by Amy Sumida
“No, no, no,” Gretchen moaned.
I sighed heavily and looked back at the women. I had to be realistic. Could I really make it out, through a thick wilderness, with werewolf pursuers, dragging three broken women with me? We couldn’t use the roads, they’d find us too quickly if we did. But we’d also need to be swift because the damn freaks would be able to track us by scent.
“Alright,” I said softly. “You guys stay here. I’ll go for help. I’ll come back for you, I swear.”
Gretchen’s moaning got louder.
“Gretchen, stop it,” Michelle snapped. “I’ll go with you, Tempest. I don’t care if we don’t make it, at least I won’t be sitting here, letting them win.”
I smiled. Now that was more like it.
“Lucy?” I looked to her.
“I’ll stay with Gretchen,” Lucy said.
“Are you sure?”
“I can’t leave her.” Lucy’s eyes filled with tears. She reached through the other side of her cell, to stroke Gretchen’s auburn curls. “It’s okay, Gretchen. I’m staying. You won’t be alone.”
Gretchen stilled and sighed.
“Alright.” I opened my cell, then hobbled over to Michelle’s and opened hers. “Let’s go. Move as quickly and as quietly as possible, and just follow me.”
“Got it,” Michelle nodded.
I opened the door slowly. The wolves had turned the whole upper floor into a prison, and the door opened straight onto a stairway. It was empty. I edged down it, step by step. When I reached the bottom, Michelle was pressed tight against my back. I could feel her heart pounding.
I looked around the corner. No one. But there were voices coming from the front of the house. I looked back to Michelle and nodded. This was it. We slipped silently through the house, and out the back door. The night closed in around us, and my heart leapt with triumph, but I urged myself to remain calm. We weren’t out of the woods yet. Literally. We had several miles of woodland to cross before we reached sanctuary.
I had mapped out this territory beforehand, so I knew which direction to head in. I just had to get back to my rental house, then I could call for help. Once SCCIT was notified, the Sanders Pack didn’t stand a chance. Even if they caught us again, it wouldn’t matter, SCCIT would lock down Trout Creek until they found me.
With that encouraging thought driving me, I ignored the pain in my bare feet and crept through the darkness with Michelle. If our luck held, they wouldn’t even check the cells for another hour. We could be at my place by then.
But our luck didn’t hold. It didn’t even loosely grip. Thirty minutes into our hike, just as Michelle and I were starting to exchange hopeful looks with each other, we heard the howls. They were tracking us.
“Damn it,” I hissed.
Michelle’s eyes went wide with panic.
“Alright, look.” I pointed in the direction of my rental. “Head that way. You see those lights?”
“Yeah,” Michelle’s voice quavered.
“That’s the town,” I said. “Get there and call the police. Stay in the light, in as public a place as you can find, until the police arrive.”
“What are you going to do?”
“I’m going to lead them away.” I squeezed her shoulder. “You’re going to be okay, Michelle.”
“Thanks, Tempest.” she hugged me quickly, then hurried off towards the town lights.
I thrashed through the woods, making a lot of noise and leaving an obvious trail behind me. For about twenty feet. Then I just started to run. In minutes, I could hear them on my heels. They began closing in around me, and I had no choice but to head further up the mountain. I knew they were doing it on purpose, herding me up into the wilds, away from humans and safety. But there was nothing I could do. At least they weren’t following Michelle. She could tell the police, and hopefully, SCCIT would be alerted.
I kept running, the air sawing in and out of my chest, and it took me awhile to realize that the wolves had stopped howling. I came to a lurching halt, listening carefully. The roar of a bear echoed through the night. Then another, and another. I shivered as a wolf whimpered in pain. A sharp sound that was cut short. Then I smiled. I had led them straight into some bear’s territory. Several bears, from the sound of it. Even werewolves were hesitant to go up against full-grown grizzlies. I knew there were grizzlies in Montana, but I’d thought there were special reserves for them. I suppose they could have been black bears, but black bears weren’t as aggressive as grizzlies. No way a black bear would attack a wolf pack, much less a werewolf pack.
It didn’t even matter. They were my salvation, and I would bless grizzly bears for the rest of my life because of it. I made a mental note to donate money to a grizzly relief fund as I hurried up the mountain. I was going at breakneck speed and stumbled into a clearing. Dear God, it was someone’s back yard. Someone actually lived up there. I nearly fainted from relief. I limped my way across the soft grass, and up the wide, back porch with shaking limbs.
The house was modern rustic, with log accents, and a brick foundation. That was about all I saw of it as I staggered to the back door and pounded desperately on it. Several minutes of pounding produced no results, so I tried the handle. It was open. I whimpered a thank you to whatever god was helping me, as I slipped into the house, and eased the door shut behind me. I clicked the locks into place and fell on my face.
I spent several minutes lying there, just gathering my strength. Then I forced myself to my feet. The house sounded empty. It would have to be. I had made a hell of a racket and no one had responded. Still, I made a few weak calls of “hello” to see if anyone was there. I edged along a counter, not daring to turn on the light, and found myself in a kitchen.
My stomach rumbled, and even though it was beyond rude to raid a stranger’s fridge after I’d broken into their house, I couldn’t resist a quick peep. It was stock full of food. Fresh meat, fruit, vegetables. This person had a hearty appetite. And there were leftovers! I moaned in delight as I helped myself to some cold roast beef. Next, I downed a can of soda. The sugar helped a little, but the caffeine did nothing to keep me going. I was exhausted. I shut the fridge door and crawled out of the kitchen.
The living room beckoned, and I eased across the hand-woven carpets as I considered simply laying down right there. But the agent in me kicked into gear, and I knew it would be smarter to get further up into the house. Upstairs, I would be able to hear the wolves approaching and even get a visual from a window. Yes, I needed elevation. Except that meant climbing stairs.
I whimpered my way through the living room, to the stairs which ran the length of the wall before me. The railing had thick wood posts, done in the same rustic style as the ones on the veranda. I used them to pull myself up the stairs. The first door I opened revealed a closet. The next was a bedroom. It smelled like cedar and man. I didn’t care. It could have smelled like garbage and I still would have loved it. I fell onto the massive mattress and rubbed my cheek against the thick comforter.
“Goldilocks out,” I muttered and fell asleep.
Chapter Four
“Yeah, that’s gotta be her, same one they were chasing.” The voice was deep, and just a touch gravelly. The kind of voice you suspected was good at bellowing. Not shouting, mind you, bellowing. It’s hard to find a good bellower these days.
I slipped in and out of more silly thoughts as more voices joined the first.
“What did they do to her?” This one had nuances to it that made me think it was more prone to laughter than rage. And kindness. “She must be in terrible pain. I’ll get the kit.”
“If I get my hands on whomever did this, I’m going to” The deep voice came again, but it was cut off by a third, calmer voice.
“Whoever.”
“What?” Deep voice rumbled.
“It’s whoever, not whomever.” The voice came again, soft, but with an edge to it. “And we will see to them… later. For now, we must help her. Get some ice for her eye, Kael.”<
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“God damn it, Zaire.” The deep voice, Kael evidently, swore. “They’re savages! Rabid dogs! And they need to be put down.”
“They are, but we’re not,” the Zaire-voice agreed. “Now get her some ice, and grab some clean cloths while you’re at it. We’re going to have to wash these wounds.”
“You get them,” Kael said. “I’m staying with her.”
“She’s in my bed,” Zaire said calmly.
“Son of a bitch,” Kael said over the sound of stomping footsteps.
“Who are you?” Zaire whispered. A light touch ghosted over my temples. “And what were you doing with the Wrights? Nasty lot, that family.”
I forced my eyes open. One was swollen and hard to manage, but I did it. I was rewarded with a view of one of the most handsome faces I’ve ever seen. Dark brown hair, softened by auburn highlights, slid over a forehead wrinkled with concern. The eyes below were pale blue, like a winter’s sky, but they were much too warm to be compared to such a cold thing. They were also vivid against his dark hair and his working man’s tan. Zaire’s eyes widened when I fastened my stare on him, but I found my gaze lowering to his sensual mouth. His face was all angles and sexy hollows, something sculpture worthy—refined and elegant. But his mouth was purely for pleasure.
“Hey, there,” he whispered, that calm voice gone a little raspy.
“Hey,” my own voice wasn’t too much better. Probably strained from the many times I’d screamed at my jailers to stick it where the sun don’t shine.
“She’s awake.” The kind voice was back, and it was coming from the face of a male underwear model. Light brown hair, fading to blonde, rich brown eyes, and a panty-dropping smile.
Maybe “fitness model” was a more accurate term. Those were the ones who were all pumped up, right? This guy was muscled. Though, looking back at Zaire’s body, I saw that Zaire was just a tad bigger. Then a third guy barreled into the room, the deep-voiced Kael I assumed, and I discovered that they came in super-size. I blinked, looking from one man to the next. They seemed to go from light to dark, and large to massive, starting with the sweet-voiced model, whose name I hadn’t got, to the lumberjack looking Kael. Zaire was right in the middle. A very happy middle.
“Just right,” I murmured as I looked back to Zaire.
“She’s awake?” Kael growled as he pushed past the model. “Why didn’t you call for us?”
“She just now woke up,” Zaire sighed, and looked back to me. “Kael likes to snarl, but he’s a good guy.”
“Kael,” I repeated the name and the big one knelt beside the bed.
Kael had a bowl of ice cubes and some fresh cloths in his hands. He put them down on the floor and laid his thick hands on the comforter in front of my face. The bedside lamp caught his eyes, and their moss green color turned into something more precious, something jewel-like. Kael cocked his head at me, looking over my face.
“They beat the shit out of you,” he proclaimed. “You’re probably a beautiful woman, but I really can’t tell right now.”
“Kael,” Zaire chided.
“Of course she’s beautiful,” the last guy said. “Look at the rest of her. Look at that hair.”
“I am.” Kael did just that. “Woman, you are fucked up right now. But I’m just saying it to warn you, should you decide to look in a mirror.”
“We’re going to take care of you.” The last guy came farther into the room, holding up a first aid kit. “Don’t worry. You’re safe with us. We’re good guys, I promise.”
“This is my brother, Blaise.” Zaire indicated the male model. “He’s the baby in the family. I’m the middle son, my name’s Zaire, in case you haven’t noted it already. And Kael is the eldest.”
“Brothers?” I asked. “You live together?”
“Yeah, we’re” Blaise started, but was cut off by Kael.
“Give me that damn kit.” Kael grabbed it from Blaise. “You’re gonna jabber on while the woman lies there like this.”
“That bad, huh?” I chuckled.
That made Kael stop. He lifted a brow and considered me.
“Yeah, it’s bad.” Kael turned to Blaise. “Go get some water, kid.”
Blaise grumbled but went.
“Frankly,” Kael continued. “I don’t know how you made it up the mountain. Your feet are cut to ribbons. Your clothes are nearly as bad. Your face looks like someone took a hammer to it, and from what I can see through the tears in your shirt, you’ve got more bruises than healthy skin. Plus, you’re skin and bones. Were you starved and beaten?”
“Yep.” I licked my lips and tried to push myself off of my side. I groaned but clamped my jaw shut on the sound.
“Easy now.” Zaire helped me onto my back. Then his eyes widened. “Dear God,” he whispered as he got a full view of me.
“I’m going to fucking kill them,” Kael declared.
“What now?” Blaise came into the room with a bowl of water, but then froze, staring at me.
“Hmph.” I chuckled. “Don’t worry about me, boys. I’ve been through much worse.”
Then I passed out again.
Chapter Five
I don’t know how long I was out. I only know that it was long enough for the brothers to clean me off and dress my wounds. I awoke in a huge T-shirt, bandaged all over, including my face. Blaise, he of the pretty face, was sitting in a chair beside my bed, staring at me.
“I need a phone,” was the first thing I said.
“We don’t have one.” Blaise smiled. “We don’t like people much.”
“You don’t have a phone?” I frowned and prodded my face. “Did you brush my hair?”
“Yeah, it was a rat’s nest.” He grinned. “That’s what my mom used to say about my hair when I’d come in at night. I get it now.”
“Yeah, they didn’t give me a hairbrush.” I grimaced.
“I can see you’re pretty now.” Blaise smiled. “Really pretty. You’re still banged up, but what isn’t bruised is nice.”
“Thanks,” I said dryly. Then I remembered that I was relying on this guy’s kindness. “I mean, I appreciate you and your brothers helping me out. But I need to contact my…”
“Your what?” Kael stood in the doorway, looking grim and gorgeous. Boy, this family didn’t know how to do ugly. “Family? Friends? Boyfriend?”
“My boss.” I decided to go with a partial truth. “I was undercover, investigating the Sander’s County…er…gang, led by Derick Wright. We’ve been looking into him and his gang in regards to the disappearances of several women.”
“I told you they were abducting women.” Zaire’s voice came from the hallway.
Kael grunted.
“We should have gone down there,” Blaise said.
“No, you shouldn’t have.” I eased myself further up in bed, and leaned against the wall. “Those guys are dangerous. It was good that you steered clear of them.”
“We can handle” Blaise began with a smirk, but Zaire cut him off.
“She’s right,” Zaire said as he came into the room, pushing past Kael’s bulk to do so. “It’s good that we left it to the Government,” he gave his brothers a heavy look. Then he set those piercing eyes on me. “That is who you work for, right? The Government.”
“Yeah.” it was true, technically. SCCIT was government funded, there just wasn’t a lot of government officials who actually knew about us.
“I can go down into town, and make a call for you,” Zaire offered. “Who should I contact?”
I hesitated. I couldn’t give Zaire the number. If someone called in for me, Leighton, my boss, would have a fit. He’d send a clean-up crew, and no one wanted that. Shit. Now what?
“Uh, you know what? I can call them later. It’s fine.”
“It seemed important.” Kael narrowed his vibrant green eyes on me.
Damn, they were so vivid, they practically glowed. If I didn’t know better, I’d think he was a… no, no way. The odds of that were astronomical.
&
nbsp; “You haven’t told us your name.” Zaire took a seat on the foot of the bed.
“Oh.” I blinked at them, even though one of my eyes was nearly swollen shut. “I’m Tempest.”
“Like a storm?” Blaise smiled.
“Like the play,” Zaire offered. “Shakespeare.”
I gaped at him. No one ever got that reference. The storm thing, yes, every time. But Shakespeare? Never. And I certainly didn’t expect some mountain man without a phone to catch it. But it was Kael who really shocked me.
“‘Now I will believe that there are unicorns’,” Kael quoted the play.
And of all the quotes for the walking stack of muscles to remember. The unicorn one? Really? Next, he’d start spouting poetry.
“More like, ‘Hell is empty and all the devils are here’,” I quoted. “That one was my mom’s favorite. She used it every time I misbehaved.”
“Which was often, I’d wager.” Zaire chuckled.
“You guys don’t have a phone, but you know Shakespeare?” I huffed.
“I said we didn’t like people,” Blaise reminded me. “I don’t recall mentioning anything about books. Books are like getting the best parts of people without actually having to deal with people.”
“We’re not barbarians,” Kael grumbled.
“I didn’t mean to imply that you were,” I sighed and stretched my legs. “Thanks for patching me up, guys. You could have just called an ambulance.”
“We had a feeling that you were on the run.” Zaire shrugged. “And we didn’t know who from. Sometimes calling an ambulance isn’t an option. Plus—no phone. We’d have to go into town to call one.”
“And I’m good with first aid,” Kael said. No ego, just a statement.
“Kael wanted to join the Army,” Blaise offered. “He was going to be a doctor, and the Army would have paid for his schooling.”
“Why didn’t you?” I asked.
“Too big.” He shrugged. “They didn’t have boots that fit me.”