Chapter 176

Sarah POV

Grace was performing scales, and Chloe was working in the playroom on her wood carving from what she had dubbed “the perfect bit of teak.” Zane was in his study conferring with his legislative board on over the internet.

I was in my study, the French doors open to a lovely day. I swear, the hedges for the maze had grown by half a foot since I first came here, and when I closed my eyes and drew in a deep breath, I could make myself believe I smelled the roses in the far-away garden.

The first round of curricula revisions for public schools was nearing completion, and I was reading through some of the inevitable complaints when a new email from Lainey came in.

Ted was close to completing her setup for Project Lieutenants, which meant we were a day or two from launch.

It was oddly quiet, and I realized Grace had stopped her scales. In another minute, she began a song I recognized from The Mikado.

The sun, whose rays

Are all ablaze

With ever-living glory,

Grace really was becoming magnificent. I could hear a quality in her voice that was familiar, but I couldn’t quite place it.

Does not deny

His majesty

He scorns to tell a story!

He don't exclaim,

“I blush for shame,

So kindly be indulgent.”

I closed my eyes without really thinking about it. Lainey’s email was boring compared to Grace’s voice.

But, fierce and bold,

In fiery gold,

I was floating in a sort of dream, and it was warm and cozy and full of love. I felt like flying around the room. I had a sudden impulse to embrace anyone who came my way. It was wonderful.

Ah, pray make no mistake,

We are not shy;

We're very wide awake,

The moon and I!

Oh dear, I realized was standing up. When did I get out of my chair? My arms were raised. When had I done that?

I had also missed most of the song. Or had I? I didn’t know. I didn’t know anything.

I only knew I had been so happy, so ecstatic, even.

I returned to my chair while Grace went back to her scales. Good. Scales were safe.

Safe how? I wondered. What just happened to me?

My eyes went to my little desk clock. The idea of going downstairs and facing the others was suddenly terrifying, and just when I had gotten comfortable in my life again.

I knew I couldn’t tell the other about this. Zane would never trust me with his children again if I said I’d gone off into some trance for no reason. What was wrong with me?

Was I under a spell? Had Luna Temple done something to me?

Did I have a brain tumor? Did I need to go to the doctor?

Was I going crazy from all the stress?

No, I had to keep this to myself.

But wasn’t that what led to all the problems before? Keeping things to myself?

Without letting myself have the time to change my mind, I left my study and went downstairs to knock on Zane’s study door.

“Come in,” he said.

I opened the door and was relieved to find his computer’s camera was off, which meant his board meeting was over. He looked at me in surprise and then in concern.

“Sarah? Is everything all right?”

“I don’t know,” I said. “Can we talk for a minute?”

“All the minutes you like.” He gestured to the seat in font of his desk and then, to my surprise, left his own desk chair to join me on my side.

“I’ve been keeping some things to myself,” I started, “and I think maybe that’s been a bad idea.”

“What sort of things?”

“I’m not really sure.” I laughed nervously. “I’m not even sure where to start.”

He nodded. “Just jump in. I’m here.”

Tears came to my eyes. “You are, aren’t you?”

He leaned over and took my hand. I realized I was shaking. “I try to be, but I have felt you pull away sometimes.”

“We can’t be together,” I said.

He frowned. “We don’t know that. I refuse to just accept that.”

“You need to marry Melissa.”

“You mean I’m supposed to marry Melissa.” He shook his head. “I did that once already, mate the woman I was supposed to mate. I’ve paid my dues on that front.”

“The pack needs her.”

“The pack has been doing just without her now that you’ve been here. Did Melissa discover the problems with the mine? With the school? With that damned slavery auction?”

“Alpha Marin told me you bought the tickets to Madam Butterfly to warn me off.”

He frowned again. “What?”

“It’s a story about a human woman who destroys her life by having ideas above her station—at least, that’s the way Alpha Marin seems to see it. She said you wanted me to realize I’m equally outclassed.”

“Well, no surprise, but that Pack Alpha wannabe is full of it.

I laughed, mostly in relief.

“I picked Madame Butterfly because it’s just about one of the most beautiful operas out there, and it was the opening opera of the season. We only have six a year, you know. In a perfect world, they’d have been doing La Bohème, which is about an artist and his lover who’s dying of consumption. What message would I supposedly be sending with that one?”

He sounded so outraged I giggled.

He eyed me, but his tone was infinitely gentle. “What else have you been keeping to yourself?”

So then I told him about the dream, every detail.

“And then you looked up at the moon and said, ‘It’s right there.’

“And then I said, ‘But you are not. You must walk with me so the moon may reveal herself.”

He had been nodding along, but with that last part, he stared at me in surprise.

“What was that last thing? I have to walk with you ‘so the moon may reveal herself’?”

“Yes.”

“That wasn’t in my dream.”

“Oh.” I really thought it had been. “I suppose I added that part.”

He was still looking at me oddly.

“I’m sure it was just my mind copying what you said about your own dream.”

“So you understand it then.”

I frowned at the flat tone he used. “Understand about walking with the moon? No, not a word.”

He nodded to himself.

“What?” I demanded.

“Olivia said something like that to me once, that my children would walk with the moon.”

“I know,” I said. “I read about it in one of her journals. Or, that is, she talked about how someone said that to her in a dream. She told you about it?”

“Not that it came from a dream, no.” He continued to gaze at me thoughtfully.

“What?” I asked again.

“Is that it? Is there anything else?”

I bit my lip. Of everything, I wanted to share this the least.

“When Grace was singing just now, that song from The Mikado, I don’t know what happened, but I went into a sort of trance. When I woke up, I was dancing around the room.”

“Yes, that makes sense.” He sounded relieved and satisfied.

“It does? How?” I wanted to shake him. “What does it mean?”

“Sarah, my love, part of you has to be a werewolf.”