She finished chewing her food, her eyes suspicious as she looked me over before speaking. “Hi.”
“So, I thought you were a shifter.”
“I thought you were a wolf,” she said. “Because you told us that.”
“I am,” I said. “But that’s not all.”
“So I heard,” she said. “Astrid thinks you’re my sister.”
“Is there any possibility I could be?” I asked. “The person who told me said I was switched at birth. He called me a changeling. He said it happened when I was a baby.”
Her eyes narrowed, and she squinted at the trees behind me, a thoughtful look on her face as she took another bite of her meat filled tortilla. She chewed and gazed off for a good minute. I could practically see the wheels turning.
“It’s gotta be Amaryllis,” she said at last. “She’s the most ungifted witch the world has ever known. Plus, her hair’s barely even red.” She gave a sniff of disdain for her poor sister who probably spent her whole life trying to do magic and failing, since she was only human. Though to be fair, it sounded like Cayenne cared more about her hair than her magic. I hoped her life had been happy despite these supposed shortcomings.
“You okay, Timberlyn?” Alarick murmured, stepping up beside me and gently resting his fingers against my lower back.
“Amaryllis,” I whispered. “That must be my real name.”
“You want me to call you Amaryllis?” Alarick asked skeptically.
“No,” I said, shaking my head. “I don’t feel like an Amaryllis. I feel like Timberlyn.”
“I don’t blame you,” he said. “I could never change my name.”
“Really?” I asked, pulling back to look up at him. “Why not?”
“Because,” he said with a shrug. “It’s my name. It means wolf. And I’ve always been Alarick.”
“Wait, wait, wait,” I said, holding up a hand. “Your name means wolf, too?”
He frowned. “Yeah…”
“So you’re a Moon Moon, too?” I asked, laughing. “Oh, man. I’m going to give you so much shit for this. I thought it was just Adolf. Does that mean you’re all Moon Moons?”
“What’s a Moon Moon?”
“Your name is Wolf Wolf,” I said. “It’s like Moon Moon. Man, if I’d known that, I don’t think I’d ever have been able to take you seriously.”
“Then it’s a good thing you never knew,” he said. “Now, I believe we were talking about your name, not mine. Amaryllis.”
“Ugh, don’t call me that,” I said, rolling my eyes. I decided right then that I wasn’t changing my name. “If this other girl wants to change her name, there will just have to be two of us.”
“So, you’re a witch,” Cayenne said, handing her plate to one of her bodyguards after leaning in to give him a quick kiss. “What can you do?”
“I don’t know,” I said. “I have visions and dreams. And I can find things. And a couple times, I… I don’t know what it’s called. I thought about being in the woods one time, and I opened my eyes, and I was in the woods.”
“Cool,” Cayenne said, looking more excited the more I spoke. “Apparition can take a long time for some witches. That means you have a decent amount of magic. I bet with some training you’ll be a really strong witch.”
“Yeah, if I could learn to take my clothes with me when I do it, that would be great,” I said, and everyone cracked up. The tension broken, I felt more relaxed and ready to ask my next question. “So, do you think your parents would want to meet me?”
“Hell, yeah,” Cayenne said. “Oh, and witches get a collective of men to protect us. So, you have like five dads.”
Alarick’s hand moved around me to my hip, tightening his hold. “Don’t worry,” I said, laughing. “I told you, you’re more than enough for me. Maybe it’s my wolf side, but I only want one mate.”
“Must be,” Cayenne said. “Because that’s just crazy. Why would you want one when you could have four?” She gestured around her at the four guys, introducing them as Efrain, Malik, Oral, and Nelson.
“I hope you’re an expert,” Alarick said, shaking Oral’s hands.
“It’s all about the ears,” Oral said, laughing and tugging on his gigantic ears before turning to Cayenne. “They’re like handlebars, right, baby? Steer me where you want me to go.”
Cayenne swatted at him, and he pulled her in to kiss her while we greeted the others.
I couldn’t help but feel at ease and relaxed with all these supernaturals around me, as if I’d finally found the place I’d been looking for all my life—a place where I belonged.
*
“Are you going now?” Brooklyn asked, appearing in the doorway as I shouldered my pack the next morning. I could have left it, but considering I didn’t know if we’d be back to stay at Stella and Harmon’s lodge again that night, I figured I shouldn’t leave a bag that still contained blood packets.
“Yeah,” I said to Brooklyn. “What’s up?”
“Are you coming back?”
“I don’t know,” I admitted. I didn’t know what the witches’ accommodations would be like, or if they’d welcome the Wolf brothers staying with them. We were going to meet my birth parents, but beyond that, I didn’t know what to expect.
“I’m staying,” Brooklyn said.
“I know,” I said, adjusting my pack. “I’m glad you found your mate. Congratulations on that.”
“Thanks,” she said, looking uncharacteristically subdued, almost nervous. “So, this might be goodbye?”
“Well, Alarick says he can’t submit to Harmon. I guess they’re both too alpha. So, yeah, we’re leaving. I’m not sure if we’ll stay with the witches a while first, but I know Donovan
