I might just be a little bit in love with Lou.

The wolf inside me sneezed, the magic tickling his nose. Then he sat, his tongue lolling out—he was laughing at me. The signs were everywhere. You are a poor hunter.

I am not. There are few insults greater to a wolf, and here he was, casually tossing that comment my way. Only his posture and expression let me know he was teasing. Still. I’m an excellent hunter.

If she were a rabbit, you would have starved by now.

My wolf was a smug bastard when he was right.

Chapter Seventeen

Declan

The Tribunal approved Juliet and her mentor, Dr. Kobayashi-Jones. After a little schedule juggling, we were able to meet them at the park the next afternoon. Juliet thought—correctly—that movement and outside time would make me feel more at ease. She picked the park I’d been running in. It had several playgrounds, lots of forest to walk through, and a definite bunny problem. One sat on a patch of grass ahead of us, and it obviously had a death wish. I was upwind from it. Human form or not, that bunny should have smelled a predator and bolted. Instead, it sat there munching clover.

“You can’t eat that bunny,” Juliet said, her face stern.

I stepped closer to the bunny. It still didn’t move. I waved at it in disgust. “Not a twitch.”

“Leave it be, children.” Dr. Yolanda Kobayashi-Jones laughed, and it was the kind that simply insisted you join in, and in the twenty minutes I’d known her, she’d employed it often. She wore a gold dress along with a chunky purple sweater, had a good handshake, and had a no bullshit rule. I liked her instantly.

“Why can’t I eat it?” I pointed at the little clover-muncher. “Bunny.” I tapped my chest. “Shapeshifter.”

“Because I named it.” Juliet clasped her hands in front of her, her eyes wide.

“What did you name it?” the doctor asked.

“Lunch,” Juliet said primly.

I laughed, and the bunny finally hopped away. I took a second to check on Lou—she was helping Bay chase Savannah around the slide. Bay was there as backup. If Eva attacked again, Lou could rush to me, and Bay would keep Savannah occupied. She probably wouldn’t understand what was happening if she witnessed an attack—she was too young—but we all wanted to avoid it if we could.

“Do we need to get closer?” the doctor asked.

I shrugged. “I told her she could sit in on the session but didn’t think it was a good idea. She wanted me to be able to speak freely to you.” I dug my hands in my pockets. The truth was, I’d rather be chasing Lou around the slide. I just liked being close to her. Instead, I led us onto the wide walking path that wove through the park. “Lou’s been adamant about protecting my boundaries, which has the strange effect of making me want to knock them down.” In the distance I heard Savannah squeal with laughter. “I’m not usually contrary. I’m a wolf, not a cat.”