He heard muffled voices coming from the cells in the back. Female voices.

He hurried back there, then stopped at the Me Time cell. Just stopped.

“Tobias Walker, what are you doing?” he demanded.

Tobias stepped down from a stool and raised his hands. “Hey, I’m just a guy. I’m doing what I’m told.”

“We decided to fix up the Me Time cell so that Barb and I can rest when we need to,” Jana said brightly. “And Tobias put up the curtains for us so that we could have privacy.”

Virgil eyed the changes. Curtains long enough to almost brush the floor. The rods were secured to the bars with barely a paw of space between rod and ceiling. They covered the two sides of the cell that weren’t walls.

The cot, which had had a thin mattress that was supposed to be uncomfortable to encourage good behavior, now had a thick mattress and a big pillow with arms that looked like the top half of a puffy chair.

Barb sat in a rocking chair that also had cushions and pillows, her feet up on an ottoman, and one arm in a sling.

He pointed at the chair. “That’s dangerous. The puppy might get her tail caught under it.”

“There’s plenty of room for her,” Barb said, pointing at the space under the cot. “See?”

Rusty poked her head out and gave him a welcoming yip, but she didn’t come over to greet him. No, she stayed right next to her mom’s leg.

Traitor.

Who had remembered to bring her food and take her out to piddle? Who had taken her for runs that, they had agreed, were not going to be mentioned to her mom?

Who had gone back to the stinky hospital to rescue Cowboy Bob after Jana didn’t need the stuffie anymore?

“Thanks, Tobias,” Jana said, slowly getting up from the cot.

“Anytime.” He stepped out of the cell, taking the stool with him. “I’ll leave you ladies to get settled in, and I’ll be back in a bit with some victuals.”

As Virgil watched, unsure what to do, Jana pulled the cell door partway closed and pulled the curtain all the way across the bars, shutting him out.

* * *

* * *

Jana heard the slow click of nails on the floor—again. Then the hesitation and silent approach, followed by audible sniffing and a nose poking under the curtain.

When Virgil retreated—again—Jana got up and moved the big reading pillow to the other end of the cot, turning it so she could sit with her body supported and her feet on the floor.

She’d meant it as a joke, as just enough of a tail pull to annoy Virgil so that he would know she was okay. She’d thought he would respect a privacy curtain for about five minutes before pushing it aside and growling at her. But he hadn’t done that. He was acting like that piece of fabric was a stone wall keeping him out, a barrier he could not cross.

Barb stirred and opened her eyes.

“You need anything?” Jana asked quietly.

“No.”

The rapid click of nails. Had Virgil been standing at the door to the cells, waiting to hear one of them speak?

She looked at Barb. They waited.

The audible sniff. The nose poking under the curtain. And then … a whine.

He sounded so lonely. But he wouldn’t enter the den made for her and Barb.

She pulled the curtain aside and looked at the big Wolf. “You can come in if you want to. We’re just sitting here pretending we don’t fall asleep every ten minutes.”

She sat on the cot to give him room. Besides the rocking chair and ottoman, Tobias had added a narrow storage unit that allowed them to keep containers of water and juice on one shelf and a selection of books on another. It hadn’t seemed crowded, but Virgil took up most of the available floor space when he lay down.

Rusty crawled out from under the cot, gently mouthing Cowboy Bob, and went over to greet the Wolf.

Watching them, Jana wondered if Virgil had become Rusty’s favorite stuffie—and how many unauthorized activities those two had engaged in during the couple of days she’d been in the hospital.

And she wondered whether he’d slept at all since the fight, or if he’d been patrolling and letting certain Elders know that he was still there.

As his eyes closed, Jana felt him relax against her legs. He didn’t even stir to challenge Tobias when the man returned, which told her how exhausted Virgil had to be. And it told her one other thing—that Virgil trusted her to stand guard when he couldn’t.

Tobias looked at Barb, who was dozing again, then at Virgil and Rusty sprawled on the floor, sound asleep. He gave her a smile and a wink before quietly retreating. When the phone rang, she heard him answer it and tell someone that he would take a message.

As news about what happened in Bennett traveled to human towns, Jana hoped a particular message would reach the Elders who ruled and protected the wild country.

We are here. We are different but we stand united to protect our home. We are different but we protect our families, whether they are families by blood or by heart. We are different but we are not alone. Never alone.

We are here.