The bite looked angry when he admired it in the mirror, though Shawn couldn’t tell if he’d only become more aware of it now that he knew its meaning. While the dull discomfort had subsided, he still saw the red trenches and puncture wounds and knew that as they faded, he’d be turning into something else. ‘God that’s un-fucking-believable,’ he mused, running his finger along the worst of the grooves. The fact that they weren’t bleeding any longer, paired with growing list of strange events that had filled only twenty-four hours, threatened to make him nauseous again.

He shut his eyes and turned on the faucet, splashing water in his face while the Chambers’ words echoed in his head. “Take your idea of werewolves and adjust it a little bit,” Joseph had explained after shifting back in private and dressing again. “For us, it’s not like some beast that takes over you, it’s an entire second nature. And we can shift whenever we want after the first time we do it.”

Anxiety had held Shawn in its throes then as much as it did in the moment. “Full moons, though,” Shawn had said, his language skills fumbling and struggling past the amount of chaos occupying his mind. Looking at Dominic had provided no hope whatsoever; his friend still looked shell-shocked from its tumble down the rabbit hole. Instead, Shawn looked back at Joseph and Mallory. “I mean, it doesn’t look like you guys become growling monsters or anything.”

“No, fully sentient. We itch to shift on full moons, but that’s part of the magic that makes us who we are.”

“And all along, Edwin said you guys were Pagans.”

“We sort of are. Consider our religion a little hands-on.”

Shawn blurted an incredulous laugh at the memory and looked at his reflection in the mirror again. “Hands-on is one way of putting it,” he said, though as he shut off the water and towel-dried his face, a pang in his heart made him melancholy. Here he was, frightened and surrounded by strangers. And all he wanted was Edwin to be by his side.

Putting on his shirt again, Shawn emerged from the bathroom and walked into the kitchen, where Joseph stood against the counter, nursing a cup of coffee. Mallory had since curled up on the couch, and while Dominic had resisted the request, he left for his apartment when it became clear the others needed time to digest everything that had happened. Shawn reached for a mug from the cabinet, helping himself to the coffee while grateful that Joseph remained quiet throughout the process.

Shawn took a sip of his coffee and chased it with a deep breath. “How old are you?” he asked.

Joseph straightened his posture in Shawn’s periphery. “Probably older than your Dad,” he said. “Unless your Dad was sixty when you were born.”

“Is that how old you were when you had Edwin?”

“Yes. I’m not too far away from turning ninety.” He looked away when Shawn glanced at him, clutching his cup between his hands with a thoughtful expression on his face. “Our kind are long-lived. We age like you folks up until our early twenties and then, it seems like the process slows down. Could probably say it’s the way that we heal or that our cells deteriorate much slower. Not sure of the science behind it, I only know what my life experience has been.”

He looked back at Shawn. “Are you worried about Edwin?” he asked.

Shawn laughed. “I hope you’re going to say you are, too,” he said. “I’m struggling between that and wondering at what point I wake up from this crazy dream I’m having.”

“I had the chance to ease Mallory more into it. You’ve been thrown straight into the deep end.” Joseph peered back into his coffee cup, glancing up only when Shawn walked for the attached dining room and sat at the table. Joseph pulled out a chair across from Shawn and played with the mug first before speaking again. “Your involvement in this is a little complicated,” he said. “It’s for love, sure, but it’s sadly become a few other things.”

“Such as?” Shawn asked, taking a drink of coffee.

“Our families…” Joseph trailed off and took a deep breath. “Our packs often have conflicts that arise, but these have been different. Usually, we’re arguing over a small patch of land or politics, but recently the problems seem to have become much larger. The Laurents aren’t friendly. They’ve moved here because they’ve been hoping to forge alliances with the locals, but over the years, they’ve gone from the territory they occupy in Scranton to fighting over the Poconos, which is supposed to be neutral ground.”

“Neutral ground?”

“Too many tourists for us to make it a home. Sections of it where we live, but for the most part, nobody claims it. Fighting over territory brings out the animalistic part of us, which leads to us arguing from gut instinct and not using our brains like we should. Our pack has been outspoken in keeping the Laurents in check, but sadly, it’s put us in their crosshairs.” Joseph paused. The air turned heavy and when he added, “They approached us about arranging a marriage between our packs,” Shawn understood why.

“They wanted to arrange a marriage?” Shawn asked, unable to hold back another incredulous laugh. “What year is it?”

Joseph chuckled, the sound without any mirth. “It’s sad to say that it still happens with our people. There are times we’re more like a Regency drama than an evolved group of individuals.”

“So, who did they suggest should get married?”

“One of the Laurent girls –” Joseph sipped from his mug and raised an eyebrow. “– and Edwin.”

The statement wiped any sign of amusement away from Shawn, making a base level of his psyche bristle. While the sensation might have caused him a moment’s pause otherwise, it became the backdrop for stunned silence as Shawn attempted to reconcile the idea. “Edwin wouldn’t have done that, though.”

“No, he refused. And we were ready to deliver his response when this happened.” Joseph sighed. “Edwin’s always been the type of person who turns his nose up at social convention. It also means that he’s not taken it seriously enough to avoid the Poconos. Of all the places he could have taken you, I wish it hadn’t been that.”

“He might have thought he found a safe spot,” Shawn said. He took a deep breath. “I was the one who mentioned it and he didn’t want to say no. Love makes us do stupid things sometimes, doesn’t it?”

“You’re being a little unfair toward yourself, Shawn. You didn’t know.” Joseph spoke as much with his eyes as he did with his mouth, both words and expression attempting to reassure. “And maybe you’re right, and maybe under any other circumstance he would’ve been correct. Nobody could have guessed, even if the Laurents found you there, that they would try to kidnap Edwin.”

“What do we do about it now?”

“We’ll work on figuring that out tomorrow.” Joseph stood. Passing Shawn on his way to the sink, he paused for a moment to rest a hand on Shawn’s uninjured shoulder, lifting it after a few seconds and continuing into the kitchen. “You saved him in one regard. Right now, I have no trouble believing they’re trying to force him to mate with one of their girls. So long as nothing happens to you, then they won’t succeed.”

Shawn stood as well. “What happens if they do find out about me?”

“Let’s try to resolve this before they do.”

Joseph set his mug in the sink, then turned to face Shawn again. “I have a few ideas. And I take it that you know a few things about this city. I think we could use that to our advantage. What do you say?”

“I’d say at this point we don’t have much of a choice.” Shawn frowned. “It was just supposed to be a quiet weekend. He was going to tell me everything. I should be curled up in the cabin with candles lit, spooning with a big, fluffy wolf or something like that.”

Shawn took a deep breath, but as he exhaled it, he felt his nerves starting to unravel, caving under the weight of carrying too much stress. “Okay, we don’t want them to find out about me, but what about him?” he asked. “What will they do when they realize the mating attempt isn’t going to stick?”

“Not sure, and sadly we’re going to have to wade into that one blind,” Joseph said. “We do have one other card up our sleeve, though.”

“And what is that?”

“The mark.” Joseph nodded at Shawn’s shoulder. “It’s an expression of love and devotion, yes, but it also has a few side benefits. Such as helping one mate find the other.”

Shawn laughed. “Wait a minute. He bit my shoulder and gave me Edwin GPS?”

“Essentially, yes. We just need to get them here. You can help us do the rest.”

Joseph nodded toward the rest of the apartment. “Come on,” he said. “Get some rest. It’s better if you give yourself another day to get used to what’s happened.”

“Do I have another day?” Shawn asked.

“I admire the fact that you’re taking all of this in stride, but yes, you should take a day regardless. They’re already toeing a line, doing what they did. Hurting Edwin would inspire the less vocal packs to take action.” His gaze turned sympathetic, though Shawn saw his worry buried deep within, propped up with what had to be a million reassurances to himself that Edwin would be okay. In that statement, Shawn heard more than words of comfort tailored for himself. They had been pieced together for Joseph’s benefit, too.

“Okay,” Shawn said, flashing a smile. When Joseph leaned in for a hug, Shawn surrendered without any hesitation, feeling like an imaginary script had been written out for him to follow and doing his best to act the part. Joseph promised to welcome him into the family once Edwin had been retrieved, which made Shawn both happy and scared out of his mind. Later, as he laid in the darkness, an ache settled deep within his soul.

A new, yet familiar, need to curl against Edwin ran through him while he laid on their bed. “I should be angry at you,” Shawn muttered into the blanket as he drew it tight against his chest. “Instead, I want nothing more than to see you again.” Clinging onto the fledgling spark that made him feel connected to Edwin, Shawn finally shut his eyes.

Within minutes, he finally fell asleep.