Kat's smile widened. She hadn't known that, though it certainly explained why he was the only wolf shifter in a family of ravens.
"Does Ethan know?" Gwen asked.
She shook her head. "We used one this morning, and I cleaned up afterwards. I doubt he even thought about it."
"Are you going to mention it?"
She hesitated. "I don't know. He was so damn vehement about never having kids."
"Yet he's obviously very close to this niece of his." Gwen regarded her thoughtfully. "There's a story in all that, I wager."
"If there is, it's not one he's telling me." Not yet, anyway. "Besides, I won't know for a couple of weeks for sure."
"I can tell you tonight. A day passed is all the stones need to see such things."
"I know." But did she want to know? Knowing meant she had to decide whether to tell Ethan or not. He had the right to know, and yet, he'd already told her he didn't want a relationship, let alone kids, and she had no right to trap him that way. Especially when she was more than capable of raising a child by herself.
Gwen sighed. "A kiddy will put a serious dent in our Circle activities. At least for a couple of years."
The anticipation evident in her voice suggested it was a dent she'd more than welcome. "Don't start counting your ravens before they hatch."
"Might be a pup," Gwen mused. "Mine certainly was."
"I really don't care what it is."
Gwen grinned at her. "Sounds as if you're certain it happened."
Deep down she was. Gwen might have scrying and visions, but her own second sight was just as strong, if somewhat more erratic. But she wasn't about to admit her certainty. Not yet. So she shrugged. "You're the one who told me they were lethally fertile around moon fever time. With the way my luck has been running of late, it's bound to be a certainty."
Gwen touched her arm, squeezing gently. "You should talk to him. Try to find out why he is so against children of his own."
She sighed. "I'll try. But digging information out of that man is hard."
Footsteps echoed across the wooden floors behind them. Ethan appeared two seconds later, a cup of coffee in hand as he stopped beside her. He was close enough that she could smell the fresh soapiness of his skin, yet not close enough for his arm to brush hers. And she sensed this slight distancing was deliberate. That after last night, he needed to put some space between himself and the emotions they'd raised.
And that annoyed the hell out of her.
"Benton just called," Ethan announced. "The missing kid turned out to be a custody case — just as you'd predicted."
Gwen nodded. "I'm not usually wrong, you know. I gather he's on the way back?"
"Yeah. He's told me to tell you to stay put. He wants to talk to you both about last night."
"We can't stay put." Kat's voice was sharper than she'd intended and earned an amused look from her grandmother. "We have a house to investigate."
Ethan nodded. "I told him as much. He ordered me to wait."
"And are you going to follow his orders?"
"Nope." He took a sip of coffee, his gaze distant. "I get the feeling Janie's time is running out. If we don't find her today or tomorrow, we're not going to find her at all."
"I feel the same way, wolf." Gwen sighed and rose stiffly from the stool. "I've got some packs ready with zombie deterrents and sleep potions in them. I'll just add some stakes, then you're ready to go."
Ethan watched her walk away. Her hobbling was worse this morning and pain pinched her mouth. "Why is your grandmother doing this?" he asked once Gwen had gone.
Kat's glance was quizzical. "Doing what?"
"This. Chasing bad things. Why do it when she's old enough to retire?"