Page 6 of Way of the Wolf

Battled foul enemies? Who said things like that?

“Where are youfrom?” I asked, and not only to deflect his suggestion.

“Here and there.” Duncan waved vaguely. “I spent some years in the countryside outside of London.”

“And they talk like that there?”

“I can’t remember. I’ve been gone a long time, and it was rural enough that I didn’t interact with that many people. In my childhood, I was influenced by an abundance of medieval literature, with a smattering of the fantastical when I could sneak it in.”

“The fantastical? Like what? Harry Potter?”

“Those books came out after my childhood, and I prefer slightly more adult and manly fare anyway. Iadorewhat’s now called thegrimdark genre, though I’ve also immersed myself in many of the original fairy tales. They were quite dark, you know. And then there are the classical tales of pirates and swashbuckling adventure. I’ve copies of Dumas in my van. One’s a leather-bound that’s more than two-hundred years old. Do you want to see it?”

“So thatisyour Roadtrek.” I’d assumed so but hadn’t known for certain.

“I’ll confirm that with a yea or nay if you’ll give me your name, my lady.”

“This is Luna Valens,” Bolin offered before I could tell Duncan to quit asking.

I sighed, now doubly sure I didn’t want an intern.

“A most beautiful name.” Duncan held the metal detector out to the side like a sword and bowed deeply.

When he straightened, I noticed an old scar above one of his eyebrows. A circular burn mark. Like might have been done with acigarette? It wasn’t noticeable from a distance and didn’t detract from his looks, but I wondered how he’d gotten it.

Sirens grew audible in the distance, and I didn’t ask. One of the riders didn’t stir but the others hurried toward their motorcycles, either getting them upright and running again or abandoning them. A couple of the men ran toward the woods that Duncan had been exploring earlier.

I eyed him, wondering if the appearance of the police would make him scurry off. If he was a criminal, it should.

“Luna is the perfect name for one who enjoys the moon’s influence,” he remarked, holding my gaze.

Hell. Hedidknow I was a werewolf.

It didn’t surprise me, since I was fairly certain he was one, and if I could recognize my own kind, he could too, especially sincehepresumably wasn’t taking an alchemical concoction to dull one’s magic—and magical senses. The lack of surprise didn’t keep me from wincing. I didn’t trust this guy, whether he’d helped us or not. I was positive nothing good would come from him learning about me.

“My mom picked it,” was all I said. “I didn’t have any choice.”

My surname was another matter. For the twenty years I’d been married, I had been Luna Schneider. I’d never much liked that name and had been eager to take mine back after my slimy ex had sailed off to enjoy life with his various girlfriends around the world.

“What’s her name?” Duncan asked.

“None of your business.” I shot Bolin a quelling look, though there wasn’t any way he could know my mother’s name. Even Ed didn’t know about my family.

“Indeed not,” Duncan said agreeably, then looked curiously at Bolin. “You’ve magic about you.”

Bolin blinked in surprise, though it had to be surprise that someone had noticed rather than confusion about the statement.I’dseenhim throw that vial of whatever it had been. Nothing mundane.

“I thought it was only contained in your bag at first,” Duncan continued, “but it’s in your blood too.”

He didn’t step closer to Bolin, but he raised his nose in the air, nostrils flaring as if he were a hound testing someone’s scent.

No, not a hound. Awolf. And that was exactly what he was doing. Once, I’d also had keen senses that could pick out odors normal humans couldn’t, and I recognized the nose waving.

“Not a witch…” Duncan mused thoughtfully.

“I’m just the intern.” Bolin stepped back, glancing at me.

Now that Duncan had pointed it out, I could get a gist of something paranormal about Bolin too. Usually, I couldn’t tell a witch from a necromancer from a mundane donut maker, but if I was due for another dose of my potion, it wasn’t surprising that I was sensing more than usual. Further, there had been a lot of strength behind my rock throws.

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