Getting roped into a swing shift was not the worst thing in the world. If she had to work outside her normal twelves, it was the best shift. Banking extra time and money before life went any further off the rails had the added bonus of avoiding most of her family. Investigating for the Alpha King, her job, and Nova all wore on her nerves as she felt as if she were juggling on a tight rope. Amari absently brushed her fingertips across her lips. Diana’s words rolled around her mind, she couldn’t avoid them forever. Amari sent her on her way, grateful for the change of clothes but not ready to dive into the debate. The sweats with the hole near the pocket and a bright green, long sleeved shirt with a black wolf were not a good look. She ignored the handful of raised brows as she passed Gail over to the waiting hands of the OB/GYN. Lost in thought, Amari rhythmically tapped the end of the pen idly on the notes section of her most recent patient.

  “Funny running into you here.” Benjamin cast a shadow over her paperwork.

  “I work here. What are you always doing here?” The chair creaked as Amari looked up at him, his head in his palm, eyes twinkling.

  “I thought I mentioned my family donating some money?”

  “Ah, another thing the Morningstars can stamp their name on.”

  “We are trying to do some good with our funds, but who doesn’t like a good atta boy now and then?”

  Amari tilted her head. Leaning back she stretched to put the folder back. Guilt washed over her anew looking at his boyish grin. She stood, apologies were better eye to eye. “I wanted to apologize.”

  “For what?” Benjamin straightened, hands flat on the counter.

  “I came into your place of work like a Banshee. That is inappropriate and I apologize, I understand that it reflects badly on you and in the future I will raise my concerns in a more appropriate way.” Amari held out her hand.

  “I accept your apology.” Benjamin smiled, grasping her hand.

  Amari felt the flush of pink rise from where his hand warmed her skin. The bit of gold in his eyes sparkled as they dipped from hers. A squeak of leather, Amari swallowed hard as a thought flitted through her mind. Did she want him to kiss her? Perhaps but certainly not here. Amari rocked back onto her heels, reaching for another chart. A look crossed his face that she cannot fully pinpoint the emotion but she felt a bit of guilt again.

  The moment broke with the snap of clasps as Benjamin opened his briefcase. “Speaking of the other day, I have a list of lawyers and offices that are in the area, starting with the most likely to have handled business for anyone in Warthford then going further and further away.”

  Amari cursorily glanced at the names on the page, refolding it she tucked it in her purse under the counter. “Thank you.”

  “How are you feeling about Nova potentially having family nearby?” Benjamin’s eyes were soft but knowing.

  “Can I get off the ride for a bit?” Amari slumped against the back counter. The weight of the last few weeks crashed over her again.

  “Life doesn’t stop for anyone.” Benjamin chuckled sympathetically.

  Amari’s head dropped back and rolled to the side. A chagrined smile pulled at her lips.

  “I should let you get on with charting while it's quiet.” Benjamin pressed his thumbs into the gold.

  Amy’s skipping stopped dead, eyes wide. “Does it count if he says it?”

  “Of course it does.” John glared daggers.

  Amari pressed her lips between her teeth. Raising her hands, she left Benjamin to the hole he just dug for himself with her coworkers. A slight shake to her head, she closed her eyes in warning not to dig anymore and she rather not see him sink.

  “I’ll just be going.” Benjamin picked up his briefcase. He tapped his fist on the counter as he turned to walk out. Stopping as the doors opened with a mechanical hiss, he caught Amari’s eye. “I will pick you up tomorrow.”

  “Lucky he is so handsome.” Amy longingly laid her chin on her fist watching him through the glass doors.

  “Handsome Smandsome, he gave us some bad ju-ju.” John gently but firmly pressed his fingers into her shoulder. “There’s something about that man that doesn’t sit right.”

  “He used the ‘q’ word and is rich, either of which you would condemn him for.” Amari picked up another chart, eyes scanning the pages.

  “Weathly don’t bother me.” John’s gruff voice contradicted his words.

  “Really? You’ve never had a nice word to say about one of them.” Amari initialed the bottom of the page and flipped the chart shut.

  “Most don’t avoid becoming vapid and entitled, belittling all those around them. Money corrupts most because they don’t have a backbone to begin with.” John crossed his arms and legs letting the counter support his weight.

  “Tell us how you really feel.” Sarcasm dripped off her words as Amari pointed between Amy and herself.

  “Bah. Mark my words, that man’s compass doesn’t point north.” A wave of his hand, John walked off as a call bell dinged.

  Amy bounced on her toes. Sparkling eyes under dancing brows, her lips twitched.

  This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.

  “What is it Amy?” Amari picked up another chart. Flipping to the yellow page of medicines, doses, and times, she twisted her wrist. Forty-five minutes before the next injection, she could bring another patient back and get their vitals started.

  “Are you dating him?” Amy nearly vibrated with excitement.

  “I am not, we knew each other a long time ago.” Amari felt her own heart dance in her chest. Joy was infectious even if it wasn’t based in truth. “He is just helping me with something for Nova.”

  “Does he know it's ‘just’?” Amy nodded her head at the door and quoted her fingers in the air.

  “If he wants it to be more than that he will have to expressly say it.” Amari tapped Amy on the head with the chart. “Guessing intentions is exhausting and often guessed wrong.”

  “But he’s so handsome, why don’t you make a move?” Amy trailed behind.

  “Oh so many reasons.” Amari backed through the swinging door. “Mr. Chesterton? If you would follow me, we will get you started.”

  Amari pulled her coat tighter around herself. A silver wagon pulled up to the sidewalk, her heart tightened and chilled. Taking a deep breath, Amari pulled open the passenger seat. Purse in her lap, she played with a loose brown thread.

  “We are sorry, Amari.” Rema leaned forward from the back seat, placing a hand on Amari’s shoulder. “We know we should have told you, so many times over the years. It is cliche, but the more time that passed the harder it was to admit the choice we made affected you.”

  “We promise to not keep anything that has to do with you directly from you again.” Orion continued.

  Blurred leaves and branches whizzed by in smeared shadows. Amari stared at the reflection of the dash as another nineties song filled the emptiness between them. Thoughts and childish insults warred for dominance in her mind. Sighing, she shifted in her seat. “I recognize your right as my Alpha and Beta to withhold information from me. But we have always functioned more like a family than a pack, why did it even cross your mind as an option?”

  “You forget we were a brand new pack, we had just gotten permission from the Alpha King to claim a bit of land and call our little family of three and a half a pack. We didn’t know what we were doing. The only thing we knew for sure was Mitchell Morningstar used his pack members more than he cared for them.” Orion glanced from the road quickly. “How far it went we were not sure, but by that point we considered you a little sister. And you weren’t sure you wanted to be a full Mutare.”

  “We were scared, the Morningstars are and have been the most powerful pack around. If we lost you to them, it was likely going to be forever.” Rema squeezed her hand.

  “None of us had much sense until we hit our mid twenties.” Amari conceded.

  “Can you forgive us?”

  “Already done, I just wanted to understand.” Amari squeezed Rema’s hand and punched Orion’s shoulder, chuckling at his dramatic reaction.

  “Okay well, Elias has something for us.” Orion smiled over the car as he slammed the door. “He wanted to wait for you.”

  “Oh now, I feel bad.” Amari pulled her purse to her shoulder, linking elbows with Rema.

  “That’s family. We inconvenience each other.” Orion winked.

  “Someone’s waiting for you.” Rema pushed her forward.

  Nova stood on the porch, arms wrapped around herself. Orion and Rema walked around the back as Amari gingerly stepped up the front stoop. “Hey.”

  “You ran away.” Nova sat on the porch swing, toe gently swinging.

  “I did.” Amari sat next to her. “I was upset at Rion and Rema.”

  “You left me behind.”

  The words less than the pain in Nova’s eyes dug into Amari’s heart with the ease of a dull knife. Amari offered her hand, relief washed over her as Nova took it. “I know someone leaving without warning or explanation hurts. I am sorry, I hope to never do it again, but this is mostly a family of first responders, we sometimes leave without warning, but I promise in the future I will call or text as soon as I can to explain and I will come back for you.”

  “Why were you so upset?”

  “They kept a secret for many years. One that might have changed my choices a long time ago.”

  “About Ben?”

  “How much do you know?”

  “You all wouldn’t keep secrets about the family.”

  “You are right about that. Yeah, they kept a secret about Benjamin.”

  “Does this change what we talked about before?”

  “Your choice is still your choice alone. Don’t worry about me or Benjamin or the family.” Amari patted her hand. “Also I have a list of lawyers, we can start at the top and work our way down. We will get to the bottom of this.”

  “I am sorry I overreacted.”

  “That is just something you and I will both have to work on.” Amari waited a moment and at her small nod pulled her into a hug. “How about we go listen to Elias’ theories on how a Minotaur entered our world.”

  They all squeeze around the table in the small office. Amari pulled Elias to the side and quickly apologized for running off and ruining his big reveal. Elias nodded and good-naturedly pushed her to a seat, his excitement getting the better of him as he stepped up to the wall.

  “I have tracked the sightings of fae creatures. Some were bogus but of the ones that seem legitimate, there seems to be a pattern that actually goes back as far as three decades.” Elias pointed to a page in the far left corner.

  “A pattern in location, times, or species?” Orion’s eyes darted across the images and headlines.

  “All of them,” Elias answered.

  “What?” Everyone’s shock filled the room. Everyone talked over each other, asking questions with growing volume. A shrill whistle, everyone clapped their hands over their ears.

  “Quiet up and listen, this is big.” Elias’ stern professor voice left no room for debate. “Sightings started off slow across No-Man’s land, with a few in pack territories. Over a decade they slowly grew particularly within a mile or so of here.” Elias pointed to the floor.

  “How is that possible?” Max jumped in.

  “We weren’t a pack protecting this land.” Orion’s brow furrowed. “I picked this land from what the Alpha King offered because it was near where the girls were attacked. I wanted them to be able to take back control.”

  “And around that time the sightings condensed to the remainder of No-Man’s land to the east, north and south.” Elias pointed on the map.

  “That is worrisome.” Amari rubbed her temple.

  “Why?” Elias looked at the map closer as if searching for something he missed.

  Amari got up, squeezing past Elias. “When I ran yesterday, I ran smack dab into a scientist putting up high def cameras along this line.” Amari ran her finger along a line of pins.

  “I guess I am heading back to the Alpha King.” Orion shook his head, eyes widening slightly.

  “We will all be careful and only patrol in human form.” Rema locked eyes with everyone as they nodded. The weight of the change settled over the room.