Marie turned, her dark eyes searching Claire’s face. “She understands your actions. I know she believes you can convince Matthew to accept this new role.” She hesitated. “Are you sure you trust him? You are sure his father is not on his way here now?”
“I don’t have any choice except to trust him. He could promise to be a gardien, and still tell. The only difference is that after tonight, he’ll know what would happen to him if he does.”
“True.” Her mother sighed. “I hate being afraid, and I believe I will be for some time to come.”
“I’m sorry. I know if I hadn’t changed in front of him like that, we’d be safe.” Claire hung her head.
“Yes. And he would be dead.” Her mother put one finger under Claire’s chin and lifted her face. “What you did puts us in terrible danger, chérie. But you did it for the right reason. To save a life is an honorable thing, always. I am not angry with you. Selfishly, I am frightened, but I am not mad.”
“Thank you.” Claire leaned forward until her head was pressed against her mother’s shoulder. She’d come so close to losing her. Her mom wrapped her thin arms around Claire.
“I want you to be careful tonight, chérie. There will be more than one thing out there that would like to harm you.”
Claire nodded against her mother’s collarbone.
“Good. Now, go get ready. It will look less suspicious if we leave separately. I will meet you on the other side of the wall in two hours.”
“Okay.” Claire slipped out of her mother’s embrace and stumbled into her room.
*
When it was almost time to leave, she brushed her teeth and threw on a sweatshirt, leaving her hair down to hide her injured ear from Lisbeth. She got out the door as fast as she could, claiming her headache was gone and she was going to bike over to Emily’s for a brownie-gorging session.
Claire rode down the driveway, circling around to the far side of their property, where she stashed her bicycle in a stand of evergreen bushes. She sneaked back along the brick wall, watching the house for any sign of Lisbeth. When she reached the familiar hole, Claire practically dove through the ivy into the forest. She managed to catch herself just before she barreled full-force into her mother.
“I was beginning to wonder where you were,” Marie said.
“Sorry. I had to hide my bicycle. Next time I’ll come up with a story for Lisbeth that doesn’t involve so many props.”
Her mom laughed, but her face quickly settled back into its usual serious expression. The two of them set off through the already-dark woods.
They arrived at the clearing, where Beatrice and Victoria were already waiting. Judith and Katherine appeared before Claire had even settled herself on the ground.
“Well, we’re just missing Zahlia,” Beatrice said. “I don’t expect her to come, but by failing to do so, she is disobeying a direct order from me.” Her voice was tight. “We’ll start without lighting the fire tonight—it’s too early. And it’s not a good night for sending unnecessary signals.”
Claire glanced at the trees around them, wondering who else might be out there. She peeked at her watch. She had only half an hour before she was supposed to meet Matthew.
“So. What will we do?” Judith asked.
“Find her.” Marie wrapped her arms around herself. “And then bring her back here.”
Beatrice nodded. “Exactly. Once we have heard what she has to say for herself—what defense she offers for her actions—then I will decide whether she should be banished from the pack and sent to live outside the bounds of our territory, or whether her punishment must be … more severe.” Beatrice stood up. “Are there any questions?”
The idea of seeing Zahlia again gave Claire the shivers.
“What about Claire?” Judith asked. “She’s not fully changed yet. What role can she have?”
Claire stiffened, wondering if someone would mention Matthew.
“Her transformation is nearly complete, and from what Marie has told me, Claire has already proven herself to this pack. She will help us search tonight, which is even more important because Victoria won’t be assisting us. I won’t risk the unborn child.”
Victoria stared miserably at the charred remains of their last fire.
Beatrice took a step forward. “Now. Let’s try to finish this before the situation gets any uglier. You may transform whenever you wish. And please be careful. Very careful.”
Claire’s mother pulled her out of the circle before anyone began to change.
“I know you need to meet Matthew. I’ll go with you as far as the park.” Her mother bent to remove her shoes.
“How come no one said anything about him tonight?” The question popped out before Claire could stop it.
Marie pursed her lips. “Everyone already knows what happened. There is no need to discuss it until the situation is resolved. Hopefully he will agree to become a gardien, in which case there will be nothing to talk about.”
Claire gulped. The words her mother hadn’t said rang in her ears. That if he refused, there would be plenty to talk about.
I just have to convince him. That’s all. No matter what it takes, I have to find a way to make him agree.