AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“You got it,” I promised, stabbing two on the end and popping it right into the middle of the fire.
“Dessert first?” Callum asked with disapproval. I smirked at him and nodded, unrepentant at his judgment.
“We’re adults here,” I teased as I pulled out the marshmallow torch and blew the flames out before leaning the stick toward Nyx. He plucked them off and blew on them before putting them right in his mouth.
When he swallowed, he sighed happily. “So fucking hot but so fucking good.”
“Good thing there aren’t any kids around,” Leven said sarcastically.
The conversation went on around me and I couldn’t help but admire my pack. Ava was sitting on the other side of the fire huddled in with Waylen. They were obviously close and from the way their legs pressed together, I’d say they were nearing more than friends. I couldn’t think of a better wolf to be patient with her and bring out her spark again. It was in there somewhere or she wouldn’t have made it this far, but that pack had done a fucking number on her.
Garren was at the head of the fire sipping a mug of coffee and looking better than I think I’d ever seen him. He was full of life now, his cheeks holding color, and he radiated strength and wisdom.
In fact, despite all the hell the pack had been through, everyone looked happy and content. This pocket of camaraderie and peace we had grabbed for ourselves was perfect.
“Soup’s on!” Emma called out as her and Brent carried out trays and settled them on the table. “And I believe Garren promised me some stories!”
His throaty chuckle echoed into the night, eyes sparkling with mirth as he pushed himself to his feet and walked toward the buffet line and Emma, who greeted him with a hug and a plate. The poison had robbed him of the last few gatherings, and it was clear that his presence had been missed. He was truly an elder of legends, the kind who told stories around the fires and spread wisdom to any wolves smart enough to listen.
We all snacked and settled in as Garren took his place. He ate a bit of everything on his plate, his appetite much bigger than before. The old man nursed a bottle of water as he started to speak.
“As alpha of my old pack it was my job to lead us to our next location. The general rule was that we stayed in no place for longer than a week. I’ve been all over the country, but some places are unforgettable,” he said as we all hung onto his words, completely captivated by his storytelling.
“I’ve heard this one, it’s great,” Leven whispered in my ear. I snuggled in against him as I looked at Garren.
“Calista Falls is one of those places. Magic seemed to permeate the very air in that forest. The pine trees along the Oregon Coast are one of a kind, the forests unrivaled in their beauty, but this small place we settled was different. Our tents rested among the trees and we noticed that not a single rabbit or squirrel could be found. That should have been our first sign that something was not right.”
“Oh god,” someone whispered, earning chuckles from around the fire before silence descended again. Garren smiled fondly and waited for a few beats to continue.
“The first night we woke up at two in the morning to the melancholy wail of a mystery creature we couldn’t find. The scouts went out and came back with nothing but unease. The second night was the sticks breaking all around us, like we were surrounded by an army. Yet no one ever approached.”
“And yet you stayed?” Nyx snorted and shook his head. “I’d have booked it out of there. Pretty trees are not worth all that.”
Garren barked out a laugh at that and Leven’s chuckles rumbled under me. Every wolf around was hanging onto the story, and in my head I couldn’t help but imagine that if a stick broke around us right now all these strong wolves would be screaming like scared children.
“We did stay. Traveling is tiring and our elders had to have time to recover. But we kept patrols up at night and prepared for the worst. The third and fourth nights were quiet and we thought whatever it was had either accepted us or given up the fight,” he said. For dramatic affect he paused and took a long pull of water. We were so enthralled no one dared to speak or move. “Then the fifth night came.”
“If you scare me, Garren, I won’t make tea for you for a week,” I warned. His smile broadened but he gave nothing away.
“The fifth night we were all sitting around a fire, much like this one here, and fog rolled in. It was so thick you could smell the magic in the air and we could barely see the pack around us, even the tents were rendered invisible. A singular figure stepped out of the fog. It was a small boy who walked closer and plopped himself right next to me at the fire.”
“A child did all that?” Callum asked incredulously. His eyes were wide, and I had to bite back a laugh at his look of unease.Yup, we’re all waiting for that other shoe to drop.
“Oh, he wasn’t actually a child,” Garren corrected with his own evil laughter. “He was a shapeshifter, that much was obvious.”
“How was it obvious?” Emma whispered. He turned to her and leveled her with a stern look.
“You can always identify them by the eyes. Every creature holds something different there, they are truly the windows of the soul. Shifters have an animalistic gleam. Vampires a hunger. And shapeshifters… they’re hollow. Lonely. Sad. Unmoving.”
A shiver ran down my spine at that and Leven’s arms tightened around me.Okay, yup, there was the plot twist from hell. Nope, I definitely am not sleeping alone tonight.
“Did he talk?” Ava asked. If the quiet girl’s words surprised Garren, he didn’t show it. I was silently cheering in my head. It seems our campfires truly did hold magic.
“He did. The creature asked for a bowl of stew. We obliged and all sat around the fire in silence as he ate. Then when he finished, he stood up and walked away, taking the fog with him. The next morning we woke up to a different forest. We debated if he was simply a powerful creature or something more, like a protector of the forest, but either way it seemed we passed his test.”
“Did the animals come back?” Selena called out her question and he nodded.
“They did. We stayed for a week longer in that place. It rained every single day but the animals were plentiful, the views unmatched, and there was a peace he left behind that was something I’ll never forget.”
