Chapter 5 Lina #3
We moved to the dining room where the rest of the family was already gathering.
The twins had claimed seats next to their grandparents, chattering away about their day while Serena and Marcus listened with indulgent smiles.
William and Margaret Crane sat across from them, watching the chaos with expressions that suggested they weren’t used to children being quite so. .. energetic.
I settled into my usual seat with Knox on one side and Hunt on the other. Isabella somehow ended up directly across from me, her blue eyes fixed on my face with an intensity that made me want to throw something at her.
Dinner was tense despite everyone’s best efforts to make small talk. The Cranes asked polite questions about pack business. Serena and Marcus talked about their travels. Hunt kept the twins entertained with increasingly ridiculous faces across the table.
I was just starting to relax, just starting to think maybe this dinner wouldn’t be terrible, when Isabella dropped her bomb.
“I’ve been thinking,” she said, her voice carrying across the table, “about staying here for a while. A few months, maybe. To reconnect with old friends and see how the pack has changed.”
The table went quiet.
My eyes snapped to Isabella, who was already staring back at me with a challenge in her gaze. She knew exactly what she was doing. She knew how this would land.
A few months. She wanted to stay here for a few months. In my pack. Near my mate. The mate she’d apparently had a crush on since childhood.
“That’s wonderful!” Serena exclaimed, her face lighting up. “We’d love to have you, wouldn’t we, Knox?”
Knox’s hand found my thigh under the table, squeezing gently. A reassurance. A silent promise that this meant nothing.
But I was still the Luna. And I wasn’t about to let some childhood friend waltz into my territory without at least asking some questions.
“Why?” I asked, my voice pleasant but firm. “What brings on this sudden desire to reconnect after so many years?”
Isabella’s smile tightened almost imperceptibly. “I’ve been feeling nostalgic lately. And I’ve heard such wonderful things about the changes here. I thought it would be nice to see them for myself.”
“Don’t you have responsibilities with your own pack? An education program to run?”
“I’ve taken a sabbatical.”
“How convenient.”
The tension at the table was thick enough to cut with a knife. Serena and Marcus exchanged uncertain looks. William Crane cleared his throat. Margaret sipped her wine with studied disinterest.
Knox’s parents looked happy about the arrangement, which meant I couldn’t outright refuse without making enemies of my in-laws. They’d finally started warming up to me. I didn’t want to ruin that by being openly hostile to their family friends’ daughter.
So I smiled. Sweetly. With all the false warmth I could muster.
“Well then,” I said. “Welcome to Ravenshollow. I hope you find what you’re looking for.”
The threat underneath the words was clear. Isabella heard it. Her eyes narrowed slightly before she smiled back.
“I’m sure I will.”
I reached out and placed my hand on Knox’s thigh, sliding it up slowly. Just to make a point. Just to remind everyone at this table who Knox belonged to.
His knee slammed into the underside of the table with a loud bang.
Everyone jumped. Glasses rattled. The twins looked around with wide eyes.
“Sorry,” Knox said, his voice strained. “Leg cramp.”
Hunt snorted into his water glass. Noah developed a sudden coughing fit. I kept my expression innocent while my hand stayed exactly where it was.
Isabella’s smile had gone brittle around the edges.
The rest of dinner passed in a blur of forced politeness and barely concealed tension. By the time dessert was finished, I was exhausted and ready for everyone to leave so I could collapse on the couch and process everything that had happened.
William Crane seemed to sense the mood shift because he cleared his throat and set down his napkin with deliberate care.
“This has been a lovely evening,” he said, his politician’s voice smooth and practiced. “But it’s getting late and we don’t want to impose any further. You’ve been wonderful hosts.”
“Yes, the food was excellent,” Margaret added, though her tone suggested she was just being polite.
“You’re welcome anytime,” Serena said warmly. “It’s been so wonderful catching up. And Isabella, we’ll get you settled in the guest house tomorrow morning. You’ll be very comfortable there.”
The guest house. At least she wouldn’t be staying in the main pack house with us. Small mercies.
Everyone stood and began the awkward shuffle of goodbyes. William shook hands with Knox and Noah. Margaret air-kissed Serena’s cheeks. The twins ran circles around the adults, hopped up on sugar from dessert and completely oblivious to the tension.
Isabella approached the twins as everyone was preparing to leave, crouching down with a wide smile that didn’t reach her eyes.
“You must be Rowan and Thea! I’ve heard so much about you from your grandmother. Such precious little ones.” She spread her arms wide. “Can I get a goodbye hug?”
Rowan went completely still, his whole body tensing in a way I’d never seen before. He didn’t say anything, didn’t move, just stared at Isabella with those too-old eyes of his. His hand found mine and gripped tight.
Thea, my fierce little girl who never backed down from anything, actually retreated. She moved behind my legs, hiding herself in my skirt and gripping the fabric with both hands.
“No thank you,” Thea said quietly. “I don’t want to.”
Isabella’s smile faltered. “Oh. Well. That’s... that’s okay. Maybe next time.”
“They’re just tired,” Serena said apologetically. “Long day.”
But I knew better. Kids know. They always know. They can sense things that adults miss, can feel the wrongness in people that years of social conditioning have taught the rest of us to ignore.
My children didn’t trust Isabella Crane, and neither did I.