Fate didn’t just give us these females to warm our beds. They matched them with us not only because they’re perfect for us, they’re also a perfect fit in this pack. We’re all puzzle pieces fitting together to shape the coming years for this village.
I don’t know what sort of fight we’ve got ahead of us before the last two matings are done, but I know we’ll get through it.
Something weird hits my chest from the inside.
Erica, Danica, Ronnie, and Cat are now crowding Bailey, showing Bailey Cat’s phone. The music is too loud so I can’t make out what’s being said.
Bailey’s eyes pan up to find me, and I can tell by her expression as well as the sensation in my chest that I need to move that way. Riley is on the move. So is Grey.
And now Bailey marches out of the town hall, leading the three Young witches, Tyson’s mom, along with me, Grey, Riley, Mase, and Tyson to the conference room on the other side of the lobby.
I tell Linc I’ll fill him in as soon as I know what’s up.
We all file in behind her and being last in, I shut the door.
Bailey says to me, “Dani went down to the river to check it out after Cat couldn’t figure out what those green things that burned my paw are.”
“And?” I ask.
Cat speaks up. “A variety of nightshade I’ve never seen. It didn’t burn me, didn’t hurt Tyson. We both examined it today in both forms. I didn’t recognize it, so showed photos to Dani tonight and she had suspicions and confirmed it once she saw it up close.”
“Also known as angel’s trumpet,” Bailey answers. “A highly toxic nightshade plant.”
“It’s what the Starling witch used to disable me in that basement,” I tell them. “They didn’t bother you there,” I say to Bailey.
“Maybe because my wolf was dormant then?”
“Most likely,” Cat agrees. “There’s a lot to be learned about mixed race supernaturals.”
“They used a rare variety. They’re all toxic, but these ones read as extremely toxic. Especially to wolf shifters,” Danica adds.
Cat says, “And they’re not indigenous to this region.”
“These pictures and video show a lot of it. Much more than we noticed yesterday,” Bailey adds. “Dani says some rare varieties like the one the Starlings used in Europe don’t generally bother shifters until they begin flowering.”
Cat pipes up. “It wasn’t just in the spot you told me about, either. It’s now carving a path along the riverbank all the way out to the lake. We need to make sure it’s not elsewhere, too. Shifter pups have been historically more sensitive to environmental toxins as a survival mechanism. We’re really lucky Bailey’s wolf happened upon those at this stage.”
“Shit,” I say.
“That drone belongs to the Starlings,” Grey surmises.
“They’re checking on their little project,” Riley adds, then asks, “How the fuck did they get those flowers planted here? That drone was old, not like they were using aerial seeding tech.”
Bailey’s spine snaps straight. “Alta wants something from us. When I was in the bathroom and she was talking to those two guys I think she was talking about a secondary plan. She was speaking another language, Italian I think, but I’m fairly certain she was talking about Arcana Falls.”
“Since she couldn’t tap into dark magic with her ancestor’s wand, she might have plans to do it here,” Erica warns. “The magic in this area is magnetic to witches.”
“Let’s go,” Riley says. “Me and these guys will grab a bag of gloves from my workshop and flashlights as well as some weed killer. Nobody touch any of those plants.”
“No weedkiller,” Erica denies. “I’ll use magic to extract those plants. Weedkiller will harm the ecosystem and the energy of the whole area. I need to do an extraction instead.”
He asks, “You can get rid of them with magic without hurting yourself? Without putting anyone at risk?”
“I can.”
“Anyone? Even an unborn someone?” he asks.
“Are you guys telling us something?” Cat asks excitedly.