Page 24 of Wolves Always Bite

"You'refreaking him out,"Nelsonobserved calmly.

"Shit.Deathmages don’t kill people or anything like that.They…"Adrianhesitated.

"Theywhat?Talkto ghosts?”

Adrianshook his head. “Onlyif he summons them.Youhaven’t metDavinayet, but she is the one who can talk to ghosts who haven’t moved on yet.”

I’dbeen trying to make a joke, but the joke was on me.Notonly did ghosts exist, butInow knew people who talked to them.Wherewas my notebook?

“Davina… is that the woman you calledDavieearlier when she called?”

“Thesame one,”Adrianagreed. “Teaguecan call spirits back if they’ve already moved on, which means he has to be firmly anchored in the living.Hisconnection to the natural world is strong.Hecan help.Ipromise."

Atthis point,Ishouldn’t have been surprised to hear that not only were there ghosts but that some people talked to them.Outof everything that had happened, that one seemed almost normal.Tonsof people believed in ghosts.Mygrandfather had talked to empty air for years, saying he was chatting with his dead brother or his dead uncle or some other dead person.He'dbeen doing that my entire life, probably longer.Noone even blinked at his behavior anymore.Maybehe wasn’t as nuts asI’dalways thought he was.

“Trustme,”Adrianwhispered whenIdidn’t answer right away.

"Yeah.Okay."Ihuddled closer toAdrian.

"IfIhad any doubts about his ability to help you,Iwouldn’t suggest it," he murmured.Iloved the low, soothing sound of his voice.

ThenIsworeAdrianbrushed a kiss to my temple.

ChapterSeven

ADRIAN

Thecall toGagewas short.Ratherthan going to check onDavinawhile we went to the city,Gageand the others were now meeting us at a gas station a few miles north ofWillowLakewhere we’d reevaluate our next steps and getJeremyexamined.Thathad been our ultimate destination anyway, so we’d just be getting there faster than expected, without the detour to the city first.

Thedrive to our meeting place was quiet.I’dexpected another call fromDavina, but it didn’t happen.Nelsonwas always quiet, but even in the short timeI’dknownJeremyIknew this was unusual for him.Ididn’t know what to say though to ease his worries, soIkept my mouth shut.Whenhe was ready to talk, he would.Butthe silence gave me plenty of time to replay what’d happened.

Istill couldn’t believe we’d been attacked so aggressively.Outin the open.Withdeadly intent.

WhateverBabettewas up to,Isuspected there was more to it than fencing stolen magical artifacts.Ifshe’d considered those objects, including theJahaller, valuable, she wouldn’t have tossed everything into cardboard boxes and left them with a human guard.Heractions pointed to this being a side gig, and not her primary focus.Thattheory also aligned with how aggressively she’d come after us.

So…Whatwere we missing?

Bythe time we arrived at the gas station,Jeremywas asleep.Howhe slept in these conditions,Ihad no clue.Thetrip had been noisy and smelly with wind whipping at us through the gaping hole where my windshield used to be.

Nelsonclimbed out of the truck as soon as we were parked alongside the motorhome.Thankfully, he shut the door quietly, as if not wanting to scareJeremyawake.Thelast thing the human needed was to be frightened again today.Hewas sleeping so peacefully.Hishead rested on my shoulder, and he was snuggled right up against my side.Ihated to disturb him, butIalso neededTeagueto examine his injuries.

“Hey,Jeremy,”Iwhispered asIrolled my shoulder a little.Thatdidn’t do anything, soItapped his leg.

“Goaway.”Jeremymoaned and wrapped himself around my arm like it was a body pillow.

“Jeremy, it’s time to wake up.”

Alittle furrow creased his forehead.Iwaited for him to blink and wake up.Instead, he rolled until his face was smashed against my chest.Helet out what sounded like a contented sigh.

“Jeremy, come on.Youneed to wake up.We’rehere.”

Nothing.

Ipoked his cheek.Iwould have poked his side, butIdidn’t know if he was injured.Withsurprisingly quick reflexes,Jeremyslapped my hand away and jolted upright.Hisgaze darted blindly from side to side before focusing on me.

“Hey, sorry about that,”Isaid. “Iwas trying to wake you, butIdidn’t mean to startle you.You’resafe.”

Jeremyrubbed his eyes as he slumped in the seat. “Shit.Whenyou did that,Ihad a flashback to whenIwas a kid.Therewas a short time when if one of us didn’t get up when we were supposed to, my parents would send in another of us kids.Weweren’t nice to one another.”Hehad a soft smile on his face, like the memory made him nostalgic even though it sounded like his siblings had tortured him.