Chapter 80

Grace

Jackson had gone back to watching the news footage until the very end, and I had watched his emotions flickering across his face. It kept me up that night far more than Charles’ absence. My heart wanted to believe him, but my instincts were screaming that he might not be rallying in the streets, but he wouldn’t stop an attack if put in a position to either.

Sympathizer at best, secret member at worst: a danger to me, Eason, and my children no matter how I looked at it. I didn’t know how to reconcile that with the young boy I’d met and grown up around.

I spent the first half of the day in the lab. Jackson was quiet, pouring over a stack of research in the conference room. Seraphina was here today in the lab. She and Margaret were sharing a secret smile as I cleaned up and got ready to start synthesizing more of the capsules.

“What’s going on?” I eyed them both.

“Best friend jokes,” Margaret said, her eyes sparkling with mischief.

“How is Eason?” Seraphina asked.

I sighed. “He was asleep when I called him earlier, but George says the healers are going to release him to some sort of barrack and training thing?”

“Let the man recover,” Margaret groused as she set out the vials. “He needs it. The first shift is exhausting, especially if you haven’t been eating and sleeping enough--even more so when on the wings of trauma. The barracks will be good for him.” She paused. “Training will be good for him.”

Seraphina nodded. “Agreed. It’s rare for even werewolves to shift so late in life if they shift at all.”

I swallowed, nodding. I knew that well enough. I had only shifted once before and had slept for a week afterward.

“I would be happy to install a protective barrier on your house. Short of a bomb, you’ll be fine.”

I blinked. “Is that a thing?”

“Well, I help cast it every year on the palace.” She smiled. “I’m sure yours will last longer, though.”

I shook my head. “I should have left the States and learned about the world.”

“It’s not too late,” Margaret said, closing the chamber and activating the air seal.

I considered that, wondering what other places were like. I wondered if everyone thought werewolves were ignorant or if they were. As we worked, I turned over the thought of taking a vacation somewhere outside the States.

Minutes turned into hours, and we synthesized the last bit of the materials we’d prepared for these tests. We ended up with one hundred doses in total. My thought was that it would be administered yearly, so for a solid five-year test run, we’d be able to have twenty core testers with this first batch.

We’d have to have a hundred more.

Serapina put it and the repository in the lab’s safe and keyed in the code before we headed out.

I poked my head into the conference room where Jackson was. “I’ll be upstairs in my office. You can hit the intercom if you need anything.”

He nodded but said nothing, squinting at the pages. I was grateful that he was so immersed in catching up.

A knock sounded on my office door. I looked up and called Amira in. She was a breath of fresh air amidst the heavy atmosphere that seemed to linger in my office. She beamed, striding in wearing a new dress. It was an interesting cut, but it looked really good on her, skimming her curves and highlighting her best features.

“You look nice. Hot date?” I teased.

“Dani’ brought it back from his hometown a few days ago.” She grinned. “I’m hoping to surprise him tonight.”

“Just wait a little longer until you have children?”

She pulled a face. “No thanks. I like my money to be my money, and Dani’ grew up with like twenty siblings.”

“Twenty?”

She shrugged. “His father married three different women over the course of his lifetime. All on the up and up, but the man was busy. Here are those reports.”

I took the pages and gasped. “How did you manage to do this?”

Amira had completed all of the transfers that had come by mail and was looking to get through the transfers in all done soon.

“The power of perseverance,” she grinned viciously. “And a deep sense of pettiness.”

I laughed.

“There are a few trickling in soon, but the big rush is done, and all those people will be out soon.”

I leaned back in my chair, listening intently to her report, but my thoughts kept drifting back to the unsettling events of the previous night.

“Amira, thank you for all your hard work on this,” I said sincerely. “It’s a challenging time for our pack. I really appreciate it.”

She beamed at me. “I’ve been enjoying it. My neighbor was on the list, and she had a fit when the escort showed up. I watched the show with Dani’. We had cake.”

I laughed. “I love your spirit, and your boyfriend sounds like a treat. How are the transfers in looking? Settling well? I want to grant at least another full round for orientation soon.”

She nodded. “Settled, thriving, applying for jobs. New students in schools, etc. I’ve pre-sorted about that number for your review. They’re colored blue. Reds, I’m still managing the background checks. Can’t be too careful... especially with that attack on Viper.”

I nodded. “I couldn’t agree more.”

When Amira eventually left my office to attend to her responsibilities, I found myself staring at the paperwork on my desk but not really seeing it.

The doubt that had crept into my mind while watching the news last night still lingered. It wasn’t just his history with Blood Moon that troubled me; it was the look on his face while we watched the news. What he’d said about Margaret and his actions during our dinner the night before had also raised doubts. It was clear he was prejudiced, but was he just ignorant and needed to learn, or was he just hateful? I didn’t know, and that’s probably why my instincts insisted that I watch him.

Soon, Amira knocked on my door again.

“One last thing,” she said, coming towards my desk and offering me a letter.

It looked like a formal invitation, neatly embossed with the emblem of a pack I didn’t recognize. It was all silver and the image of an eclipse.

“What’s this?”

“An invitation from the Silver Eclipse Pack.” Amira pursed her lips. “There was a whole... herald situation.”

I knew that name. Silver Eclipse was a very wealthy pack that handled the exports and imports between the Clans and the States. They weren’t talked about in the news, but I remember my father telling me that having a relationship with any sort of trading pack was always a good idea, but he never managed to build a relationship with one in his lifetime.

I looked down, smiling a bit. It felt like I was making a step in the right direction. I leaned back in my chair, deep in thought. The Silver Eclipse Pack was a subtle powerhouse. If I could establish a positive relationship with their alpha, it might open doors to resources and opportunities that would benefit our pack immensely.

My instincts said it was a good idea to at least see.

“Did this... herald situation tell you what they wanted?”

“Not a thing, but I did some digging earlier. The pack isn’t very large, but they are dripping in money. I have no idea what they could want with us. An investment in Wolfe Medical, maybe? An exclusive deal?”

“Doubtful,” I said. “Unless they’re bigots like Blood Moon, we don’t make anything they can’t get from the witches easily enough.”

She shrugged. “Then, I’m out of ideas.”

I chuckled. “It can’t hurt to see. We need more than just alliances in the medical field.”

Especially with the trouble my stance on things was causing.

“Well, I can tell you it’s not a place people were transferring to or from, so that’s probably a good sign.”

I laughed. “That’s true.”

“Thank you, Amira,” I replied with a grateful smile. “I don’t know what I’d do without you. I’ll accept his invitation and get you the details.”

I wiggled my finger under the seal of an envelope and wondered why he didn’t just send an email.

“What’s his name?” I asked, gently opening the invitation.

“Gabriel,” Amira said. “Gabriel Black.”

I opened the letter and read. The note was handwritten and lightly scented. He was inviting me to lunch here in Mooncrest whenever my schedule was open for a visit for a day or two and had given me contact information by which to reach him.

Then, my desk phone started to ring and wariness struck me.

“Is my phone number public knowledge?”

“Not anymore,” Amira huffed. “I yanked that down as soon as I realized it was out there. Your calls are screened, except for anyone you’ve given your number to.”

I nodded and reached for the phone. “Remind me to get you a cape, and get us all caller IDs.”

Amira laughed and left as I answered.

“I thought you would be at your desk,” Charles said, his voice a warm rumble in my ear. “I just wanted to check on you since I have a bit of downtime.”

I smiled. “What are you up to?”

“Waiting for a meeting to start,” he said, chuckling.

Then, I heard a woman’s voice, more of a purr than a friendly hello.

“So sorry I’m late, darling. You know how I like to pretty up for you.”

My heart was in my throat.

Darling?

Pretty up?

Who was he meeting with?