  She was not looking forward to meeting the Alphas and probably some of the Elders this afternoon.  They were difficult to deal with on the best of circumstances… and this was nowhere near that. 

            “What’s wrong?”

            “Tired.”

            “You should be,” Pets commented quietly, “You were up all night.”

            “Dreaming.”

            “What?”

            “I was dreaming,” Emma admitted, frowning as the boys at the gates decided to be a little growly at each other – she reminded herself to bring an extra weapon… just in case.  “It doesn’t make for a lot of good sleep.”

            “I’m sorry,” Pets replied, because that was the polite thing to do.  But when Emma turned to her with those expressive eyes, Pets found herself taken aback.  There was something unnaturally intense about the way she looked at her.  “What?”

            Tired and careless, Emma shook her head.  “You really ought to do something about your mating dreams soon.  You don’t need the distraction and you’d be a lot more use to the rest of us if you were able to make the full transition.”

            Pets held her breath, her eyes going wide as she froze in place.  “How did you…”

            “Seer, remember?” she shrugged.  “Just saying…”

            “So you know?”

            “About the dreams?  Of course.”

            “No, I mean the guy.  You know who it is?” she asked quietly, glancing around with flaming cheeks.  She didn’t want anyone walking in on this conversation.

            Blinking, “You don’t?”

            Shaking her head quickly, she peeked around again.  “He’s always, always, in the shadow and I only ever see his eyes.  They’re this mix of blue green and Jing says that there are several guys in your pack that are Pures and I…”  She stopped gave her a weird look.  “What?”

            “You talked to Jing about this?”

            “Briefly, yes,” Pets replied.  “What?” when Emma winced and looked pained.  “Is that not something that’s done around here?”  She seemed to be always stepping on landmines around here. 

            Waving it away, Emma made a resigned face.  “It’s not that.  It’s just…” she sighed and whimpered, her thoughts paining her.  “It’s nothing.”

            “Well its’ obviously something or we wouldn’t be having this conversation.”

            “I thought you didn’t want me telling you anything that isn’t life or death.”

            “Is this life or death?”

            “No,” she admitted, “Just…. It just , that’s all.”

            “What ?”

            “Nothing.”

            “Emma!” Pets replied exasperated.  She did not want to play these cryptic games. 

            “I can’t talk about it,” Emma admitted honestly with some real regret.  “It’s not fair for me to say anything.  And no, I can’t tell you who he is or if you can change the course here.  Just… just let it happen.  I promise, it won’t be as bad as you fear .”

            There as heavy silence as Pets digest her words.  “What if I don’t feel ready?  What if I like the way things are now?” she looked at the inn around her with fondness.  “This is the first time I’ve felt safe in what seems like forever.  I like it here.”

            Heart aching with pain, Emma reached out and hugged her tightly.  Feeling safe was a luxury for her as well but at least she knew more than just moments of it; at home with her family, she was always safe from the world outside – everyone should have that.  “It’s okay.  You’re pack now.  You’re safe.  I know it.  I see it.”

            Warm with comfort and acceptance, there’s been so few that offered it freely, Pets wasn’t prepared for her next words.

            “He’ll keep you safe.  And you’ll see him through the dark days when I’m gone.”

To be continued….

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Author’s Note:  Settling up the collision course.  Sorry for the boring chapter, I promise more answers soon. 

On a separate note: can anyone recommend a good reliable and affordable computer?  My laptop finally died on me (taking an external harddrive with it since I was ironically trying to back up the system at the time) and I’ve lost a lot writing time because of it.