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We do not like this. But she turned back to the packlands we knew and walked forward. Kris, appeased she was following his orders, resumed his journey back to the pack.
At the rear of the shaman’s house, we both shifted. The shaman always had clothes at the doors to his home for the more modest of the pack. Kris handed me a shapeless dress and grabbed a pair of shorts for himself.
My brother entered the house first, and I heard voices, one rising in surprise. As I prepared for the worst, Cass came rushing out the back door, throwing herself at me and knocking us both to the ground.
“Thank Luna! Kezia!” she cried as she hugged me tight. “I thought you were lost to us.” I felt her tears through the thin dress, and as I hugged her back, I looked up at my brother, who was watching us both with unabashed happiness.
Cass pushed herself off me and looked down at me. “You’ve missed everything!” she scolded, taking Kris’s hand as he guided her to her feet. I watched as she automatically stepped into his space, seeking his arms, which slipped around her easily as my brother pulled his mate close.
I watched as he dipped his head to kiss her cheek. A whisper too low for me to hear made Cass blush. She turned her head to look at him, and I looked away as he kissed her softly.
“What did I miss?” I asked, clearing my throat. “Also, are you always like this?” I asked, waving my hand between the two of them. “Because there are things I don’t need to see.”
Cass’s peal of delighted laughter made Kris chuckle, and I was suspicious they were both laughing at me. “Did you tell her?” Cass asked him, letting her hand trail over his forearm.
“I did, but I think she’s in denial.”
“Oh, I cannot wait to see this,” Cass said gleefully. Stepping out of my brother’s hold, she embraced me once more. “It’s so amazing to have you back, Kezia.”
“I would also like to talk to you again,” the shaman spoke dryly from the back door. “Come inside, please.”
Kris let Cass go first, surprising me when he reached for my hand, squeezing it once. Looking up at him, I again saw his look of happiness. “You okay?” I asked him quietly.
“I don’t think I’ve been better,” he answered truthfully, his eyes landing on Cass again.
Briefly, my brother outlined the last year of my life to the shaman and Cass. He left out crucial bits like murder, silver bullets, being a prisoner, and I understood that was for Cass’s benefit. She always was more delicate than most.
Cannon’s words that mates needed to balance each other out popped into my head, and I hastily pushed them away.
When he was done, a thick silence hung in the air until finally, the shaman moved in his seat. “You need to tell the pack leader,” he spoke slowly. “Take Cass too. Kezia will wait here with me.”
“But Landon?—”
“Can wait,” the shaman said briskly. “Your father needs to know first, and I would like to speak to Kezia alone.”
Kris started at that, but he nodded. He was always respectful of the shaman’s wishes. Cass grumbled under her breath, but Kris soothed her by distracting her, pulling Cass to his side as he prepared to leave.
“Stay here,” he told me as he left. “Leave for no one but me, understood?”
“Yes, Kristoff,” I said with a familiar put-upon sigh.
“Ugh, I have not missed that attitude at all.” But his good-natured laugh told me otherwise, and I returned his smile. Cass waved, promising she would see me soon. The door closed behind them, and I could hear their giggling on the front path.
“It’s been intolerable,” the shaman told me, turning to face me. His sight may be gone, but his other senses were sharp. “They giggle all the time.”
“It sounds horrible.” It did. My skin was crawling. The thought of me turning into a giggling, sunshiney person was truly horrific.
“You have changed too,” he told me. “Your soul is darker.”
“Wow. Straight in there, eh? What do I say to that? Thanks?”
“Your insolence has remained the same,” he told me dryly. “Your wolf is angry.”
“She’s uncertain,” I defended her, ignoring the feeling of disgruntlement she was sending my way.
“Taking a human life changes you,” he said in understanding. “Taking three…well, I do not need to tell you.” The shaman leaned forward, and I knew I’d not fooled him. “Tell me everything, pup.”
Pup. The pang of longing sliced through me like a knife. What the hell was wrong with me? I did not long for Cannon. At all.
