Chapter 346
Chapter 346
Avery’s POV
We left at seven the next morning. The sky was gray and overcast, promising more rain on the horizon. I got Bjorn up and dressed in warm sweats, and while I packed the car, my mother got him settled in the backseat with a thermos of more of that broth.
“He seems better this morning,” my mother pointed out once he was settled. “Like the promise of going is already healing him p>
I snorted. “Maybe we can turn around halfway there, then p>
“I heard that!” Bjorn protested, then immediately dissolved into a coughing fit.
Once the car was packed with all of the necessities, I closed the trunk and turned to my mother. My shoulders dipped with a sigh. “Well, I guess this is it p>
“Come here, sweetheart.” My mother pulled me close, holding me tight for a moment. “Everything will be alright. You’ll see p>
I nodded, hoping she was right.
With that, Bjorn and I left. The car ride was mostly silent through the human lands. I spotted Bjorn dozing occasionally in the rearview mirror. We’d done plenty of driving in the human lands, so nothing about it was exciting to him.
Just before we reached the border, we stopped for gas and a bathroom break. I bought us some bad-for- you takeout burgers, a secret guilty pleasure of ours. Bjorn only nibbled on his, which was unlike him. Usually, it was one of the few human junk foods he really loved; when he was younger, he used to beg me to stop in the drive-through for fast food.
He really was sick.
I kept driving, turning on the radio on a low volume. Soon, the signs for the human lands border came
into view.
“Leaving human nation,” the signs read. “Enter werewolf packs at your own risk p>
I shuddered as we crossed the border. The road immediately turned a touch more bumpy and windy, and the signs grew sparse. The trees on either side gradually became taller and thicker, and the temperature dropped a few degrees, even in the car.
Bjorn perked up the moment we passed into the pack lands. He leaned forward in his seat, peering through the windshield.
“Are we here?” he asked.
I nodded. I could already feel the difference in the air, that sprinkle of magic that always fell like a curtain when you passed into the pack lands. The Moon Goddess’s domain always felt like that; like entering
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into a new realm.
My wolf reacted to the change instantly, pulling out of a deep sleep and stretching. I could feel her bristle with excitement in my chest, and when I looked at Bjorn in the rearview mirror, I could tell he was feeling
the same.
He had his hand pressed to his sternum, and he was staring out the window at the wild landscape with wide eyes.
“It feels so p>
“Freeing?” I asked.
He nodded, then glanced at me. “Are we gonna stay here forever p>
I hesitated for a moment. “No,” I finally said. “Just until you’re better p>
His face fell. “Why can’t we stay p>
“We’ve been over this, buddy.” I guided the car around over a bridge with a rocky creek flowing under it. Moss covered all of the boulders, rich green and lush. “Let’s just get there first, okay? You might not like it here as much as you think you will p>
Bjorn muttered something snide under his breath and flopped back in his seat, taking a big bite of his burger even though it was probably stale by now. I exhaled a little, glad to see him eating. He looked a little better already.
It was late afternoon by the time we reached the gates of Evergreen. The guards, recognizing my car, let us in without fuss. Bjorn was practically bouncing in his seat, looking out at the pack grounds with awe.
Sebastian met us at the front of the estate himself. He came down the steps as I pulled up. Bjorn scrambled out of the car before the car even came to a full stop. I climbed out and wagged my finger at Bjorn, but I didn’t scold him. I couldn’t blame him for being excited.
Sebastian shook my hand, then turned to Bjorn with an easy smile. “Nice to see you again, Bjorn p>
Bjorn looked up at him. “You’re the Alpha here?” he asked.
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