She finds what smells like pasta first. Her face does not change, exactly, but something in it goes very still for one moment before she sets the container aside. She keeps moving through the bags.
She does not like that human pasta,my Bouda observes.You observed the reaction. We must keep careful note of her eating patterns, Alemayehu, so we understand how to feed our mate properly.
Kendra finds a meal that smells like chicken with lemon and pepper. Her shoulders drop in a way I do not think she notices, and she unwraps the plastic utensils. She eats quickly, the fork moving between the container and her mouth.
Our mate is too hungry,my Bouda says, watching.This is not acceptable. She will not go another day without a full meal, Alemayehu. We make note of this. We correct it tomorrow.I nod once, quietly, and he settles.
Zaki steps out of the kitchen, drying her hands, and surveys the room the way she surveys every space, looking for its exits and its load-bearing points. Kade comes back through, moving toward Leah near the door, and I take the opening.
“House of Zorah,” I say. “They are on Wintermoon?”
Kade pauses. “They are. The foundation you’re standing on was built by their hands. Zorah pack are the architects of Wintermoon, been here since the beginning.” She tilts her head, reading the direction of my thinking. “Looking to build?”
Yes,my Bouda says.This is good, Alemayehu. We barter with the wolf pack. We build a home worthy of our queen, something stable and permanent, with walls thick enough to keep the cold from her.I hold the thought and set it aside for later, when Zaki and I can speak privately.
Zaki’s attention moves to the clothing bags near the stairs, but something has shifted in her bearing. “We will reach out to the alpha,” she says. “Levi.” Kade and Leah exchange a look that carries information I am not party to. “Is something wrong with the alpha?” Leah clears her throat. “You’ll find out when you visit,” she says, and her tone closes the subject without explaining why. She crouches and begins sorting through them, and her posture is that of someone being asked to accept a compromise she has not agreed to.
“You expect me to mask,” she says. “To dress as every other supernatural on Wintermoon. To surrender my customs.”
“No.” Leah crouches beside her, entirely at ease. “But this,” she points to the bags, “is temporary. Soap, toothpaste, toothbrushes, and clothing you will wear until Jackie arrives.” She gives Zaki a smile. “I’ve never met a Bouda before. I’m very excited to learn what you need.”
Zaki huffs. She continues sorting. She pulls out a dress, holds it at arm’s length, and regards it with the expression of someone who has been personally insulted by an inanimate object.
Kade kisses Leah on the cheek and crosses to the front door. “I’m going to make sure Andrew and Aiden are settled in their cabin.” Leah follows her, brow pulling together. “Andrew is staying?”
“I don’t know, honey.” Kade shrugs, one hand on the frame. “But I think it’s best if they stay here for now. Help Aiden accept the mate bond.” Leah’s face softens at that. She nods. Then her brow comes back together.
“But wait,” she says. “Who’s going to run Thirst Trap?”
“Me,” Kade says.
Leah’s eyes go flat. “Oh, no the hell you’re not. Not by yourself. I know your track record with women there.”
“What are you talking about?” Kade spreads her arms. “I can’t even look at another woman. Because of that magic pussy of yours.” She points directly at Leah’s crouch. “I literally gag at the thought.”
“I’m going with you.”
“No, the fuck you’re not.” Kade grins. “Because if I catch anyone looking at you, I will fuck them up, and then we’ll both be in trouble.” She uses Leah’s sputtering as cover, turns, and steps out onto the porch. “I’ll see you in a couple days. Get to know Wintermoon. Welcome to the family.”
The door closes. Leah yanks it back open. “Kade! Get your ass back here right now...”
I look at Zaki. She looks at the door. Neither of us comments.
Zaki holds up the dress still in her hand, frowning. “I will find this Jackie on my own.” She gathers what she has selected and moves toward the stairs. “I will not become a westernized...”
Kendra’s fork stops mid-air. “Those comments are insulting,” she says. Not loudly. The words land flat and clean across the room, and Zaki goes still on the stair.
“They make me feel like I already failed something I didn’t know I was being tested on,” Kendra keeps her eyes on her plate.
Zaki’s footsteps come back down. She comes around the table and comes down to her knees on the floor in front of Kendra’s chair, and her head drops.
Forgive me, my queen.” She murmurs. “I meant no disrespect. Forgive my insolence.
Kendra leans back in her chair, looking lost.
“It’s not that serious,” she says. “Get up.” Zaki does not move.
I step forward, moving around my sister. I take Kendra’s hand gently, and she lets me, her eyes moving between my face and the Zaki’s submissive stance. I guide her palm down until it rests against the top of Zaki’s head, and I draw it slowly across once.