A CIRCLE OF WOLVES awaited us in the east clearing. The first to see me howled a greeting. A dark shape—Willa—padded away from the others and placed herself by Kale’s side.
So that was taken care of. No one in my pack would forget themselves and attack a human, let alone an underage human. Still, Willa’s presence was a good reminder. I left her to her job, stalked far enough away from Kale so he wouldn’t be offended by my nakedness, then I fell into mine.
Fell into fur that swallowed me and warmed me. April in Appalachia was as fickle as a tween’s willingness to have his hair tousled. Tonight, chill hung above the soil. By morning, there would be frost.
Now, though, there was only heat as the first wolf rushed me. He was barely strong enough to hold his head up in my presence. But it wa
