Land of Wolves

Epilogue

Six months later

I jump to the side as a shrill scream emerges from my right, and I turn just in time to see a young girl, maybe five or six years old, clutch a glittery green backpack to her chest. Her scream has captured the attention of at least six adults, but she hardly seems to notice as she sprints across the small school gymnasium.

She almost trips over her feet in the process, but the young wolf has good reflexes and quickly catches herself before continuing.

Her dad hurries after her, the poor man looking exhausted despite the early hour, and an annoyed-looking preteen boy follows behind them both.

The young girl rushes past me in a flash, and I can't help but chuckle as her dad quickly follows.

"There's coffee by the back door," I say, gesturing to the two tables on the opposite side of the room as he passes.

One is covered in beverages, mainly coffee for the adults and juice for the kids, and the second table is filled with snacks. I chose donuts, a classic for an early morning school supply drive.

At least, I think so. It's what Sash buys whenever she's hosting an event that takes place before noon. Plus, as selfish as it is, I love bringing home the leftovers. Plain glazed is my favorite, and they're always the last to go.

Caleb loves them, too, and he'll eat four or five in one sitting.

The father turns toward me with a relieved smile.

"Wonderful. I need it," he says before turning back to his daughter. She's currently trying to shove a handful of erasers into her new backpack, and he gently removes all but two from her hand before guiding her to the end of the line.

The preteen ignores them both as he makes his way to the snack table and helps himself to a donut. He carries it to the wall furthest from everybody before leaning against it and pulling out his phone.

It prompts me to do the same, and I resist the urge to sigh as I check my messages for the tenth time this hour.

Caleb promised he'd be here, but the event started thirty minutes ago and he's nowhere to be found. Sash said the school supply drives usually clear out after a few hours, so he's still got time, but I'm impatient.

This is a relatively small event for the pack, one only about a hundred or so people are attending, but it's the first one I've managed on my own.

I organized and managed all the pack donations, and I spent hours dropping off and picking up collection boxes at the local stores. It's been a good two months of work, and I feel good about the turnout.

Ten tables are lining the room, and thousands of school supplies are neatly organized for the wolves to grab.

Young children run around with their new backpacks, all of them chattering loudly to one another as they pick out the items they want. Everybody gets one, and they seem to think it's a race to fill them.

The adults of the kids who are too young to fill their own bags, and the teachers who need things for their classrooms take their time walking down the row of tables.

Extras are kept in the boxes below, and several volunteers work to restock the things that are getting low.

I eye a stack of pink notepads at the nearest table, secretly wanting one. They're cute, and they're going fast. I took a photo of them, though, and I fully intend to buy one if there aren't any leftover.

At this rate, I doubt there will be.

"Evelyn!"

I turn, shocked to see Adam and Bells hurrying toward me. Well, Adam's hurrying. Bells looks like she's being dragged. Adam has a tight grip on her hand, and it appears he's hanging onto her for dear life as he pulls her in whatever direction he wants.