Maria shook her head. “It’s not him.”

“Then what is it?” Tora asked.

“I’ve been so mean to you for so long.” Maria paused, breathing deeply. “And you’re still being nice to me.” She drew a gloved hand across the underside of her nose. “You’re probably good people to have as friends.”

“I would agree with that,” said Michael, smiling at the others.

“So what if you’re different?”

Tora was about to ask, “What do you mean by different?” but Maria had apparently seen them changing forms, so there was no point in arguing. The main point here was that Maria knew what they were…and she seemed to be willing to look beyond that. She was willing to accept them for who and what they were. More importantly, if Maria could accept them, then there was hope that the rest of the town might do the same.

But not everyone there was in on the pack’s secret.

Michael looked at Tora and her brothers and said, “What does she mean, you guys are different? Is what she’s said about you guys at school really true?”

Tora was caught in the sudden grip of fear. While talking to Maria she’d forgotten that Michael Martin, despite being the pack’s closest friend and confidant, still didn’t know their secret. She had always meant to tell him—the pack had discussed it often—but now didn’t seem to be the right time.

Tora needed to say just the right thing, but what?

“She just means that we’re crazy,” said Harlan, emphasizing the last word like he had an arrow through his head.

“Yeah,” Argus agreed. “Like us being the kids of a forest ranger, and asking you to set fire to the forest.” The pack had indeed asked Michael to start a forest fire a couple of months back to serve as a distraction while they rescued Tora from the clutches of a mad scientist.

“That was pretty whacked!” Michael said.

“Exactly,” said Argus, giving Tora a wink.

“I’m not going to bother you any more about anything,” Maria continued. “But I am going to ask you this …”

Everyone leaned in slightly, eager to hear what Maria had to say.

“Help find my sister. Please. You guys can do things, great things…And you know the forest. You must know the forest. If anyone can find her, it’s you…” Her voice trailed off and she began to cry again.

Tora leaned in and whispered into Maria’s ear, “We’ll do what we can. If your sister’s out there, we’ll find her and bring her back.”

“You promise?”