Page 134 of Black Willow Witch
‘Maybe because this has somehow become a public area,’ said Ripper. ‘Generally, the leader of the pack will do the marking, but there’s more than one urine marker here. I can smell several. And not all the rake marks were done by the same Rabid. More than one pack has come here, and it’s like theykeepcoming; feel compelled to claim it.’
Logan scratched his nape. ‘Why, though? Sure, there’s plenty of wildlife to hunt in these parts. But no Rabid needs to settle in this particular spot. What could be drawing them here?’
‘Maybetheyhave something to do with it,’ said Crew.
Following the path of his friend’s gaze, Ripper noticed that two small symbols had been carved into the same tree against which the bones were piled.
‘What the hell are they?’ asked Logan.
Ripper squatted down to look at the symbols, feeling his face tighten. ‘I don’t know. But I know someone who will.’
Laying out the small pair of torn jeans on the hub’s counter, Emberlyn hummed as she took in the entire row of ripped clothes. ‘Let me guess,’ she said to the female werewolf in front of her. ‘He still keeps shifting before he’s finished undressing.’ ‘He’ being the nine-year-old boy at his mother’s side, who blushed furiously.
The she-wolf gave a sharp nod. ‘He and his friends are always racing and seeing who can strip and shift first. But more often than not, they’re so determined to win that they don’tfullystrip first. Which is cheating,’ she told her son.
Refusing to meet his mother’s gaze, he stared right at the counter.
It was not at all unusual for Emberlyn’s customers to be parents who were aggravated by their child’s habit of tearing their clothes during shifts. But this poor she-wolf was here more than most. ‘I can use magick to make his clothing more resistant to tearing, but . . .’
‘It won’t make him learn not to cheat, which is why I’m not paying for such a service. In fact, I won’t be dishing out any cash at all. From now on, he’s going to use his allowance to pay for repairs.’
He gawked. ‘What?’
‘Is it so outrageous that you’d pay theliteralprice for your deliberate carelessness?’ his mother questioned.
His shoulders slumping, the boy sighed at the wall, his face all scrunched up. ‘Ah, man.’
Hiding a smile, Emberlyn swiped a tag and nabbed a pen. ‘I can have them ready by tomorrow.’ She scribbled the relevant details onto the tag.
‘Thanks, I’ll see you then.’
‘See you, then. Bye,’ Emberlyn said to the little boy.
‘Bye.’ It was the mumble of a long-suffering martyr.
As mother and son then left, Emberlyn attached the tag to the pair of jeans.
Footfalls preceded the sound of Paisley yawning loudly. Sidling up to Emberlyn with a mug of coffee in hand, she peered down at the newly dropped-off laundry. ‘Another repair job?’
‘Yup. Kid still keeps damaging his gear during his shifts. It’s a werewolf-child thing, I know, but it has to be irritating. You’ll learn that for yourself eventually, since you have this to look forward to.’
Paisley tensed, a pinch of panic in her eyes. ‘What?’
‘Easy, I’m not saying that you and Crew are destined to shack up and breed.’ They were an item, and they were still going strong. But life provided no guarantees. ‘I’m just saying that any children you bear will go through this stage.’
Paisley pulled a face. ‘I don’t think I’d make a good parent.’
‘Because your own are crap?’
‘Yes.’ Looking tired, Paisley chugged back some of her drink. ‘This conversation is much too deep for a Monday morning.’
‘It’s afternoon.’
‘Doesn’t feel like it.’ She scratched her head. ‘I saw your old in-laws last night. I fear I may have given away how pissed I am at them for the stuff they said to Ripper. Because whatever they saw on my face made them wince.’
‘At least they’ve chosen to take note of his warning.’ The Reeds had kept their distance from both Ripper and Emberlyn since their appearance at his lake house.
Paisley raised her mug as if to honor the gods or something. ‘May the idiots continue to heed it.’
