Under A Latent Moon (A Werewolf Tale)

Chapter 21

Selene paced in front of the trailers. Around her, her team moved about, getting ready for the upcoming assignment. The whole camp had an air of anticipation and already the adrenaline pumped in each of their veins.

Her people would be ready.

She couldn't take all of them with her. They knew that. Never had there been an assignment where the whole camp came along. This time though, her people had to be ready for the second part of the assignment. Each person would have a job to complete. It gave them a purpose. Which was probably for the best, but the more people involved, the higher the chances of something going wrong. It made her antsy.

She'd always preferred to work in small groups with backups as needed. The small group for the upcoming assignment had already been hand-selected. The backups would be ready as well, just in case.

They wouldn't be needed. She felt it, deep in her bones. This assignment would go without a hitch. It had to.

She took a calming breath. As long as Blackthorne got his head out of his own ass this mission would be easy. Now it was a matter of making sure all of the variables were taken care of.

The trailers in the camp were small--nothing more than a few seven feet by four feet metal boxes with stainless steel bars installed at the opening. When the camp moved, the trailers came with. They hitched easily to the backs of the four trucks they used when they migrated. She moved to the biggest one, the nine by five one, and opened the latch to draw up the steel door.

Yellow eyes stared out from the darkness. "Hi honey," though she wanted to press her face into the cage, she held herself back. She would be of no use to him if she were half-mauled. And he'd hold too much regret afterward. Regret for something he couldn't control. "Wolf today? You haven't been you in a while."

In the cage the wolf prowled forward, sniffing the air. He half-growled half-purred at her. She'd come to learn that as a good sign. Today he wouldn't be overly aggressive.

"Do you think you could try to come back? Just for now?" Her voice softened, "I've got an assignment and I'd love to talk with you before it."A muzzle pressed through the bars. Her hand ached to pet it. Touch, she wanted to touch him without her hand being ripped clean from her arm. "Please."

The eyes never looked away. Never blinked. Then slowly, the yellow dimmed. She swallowed back the hope coming up her throat. Fur receded, bones snapped, and as her anticipation grew she began reminding herself. It might not work. It might not work.

But it did.

Her baby boy looked out at her. "Dominic. Hi, sweetie."

Dominic's blond hair was sweaty and matted to his face. He panted, curling up against the wall to hide his nakedness. "Mom."

"I've got good news." She couldn't help it--her fingers reached through the bars. When they met a sweaty hand, she smiled. "We've found a great lead."

Dominic dropped his head back until it hit the metal wall. "Mom, you said that last time."

"Well this time I mean it."

He was exhausted. She could tell by the way his eyes drooped and the pallor of his skin. The Change always did that to him when he managed to make through it. "I don't know if I can do this anymore."

"Don't you talk like that." He often had notions of giving up. Of letting the beast take over. But she'd be damned if she'd let him. She'd spent too many years fighting to hear him talk of giving in.