by Selina Woods
I piled wood and kindling in my little fire ring, then set the kindling alight with the lighter I kept in my pocket.
“On a night like this, lots of folks will have fires in fireplaces,” Morgan replied, sitting as close to the fire as he could get without burning himself.
Tossing a thick blanket over him, I said, “Let’s hope so.”
Setting up another for myself, I went lion and crawled under it. “I’ll stay awake and keep the fire going. Get some sleep.”
Morgan yawned, his fangs gleaming redly in the firelight. “We should sleep in shifts. You need to rest, too.”
A scratching sound coming from the entrance to the basement above sent us both lunging up from our blankets. “Shit,” I muttered, staring up in dismay.
Low growls and curses drifted down as the concealing blanket was torn away, and paws slowly, cautiously, descended the set of stairs that led to us.
“We’re trapped,” Morgan snapped, advancing toward the intruder.
Chapter Eleven
“They can only come one at a time,” I said and turned human to pick up a flaming branch. “If they discover it’s too costly to fight, they may back off.”
“And wait for us to come out,” he replied, his tone grim.
“Only until dawn. They won’t risk Raphael’s goons finding them, or they’ll hang.”
The lion turned the corner of the basement and snarled upon seeing us. Both Morgan and I charged forward, and I thrust the fire into his face at the same time Morgan attacked with fangs and claws. Recoiling from both, the marauder ducked back around the wall, but still awkwardly had his back to the stairs. Trapped between us and the wooden steps, he fought back, roaring, with Morgan slashing at his face with deadly fangs.
There wasn’t quite enough room for both of us, despite my small size, so I hung back a little, waiting for Morgan to give me an opening to push the flame I held into the other lion’s thick mane. The two were evenly matched for size, but Morgan wasn’t drugged out, and the invader’s responses were slower, weaker. Blood flecked Morgan’s muzzle and mane while the other lion’s face, shoulders, and flanks bore deep cuts and slashes.
Give me a chance here.
I danced in place, needing to get my own in, to do my own fighting in defense of my home and my life. Morgan might have assigned himself my protector, but I could do some protecting of my own. The two fought on savagely, blocking the opportunity for one of the lion’s pals to descend the stairs and help, and beyond their fight, I saw another lion at the top, watching, waiting for his chance.
“Not gonna happen, you shit,” I muttered.
The marauder threw his weight forward into Morgan and knocked him backward, his claws cutting deep gouges into the side of Morgan’s muzzle and cheek. Now. I lunged between them before the invader could pounce on Morgan while he was down, punching him squarely in the nose with my left fist while thrusting the flaming branch into his mane with the other.
“Gotcha!” I bellowed, pulling my stick back to push it into his eyes. “Burn, damn you.”
As I expected it would, the flames caught instantly. Within a second, the lion’s thick mane was engulfed in fire, and he screamed, high and piercing. Spinning, his huge shoulder hit me hard and threw me to the floor. Had he thought about it, he could easily have opened me from throat to belly. He didn’t. I stared in astonishment as he fled.
Still shrieking, he charged back up the steps, blazing like a forest fire. The other lion at the top of the steps couldn’t get out of his way in time and was struck full on. Tangled together, the invading lion set his pal on fire, and both, yelling for all they were worth, fled into the night. I listened to the screams and curses, the shouts for them to roll on the ground to put the fires out.
I glanced aside to see Morgan step to my side, staring up the stairs even as I did. “Good move,” he rumbled with a faint grin.
“They won’t try that again,” I replied, listening as the sounds gradually faded away. “Those boys will be hurting for a long time, I hope.”
“He got me good.”
I turned back to Morgan, observing the deep slashes, the blood that still flowed down his face and dripped into his mane. “We need to get you to Chelsea.”
“After first light.”
I shook my head. “That’ll be even more dangerous. We’ll attract too much attention with you bleeding like that.”
“You may be right. But those idiots might still be in the area.”
“Worth the risk. Come on.”
Going lion, I scraped dirt over the fire to put it out, then followed Morgan up the steps. He went out slowly, cautiously, but evidently saw and heard nothing alarming, for he continued out. “This sucks,” he muttered. “Hurts like hell.”
The wind hadn’t slowed and was still bitterly cold as we trotted toward the main drag. “Those idiots are most likely gone,” I said, checking our vicinity as best I could. “They won’t try to attack us, not with two injured, even if they are still around.”
“They might think me weak enough to try, though,” Morgan replied.
I didn’t want to point it out, but the stench of blood coming off Morgan could easily attract other packs or predators roaming the night. I set as fast a pace as I dared to the apartment building where Jae and Chelsea lived, watching, listening, scenting the icy wind for any signs of trouble.
Dawn lightened the distant horizon as we finally, with relief, entered the building. “Maybe we can rest up in Chelsea’s apartment after she leaves for work,” I murmured as we both shifted our forms for her to recognize us.
“I’m going to need it.”
Morgan looked in bad shape, his cheek opened from temple to chin, his flesh hanging in ripped folds. His dark eyes, filled with pain and exhaustion, worried me greatly. His shoulders slumped as he leaned against the wall while I knocked on Chelsea’s door, watching for any possible observers. Hoping she hadn’t left already, I stood back and listened for her to come to the door and peer through the peephole.
“Declan?”
I heard the click as Chelsea unlocked the door and swung it wide. “What’s wrong?”
She wore a t-shirt and loose pants, her hair in disarray from sleeping. “We need your help,” I said, putting my hand under Morgan’s arm.
She took one look and urged us inside. “Get him into the kitchen.”
Morgan stumbled as he walked with me into the apartment, and I kept him steady until he sank into the chair at the table. Chelsea hurried into the bedroom, then returned with her kit. “Is Jae all right?” she asked, opening the small leather satchel.
“Yeah, she’s safe,” I replied, running water in the sink to scrub it. “We got attacked while in one of my safe houses.”
“Obviously, it wasn’t very safe, was it?”
“Guess not.”
Morgan winced and swore fluently as Chelsea disinfected his cuts, and sutured them closed. Daylight grew outside, sunlight streaming in through the curtains over the windows. “Might we hang out here while he rests?” I asked her.
“Sure. I have to head out for work pretty soon, so help yourself.”
She finished putting Morgan’s face back together, then eyed him critically. “You’re going to have some nasty scars, I’m afraid.”
Morgan shrugged wearily. “I wasn’t very pretty to begin with.”
As Chelsea went to her room to change, I put her things away. “Go lie on the couch, Morgan,” I suggested.
Morgan didn’t argue. Lying down on the sofa, he rested his head on his folded arm and soon fell asleep. Coming out of her bedroom, changed and ready to leave, she gave me a small bottle of painkillers. “Try to get him to take these,” she said. “I’ll get more antibiotics from work.”
I kissed her cheek. “Thanks, Chelsea. Be careful.”
“I will.”
She left the apartment and I locked the door behind her. Peeking out through the window, I watched the usual activity of people headed for work, or shopping,
the usual takedowns from Raphael’s enforcers going on in the street below. I yawned, wondering if I should take a quick nap on Chelsea’s bed. Without some sleep, I’ll be useless.
Thinking that Raphael had no idea where I was, and couldn’t reasonably expect to find me in a human’s apartment, I lay down on her bed. Falling asleep almost as fast as Morgan, I woke a few hours later with noises coming from the other room. Getting up, cautious, I found Morgan up and rooting in Chelsea’s cabinets.
“How are you doing?” I asked around a yawn.
“Looking for something that won’t knock me out to help this pain.”
“Chelsea left those pills for you.”
“I can’t take those; they make me too groggy. We need to talk to Chad about the mechanic, figure out how to get out of here.”
In the bathroom, I found some aspirin and brought those to him. Morgan swallowed several with a grimace, his face swollen and bruised under the long lines of sutures. The rest of his skin looked sallow, pale, and I eyed him with concern.
“Dude, you should stay here and rest. I can go.”
“Not without me.”
“I’ve been surviving a long time without you. I can do it again.”
His brows lowered over his dark, cold eyes; he curled his upper lip. “I don’t go against my orders.”
“And you’ll be useless if there is a fight.”
“Let’s go. We can find something to eat along the way.”
Shaking my head, I followed him from the apartment and down to the street. Lunch was a sandwich from a street vendor, and while I devoured mine, I noticed his difficulty in chewing his own. I made no comment, however, and went with him to the Tiger’s Paw. Chad’s truck wasn’t there, and the doors were still shut and locked.
“Maybe he’s still at the mechanic’s,” I said.
“Probably. Let’s find a place for you to hide while I wait for him.”
“I want to see Jae.”
“Too bad. That’ll have to wait.”
Annoyed as hell at his high-handed attitude toward Jae and me, I opened my mouth to protest. Then shut it again after catching the murderous look he sent me. He was hurting like hell, but he was still a lot bigger than I was, and unless I took off running, he’d force me to do what he wanted. “I don’t like you very much,” I snapped.
“I don’t care. Let’s go.”
He took me to a dilapidated house a few blocks from the bar, a cold, dismal place that stunk of mouse turds and cat piss. Dust coated everything in sight, and the cold wind blew through the busted windows. “I know I don’t need anything fancy, but really?”
“Quit bitching. It’s only for a while.”
I scowled, glaring at him. “Then you stay here while I talk to Chad.”
“I’m not the one whose head Raphael’s wants on a pike. Just chill; take a nap or something.”
He left while I was still cussing him out, ignoring me as though I were a yapping little mutt. Leaning my shoulder against the wall, I watched out the broken window until he vanished from sight. Nothing else moved in the neighborhood to provide me with entertainment. With a sigh, I decided to explore the house for anything useful.
Like many structures after the wars, it crumbled in spots, and the roof on the second floor had caved in. Snow from the blizzard still lay in piles in the corners, coated in dead leaves and twigs from the constant wind. The previous occupants had either died or fled and left behind old clothes, pictures, broken crockery, and shattered glass.
In a weathered bureau drawer that had somehow escaped the eyes and hands of looters before me, I found a long, double-bladed knife in a leather sheath. “Holy shit,” I breathed, yanking it out and examining it. Testing its edge with my thumb, I found it was still quite sharp. “You’ll come in handy, I’m sure.”
Pulling up my jean’s leg, I shoved the sheathed blade into my right boot, then snugged the denim down over it. From the outside, it presented no bulge that might be seen, and I could get to it quickly. I finished my exploration of the rest of the house but found nothing else of value.
Since Raphael’s goons would kill anyone caught carrying one, I had never risked keeping a knife or gun on me. While waiting for Morgan to come back, I practiced pulling it from its housing quickly. The movement kept me warm enough and prevented me from becoming too restless and bored. By the time he returned a few hours later, I felt confident I could defend myself with the knife when, not if, the need arose.
He looked tired and pale lines of pain tight around his eyes and mouth. “The mechanic agreed to help,” he said, slumping to the couch that had only a thin covering over its springs. “He wants his family to go as well, and he says he has a big family.”
“That’s certainly fair enough,” I agreed. “Did he happen to have potential cars we can steal?”
Morgan nodded. “It appears he’s a very busy wolf, and Raphael’s enforcers have to leave their cars and trucks there until he can get to them.”
“So, he has the keys.”
“Right. We’re to meet him after dark to take him to the snowplows. Chad thinks they were used a few years ago, so they might not be in very bad shape.”
“I remember that.”
His hand rising to his wounded cheek, Morgan gave it a tentative rub and winced. “That aspirin didn’t do shit.”
“Be glad that we shifters heal fast. By tomorrow, you’ll be lots better.”
He grunted. “I need it to happen now.”
“How’s Jae?”
“Sends her love. Misses you. Typical new love crap.”
“Don’t be so crass.”
Morgan met my eyes and dipped his chin in a quick nod. “Sorry. I never dealt with pain with a good attitude.”
Reaching into his pocket, he tossed me some keys. “To her apartment. We’ll stay there tonight.”
“Is that smart?” I demanded. “We are separate so that Raphael doesn’t get wind of our relationship.”
“And the risk of hypothermia is greater if we try to stay in one of your holes again.”
Miffed, I snapped, “Those holes have kept me alive through winters worse than this one.”
“Maybe so, but if all Raphael knows about her is that she works at the bar, he doesn’t know where she lives. His focus is on you, not her.”
I paced to the broken window that looked out onto the street. Leaning against the wall, I asked, “Any ideas on why he is so focused on me?”
“I’m still of the opinion you left something with his corpse.”
“I didn’t.”
“Something you dropped from your pocket?”
“I picked Barry’s, and if I dropped anything, it would have been something of his.”
“It can’t be a coincidence.”
“I sure as shit didn’t leave a note on his body saying, ‘Yoo-hoo, I did it.’”
From the corner of my eye, I saw Morgan lean back on the couch and close his eyes. “I can’t figure it out, Declan. And I’m too sore to work it out. It’ll come to us, though.”
“If we’re gonna be out tonight, maybe you should get some sleep.”
“Okay.”
I don’t think he slept deeply, but I was sure he at least dozed as I kept watch for unusual interest in the house, or for carloads of enforcers to roll up with big guns in their hands. A few people from nearby homes came and went, but all lay cold and silent as the night’s darkness enclosed the city. The wind had quieted for once, but that only made the air seem colder.
Morgan woke shortly after night fell, and stood up, rubbing warmth back into his arms through his jacket. “We’re to meet the wolf at his shop,” he said, stretching some of the stiffness from his body. “He says the city plows are stored not far from there.”
“I know where the plows are,” I replied, heading for the door. “You’ll have to lead the way to this mechanic. Does he have a name?”
“Porter.”
Switching to our four-legged selves, I followed Morgan as he loped
away from the house, past the Tiger’s Paw and toward downtown. I gazed longingly at the bar as we went past, physically aching to see Jae, to see her smile, to hear her voice. Even though it had been less than twenty-four hours since I had seen her last, it almost felt it had been a lifetime.
Determined to see her no matter what arrogant and obnoxious things Morgan had to say about it, I made mental plans to do so, even if it meant giving my bodyguard the slip. I still kept a sharp watch for predators as we traveled across town, suspecting Morgan’s pain might dull some of his instincts. Either through luck or the cold, we reached the wolf’s mechanic’s shop without seeing a single pack.
Porter was a husky alpha with sharp blue eyes and a mop of black hair, silver running through it. He eyed me closely as he let us both inside, then locked the door behind us. He eyed Morgan with concern. “You gonna be all right? You look worse than you did earlier.”
“I’ll be all right.”
The wolf looked at me. “You’re Declan?” he asked, his voice resonating with intelligence.
I shifted forms and shook his hand. “Yeah. We’ll steal enough vehicles and provisions for everyone you want to escape with us.”
He grinned. “I had been planning to get my family out for a while now, but couldn’t fit everything together. But when Chad asked, damn, it was like manna from heaven.”
“We also will be taking a human girl with us,” I told him as he showed us out the back door. “A friend.”
“All the better,” Porter said, shifting to his wolf as Morgan and I changed into lions. “I wish we could take the entire populace and leave Raphael to prey on his own enforcers.”
“I want to move fast,” Morgan said. “We now look like a pack of marauders. Others will leave us alone, so let’s stay in the open.”
He may have been right, for we saw no sign of other packs and trotted and loped by turns down the dark streets. Nor did we see any of Raphael’s enforcers. A few cars droned in the distance, but none came near us as we reached the big yard where the city’s snowplows were stored from before the wars. The high protective fence proved to be no problem as we entered the yard.