"You look like hell."
I glared at Declan over my coffee mug. "Good morning to you too."
"Just saying." He grinned, helping himself to the eggs Kade was cooking. "You'd think after saving the world, you'd get some beauty sleep."
"I saved myself. The world can handle its own problems."
"She's grumpy in the morning," Kade said, sliding a plate in front of me. "Fair warning."
Declan laughed. "Noted. So what's the plan? We rebuilding the main house or what?"
"Eventually." Kade sat down with his own plate. "First, we need to secure the territory. Make sure no more Collector operatives are hiding in town."
"Already on it. Found three yesterday. Sent them running."
I looked up sharply. "Three? Where?"
"Gas station. Diner. One working at the hardware store." Declan's expression turned serious. "They scattered the second they realized Elena was gone. Probably reporting back to their bosses."
"Which means the Collectors know exactly what happened." I pushed my eggs around. "They'll be planning their next move."
"Let them plan." Kade's voice was hard. "We'll be ready."
My phone rang. Captain Chen. I'd been avoiding this call for two days.
"I need to take this." I stepped outside into the morning air.
"Blackwood." Chen's voice was sharp. "Want to explain why I'm getting calls from Wolfridge PD about an explosion at the alpha's house?"
"Gas leak."
"Try again. They found a woman with no physical injuries but completely unresponsive. And you were seen leaving the scene."
I closed my eyes. "It's complicated."
"Then uncomplicate it. Are you in trouble?"
"No. I'm actually safer than I've been in years."
Chen was quiet for a moment. "The case. The murders. Are they solved?"
"Yes. The killer won't be hurting anyone else."
"And the woman they found?"
"She was involved. She won't be recovering."
Another pause. "I need you to come back to Seattle. Write up your report. Debrief."
"About that." I took a breath. "I'm not coming back. Not permanently."
"Excuse me?"
"I'm staying in Wolfridge. Extending my leave. Maybe taking early retirement if that's what it takes."
"Blackwood, you're one of our best. You can't just throw away your career for some small town."
"I'm not throwing it away. I'm choosing something different." I looked through the window at Kade. "Something better."
Chen sighed. "This is about the alpha, isn't it?"
"It's about a lot of things. But yeah, he's part of it."
"Fine. You've got two weeks paid leave to figure out what you want. After that, you either come back or you file the paperwork." Her voice softened slightly. "And Blackwood? Whatever happened up there, I hope it was worth it."
"It was. Thank you, Captain."
I hung up and went back inside. Kade looked at me, question in his eyes.
"Two weeks to decide. But I already know what I'm choosing."
His smile was warm. "Good."
Declan stood. "Hate to break up the romantic moment, but we've got a problem. Iris just called. There's someone at the border asking for entry. Says she's here to see the Seer."
Every muscle in my body tensed. "Who?"
"Wouldn't give a name. Just said you'd want to hear what she has to say."
Kade was already moving, grabbing weapons. "Could be a trap."
"Probably is." I grabbed my jacket. "Let's go anyway."
The border crossing was a small clearing where Shadowpine territory officially began. Iris was there with two other wolves, all in defensive positions.
And standing calmly in the center was a woman I'd never seen before.
Mid-forties. Silver streaks in her dark hair. Dressed like she'd walked out of a corporate boardroom. But her eyes were what caught me. Sharp. Knowing. And completely human.
"You must be Sera Blackwood." Her voice was smooth. Professional. "I'm Dr. Sarah Chen. No relation to your captain, before you ask."
"Who are you?"
"Someone who's been tracking the Collector for fifteen years." She pulled out a badge. FBI. "And someone who'd very much like to talk to the woman who just took down one of their leaders."
I looked at Kade. He nodded slightly.
"Let her through."
Iris and her wolves stepped aside. Dr. Chen walked forward, hands visible, movements careful.
"I'm not armed. And I'm not here to cause trouble." She looked between Kade and me. "I'm here because what you did two nights ago sent shockwaves through every supernatural community in North America. The Collector lost Elena. Lost their foothold in the Pacific Northwest. And everyone wants to know who the Seer is that managed it."
"How do you know about supernaturals?" I asked.
"Because I'm a researcher for a very quiet government program that monitors exactly these kinds of situations." She smiled slightly. "We don't interfere often. But when someone takes down a Collector leader, we pay attention."
"What do you want?"
"To offer you resources. Information. Protection, if you want it." Dr. Chen pulled out a folder. "This is everything we have on the Collector. Locations. Known operatives. Patterns. It's not complete, but it's more than most people have."
I took the folder. It was thick. Detailed. Years of research.
"Why give this to me?"
"Because you're the first Seer in decades who's fought back and won. Because you have something the Collector wants and the ability to stop them from taking it." She met my eyes. "And because my program believes the Collector needs to be stopped. We just can't do it officially."
"So you want us to do your dirty work."
"I want you to protect yourself with better information than you currently have." Dr. Chen gestured at the folder. "What you do with it is up to you."
Kade moved closer, reading over my shoulder. "This is detailed. How long have you been watching them?"
"Since they killed my sister twenty years ago. She was a Reader. Could sense emotions, intentions. They drained her and left her exactly like you left Elena." Dr. Chen's voice went cold. "So yes, I have a personal stake in this. And yes, I want them destroyed."
"You can't do it yourself?"
"I'm human. I have resources, but not abilities. You have both." She looked at me. "You're also now a target. They won't stop coming for you. But with this information, you'll see them coming."
I flipped through the folder. Names. Dates. Patterns of attacks. Safe houses. Known Collector territories.
It was a goldmine.
"What do you want in return?"
"Information sharing. If you learn something about the Collector, you tell me. If I learn something, I tell you." Dr. Chen pulled out a card. "And if you ever need federal resources for something, you call me. No questions asked."
"Why would the FBI help us?"
"Because officially, they won't. But I have friends in useful places. And we all agree the Collector is a threat that needs to be eliminated."
I looked at Kade. He shrugged slightly. Your call.
I took the card. "Deal. But if this is a trap—"
"It's not. You'll find my number checks out. My credentials are real. And everything in that folder is verified." Dr. Chen stepped back. "I'll be in touch. And Sera? Welcome to the war. Try not to die."
She walked away, back across the border, and disappeared into the trees.
Iris whistled low. "That was weird."
"That was useful," I corrected, clutching the folder. "This is exactly what we needed."
"Or exactly what they wanted us to have," Kade said quietly.
"You think it's false information?"
"I think we verify everything before we trust it." He took my hand. "But if even half of this is real, we just gained a major advantage."
We walked back to the safe house. I spent the rest of the day reading through the folder while Kade coordinated with his pack.
By evening, I'd memorized most of it. Patterns emerged. The Collector operated in cycles. Targeted specific bloodlines. Moved systematically through regions.
And according to Dr. Chen's notes, they were due to hit the East Coast next.
"We should warn them," I said, showing Kade the timeline.
"Warn who? We don't know which packs they'll target."
"Then we figure it out. Use my gift. Look at possibilities." I stood, pacing. "I'm not letting them slaughter more families just because we survived."
Kade caught my arm. "You want to go to war with the Collector."
"I want to stop them from hurting anyone else."
"That's the same thing."
"Maybe. But it's the right thing." I looked at him. "You said we'd be ready when they came back. I'm saying we don't wait for them to come back. We hunt them first."
A slow smile spread across Kade's face. "You've changed."
"What do you mean?"
"Three days ago, you were running. Now you're planning to hunt the people who've been hunting you." He pulled me closer. "I like it."
"Don't get used to it. I'm still terrified."
"Good. Fear keeps you sharp." He kissed my forehead. "We'll plan this carefully. Build alliances. Gather information. And when we're ready, we'll strike."
"How long?"
"Months. Maybe a year. The Collector has been operating for centuries. We need to be smart, not fast."
I nodded. He was right. But every part of me wanted to act now. Wanted to make sure no other twelve-year-old had to hide in a tree while their family died.
My phone buzzed. Mira.
That's it. I'm driving up there tomorrow. You can't ignore me forever.
I smiled despite everything. "I need to call my best friend. She's threatening to drive up here."
"Will you tell her the truth?"
"Eventually. But not over the phone." I looked at Kade. "She'll need to meet you first. See that I'm okay."
"And if she doesn't approve?"
"Then you'll win her over with your charming personality and cooking skills."
Kade laughed. "I'll do my best."
I stepped outside to call Mira. The conversation was short. Yes, I was alive. Yes, I'd explain everything soon. Yes, she could visit next week.
When I came back in, Kade had the folder spread across the table, making notes.
"Finding anything useful?"
"Possible patterns. Three attacks in the last five years all targeted packs near water. Rivers, lakes, coastlines."
"Why?"
"No idea. But it's something." He looked up. "We're going to need help. More than just Shadowpine."
"Then we build alliances. Find other packs who've been targeted. Show them we can fight back."
"That's a lot of travel. A lot of risk."
"I know." I sat beside him. "But staying here and waiting for them to come back is riskier."
He was quiet for a moment. Then nodded. "Okay. We do this together. Build an army. Hunt the Collector."
"Together."
The word settled between us. No longer a concession. A choice.
Outside, the moon was rising. Not a blood moon this time. Just a regular, beautiful moon that meant we'd survived another day.
And tomorrow, we'd start building something the Collector wouldn't expect.
Hope.