that. And there won’t be a damn thing I can do about it.
No one can control the Flux. When I give myself to the ceremony and take in the wolf spirit that chooses me, it’s out of my hands, and most females immediately submit to a male. It’s a sacred ceremony, one that should be honored and celebrated. But all Burke cares about is dominating. Claiming. Taking what isn’t offered. And the salt in the wound is...my wolf might want him to.
As if he can see the fire dim in my eyes, Burke winks, and then he leans down, fisting some loose dirt in his hand before dropping it in my mother’s grave with an unceremonious toss. Then he turns and walks away with his hands in his pockets, whistling a damn tune as he goes.
I hate him.
Looking back at the freshly turned soil now covering the coffin, I swallow hard, ignoring the two gangly shifters waiting off to the side awkwardly, shovels already in their hands to finish securing my mom’s body in the ground as soon as I leave.
She’s gone. My father’s gone. I have no other family left.
Above me, the sky finally crumples, like it’s squeezing the clouds in its fist. Raindrops fall just as I turn away, unable to bear the sight of the grave turning into a muddy, puddled mess. My mom would’ve hated that.
I walk away, the sky’s offering mocking my dry cheeks. Even knowing that I’ll forever be separated from her by six feet of cruel earth, I still don’t cry. Instead, the clouds mourn for me as if they’re trying to show me the way.
If only I weren’t too lost to follow.
The healer house, my house, is quiet.
It was never quiet before.
With a pack as large as Twin Rivers boasting several hundred shifters, our house always had someone in it being treated by my mother. That’s what happens when you’re the pack healer. Rain or shine, dawn or dusk, someone always needed her.
Full moons were the worst. That’s when Burke runs the mandatory pack fights. To keep a healthy hierarchy, he always says. But really, he just likes watching pack members beat the shit out of each other. Since most of them don’t actually move up, it’s all for entertainment.
My mom despised the fights, of course. A lot of the pack do. But leaving isn’t easy, especially for the families who’ve been on this land for generations upon generations. So, we all just wait and hope that the day will come when Burke is challenged and he loses.
Until then, my mother was always there, ready to set bones before they healed too quickly, to use her magic to ease their pain and calm their wolves. If Burke wants someone to patch up his pack members by the next moon, he’s going to have to get a healer soon. And just the thought of someone taking her place, of living in my home...
I shake my head and walk down the light-yellow hallway that suddenly feels too narrow. Mom painted it a happy color. She said it would wrap you up in a hug when you came home. But all I feel is cold and lonely as I head for my room. I don’t let myself look in the direction of hers; I don’t want to see the emptiness that’s a reflection of what I feel in my soul.
The smell of lavender and vetiver greets me as I open my door. I peel off my wet dress and underwear, flopping them into the sink as soon as I walk into the bathroom. It takes me fifteen minutes of just standing under the hot spray of the shower before I feel whole enough to actually wash. Another fifteen to get myself out and dressed in leggings and a long-sleeved shirt, because even though it’s warm out, I feel cold to the bone.
Another fifteen minutes go by, and all I can do is sit on my bed, staring at the sunset bedsheets we picked out together on our last girls’ day. My skin is crawling, the walls closing in, and I realize I can’t sleep no matter how exhausted I might feel. This used to be my sanctuary, my escape from it all. The four walls of this room have watched over me since I was a kid, but now they just feel as hollow as I do.
I flee my own bedroom and head back downstairs, only to find myself standing in the doorway to my