Page 2 of Coming Home

“Yes, Troy?”

“I heard a rumor that some of the Larken wolves were going to be joining our school this year. Is that true?”

I sighed. Rumors spread quickly in a small town.

“I’ve heard that as well, but I don’t have any real confirmation that it’s true.”

Will rolled his eyes when he walked up to my desk to stand next to his twin. They didn’t look alike, but together, they were like a mini Ben.

“You’re the Alpha’s sister, Ms. Shelby. Of course you know,” Will challenged.

I smirked. In truth, I didn’t. I hadn’t wanted to ask Thomas. I figured if he wanted me to know, he’d tell me, and since he hadn’t, I suspected it was still just a rumor, probably with a little truth, like maybe he and Luke Larken, Alpha of the Larken wolves, were discussing it.

“Actually, Will, I don’t. I’ll let you guys know if I do, but so far Thomas really hasn’t mentioned anything to me about it.”

My sister Peyton had mated a Larken wolf and since then Thomas and Luke had been discussing a lot of things. The Larken wolves used to be part of Collier Pack until Jedidiah Larken had a falling out with my dad and left the Pack, taking several families with him. Unfortunately, he wasn’t a very good leader and left them destitute and struggling in a rundown trailer park with no land to run on.

Most of the Larken wolves were into drugs, alcohol, sex, and riding fast motorcycles. The local humans considered them a dangerous biker gang. There was a little truth in that. I asked Peyton’s mate, Oliver, about it once, and he told me that while the rush was not comparable, it was the next best thing to shifting, which was dangerous for them to do.

The Larken Pack now ran once a month with Peyton and Oliver on the land they had bought just outside Collier, in neutral territory. There were talks about merging the packs back, but so far that hadn’t happened. Thomas did hire a lot of the Larken wolves after one of the big factories in town closed and so far there hadn’t been any major issues from it. Rumors of their kids coming to Collier schools started surfacing shortly after that.

“Come on, Shelby, you have to tell us,” Troy whined.

“Troy, we talked about this. It’s Ms. Shelby at school or Ms. Collier even, but it’s a rule and we need to follow it,” I reminded him.

“But you will tell us if you hear anything for sure?” Will asked.

“Yes, I promise. Now take your seats and let’s get this class started.”

The class time passed quickly. They really were just a great group of kids. I wasn’t as strict as some of the other more seasoned teachers, but since I’d been working with them for a few years at the youth center, I had already gained their respect and the transition so far had been a seamless one.

When the bell finally rang, I watched my students get up and scurry for the door.

“Don’t forget you have a paper due on Monday. Have a great weekend,” I hollered after them.

Teaching was an exhausting, sometimes thankless job, but I was loving it. Watching Troy and Will leave my classroom, I was struck again by their uncanny similarities to their brother.

I didn’t want to think about him, but my mind wandered to that place so easily. I couldn’t help but think of what he might be doing and where Ben was right at that moment.

Ben

Chapter 2

“Shay, get your ass over here.”

“Yes, Major!” I retorted. “Sir, what can I do for you, sir?”

Major Collins looked up from his desk and laughed.

“At ease, Sergeant. Heard you had some issues in the field today. What’s up?”

I sighed and scrubbed my face with both my hands. “May I speak candidly, sir?”

“Take a seat, no need for formalities, Ben. Now what’s going on?”

“These new recruits suck, Jeff. There’s no way they are going to cut it. I’m tired of being benched. I miss my team. Send me back into the field. Just sign the paperwork, please. Overseeing these guys is worse than the desk job you had me assigned to, and I have to ride around in this stupid wheelchair looking weak and pathetic. I’m not either,” I insisted.

“Ben, you were shot in the spine. Physicians checked you over, it was documented. This is the second major injury you’ve had.”

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