“Shan.” Leonie put a warning hand on his arm. “It’s not important.”
“You were hurt, Leonie.” He shook her off. “I want to know if he was responsible.”
Alder-in-Winter took a wary step back.*I am sorry for that. I planned to retrieve the stolen items before you could findthem, but when I arrived, you were already there. I was trying to retreat quietly when Lioness leaped at me. The owls responded to my call for help. I did not intend to cause injury.*
It was true, and he didn’t care. His claws flexed, extending. “But you did.”
“Okay, easy there, tiger.” Leonie planted both palms on his chest, interposing her own body between him and his prey. “I did leap at him in my shift form. You can’t blame him for panicking.”
Shan stared at the unicorn, letting the qiongqi show behind his eyes. “I can blame him for hurting you.”
Zephyr coughed diplomatically. “I think we’ve learned everything we can here. Alder-in-Winter, I appreciate your candor. And thank you for helping our lost campers. If there’s any way I can repay the favor?—”
*Just keep your younglings away from ours, Slight Breeze,*Alder interrupted, already retreating.*Our kinds are not meant to mix. No good can come of it.*
CHAPTER 26
“Well,” Finley said, a touch uncertainly. “I guess that explains everything.”
He had to raise his voice to be heard over the commotion filling the dining hall. In the wake of the director’s special after-dinner address, the whole camp was in an uproar. The counselors weren’t even attempting to restore order. Most of them were clustered around senior staff at the far end of the hall, leaving the campers to discuss the news among themselves.
“Yes, we knew all along that Shan wasn’t really a counselor,” Estelle snapped at a couple of kids at the next table. She turned back to her own group, pointedly ignoring all the agog stares from other campers. “It’s not fair the grown-ups solved the mystery of the camp ghost so fast. The real one, I mean. We only found out about it last night, and now there’s nothing left to investigate.”
Spencer looked somewhat smug. “I told you all there would be a rational explanation.”
“The ghost was aunicorn,” Archie pointed out.
“Unicorns are perfectly rational.” Spencer pushed hisreacquired glasses further up his nose. “I wish this Alder-in-Winter had stuck around long enough for me to thank him for rescuing me.”
“IwishShan wasn’t leaving,” Tiff said sadly. “We didn’t even really get a last day with him, since he was napping all afternoon. I wanted to ask him about his real job. He must have seentonsof ghosts.”
Archie gazed wistfully across the hall at Shan, now surrounded by curious staff and looking somewhat harassed. “Yeah, it was pretty cool having an actual secret agent as our counselor.”
“I’m just glad this farce is over,” said Ignatius. “The sooner he leaves, the better.”
Finley looked at him in surprise. “I thought you liked Shan.”
“Oh, I have no objection to the man himself.” Ignatius retorted. “Just the way the rest of you idiots lost your collective brain cell trying to set him up with Leonie. I’m only amazed he’s still here. In his place, I’d be halfway over the horizon by now.”
“Shancan’tleave,” Beth burst out. She’d barely touched her dinner. “He’s Leonie’s mate.”
Finley sighed. “Beth, we’ve been over this.”
“I don’t know why she didn’t recognize him, but heis,” Beth insisted. “I’m sure of it. Leonie must know that too, deep down.”
“But Leonie said they’re not mates,” Archie said. “And she’s not lying. Is she, Rufus?”
Rufus’s gaze rested on his aunt. He shook his head slowly.
“That’s it, then,” Estelle said, shrugging. She stole the last bite of Finley’s apple pie from his plate. “Oh well. It was fun while it lasted. What are we doing tomorrow?”
“So….” one of the counselors surrounding Shan purred. “Are youreallya secret agent?”
“Special agent,” Shan said, distracted. He looked over her head, trying to spot Leonie. “Federal Bureau of Shifter Affairs.”
The young woman twirled a lock of her hair around her finger, giving him what he sincerely hoped was not a coy look. “How fascinating. I’d love to hear all about it. Maybe I could find you later?”
“Oh, but Sandra, you’re on cabin duty tonight,” a different counselor trilled, not so-subtly stepping in front of her colleague. “What a pity. ButI’mfree this evening, Shan.”
