They left the pen, one by one, then turned around to look at the wolf. She was asleep, breathing easy and at peace.

The ranger looked for the werewolf, but it was gone. “C’mon,” he said. “Let’s get inside.”

They all headed toward the house.

“And, Argus,” said the ranger, “don’t think I’ve forgotten about this little run you went on.”

“But I stayed close to the road,” Argus said.

“We’ll talk about it inside.”

“Yes, ranger.”

They all entered the house, and the door closed shut behind them.

Several minutes passed. Then a silver-gray figure moved out of the forest like a shadow, until it came to a stop outside the pen behind the garage. It sniffed at the fallen wolf, then reached through the fencing until it could touch its mate.

The wolf on the ground stirred. Her eyes fluttered open.

The werewolf pulled back its hand, crouched down by the fence and nodded, as if it somehow knew that everything was going to be all right.

* * *

Garrett Brock made himself comfortable in his favorite chair in the living room, took a sip of the coffee Phyllis had made for him, then said, “Argus, can you come here, please?”

The house went quiet. The only sound was the squeak and groan of the wooden floorboards under Argus’s feet as he came down the hall into the living room.

When he appeared, Garrett studied Argus’s face—the lines on it were straight and sharp, suggesting a physical strength that the ranger could never have himself. Argus was strong and muscular, with broad shoulders, and the rest of the world would look upon him as already a man.

But Garrett knew better.

Despite his size and strength, Argus had a long way to go before becoming an adult. Garrett wondered how to convince him—a hulking teenage werewolf—that he still had to follow the rules.

“Have a seat,” he instructed Argus.

Argus sat down opposite the ranger.

“What were you doing out running?”

“You said I could run.”

“I said you could join the school running team.”

“But if I’m going to be on the team, I have to practice.”

Garrett nodded. “But don’t they have practice after school?”

Argus said nothing and looked away. Finally, he mumbled, “Yeah, we practiced.”

Garrett immediately knew something had gone wrong. “Somebody beat you in practice, didn’t they?” he guessed. “You didn’t finish first.”

Argus’s jaw dropped open. “How did you know?”

Garrett couldn’t help but smile. “Phyllis and I have raised you four since you were pups. We know everything about you. Even more than you know yourself.”

Argus sighed. “I came in third.”

Garrett was surprised at that. Third! What a shock it must have been for Argus, who had always been the strongest and fastest at everything. No wonder he wanted to do more running.

“Third is still good,” Garrett said.