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It was a lot to think about. Too much, without the human part of us awake to figure out the complexities. Maybe the human had the right idea. Maybe we could sleep and work together with our mate in the morning to figure this out.

Sighing, I let myself drift until my breaths matched the slow, steady rhythm of Quinn's hands in our fur. Tomorrow. We would figure everything out tomorrow.

Epilogue

FIVE WEEKS LATER

Standing at the doors of the Lowery's Crossing Police Department and willing myself to go inside never got any easier. True, this was only my third time ever dealing with the police, but still. I'd hoped that knowing Detectives Parker and Dodd would make this easier, but if anything, it made it harder.

"Just open the door and do it," I whispered under my breath. I'm sure the camera above the door was capturing some wonderful footage of me slowly unraveling. Maybe coming alone hadn't been such a good idea. Lain would have volunteered in an instant if I'd told him. Typhon had volunteered, but some part of me knew I needed to do this on my own.

Before I could talk myself out of it again, I pulled open the door and hurried inside.

The lobby was the same as it'd been the last time I'd been here. Even the officer sitting at the front desk was the same, though he'd gotten a haircut in the few weeks since I'd seen him. He looked up when he heard the door open, and from the tiny smile tugging at his lips, he remembered me.

Wonderful.

It was too late to back out now, though, so I squared my shoulders and walked up to him.

"Are you looking for Officer Lake?" he asked before I could speak. "She's at her desk."

I actually hadn't planned to see her, but it reminded me she'd never called me back after my last visit.

"If she has a second, that'd be great," I agreed, proud of myself when I didn't stumble over my words. "After that, I was hoping to talk to Detective Dodd if he's in?"

The officer raised a brow, his curiosity obvious. His badge glinted when he shifted, and I caught the name 'Lawrence' etched into the metal. Was he one of the people who Ori had called to help me? Was it a coincidence?

"He's here. I'll let him know. Can I ask what it's regarding?"

"I'd…" My bravery wavered, and I had to take a few deep breaths before I could finish. "I'd like to file a report with him."

Officer Lawrence instantly sobered. "Of course. Have a seat, and I'll let them know you're here."

I didn't even make it to a chair before Officer Lake appeared at the front desk, looking sheepish. She came around and met me in the lobby.

"I forgot to call you back. I'm so sorry," she said with a wince. "There's been a lot going on lately."

Something about the way she looked at me made me think she, at least, knew about the hidden side of The Crossing.

"It's no trouble. I assumed you hadn't heard anything about Hash Brown, or you would have called."

"You'd think it would be easier to find who owns a mule, but so far, no luck."

"After this long, I doubt you're going to find anything. If his owner wanted him back, I think we would have found them by now."

She nodded. "Yeah, I think you're right. Do you want me to contact some local rescues and see if anyone has any space to take him?"

It would make the most sense. Hash Brown continued to be an escape artist and pushed me to my limits some days, but I couldn't picture the house without him now. He'd slotted himself neatly into my life, so smoothly I never even noticed. The thought of giving him up made my chest ache, and I knew in that moment what my decision would be.

"No, it's okay. I think I'm going to keep him."

"Are you sure? You seemed pretty adamant that it was temporary when I brought him," she reminded me.

"Yeah, but now that I've had him this long, he feels like family. I've already got plans to build him a proper little barn. I think I was stuck with him the moment I named him, honestly."

"That's how I ended up with my last two cats," she agreed with a laugh. "If you're sure about him, I'll file this as closed. If you change your mind, though, let me know, and I'll help you find a rescue."

"I appreciate it. I think we're going to be okay, though." Despite everything, this felt right, and for a moment, my anxiety eased, and I let myself imagine a cozy little barn in the backyard and Hash Brown roaming around with the chickens.