“Not much of a trade is it, darling?” he asked me. “You lose your big, strong wolf boyfriend and get this coward instead.”

My skin vibrated with anger, the wolf clawing to the forefront. “I’d rather have him than a useless drunk like you.” I moved between Charlie and his father. “If you want him back, you’ll have to take him from me.”

For a second I thought he might try it, but he finally relented. “He was nothing but a burden anyway.” He looked over my shoulder at his son. “You have an hour to get your stuff out of my house. Anything left, I’ll burn.”

The next few hours flew by in a haze. Talley was also newly homeless, although her mother managed to kick her out without making a big public display specifically designed to humiliate her. She merely suggested Talley not be home when she finished her meeting with Toby.

While I helped Talley throw most of her belongings into black garbage bags, the preferred luggage choice of displaced teens everywhere, Jase helped Charlie. Despite the feelings of blame and betrayal still sitting heavily in my chest, I found myself worrying about them. What if they didn’t get out before Charles’ one hour time limit? What if other members of the Pack decided they didn’t like the idea of them leaving?

I was simultaneously relieved and anxious to see both Jase’s car and Charlie’s truck in my driveway when I got home. I didn’t know what to say or how to act, but fortunately we were too busy to do either.

We spent most of the night rearranging the garage so we could store some of Charlie and Talley’s things, and making room for them in our bedrooms. It was well after midnight when I collapsed across the air-mattress I had been wrestling sheets onto for the last twenty minutes. I was glad girls didn’t have the same issues with sharing a bed as boys. There was no way I had the energy to do that again.

“Can I just fall asleep here?” I asked no one in particular.

“You’re the Pack Leader,” Talley said plopping down on Jase’s bed, which proved she was a much braver soul than me. I might be disorganized and fond of clutter, but Jase had a tendency to grow his own antibiotics on accident. “You get to do pretty much what you want.”

“Yeah, about that.” I tried to sit up, but ended up just rolling around like a drunk turtle flipped on its back. “While I appreciate the sentiment and am very much happy to not be exiled by my lonesome, I’m not really into this whole Pack Leader thing.”

“What do you mean ‘not into this whole Pack Leader thing’?” Jase asked from his closet where he was making room for Charlie’s clothes.

“I mean I’m not Toby, I don’t want be some hard-ass bossing you guys around all the time. Can’t we be a group of equals? This is the United States of America and the twenty-first century after all. That supreme leader stuff went out of style like two hundred years ago.”

“Doesn’t work that way,” Talley said from the cocoon she had made herself out of Jase’s vintage Spider-Man comforter. “There has to be a Pack Leader and in this Pack that’s you.”

“Why? How about Jase?” I dipped my head off the side of the air mattress. “Hey, Jase! Wanna be Pack Leader?”

The door swung open and Charlie came through with an armload of boxes. I realized I was laying across his bed and tried to jump up, which was impossible. I ended up on landing on all fours directly at his feet.

“I pledged my loyalty to you, not Jase,” he said stepping around me. “You’re the Pack Leader, now get off the floor and act like it.”

Chapter 8

My parents didn’t have a problem with the addition of two new kids in their house. Charlie and Talley both spent more time at our house than theirs most summers anyway. I’m guessing they didn’t see it as a big change. Dad simply re-assigned household chores, and Mom promised to buy more groceries on her way home from the hospital. Neither questioned why they were there or how long they intended to stay. Maybe they realized they would really rather not know.

After they both scuttled off to their respective jobs, I was left alone with my new Pack and one very hyper little sister.

“Angel, could you please go upstairs and play?” I asked the prima ballerina jumping and spinning around the table on which I was trying not to lay my head down and go back to seep. I’d spent most of the previous night listening to Talley snore while growing a ginormous crop of ulcers.

Angel pirouetted into the refrigerator, knocking several magnets to the floor. “No,” was her very succinct answer.

“Please? We need to have a grown-up conversation.” And my nerves were going to be non-existent if she didn’t stop moving around so much. We were just two days past the full moon. My wolf-y sense were still tingling, and Angel was causing a sensory overload.

“You can’t have a grown-up conversation. You’re not grown-ups.”

“Angel—”

“I’ll let you play my X-Box,” Jase said, bringing her to an abrupt stop.

“Can I play a shooting game?”

“Yes,” he answered right over the top of my “no.” Angel raced up the stairs, only hearing the answer she wanted.

And then there was complete and utter silence as Jase, Charlie, and Talley all looked at me expectantly. I cleared my throat and searched for something profound to say. Nothing came.

“So, what now?” I asked, sounding exactly like the strong, all-knowing leader I was.

“First,” Jase said, pointing across the table at Talley, “she goes and pledges herself back to the Hagan Pack. With any luck, she’ll get there when Toby is in a forgiving mood.”

“You don’t give orders, Jase.” Talley’s voice was even and calm, but I could see her fingernails digging into her palms. “I’m staying here. End of story.”

“No, you’re going back to where you belong.”

“I belong with the Pack Leader I swore allegiance to.”

Jase half-rose, his arms braced on the table in front of him. “You don’t get that choice. Now go home before it’s too late.” The cords on his neck stood at attention, threatening to break through the skin. I was more than a little afraid for Talley’s well-being.

“Jase, sit. Now.” He scowled, but obeyed. “Now, explain,” I said, certain I was missing some very important piece of information.