Greykin Mountain

| 30 | No Caeleste Welcome

          The next thing that caught his eye was the wine bottles—not because he had a taste for it, but because on the dusty labels, he spotted the same A Z symbol he'd seen on that flag and on Eric's papers when he was a kid.

          He picked up the bottle and pointed to the sigil. "Do any of you know what this is?"

          Both Omegas shook their heads.

          "Some sort of company logo, I think," Tokala answered. "It's on some of the flags here, too. Maybe this was an old place of operation for the company."

          Jackson nodded and put the bottle down. Why would a sigil he'd seen on papers talking about death be on a wine bottle, too?

          "You should take a few options," Dustu said.

          "Huh?"

          "Not everyone is going to want gold and jewels," the man said. "Some people might want food or furs. Make sure you find out what someone's looking for before suggesting a trade."

          "Right," Jackson said with a nod.

          "Heads up," Tokala suddenly said.

          Jackson frowned and looked to his left to see Elias on his way over. The fact Kaniya was walking off in the opposite direction made it evident Elias would be accompanying him and Tokala today, and that made him feel nauseous. He was sure the trip would be filled with snarky remarks and evil side glances, but he tried not to care. It wasn't like Elias would be waltzing into the town with him, he'd just have to put up with him on the way there and back.

          "Hurry up and grab some of it," Elias said, nodding down at the table. "We're leaving."

          Jackson grabbed the empty quiver and hung it over his right shoulder. Then, he grabbed one of the two shoulder bags made from animal fur and hastily stuffed some of the items inside. He made sure to pick a variety, and once he hung the bag over his other shoulder, he grabbed the bow.

          "Kaniya and several Enforcers are running ahead to check the route for cadejo, hunters, and other wolves," Elias explained. "They'll meet us close to the town."

          "Did Alpha Damon tell you everything he needs to get?" Tokala asked.

          "Kajika's going to need more medicine," he started, leading the way towards the exit as Tokala and Jackson followed. "We don't need clothes or blankets; Rachel said there's a whole room downstairs full of that shit."

          "That's handy. Whoever lived here before must have been in a real rush to leave—what do you think happened? The holes in the walls don't look like they were made by cadejo."

          "I think it happened a long time ago," Jackson said as they left the walls and stepped out into the forest. "The wine bottle had the year 1127 on it."

          "It's not uncommon for people to keep old wine around," Elias uttered. "The older it is, the better it tastes."

          "Maybe Alpha Damon will let us crack open a few bottles tonight. I think we all deserve a little celebration. Blow off some steam," Tokala suggested.

          "I think he might want to save that for when we know it's safe. The stray we caught hasn't given up much yet."

          "Still, what's wrong with a little fun?" Tokala said with a smirk as he nudged Elias' shoulder.

          "We'll see."

          "We will."