“Jackson!” Orson yelled, causing the shifter to go silent.
“Yeah, but it’s true. He uh…he’s seven years old, and he’s never expressed any werewolf qualities. None in the least,” said Lyra.
“Why? You’re his mother, it’s not supposed to be like that,” Emma added.
“Yeah, well…I think it has something to do with his father. That’s the other reason I left, and the reason I didn’t tell anyone, because I didn’t know how any of you would take it.” Lyra took a deep breath, turning her face to the ground. “Adam’s father is a shifter, but not a werewolf. A dragon named Levi.”
The room instantly dropped a few degrees, and Lyra felt a chill run down her spine. She looked at Jackson, watching him frown. Emma had a confused look on her face, and so did Aaron. Orson moved closer to Lyra, and she felt a little more comfortable knowing her father literally had her back. He held her palm in his own.
“Are you still with him?” Aaron asked, adjusting his glasses.
“No, I left him seven years ago, but…when I left him, I was pregnant with Adam.”
Emma smiled. “Well, I mean, as long as you’re not with him…”
“Yeah, so what he’s a dragon?” Aaron added, tossing a bottle of beer at Lyra. She caught it with a smile, looking at them.
Jackson got to his feet. “You’re always going to be a member of this pack, no matter what. But wait, does this mean Adam’s a dragon?”
“No, he doesn’t show any signs of anything. I think both of our genes were too strong and canceled each other out. Adam is just a normal kid, and that makes me really happy,” Lyra replied, taking a step forward. “I’m also really happy that you all understand. I was young and foolish, and I made a mistake. I’m really sorry for lying, and leaving my family. This pack means the world to me, and I’m so sorry.”
“Yeah yeah, enough of all of this glum stuff!” Jackson yelled. “We’re supposed to be celebrating! Now, where’s the booze?”
Lyra laughed, looking around. “Hey, where’s Caleb?”
Orson quickly perked up. “Yeah, as much as we’re glad you’re back, we also need to get something done.”
Everyone paused, turning to Orson. He was in full Alpha mode, and Lyra smiled. It felt good being back home. It had been so long since she’d been in a room with her family like this, and it felt amazing. Emma and Aaron sat up, and Jackson put down the bottle he held.
“It’s been three days since we last heard from Caleb,” said Orson. “I’ve called out to him, reached out to the normal places he hangs out when he isn’t here, and I haven’t heard from him.”
“Something’s wrong,” said Emma.
“Hate to say it, but yeah. We need to go find him. We head out tonight. We’re going to scour the woods, see if we can find him. If he’s still in Ridgeshire, we’ll sense him, we’ll find him. Lyra, I know you just got back, but we’re going to need all the help we can get.”
“To find our brother?” Lyra asked. “I have nothing else I’d rather be doing. When are we heading out?”
“As soon as you’re unpacked and ready.”
Lyra nodded and quickly headed out to get her bags from the car. Jackson helped her move the things into her room. Once she was set up, Lyra decided to head into town to get something for their stay. She was certain that Adam was not going to be a fan of the cooking for a while, and she wanted to make some of Adam’s favorites first.
Ridgeshire had changed a bit since she’d left. There were new stores, and the roads had been repaved. The streets were sparse—with a population of two thousand people, the small town was already spread out over a large area and many parts of the town were straight up abandoned at night.
Lyra walked into the store and picked out her groceries, wondering if the woman at the register would recognize her. But she had been changed out for some teenage kid, making Lyra realize just how long seven years had been. She paid and walked back to the car, loading up her groceries.
As a taxi drove by, she looked up at the far end of the street, catching the profile of the man in the back seat for a fraction of a second. Her heart stopped for a moment as she thought she recognized him as Levi. She quickly stood, slamming her head against the roof of the car. Lyra relaxed, telling herself that it couldn’t be him.
There was no way Levi would still be in Ridgeshire seven years later. She had tried to find him, but he was gone, so Lyra concluded that she was just seeing things. At least, she hoped she was.
***
Being a part of the pack again was exhilarating. Lyra made sure that Adam had gone to bed before she and the rest of the pack left, but seeing how much fun he was having with Isaac she was certain he would wake up again to go hang out with him. Adam had taken a liking to the teen, and that made Lyra happy. He would have someone he could relate to while they were at the house, and Lyra knew already that she was not planning to head back to the city. She was home, where she belonged.
The pack moved quickly, rushing through the forest in a blur of limbs, sniffing and listening as they ran. Lyra could hear the others as they moved through the woods as well. They knew Caleb’s scent, and tried to find it as they ran. Lyra leaped over a fallen tree and jumped up to a branch, leaping from tree to tree before doing a flip and landing on a mound of dirt.
She paused and took in a breath, trying to see if she would pick up on Caleb’s scent, but she found nothing. Before she could start moving again, a howl reached her ears, making her chuckle. “Wow, I have not heard that one in a while.”
She quickly turned and headed toward the sound of the howl. In a minute, the entire pack, save for Isaac who had stayed home to watch over Adam as he slept, had gathered at the scene. Aaron was standing on a rock in his wolf form. His deep brown fur stood out against the night sky, and he turned to the others, nodding for them to follow him.