“Levi, we’ve talked about this a hundred times. You’re obsessed with Naphele. I get that, but damn, you’ve eventually got to give it up. If you’re right that June is her reincarnation, just roll with it. Be with her.” He glared at me as he tried to put as much emphasis as he could behind his words. “Her.June. Not Naphele. She isn’t coming back, bro. That’s not how reincarnation works. You know that. Fuck,everyshifter knows that.”
“Idoknow that,”I said through clenched teeth. “It’s like I said, if they are connected, then it will help June gain access to her inner wolf. That’s the whole reason she’s here. I’m trying to help her with that.”
“Not gonna lie, bro. Sounds like bullshit to me. I know you’re trying to help her, but I get the feeling you’re too concerned with falling for someone who’s not Naphele and you’re grasping at straws to justify it.”
I let out a growl of anger, clenching my fists. “Look, even if June isn’t Naphele reincarnated, I still care for her. I know she’s her own person, and not some stand-in for Naphele.”
For the first time since I’d known him, Rainier rounded on me in anger. “Do you?Really? Or have you spent the last hundred years building up this grand fucking reunion? You find some random woman, your eyes lock, andboom.” He slammed his palm into my chest. “She’s Naphele again, but with a different face. Is that what you want? For June and all that she is to disappear and be taken over by your dead mate?”
My jaw fell open. I was too shocked to eventryand chastise him for laying hands on his alpha, too dumbfounded to do more than gape at him in surprise.
Shaking my head, I stuttered a response. “I never… That’s not… I don’t?—”
“Don’twhat?” Rainier said.
“I…I don’t want that,” I said, admitting it out loud for the first time. “I don’t want her to get wiped away. I only thought it would help her feel more complete. I was trying to help her.”
“You may be telling yourself that, but I don’t buy it. That’s not what it seems like to me. And I bet that’s not how it looks for June either. Have you told her your theory about her being the reincarnation of Naphele?”
At that, I looked down at my feet.
“That’s answer enough,” Rainier said.
“Okay, okay, I get it,” I said, running a hand through my hair in frustration. “I’m a fucking dick. Is that what you want to hear?”
“No. I want you to realize how all this looks. I know you’ve spent decades in your wolf form, and that your people skills are rusty, but you’ve got to admit it to yourself. Once you understand that the Naphele you knew is never coming back, then you canreallymove forward with June. Being a reincarnation doesn’t mean youbecomethat person; it means you get to experience that connection again. Don’t look at it as a deficit, look at it as a bonus. You get to live life with a wonderful, new person. A person who holds the soul of the person you love meshed with theirs. That’s pretty goddamn awesome if you ask me.”
He might as well have stabbed me right in the heart.
“You’re right. I’ll work on that. Okay? Is that fair enough?”
Rainier looked at me like a scientist examining something under a microscope. Whatever he saw must have given him enough confidence to get me off the hook for the moment. “All right,” he said. “Now that that’s out of the way, what do we want to do about this?” he said, gesturing at the tracks.
“If the Red Maw is actually planning on attacking us, then the one thing I’m really worried about is June’s safety,” I said. “Everyone else can shift and defend themselves except her.”
“True,” Rainier agreed, staring off at the village. “The kids can’t either, of course, but their parents will keep them safe. Maybe you should tell June about the threat? She’s encountered them before. She knows the risks.”
“I’d rather she knew how to protect herself,” I said. “I’ll work with her some more, see if we can finally get her to shift.”
“And if not?” Rainier cocked an eyebrow. “I know she came here to learn, but some people are born latent shifters and neverconnect with their wolves. I worry she’s gonna get depressed or something if that’s the case.”
“She probably will,” I admitted. “But I can show her a few things to help her protect herself from shifters. It’s better than nothing. I don’t want to freak her out about the Red Maw until we know for sure what’s going on, but she deserves to know the truth. Especially after what happened the last time. I’ll tell her.”
“Sounds good to me, but I don’t think we should wait more than a few days. If those assholes really are trying to move in on our territory, then we’ll need to prepare sooner rather than later.”
“I’ll head out tonight on a scouting mission. I may be gone for a few days.”
“What?” Rainier’s eyes widened. “How far are you going to go?”
“Right into the heart of their territory,” I said, having already made up my mind.
“I’m going with you.”
I should have argued, but deep down, I’d known he’d say that. Going there was the best way to figure out what the Red Maw were planning.
“I figured you’d want to go on a little field trip,” I said with a grin. “Maybe even kick some ass if we’re lucky.”
“Hell yeah!”
