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I sat down with her, sipping at a cup of my own tea.“Well.That is…interesting.”
Melinda laughed.“You can see why no one else drinks it.I’ve started to crave it, which is how you know I’m really sick.”
“But you say it makes you feel better?”I asked, taking another cautious sip.No, still gross, and I had been treated to many of my mother’s gross teas over the years.It tasted like grass clippings and dishwater.
“For a little while.It just perks me up.”
“Where do you get it?”
“A local woman named Mona.She had a business doing this sort of thing.She runs the clan council.”
“You have a clan council?”
“They handle issues in the village so I have more time to deal with running the business.In the past, Alphas always had an inner circle.Depending on the Alpha, that inner circle could be anything from a team of rivals to a gang of bullies.It’s one of the things that makes transitioning to a new leader so volatile, because it’s not just the leader that changes but the whole structure and manner of authority.So I implemented an elected council that would serve the needs of the clan, instead of the Alpha.”
“And this Mona runs it?”
“Yes.She’s good at her job, I’ll admit that.But she and I don’t always agree on things.She was too young to have her stone under the last Alpha, but she remembers what it’s like when the ruler has absolute power.She’s made it her mission to expand the council’s sphere of authority, and sometimes that puts us in conflict.”
The politics were interesting, but that wasn’t why I was here.“Do you mind if I take a little to study?If I can figure out what is making you feel better, it might give me a hint what’s wrong.”
“Dr.Barnes knows all the ingredients, but go ahead.I called him yesterday to get the medical records.He wants to meet with you.”
I winced inwardly.Doctors can be territorial, and I hoped he didn’t feel like I was interfering with his patients.“I’d be happy to.”
“Jasper has that NDA for you to sign, by the way.”
I raised my eyebrows.I’d offered to sign it last night, but weren’t we past that now?“Y’all work fast, so I will too.I can go through these medical records, that gives me plenty to begin with.”
She gestured for me to take the files.“You know, we don’t expect you to work every second of every day.There’s no reason you can’t have some fun while you’re here.”
“I saw Jasper’s folder,” I said.“I’m not very outdoorsy.”
“Nonsense.We’ve got a backcountry camping trip scheduled for next week, you can’t miss it.And Dylan does a guided nature hike that’s spectacular.What about horseback riding?”
My mind flashed to the picture of Jasper on the TPL website.He’d been sweaty, focused, and completely in control of the huge animal between his legs.“I’ve never tried.”
“Well, you should.”She scooped up her phone and tapped it a few times.“And look at that, we’ve got a lesson open this afternoon.”
I remembered the pack of children yesterday afternoon crowded around the fence, petting a docile horse.That seemed about my speed.“Maybe.”
“I booked it for you.Do it for me,” Melinda said when I hesitated.“I haven’t been able to get on a horse for months.I miss it.I want to live vicariously through you.”
I laughed.“Is everyone in this family a master manipulator?”
“We all have our little tricks,” she said, her mouth tipping up as she sipped the last of her tea.“You don’t seem fooled by any of them, though.”
