Page 52 of Dawn of the Pack

I snatch it up and sigh with relief to see it’s Lily calling me back. The second I accept the call, the apologies pour out.

“Lily, I’m so sorry for acting like that last night. Jared is too. He’s sorry about all of it. We made up right after you left and we waited here all night just so we could catch you as soon as you got back and apologize in person. We-”

“Milo!” She cuts me off. “I know. I listened to your fifteen voice messages, and all of Jared’s as well. Apologies accepted, we’ve got a bigger issue to deal with right now. Is Jared with you?”

That pulls me up short. I tap the phone and lay it on the table. “Okay, I just put you on speaker so Jared can hear. What’s going on?”

“The security team called me half an hour ago. Apparently, our upgrades to the magical barrier works, because they found Azalea sitting outside of it, waiting for someone to come around.”

“Azalea?” Jared asks, surprised. “What is that witch doing here? She’s the one who didn’t want to help us, and now she turns up at our border? I doubt she was trying to sneak on our land. If she was, she would have gone when she figured out it was a no-go.”

“Yeah, well, that’s not the only question I have. But guys, she’s not alone.”

Cold dread drops in my stomach. “Who’s she got with her, Montrose again?”

“No, the security team said she’s got a little old lady with her. Guys, she brought Shuya to us.”

LILLIANA

Milo and Jared make it to the safety office in record time, and repeat all of their apologies, laying it on rather thick, until I convince them I’m okay and ready to move on.

We have much bigger fish to fry.

As a team, we leave the safety office and drive to the section of the border the security team reported. Sure enough, just beyond the cars with flashing lights stands Azalea’s shiny black muscle car, with the witch herself leaning against the chrome bumper, arms crossed. White clouds of exhaust billow from the noisy muffler, and she’s wearing a long black fur coat and matching black sunglasses.

When she sees us climb out of Landon’s Jeep and walk toward her, she pushes away from the car and strides in our direction with one hand up.

I’m about to question if she’s planning to cast a spell when I realize she’s feeling for the location of the barrier so she doesn’t get too close. It’s invisible, of course, and anyone I allow can pass through with no knowledge of its existence. If a car of tourists were to drive by right now, they’d probably assume Azalea had gotten pulled over by the cops and not give it a second thought.

However, we all know the difference.

“Hey there, princess,” she drawls, stopping just a few feet away.

Even though I bristle at the stupid nickname, I know better than to react. “What a delightful surprise, Azalea,” I reply in a heavily sarcastic tone. “To what do we owe the pleasure?”

“Well, Grannie and I had a long talk last night, and she thought I had been rude. I mean, I didn’t think I was rude, did you? But Grannie’s pretty tough, so she insisted we make the trip out here at the crack of dawn.”

“That’s pretty nice of you, considering how long of a drive it is to come all this way to apologize.” Something tells me there’s a lot more to this story, but it’s good to know Shuya can control Azalea when she wants to.

“It’s not just an apology, princess. I brought you a gift, too. I hear that’s all the rage in the wealthy elite circles.”

“I think I’ll pass on any gift you want to give me, thanks. Something tells me it’s not a gift I want.”

Azalea doesn’t seem to take offense. In fact, her reply is suspiciously nonchalant. “Oh, really? Because I was under the impression this is what you came to Grannie’s house yesterday for. But if you don’t want our help to save Leaf, then I guess we’ll be on our way. It’s no skin off my back.”

“Wait.” My body stiffens and I clench my teeth, steeling myself against the instinct telling me to let her keep walking. “How can you help free Derrek?”

“I happen to know a lot of helpful details, princess. I even saw him last night. Didn’t look too good, I’m afraid. They worked him over rather hard.”

A lump forms in my throat, and I struggle to keep it together. “Okay, you got my attention. What else can you tell me?”

Abruptly her innocently helpful demeanor changes. “You know, I’m not feeling very welcome. It’s freezing out here, isn’t it? I made Grannie stay in the car to keep warm. Poor dear, she’s just not as tough as she used to be. We can’t exactly force an old woman to stand outside in the cold for hours. Maybe you have somewhere we can go for a little chat, preferably indoors?” Azalea smiles widely, and it’d almost look friendly if I didn’t know better.

She waits, inspecting her nails, while I turn to consult with my mates, then confer with the security team. Finally, I re-approach the barrier. “I’ll allow you—temporarily—onto pack land, with a few conditions.

“One, you and Shuya ride with us but in separate cars. Two, you leave the keys to your car with me, so one of my mates can drive it somewhere for safekeeping. You’ll get it back when you’re ready to leave, assuming you don’t pull any tricks. Three, you sign a magically binding agreement that prevents you from using magic against any member of Smoky Falls, and specifies that you’ll leave this land and not return without my specific invitation before sunset tonight. Upon pain of death.”

If I’d expected that she’d balk at the extreme elements of my proposal, I would have been very disappointed.

---