Chapter 383
Lanie
By the time we all got to the school, the other parents were lining up, too. Nobody seemed bent out of shape about the lights
flickering. Some even joked about it.
The only concerned faces I saw belonged to my mates.
We got the pups back to our quarters. We settled all three with snacks and some games, and then they played sweetly together.
I watched Stella carefully.
Now that I knew she had to be capable of reading my thoughts, I wanted to see if sheâd reveal that talent.
Stella.
She didnât look up or even seem to blink. That didnât mean she couldnât hear me. Just that she didnât.
Maybe she hadnât discovered yet that she could, or sheâd sensed that I was upset at the idea of her telling
the teachers to make fa rt jokes.
She was just a little girl, after all. One who'd grown faster than was to be expected... was trying really
hard not to think of her in terms of ânormalâ or not.
She'd grown faster. Matured more quickly. She could do things other wolf children couldn't, even things.
other hybrid children weren't able to.
And for Stella, all of that was exactly as it was meant to be.
âLove?â Xander put a hand on my shoulder. âWe're ordering dinner in tonight. What do you want?â
âWhatever you all decide will be fine with me.
Something good for the kids that isnât nuggets or pizza,â I added absently.
I wasnât hungry. That in and of itself seemed like a big change, considering how intense my appetite ha been lately. I pretended
to be folding some clothes that had come back from the laundry, but I was really watching Stella interact with Alaina and Isaac.
None of our three pups had ever been a disciplinary problem. Nothing more than the general fussing. I couldnât even recall if any
of them had ever had a tantrum. Wolves might be impassioned and full of emotions, but wolf pups were generally well-behaved,
and ours were terrific examples of that.
But what if...what if Stella did rebel? Even something as simple as telling her to go to bed, to brush her teeth...there was no way
for me to enforce that. Not if she truly was as powerful as that book had said.
I had thought Stella didnât fully understand what she was doing to those teachers and why it was wrong.
She was just a little girl. But now I had to rethink that.
I had to actually hope that she did, in fact, understand and chose to anyway, even knowing that it was
wrong.
Her childlike morals might need improvement, but that was better than thinking she could use that talent
without understanding it.
I had to believe she could choose it. Could control it. Because if she couldn't, that would mean an
out-of-control child had more power than anyone else alive.
Xander
I thought the knock at the door was our food being delivered, but it turned out to be Malachi. He entered
our quarters without so much as a nod at me. He strode in and turned around with a triumphant gaze, hands
on his hips.
âHalâ
âHa, what?â I demanded:
Lanie looked nervous. âGrandfather?â
Malachi barely looked at her. He focused on me and Mason. âYou two will be interested to know that my gut feeling-and yes, by
the sunâs belligerent rays, it was totally in my gut-â
âGet to the point,â Mason said.
âMy gut was correct in telling me something was wrong,â the Ancient vampire said.
Lanie let out a small noise. âWhat's wrong? What's going on?â
I could sense her anxiety rolling off her in strong waves. Zane could, too, and I sensed him sending out a few pulses of Beta
energy. They didnât seem to be working.
âThere is a town not far from here. Very remote. So remote,â Malachi said, âthat everyone in it single building. The entire town is
in one building, can you imagine? Nothing like Brightsky.â
Us.
âThe point,â Lanie snapped.
The vampire looked strangely giddy and didnât even take offense. âWe have sources there who
And theyâve said that multiple new faces have arrived there over the past few days. Thatâs not at typical.
Not this far out in the middle of nowhere. Certainly not without a reason. Itâs not a tourist spot.â
Lanie nodded toward a light fixture. âWhat happened earlier today with the lights?â
Her grandfather turned to face her. âPower surge, I suppose.â
âIs that common?â Mason asked.
Malachi frowned. âNo. But itâs not impossible. Even technology as advanced as we use here in the enclave
can be strained from time to time when thereâs a big draw on the power source.â
âWas there?â I asked.
He shrugged. âI donât know.
No wonder Charlotte wanted our input into the security here. Clearly, they'd all gotten too used to being
âsafe,â which was the ripest time for something bad to happen.