Moon spells for love

Chapter 2

Gin just about fell out of her chair in shock. Jerry was dead? That didn't even seem possible, sure it had been a few days since they had last talked, but that wasn't unusual. It had taken a long time for the two of them to warm up to each other, she didn't trust men at all and Jerry was as gruff as they came. He hadn't pressured her or insisted they talk. For the first year at least it was just Jerry talking to her and not seeming to care if he got a response or not. Eventually, Gin started making comments here or there and over time a strange friendship developed. He cleaned the bar, and she always got there early, so they talked about anything that wasn't pack. Pack business was reserved for text messages, short, brief and removed from daily life as much as possible.

Trying hard not to cry Gin finally pulled herself out of her memories and looked up at Sam before managing to croak out "how?"

The other wolf shrugged and got out a notebook "Not sure yet, but you know wolves. Even if he wasn't some young gun anymore it certainly didn't happen naturally. Jerry should have been hanging around for several more years."

Gin turned away and stared at the rest of the bar for a while, not really seeing any of it. There wasn't any family left for her anymore, but Jerry had become the closest thing she had to it besides her friend Stella. Stella wasn't a werewolf though and couldn't replace a packmate. That type of close connection was important for wolves, but Gin couldn't get comfortable with the pack at large. It was for sure going to be a very lonely time without Jerry.

After a few moments the wolf across from her taped his pen on the blank page of his notebook and launched into quite a few questions.

"When did you last see Jerry? "

"Here, three days ago."

"Did you mostly talk to each other in person or did you text more frequently?"

"In person. You have his phone though, you can check."

"How long did you know him?"

"About 2 years"

"Where were you last night?"

Gin paused at this one. Was he really going to insinuate that she had anything to do with taking down another werewolf? She wasn't exactly a fighter and did everything possible to stay away from garnering attention. After a tense moment she shrugged it off, he would be able to tell if she was lying and, since he was obviously investigating, it did seem like a required question.

"I was here working until closing at 2 am. Afterward, I walked a friend home and crashed on her couch. I can give you her number."

Sam looked up at her troubled; "You do have your own apartment though?"

Rolling her eyes, Gin nodded yes. Other wolves were always so concerned about protected home spaces, you would think that other pack creatures would understand not wanting to be alone sometimes. But that was difficult to talk about, since most of them would just tell her to go to the pack housing, not understanding that other wolves just weren't the solution for her. Stella was a witch, so not only was she great outside company, her apartment came with wards and enchantments. It was often the perfect place when Gin was feeling on edge, and last night she had been. Should she mention that to this guy? Bad feelings came and went for her, impossible to know what were true instincts and what was just old trauma. Better to keep that to herself, probably.

"Well, it certainly doesn't seem like you had any knowledge. Unfortunately, this doesn't bode well for any werewolf, especially an unattached one. I would expect a summons back to the pack soon, Jerry's death is going to have upped the alert considerably." He stood and ran his hand through his hair, letting out a sigh before turning away. Over his shoulder he said softly "I'm sorry for the loss of your friend, keep my card and call if anything comes up."

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Sam wasn't sure what to make of the wolf he had just met. She was certainly younger and more attractive than he had somehow expected, more settled in her space and stubborn as well. Gin hadn't gone to any trouble to answer his questions beyond the minimum amount necessary. But he could tell that she was hurt by the death of her friend, and no wolf that was comfortable and whole spent that much time living in isolation. Extra friends would help, but there just wasn't any replacement for pack, belonging and support were crucial for healthy, well-adjusted wolves.

Gin was the last member on his list and Sam's intention had absolutely been to go home, but something kept nagging at him. After a few back and forth moments, he gave up on getting any sleep for a while and settled in to a dark corner across the street from the bar. Hiding in plain sight had always been one of his goddess gifted talents and Sam couldn't shake the feeling that Jerrys death was a little too close to the wolf he had just met.