Now that she’d been shown to be not as self-controlled as she’d led people to believe, she could expect to be on the receiving end of a lot of harsh criticism.
“I expect she’s been buying it from that scoundrel Merchant MacDoig,” exclaimed the Mistress of the Werewolves. “I know he supplies Kalix. I’m never letting him in the castle again. Really, Markus, I feel so let down. I trusted Dominil.”
“Has she ever betrayed your trust?” asked Markus.
“Up till now, no. Or so I thought. But who knows what might have been going on? I’ve often sent Dominil money for clan business. Has she been using it to buy drugs?”
“I’m sure she hasn’t,” said Markus.
The Mistress of the Werewolves scowled and wrapped her paw around her wine glass, emptying it in one long swallow.
“You might sympathize with your cousin, but I assure you the clan won’t. And I don’t either.”
“She did try to stop,” Markus pointed out. “That’s why she went to see Minerva.”
“And look how that’s turned out!” cried Verasa. “More misfortune.”
Markus knew it was no good pursuing the subject. His mother wasn’t going to change her mind in a hurry. He sipped a little wine, then changed the subject.
“We seem to have agreed to go to war.”
Verasa made a face, an expression that would not have been intelligible to an outsider. To another werewolf, it was clear that she was unsure of her opinion.
“Thrix is right, I suppose,” said Verasa. “If the hunters can kill Minerva, they can strike anywhere. We have to do something. But I can’t see the barons hurrying to send their young wolves to London to join the fight.”
After long discussion, it had been agreed that they should make plans for a campaign against the Avenaris Guild. The council had not gone as far as Thrix wanted. They’d stopped short of immediately mobilizing the clan for war. This was partly because many of the council members were conservative by nature and refused to rush into a violent campaign. But there was sound reasoning behind it too. No one knew where the Guild was located. Their headquarters was hidden. The MacRinnalchs didn’t even know if their army of hunters was gathered in one place or dispersed around the country. Until they learned more, the council was not prepared to fully commit itself.
Thrix had been frustrated. She’d brusquely informed the meeting that she would take it upon herself to find the Guild’s headquarters as soon as possible, using her powers of sorcery.
“And Dominil’s computer expertise,” added Thrix, ignoring the cynicism around the table about Dominil’s ability to do anything. Between them, Dominil and Thrix would find the Guild’s headquarters.
“As soon as we do that,” Thrix had said, “I’ll expect the clan to be ready to annihilate them.”
Verasa had gone along with the general feeling. She knew that something had to be done, but she was uncomfortable with the prospect of an all-out war. She didn’t like that her son Markus was so keen on the idea. Markus seemed to think that as Thane he should be leading the troops. Verasa didn’t want that to happen. She’d lost one son last year and didn’t intend to lose another. She worried about Thrix too. The Enchantress was so powerful that she’d rarely had to worry about her before. But if she went up in direct opposition to the Guild, who knew what might happen? The Guild had access to sorcery too. They had a strong ally in the Fire Elemental Kabachetka. Verasa feared for Thrix’s life, and Markus’s too, and, as dawn broke and she changed back into human shape, she lay down in her bed very uneasily.
Am I to lose all my children? wondered the Mistress of the Werewolves. Kalix was always in trouble, and although Verasa continued to support her, she couldn’t help feeling that her youngest daughter was destined for an early grave. In the course of her very long life, Verasa had learned to take misfortune stoically, but as the sun rose she lay in her bed feeling depressed and very troubled about the future.
Kalix woke in her human form on the warehouse floor. Daniel and Moonglow were asleep on top of a large crate. Kalix was perplexed. She didn’t remember what had happened but realized it couldn’t have been good. She considered sneaking out quietly, but at that moment Moonglow woke.
“Kalix, are you all right?”
“I’m fine,” mumbled Kalix.
“We should go home,” said Moonglow and nudged Daniel awake.
They trudged out to the car, stiff from their uncomfortable night’s sleep. Daniel opened the car doors.
“C’mon, Wolfy,” he said and grinned.
Kalix knew she’d taken on her wolf form last night. She knew she could be irresponsible in that state. She wondered if she’d actually attacked her flatmates, but didn’t like to ask. Before she had time to process this, a more profound gloom settled on her. Old Minerva was dead and it was Kalix’s fault. She’d been sent home in disgrace. The young werewolf sat in the back seat and tried to make herself as small as possible. She remained silent on the journey home, refusing to respond to Moonglow’s anxious questions about what had happened to upset her.
Kalix felt herself becoming anxious as they neared their home. She didn’t want to answer questions from Daniel and Moonglow. Last night, she’d felt so anxious about everything she’d fled to the warehouse so as not to have to encounter anyone. Kalix found it very difficult to cope with company when her anxiety came on badly. Now it was a heavy weight on her, fueled by her guilt over Minerva. She was certain the werewolves at the castle would be discussing her. Thrix and Dominil would have told everyone it was her fault that Minerva was killed.
Kalix’s shoulders were hunched as she emerged from the car, and she was silent as they made their way inside.
“Are you all right?” asked Moonglow for the tenth time.
“Stop asking me that,” said Kalix wearily. She headed straight for her room and closed the door noisily behind her, signaling that she didn’t want to be disturbed.
Downstairs, Daniel watched her disappear. “It’s fine,” he muttered. “Don’t bother thanking us for coming to look for you. It was no trouble.”
“I wonder what happened?” said Moonglow.
“Kalix isn’t about to tell us.”
They went to the kitchen to make tea and pour some cereal for breakfast.
“Do you think I should call Dominil?” asked Moonglow. “Maybe she’d tell us.”
“She probably won’t. They’re always secretive about clan business.”
Daniel ate his cereal then put bread in the toaster. “They were probably involved in some terrible werewolf fight and half the clan’s dead and Kalix killed most of them.”
Moonglow was troubled. From their past experiences with Kalix, that might not be too far from the truth. “She was determined not to get involved in any more violence,” she said.
“Maybe that’s difficult when you’re a werewolf. Especially a crazy one like Kalix.”
“Kalix isn’t crazy.”
“I know,” said Daniel. “But she’s not exactly stable either. As we discovered last night.”
Unexpectedly, Moonglow laughed.
“What’s funny?”
“Us. Going to the park and you getting cut by the bushes and then us getting chased by a wolf and having to sleep on a crate. Our life is much more exciting than our friends’.”
“True. None of them have even met a werewolf, and we’ve met loads.”
They