Silver-White (The Great North Woods Pack #1) (21 page)

As several of them began speaking at
once, Matthew caught Evie’s attention and motioned her to follow him from the
study. Evie looked around for a moment at the faces of the adults; then she
followed her cousin out of the room and away from the brewing argument. They
were in the kitchen before they spoke.

“We might better keep our distance,”
Matthew said in an unusually soft, serious manner. “Things get pretty tense
when the fever hits the kids. It’s best to keep out of their way and stay
quiet.”

Evie nodded. “I see what you mean.”

“As much as they like to act like
they’re in control, they know they’re not. That’s why they lose it easily.”

“What exactly is the fever?” Evie asked.
“I barely remember anything of mine.”

“It’s Ruach,” Matthew said. “The spirit
wolf entering the body.”

Evie raised her brows. In her mind she
was picturing the white wolf from the cabin.

“The change begins because it’s in the
blood line,” Matthew explained. “The body can’t help it. But Ruach finishes it
when he gives a part of his spirit to the human to control. The fever is from
the shock. The human body can barely handle what it’s been given. It’s
dangerous stuff, even with medicine to control the fevers. Some relatives have
died from it.”

“I just found that out before you got
here,” Evie said.

“Our uncle Justin was one. He died at like
… eighteen or nineteen.”

“That’s terrible,” Evie murmured.

“Don’t worry, Red, Erica will be just
fine. She’s a tough little brat.”

“I think so too,” Evie agreed.

The voices from the study were getting
louder now, the conversation more heated.

“But we aren’t parents,” Matthew said. “It’s
easier for us to keep our cool.”

“So what do we do? Make coffee? Try to
keep the peace?”

“Nah, stay right out of their way, trust
me,” Matthew said. “We shouldn’t leave, but let’s go for a walk or something to
give them some time.”

Evie took one of her grandfather’s lined
shirts from the coat closet. To her it was a little cool outside.

“Does it hurt?” she asked, motioning to
Matthew’s side. They were walking in the wet grass to the horse pasture.

“Not now,” he said. “It hurt like hell
last night when I shifted human. I paced around the yard for like two hours,
putting it off as long as possible. The wolf handles pain
much
better.”

“I’m sorry it happened in the first
place,” Evie said. “Thanks to me, you have scars now.”

Matthew scoffed. “They’ll be light in no
time. And don’t give me that crap. I deserved to get clawed.”

“They wouldn’t have come here if they
weren’t looking for me.”

“They might not have crossed the
boundary line, but they still come nearby sometimes, to test our patience.
Either way, I know better than attacking a cat the way I did. It was
very
stupid. I got exactly what I asked
for.”

Evie looked at him crossly. “How do you
figure? It’s your land.”

“Doesn’t matter. Young wolves aren’t
supposed to take on a cat alone. Especially not an older cat. Our aggression
gets the best of us, and the wise cats take full advantage of the fact.” He
touched his side. “That’s how we end up clawed. Hasn’t Grandpa been talking
with you?”

“We haven’t had time. It’s been crazy
around here,” Evie said. “Are they better fighters than us or what?”

“Not better, just different. We kill
primarily with our mouth. They use their claws first, then their mouth once
their victim is badly disabled. Wolves like to circle and fight with their
shoulders, using brute force and quick strikes to the throat. These cats like
to lay low, play defense and wait for the chance to use their claws.”

“Good to know,” Evie muttered.

“It’s real good to know,” Matthew said
with a laugh. “Don’t ever forget that. Using your head is the only way to
defeat a cat without getting clawed. Clearly I didn’t use mine.”

“Another young wolf thing?”

“It sounds funny but it’s true. I just
got so worked up I didn’t even give the warning call like I was supposed to. I smelled
it and went to check. Then I saw it, warned it, and I just lost my head and
charged it. Left the door wide open for him to dig me.”

They were near the pasture now. Matthew
leaned on a fence post. Evie called to one of the horses and turned to her
cousin. “Did it really say my name?”

“He said, basically, that he wasn’t interested
in fighting me, he wanted to see the Snow. I knew he sure didn’t come to visit
Grandpa. He meant you.”

“Sorry,” Evie mumbled with her eyes on
Chappy the horse.

“Hey, I said don’t give me that,”
Matthew insisted. “I wanted to fight him even before he said that. Hell, I just
plain wanted to fight. That’s the truth of it.”

“Was it your first fight?”

“Second. I fought one cat up in Maine
last year, but that was in training with other wolves around. Last night was
all real. What we train for. My old man sure saved me. He was only a little
ways behind me, thankfully, and he grabbed that first cat right by the tail
while it was tearing me up. Then the second cat came in, and it was a hell of a
scuffle until some of the other relatives arrived. They usually back right down
once they’re outnumbered.”

“Smart.”

“They are. Sometimes, anyway. Plus they’ve
received mercy from Grandpa before. Some of them know he won’t let us kill
them.”

“It sure looked like you almost killed
him. That one was a mess when I got there.”

Matthew laughed slightly. “I can’t take
credit for that; I barely landed one solid bite on him. It was Grandpa … the
one they expected mercy from. He messed him up
bad
.”

“Well, he was super mad when he left
here,” Evie said.

“He was even madder by the time he got
to us. There was about four or five of us by then. We had the cats in a circle
when Grandpa came crashing in like hell on wheels, and that first one that had
dug me up hissed “Snow” in a real nasty way. Well, Grandpa just flipped the
kick-ass switch and went to work on him. That second cat didn’t even try to
help. We all thought Grandpa would kill him. But, somehow he stopped himself.”

“He has full control, doesn’t he?”

“That he does. That’s the deadliest kind
of wolf, right there. Even when he’s in a rage he can still think, can still
see the right moves to make at the right time. And he can pull it back right
before he goes over the edge.”

“He and Eli kept me from getting
clawed,” Evie said thoughtfully. “I wanted to jump right on that cat.”

“That’s exactly what they wanted you to
do. Our scruffs are a lot tougher than our bellies, and they know it well. When
a wolf stretches out for a throat bite, the cat takes its swipes.”

Evie shook her head. “It’s crazy to
think there’s a person in there … under that cat … that wants to kill us.”

“It’s strange, for sure,” Matthew said.
“You and I are people, and we’ve both felt the urge to attack them.”

Evie nodded unhappily.

“That’s the only reason Grandpa’s
lenient with them; they’re half human. He’s even been friendly with one or two
of them before. He won’t kill unless he’s left without a choice. None of us do
much killing at all, around here.”

“Around here?” Evie said. “Do I dare
ask?”

“I keep forgetting you haven’t had our
special home school classes,” Matthew said with a grin. “The bottom line is,
not all wolves are as nice as Grandpa. Some of our Maine relatives are straight-up
militant. Have you heard of Abel?”

Evie shrugged. “No.”

“Oh man, Red, wait until you see him. He’s
bad.
In a cool way. A true wild one.”

“Who is he?”

“Grandpa’s brother. The only wolf
Grandpa can’t, or doesn’t try to, assert his authority over. His given name is
Abel, but his nickname—don’t ever say this around Grandpa—is Cain.”

“The murderer,” Evie mumbled. “How cute.”

“He earned that nickname honestly. He’s
a killer, no joke. Sometimes, in his kinder moods, he trains the younger wolves
to fight. That’s what I meant earlier by
training
.
You’ll get your chance. Just wait till you see him, Red. Scariest thing I’ve
ever seen in my life.”

“I’m not sure I want to see him.”

Matthew laughed but stopped himself
short of saying anything more.

“What?” Evie said after a moment.

“Nothing. It’s just … you might not have
a choice but see him, if Grandpa sends you up there for training.”

“I’d rather have Papa train me. And you,
and Eli, and Uncle Lester.”

“Uncle Lester’s pretty bad, but he’s no
Abel.”

“Well, I don’t think I want to kill
anything,” Evie said, running her hand over Chappy the horse’s big cheek. He
was leaning over the fence to get closer to Evie, in hopes of more carrots. “I
know
I don’t,” she added. “It’s just not
me
.”

“That’s good, Red,” Matthew said. He put
his big arm around her and squeezed her. “That’s how Grandpa is, and that’s how
he trains us to be. Just the same, though, you should learn some skills.”

“I guess you’re right,” Evie said. “But
last night, after my stupid move, I went for a run with Eli and Sara and those
Wilson wolves, and I had so much fun just … running and playing. It was
amazing.
So
much better than being angry
and wanting to fight.”

“I understand,” Matthew said.

Evie smiled, remembering the night. “I
ate two fish.” She could barely say the words without laughing. “I caught them
myself and just chomped them right down.”

Matthew laughed and gave his cousin a
shake. “You vicious fish killer.”

Evie was still laughing. “But fish aren’t
half human.”

“True, true.”

Evie stopped laughing now. After the
light moment, a new concern had entered her mind. “What kind of a wolf do you
think Erica will be?”

“Oh, who knows,” Matthew said, taking
his arm back and leaning over the fence. “Some think she’s gonna be nasty just
because she’s impatient. Me, I’m not sure. I’d like to think she’ll be cool,
after she settles down. All of us need a little time to settle.”

“Listen,” Evie said. “Keep this between
us for now, okay?”

“You got something
that
good?”

“Yeah.”

“Shoot. I’ll keep it under my hat.”

“Erica saved my hide yesterday,” Evie
blurted. “I’m dead serious.”

Matthew said nothing at first. He only
looked at his cousin, waiting.

“We were heading down to Cold Springs
and a moose crossed the road. She swerved in time to miss it, but then—I don’t
know if it was the shock or what—I actually tried to chase it. I was literally a
few steps away from shifting, I think. All that stopped me was Erica, thinking
fast and holding me back.”

Matthew whistled. “That’s some serious
stuff. Down south of town, there are cats in those woods for sure.”

“I didn’t know that at the time.”

“My sister did.”

“Exactly. My point is … Erica’s more
concerned about others than she lets on.”

“I know that,” Matthew said, in about
the most serious tone he was capable of.

“Well, I don’t think everyone should
expect the worst from her before she’s even finished the change.”

“I’m with you there.”

“She proved herself to me, anyway. But I
don’t know if I should tell anyone else.”

“Nah, don’t say anything for now.”

Evie turned her head to look at the
nearest of the barns. It had been a relief to share her story. She felt better
already. “Do you think Eli knows about Erica’s fever?”

“I don’t know. I’ll bet he’s down there,
though.”

“Let’s go check.”

“Let’s see if old Chap follows you,”
Matthew said.

-15-

“There’s excitement in the air,” Eli
said when he’d heard of Erica’s fever. “Something’s stirring; the whole pack
has felt it.”

“Like the old days?” Matthew said.

Eli looked at Evie, who was patting
Chappy again after he’d entered the barn in pursuit of her soft hands. “Back
when Grandpa was young,” he said, “they tended to change a little younger. The
environment wasn’t as controlled as it is here and now. Little kids grew up
seeing the wolves as a normal fact of life.”

“That would scare me half to death,”
Evie said. “I’m glad I never saw one till now.”

“Grandpa agrees. He likes to let the
kids be kids for as long as possible.”

“That’s the problem with Erica,” Matthew
said. “She don’t wanna be a kid. Never has.”