Silver-White (The Great North Woods Pack #1) (20 page)

“I am going home,” her mother began
slowly. “But as for the hospital, I’ve decided to give my notice. There’s no
point in staying down there anymore. Although I will miss those mild winters,
and having those Gulf beaches so close by.”

“Beaches?” Evie muttered. “What about
our house? Our stuff?”

“I’m putting the house on the market.
The things we care about the most I’ll pack and ship. The other stuff I’ll yard
sale. We don’t need it.”

Evie stared into the fireless fire
place. She had no intentions of going home anytime soon; the first minutes of
her first shift into the wolf had decided that for her—she was addicted. But
still, southern Alabama had been her home for all her life. She liked the idea
of the house still being there, being
hers
,
if for nothing more than a backup plan or a place to visit during the long
northern winters.

“I know it’s going to feel strange,” her
mother said. “I’m a little torn over it myself. But Ludlow is where we come
from, and it’s the best place for you now.”

“At least you’ll be here,” Evie said.

“That’s right.”

Evie took a long breath and perked up
slightly. “Does this mean you’ll … start changing into a wolf again?”

“Maybe. I don’t know. For sixteen years
it’s been my priority
not
to.”

“It’s not like riding a bike?”

“It’s a little more complicated than
balance. Sometimes, when we forget the wolf, the wolf forgets us. I don’t know
if your grandfather has told you yet, but some wolves reach a point where they forget
the human, and they never change back. That’s why he’s so special to so many;
he’s the master of both.”

Evie’s mind rested on her grandfather
for a moment before switching over to thoughts of home. “I always thought I’d graduate
with Amy and Jess,” she thought aloud, referring to her two closest friends
from Alabama. “What am I gonna tell them? They’ve been such good friends to me.
Their parents have been good to me. Like extended family.”

“I don’t know,” her mother said. “It
won’t be easy. You don’t need to figure it all out today, though.”

“I haven’t even checked my phone since
yesterday morning. They’ve probably been trying to get ahold of me.”

“Don’t stress over it now. None of this
is your doing. That’s why I told you to blame me.”

“I don’t blame you, Mom,” Evie said. “I’ve
just never had so much to think about in the space of one weekend.
Ever
. It’s like … holy crap.”

“Well, get ready,” her mother said. “I
have one more bomb to drop.”

Instantly Evie felt something sinking
within her. “Now what,” she muttered.

“It won’t be fun, but we might as well
get it over with.”

Evie stared at her mother, trying to
guess what else there could be. “Well?” she finally said.

“Your father,” Janie said difficultly. “Well,
to start with, Brooks is an alias. Forget the name. Your father was a McClain,
a pack family.”

“The nice old couple from church?” Evie
asked after a moment’s thought.

“Yes, that’s them ... your grandparents.
They are wolves, as well as their daughter. But their son was one of the rare
ones that never make the change. He remained fully human.”

“Why?” Evie asked.

“None of us know. It just goes that way
sometimes.”

Evie said nothing. Her mind was working
hard. Had she met her grandparents as the wolf that first night? Or were they
among the wolf circle around the cats?

“Listen, honey,” her mother went on.
“This is the hard part.”

Evie watched her mother’s face begin to
change.

“Your father wasn’t killed by an
accident,” Janie said. “Yes, he was an avid hiker, but Mt. Washington wasn’t
the true cause of his death.”

“A cat,” Evie cut in, sitting up
straight, instantly angered. “They did it, didn’t they?”

“No,” her mother said and paused. “Worse.
A pack member killed him. One of our own murdered him. That’s why it was so
difficult on everyone.”

Evie sat back with a blank face, the
energy of anger quickly leaving her. The thought of internal rivalry within the
pack hadn’t dawned on her until then. Within seconds she felt a sick ache beginning
deep in her stomach as she imagined the man she’d known only by pictures being
killed by one of her kin—one of those beautiful, noble wolves she’d come to
know and love.

“Marriages are tricky for our kind,”
Evie’s grandmother said. She’d entered the great room to take over for her
visibly shaken daughter. “All human relationships are strained, but with wolves
the complications are that much greater.”

“Why?” Evie asked, though she could
guess the answer.

“Your mother picked a boy who wasn’t a
wolf,” her grandmother said flatly. “You know how it goes when two boys are
interested in the same girl. And you now know how it feels to be a wolf, how
volatile its emotions can be.”

Evie nodded but said nothing. It made
terrible sense.

“Just imagine how messy it could get,”
her grandmother continued, “when two boys fight over the same girl, one is a
wolf and one is not. Imagine how much worse the wolf’s rage when the woman he’s
set his heart on turns him down, in favor of what he deems to be an average
human, a lesser creature.”

Tears had started in Evie’s eyes only
seconds after seeing her mother’s tears. As she listened to the story, she
began to see her sweet, seemingly careless mother in a more tragic light than
she ever had before. She wanted to say something, but there was nothing to say.
All she could think to do right then was stand, go to her and squeeze her
tightly. “I’m sorry, Mom,” she whispered.

“It’s okay, sweetie,” Janie said,
hugging her daughter in return.

“You had to hide this … all this time.”

“I had no choice, baby.”

Evie’s heart ached more for her mother
than herself. The loss of her father had been far less than ideal, but her
mother had been the one to actually suffer through it, and then carry it for
nearly twenty years. For a few minutes neither could say anything.

“What happened?” Evie asked after a
while, pulling back from the hug. Her sorrow was beginning to transform into
anger once more. “Was the wolf that killed my dad … punished?”

“Severely,” her grandmother answered in
a somber tone. “It was a bad time for The North Pack all around. Your sweet
mother gave him a lot to think about. Tore him up nicely in fact. But it was
your grandfather who carried out the execution. Nicholas had been a good wolf
until his passions took him over. He was given the option of banishment but
refused to leave. So by law he was killed for the preservation of pack order
and the honor of your mother. His family, the Halsted’s, were good people, good
wolves; they left the pack sadly but willingly. No one desired any more
bloodshed.”

“Papa killed him?” Evie said
breathlessly, wiping her eyes.

“There was no choice. He hated to do it,
but the killing of a human is strictly forbidden but for last resorts of
self-defense. It risks exposing the entire pack to outside investigations,
which it did then. And of course the McClain’s were rightly outraged by Luke’s
murder. Pack members should not harm one another, regardless of their
differences.”

“So I left,” Janie said, trying to regain
her composure. “Three months pregnant, with no idea what would happen with you,
I left the pack and its life behind. I just couldn’t be here. And I had to wait
until you were old enough …to see what would happen … before I told you
everything.”

Evie couldn’t speak. Her life suddenly
made sense in an awful sort of way.

“There are wolves who marry humans,”
Evelyn went on to explain. “With the limited number of pack members, it
sometimes becomes necessary. When the two have children, it becomes a guessing
game as to what will happen with their offspring. Rarely, even two wolves
produce a child that does not change. There are no guarantees.”

“I understand,” Evie said softly. Then,
to her mother said, “I don’t blame you, Mom. Not for anything.”

With the worst over, the three Snow
women talked quietly while they prepared a big breakfast. Then Evie went upstairs
to shower while her mother packed. By the time she came back downstairs her
mother was waiting on the couch; her bags were near the front door. Aunt Ruth
and Uncle Earl were to drive her mother to the airport. Evie sat on the couch
to wait with her mother, spending every last minute with her that she could.

“Well,” Janie sighed as her daughter got
comfortable, “things won’t be dull around here. You’ll barely have a chance to
miss me for the next few weeks.”

For a moment Evie thought she was
kidding.
“What?”

“There’s more news.”

“Since I went upstairs?”

Janie nodded. “For such a quiet place,
it gets awfully busy around here sometimes. Earl called. Apparently they had
quite an exciting night over at their place. Erica will be here shortly, but
she’s in no shape for school work.”

Evie’s eyes opened wide. “The change?”

Her mother nodded with her lips pressed
tight. “She’s in the fever now. I guess it’s a bad one. She was out of control
for several hours during the night, until the fever knocked her unconscious.”

“And Papa’s away ...”

“I can handle her,” Evelyn said,
entering the great room. “Don’t worry about a thing. Erica’s not the first wild
child I’ve had under this roof.”

“Seeing her through the fever is the
priority now,” Janie said.

“Is it dangerous?” Evie asked.

“Very. I lost a brother and two cousins
to the fever when I was growing up.”

Evie looked to her grandmother. “You
lost a child, Gram?”

“I did,” she admitted. “It was not my
finest hour, I’ll say that much.”

“I’m sorry,” Evie said softly. “I’d
never heard that.”

“They’re in the family plot out back,”
Janie explained. “The cemetery you always avoid. That’s why Papa likes to
visit.”

“Oh no.” Evie cupped her face in her
hands. The memory of iron fencing around the plot of old head stones flashed
before her mind’s eye. “Just the idea of that place scares me. When Papa
brought me there, something about it just …”

“Don’t worry,” her grandmother said.
“You won’t be in there for a very long time, as long as you keep your nose
clean. To be honest, I avoid it too.”

“It’s not that,” Evie said, struggling
to find the right words. Before she could proceed, her grandmother turned her
head alertly.

“They’re here,” she announced.

Evie jumped to her feet and hurried to
the main entry. As she opened the door her aunt and uncle’s SUV was just
cresting the last rise in the driveway approaching the house. She turned back
to her grandmother. “Did you smell them or hear them?”

“Both,” she answered with a grin. “You
might be quick, girly, but I’ve still got you in every other department.”

Evie gave her a quick smile and then
stepped outside to meet her aunt and uncle. She was surprised to see Matthew
with them as well, given the injury he’d sustained the night before. He stepped
out from the back seat wearing his typical smile.

“Everything’s more exciting when Red’s
in town.
Damn
, what next?”

“This is serious, Matthew. Are you
okay?”

“I’m good,” he said, lifting his shirt
to reveal the dark scars marking his left oblique. “We heal faster than normal.
Considering how deep they were, this isn’t bad. I won’t look quite so pretty
for beach season next year, that’s all. But then again,” he thought aloud. “Some
ladies like scars, don’t they?”

Normally Evie would have laughed, but by
now Uncle Earl had taken Erica from the back seat and was carrying her to the
house. She stepped away from Matthew and walked alongside of her uncle. Erica’s
face was very pale. “She’ll be okay,” Evie told her uncle. “I know she will
be.”

“I hope you’re right,” he said without
looking at his niece.

Inside they placed Erica on the couch in
her grandfather’s study. Janie felt her niece’s forehead; then placed a cool
pack over her head.

“Can’t you stay, Mom?” Evie asked.
“What’s one more day?”

“Maybe I should,” she said to Earl and
Ruth. “She’s very hot.”

“I don’t know,” Earl said, pacing
uncomfortably. “Is she hotter than Evie was?”

“I think so.”

“Please stay, Mom,” Evie said.

“I don’t know what’s worse,” Earl said,
“standing here helplessly all day or being on the road.”

“I can get another flight,” Janie said.
“I’d like to stay. And it might not be a bad idea to call Doctor Wilson, if she
gets any warmer.”

“Good grief!” burst Evelyn Snow. “You
people act as if I’ve had no experience in this matter. Do you all suppose the
house will cave in because Joe’s away for a day?”