Page 27 of Midnight Moon
“Agree to team up in the first game, and you will see.”
I exhaled and stared up at the night sky. It felt like we were talking in circles. “Look, it’s been a long day. While I appreciate your offer, I’m going to have to turn it down.”
Instead of trying to convince me to change my mind, Asher simply said, “I understand. The offer will stand throughout the games. Let me know if you want to take us up on it.”
Never.
I lowered my gaze. In a flat tone, I said, “Will do.”
Asher smiled. It softened the harsh features he wore in the meeting hall. “Good night, Blair. And good luck tomorrow.”
Before I could say a word, he turned on his booted heel and strolled away.
“Good night,” I murmured to his back, resisting the desire to go after him.
Asher had been decently forthright when answering my questions, but I knew he wasn’t telling me something. There was a reason the Wilds Pack decided to join in the Alpha Games. And there had to be more to their controversial prize than just wanting to forge an alliance with my pack.
No, something else was going on… I just had no idea what it could be.
Eight
The next morning,the first day of the Alpha Games officially began. I woke an hour and a half before dawn. Excitement buzzed in my chest, mixed with a healthy dose of trepidation. I’d spent the majority of my adolescence preparing for these games, and the time had finally come to put my efforts to the test.
The Wilds Pack had thrown an unexpected boulder in my way, but I’d be damned if I let them knock me off my path. I was ready to prove myself and earn my place within my pack.
I showered and donned a comfortable pair of leggings and a loose sweatshirt, braiding my hair so it stayed out of my face. I grabbed a room-temperature water bottle from the wicker basket on the kitchen island before stepping outside to head to the meeting hall for breakfast.
Hunter greeted me outside the cabin my father and I were staying in. He leaned against the porch railing and held out a Styrofoam cup. “Good morning, future Alpha Blair.”
“Morning.” I inhaled the sweet smell. “Mm. Is that caramel?”
“Yup. Four pumps of caramel syrup. I know how you like your coffee.” He gave me a wink, confirming I was forgiven for dismissing him from my conversation with Asher last night.
As expected, Hunter had pounced the moment I walked into the cabin. His irritation with me had slowly faded when he learned I’d stuck to my guns and refused an alliance with the Wilds Pack, but he’d insisted on hearing how I’d met the shifters.
It took several retellings of the story, but Hunter eventually believed I had no idea Asher and Chase were shifters back in Denver. I claimed it had to do with the crowd of humans. Somehow, their overpowering scents concealed the shifters. I chose not to tell Hunter about the Wilds Pack unique scent-masking ability. For some reason, it felt like a secret.
Ultimately, the omission didn’t matter. Hunter believed me, and his coffee offering meant we were good.
“Thank you.” I took the cup and sipped the delicious drink. “Where’s your dad?”
“With yours in the meeting hall, strategizing over breakfast.”
And to think, I thought I’d gotten an early start to the day.
I started down the porch steps. “Let’s join them.”
We walked to the meeting hall in the pale light of the fading moon. The blush of dawn would soon peek over the horizon, starting the first game.
Hunter spent the walk making small talk. He guessed what the first game would be and which pack would be our most formidable opponents.
I nodded along, enjoying my drink, trying not to let nerves get the best of me.
The hall was half-filled with shifters eating breakfast when we arrived. The wooden benches had been replaced with eighteen long picnic tables. Each pack sat by themselves, shoveling food into their mouths, no doubt discussing strategies for the day’s event.
Hunter and I found our fathers at the table farthest from the entrance. They sat across from one another. Their heads were tilted towards each other as they spoke. Even from across the room, I could sense their tension.
Hunter and I grabbed plates and filled them with eggs, toast, and sausage before joining our fathers. We walked up in the middle of their conversation.
