When Michelle stepped into the light of the large room, Jim wolf-whistled.
“I regret my decision to think of you as a sister,” he said with a grin. “Nana can sure pick a suit. I think you should really wear a t-shirt over that, though.”
Michelle blushed.
“Shut up, Jim,” I said, keeping my tone even as she walked out the door. Once she was out of hearing, I turned on him.
“What was that?”
“That was me stopping you from making a mistake.”
“A mistake? You’re telling her to wear more clothes.” I ran a hand over the back of my neck, frustrated.
“She’s already confused and scared with what she has on her plate. Kissing her would have just added more, and she would have taken off for sure. I thought I made that clear last night.”
It annoyed me to know he was probably right.
“You haven’t taken your Elder vows, yet. So stop interfering like you are one.”
He had the nerve to laugh.
“Even if I went downstairs and took them now, you still wouldn’t have liked what I did. Hell, I didn’t like what I did. But it was a necessary block to see this to the end, Emmitt.”
* * * *
Michelle and the boys ate in their apartment that night. Winifred didn’t comment when I declined to have dinner with her and Jim. I opted to go for a run instead. Sprinting between trees and howling at the moon—more like yelling my frustration at it—helped calm me down a little. I was still too restless when I returned, so I worked in the apartment, touching up paint until close to dawn. Jim’s couch didn’t really appeal to me, but I lay on it anyway, with the apartment door open so I could listen.
Jim unintentionally woke me from a light sleep when he left. After a quick shower, I went back to the third floor and looked at my progress from the evening before. I’d scraped the back side of the house so well, very little still clung to the wood siding. Taking a wire brush, I went over the surface one more time.
From within, I heard Michelle and the boys wake and get ready for their day. By the time I finished the back wall, Winifred had already claimed the boys for another morning of learning their alphabet. I knew she was only too happy to teach two willing boys. Jim wasn’t the only one who’d been lonely here.
A sound on the porch pulled me from my thoughts. The steps were light, but not light enough for a werewolf. I smiled and purposely met her as she rounded the corner. She gasped in surprise, almost running into me. I caught her with one arm and stole the cookie she had in her hand with the other.
She nervously smiled at me when I took a bite and offered it back to her.
“I actually brought it for you,” she said. Anxiety coated her scent.
I studied her in silence and wondered how long it’d take to learn her moods and reactions. According to Dad, Mom still kept him guessing. I didn’t like it.
“Will you tell me about your family?” She took up the broom I’d set aside and started sweeping. “Please.”
I wanted to grin. She was finally asking questions.
“What do you want to know?”
“Anything. Everything.” She shrugged, and I wished I understood why she was so anxious. Was she worried my family wouldn’t like her? They’d love her once they knew about her.
“My dad’s side is from Canada. My mom, from the states. They met when she was pretty young. The way my dad tells it, it was love at first sight. My mom just rolls her eyes.” I grinned and moved to start scraping an untouched side of the house. She trailed behind me, listening as she swept up what I took off.
“My dad’s brother lives in Canada with them at the Compound, which is a collection of old buildings that make up the community I grew up in. It has been struggling for decades to support itself while keeping away from the corrupt influences of the outside world,” I said. It still made me want to laugh that so many of our kind still avoided contact with humans, as if humanity’s insatiable need for more would somehow extinguish the werewolf need for simplicity.
“Corrupt?”
“Some believed that humans would lead the world to devastation through their wars, pollution, and overpopulation. They thought by withdrawing from it, they could save themselves.