Chapter 226: Not Close Enough

Chapter 226: Not Close Enough
Evelyn's POV

Dora brought it up on the night of the full moon.

She was working in the kitchen when she suddenly stopped, turned around. "Let's have a gathering tonight."

"Why?"

"No reason." She wiped her hands on a towel. "Everyone's been through a lot. We finally got a minute to breathe. Might as well sit down together, eat some food. Don't gotta talk about anything else."

The way she said it didn't leave room for discussion. I looked at her, thought for a second. "Okay."

"Good." She smiled. "Go tell everyone."

---

Evening came. Dora got to the backyard first. When I walked over, she was already wrestling with one of the long tables—heavy wood, the kind that takes two people. She had it tilted at an angle, trying to drag it.

I started forward to help. Mark beat me there.

"I got it!" He jogged over, took the table from her hands, had it set up in about ten seconds.

Dora dusted off her palms. "Two more."

"On it."

When he finished the last one, he stood there looking around. "What else?"

Dora considered. "Get the boys. All of them."

Mark nodded and took off. Five minutes later he came back with Magnus, Lucian, Orion, Elliot. Milo showed up too.

"Gotta grab Nadia first," Milo said.

"So grab her."

He left. Came back a minute later with Nadia in tow, her hand caught in his.

"You don't need to drag me everywhere," she said.

"Want to."

"Whatever."

Dora surveyed the backyard, everyone scattered across it. She looked satisfied. "Good. Should be like this. Noisy."

The bonfire went up in the center just as the moon cleared the treeline. Full and bright, washing the whole yard in silver. Fire threw orange light everywhere, made everyone's face warm.

Dora had covered the tables. Everything she knew how to make—portions big enough to feed twice as many people, variety like she'd emptied the whole kitchen. The kind of spread that looked casual but took hours.

She didn't sit down once. Just kept moving, putting food on plates.

She stopped at Mark's seat, dropped something on his plate. "Eat that. You skip vegetables."

"I don't skip—"

"Less talking."

She spotted Cyrus sitting off to the side by himself. Walked over, set a bowl of soup next to his elbow. "Eat."

"Thanks."

Then she went to Juniper with tea. Juniper took the cup. "Appreciate it. Must've been a long trip getting here."

"Not so bad." Dora waved it off. "You like those pastries, take more."

"Will do."

When she passed me, she dumped another pile of food into my bowl without breaking stride.

"That's enough," I said.

"Not yet." Didn't even look back.

Lucian was watching from beside me. Corner of his mouth pulled up. "She's got a system with you."

"She does this with everyone."

"Yeah, but she's done it three times for you. I counted."

I turned my head. "Why're you counting?"

"Bored."

Across the fire, Mark was telling Mia some version of what happened during the fight. She sat next to him, listening. Asked a question here and there. He kept going, got louder the more he talked.

Sophia leaned over. "That's version five."

"This one's accurate," Mark said.

"Sure."

Mia smiled. "Sounds exciting."

"Thanks."

Juniper sat in the corner with her tea, not really joining in but not leaving either. Just watching. Every so often she'd say something to whoever was nearby. Looked comfortable. Like she'd been here the whole time.

I glanced around. "Where'd Milo and Nadia go?"

Lucian answered first. "Who knows. Second Nadia got back, Milo's been attached. Could search the whole territory right now, still wouldn't find them."

"They were together yesterday," Magnus added. "Together today. Pretty much haven't separated."

Orion's voice was calm. "They're by the woods. Saw them earlier."

"So you found them."

"And didn't tell them to come back," Magnus said.

"Told them. They said in a bit."

"When's in a bit?"

"Didn't say."

All three of them said it totally flat. Just facts. I couldn't help it—laughed. "What about Elliot?"

Magnus leaned back. "Elliot's stuck with Freya. I went to get him, he said he couldn't leave. Asked why. Said Freya won't let him. I asked Freya, she said she's not stopping him. Elliot said then why're you blocking the door. Freya said she's just standing there. Then they started arguing, so I left."

"Makes sense," Lucian said.

"Yeah," Orion said.

I let it go. Looked back at the fire. Light jumped and shifted, stretched shadows long across the ground.

All these people. All this noise. Real. Worth it.

The fire burned low. Moon climbed higher.

At some point the triplets stood. Moonlight hit them from above, firelight from below. Made their edges sharp and clear.

I looked up. "What're you doing?"

"Nothing." Lucian stepped closer. "Just want to be nearer."

"You're already close."

"Not close enough."

People around us shifted back without being asked. Left space. Just the four of us in this little circle.

Close enough I could hear them breathing.

Dora saw from across the yard. Said something quiet to Sophia. Both of them smiled, looked away. Pretended to be interested in something else.

Magnus moved first. Lowered his head, close to the side of my neck.

My breath caught.

Then he left his mark. Light. Deliberate. Like a promise.

Lucian went next. Different than Magnus—warmer, the way he always was. Right before, he said something so quiet only I heard it. "You're stuck now."

My face went hot. Didn't move though.

Orion last. Other side. Didn't say anything at all. Just leaned in, left the mark, stepped back. That steady way he had, sealing it.

No ceremony. No audience. Just moonlight and fire and the four of us in this corner of the yard.

It happened. Simple as something that should've happened a long time ago.

How's it feel, my wolf asked.

Like we finally got here.

Scared?

No.

Why not?

Because it's them.

She went quiet. I could feel her smiling though. Happy.

I tilted my head back. Moonlight on my face, cool and easy.

This wasn't the end. Bigger problems would come eventually. Alpha King Nathan's letter had been clear—this place was just one piece in something larger. And I was the one being watched.

Wind came from the north. Light. Carrying that smell only full moon nights have.

Didn't scare me.

We'd already proven we could handle whatever showed up.