The small grunt from the backseat drags me out of my silent grief and I physically shake my head from side to side and turn up the air in the car to wake myself up. I need to shake these constant depressive thoughts running on repeat in my tired mind and find somewhere safe for us to stop so I can give this boy some milk. He is only hours hold, he needs some sustenance.

The suns has started to shine golden hues into the black of night by the time I finally pull the car off the never ending straight highway we have followed for hours and into a park for an all night diner.

The sign looks worse for wear but the building itself seems well kept so that gives me hope for the food inside. The red brick building is neat and tidy and has a fifties diner vibe going for it. I don't care. A hot coffee of any sort sounds great right about now seeing as though I'm not going to be sleeping any time soon.

As I pull us up to a stop in a park at the front of the diner windows, I pull down the mirror to have a look at what I'm working with. My dark hair is pulled up off my face in what I can now officially call a mum
bun. The sad little laugh that escapes my throat is all I can muster under the circumstances.

I use my fingers to wipe some of the black from under my eyes, the evidence from all the tears I have shed during my long driving hours. I pinch my cheeks to wake myself up and give my face some colour other than ghostly pale and decide this is as good as its going to get.

Stepping out of the warm environment of the car and into the cool morning air, I rush to the back of the car and open the trunk. I pull open the ice box, taking out one of the chilled bottles of milk that the pack mothers donated. They gave their milk whole heartedly for this mission. A community until the end.

I shake off the tears that threaten to return and shut the box, putting it safely back into the trunk and locking them both up. When did I become such a pussy? I need to harden up if I'm going to get through this.

I head back to the front of the vehicle and open the passenger side door, reaching for my jacket and then  opening the glove department. There are a few neat stacks of cash and a card sitting there as promised. I tuck the card into the zip liner of my jacket and take a few notes also in case this small town is a cash only kind of place. I lock the remaining money back up for now and close the door, as I move to open the back door of the car, removing the grunting little Rox in his car seat, grabbing a few baby change supplies from the back seat and stuffing them in next to him. This baby planning is going to take some getting used to. I click the car lock as I head into the diner to escape the crisp morning air.

There are only a handful of diners present at this hour and none scent as wolves, which makes me feel a little less endangered. The tiny town of Claymore is a good six hour drive from Highmoon territory but I have no clue how far the claws of the Demon Alpha extend.

I need to lay low until I get as far from here as I can.

I head for a corner booth that has a clear view of my car and tuck Rox in his seat on the booth chair before I slide in after him.

The only waitress in the diner comes over as soon as I sit down and glances at the baby before shifting her eyes back to me.

"Coffee hun?" She says, notepad in hand and pencil poised for my order.

Human. No threat.

"Coffee, yes please and a cheese omelette looks good?" I say as a question really, taking a quick glimpse of the simple breakfast menu.

"Can I also please have a jug of boiling water? I need to warm a bottle for my... son." The words feel wrong coming from my mouth but if she notices my hesitation, she doesn't indicate so.

She nods and takes away the menu as she heads back to the counter.

I take the time to get some supplies ready so that I can change the little one. No one is looking at us so I take him out of the seat and spread his blanket on the table in front of me. I unclick him from his harness and lay him down carefully, looking over his sweet little features as I do. He has long fingers and toes, tiny perfect little nails on each. His nose is small, like a button and instantly reminds me of his mother's. His colouring is his fathers though. Dark hair and beautiful caramel skin. He is a perfect mixture of them both.

And luckily, with my dark hair and tan skin, he can easily pass as mine. I gulp uncomfortably as I think about that sad fact.

The waitress interrupts my thoughts as she returns with the steaming water and coffee.

"Oh isn't he precious." She coos, looking over the baby as she moves in a little closer to me.

"He is a fresh one isn't he?" She questions, looking me over quizzically.

"Ah yes, a few days old." I say blankly, placing the bottle of milk into the jug and covering him up again, taking him in my arms.

"Well, let me know if you need anything else hun, omelette will be up soon." She leaves with a smile as I nod in return.

I wasn't ready for the questions yet. I'm still broken up about it all. Still in disbelief. I need to get my story straight so I don't act scared or lost all the time. This is harder than I thought.

It hadn't even occurred to me at all that people would just assume that I was his mother. Just like that.

I swirl the bottle around in the water as Rox starts to become a little more demanding about his need for food. I lay him out on the table again and remove the bottom half of his coverall, taking off his tiny diaper and replacing with a fresh one.

By the time I have him all clean and dressed again, the bottle feels warm to the touch and I test a small spot on my arm before deciding that it's the right temperature for him.

I place his head in the soft space of my elbow and put the bottle teat to his lips. He takes it greedily and starts to suckle it down gulp after gulp. I smile softly at his sweet face. He is so content in his little warm bubble. He has no clue that his whole life almost ended before it even began.

I just sit like this, warm in the diner booth, Rox happy and full and content to sleep in my arms for what feels like hours. In a simpler life, this could have been something that I did with my own child. Went out for coffee. Went to the store in town.

The bell on the front door of the diner shakes me from the movie in my head and I look down at the boy in my arms. With a small sigh, I place him carefully back into the seat and tuck him in tight. We should be able to travel for at least another three hours before he needs to feed again.

When I head to the counter to pay, the waitress sends me a look that I can't quite discertain but before I have a chance to think on it, she comes to the counter with the bill and two silver thermos in hand.

" I left the old man once too honey, baby in tow. It's not for the faint of heart." She says softly, sliding the bill and the canasters across the flat shiny surface of the counter towards me.

"One is coffee for the road and one is more hot water for the little ones next bottle." She smiles sweetly at me. Sincerity clear on her worn face. Suddenly I see her as someone who has seen it all.

I suck back the sniffles and nod, handing her a twenty as I tell her to keep the change. I gladly take the two warm containers from her and smile as broadly as my situation allows. Her hand brushes mine softly as I turn to leave.

I take Rox and secure him safely in the car again and then I sit and pull out the leather book once more. On the new page after the now frayed edges, are some identification documents for me and some for Rox. Forged I realise, to alter his birth date a few days. She really thought of everything.

I take in the smell of the book, breathing it into my face and scenting the faint smell of home. My mind wanders to them. My pack. What's left of them? Will I ever see them again? Are they even alive?

A deep sounding rumble from a hoard of motorcycles shocks me awake again and I store the book back into the pack and prepare to leave rapidly as the group of bikes enter the car park surrounding me.

Even before they take off their helmets I can tell these are wolves. The stench is strong when they are all grouped together like this.

The pace of my pulse quickens and I all but throw the car in reverse. I have stayed here too long. This is a lesson for my future travels. Get in and get out. I don't know the areas this far from my pack. I don't know who rules or governs these parts. To them I am a rogue until proven otherwise.

As I exit the park, the bikers begin to remove their helmets and I keep watch in the mirror as I leave. The stature of the group is a dead give away to me that these are not humans. The pure bulk of them is enough to show anyone they are not to be messed with.

As I go to pull out onto the highway once more, I take one last glance at the bikers for comforts sake. I feel on edge and that is not a great sign. I steady myself and try to calm my fretting nerves. I don't know them. They don't know me. They didn't even see me.

Just as I am about to drive, I see one, the first rider who entered the park on a huge shiny bike, lift his head and scent. His head turns side to side as if searching for something, before following the direction that I have just driven.

The last thing I see as I high tail it out of the exit and back to the safety of the blank road, is his harsh face. Eyes wide, watching. Scenting. I don't have to be close to him to feel the anger coming off of him in waves.

What the fuck. Whoever he is, he isn't happy. And I'm not hanging around to figure out why.

I take my turn from the roundabout and escape onto the long stretch of road again. Promising Rox that we will be more cautious with stops now. Not in the open. Safer. Safer. I need to keep us safe.

Shit.