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“You’d think, but hawks have excellent vision, I can spot a field mouse over a mile away, so a trail of broken branches isn’t hard to find. Think of what your bear is best at and learn to amplify those natural abilities.”

Royce sighed to himself. Why couldn’t his protégé listen the way Amelia’s did?

Then again, Royce wasn’t entirely sure it would make much of a difference if he did. As much as he loved the Rainier Mountains and the little community in Elk Cove, he wasn’t happy here.

Maybe happy wasn’t the right word. He was content but not thriving. He’d been missing something essential, something he couldn’t pinpoint that was just out of his reach.

“Royce,” Amelia called out. “Royce, where are you going?”

He blinked, startled to find himself at the other end of the parking lot walking after a little yellow sedan that had pulled onto the road. That was the car the omega had jumped into. Odd behavior considering all Royce had done was nod at the man; that’s what he got for trying to be ‘friendly.’ Royce should just give up and become a full-blown hermit at this point.

He flared his nostrils, searching but came up empty-handed. Odd. What the hell had he come over here for?

The omega …

He was cute and small like every other omega, but he seemed terrified. Startled almost. Maybe he was simply leery of alphas? A large group of alphas when he was alone, that could be understood.

Royce’s stomach wriggled. He needed to follow the omega.

Wait, no, that didn’t make sense.

He shook his head again, realizing he was still standing in the middle of the road.

“Nothing, let’s go see Argus.” Royce looked over his shoulder as the sedan disappeared down Spruce Street. His legs twitched as his body leaned forward. Royce had the oddest urge to chase the car. He suppressed the illogical inclination and returned to his group.

Going into the modest Town Hall with its stained wood and exposed brick, his nose wrinkled and his stomach clenched. Royce took in a deep breath through the nose.

It was different, there was something in here that wasn’t normal, but he couldn’t place it. None of the other shifters reacted to the odd smell; since Royce was a wolf shifter, he often scented things that were too faint or muddled for the others. Perhaps management simply changed cleaning supply brands and his wolf didn’t like it?

He sniffed again but came up empty-handed. It was probably nothing.

In Argus’s office, Royce and Amelia sat while Nick and Matt stood behind them, respectively. Unbidden, his nostrils flared as he dissected the scents in the air. The odd something was stronger in here. Now Royce could get a better inkling as to what it was. The new scent was making his palms sweat and every inch of him itch from his toenails to his teeth.

Mint.

Why the hell was mint making him itch?

While he was busy huffing the mint scent and becoming irrationally irritated, Royce missed that Argus had started the conversation and was now trying to get his attention.

“Royce, did you hear me?” Argus said. “I said your team did a good job getting those betas tracked down.”

“What?” Royce tried to blink away the fog that’d settled over his consciousness, but it returned in force with every breath of mint.

“Those betas, they were the last backpackers.” Argus was now looking at him with concern as Amelia enunciated her words slowly.

“I told Lucy your team can resume regular trail maintenance and shelter upkeep,” Argus said. “We don’t have any other backpackers scheduled for the season. Buford has also offered the new trainees to help out at the fire station and—”

“Who was in here?” Royce blurted the words without thinking. He’d interrupted the head alpha of Elk Cove, and his boss’s boss. Why would he do that? Apparently, it didn’t matter because his mouth was going to keep talking regardless of what his brain thought. “Before we arrived, who was in here with you?”

Argus stared at him while Amelia gaped and the trainees muttered. Royce paid them no heed. Why was he doing this? He knew he’d been thinking of leaving Elk Cove for a while now, but that didn’t give him a reason for open hostility toward the head alpha.

Had he suddenly obtained a death wish?

Royce decided to blame it on the mint. It wasn’t a perfume or a cleaning solution; it was obviously a madness spell. Had to be.

“As it so happens,” Argus said, scrutinizing Royce. “The new veterinarian was here. Goes by Doc. He’s just moved to town, and I requested he stop by for introductions.”

“Oh!” Matt exclaimed. “My little brother will be ecstatic. His schnauzer has been sneezing, and he hasn’t shut up about it.”