Claire De Lune by Christine Johnson Page A

distracted. Still, her mind did wander—wondering about what had happened in the woods last night. What else could she dobesides hear people talking miles away, and hunt? She wished there was someone she could ask. Someone who would talk to her.
    “Helloooo.” Emily waved a handful of polish-wet fingernails in front of Claire’s face. The sharp, chemical smell did as much to snap Claire out of her thoughts as Emily’s irritated voice. “Are you even
listening
to me?”
    “Um, no, actually. Sorry. I got sort of distracted.”
    Emily searched Claire’s face. “You’re thinking about Matthew, aren’t you?”
    “Yeah.” The lie rolled off her tongue like a marble. “Sorry.”
    “Don’t be sorry. I’d be distracted too.” Emily checked her phone. “I’ve gotta go anyway. The last thing I need is to give my parents any reason not to listen to me, you know?”
    Claire nodded. “Call me and let me know how things go, yeah?”
    “Of course.” Emily sighed and slid on her flip-flops. “It’s gonna be a dicey couple of days.”
    Yeah. You can say that again.
    Claire stayed by the pool after Emily left. The treetops were motionless in the thick, hot air. Her brain felt fried, short-circuited by too much thinking and too much heat. She stood up, thinking that maybe a quick swim would clear her head. Before she’d even taken a step toward the crystal-clear water, her phone rang.
    An unfamiliar number flashed across the screen.
    “Hello?”
    “Hey. Claire. I’m glad I caught you.” The voice was familiar but not recognizable.
    “Um, yeah. Sorry—who is this, again?”
    A low, throaty laugh echoed on the other end. “It’s Zahlia. Sorry. I should have said.”
    “Oh my God. No, it’s fine. I’m glad you called. Actually, I’m
really
glad you called.” Claire sank down onto the scorching-hot concrete at the edge of the pool and dangled her feet in the water.
    “I figured you might have some questions, and I heard that your mom went to Chicago. Not that she’d likely answer them, anyway.”
    “Yeah. Why is that, exactly?”
    “Your mom is just really … traditional. So—has everything been okay?”
    The fist that was clenched around Claire’s sternum loosened. “Actually, everything’s been pretty crappy. But I think I’ve figured out a couple of things.” She heard the pride creep into her voice as she admitted that, but she couldn’t stop it. “I—I was trying to change, you know, in the forest?”
    “Good. Were you successful?”
    “Yeah, I was. But the weird thing was that while I was trying, I heard Lisbeth talking. And she was at our house. Is that normal?”
    There was a pause at the other end of the phone. “Not everyone can do it, but yeah, long-distance hearing is one of the more common gifts.”
    “So, I could only hear half of the conversation. Can you hear more than one person at a time? Do you have to be a wolf to do it?”
    “I can’t do it at all, but I think Beatrice can hear multiple people at once. I’m pretty sure it’s just a matter of practice. And yeah, even though you have heightened senses all the time, you have to be in your true form to use any of your actual gifts.”
    “Okay, I guess that makes sense.”
    “So—you said you were in the woods. Does your mom know that you’re trying this stuff ?”
    A little butterfly-flutter of panic stirred inside Claire. “Um, no. You’re not going to tell her, are you?”
    Zahlia laughed. “No. I’m not. She wouldn’t approve of it, and I don’t agree with her about that. Why waste these three months? You’ll be a better pack member if you know what you’re doing when your transformation is complete.”
    “Okay. Good.”
    “So, listen, you’ll have my number in your phone now, and if you need anything, you let me know. I remember how hard those first few months were.”
    “Yeah, I’ll call you.”
    “I’m looking forward to it.”
    Claire hung up and swung her feet against the resistanceof the water,