Chapter 0011


    Skr POV


    “What bonfire?” Sierra looks at me usingly.


    I shrug my shoulders. “I don’t do parties because I don’t have friends. So I don’t usually pay


    attention to the social scene.” I look down at the ground after that word vomit confession. Taking a


    deep breath I look back up at Sierra. I wonder when she is going to figure out I am not someone to


    know and she''ll move on like everyone else.


    Sam looks at me and chuckles a bit but then quickly turns confused when I don’t join inughing


    then looks between the two of us. He clears his throat. “We have a bonfire the weekend following


    the first full week of sses. Which happens to be tonight, you should bothe. It’s in the clearing


    in the woods behind the packhouse, nothing too crazy, but it is tradition. Will youe? Please say


    you’ll be there.” He’s looking at Sierra with big puppy dog eyes. Is he pouting?!


    “Of course! We can’t break tradition!” Her cheery personality shines through. “Is there a dress code


    for this particr get-together or is ite as you are?” She smiles up at him. So, this is what


    flirting looks like up close, interesting. She definitely does it better than Kaley, I think I get the appeal


    now.


    He looks a little lost for a second before blinking anding back to his senses. “Come as you are,


    but I would dress warm, it’s already starting to cool off and the clearing is in a bit of a valley that


    holds the cooler air.”


    Property belongs to N?vel(D)r/ama.Org.


    “What time?”


    “We are going to start setting everything up now, so you cane whenever, but the bonfire is lit


    near dark, so like 9. But, really you cane whenever.” He smiles at Sierra. It’s really cute to


    watch him flirt. I don’t even know if he realizes that’s what he’s doing. She seems to have him under


    a spell.


    “Well then, we will see youter Sam.” She smiles at him again and she gets into her car, I follow


    suit. Once we are both in and the doors are closed she looks over at me. “Okay, I was just trying to


    get us away from the b*tch trio and the hot brigade, but after all of that I really am hungry, where’s


    the best burger ce here?”


    “The hot brigade? Really?” I question her, shaking my head. She justughs as she starts the car.


    Iugh and start giving her directions. We eat and head to her ce which just so happens to be at


    the end of our block. “I didn’t realize your aunt and uncle were some of our lead warriors. That


    would exin your fighting skills. I guess I never really asked about you today, sorry about that.” I


    look down at myp as I sit on her bed as she digs through her closet.


    “Don’t worry about it, we have plenty of time to get to know each other. And what I want to know


    right now is what do you mean ‘you don’t do parties because you don’t have friends’? You’re not


    going to just slide that into conversation and hope no one heard it.” I cringe. After I said it, I felt like I


    was whining.


    “Exactly that, I do not have friends, I don’t go to parties, no one chooses to hang out with me. They


    mostly choose to avoid me. It’s been like that for a long time. You are the first person I have had


    more than one conversation in a row that wasn’t in school about an assignment or at training.” I


    shrug. It’s weird though when I used to think that stuff to myself it hurt, but I feel nothing now, like I


    am numb to the fact that I am avoided unless absolutely necessary by my peers. That can’t be


    good.


    “That’s a lot to unpack and I have a feeling the silverced whip marks on your back fall into this


    same story too, right?”


    “Wait, what? How did you know they were silverced whip marks?” I’m stunned, that’s oddly


    specific knowledge to just guess and I told Delta Kyle by ident over mindlink today. No one else


    knows.


    “I will allow the topic to change, but we are going to circle back to the friends thing. My parents are


    chemists. I already told you they work for our Alpha King. Many of the things they work on are


    chemical weapons and antidotes for war.” I flinch at the thought that her parents make things to


    harm other wolves, things like the silver powder that was rubbed into my wounds. “Don’t look at me


    like that. They aren’t bad people, but they have seen bad things. It’s their job to know the worst


    things that could be done to our Alphas and the Alpha king and be able to stop it or reverse it.


    Sometimes they have had to reverse engineer some of the things used in battles. That’s one of the


    reasons I am here, my parents are on some mission I don’t even have details about. It wasn’t safe


    for me to be alone, but it would be odd if I stayed with people in my pack for too long since I


    normally stay by myself when they travel. So staying with family was the best cover for my


    protection.” She leans back out of her closet and attempts to re at me, but her happy features


    don’t really do that look. “This goes without saying, but keep that to yourself.”