I tilted it away from her. "No one."
"Liar." She folded her arms across her chest.
I can pick you up if that helps.
I hit send before I could think better of it. What was I doing, offering to drive her?
"Bolton, listen to me." Lila's voice had lost its teasing edge. "The Ortiz girl is different. Mom was talking about it with Aunt Sarah. They think she might be... you know."
I went still.
"You heard that for real?" I asked.
She nodded, folding her arms and leaning against the woodpile. "Yesterday morning. I was in the hallway upstairs. They thought I was still asleep."
I waited, my heart thudding, unsure if I wanted her tokeep talking.
“They were in the kitchen whispering. Mom said she’d felt something weird when she saw Maya in town. Said the girl gave off, not just shifter vibes, but ‘ghost-pack energy.’”
Ghost-pack. Old bloodlines. Disbanded families. Wolves who vanished into legend.
“What does that even mean?” I muttered, more to myself than her.
Lila wet her lips. “Aunt Sarah asked if there was any record of the Ortiz family, but Mom said no—not anything recent anyway. She mentioned a name, Miguel?”
My chest tightened. I'd heard that name before.
“And then Mom told Sarah she was sure she’d seen Elena before, years ago, back when some neighboring pack fell apart.” Lila’s voice dropped. “They think Maya might be from that bloodline. The one that disappeared. Which means she’s not fully human.”
Miguel. That name wasn’t just familiar. I’d seen it in an old pack archive once, connected to one of the first human-shifter bondings recorded in the territory. He’d died during a rogue ambush. The Luna he'd mated with vanished after.
Maya’s mom.
Holy hell.
“So you’re saying...” I started, barely able to form the words, “...that Maya might be half-wolf? And she doesn’t even know?”
Lila nodded slowly. “That’s what they think. And if that’s true, tomorrow night? Under the full moon?” She hesitated. “She could shift. Or she might not. Depends on how close to the surface her wolf is.”
I drew in a shaky breath as realization crashed over me.
“The bonfire might trigger it,” I said quietly.
“Right,” she confirmed. “It’s not just a party for her. It’s a test. And if she changes in front of the whole pack without knowing what’s happening to her—”
“She’ll panic,” I whispered.
“She could expose everything,” Lila added gravely. “Which wouldn’t just ruin her; it could get her hurt. Or worse.”
I sat down on the edge of the firewood pile, suddenly dizzy.
“They're letting her come anyway?” I asked.
Lila nodded. “Mom told Sarah, ‘If she’s truly one of us, the moon will call her. And if she’s not, better we know now.’”
The words made my blood run cold.
“They're not protecting her,” I said. “They’re watching her.”
