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So much for being smooth, I thought. She jerked her hand away and rose to her feet.
“We better get moving,” she said and hurried out the front door.
I placed the abandoned dishes in the sink and washed them. I checked the fridge and freezer—there were enough frozen meals, waters, and milk for them to eat for at least a few days. I prayed I wouldn’t be away longer than that.
Dad’s snores echoed in my ears.
Why do you have to be so useless?
I couldn’t make myself leave with Cadence still in his care. Faced with no other option, I called Mrs. Morris, the mother of Cady’s best friend, and left a message when she didn’t pick up.
“Sorry for the late notice, but I’m going out of town for a few days, and I really need someone to watch Cady. Please pick her up as soon as you get this.”
Arion emerged from my bedroom. He must’ve really enjoyed my bed, since he’d actually strayed from Freya’s side long enough to sleep in. As he prowled into the kitchen, the cat stared at me with keen, amber eyes. If he weren’t a cat, I would’ve thought he looked smug. I guessed I would too, if I were a four-legged creature who kicked a human out of his own bed.
The cat meowed by the door Freya had exited through, but I ignored him and walked toward Cadence’s room. I knocked lightly on her door, which needed a fresh coat of paint. I’d meant to apply one soon, but, like many things this week, those plans had gone awry.
“Go away!” she yelled.
“Cady,” I pleaded, “I don’t want to leave you. Please don’t be mad at me right now. At least give me a hug goodbye.”
Desperation tangled my insides, and I fought to keep it out of my voice. There was a very real chance I wasn’t going to return home. I didn’t want to leave with the knowledge that our last interaction had been so ugly, but I couldn’t make her suspicious enough to follow me either.
“I don’t want to,” she huffed.
I flinched.
“Okay,” I said, “I love you, Cady-Cat. I’ll call when I can.”
I waited a few minutes for her to answer, but she kept silent. With one last sigh, I walked away.
Chapter Seven
Freya
“So,” Walker drawled, “werewolves have been living in my backyard this whole time?”
“Yep,” I said, “and your neighbors are a coven of witches.”
He mulled this over but kept his steady pace. We walked through the thick forest beyond Walker’s house. Pines and other trees climbed high in the sky. Wind swayed their branches, as well as the thick grass beneath our feet. The fresh air was revitalizing.
After three hours without more than a five-minute break, my legs ached, and my breath was unsteady. At least we’d make good progress. The valley was only a few hundred feet away. Water trickled in the creek, and I quickened my steps in anticipation. We’d agreed to take a lunchbreak once we reached it. As we journeyed closer, the trees thinned, and the neighboring mountain came into view. It was not as gently sloped as the one we currently traveled down. Jagged rocks layered its sides.
I internally groaned. The only thing worse than hiking downhill was hiking uphill. Arion prowled along beside me without a care in the world. My cat was in better shape than me—maybe it was time to work out a bit more.
“There’s no way to reach these wolves by truck or car?” Walker asked, “or just a phone call?”
“Magic-blessed creatures don’t put much faith in technology,” I explained. “We don’t like what we can’t control. That’s why we usually use portals or astral projections.”
“And why can’t we…what was it? Portal? Astral project?”
“Regretting the trip already?” I asked.
He frowned and ran a hand through his hair.
“No,” he said. “This is just a lot to take in. I feel like I don’t know anything anymore.”
That makes two of us, I thought.
