Page 41 of Wicching Hour

Bracken tied up the garbage bag.

“Wait! That needs to be disposed somewhere where the raccoons won’t find it.” I couldn’t have my little friends eating tainted food.

“I can take it with me,” Declan said. “My dumpster locks.”

Bracken swirled his hand over the bag. “It should be safe now. I strengthened the bag itself and then gave it a highly astringent scent that animals will avoid.”

Declan nodded. “It smells like the cleanser you were using. No animal is going to chew his way through a bag smelling like that.”

“Thank you very much,” I said, and Bracken nodded with a shy smile.

“Do we know how long it’ll be before your mom calls?” Declan asked.

I shrugged. “Probably not for a while. They need to go over every possible angle before they tell us what they’ve decided. They’re not big on open discussions.”

“But you’re a member of the Council,” Declan argued, offended on my behalf.

Grinning, I patted his shoulder. “I have not yet earned their trust or respect. I’m getting there, but those two have been working together since Mom was a teenager and joined the Council. I’m the powerful punk kid who ignores her responsibilities. Once they’ve decided on a path, they’ll entertain my input.”

I washed my hands again, just to be safe, and slipped on a new pair of gloves.

“Well, if we have time, let’s get lunch and go car shopping,” Declan suggested. “I’m hungry and that RV isn’t going anywhere any time soon.”

As we all loved Mexican food, Declan drove us to Mariana’s. We’d missed the lunch rush, so we got a table easily. As we ate, we discussed car options. It was decided pretty quickly that it needed to be an SUV if we wanted Declan to fit in it.

“That works better for me anyway,” Bracken said. “I’m so used to being up high when I drive. I don’t know how well I’d adjust to being low to the ground. Not being able to see over the other cars.”

Declan drove past a dealership, and I saw a rig I didn’t think they made anymore. “Was that a Bronco? I love those.” I turned to Bracken. “Can we try one of those?”

His smiles seemed to come easier these days. “By all means. That one’s on my list.”

Declan circled around the block and came back around to park in front. I almost crawled over him to get out. It was exactly like I remembered, but new and shiny. There was a guy down the block when I was growing up who drove one and I always loved it. I wanted one, but because of the visions, I can’t drive.

I pushed Declan ahead of me. “There’s no point getting my hopes up if you can’t fit in it.”

The price on the window was way higher than I was expecting, but Bracken didn’t blink an eye at it. Declan climbed in, easing the seat as far back as it would go so his knees weren’t jammed under the steering wheel. He put his hand over his head.

“I’ve got maybe a quarter inch, but my head’s not touching,” he said.

I pulled on his arm. “Try the back seat too.”

He looked over his shoulder into the back. “I think that’s going to be your seat.” He got out, opened the back door, and stopped. “If I’m wounded and you need to lay me out, put me in the cargo area.”

“Good afternoon.” A tall Latino man with short dark hair and a trim beard came around a big SUV, saw Declan, and stopped in his tracks. He lowered his head and waited.

“Miguel,” Declan said, walking over and putting a hand on the man’s shoulder, his thumb touching the man’s neck.

Ah. He must have been a werewolf too. Declan had once told me that when wolves were upset, having the Alpha touch them helped to ease whatever was going on.

The Big Sur pack was all male, which seemed odd to me. I knew female wolves existed, though in much smaller numbers. I had asked Declan at one point, and he told me that he believed the reason the Big Sur pack had no women was because Logan and his inner circle were predatory creeps. He’d asked Kenji and Daniel, his third, about it and had been told that the few women the pack had had felt unsafe and moved to join other packs. Kenji, though, had told him they’d recently received a few petitions from female wolves who wanted to join, which made Declan feel good. He was changing things.

“You haven’t been to practice in a while,” Declan said to Miguel. Everything was code when we were out where humans could hear us.

“No, sir. My wife is a nurse. She was put on the late shift. I can’t leave the kids and go to late night practices.” He glanced up at Declan, his head still tilted away. He looked braced for violence.

“I understand. Would an early morning practice work better for you?” Declan patted the man’s shoulder.

Surprised, Miguel stood straight and nodded. “Yes, sir. I need to be here by ten. My kids can walk to school. It’s only three blocks away and my wife is home by then. She’ll be sleeping, but she’s there if there’s an emergency.” He chanced a smile. “That would help a lot. Get rid of all this…” He rotated his shoulders, trying to demonstrate where the tension was hitting him.

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