"Rockley," said the man, suddenly remembering to stick out his hand for me to shake. "The name's Rockley. No misters about it."
"Thank you, Rockley," I said, shaking his hand. Xander did the same.
"The meeting will start in just a few minutes," said Rockley, "but first, I'd like you to know that we will help you, and I've already spoken with some of our allies, who have also agreed to help you. We will not let a shifter child be harmed if we can help it."
"Thank you so much, Rockley," I said.
"We do appreciate it," added Xander. "But what do you mean by allies?"
"The other shifter clans, of course," said Rockley, as if it were obvious. He paused. "Oh, that's right. You wolves don't know about the rest of us. We've recruited the rats, raccoons, crows, and owls to help out."
My jaw dropped, and Rockley just laughed. "There really are shifters for every animal."
"The whole city is crawling with our allies," said Rockley. "There are many of our kind out there!"
"I can't believe it," said Xander. "I just can't believe it."
"I know it must come as a shock to you," said Rockley. "There's a lot you all have to learn. But what matters now is that all of these clans are willing to scour Lake City in search of your child. You have photos, correct?"
"Yes," I said, reaching for my phone. "Just let me know your email address or number and I'll pass it on. I brought some of her clothes too, like Tony suggested."
"Excellent," said Rockley, nodding. "That should be all we need. The meeting will now begin."
He showed us to two seats near his wife, who had two opossums in her lap and one smaller one on her shoulder. The opossums all perked up and watched him as he stood up in front of them, their whiskers twitching and their beady eyes blinking at him.
"Clan, we have with us two guests tonight, the wolves Xander and Kade. They believe their child was kidnapped on an outing to the zoo, and we have pledged our support in helping them find her."
Some of the opossums made strange hissing, growling noises. A few were even nodding along, which was a strangely human gesture to see on an animal.
"I propose that we start immediately. Our ally clans have already been informed. Time is of the essence for the health and well being of this child. If you are already in your animal form, I suggest you get the scent from Kade and be on your way. Please let me know if you have any questions."
"Thank you, everyone," I added. The beady eyes turned to look at me, and some of the opossums nodded at me. They started to wander off, heading out into Rockley's backyard.
Tony came toward us, holding an opossum. "This is my mother," he said. "She's going to come with us."
"It's very nice to meet you, ma'am," I said to the opossum, feeling extraordinarily strange. She blinked her eyes at me and stuck out a little pink paw, which I took in my fingers and shook. Satisfied, she withdrew it.
"We can transform in the backyard," said Tony.
"Awesome." I felt good about finally taking matters into my own hands. I placed the bundle of Zoey's clothes near the door. I could see Rockley and his wife pull up Zoey's photo on their phones, showing it to the opossums, though I was sure that her scent would be more useful to them.
While I was still marveling at the sight of the army of opossums, slowly trickling out into the city, I was aware of the gravity of the situation. I quickly stripped and transformed; because we couldn't shift with clothes on, shifters in general had a lax attitude toward nudity, unlike humans. We left our clothes with Rockley's wife, who was neatly folding them all and arranging them so they wouldn't get mixed up.
We found Tony and his mother after shifting into wolf form. Night had fallen over the city during the meeting, and the starlight was bright. The moon was barely visible, just a sliver.
We're going to be following Allison, said Tony. She's up in that tree.
I looked up and saw an enormous owl with a striped chest peering at us. With great wings, she floated down, totally silent, and landed right in front of me. I couldn't at all believe that this owl was apparently a woman named Allison.
Thank you, Allison, I said.
You're welcome. I have two toddlers of my own and I can only imagine how you must be feeling. I'll put forth my best effort in finding Zoey.
I nearly felt like crying again, simply because of the immense kindness everyone was showing us. It was incredible that the whole community was coming out to help us. I started to feel a surge of hope. With hundreds of creatures on the hunt, we were bound to find her.
We set off, a ragtag team, into the park that was behind Rockley's house. I still had no idea where we should go, but this time, I felt more confident. We had so many allies searching with us.
We're going to search the Pleasant Ridge neighborhood, said Allison. I'll lead you along the streets so that we'll be sure to hit every house and apartment complex. I suggest that you carry Tony and Mrs. Blain on your backs, as they cannot run as fast as you.
I hadn't thought about that at all. Xander and I crouched down and felt the furry, warm weight of the opossums clambering onto our backs. Are you comfortable, Mrs. Blain? I asked.
Yes, dear, she said. I'll be quite all right.
We set off at a run, keeping an eye on Allison's dark form, gliding like a stealth jet above. I took deep breaths, inhaling all of the scents of the neighborhood, and I was sure that Xander, Tony, and Mrs. Blain were doing the same. I was glad I was a wolf. I might not be able to smell as well as the opossums, but I could cover a lot more ground.
We dashed into alleyways when we saw people coming out, but it was getting late, and most people seemed to be in their homes. We would have made a strange sight, had anyone spotted us.
Even though I had started out with a lot of energy, I was getting overwhelmed quickly. There were just so many odors out here-everyone was cooking dinner, plus there were all the smells of the humans and animals who lived here. I could smell the intricate mix that came from all the trashcans, as well as all the industrial smells carried on the breeze. Every so often, I'd scent a young human. But none of them were Zoey.
We had to have been searching for at least an hour when a raccoon and an opossum pair darted out into our path. Follow us! said the raccoon, scurrying into an alleyway between two row houses. Without stopping to think, we turned the corner and went in.
Allison swooped down and landed on the ground next to us, and Tony and his mother dismounted while the raccoon started speaking. The team who went to the neighborhood north of here, in Greengrass Slope, thinks they've picked up a scent between Rye and 72nd. This is your best lead right now, so we suggest you head that way.
I turned to Allison. Do you know the way there?
Of course, I do, she said. I know the whole city.
Thank you, I said to the raccoon and the opossum. This means more than you can ever know.
Hurry! he said. The opossum nodded.
After picking up Tony and Mrs. Blain, we followed Allison. My legs were starting to tire and my heart was beating erratically, panicked. Mrs. Blain was a small creature but carrying her was taking a toll. The raccoon hadn't said that he was sure, but he felt strongly enough about it that he thought we should go there. We might be able to find Zoey.
Or we'd come up against another dead end.
I didn't want to get my hopes up, but I couldn't help it. The thought of finally finding my baby girl was overwhelming. I pushed myself until my feet were burning, sniffing furiously, trying to pick up any trace of the scent. How fortunate, that the scent should have been found so close to where we were …
This is the edge of the neighborhood, said Allison, her voice faint because she was so high up. I'll lead you down the shortest path to the intersection.
Xander, it might be her, I said, unable to keep my thoughts to myself.
I hope it is, he replied darkly.
We couldn't get there fast enough. We stopped at the specified intersection, smelling as hard as we could. I was aware that we had no cover here; if a car rolled past, the driver would see two wolves and two opossums quite clearly. We were too feral-looking and too large to pass for stray dogs.
I think I have it, said Mrs. Blain. Go left.
My heart was leaping wildly as I went in that direction. I ran at a trot, not wanting to miss it. Do you still have it, Mrs. Blain? I asked.
Yes, she said. But it's very faint. Perhaps it's on the parallel street.
We cut through an alleyway and stopped, allowing ourselves to get a picture of the scents in this area. I think I have it, too, said Xander. I could sense the urgency and pain in his voice.
I followed him, looking up briefly to see Allison doing tight circles in the sky. I knew she was looking for aerial evidence. I had caught on to the smell myself and it gave me an intense pang in my heart. My baby was here. The scent was fresh.