by TJ Klune
Green Creek had transformed.
Will had told me as much when we’d met in the diner, told me what they’d done, but hearing about it was one thing. Seeing it was something else entirely.
I knew about the metal grates that had been installed after Elijah. On the businesses. The houses. We’d paid for everything, wanting to make sure the people of our town were safe, come what may. No wolf could get in.
But they’d also been warded. The stench of magic was thick. Gordo. Aileen. Patrice. A handful of other trusted witches. Wolves couldn’t enter, but anything else would have a bitch of a time too. They weren’t meant to last, merely a stopgap.
I’d known about these.
I hadn’t known about everything else.
In the year I’d been gone, Green Creek had prepared for the worst.
On either side of the main thoroughfare, men and women stood on the roofs. Slats of metal had been built into the roofs on hinges. They’d pushed them up and locked them in place along the edges. They were four feet high and surrounded the roofs on all sides. The slats were interlocked and thick, inlaid with silver.
In the distance, along the one main road into Green Creek, barriers had been placed in the streets, along with signs saying the road was under construction and that entrance to the town was closed. It’d be fine for now, but not for the long term. Eventually someone would ask questions. We needed this to be over before that happened.
“Careful,” Will called down, sounding amused. He was standing on top of the hardware store. “Silver powder on the sidewalk.”
I looked up at him. He had a shotgun against his shoulder, and in his hand was a small circular bag that he tossed up and down. “And that?”
He shrugged. “Something Robbie came up with. Gordo helped. More silver powder. Very fine. Explodes into a cloud when it hits the ground. Can’t imagine what that feels like if a wolf inhales it.”
“Let’s not find out,” I muttered.
“You all right?”
“Why?”
He laughed. “Got a little spring in your step. And you’re not letting that boy of yours go.”
“He’s not my—”
“We’re mates,” Gavin told him. “We fucked and I bit him and he bit me and now we’re mates.” He sounded very proud of this fact.
The people on the roofs burst into laughter.
“Jesus Christ,” I groaned, trying to stop Gavin from stretching out the collar of his shirt to show them all the mark on his skin. He growled at me and did it anyway.
“Very nice,” Will said. “I should question your timing, but hey. Love is love, I guess. Might as well get it while you can.”
Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to let this town be overrun.
But then Will’s expression softened. “Good on you, Carter. It’s about time you pulled your head out of your ass. Granted, not much you could have done about it when he was wolflike for all those years.” He frowned. “Unless that’s a thing. I don’t pretend to understand all there is to know about shape-shifters, but I don’t think I want to hear if you do the deed while shifted.”
I groaned as everyone looked toward us, obviously interested in hearing if that was true.
The woman next to Will said, “Furries. I learned about it on the internet.”
Will nodded as if that made sense. “Yeah. Ain’t much you can’t find on the internet. Well, I’ll tell you what. Furries, werewolves, whatever. We’re pretty accepting in Green Creek.” He paused, considering. “Except for the bad wolves that want to try to take from us. Then we shoot first and ask questions later. Ain’t that right?”
The people cheered in response.
“The kids?” I asked, desperate to get them back to the matters at hand.
“All in the bunker,” the woman said. Her name was Hillary, and though she looked like a sweet older woman, she was actually pretty fucking terrifying. After Elijah, she’d demanded to be included in protecting the town. Will had laughed in her face at the diner, until she picked up a steak knife off the table and hurled it. It’d flipped end over end before piercing the far wall, the handle quivering. “Made sure of it myself. Hung up Christmas decorations and everything. Even put presents down there for the little ones. They’ll be all right. We’ve got good people protecting them.”
I nodded before looking down the road. “Anything?”
“Hey, Grant!” Will called across the street. “What do you see?”
A man on top of the garage lowered a pair of high-powered binoculars. “Nothing but the wind.”
Will looked down at me again. “We sure they’re coming?”
I looked at Gavin, who nodded tightly. “Yeah. We’re sure.”
Will spat over the side of the building. “How many?”
“Quite a few.”
He tapped the barrel of the shotgun against his shoulder. “Gonna get ugly.”
“I know.”
“Ox? The others? They all right?”
“Yeah,” I said, because it was easier than to say otherwise. I hoped they were. “On their way.”
He whistled lowly. “Probably won’t get here before. We’ll be in the thick of it by the time they show up. Think the wards will hold?”
“They better,” I said grimly. “If not, we’ll be ready.”
“That we will,” he said. “Carter?”
“Yeah?”
“Your daddy would be proud of you.”
I looked up at him again.
He said, “It might not be my place to say as much. But I know it’s true. You’re a good man, Carter Bennett. Proud to know you. We’ll do what we can. Ain’t that right?”
The men and women of Green Creek raised their weapons and cheered.
Will tilted his head back and howled.
“Let them come,” I whispered as the others followed Will’s lead. The sounds of humans singing the songs of wolves echoed up and down the street.
IT WENT LIKE THIS:
Rico stood with Bambi, Joshua in his arms. He kissed his son’s forehead, muttering sweetly in Spanish. Bambi touched his arm. “You better not do anything stupid. I’ll do what I have to in the bunker, but I swear to god, Rico, if you get yourself killed, it’ll be the last thing you ever do.”
“Uh. That’s pretty much the point—”
“Rico.”
He winced. “Sorry. I’ll do my best not to die.”
“Damn right you will,” she snapped at him.
And then he said, “I don’t say this often enough. I know I don’t. I swear I’ll get better at it. But I need you to know I love you. You and Joshua both, more than anything in the world. You gave me life. You gave me purpose. I would be nothing without you. I don’t know why you decided to hitch yourself with an old redneck, but I won’t question it. Thank you for putting up with all my shit.”
She sniffled. “You’re lucky to have me.”
“I am,” he agreed.
“And you’re a daddy now.”
“I am that too.”
She said, “And when this is all over, you’re going to marry me.”
He gaped at her. “Did… did you just propose?”
“You were dragging your feet, you motherfucker. One of us had to do it.”
“I love you so goddamn much,” he whispered fiercely, and Joshua let out a little squawk as his father bent over to kiss his mother.
When she pulled away, she reached up and touched his face. “Come back to us,” she said quietly. She took Joshua from him and turned away, following a group of women to their truck in front of the house. They’d take her and Joshua to the bunker.
Rico stared after them as they drove away.
I put my hand on his shoulder.
“They’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me,” he said.
“I know.”
He looked over at me, eyes filling with orange. “Let’s kill as many of these fuckers as we can.”
I grinned at him.
IT WENT LIKE THIS:
Chris and Tanner standing in front, facing each other, their foreheads pressed together.
Chris said, “You stay by me.”
Tanner said, “I’ll never leave your side.”
Chris said, “Except when I tell you to run.”
Tanner said, “Fuck you. I’m not leaving you.”
Chris said, “You dumbass. Why are you like this?”
Tanner said, “You and me, all right? You and me. Platonic mates for life.”
Chris said, “We’re so goddamn weird.”
Tanner said, “I know. Could be worse, though.”
Chris said, “Hell yes it could.”
I shook my head. Those fucking dorks. I loved them so.
IT WENT LIKE THIS:
Jessie hummed a quiet song, sitting on the porch in front of Dominique. Jessie was cleaning her guns as Dominique braided her hair.
I watched them through the window.
Dominique said, “I’ve been thinking.”
Jessie snorted. “Uh-oh.”
“Hush, you. Listen to me.”
“I always do.”
“You’d think so. But I’ve got a list a mile long that says otherwise. Gavin. Carter.”
Jessie sighed. “Yeah.”
“I want that. With you.”
Jessie set her gun on the steps between her feet. She tilted her head back to look up at Dominique. “Is that right? I had no idea.”
“Don’t sass me,” Dominique chided gently. “I want that. Don’t you?”
“You want to be tied to me like that?”
“Yes.”
Jessie shrugged. “Okay.”
“Okay?”
“Okay.”
Dominique kissed her.
I stepped away from the window.
IT WENT LIKE THIS:
“We’re getting on the plane now,” Kelly said, the sounds of an airport filtering in through the phone. “We’re coming for you. I swear it. Carter, wait for us. We’ve got backup. More than I thought we would. Don’t do anything stupid.”
I laughed. “When have you known me to do anything stupid?”
He wasn’t amused. “Please.” His voice cracked when he said, “I can’t… not again.” Then, “It’s bad, Carter. Joe’s not talking. It’s like it was before, when we were going after Richard Collins. He’s shutting down.”
I said, “Put him on the phone.”
“Joe. Joe. Here. It’s for you. Would you just fucking take it? Don’t do this to me.”
I heard him breathing. He didn’t speak.
I said, “He’s okay. Ox is okay. So is Gordo. So are we. We’re here. We’re waiting for you.”
He breathed and breathed.
I said, “Once, when you were… three? Maybe four. You were this chubby little kid. And you talked and talked and talked. About everything you could see. Look, here’s a leaf. Look, here’s a bug. Look, here’s a rock. And one day you were in my room. You were reading a book about wild things. Or at least you were pretending to. You were making up your own story since you couldn’t read the words. You were sitting on my bed next to me. I remembered something Dad had said to me. He said that I was your big brother. That even though you were the Alpha, my job was just as important. He told me that I had to keep you safe. I remember being floored by that. I was just a Beta. What could I do for a future Alpha? Dad said I’d know when the time came. So I listened to your story.” I cleared my throat. “And then you were taken. I—I was so lost. You came back, but it wasn’t the same. I carried you around everywhere I went, begging you to talk. I took you to my room. I set you on my bed. I went to the closet in the hall and found the little book about wild things. And I told you the same story you told me. It wasn’t what was written in the book because your story was better. You didn’t talk, but when I finished, I swore you were looking at me like you knew me. Like you remembered.”
“I did,” Joe whispered. “I remembered everything.”
“Good. That’s real good, Joe. Hold on to that. I have. And I always will.”
“I’m scared, Carter.”
My heart broke. “I know. Me too. But we’re strong. You’ve made us strong. And it has nothing to do with you being an Alpha. It’s because you exist in the first place.”
“Okay.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah.” His voice was stronger. “Thanks, Carter.”
“It’s what I’m here for. You and Kelly. Always.”
“And Gavin.” His voice was warmer now. Filling with life. “Mom texted us. Said you did what you should have done a long time ago. Book helped, huh?”
I laughed and laughed.
IT WENT LIKE THIS:
She was in the kitchen, singing along with the radio.
Johnny and his guitar again.
Of course it was.
She swayed side to side.
I went to her.
She laughed when I bowed low, my arm across my chest.
She took my hand in hers, the other coming to my shoulder.
We danced.
She said, “I’m proud of you. Do you know that?”
I nodded. “I do. Every day.”
She said, “When you left, I was so angry, even though I knew in my heart you were following yours. Sometimes we have to let the ones we love go so that they may learn the world for themselves.”
“I came back,” I told her. “I’ll always come back.”
Her eyes were wet. “Will you? Why?”
“Because this is my home. You’re my home.”
She said, “You are your father’s son. I see it now more than ever. He’s here.”
My hands shook. “Is he?”
She never looked away from me. “We’re never alone. It may feel like we are, but here, in this place, the moon gives back for all we’ve sacrificed to her. I believe that with all my heart. He’s watching. He knows. We’ll hear his song before the end.”
We danced on.
IT WENT LIKE THIS:
Gavin was sitting on our bed in our room. He looked up at me as I entered. I froze in the doorway when I saw what was in his hands.
My mother’s stone wolf, now his.
He said, “I want this. You. Me.”
“I hope so. Otherwise we’re pretty much screwed already.”
He scowled at me. “Not funny.”
“A little funny.”
He sighed. “I changed my mind.”
Oh, how his heart betrayed him. “Liar,” I said hoarsely.
He stood from the bed. He had a determined look on his face. He stalked toward me before thrusting his hand out, shoving the wolf against my chest. “I don’t know how to do this,” he muttered. “Take it.”
“Wow, romantic. Thanks. I’ll remember this moment for—”
“Stupid Carter. Take it.” He poked it against my chest again. “Now.”
I took it.
He frowned. “That’s it?”
I shrugged. “That’s it.”
“Huh. That was dumb. Why do we have to do that? Don’t need wolf. Have scar. That’s enough.”
“Tradition,” I told him. “It’s tradition.”
He blinked. “Like Sundays?”
I nodded.
“Oh.” Then, “Where’s mine? Give it to me. Tradition.”
I sighed. “It’s in the nightstand drawer. Go get it.”
“No. You have to give it to me. Tradition.”
“Pain in my ass,” I muttered, and I stumbled when he said, “Not yet I’m not. Time for that later.”
I opened the bottom drawer. There, lying in the back on its side, was my own wolf of stone. I said, “My father gave this to me. He said I’d know in my heart who it would belong to. I didn’t understand then what he meant. I got older, and I never met anyone who made me feel that way. I watched Joe find his own path. Kelly. Gordo. And even when you were there, right in front of me, I still didn’t know. But I figured it out eventually.”
“When?” he asked.
I stood u
p. “When you left to save us all. I knew in my heart because my heart was breaking.” I turned around and showed him the wolf. It wasn’t as nice as his. This had been my father’s first. It was clumsy, more a lump of quartz than an actual wolf, but the intent was there.
“I won’t leave,” he said.
“Never?” I teased him. “Even when I piss you off?”
“You always piss me off,” he retorted. “Still here.”
And I said, “Promise me.” It wasn’t fair of me to ask, but I was beyond caring.
He didn’t hesitate. “I promise.”
I gave him the wolf.
He held it as if it were something precious. He inspected it closely, turning it around to see all sides. He looked back at the wolf in my hands. “That’s it?”
“That’s it,” I said, my heart beating rapidly.
“Oh.” Then he grinned.
And tackled me.
We fell onto the bed and he kissed me like he was never going to stop.
I never wanted him to.
I had never felt more awake.
I allowed myself to have this. To have it last as long as it could. To pretend that there was nothing out there coming for us.
It didn’t last, of course.
A bright light arced through my head, like a comet.
I stiffened.
He did too. “I felt that. Is it…?”
I said, “The wards. Something just hit the wards.”
IT WENT LIKE THIS:
The sky was dark, stars like ice.
The moon was a sliver as the year hurtled toward its end.
They moved around me. My mother. Gavin. Mark. Jessie. Rico. Chris. Tanner. Dominique.
It was at the covered bridge that we found them.
Wolves all.
Betas. Their eyes were orange in the dark.
I counted twenty.
I recognized half from Caswell.
They would be the first. I would make sure of it.
One of the wolves said, “Where’s the king?”
I said, “I know you.”
He grinned. “Do you? Quite an honor to be known by a prince. It’s—”
“You’re Santos. Robbie told me about you. Always in charge of the prisoner you kept locked away like a good little lapdog.”