“Listen, thank you for coming to my rescue. Again. One of these days, I’ll be able to actually defend myself.” I shook my head. I was so tired of being weak.
“You’ll feel better when you learn to shift,” he assured me.
“Then what? Then I take my chances again?” I shook my head. “Never mind. It’s not your problem. You’ve done more than enough for me already.”
“You’re going to be okay,” he said. “There’s a fighter in there. You just need to give yourself permission to let it out.”
“Maybe. But I think I had enough excitement for tonight. If you see Sheila, can you let her know I headed in?” I asked.
“You’re going to miss the rest of the fun,” he said.
“I think I had enough fun for one night. Sleep well.” I didn’t wait for a response before walking away from him. I couldn’t trust myself not to make any more foolish mistakes.
I dodged party-goers on my walk back, trying to make myself small and less obvious. It was the same tactic I’d used to survive in Wolf Creek. Blend in, follow the rules, play the game.
As I walked into Sheila’s tent, I wiped the tears from my cheeks. I wanted things to be different for me. I was so sure I could handle things once I left but nothing turned out the way I expected.
Tomorrow, I was going to see Greta again. I didn’t want to be weak anymore. I wanted to connect with my wolf, to gain the power I needed to fight back.
Then, if I ever did have to revisit my past, I’d be ready.