The Phoenix Wolf and his Luna

Pack work

Fallon’s POV

3 years later

“Damn it, Harvey, just let me do this!” I shouted.

I had been back for months, and the only lawyer between the pack and the human town, I was already making more than enough money. I kept my student loans paid by working at diners. I would ride a bike everywhere to avoid paying for cabs, and even better, I was close enough to be able to just run across the border into Canada and shift every weekend.

My wolf was red and gray, with dark brown eyes and a white tip on her tail. I let her have complete control while we ran through the wild Canadian tundra. She would spend hours hunting playfully. Sometimes she would find a rabbit or squirrel, but she kept the larger animals for the packs. After we had found our friend, she was more at ease hunting, but still, anytime we came across a new wolf, she would stand as still as possible. Even knowing no one would dare attack an Alpha. He had helped me a lot, even if I didn’t want it.

Now that we had all graduated, Molly was going to California for her residency for a pack there. Braydon was following behind her and was already being promoted as the head warrior. Noe had done her best to keep the diner up and running, but she had adopted 3 kids, a pup that was randomly dropped at the human hospital, another pup whose parents had died in a rogue attack and was left in the forest. And a little human. Vlad had stayed exactly where he was, keeping to himself and a close eye on Raelynn. She was doing her best, but she was only 18 and had no experience. Harvey and Gwen were adamant that she focus on graduating high school. That meant it was just Harvey and Gwen running the diner, and they were too old for it. They were too old for it when I first met them. Now Gwen was barely making it to lunch and Harvey was dragging by the end of the day.

“That diner is my life! You just want to close the doors because you’re some big-time lawyer now? Too good to work a grill?” He growled. The rumble set off a coughing fit.

“No, you stubborn old wolf. No one said close the doors. I said, you and Gwen are done. I don’t have any cases right now, so until I get some, I’ll work at the diner. Raelynn has been doing her best, but it’s just her. When’s the last time Vlad took a day off?”

He sat back in the chair groaning. Gwen had spent yet another night in the pack hospital. She hadn’t been in very good health for years, but this last year had been really hard on her. He mostly refused to leave her, but he decided this time because Vlad had agreed to watch her for a few hours.

“You want to run the diner? You know you’d have to order the supplies, do the books, pay the cleaners?”

I rolled my eyes. He acted like I hadn’t done this before. He thought about it for a while, before finally agreeing. He gave me the keys to the diner, the information about the banks, credit cards and the schedule for what very little staff were working. When I say very little, I mean besides Raelynn there was two other workers. I would have to find more and soon. I inwardly groaned. I hated interviews and now I would have to give them. Not that there were many applications. A few teenagers from the pack and a human.

There were fewer and fewer humans around the pack, especially with the dwindling businesses. The Alpha had ordered them out of town, a gas line break or something like that. It was for their protection, but some families had been there for so long they knew about supernaturals and could protect themselves from us. I made my way through the calls, there was no real point in doing interviews when I needed the staff. I called and hired them all on the spot. My day went through phone calls to vendors, the bank, the hospital. And the most time was spent on the phone with Noe. The kids were driving her crazy, but she loved them. I planned to visit her soon. She was still in town, but between her shifts at the hospital and the kids she was too busy. I was going to be busier than I thought.

When I finally got to the apartment, it was empty as it had been for the last few months. Noe had moved out when she adopted the first pup but had kept the lights on, so when I came home, I would have a place to stay. I was grateful, but I wasn’t used to being alone. I made one good friend while at law school. He had been my study buddy and even became my roommate the last two years we attended. I really needed to call him. We knew a lot about each other, but neither was willing to tell our pack’s name.

I threw my keys and bag on the counter and warmed up something frozen in the microwave. I could cook, I had to learn at university, I was just too tired to do that tonight. While my food warmed up, I took a quick shower and curled on the couch in my towel. I wasn’t expecting company. Now that my little family had a family of their own, our days of partying and getting drunk on a random Tuesday were gone. Until I got a call about a case or even just a new business, my life would be the diner.

My next few days involved training the new servers at the diner, visiting with Gwen at the hospital and microwaveable meals. I had gotten ridiculously drunk again. Why not I didn’t have anything else to do, when I got a call. Looking at my phone, it was 3 in the f*****g morning, and I was still slightly drunk.

“M’lo?” I grumbled trying to keep the vodka and spaghetti and meatballs from coming back up.

“Is this Fallon Singh? The lawyer?” A deep voice responded.

“Yes. This is she.” I jerked out of the bed my voice going to the lawyer voice I had been practicing for the last ten years.

“My name is Alpha James Graydon. I believe you know my wife.. Serenity.”

My wolf grumbled in pain. Though it had been 8 years since she rejected me, my wolf was still in pain over it. I was over it, glad she was happy, doesn’t mean I really wanted to hear about her or talk to the man she had married. I also knew that no matter what I would help Harvey and Gwen with their medical bills. It was the least k could do after all they had done for me.

“Yes, I know Serenity. How can I help you?”

“There have been some changes to the pack, the largest being that we are selling the businesses to the Titan pack.”

I knew that the pack had become more accepting to different relationships. There had been a few chosen mates now, a couple of gay men that were fated, and James had even looked around for a third chosen mate to keep his wife happy. She turned it down, but it was nice that he tried. Of course, that would be off putting to a lot of other packs who kept their traditionalist point of views.

The sad thing about this type of thing is, if the businesses went, so did the pack. With no financial dependency, there was no way to pay the staff, keep up with the houses, simply putting it, they would be broke.

“Okay, so you need me to ensure you’re being offered the best price. Or look over the contract?”

“Yes. Serenity said you went into business law.”

I had a feeling Gwen and Harvey had been bragging about it since the day I graduated. Probably before. They were very proud of all of us. Since they never told us of kids of their own, the strays they took in were as close as they came.

“Yes. If you can email me the contract and bids, I’ll let you know around 4 p.m. tomorrow.”

There was an awkward silence coming from the other side. I waited until he cleared his throat. “I will be needing your banking information. What is your standard fee?”

“Typically, $60 an hour, but due to the circumstances I will do $40 an hour from 8-5, $50 any time before and after those times, and to answer your question, this is a consultation so it will be free.”

He breathed a sigh of relief. They must be doing worse than I thought. We spoke more on the deals and my services and what it would entail. I would have to contact the Titan’s pack attorney, and get the businesses appraised, along with the land, and complete access to the pack assets. After Alpha James sent me the information, I hung up deciding I should get back to work at the diner. I needed to get Vlad to cover the business hours so I could work on the pack stuff. So long as Harvey and Gwen were taken care of.

I made my way to the diner, Vlad had already opened and was doing early morning prep. He handed me a breakfast burrito and a large cup of coffee before going back to the kitchen. I worked for a couple of hours before I looked at the time. It was 8.

“Hey, Vlad, I’ve got some other work I need to do for the next few weeks. Would you mind watching the diner and Bitty for me until I get it done?”

He nodded. Vlad had never been much of a talker, so it wasn’t that different. I knew he would be the best to help me out with this. Not that we had anyone else we could ask.

Sadly, one of the worst things about all of this would be the fact I had to spend time at the packhouse. It was great I would be able to help pay for Gwen’s medical care; she was released this morning but would need a lot of help from now on. Hospice, they called it. I wasn’t stupid, I knew they had done all they could for her, but she was just elderly and had been working herself ragged.

I got in the truck I had just leased and drove to the place I hadn’t seen in 8 very long years. At the borders, I noticed a very tall, tanned wolf wearing tear away shorts and no shirt with some tennis shoes. It was typical for patrol’s not to wear many clothes. No point in case of an attack or need to shift. His deep green eyes looked back at me through my windshield and my wolf howled in recognition. We used to be able to feel our family, but he wasn’t it anymore. Just like the people that gave birth to me, they were nothing more. Not now. Maybe if they had tried sooner, but I had no urgency to reconnect.

After nearly 8 years I finally saw my brother.