Surfaced (Hidden Trilogy #2)

Chapter One

“You sure you have everything?” Nicole, my foster mom asked from behind me. We were standing outside our house in Cave Junction where her, my foster dad Steve and I had lived the past year. I set the last box of personal items I would need for college in the truck and turned back to her. I watched as she wiped a stray tear from her eye and I raised my eyebrow.

“Are you crying?” I asked with disbelief hanging on my words. Nicole never shed a tear. Ever. Okay maybe a Hallmark movie here and there, but over me leaving to go off to college an hour away? Never saw that coming.

“No, of course not.” She sniffed and blinked rapidly before turning up the wattage on her smile. I grinned in return.

“Of course not., I chuckled before pulling her in for a tight hug. . Where I was medium build with brown hair, Nicole was a petite frame with natural blonde hair and was taller than me by a good four or five inches. Nobody would be able to mistake me as either Nicole or Steve’s child. I would really miss them both, but it wasn’t like I was moving across the country. Southern Oregon University was only an hour away in Ashland.

“You sure you have everything you need?” My eyes followed the sound of Steve’s voice as he emerged from the house carrying a bag of snacks. He was slightly taller than Nicole with light colored hair as well. Hammering home the fact that I was not related to them at all. They graciously fostered me at my trying age of 14. Luckily, they had the patience of a saint and the experience of numerous foster kids before me. I was somehow lucky enough to be the last one they were going to foster before entering retirement and pursuing some of the things they had missed out on while helping teens like me. They had offered to officially adopt me a couple years ago but knowing all the things they wanted to do in their lives, I didn’t want them to think they were financially responsible for me. It was enough to know I always had a home to go to if needed.

“Are those for me?” I grinned at the bag of cookies and snacks that might last until I reached Ashland. Maybe. Hmm…probably not.

“Yes, but you have to wait to eat them until you get to campus. Share them with your new roommate.” Steve said slyly, knowing full well they weren’t going to make it that far. He bypassed me and deposited them into the passenger seat of the truck. We discussed, at length, the pros and cons of taking my car, a glorious 1970 Dodge Challenger R/T freshly redone thanks to my friends, versus their spare truck. Obviously, their logic won out considering all the boxes and suitcases piled high in the bed of the truck. My ride would hardly hold three boxes let alone a whole truckload. I planned to exchange the vehicles on one of my trips back to visit.

“Are you sure you don’t want to wait for us until tomorrow so we can help you unpack?” Nicole eyed the daunting pile of stacked boxes with skepticism. I admit, I wasn’t looking forward to tackling it myself either. They both had a fundraising reception for Steve’s job as a Forest Ranger that night and I insisted they attend. This would be the last one for Steve since he would be retiring soon, so it was important they go and see their friends.

“I’ll be fine,” I reassured with a smile and a hand to her arm. “Besides, they have upperclassmen there to help make sure all the fresh meat feels welcome.” I laughed.

“And her roommate said her family would be there as well to help move things in., Steve added, pulling Nicole into his embrace. I couldn’t help the small smile at their open affection for each other. They really were the cutest couple ever. Well, Hunter and Bree might take that cake, as I thought of two of my friends from the McCoy Pack. Hunter and Bree just found out this past spring that they were lifemates when Bree turned eighteen. A big deal in the shifter world. Apparently lifemates don’t form a bond until both parties are at least eighteen, and there was no separating Hunter and Bree. Where one was, the other was sure to be close by.

“Right,” I agreed. “Amber said she had a big family so there would be plenty of people there to help out. Besides, it’s not like I have a moving truck to unload.” Glancing over at the truck again, it really wasn’t that bad. All in all, it probably would only take me a few hours to unload everything by myself if I had to.

“No, but are you sure you have everything you need? It doesn’t look like you have much.” Nicole asked again glancing behind me.

“I have what I need, and it’s not that far home if I forgot something,” I reassured. “You have Amber’s contact information, just in case, right?” I had copied down my roommate’s info for them and put it on the refrigerator for safe keeping.

“Yep, we have it.” Steve affirmed. “What did you say her last name was again? It was a little uncommon if I remember right.” Steve scrunched up his face, trying to remember Amber’s last name.

“Malkin,” I supplied.

“Ah yes. And where is she from?” Steve asked. I rolled my eyes good naturedly with a chuckle.

“We’ve been over this already,” I laughed. “She’s from a small town on the other side of Ashland. Her parents live there with her younger sister and brother. Her older brother works in Ashland for an outdoor recreation business of some kind.” I listed off the facts I knew in the hopes the issue would be dropped. There was one, small fact I was omitting, but I didn’t think Steve or Nicole needed that information on their plate on top of worrying about me. That one, small fact being that my new roommate was a panther shifter. As was her entire family. Yeah, no biggie. The knowledge of shifters was secret, and since Steve and Nicole were one hundred percent human, there was no possibility of bringing them up to speed. That went against the High Council’s edicts. I sighed and shifted away from those troubling thoughts.

I glanced at my watch and saw that it was getting late. I still needed to stop at Cassie’s house to say goodbye to the McCoy Pack. Not that they knew I was rooming with a panther either. My list of secrets was growing by the minute. While I would normally tell the pack anything, this was one secret that I wasn’t sure how they would take. Wolves and non-wolf shifters didn’t always see eye to eye, and Amber had information that I sorely needed if I ever wanted to learn to shift into my wolf form.

“Okay, so if you guys need anything, call me. I’m only an hour away and can come back if you need help with something. Okay?” I prodded looking at them both.

“Don’t you worry about us. We have things under control.” Steve assured as he let go of Nicole and wrapped me in a hug. “Just don’t forget to call us every once in a while.” He whispered as he let me go. Nicole moved in and hugged me as well.

“Same for you, kiddo. Let us know if you need anything. We don’t leave on our trip for another two weeks. Anything you need, or if you want to talk, we are here for you.” Nicole squeezed me extra hard before letting go and stepping back into Steve’s embrace. I blinked rapidly to keep the emotions at bay and smiled brightly in their direction.

“Don’t worry about me. I’m resourceful,” I grinned. Steve and Nicole laughed as I rounded the truck and slid inside. I waved as I started the engine and backed out of the driveway. Their figures slowly faded as I turned the corner and I let out the breath I didn’t realize I was holding.

One set of goodbyes done. Now onto the next. I sighed. This round was going to be even more difficult just because I was going to have to be careful of everything I said. The McCoy Pack was my unofficial adopted family, although Steve and Nicole had no idea.

The McCoys were wolf shifters, something I had no idea about until maybe nine months ago. The pack owned a lot of the land and businesses in and around the town and had one of the biggest packs in the country from what Cassie told me. Just this past spring, they welcomed me into their pack as one of their members after our impromptu visit with the High Council.

I scoffed as I turned down the main street, thinking about that impromptu excursion. That trip turned out to be an enlightening one.

The High Council determined I was a wolf shifter even though I couldn’t shift. Talk about a life changing moment. I figured up to that point I was totally human with shifter friends. Being shiftless was rare for wolves, and the High Council was none too happy to find out that little fact about me. Add in the fact I was an orphan with no ties to any pack, and, yeah. Not the best response from them on that.

I was what they called a latent, which meant I shouldn’t exist in their eyes and required supervision as well as quarterly reports to note if any of my shifter genes were surfacing. Add to that, Elder Nicolas later told the McCoy Pack and myself that I was a latent white wolf which comes with its own set of problems. Thinking back on that eventful meeting made all the worries come flooding back to the forefront of my mind. Elder Nicolas told us that there’s a prophecy which states all latent white wolves will bring upheaval or change to the shifter world. Yeah, like I want that sitting on my shoulders.

I picked up the pendants from the chain around my neck and played with the two ovals. One was supposedly from my mother, who dropped me off on a church doorstep when I was two without a backward glance. A note was found with me, nothing else. The pendant itself showed a wolf howling at the sky and I’ve worn it every day since I could remember. I don’t know why it meant so much to me, but it was a huge part of who I was and didn’t ever want to be separated from it. I guess it was my last key to my past and a small part of me wasn’t ready to let go.

The other pendant was from Cade, who happened to be Cassie’s twin brother, and my sort of boyfriend. The pendant he gave me said ‘forever yours’ followed by ‘Cade’. He gave it to me on our high school graduation day, the day he had to leave for training, and I’ve worn it alongside the other pendant ever since.

Cade was currently off at Enforcer Training for the High Council. The training was required for all future alphas of the packs in order to understand the role they played in shifter society. Personally, I thought it was a bunch of bullshit. It gave the High Council pull over all the packs since they each had to send their future alpha to them for five years right after they graduated high school. From the little I knew of the High Council, I’m sure there was some form of brainwashing going on as well.

I turned down the lane that would take me to Cassie’s home and thought about her family. Liam and Mica were the alpha pair that led the McCoy Pack, parents to Cade and Cassie. Cade would lead when Liam stepped down or something tragic happened to cause Cade to become the alpha. While Cade was off to Enforcer Training, for the next five years, Cassie was stuck at home and her only option to further her education was to take online courses. I knew she wasn’t happy about that fact, but when you’re the daughter of a high-profile pack, other packs were always angling for ways to better themselves. Sometimes through political maneuvering other times through less than savory ways, including kidnap and ransom. To avoid those situations, Cassie reluctantly agreed to stay home and study while most of us left for other adventures. She wasn’t happy about it but understood the risk to her pack and was willing to concede for their welfare.

I rounded the last bend and traveled past the other houses of pack members and waved at a few I saw outside. Tanner, now seven years old, spotted me and raced to beat me to the head house. He was unintentionally responsible for my introduction to the shifter world. I chuckled at the memory of him accidentally shifting in front of me due to a big clap of thunder during a lightning storm. He was so scared from both the thunder and possibly being in trouble that his whole frame was shaking. I coaxed him over to me and he curled up into my lap, much to Cade’s astonishment when he found us a few seconds later.

Cade, I sighed counting the months since I’d seen him. His brown eyes and black hair filtered through my mind, remembering what he looked like with his tall, lean frame. I missed him a lot and wished he was here and not miles away. Well, what I assumed was miles away. The exact location of the training was top secret, so no one was sharing that information with me.

Cade and I had a complicated relationship and ever since I met him, we’ve been close. There’s a connection that links us, but so far, we haven’t really defined it. We aren’t lifemates, since neither of us felt any different when I turned eighteen last May. Cade insists we can’t feel the bond because I can’t shift. He was going off what Elder Nicolas said in our brief meeting in Dallas after the High Council meeting. I don’t know what is between us, but with him being gone for the past three months, it has definitely left a hole in my chest that no matter how much I distract myself, I can’t seem to fill.

As I parked, Tanner reached for my door and impatiently waited for me to unbuckle and step out before he curled his small frame around my hips and gave me a bone crushing hug. I laughed at his enthusiasm as Cassie and Bree exited the house in front of me.

“Whoa man. What have you been eating? You’re getting stronger every day!” I praised Tanner who looked up at me with a huge grin on this face.

“You think so? I’ve been helping Dad with all the heavy lifting stuff this summer in the shop. I want to be the strongest and fastest one in my class this year,” he replied with a determined look.

“Well, you’re well on your way then.” I laughed and gave him a quick hug before letting go. He stepped back and glanced at Cassie and Bree who now stood next to us. He looked back at the truck, then me with forlorn eyes.

“You really are leaving?” If wolf shifters could be classified as having puppy dog eyes without offending them, Tanner had that down pat.

“Yeah, I have to get going if I’m going to have time to unpack and move into my new apartment before dark.” I replied. “But don’t worry. I’m only an hour away and will be back to play tag with you soon.” I reached out and ruffled his hair, but it didn’t seem to faze him as he moved on to his next question.

“Can I call you to make sure you are okay?” His question caught me off guard and he continued before I could answer. “I promised Cade I would look after everyone while he was gone, remember?”

I did remember. The day we left to answer the summons from the High Council, Tanner promised Cade to look after everyone and keep them safe. Cade meant it as more of a job to keep Tanner out of trouble, but Tanner took it to heart. Apparently, this promise didn’t end with our safe return from Dallas. I looked to Cassie to see her biting her lip to hold back her smile. Glancing at Bree didn’t offer any more direction on how to handle a persistent seven-year-old.

“You can call me any time you want, bud. I’ll answer if I’m not in class.” I smiled reassuringly which seemed all he was looking for.

“Or off with your new college friends at a frat party.” Cassie grinned and pulled me in for a hug.

“What’s a frat party?” Tanner questioned. I looked down at him to see his big eyes looking up with a curious look. Cassie pulled back with an “oh shit” expression on her face. Thankfully Bree stepped in.

“Just a get-together for college age people where they meet other students. Usually they have drinks and food there for everyone.” Bree replied smoothly. Tanner seemed to consider the idea before his face brightened.

“I’m going to have a frat party for my friends.” Tanner declared with decisive nod. I bit back my laugh as he gave me one last hug and waved goodbye before running back to his friends. I could hear him inviting them to his house later for a frat party. We watched him go as Cassie shifted on her feet uncomfortably.

“Do you think I should tell his mom?” She asked nervously.

“Nah, just blame it on Hunter. Say he was talking about it.” I grinned.

“Blame me for what?” Hunter asked as he sidled up to Bree and wrapped his arms around her. He gave her a quick peck on the cheek before settling his gaze on me.

Hunter and I got off to a bad start. Well, things weren’t that much better, but they had improved. Before we found out I was a wolf shifter, a latent at that, Hunter didn’t agree that I should be hanging out with them, me being a lowly human. I later understood there was a risk to their pack. If anyone were to find out that a human knew about shifters the High Council would come after them, but I never really understood why he hated my presence when everyone else accepted me into the group. It left for some tense encounters between us.

Cade was the deciding factor. He made me an honorary pack member, and the others had to accept that since he was the alpha heir. With my shifter gene discovery and adoption into the McCoy Pack, Hunter’s hostility has lessened considerably. I glanced at the serene look both Bree and he had on their faces being so close to each other. Yeah, I bet Bree had something to do with Hunter’s change in attitude too.

“If Tanner’s mom asks where her son heard the term frat party, you’re taking the heat.” Cassie stated, looking at Hunter.

“Why me?” Hunter asked with slight amusement but didn’t argue the point.

“Because I’m not being responsible for his interpretation of a frat party and inviting his friends to one.” Cassie looked after Tanner and added, “and his mom is scary when riled.” Hunter cleared his throat to cover his laugh but didn’t comment. In Hunter’s arms, Bree turned to me.

“So, ready to go?” She glanced at my loaded truck and back to me. “You sure you don’t want some of us to go with you? It might be neutral territory, but we can still round up a few Enforcers to escort us. Plus, we could use them to help us move you in.” I knew the offer was coming, but I hadn’t really prepared what I was going to say. Yeah sure, but don’t mind my panther shifting roommate and her family that I didn’t tell you about. They are going to help me learn how to bring my wolf to the surface since they have experience with latents. Don’t worry, everything will be fine.

Yeah, so not happening.

“I appreciate the offer, but I don’t have that much, and they have upperclassmen there to help move things in.” I didn’t mention that I was actually moving into an apartment off-campus, but they didn’t really need to know that either. I was sure I was on borrowed time anyways regarding all the secrets. It was just a matter of time before everything came into the light.

“I’ll be back to see you guys before you know it.” I smiled to hide my nervousness. I wasn’t sure how the apartment was going to work, because sooner or later someone was going to come visit, and with their noses, they’d be able to scent my roommate a mile away. My hope was that by that time, I’d be able to show I’d lived with Amber for a while and proved that we can co-exist in the same space. And explain my need to learn to shift. We’d had that conversation over the last few months, but since latent wolves were so rare, there wasn’t anyone in their circle that knew how to help me. That was where Amber and her knowledge of other latent shifters would come in handy.

Unfortunately, most wolf shifters were under the misguided perception and long-standing belief they were superior over all other shifters. While some wolf shifters held that belief a little higher than others, I didn’t want to rock the boat too soon into my first year of college by announcing to the world I was rooming with a panther shifter. There were going to be enough challenges without setting off alarms for my friends back home. You know, figuring out how to shift, making sure my pack didn’t find out I was rooming with another shifter, keeping a low profile from the High Council who didn’t seem all that keen on me learning to shift, hoping Dusty had forgotten about me with time... Yeah piece of cake.

“Well, be sure to come home once in a while.” Hunter stated, surprising the heck out of me. “We need to keep up the pretense of informative reports on your progress, or lack thereof, to the High Council.” Ah…there it was.

“I’ll be sure to let Liam or Mica know if I wake up furry.” I said sarcastically. Cassie and Bree smothered their giggles while Hunter and I had a stare off. Hunter’s jaw seemed to lock as he glared at me.

“Seriously though,” Cassie interrupted, bringing my attention back to her. “Let us know if your senses start improving or you get the urge to run outside a lot.”

“Me? Run? Yeah, I don’t think we have to worry about that.” I laughed. I only ran if something was chasing me. Even then it had to be much bigger than me to make it worth the effort.

“If you do feel like going for a run, at least it will be a good sign your wolf genes are becoming more dominant.” Bree added with a smile.

“I’m still not sure if her figuring out how to shift is a good idea.” Hunter grumbled. I shot my eyes over to him and glared. He shrugged. “If you do shift, and you are a white wolf, then shit will hit the fan and the High Council will rain down on us like the apocalypse.”

Thank you, Hunter, for that white picket fence outlook…not.

“We don’t know what they will do.” Cassie argued with a light punch to Hunter’s arm. “There hasn’t been a latent wolf in over 193 years.” I thought back to the High Council meeting and their condescending looks and disbelief that I would exist. Like I was an affront to their perfect shifter society since I was unable to shift. To them, wolves were superior in every way. My inability to shift was an insult in their eyes.

“Elder Nicolas already confirmed, at least to us, that she is a white wolf. It’s just a matter of time before Kendra shifts. We just have to make sure we are prepared for that point in time.” Bree rationalized.

“Even if I do manage to shift, turn out to be white, the stupid prophesy doesn’t have to pertain to me. It could be another poor shmuck out there, maybe not even born yet.” I argued.

“Yeah that’s like slim to none chance of that happening again,” Hunter replied. “You fit it to a T with your upbringing, finding us at seventeen, not to mention your drawings that are uncannily accurate with past or future events.”

As much as I hated to admit it, Hunter had a point. I loved to draw and ever since I met the McCoy Pack my drawings have been of their wolves or, more recently, other animals that I think are shifters. Elder Nicolas said that was a trait that could take years to develop. Mine surfaced in less than a year. Yay me…

“Be that as it may,” Bree interjected softly, “There is no reason to panic. Prepare, yes.” She nodded decisively. “And I’m sure Liam and Mica are working on contingency plans should things go south.”

She turned to me and gave me a small smile. “Try not to worry about it so much when you’re at school. Chances are things will slow their progression since you won’t be around us so much and you can focus on your art.” I had a brief, oh shit, moment but hopefully it didn’t show on my face as I thought of all the shifter roommate time I would soon have. Why didn’t I think of that?

“When did you become so insightful,” Cassie teased.

“Must be part of my Omega awesomeness,” Bree replied lightly, and we all chuckled, but mine was a little strained.

Bree was the next in line to be the Omega of the pack after her mom. She would be responsible for the well-being and health of the pack. Which essentially meant seeing to any injuries or emotional issues the pack members may have. I thought it was a daunting task and big shoes to fill, but Bree seemed to be looking forward to it. Omegas are usually the weakest physically in the pack, but that means the rest of the pack protects them that much more. Fate definitely knew what she was doing when she paired Hunter and Bree as lifemates.

“Have you heard from Cade?” Cassie asked me hesitantly. The question caught me off guard and I tried to cover my initial reaction. I didn’t meet her eyes because I didn’t want to see her sadness of missing her twin. I was having enough trouble with my own loneliness.

“Two weeks ago, I talked to him for a bit,” I replied. By a bit I meant like five minutes. His training schedule was ridiculous and left no room for free time, let along phone calls.

“Yeah, we got a call around then too.” Cassie sighed. I could tell she missed her brother as well. This was probably the longest they have ever been apart in their lives. I stepped toward her and gave her quick hug in support. She sighed and added quietly, “We knew it was going to be difficult, but I think they are changing the rules because of how things went down in Dallas.”

“I can’t disagree.” I added and stepped back. It seemed Cade, and Brody who went with Cade to Enforcer Training so he wouldn’t be alone, weren’t allowed more than a half hour for personal time a day. The rest of the time, they were shadowing the older Enforcers to learn their job duties, sitting in on High Council public meetings, and any menial task their trainers could find for them to do. Not to mention Cade and Brody also had the privilege of Dusty Rhunes’s company while there.

He was the alpha’s son of a neighboring pack who was the same age as us. They had visited last spring with interest in either joining our two packs or making a business arrangement. Cassie had no interest in a political marriage, not that Liam or Mica did either. So, the whole meeting was pretty much a waste of time. At that time, we didn’t know what I was, so I couldn’t hang out with them in the off chance the Rhunes Pack would see a human spending time with the wolf shifters. All our effort was wasted though because Dusty and his two friends stumbled upon me with my pack who were in wolf form, after we thought they had left the area. All that led up to the gracious invitation to see the High Council in Dallas last spring.

Through that eventful meeting, we found out I was a shifter with a very weak scent, but a shifter nonetheless. The Rhunes pack was disgraced for falsely reporting a human knowing about shifters. I don’t know what the consequences were for the Rhunes pack falsely reporting a human being aware of shifters, but High Councilor Anton did instruct that Dusty was to receive “special training” by one of their Enforcers during his 5-year stint. Somehow, I didn’t think that boded well for him.

Once the Rhunes were excused from the room, the High Council uncovered that I was a latent. That knowledge was strictly confidential; however, it must have been leaked shortly after that meeting. Amber, and her brother Clint, made a surprise visit to my house after our return from Dallas with an invitation to room with Amber and to learn how to shift. It was an offer I couldn’t refuse considering everything else.

“Does he get to come back for any holidays or anything?” Bree asked, pulling me back into the conversation around me.

“Not that we know of.” Cassie said. “From what Dad told me from when he was in training, it’s a lot of hands on experience. The first few months you stay in the compound learning the ropes. Then they start getting assigned to teams to respond to issues across North America.”

“What kind of issues?” Bree asked curiously. She wasn’t the only one. Cade was particularly tight lipped about the things they had to do in their training.

“Shifters that are out of control or toeing the line of the High Council’s laws.” Hunter explained. We all looked to him for more information. “Dad was in with Liam back in the day. He said those five years taught him a lot about the control the High Council exerts and gave him good reason to ensure our pack never stepped out of line.” His gaze briefly met mine before looking away. That would explain his dad’s, Keith, animosity towards me way before I became part of the pack.

“Well, let me know if you hear anything from him,” I asked in general. It was getting late and I needed to head out.

“Same to you.” Cassie replied, giving me one last goodbye hug. Bree was right behind her.

“Take care of yourself and call us all the time. Let us know when we can come visit or when you’re coming back. We’ll have a movie night!” She grinned, trying to lighten the mood. I smiled and stepped back from her. I glanced at Hunter, not sure if he would want me in his personal space, but he sighed and before I knew it, picked me up in a bear hug.

“Told Cade and Brody I would tell you goodbye for them,” he grumbled before letting me down and stepping to the side.

“Oh, well, thanks.” I replied awkwardly. “Tell the others I’ll see them soon.” I said as I moved to the driver side door and slid in.

“Will do. Miss you already!” Cassie called as I started the engine. I smiled and waved as I turned around and headed back down the lane. A few people waved goodbye as I left, and I returned their wave before they were out of sight. I paused at the end of the driveway and took a deep breath to steady my nerves.

Well, here goes nothing. I turned toward Ashland and what awaited me there.