Free Devious Magic by Camilla Chafer

sipped my coffee again and avoided his eyes. Much as I didn’t want to admit it, he probably did have a point. Texas might be safer, but I’d be on the move again and I wanted to fight for my corner. I had to stop running some day or I could be running my whole life.
    “Then at least, make sure you’re not alone,” Evan added. He and Gage exchanged looks. They might not exactly have formed a friendship, but there was an uneasy truce when it came to me. Although it seemed to run more along the lines of “be nice when Stella is around,” all bets were off when I wasn’t looking. I wasn’t an idiot. I could tell they had their issues, and unfortunately, they all centred on me.
    When I first arrived in Wilding alone, not knowing what happened to Evan, Gage and I flirted with the beginnings of a relationship. However, all that had gone out of my mind the moment I knew Evan was staying. I had yet to confess to kissing Gage when Evan once stormed off in anger, not long after returning to my life. It had been a weak moment for me, one I did my best to forget, but I knew things could be infinitely worse if I confessed. I wasn’t used to keeping secrets and this was one that gave me some trouble, until I refused to think about it anymore.
    A truce was a start.
    “I’m going to head out and relieve Jay and Kris.” Annalise got to her feet and took her plate and mug, carrying them towards the kitchen. “Michelle’s probably already waiting for me.”
    “Just leave them by the sink, I’ll do them in a while,” I called after her.
    She stopped, looked back at me and frowned. I made a big thing out of being house-proud – it was hard not to, now that I had so much space of my own. “You sure?”
    “No problem, go fight evil.” I grinned.
    As alpha male, Gage was taking the organisation of the stakeout very seriously, which gave me some reassurance. Annalise was scheduled to take on the next watch alongside a pretty, redheaded wolf called Michelle Dunphy who was a couple of years older than I and a relatively new member of their pack. I knew Annalise’s eagerness to leave early this morning was less about getting to their rendezvous on time and more about getting some extra alone time with Beau, who was due at work. He called the early evening Brotherhood-watch shift. I hoped to hell this was not going to spoil their weekend plans.
    They slipped outside, hand in hand, walking towards Beau’s truck. For a moment, I envied Annalise. She not only had a great brother, but also lived in her hometown surrounded by her childhood friends. I admired her joyous nature, her ability to make everyone feel welcome. Most of all, I envied her freedom. Few people would mess with Annalise and risk the wrath of the pack.
    Before I’d arrived to Wilding, the pack had free rein to run wild out in this neck of the woods. They even had a private meeting house, the Loup Garou, that was a mile or so away, at the other end of Shadow Wood Lane. They were forced to lie low when I arrived, until they discovered I was something other than human. Only then, did they reveal themselves to me. Now they were a regular fixture in the woods and I often saw them in both their human and wolf forms. Out of respect, I stayed away while they transitioned, since it was a very personal thing and they always ended up naked. Occasionally, I’d see one of them through the change, as some didn’t seem to care. It was a strange thing to watch bones slide and lock into new positions, claws grow or retract, muzzles become noses and so on.
    “Is there anything I can help the pack with?” I asked Gage. I hated feeling useless while the pack came to my aid again. A few months ago, they chased off the large gathering of witches who arrived uninvited to my house. While a few of the witches were intent on causing trouble, the rest were spectators. They were mainly interested in seeing if any battle lines were being drawn, all part of the Council’s leadership