“What brings you here, Eli?” Elijah leaned into his space, his voice not a whisper exactly but not far from. “You never visit.”

It was for both their sakes, but he couldn’t speak those words, especially not with a potential listener. “I’m a little shaken and needed to be around another human being.”

Elijah’s eyes widened. “What happened? Was it the cupcakes?”

Cupcakes? Right, he’d almost forgotten about the cupcakes. “No, Thano came back again in the afternoon.”

Elijah lost some color. “There haven’t been any controls since the others took over the board.”

“I know, and it wasn’t an inspection. I believed it was and got ready to take him to the bank—”

“Conal was here.”

“Who?” He couldn’t conjure up a face to match the name.

“He’s on the board too.”

Oh… “Bear or wolf?” Eli wasn’t sure they acted like bears and wolves, but it was the animal their other shape resembled the most. He had never seen them. He’d seen Draven shift and the crow woman who was in the shop today. Ciar shifted eyes, teeth, and claws at times, but he’d never seen his panther form. Romeo had told him there were non-human-passing individuals too. People who never fully took on a human form, but they weren’t allowed to go into the settlements. Eli understood why. There was a risk someone would lose their mind and try to shoot the creature only to then cause another mass annihilation.

Ice shot through him. He might have done that. Without thinking, he reached over the bar and grabbed Elijah’s hand, only to drop it when he remembered they had an audience.

Elijah’s eyes were wide as saucers. “What happened?”

“Thano came back after the board meeting. Or I assume they had a board meeting and it was why he and the crow were in town—”

“And Conal.”

“Right.”

“Wolf, I think.” Elijah shrugged and motioned for him to continue telling him what had happened.

“Thano asked about tolls. I was confused at first because we don’t have tolls.”

Elijah nodded, and Eli flattened his hand on the scarred surface of the bar. Had it been here in the before times? If it had been able to speak, he was sure it could’ve told them a thing or two.

He took a deep breath before continuing. “Some of the board members want to implement a toll at the dock. Everyone who wants to moor has to pay.”

A crease formed between Elijah’s well-formed eyebrows. He was too pretty to live in Last Hope. It was no fault of his own, other than maybe keeping his body hair nicely groomed. Most men around here looked like old grizzly bears, himself included. He ran a hand over his beard. It was part of the disguise. You had to blend in.

“But only the Fisherman’s Lake people come to the dock.”

“I know, and if they have to pay to unload their goods, the prices will go up—” Elijah grimaced but didn’t interrupt. “—and if they raise their prices, I have to raise my prices, and the inhabitants here will suffer. Especially those who have had a hard time getting a job.”

“Maybe those who have a hard time finding work should try their luck in another settlement.”

Both Eli and Elijah stared at the man who grinned at them from his table. It wasn’t a nice grin.

No words came to mind, and Eli pictured Alice. Desperate for some money to be able to pay the rent. What would she do if she couldn’t afford food? Maybe Romeo would make sure they didn’t starve, but it wouldn’t help with the board demanding rent for the houses.

Eli owned his house, but other than him, there was only the Gallo family living on their street, and they didn’t own theirs.

Elijah turned back to Eli without responding to the man. “What did Thano want to know about the toll?”

Eli tried to think back. “I think he was unsure of how it would work, but then he asked about the probability of the Fisherman’s Lake people stopping their dealings with us altogether. He said they have a paved road leading out of their area, so they could cut us out and trade with another settlement.”

Elijah stared at him. Seconds ticked by, and his gaze grew distant. “Do you think they would?”

“I want to say no, but if they can make more of a profit elsewhere…” He let it hang in the air. “I wouldn’t blame them. Everyone has to live.”

“Yeah, but they buy from you too. If your shop closes, there is nowhere for them to get food.”

Eli nodded. “Yeah, and this is where I might have fucked up.” The glass shook in his hand as he brought it to his lips. The wine was sweet, and he suspected the alcohol content was pretty high, at least for wine.

“What do you mean?”

“I told Thano we can’t feed ourselves, explained how we’re dependent on Fisherman’s Lake for our survival.”

Elijah nodded. “It’s true.”

“Yeah, but Thano took it to mean there are too many humans in Last Hope.” Eli took another sip of the wine, ignoring the tremors traveling through his body.

“Oh…” Elijah swallowed hard.