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Luna Selena smiles. “Oh, indeed.” That becomes our system. I remember something. Luna Selena researches it. If the numbers make sense, she decides whether to invest. Sometimes I’m wrong about the timing. Sometimes a name sounds familiar until I see the actual company and realize it isn’t the one I remember. Luna Selena catches those before we spend anything. Other times, I remember exactly.

A struggling hotel comes next. I remember rogues complaining that someone bought it cheaply, renovated it, and turned it into a fortune. Luna Selena studies the property, its finances, and the surrounding area before making an offer. She replaces the poor management, renovates what needs renovating, and watches the business begin to recover.

Then another business. Then residential and commercial properties in neighborhoods I remember becoming valuable. Then land. “Why this one?” Luna Selena asks, turning her laptop toward me. I study the map. “Because nobody wants it yet.”

“That is not usually a selling point.”

I smile. “Research it.” She does, and this time she finds enough to make the purchase worthwhile. Some of the land becomes valuable as nearby cities grow. Other parcels give us opportunities to expand Silver Moon peacefully when neighboring pack property legitimately becomes available. The mine nearly ends the experiment.

“It’s exhausted,” Luna Selena tells me.

“It isn’t.”

“The report says it is.”

“I know.” She folds her arms. “Arlene.”

“Have it surveyed.”

“You want me to spend money surveying an exhausted mine?”

“Yes.” She stares at me. I stare back. Finally, she sighs. “You’re very fortunate I like you.”

“I know.” The professionals find the gemstones. Luna Selena calls me into her office when the report arrives. I read it once, then again, before looking up at her. She is smiling. I start laughing.

“Don’t,” she says.

“I didn’t say anything.”

“You’re thinking it.”

“I’m thinking you should have trusted me.”

“I did trust you. I paid for the survey.”

“After calling me insane.”

“I said the idea was insane.”

“Of course.”

She laughs and takes the report back. The investments keep growing. Stocks climb. Properties appreciate. Businesses become profitable. Luna Selena uses her inheritance for every purchase, never Rylan’s money, and she researches everything before risking a dollar. Then one afternoon she stops typing.

“Arlene, come here.”

“I’m five months pregnant. You come here.” She gets up, carries her laptop around the desk, and turns it toward me. I stare. Then I lean closer. Then I stare again.

“Is that…”

“Yes.”

“Billion. With a B?”

“With a B.”

My wolf goes silent. So do I. Luna Selena’s grin slowly spreads. “We’re billionaires.”

“We?”