Sun Mote Copse Should have bought myself a home when I was a fetus.

She found the stranger’s words nearly as intriguing as her appearance, though Towhee’s knee-jerk reaction was to tell her no, they didn’t need a midwife. They had Meadow. Besides, who knew what the copse would need in the spring, if it would need anything at all? Would anyone be living here? Her ears drew back a little. She wouldn’t, though the aforementioned woman and her mate might still be in residence when the time came.

I won’t be living here come spring, Towhee said, laughing when she realized how cryptic that might sound, given her age. I’m a traveler too, she explained, and one of the wolves who might take over in my stead is actually an experienced caregiver. She’s the one you should talk to about this, so I can call her if you want.

It went unspoken, though the tightness in her orange eyes and the slight hesitation between “this” and “so” left a certain implication. Towhee didn’t want to waste this woman’s time and had half a mind to direct her to the Moon villages, where she would find much more opportunity than here. But perhaps she could be useful to the copse, even keep the pack afloat, and Towhee didn’t want to rob Reyson and Meadow of another member, even just a potential one.

Besides, she thought with a frown, she was already doing Meerkat et al a disservice. Towhee knew she was giving up too quickly, that she was treating her granddaughters’ departure like an out because, deep down, she didn’t want to stay here anymore. She blew out a breath, then pressed her lips together and tried to refocus her attention on Tziporah.