Grace of a Wolf by Lenaleia

Chapter 179: Grace: Not Wolf Enough For Him

"Is something wrong?" Caine asks, and I shake my head immediately, swiping the notification away.

He shouldn’t be able to see it, but I’d rather avoid situations where I have to outright lie to him.

"Nothing, just an annoying notification. I’m looking now."

I pull up the map on my phone, pinching and zooming while everyone bustles around me. Sara zips around gathering toys for Bun, Jer searches for his missing shoe, and Ron’s already standing by the door with Bun, who’s got her hands filled with carrot sticks.

It takes under three minutes to find exactly what we need. I zoom in on the blue dot marking our salvation.

"There’s another Walmart about one hundred seventy-four miles away," I announce, turning my phone to show Caine. "They’ve got a massive parking lot, and it’s right off the highway. No rivers in sight, so hopefully no flooding, either."

Caine stares at the screen with a frown. "Another Walmart? Why is it always Walmart?"

I shrug. "Lyre says they’re the best choice for overnight parking. They don’t hassle RVs. Well, most of the time."

He grunts. "She would know best, I guess."

"She’s lived in that camper for god knows how long. So yeah." I zoom in further, showing him the satellite view. "I was going to look for a truck stop with hookups, but this is better because we need to get cat supplies, too."

"Good call."

His approval sends a flutter through my chest. Being useful is such a nice feeling.

"Andrew, pull up the directions." Caine hands his phone to the other man without skipping a beat.

He takes it, his expression unreadable. "Sure thing."

The next ten minutes are a flurry of activity—securing the cabinets we opened, tucking away loose items from play, and washing the dishes we’d used. It’s now our third time doing this, and we’ve found a bit of a rhythm to our chaos.

Everyone knows what to do, and it makes a big difference. Well, that and we didn’t exactly camp out like we were expecting to stay here.

with who?" Ron asks. "Same as last

call. It’s a small thing, but it doesn’t escape my

glance at the hall, where the cat’s still locked in the bathroom. "I’ll take the cat with us. Sadie can go

Sara, Jer, Bun are

protests,

firm enough to prevent further argument. "The cat stays with us, and Sadie

an adult pair of hands to wrangle it is better than leaving it up

Caine. "Got these on my way back. Old school, but they work. Better than using the

talkie over in his hands.

"Better than nothing if our phones die in the

there’s no guarantee the walkie talkies

his throat.

and "yeah" fills the camper. I do one final sweep, making sure we haven’t forgotten anything essential, then scoop up the soaking wet cat out of

* * *

out now," Caine’s voice comes through, slightly distorted, but easy to

it and says, "Copy

me to feel like they’re two boys playing

comments, keeping his eyes on

"Better than what?"

than you did earlier. You looked pretty pale, but

surprise. "Oh. I guess I was just a

"Hmm."

lap, kneading its paws against my thighs before settling into a tight, if still oversized, ball. Its fur feels impossibly soft under my fingers. I stroke along its spine, and a

a strange little thing,

ears twitch but it doesn’t

feeling that it’s not just a cat, just like I’m positive Sadie’s not just a

of the day. Sara and Jer have their heads tilted toward each

phone, snapping a quick picture of the peaceful scene. After