Chapter 45

Grace

I came down, humming a little song. It had been great hanging out with Jackson these past few days, but the gnawing sense that something was wrong was still growing. Charles was avoiding me. Sure, he spent a lot of time at the house with Cecil and Richard, but I never ran into him in the living room at night anymore. I didn’t catch him in the breakfast nook with Cecil anymore. It was like he would cook and then vanish out of the house or into his office for hours at a time. Even being at Wolfe Medical together, it felt like we were just friendly, lingering looks aside. We weren’t talking like we used to.

I worried my lip as I heard Jackson coming up behind me.

“I’m starving,” Jackson said. “And you can’t tell me Cecil hates The Den.”

I laughed. “I haven’t taken her there yet… I have no idea.”

“Well, let’s go,” Jackson said. “All of us.”

I smiled, nodding. Maybe I could catch Charles before he started making dinner tonight, and he could come with us for a change and get a taste of werewolf food.

“Great, I’ll go get her ready if you want to grab Richard.”

I nodded. “Her coat’s in the hallway closet.”

I changed for dinner, deciding to go with an emerald sweater that was cut to flatter. It wasn’t a date with Charles, but having him at dinner with us did make me want to dress up a little. Not that he cared. He’d seen me with bedhead at this point and without coffee.

I headed out of my room just as I heard Cecil’s distressed voice.

“But… But…”

“It’s okay, Cecil,” Charles said gently. “I’ll be back. I promise.”

She whined. “You promise promise?”

He chuckled. “I promise promise.”

I walked down the hall as he rocked her in his arms. “I made extra pasta, hm? And the mushrooms you liked. You’ll have plenty of tasty things to eat while I’m gone.”

“And I don’t have to share?”

“No, your mom has her own.” He looked up and met my gaze with a smile. “Speaking of.”

“What’s going on?”

“Uncle Charles is leaving!” Cecil cried.

My stomach plummeted. Charles shook his head.

“I have an appointment early tomorrow and a few things to check in on over the next couple of days, so I’m heading home for a few days.” He smiled. “I’ll be back for the first day of the Winter Moon Festival.”

I looked down. His words were pretty vague. Though it was probably lycan business, I still wanted to know. The timing felt off. “You’re… leaving right now?”

He nodded, lifting his briefcase. “George should be pulling up soon.”

I tried to stuff down my disappointment. “Well… I mean, if you can’t come back then, that’s okay. I know that things are pretty busy.”

“I’ll be back in time,” Charles said. “Walk me out?”

I nodded, stuffing down my disappointment as we walked downstairs. Cecil pouted the whole way. Charles set her down in the foyer.

“You can’t go outside without proper shoes and a coat. You’ll get sick, little one.”

“I can put them on!”

He chuckled. “Alright. I suppose we can wait.”

She hurried off to the bin by the shoe rack. I blinked as she pulled out clean socks. I had no idea that those were even in there. I looked at Charles, who was only watching Cecil with a fond look on his face. Cecil got her shoes on in record time, tying them, though I knew that I hadn’t taught her to tie them. I looked back at Charles as she went to the closet where the coats were, pulled her coat off the second bar, and stuffed her arms into it. She murmured to herself as she zipped it up and did up the buttons.

“I’m ready!”

He chuckled and crouched down to open the closet door. “What about your hat and gloves?”

“Oh!”

She reached into another hidden compartment I had never noticed was there and pulled out a hat and a tiny pair of gloves before putting them on. Then, she took Charles’ hand.

“Won’t you be cold?”

“I have my own gloves,” he said, grabbing his coat out of the closet and shrugging into it. He pulled out a pair of gloves from his pocket and slipped them on and a knitted hat that matched hers.

When had he done that?

Charles opened the door and led us out the door. We walked down the steps with Cecil clutching his hand tightly as George pulled up in front of the house. A sense of unease settled over me.

“Charles…” I started, “What’s… What’s going on?”

He looked down at me with those intense eyes of his, and I couldn't help but search for any hints or signs of what might be going on beneath the surface. But his expression was guarded, his features carefully neutral.

“I mean… is everything really okay?"

He hesitated for a moment, his gaze momentarily flickering away before returning to meet mine.

"It's nothing to worry about. Just some pack matters that need my attention."

His words were reassuring, but the way he spoke them held an air of distance that I couldn't ignore. It was as if he was keeping something from me, something he didn't want to burden me with. I bit my lip, torn between wanting to trust him and the nagging feeling that there was more to the story.

“You promise?” Cecil asked again. “You promise you’ll be back?”

He smiled and crouched down. “I promise. Here.”

He pulled something out, a shiny pin. “Do you know what this is?” She shook her head. “It’s my crest. I have to wear it for the Lycan Winter Moon Festival that happens after yours.”

He put it in her hand. “I can’t go to the event without it, so you’ll know I’ll be back.”

Cecil clutched it tightly and threw her arms around his neck. “I’ll miss you…”

“I’ll miss you too, Cecil.”

He hugged her tightly and pressed a kiss to her temple. “I’ll be back as soon as I can, okay?”

She nodded and let him go slowly, clutching the crest in her little hand.

Charles stood and smiled at me. “Should I give you collateral, too?”

I shook my head. “I… trust you.”

He nodded and opened the door. “Enjoy dinner, and stay warm, hm? I’ll see you soon.”

We stood there, watching him go. As the car drove off, Cecil clutched my hand tightly. A mixture of emotions swirling within me. I wanted to trust him, to believe that everything truly was okay. But as I stood there, I couldn't shake the feeling that there was more to this than he was letting on.

Returning to the house, I found myself lost in thought. Cecil looked so sad, clutching the crest in her hand tightly and looking like she wanted to cry. She sniffled.

“Can we have yummy pasta, Mommy?”

Jackson came down, looking confused. “There you are… I thought—”

“I don’t think we can go tonight,” I said, squeezing Cecil’s hand. “Cecil isn’t in the mood for it.”

“It’s the Den,” Jackson laughed. “It’s literally designed for children. Ball pits? Jungle gym?”

I looked down at Cecil as she shook her head.

“Maybe tomorrow,” I said. “Besides… the snow is starting to come down pretty heavy out there.”

Jackson hesitated but nodded. “Alright. Another day then.”

“Thanks.” Cecil got out of her coat and shoes, and I walked her back upstairs so she could put the crest in her room.

She put it in the little jewelry box I didn’t buy her. I didn’t even know she had one. Then, we headed back down to eat.

The pasta was great, but I could tell that Cecil wasn’t happy. I tucked her in before coming back down to clean up. Jackson was still at the table, eating whatever he’d put together from the fridge.

“They’re down for the night?”

“For now,” I said, checking my watch and sitting down. I looked over at the kitchen, gearing up to wash the dishes. As I looked at Jackson, a realization dawned on me.

"Jackson, why did you really come back to Mooncrest?"

He hesitated for a moment before meeting my gaze. "Well, Grace, I heard about your latest call for research applicants at Wolfe Medical, and I decided to put in an application."

Surprise and curiosity flickered within me. "You applied? But you've been working at a different company for years."

Jackson shrugged, a sheepish grin on his face. "I figured, why not? It’s a great chance to… come home, and I heard around town that you were having a personnel problem."

A mixture of emotions swelled within me. I smiled at him.

"Thank you, Jackson," I said sincerely, touched by his gesture. "I appreciate it."

He grinned, that familiar mischievous glint in his eyes. "Anything for an old friend, right?"

“Don’t get ahead of yourself. What if you don’t pass the interview?”

He grinned. “Hire me as a lab assistant then.”

I laughed and stood. “I’ll grab my laptop, and we can knock out the interview now, hm?”

He nodded. I went to get my laptop and came back.

"Alright, Jackson," I began, my tone as neutral as possible. " Can you walk me through your previous positions and the projects you've worked on?"

“From most boring to most interesting or chronologically?”

I laughed. “Let’s start with your most recent work.”

As the interview progressed, I took notes on his resume. While he didn’t have the exact kind of formulation experience I needed right now, he had enough post-formulation and formulation optimization experience to be worth the hire.

"Well, you’re a strong candidate for phase two. However, I need to inform you that the position requires relocation back to Mooncrest. Not necessarily immediately, but soon."

Jackson's eyes sparkled with enthusiasm. "That's not a problem at all. In fact, I had already planned to move back. My belongings should arrive soon."

A sense of relief washed over me. "In that case, Jackson, I'd like to extend an offer for you to join our research team."

His face broke into a wide grin. "Thank you, Grace. It means a lot to me."

"Are you staying with your parents?”

“Nah. They’ve down-sized.”

“Well, you’re welcome to stay here while you search for a place."

Jackson's gratitude was evident in his expression. "That's incredibly kind of you, Grace. Thank you."