Grace of a Wolf by Lenaleia

Chapter 108: Caine: Get Them Out (END BOOK TWO)

CAINE

Owen’s cave is, strangely enough, located in a run-down neighborhood. Half the lawns are overgrown, and most families use their yards as storage instead of a decorative display.

The building housing Owen’s strange cave system looks the same as the rest. Several sun-bleached gnomes decorative what used to be some sort of garden, and more windows are boarded than not. Before Owen had given us access, the house was as empty inside as it looked from the outside.

Dirty, dusty, and bare of any life or even basic furniture.

I haven’t asked what strange magic connects the cave to this place. Lyre and those connected to her seem to live by strange rules. While magic isn’t necessarily unfamiliar, the strength and breadth of their powers are leagues beyond what any normal wizard could ever dream of accomplishing.

I circle the perimeter a third time, scanning for anything out of place, but nothing pings my radar.

The silence is absolute. Too absolute.

Animals go quiet when predators approach. Right now, not even the birds call.

"Something’s coming," Grace had said with absolute certainty. Not a question, not a fear—a fact.

She senses things she shouldn’t be able to sense.

Fenris’s voice is sluggish in my mind, weakened from our battle at Fiddleback. He’s quiet most of the time now, conserving strength, but Grace’s warning roused him.

His power is great, but the price of its consumption is equal in measure.

I grunt. He sounds a little too thoughtful, but I have no interest in questioning things further. There are more important things to deal with. I don’t question it.

It’s more than a feeling. The wolf’s curiosity ripples through our shared consciousness. A human shouldn’t detect danger before a wolf. She’s showing traits she shouldn’t possess. Don’t you wonder what that means about who she really is?

My jaw clenches. Don’t care. She’s Grace.

That’s not an answer. She could be—

cut him off with a flash of irritation. My mate. That’s all that matters right now. If there’s a threat incoming, we get her and those kids

agreement. His fascination with Grace is no less than mine, but it

phone cuts through the tension. Jack-Eye’s

door. I’ll go in soon, but I don’t want

back your way, I think," Jack-Eye replies, his voice

wolf on my pack territory, anything outside

you coming here, or looking for

exact destination yet. Driving blind. Well, you know Lyre. She’s an open book. One with all its pages glued

grunt, unsurprised. That woman’s defining trait is her refusal to give straight

cave. Grace has... a

a pause, too long to be casual. I hear the murmur

responds. "She says Grace should take her truck and camper. There’s a remote boondocking site—whatever the fuck that is—about forty miles northeast. Secluded enough to hold you over. Grace knows

at the quick response.

note in Jack-Eye’s voice. "I’ll

a goodbye, ending the

have no idea what boondocking is, but I’ll figure it out.

neighborhood one last scan before heading inside. Overhead, the clouds gather, thick and

small backpack, expressions solemn. Even Bun, currently sporting only human features—a rarity—bounces slightly on her toes but remains silent, her

Sara’s eyes dart nervously toward the entrance as I enter, her hand clenched around something. Ron stands tall,

the contents visible from the open top—diapers, wipes, formula, a small stuffed rabbit. Baby supplies for Bun. His attention to detail

these kids will

primal force inside me has already claimed them as pack. Regardless of their bloodline,

ask,

hair pulled back tightly. I miss the brown, but I’ll take her in

kids. I only have a

don’t bother with selection—just grab anything that looks edible and portable. Apples, protein bars, packages of jerky, a few cans of something.

her cup," Grace says from behind me, reaching

between us doesn’t care about timing or circumstance—it

the time, but a wolf’s mating