Page 15 of Wolf's Chance

Turning my head, I looked at her friend. “Caleb.”

“Caleb,” Willow repeated quietly. “I see that.” She saw my curious look, and the familiar blush spread over her cheeks. “It suits you.” She wouldn’t meet my eyes, and I turned my attention back to her friend, who was talkingatme again.

“I don’t have a phone.”

I knew that would have silenced them both, and I relished in the merciful quiet at my little white lie.

“You don’t have a cell?”

Had I announced something truly shocking, I might haveunderstood the look of horror on the girl’s face. But surely not owning a mobile tracking device wasn’t that appalling? “Never needed one.”

“Who doesn’t need one?” she asked incredulously. “Are you normal?”

I almost laughed. “Define normal.”

Willow reached out and pushed me slightly. “If we’re going, we should go.” I saw her pointed look at her friend. “I’ll phoneyouwhen I’m home.”

Thesafewas unspoken, but we all heard it.

Willow walked slightly ahead of me as she set off in the wrong direction, and with a wry grin, I followed her, knowing her game too well. We walked in silence, but her glances soon turned into stares, which morphed into annoyed frowns.

“Do you often let men you don’t know walk you home?”

“No.” The frown deepened.

“What makes today different?”

“You know why.”

“If I knew, do you think I would’ve asked?” She was full on scowling now, but the brisk pace she set off with had turned into a slow walk.

“I don’t know much about ME.”

“Changing the subject?”

“Or making conversation?” I countered. When I was met with silence, I thought about what I knew of illness. “What causes ME?”

“There are many factors that are attributable to the cause of it,” she told me with a sigh. “But honestly, I don’t think anyone knows.” She held up her hand. “I’ll save you the trouble. I caught mono when I was younger, not long after turningsixteen. ME is an illness that is believed to involve a combination of things, from genetics, environmental influences, and biological factors.” Willow turned her attention to the sidewalk. “I’m an orphan. I don’t know if either of my parents had it, never met them to ask.” Her hand circled in front of us. “I’ve moved around a lot, foster families and stuff, so when I was able, I moved out here. Clean air, freshness, better than a city.”

“Can’t argue with that,” I agreed as I took in the mountains that surrounded the town. “And the biological? From when you had mono?”

Willow nodded. “Yeah, it can weaken the immune system. I don’t know if itwasthe reason I got ME, but I also don’t know itwasn’t.”

“Cure?”

“No. Manageability.” Her hands slipped into her jeans pockets.

“And how does that work for you?”

Willow stopped walking and glared at me. “Do you actually care, or are we going to talk about how you were in my house yesterday and have been watching me?”

I feigned surprise and I knew she saw right through me. “I was inyourhouse?”

Throwing her arms in the air, she let out a small scream, spun on her heel, and started walking briskly back the way we came.

Jogging slightly to catch up with her, I took a light hold of her arm, pulling her to a stop and turning her towards me. “Are you okay?”

Her anger shone out as she scowled at me. “No. Why are you lying?”

---