Page 14 of Monsters After Dark

Moira gave him a few minutes to come to terms with the news before she spoke again. When he heaved a sigh, Moira glanced up.

“I wasn’t trying to upset you. I just wanted to be honest. But why don’t we talk about something else for a while?”

He snarled and turned his head, looking straight ahead instead of toward her. It was discouraging, but Moira wasn’t ready to give up yet.

She grabbed the bucket and scooted closer on her knees, inching forward until only five feet separated them instead of seven. He shot her a look once or twice, but didn’t respond otherwise. Obviously, he didn’t see Moira as a threat.

“They said they found you in Appalachia. Is that where you’re from?” She scooted a little closer, leaning to catch his eye. “I know you’re upset, but please… talk to me. I’ve already lost someone today. I don’t want to lose anyone else.”

She hadn’t expected her voice to hitch when she mentioned losing Finn, but her throat tightened and her eyes burned, making her wish she’d had time to grieve before meeting this new were. She hadn’t cried around the boys because she’d wanted to be strong for them, so sadness sat heavy in her chest. Moira cleared her throat and blinked away her pending tears.

He was staring again, his expression hovering between suspicion and guarded curiosity.

“Finn, the Alpha of the pack I take care of… died,” she explained. “Sorry. It just happened. I guess I haven’t had time to cope with it yet. He was a good man. The pack and I are going to miss him.”

The massive were let out a weary sigh, metal grating on the concrete floor as he shifted again, the tension leaving his form as he watched her. Recognizing he’d softened at her confession, Moira tried again.

“I know you don’t know me from Adam, but the weres aren’t the only ones trapped. I am too. The situation sucks for all of us. But I’ve tried to make a difference, make things better for them. I’d like to make things better for you too, if you’ll let me.”

He didn’t signal yes, but he didn’t grunt either. Moira decided it was good enough. Slowly she pulled the list of names from her back pocket, holding it out so he could see it was only paper. “I asked if you were from Appalachia because I’d like to call you by your name, but I have to figure out who you are to do that. This is a list of missing persons reports over the last fifteen years, all within a fifty-mile radius of where they found you. Most weres stay close to home after they change.”

Moira unfolded the paper, clasping it between her hands as she split her attention between the marked names on the paper and him. “I just want to know your name so I can address you properly. It’s safe to tell me. The only reason they care about who you were is so they can check your background for military training or other experience they think could be useful to them. They won’t contact anyone from your life before you were a werewolf.”

She knew explaining things could seem just as suspicious as silence, but she hoped transparency would make the difference. It was a risk, but she had little to lose.

“I’m going to read off the names. If you hear yours, signal yes for me?”

The were heaved another agitated sigh, but his ears flickered forward. Moira smiled.

“William Michaelson.” She paused and glanced up to check for a response, but he gave none. “David Townlin.”

Moira repeated the process eight more times with no reaction from him, but the ninth name, Joseph Hunt, caught his attention. His eyes widened and his ears came up sharply, though she suspected it hadn’t been intentional. She glanced back down at the paper. Joseph Hunt had been thirty-seven years old when he’d vanished from his cabin in Virginia, where he lived alone. An older sister had reported him missing.

“Is that you? Joseph Hunt?”

His ears stayed pricked, but his expression was hard to read. Moira continued. “That was fifteen years ago… You’ve been out there alone all this time?”

He was still staring, his ears still pointed in her direction.

“I’m going to assume that means yes.”

She shuffled forward, tugging her bucket along with her. Three feet away, she paused again. “That’s a really long time to be alone,” she said, schooling her tone to sound sympathetic. “You can obviously take care of yourself, but that still must have been hard.”

Slowly he folded his ears back, but didn’t grunt. Given how he was studying her, Moira knew something was bothering him, so she tried to guess at what.

“I can try to find out about your sister,” she volunteered cautiously, not wanting to upset him. “You know, see if she’s still living, see what kind of life she led—if she was happy. I’m sure she’s missed you… But it would be nice to know if things turned out okay for her, right?”

He grunted, his expression darkening.

“No? Okay.” Moira edged closer, mindful of how intensely he watched her movements. Despite his displeasure, the hostility they’d started with was no longer rolling off him, which made her tentatively optimistic. “If you ever change your mind though, just let me know.”

Now only a foot away, Moira stopped again, but this time, she didn’t sit back. She glanced at the observation deck, relieved to see the green light above the two-way glass. The light wouldn’t be lit if the room beyond was empty, even if she couldn’t see through it. It gave her the confidence to continue.

“I’d really like to take the muzzle off and give you something to eat. Can I trust you? I know you must be hungry.”

His ears flicked forward again. Admittedly, Moira had reservations about trusting him. He’d been more cooperative than she’d expected, almost too much, but she wanted a positive rapport with him. The food would help, especially since she’d have to handfeed him because of his positioning.

“Okay, let’s give this a try, then.” She leaned forward, keeping her arms raised in case she needed to escape his gnashing teeth. The metal bands were so tight she had to dig her fingers into his fur to get a good hold on the clasps, and she winced as she tugged at the pieces, trying to get it loose. “Sorry, it’s really tight. Hang on.”

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