By the fifth ring, Sam was afraid Dunaway wouldn’t pick up, but he did, greeting Sam with a wary hello.

( And we head into the home stretch! )

After the meeting and a couple of phone calls, everyone left the Tongue & Buckle and headed over to the Den, except for Brid, who'd left early to prepare the pack. The carpool made them the oddest entourage in the history of the planet. It would have made Sam laugh if he didn't know what they were going to do.

( In which there is a lot of text... )

Over iced coffee, Sam had talked with Haley about Brannoc's murder and the Brid's pack being a mess. It was nice to just talk about it, get it off his chest with someone not as closely connected to the whole thing. It was good to get a a fresh viewpoint.

( What Haley suggested... )