“Who do we know that knows anything at all about chameleons?” I ask Jacqueline from where I’m sitting at the table in the kitchen with Nik and Artemus. They’re painting.
I’ve finally managed to get Lucian to fall asleep and I feel like I could use a nap myself but I can’t do that until I’ve found out everything I can that might help Lucian.
“You need a chameleon?” she asks distractedly. She currently has her head under the sink, not that I have any clue why. We have more than enough guys to unblock it if there’s a plumbing issue. “There’s a couple of those in town.”
“There are?” I ask.
“Yeah. You should talk to Amber. She runs Jewels Café.”
“She’s a chameleon?”
“Yeah. I’m surprised you don’t know. You’re always bragging that they make the best cappuccinos.”
“I like their coffee… doesn’t mean I pry into the owner’s business.”
“Sure… I just figured everyone in town has seen her shift at least once. She does it a lot, you know.”
“Will you be okay if I pop out with Lucian?”
“No problem,” she tells me, finally pulling herself out of the cupboard under the sink. “We’ll do some painting.”
I giggle as I point out that the kids have already started.
***
Amber is sitting at a table with a coffee mug in her hands looking into the distance thoughtfully when I arrive at the café. She looks up when the bell over the door jingles.
“Hello!” she calls out, getting to her feet so she can move behind the counter. “Cappuccino?”
I’m well known at Jewels Café for being the most uninteresting coffee drinker alive. Julian is always trying to convince me to try something new and exciting, but I always stick to the safe and steady option of a cappuccino, which also happens to be Amber’s favorite drink.
“I’d love one, thanks,” I answer, popping the baby seat gently on to the ground. I had forgotten how heavy that thing is since Artemus was using it.
“New arrival?” she asks, tilting her head towards the baby.
“Yeah. He’s actually why I’m here.”
“You mean, you’re not here for the coffee?” she asks disbelievingly.
I guess it does sound unlike me and chances are I really look like I need the caffeine right now, after the night I’ve had.
“He’s a chameleon, and I thought…” I begin.
“You thought I might be able to help,” she says, bringing my coffee around the counter for me.
I follow her to the little table where she was sitting a moment ago, picking up the baby seat as gently as I can so as not to wake him.
“I’m not sure how much help I’ll be,” she says. “Only other chameleon I grew up around was my little sister, and we’re not that different in age.”
“You have a sister? I didn’t know that.”
“Yeah… She’s new in town, I’ll introduce you.”
“Great,” I say, using my foot to rock the baby seat gently. “So, I’m at a complete loss. I know nothing about chameleons.”
“Well, there aren’t that many of us compared to other supes, so that makes sense.”
Now that I have Amber here, a wealth of knowledge about all things chameleon, I have no idea where to start. I’ve had questions running through my mind all morning, but right now I’m a complete blank.
“I’m good with babies, but from what I do know chameleon babies are a little bit more complicated to look after.”
“Yeah. The first few years can be hellish. Or at least that’s what my mother always said.”
I’m nodding my head. What she’s saying, pretty much matches what Mrs Mackney told me.
Amber takes a sip of her cappuccino, considering my question.
"When my little sister, Addie... well, she goes by V--never mind, that's not important." Amber shakes her head. "Anyway, I can't remember what she was like as a baby. But I do know she kept shifting and getting stuck places. One time, she turned her arm into a wing and got it stuck between the bars of a chair. Oh, and I think she used to shift wings and try to fly up. She always did love to fly."
“Fly?” I ask, my eyes going as wide as saucers as I picture Lucian on the roof with Evangeline.
Amber grins at me, nodding her head slowly. But you want to be careful. Wings can pop in and out, so landing might be tricky.”
“I think I might need to chameleon proof the orphanage.”
“It would probably be a good idea,” Amber agrees.
Having a baby is supposed to be a massive responsibility, but having a chameleon baby sounds more like never getting a wink of sleep for two years straight.
“Just two years, right?”
“Sorry?”
“The random half-shifts and stuff… It stops after two years?”
“Give or take,” she says noncommittally. “It’ll be well and truly over by the time he starts school.”
We drink the rest of our drinks in relative quiet, Amber only occasionally breaking the silence to recommend something I should purchase to help chameleon proof the house.
When Lucian decides to wake up, Amber eagerly asks if she can hold him and I happily hand him over to her. He seems to take to her immediately, perhaps recognizing one of his own kind. Then he half shifts, so he’s got a blond half beard that matches the hair on Amber’s head, and she starts to laugh.
I’m still reeling from everything I’ve learned from Amber as I drive us back to the orphanage. All the while, mentally preparing myself to send the guys out for chameleon proofing supplies. It looks like we’re going to have our work cut out for us with this little tyke.
Lucian is happily making gurgling noises and I’m relieved to see that now that he’s had a nice long sleep, he seems to be feeling much happier. My relief is short lived however as I get a whiff of something foul smelling.
“Do you have a dirty diaper?” I ask in a singsong voice just before he starts to cry.
Saxon
My wolves think I’m a slave-driver and they might be right. But they’re the idiots that came to town telling me that I’m their princess. I’ve got them all working hard to make the orphanage safe for Lucian while I go out food shopping.
Personally, I think we’re all working hard. They should be grateful I’m not just sitting watching them with a margarita in hand. Seriously, they look SO good covered in sweet, brandishing a hammer.
I think I’m going to need to make another trip to visit them at the gym at some point because if they look that good with a hammer, I can only imagine how good they look lifting weights or sparring with one another.
Pulling into the supermarket carpark, I climb out of the car and attach the baby seat to a trolley.
“Come on, little guy,” I say as I lock the car. “Let’s go shopping.”
Pushing the trolley into the store, I go about picking up everything we need and then some. With a houseful of children and wolves, you really can never have enough food. Not that the guys have technically moved in, although in the basic definition of the words ‘living together,’ they pretty much have.
They sleep, eat and even use the bathroom at mine, so as far as I see it, they might as well just move in. I wouldn’t complain… Except it might mean losing wardrobe space. That would definitely be a negative.
“Lupine?” I turn when I hear someone call my name.
“Oh, hi Saxon! How are you settling in?”
“Can’t complain. So far everyone has been super friendly.”
“That’s Silver Springs for you.”
“I didn’t know you have a baby as well as…”
I cut her off. I manage the town orphanage. Not a mum, just er… doing my job.”
The way I say it makes it sound almost clinical, but it couldn’t be further from the truth. Getting attached to the children is a hazard of the job. I’m their mom, dad, teacher, guidance councilor and god knows what else all rolled into one.
“
We should get that coffee sometime,” Saxon tells me and I look down at my shopping. I haven’t got any frozen food in my trolley. There’s nothing to say, I can’t put this all in the car and grab a quick cappuccino at Jewels Café.
I’m sure Amber will be more than happy to see Lucian again.
“How about now?” I ask, as we approach the queue to pay.
“Have you got time?” Saxon grins at me. “It’s sort of perfect. I have so many questions about the town.”
“Oh, I’m not the most knowledgeable,” I admit. “Didn’t pay any attention in school when they tried to teach us local history.”
I lose track of time as Saxon and I get to know each other. She’s so easy to talk to and I can easily imagine becoming her friend. I haven’t had anyone I get on this well with since Lily left. I take a second to make a mental note that I need to call her at some point. We’ve not spoken in ages.
It’s only when my phone rings and Wren’s name pops up on the screen that I realize how long we’ve been talking.
“I better be getting back,” I say, “but we should definitely do this again.”
“Yeah. Absolutely.”
Realizing that I don’t actually know why she moved to Silver Springs, I ask her if she came to town for work.
“Something like that,” she says mysteriously.
My phone rings again. This time it’s Rehan.
“Someone is clearly popular,” Saxon remarks as I get to my feet.
“More like some people are just too damn protective,” I grumble causing Saxon to grin.
Picking up the baby seat, I say goodbye to Saxon and make my way out of the café.
“Sorry, Lucian. No Amber today.”
***
Arriving back at the orphanage, the guys come out to give me a hand with the shopping. They’re all clearly pissed off with me for not answering my phone. I don’t understand this crazy need to protect me from a danger that quite frankly, at least in Silver Springs, doesn’t exist.
Inside, I place Lucian in his new play pen. The guys have done well and there’s no way the little guy is going to escape from that monstrosity anytime soon.
Jacqueline helps me put away the shopping and immediately starts talking about her favorite topic of conversation; Silver Springs gossip.
“Did you hear someone knew moved to town?”
“Yeah,” I sigh. News sure does travel fast in Silver Springs. “I’ve met her. In fact, I just got a coffee with her.”
“You had a coffee with someone from out of town?” Wren asks from the doorway, his expression fixed into a look of pure rage. Yup, that is one angry wolf.
“Yes,” I say pointedly.
I’m not about to let Wren or any other wolf for that matter decide who I can or can’t be friends with.
“It’s not safe,” he tries. “You don’t know anything about her, Lupine.”
“About who?” Camden asks as he comes into the room, carrying more shopping.
“Lupine has made friends with that out of towner everyone is talking about.”
Laughing, I shake my head.
“Do you hear yourself? Out of towner? Look whose talking! It’s only been five minutes since you moved to town yourself.”
“That’s different,” Camden pipes in.
“How is it?” Hands on my hips, I glare at him, waiting for him to come up with some excuse for why he’s better than Saxon. He’s openly admitted that he’s killed a person. There’s nothing to suggest Saxon is a murder.
Heck, as far as I can see, she’s just a sweet girl who moved to a new town.
“Lupine,” Wren growls.
“You’re being paranoid.”
“Anyway… No point arguing about it,” Jacqueline tries to play the role of peacekeeper.
This isn’t going to work if they keep trying to boss me about.
“Jacqueline, can you finish this off? I’m going to go get a lie down.”
“Sure. Of course.”
Camden reaches for me as I walk past him and Wren, but I pull away. I’m pissed off and I’m fed up of their male chauvinism. They said I was supposed to lead them, not the other way around, and yet they spend all their time trying to tell me what to do.
I know they mean well, but it doesn’t make me feel any better. My mood deteriorating by the second, I rush up the stairs. I want to slam my bedroom door closed in a fit of rage, except I can’t. What sort of example would that be for the children?
Dropping down on my bed, I tell myself to take a nap. Perhaps after a rest, I’ll feel a little bit more forgiving. Maybe… It doesn’t feel likely right about now, but it’s possible. That’s if they leave me alone long enough for my mood to cool.
I can hear them talking, Camden and Wren explaining why I’m annoyed with them to the other two. They don’t even understand what they’ve done wrong. As far as they can see, they have every right to order me around like a little pup that needs training.
An Apology
In a bid to cheer me up after our little argument, the guys order me flowers from Floriography Flower Shop and since it’s hard to stay angry when someone buys you flowers, I quickly find myself forgiving them.
The bouquet of blue Hyacinths, Lily of the Valley and sprigs of peppermint are currently sitting at the center of the table in the kitchen. They’re absolutely beautiful.
“You like them?” Kalen asks, crossing the room towards me. “Iris said you would.”
“Iris?”
“The owner of the flower shop,” he explains. “She helped us pick.”
When he’s close enough, I wrap my arms around his neck, thanking him for the flowers.
“They’re perfect,” I tell him before kissing him.
Our moment is ruined though when Jacqueline runs into the room in a panic, screaming my name. Why is it when people panic, they’re always screaming my name and not someone else’s?
“LUPINE!” She screams. “He’s gone!”
“Who’s gone?” I ask even though I think I know who she means. If someone’s gone, it’s Edmond. None of the other children ever run away.
“Edmond?” I ask, pulling away from Kalen.
“We were walking back from the school and he was walking beside the pushchair and then he wasn’t.”
Lewis comes into the room behind her. “I went looking but I can’t find him anywhere.”
Probably because he’s shifted…
I can feel panic rising in my chest. I hate it when he does this. I can’t understand why he keeps doing it either. Does he really hate it here that much?
“What do we do, Lupine?” Jacqueline and Lewis are both looking at me as if I’m going to have all the answers. I really don’t.
“I’ll call Wren,” Kalen offers. “Get everyone looking for him.”
“Thank you,” I say softly. I’m trying to work out what we need to do. This is a disaster. Usually we find him quickly, and everything is fine. But this is different… He ran off on the street. He could be run over or kidnapped or anything… I have to remind myself that this is Silver Springs and not a massive scary city somewhere but the reminder doesn’t do much to ease my fears.
“Call the police, Jacqueline,” I say. “Then you and Lewis stay here with the other children. We’ll head out and look.”
“Okay. Sorry, Lupine.”
I shake off her apology. I don’t blame her. Edmond has done this to all of us more than once.
Stepping out of the orphanage, I begin calling his name at the top of my lungs. Kalen is by my side. He’s on the phone, telling Wren everything.
I try to reassure myself that we’ll find him quickly. I’m not alone looking for him this time. I’ve got Kalen and Wren… I’ve got a whole mafia of wolves at my disposal. We’ll find him.
***
The further we walk, the more scared I become. It’s growing dark and my feet are sore. I have no idea how long we’ve been looking for him but I know he’s not here.
I try to remember whe
re he’s gone in the past. Perhaps there’s a pattern.
He usually ends up somewhere green and he regularly comes home covered in mud, as if he’s been digging.
“What about the park?” I suggest.
“We’ve already looked there, though,” Kalen replies. “Isn’t there somewhere else? Anywhere else?”
I shake my head. I can’t think of anywhere else off the top of my head. There aren’t that many places in town for a little shifter boy to hide.
“We should have found him already. It’s dark, and he’s going to be scared.”
I can hear the panic I feel in my voice. This is scary as hell. I’ve completely fucked up. How did I allow him to go missing? This is all my fault. If I hadn’t stayed home and had gone with Jacqueline to pick up the kids from school…
My phone buzzes and I hurry to answer it, thinking someone might have found him.
“Yes?” I ask franticly.
Officer Stevens is on the other end, asking me questions about Edmond. I can barely think straight. I have to answer with ‘I don’t know’ more often than I’d like. I’m really messing this up.
“We’ve searched the school,” he tells me sternly, “and we’re talking to all your neighbors.”
“Thank you,” I reply.
“Is there anywhere you think we need to look?”
I hesitate. I really haven’t got the foggiest.
“He does this a lot. But he’s never been gone so long.”
“Lupine, calm down,” Officer Stevens says. “We’re going to find him.”
I’m close to tears. I have more people helping me look for him and yet it’s never taken this long before.
“What if he’s hurt?”
Kalen puts a protective arm around my shoulders. “He’s going to be okay,” he whispers encouragingly.
Hearing my distress, Officer Steven says, “perhaps you should wait at home, Lupine?”
I can’t do that. I need to find him.
“No. I’m not going home,” I say stubbornly.
***
“EDMOND!” I shout out, my voice growing hoarse.
Kalen’s phone blasts and I feel my heart race. Surely this time it will be good news.
“Yep,” he says. “I see. I’ll tell her.”
Lupine Page 12
