Wolf Tracks - Bianca D'Arc Page 0,37

a touch of fey in the bloodlines, from what I’ve been told.”

Helen seemed nervous under that gimlet stare, and Jim didn’t blame her. He moved closer to her in an unconscious protective stance, and only realized what he’d done when Miss Felicity’s gaze followed his movement. She gave him a knowing smile.

The little dog chose that moment to hop out of its basket and walk up to Helen, sniffing her foot before looking up at her. She looked down at the dog and her expression softened.

“Who is this?” she said, bending to offer the pooch her fingers to sniff.

“His name is Angus,” Miss Felicity told them. “He seems rather taken with you, my dear. That’s a good sign. Angus is an excellent judge of character.”

“Hello, Angus,” Helen crooned as the dog allowed her to stroke his head and scratch behind his ears. “Aren’t you a handsome fellow?” Helen cocked her head to the side and seemed to study the dog for a moment. “There’s something wrong with his paws,” she said finally. “May I help him?” Helen looked to Miss Felicity for permission.

“Certainly, you may try,” Miss Felicity replied, her eyebrows rising in apparent surprise.

Helen put both hands on the little dog, stroking his fur. A little zap of her magic that Jim felt only as a slight tingle since he was standing so close to her, and she looked up again, smiling. The dog jumped upward, and she caught him in her arms as she stood, cradling him close as he licked her face. She was grinning as she moved toward Miss Felicity.

“All better,” Helen pronounced, putting the dog on the couch next to Miss Felicity when she patted the cushion. The little fellow walked over to its mistress and looked up at her adoringly as she stroked his fur.

Miss Felicity looked at Angus’s paws in minute detail, looking up at Helen with surprise. When she was finished with her examination, her expression had filled with approval and gratitude. Her whole demeanor softened.

“Thank you, my dear,” Miss Felicity said to Helen. “That was kindly done. Angus hasn’t been himself since he got hurt. Our Pack healer couldn’t do much more for him. We just had to let him heal naturally. But you’ve returned Angus’s vitality to him, and for that, I thank you.”

“You’re very welcome,” Helen said, taking the chair at the side of the couch as Miss Felicity motioned for her to sit down. “How did Angus get hurt?”

“I’m not sure. He’s an independent customer, is Angus, and he likes to prowl around during the day when I take my nap. He came back a few days ago with burns on his little paws, but nobody knew where he’d gotten them,” Miss Felicity explained.

“Burns?” Jim asked, taking the chair on the other side of the couch, across from Helen. “Heat or chemical?”

Miss Felicity shook her head. “I’m not sure. By the time he limped home, any chemicals he might’ve gotten into—if that’s what happened—were long gone in the dust and dirt of his travels.”

Chapter Nine

They spent a few more minutes talking with Miss Felicity, but before too much time had passed, Felicia reminded her great-grandmother that she had to leave for an appointment, and Felicia wanted to get their new guests settled in their room first. Helen hadn’t gotten a chance to broach the subject of Miss Felicity’s arthritis pain, but there hadn’t been a good opportunity to do so. She would try again later. For now, finding a few minutes to freshen up sounded really good. She was also curious to see what the guest rooms in this grand old house would be like.

Felicia showed them to their rooms. It was a single suite with two bedrooms and a shared bathroom between them. The décor wasn’t nearly as dated as the fancy front parlor that seemed to be Miss Felicity’s domain, but it was lovely. Clean, crisp lines, and gentle earth tones in beige and cream with burgundy accents, echoing the trim of the house itself.

Felicia left them after pointing out the amenities and showing them a binder with the house rules in it, along with menus from various town businesses. All the information any guest would need about the town and its offerings were within the pages of that binder, and Helen looked forward to reading it cover to cover.

First, though, she wanted a shower. The flight hadn’t been that long—just over four hours—but it had been an eventful few days, and she was feeling a