September 10 | Morning

I had lain awake through the night, watching the fog roll in and blanket the forest beyond the window. When the pale dawn tried to illuminate what the mist hid, a hush cloaked the cabin, punctuated by the old air conditioner's hum and my companions' quiet snores. While Mys and Zyr slept, I left the bed to settle on the sofa. From there, I watched Tegan slip downstairs and tiptoe into the kitchen.

She couldn't see me, but I studied her. She rose on the balls of her feet and peered into a cabinet, fumbling out the whiskey bottle and lifting it to her lips with trembling hands. Before the room temperature liquor sloshed into her mouth, however, she thrust the bottle away.

"One month," I heard her whisper. "You made it a whole month. Don't ruin it."

I quirked a brow. At the same time, Zyr stirred, and I realized the werewolf had probably heard her all along—superior senses and what not. He made a point of turning his back as his partner hurriedly returned the bottle to the cabinet and scurried to the loft again.

The fog was lifting outside when he finally sat up with a dramatic yawn. It wasn't lost on me that he had conveniently given Tegan enough time to resettle upstairs, but my attention was no longer on her. It was on him. Tired circles ringed his eyes. The tight line of his mouth was unhappy. I unfolded from the couch and ambled toward him.

"You look like shit," I said.

He issued a good-natured laugh. "Is that any way to greet your dear lover, Ms. Edison?"

"Let's say you've made an honest woman of me, Mr. Ravani." I smiled.

"Well, Dear Lover and Honest Woman," Mys groused from a cocoon of bedding, "keep it down. I'm trying to sleep."

The two of us early birds shared a grin. I framed Zyr's face with my hands and stared into amber eyes where the yellow glow of fire was a constant now. It was a wonder Tegan Stoney hadn't noticed it. My gaze slid to Zyr's twitching fingers, which he balled into fists and tucked beneath his crossed arms.

"How are you holding up?" I whispered. He shrugged.

"Head's not in the right place."

"What can I do to help?" I asked.

"The busier I am, the better. We should stash supplies throughout the woods in case you three are forced to make a run for it. I'll get Tegan to park her car near the main highway where she can get you guys out fast if necessary."

"I think your partner has her end of things covered. I asked what you need," I said gently.

His scruffy face mustered a smile. "I need you to try to be nicer to her. You can trust Tegan. I'm worried about leaving you and Mys alone once I'm—"

I placed a finger over his lips. There had to be a way to reverse the process of going feral. I didn't want to think otherwise. "Don't worry about us. I'll...do my best with Tegan. Anything else?" I asked.

"Yeah," Zyr murmured as he stroked my cheek. "I want you to have a happy birthday today."

"You got the date from my case file?" Pleased, I kissed his soft, warm mouth as he nodded. "But shouldn't I focus on my death day from now on?"

"You're too vibrantly alive for that. I wish I could spend many more birthdays with you, getting to know you."

"Nice thought, but I'm pretty sure this is my last one," I sighed.

"Aurie, I need you to know—"

The sound of Tegan getting out of bed made me pull away. It would look strange if she caught us in a heated embrace. For her, Zyr would appear to be kissing thin air. He gave me a rueful smile as I resumed my position on the couch. "We'll talk later," I promised. "She's not comfortable with disembodied spirits yet."

I turned away, wondering how I had fallen for not one but two people in such a dramatic leap. My whole life I had played things safe until last night's agreement to be exclusive in a polyamorous relationship. A part of me realized I wasn't being as revolutionary as I wanted to believe. I was dead. If I were alive, would I boldly embrace this pansexual love affair? In front of family and friends? My heart thundered at the possibility I wasn't brave enough.

Mys plopped on the sofa next to me and banished the unsettling thoughts. A smile materialized on my lips. "Good morning, sleepyhead."

"Ready to kick some ass?" my roommate asked.

We used one of the burner phones to reach out to Kittie Cad with instructions on interviewing Darcy's victims. Meanwhile, across the cabin the detectives discussed the case over breakfast. It was obvious where Zyr's focus lay, even to Tegan. A rosy blush spread over Mys' face as the werewolf's luminous eyes made contact for the umpteenth time.

"I do believe Zyr Ravani is smitten with you," I teased.

Chuckling, Mys replied, "Judging by his unchecked emotions, I'd say he's taken with you, too. His feelings are all over the place when it comes to everything else, though."

"Do you sense him losing grip?" I asked.

"It's hard to tell," Mys whispered. "I'd love to use my cellphone to do a search on feral wolves, but Tegan made it clear we're not to turn them on." The Empath's dark gaze flew to the other woman. I knew she was simply trying to help, but she had clipped our wings without realizing it.

"How long does it take for the full transformation?" I asked.

"The Council keeps things like that hush-hush."

"Then we'll see what Zyr knows. Maybe something in werewolf lore can provide a clue. I'm not giving up on him," I said. Mys nodded, but there was less hope in the shimmering eyes than I cared to see.

As the morning wore on, Zyr found time between taking stock and scribbling a list of supplies to give us the heart-tugging rundown of his partner's troubled past. We sat around the laptop at the kitchen table. Each display on the screen showed a different corner of the surrounding woods. Nothing stirred, but Zyr was still on edge.

"I'm perhaps the only person in Tegan's life who hasn't used and abused her," he murmured. "For that, she's loyal to a fault."

I glanced at the bathroom door where the sound of her showering drowned out our conversation about her. "What's her deal with sneaking into the liquor cabinet this morning?" I wanted to know.

"She's a recovering alcoholic. Don't fret. I took the bottle and hid it in my truck."

Mys shifted in the chair. "She's determined to do whatever you need, but does that loyalty extend to us?" my roommate asked.

"She's here, isn't she?" Zyr countered. "Hey, I know experience hasn't given you much reason to see the best in people, but you have to sense how much I care for you. If I thought Tegan was a problem, I never would've invited her. Besides, she can't hide her intentions from you. You're an Empath."

Mys looked at me. I shrugged and gave an encouraging nod. We dropped the subject when the gorgeous redhead emerged from the bathroom. She was dressed to kill in form-fitting jeans, leaving no doubt whose head she wanted to turn. Trust her? Mys and I wore matching smirks.

Around noon, Zyr invited me on the supply run. It was a thinly veiled ploy to continue talking up his partner. By the time we arrived at a decrepit gas station forty minutes later, I was sick of discussing Tegan, but I had a grudging respect for her. Most people who went from abusive parents to destructive spouses didn't turn out so great.

I studied the cracks in the concrete lot that sprouted patchy grass. The pumps looked to be about a hundred years old. "Is this place even open?" A beat-up truck found a parking spot beside us. "That answers that," I mumbled.

"Coming in?" the detective asked. I slid through the door, and he grinned. "Good job. Remember not to touch anything. Keep a low profile."

I nodded as he covered half his face with a camouflage hunting balaclava. When he hopped out of Tegan's burner car, nobody blinked twice. Louisiana was the Sportsman's Paradise. Long as he wore the requisite camo, he was like any other weary traveler.

Inside the musty store, the battered shelves carried dented, overpriced canned goods and stale loaves of bread. There were jugs of milk in the cooler, more than likely expired. Zyr cleaned the shelves and dumped the food and other staples at the register.

"Let me guess. Y'all out gator hunting?" the friendly cashier asked as she rung him up. Her grin showed off a missing front tooth. "Must have a camp close by."

Zyr sped her along. "Wife's waiting," he apologized. I swallowed my amusement. Grabbing the bags, we ducked out the door and headed to the car. We were almost there when he stiffened and snarled. His canines gleamed sharper than I remembered.

I followed his line of sight to a cute bunny in the field across from the store. "Oh, no," I whispered. I shoved him toward the vehicle. He dropped into the driver's seat, and I tore open a pack of beef jerky. "I don't think you should skip any meals while you're like this."

"I'm fine," he snapped, but he took the food and lost the balaclava to eat. That's when we noticed the cashier watching him through the store window. I groaned. It was too late to hide his face again. Zyr started the car. "I'm okay," he repeated shakily.

Silence wedged between us, and I struggled for something to say to break the tension of the long drive. "Um, what was it you wanted to tell me before Tegan came down for breakfast this morning?" I asked.

"I'm not sure how much time I have left. When I phase out, Tegan will..."

"I get it, Zyr. Tegan will pick up where you leave off. I'll find a way to convince Mys to give her a break." I smiled. Too brightly. "We'll make her feel welcome until she leaves tomorrow."

"She'll let you know everything you need to know after that," he said tiredly.

We pulled up to the cabin where Tegan was waiting on the porch. Soon as Zyr killed the engine, his partner dug in the trunk and brought out a toolbox. She whipped her hair in a ponytail to squat behind the car with a screwdriver.

"What's going on?" Zyr asked.

"Taking a page from that hit-and-run driver," she grunted and popped off the license plate. "I don't need trouble traced back to me."

"I'll keep you out of trouble. How'd you come by the car anyway?"

"Friends in low places." Tegan chuckled.

"Or an ex with a chop shop?" Zyr quizzed her with a grin. The briefest uneasiness flitted over his partner's face. I watched her from the front step. "Relax. Your secret is safe with me," he said as he removed bags from the car. He took the goods inside while Tegan finished scrubbing any identifying marks.

"Speaking of secrets." She glanced his way. "She doesn't know, does she?"

I raised a brow. "Who doesn't know what?"

Zyr rubbed my shoulders and said in my ear, "I'll explain later. Why don't you go help Mys find someplace to hide the first aid kit and other gear, and I'll come find you two in a minute."

His words were seductive as his warm breath feathered over my earlobe. I wasn't comfortable with him using sex appeal to potentially hide something from me. I wanted to ask more questions, but Tegan's brow furrowed at the whispered exchanged. I pictured how wonky the interplay looked to her, and I stepped away.

"You know how I feel about secrets," I said over my shoulder to Zyr.