“Can we please just go? I’m really not a fan of bears.”
He pointed towards the river. “They’re down there, at the bank.”
Sarah squinted, but it was too far out to bring into focus. “What do you think they’re doing down there? Isn’t this our territory?”
Alder turned to face her, a broad smile on his face. “It’s my brother’s territory, but I guess that makes it yours, too.”
Her cheeks colored as she returned his smile. Squinting towards the river again, she tried to bring the bears into focus, but still had no luck.
“They’re probably just passing through,” Alder said, taking her hand. “If they’re still in the area by nightfall, Hale and I will deal with them.”
“Why are there so many shifters passing through?” she asked. It was the second time she was aware of others in the area, but judging by Alder’s nonchalant attitude, it was probably more common than she thought.
“Humans were in the lowlands a few weeks ago,” he said.
Sarah remembered the soldier she and Cain had encountered all too well. She’d thought that was an isolated incident, but if other shifters were on the move, then clearly there was something up.
“What do you think they want?”
Alder gave an ironic snort. “Does it matter what they want? It’s not like they’re going to negotiate terms with us. We’re just animals to them.”
A shiver ran the length of her spine, and all at once Sarah yearned to be back in the den. The outside world seemed foreign to her. She wanted to be back with the pack and with the children. There was just one thing she had to do before they went back.
“I won’t tell Cain what you told me,” she said. “But you should. Snow deserves to have a father, and you’ll never be able to have a real relationship with her until you’re honest about who you are.”
Alder was silent for a while. Just when she thought he wasn’t going to respond, he sighed and said, “Cain’s going to kill me.”
Sarah smirked. “I think he’ll be too busy kissing my ass to worry about kicking yours.”
Chapter 6
Deciding to stay had a remarkable effect on Sarah’s mood over the next couple of evenings. Without the ever-present guilt about having to leave the children, or constantly second-guessing herself about her feelings regarding her pregnancy, she was free to enjoy her nights with the pack, mostly.
The impending confrontation with Cain was on the horizon. She had gone over what she would say to him several times, mostly in her head, and on occasion in heated ramblings under her breath. No matter how many times she played through the scenario, she couldn’t think of anything Cain could say that would absolve him.
Sarah didn’t have much time to think about Cain. Though she didn’t have any responsibilities aside from watching the children, taking care of werewolf pups was practically a full-time job.
Despite her initial reluctance to speak, Snow quickly became a chatterbox, giving even Lotus a run for her money. Her favorite word to say was ‘Sarah’ and it was usually accompanied by her tugging on whichever part of Sarah was within reach.
Finally able to join the hunting party, Lotus couldn’t have been happier. Her first night out, she caught what was either a squirrel or chipmunk; it was too mangled to tell. She pranced around the den for at least an hour, mostly to tease Caim, Sarah suspected.
Unlike Lotus, Caim was miserable about the change and spent the night glaring at anyone who looked his way. Sarah didn’t know it was possible for someone so young to have such a big chip on his shoulder.
On the evening of her third week with the pack, Sarah was watching Caim, Sable, and Snow while the others were out hunting. Fresh snow had fallen through the opening in the moon room, and Sarah tried to teach the children how to make snowmen. Sable and Caim were more interested in wrestling, and Snow, ironically, hated snow.
Once they’d tired themselves out, Sarah led them from the moon room to nap. After a bit of trial and error, she’d found that Cain’s room was the one place that Caim would nap in. Soothed by the scent of his father, Caim had even gone so far as to snuggle up to Sarah’s side in his sleep.
Today, Caim settled down at the foot of the bed, his dark pelt blending into the bearskin pallet. Sable slept in her wolf form as well, her head resting on Sarah’s leg, while Snow draped herself over Sarah’s chest. It wasn’t exactly comfortable, being boxed in on all sides by pups, but Sarah thought that maybe she could get used to it.
* * *
As Cain neared the den, he could hear footsteps in close pursuit. He slowed his pace, pleased when Alder appeared behind him. Had Cain made it all the way to the den without being noticed, there would have been hell to pay.