Moon Claimed (Werewolf Dens #2) - Kelly St. Clare Page 0,42

be quivering in fear after the shift, but it was like my mind and heart had doubled. I accepted her place inside me without question, something that surprised me most of all. I didn’t depend on people. I depended on myself. Yet I was bizarrely okay with her permanent residence in my body.

Thank you, Andie.

You got it, wolf girl.

Don’t call me that. I’ve told you that I have no need or desire for a name.

It just feels strange calling you my wolf all the time. She had her own mind.

I didn’t receive an answer.

“I appreciate what you’re saying,” I said. “You know a lot more about being a sigma and a Luther than I do. I know what I won’t give up, and that’s my family.”

Sascha held my gaze. “The family who might not accept who you are.”

“Who may not accept what my enemy turned me into. You forget they’ll sympathise. It could have happened to any of us.”

His hands curled to tight fists. “I’ll tear his throat out when I find him.”

“Go ahead. How did this happen anyway? You said biting didn’t change humans to Luthers.”

Sascha glanced at me. “Not just any kind of bite.”

I waited.

“It’s purposeful,” he said shortly.

That’s all I’d get apparently. “Well at least me being a Luther serves your agenda too.”

He glanced at me. “You think I’d change you against your will?”

“Perhaps not you. But Greyson, yes.”

“Then you don’t know him.” There was a definite bite to the words.

I raised a brow. “Why are you upset about me being a Luther when it only serves what you’ve wanted this whole time?”

Sascha’s jaw clenched. A slight growl filled the cabin. “Another Luther touched my mate. That’s against our most sacred laws.”

“Why?”

“Because we only have one mate. We can only have children with that one mate. We’ll only experience such a connection with our one mate. Our mate is everything. They are not to be harmed. And with all that, it’s against our laws to change a human without pack consent. I can’t recall it ever happening.”

I toyed with the handle of my mug and twitched my nose. The musk in his scent just increased to irritating levels. It smelled… dishonest?

Sascha was holding something back on the mate front. “Does your entire pack know about me now?”

“They’ll put two and two together. Your howl and lack of mental link to the pack marked you as an outsider. My reaction will unlock the rest of the puzzle for them.”

Fuck. “Will they keep their mouths shut?”

“Have they revealed anything else?”

True.

He regarded me. “That’s your choice then? You’ll remain in this cabin, leading the Ni Tiaki?”

I didn’t flinch. “It is.”

The musk in his scent muted this time while the river water smell intensified. I wanted to whine in response. This one was easy. He was unhappy.

Sascha set his mug aside. “Then here’s what you need to know until we’re able to meet again for a Luther lesson. The first shift is the only shift made at the full moon. Otherwise, you will be pushed to shift when there’s least sun—during the nights of the new moon. The next one is in two weeks. During this time, I suggest you meet with my pack—”

I opened my mouth, and he held up a hand.

“—initially. This will prevent your wolf attacking anyone or anything she shouldn’t.”

I do like to chase things and eat hearts, she informed me.

Jesus.

But hundreds of Luthers watching and judging me? No thanks.

“The presence of your wolf, as you’ve probably gathered, grows stronger in times of high emotion. Meditation will help you to retain control in two-legged form.”

I’d discovered that pre-shift and I’d practice in every spare moment. “Can I shift between new moons?”

“Yes, you’ll need to. You can shift whenever you like, but I suggest waiting until you’re fully healed before a second shift.”

My stomach churned. “Will every time be as bad as the first?”

He paused. “How long did it last?”

I frowned. “It started somewhere around seven, I think. You found me at midnight? Five hours?”

Sascha jerked, fingers twitching on his thighs. “If you shift in the presence of the pack, the first shift should take no more than twenty minutes.”

Minutes. My gaze flew to his. “Really?”

His expression was grave. “The longest first shift I’ve heard of is one hour.”

I shivered. Right. Sounds like I brushed a little close to death. Yikes. “What if I shifted by myself again?”

“Not as long. Considering the length of your first, I can’t guess.” Sascha’s chest rose. “Please don’t shift without me near,