a

polished marble floors. He stopped before a set of imposing double doors made

door open and gestured

udy, and it smelled of old leather, cedar polish, and suf

hair, was the matriarch of the Crescent Moon Pack, Elder Wilson

offee, her perfectly manicured fingers wrapped around the handle. Her eyes, col

ta I vaguely recognized, stood by the win

d bowed my head slightly, the custom

d her coffee cup down on the saucer, the

voice was laced with disdain. "You look like a

oft, my eyes fixed on the floor.

ge her more. It was like she had s

esture that silenced Bettie instantly.

gaze to me, and her severe features softened into a mask of grandmotherly

my head bow lower, playing the part of the grateful, overwhelmed

, her voice dripping with false sincerity. "This is

w it. I knew, with chilling certainty, that whatever they had planned for me was a trap. Eleanor, by the w

g more businesslike. "The main house is quite full at the moment

empty," Bettie chimed in, her voice bright and eage

ge of the territory, a place used to punish servants who had

"Elder, that cabin has a leaky roof. It is not f

t could curdle milk. "It i

tween the two women for a moment be

e. Twice. The sound was a final judgment. "The

of meek acceptance. I didn't argue. I didn't protest. I

ettie," I whispered, my voice thick wi

nce was exactly what she wanted. "You m

in a posture of defeat. But the moment my back was to them, the mask fell away. My face

d I had to find the key before they d

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