by Melissa Haag
As soon as we finished, Winifred was at Bethi’s side. They left to use one of the rooms while the rest of us cleaned up and headed for the cars.
Carlos and Grey went to Sam’s truck and Gabby and Clay came to stand by the car. I’d forgotten Gabby wanted to ride with us. Standing beside her now, I wondered why I’d ever given her consideration as a potential Mate. She was pretty enough and her scent nice enough, but she didn’t hold a candle to Bethi.
“Are they still looking for our trail?” I asked.
“Yeah. The first highway. Our trail must have dissipated enough that they couldn’t find the exit we took. They went much further east than we did before turning back. They’ve spread out now, fanning throughout the area.”
“Good.”
“It would be if there weren’t other clusters starting to do the same in different areas.”
“That’s bad?”
“I’m not sure. I’m still new to seeing everything at this scale.”
“What do you mean, new?” The way Michelle had been talking, I’d had the impression both she and Gabby always had their abilities.
“It wasn’t until I Claimed Clay that I could see…everything. Before, it was just a small area around me, like several city blocks. Maybe the Urbat did this kind of searching for us in the past and we were just lucky to avoid it. But somehow, I think what they’re doing is new.”
Gabby’s abilities had changed when she’d Claimed Clay? That wasn’t good news for me. If Bethi heard that, she’d really start pushing.
Winifred and Bethi walked out of the hotel doors just then, and everyone got into their assigned vehicles. Engines started as I opened the back door and waited for Bethi. She smiled at me as she neared. It did things to my insides. Things I really liked.
Gabby opened the opposite side door and Clay sighed. He likely didn’t want to sit apart from her any more than I wanted to sit apart from Bethi. Too bad. My girl was hurt. There was no way I was riding shotgun.
I carefully helped Bethi get in the back seat. Before Gabby could slid in from her side, Clay caught Gabby by the back of her shirt. She turned to kiss him.
Bethi moved over and I quickly got in so I wouldn’t need to witness more. I wasn’t jealous about Clay getting the girl. I was over that. I still didn’t understand it, but I was over it. However, I was jealous that everyone around me was hooking up; and the girl I wanted was right next to me, but I needed to wait. Waiting was starting to feel like torture.
“How you feeling?” Gabby asked Bethi, after Clay got in front.
Winifred pulled out of the lot, leading the other cars.
“Fine,” Bethi said. I settled in my seat, getting comfortable. My leg pressed against Bethi’s and her shoulder brushed mine. Sitting three in the back was nice. More contact.
“If it’s okay, I have some questions for you.” Gabby glanced nervously at Winifred and me.
“It’s fine with me,” Bethi said.
I wasn’t sure yet if it was fine with me. Gabby’s nervousness was worrying me.
“You’ve said a lot about our abilities. I thought...I thought I was meant to find pairs.”
“What do you mean?” Bethi asked.
“When I touch people, if I’m feeling the right things, like empathy, I can transfer my power to them. Then, I get this kind of echo back from it, like ripples. When the ripple hits the right spark, it glows brighter. Does that make sense?”
“I haven’t lived anything like that yet. I didn’t know you could transfer your power. I wonder if the rest of us can,” Bethi said.
I didn’t like the direction of their thoughts and hoped that was the end of question time.
“When I transferred my power to Clay, my spark lit brightly. When I transferred it to Luke, your spark lit brightly. That’s why I sent him. Well, part of the reason.”
That shocked me. I’d figured she’d done something to me when Clay dragged me back to their room so she could ask if I’d had a good time going out. The way women had thrown themselves at me had been very enjoyable. Then. It wouldn’t be now. I’d never considered there might have been more to the experience or why she’d slipped me the note with directions to find Bethi. She’d knowingly sent me to my Mate without mentioning it to me?
“You knew?” I said.
“I wasn’t sure. But I wasn’t wrong, was I?”
Gabby watched me closely, and I frowned at her. The direction of this conversation needed to change. With Bethi’s determination to be Claimed and Mated as soon as possible, I wasn’t about to admit anything.
“I could pass my power to you,” she said to Bethi.
“No,” Clay and I said at the same time.
Clay turned in his seat to give Gabby a look. It wasn’t angry, but I could see warning there. Good. He needed to keep his woman under control.
The idea of what had happened to me happening to Bethi worried me. With Gabby’s ability in me, I’d been a magnet for women. I couldn’t even remember that night without feeling guilty because Bethi sat beside me. Resisting Bethi would be impossible with Gabby’s gift in her.
“It drains me,” Gabby admitted. “At least, it did before I Claimed Clay.” She reached forward and ran her fingers in Clay’s hair. “Clay, it probably won’t affect me anymore.”
He shook his head. “Hands to yourself.”
Good. Gabby sighed and sat back. Clay still kept a close eye on her.
“What’s your reason for not wanting me to try?” she asked me.
“Bethi’s perfect the way she is,” I said and looked out the window.
Clay laughed.
“Have you felt the other part of my ability?” Gabby asked Bethi. “The attraction I have on men? I transfer that, too. When I transferred it to Clay…well, I Claimed him on the spot.”
Bethi’s scent changed to sweet pears again. I glanced at Clay, hoping he’d be able to control his Mate.
“I’d guessed about there being another race,” Gabby said quietly. She looked at Clay sadly. “We came up here a day early because they tried challenging Clay. The men had a different color spark. While one had Clay distracted, another came in from the back. Clay heard and got there in time. But not before I saw the man.” She turned and looked at Bethi. “I felt it. The pull. But it felt so wrong,” she whispered.
“Because for you, it was,” Bethi said. Then she looked at Clay. “To the death?”
He gave the barest shake of his head.
My head swam with this new information. Gabby feeling the pull for an Urbat meant our women could Mate with them, a race that had always existed, but we didn’t know about until a few days ago. Like we needed another reason to guard our females. So many families had gone to the woods never to return to civilization. I wondered if there was a flourishing commune of unmated females out there somewhere. Maybe my mother would still be alive if we’d taken to the woods, too.
All thought stopped as two pieces clicked into place in my mind. Bethi had said Urbat have always wanted power, to be the top race. They’ve spent lifetimes searching for and eventually finding these girls with abilities.
I stared out the window, not really seeing anything. Could it be that obvious?
Why are there so few women for us? I sent Grey.
It’s gotten better since Charlene joined us, but before that, so many died in the woods. Hunters. Other animals. The world just became too small for us to safely live in our fur and raise cubs.
Hunters. Animals.
What better way to become the leading race than to quietly start killing off the other? Without females, we had no chance.
I kept my thoughts to myself as we drove. It wasn’t until lunch that we stopped again. Bethi had managed to stay awake the whole while.
“About time,” she said under her breath. “I have to pee.”
Opening the door, I helped her from the backseat. She moved stiffly and held an arm to her middle. Winifred and I both watched her closely as we walked into the fast food restaurant.
“She still looks pale,” Winifred said after Bethi disappeared into the lady’s room.
“She’s looked pale since I met her. But, yes, she’s reached a new level of pale lately. She needs food and rest.”
“Order whatever she needs. Michelle received the money we need. Hopefully, Bethi will nap in the car.”
“Napping won’t help. The only time she actually sleeps is when she’s lying on me, skin to skin. Otherwise the dreams trap her and she wakes like she never slept at all.”
“I see.” She looked toward the restroom for a moment. “We’ll try to ensure we stop at a reasonable hour each evening.”
She left me to go speak with Gabby, and I went to the counter to add our order to the rest. When Bethi reemerged, she moved around the restaurant listlessly.
As soon as the food was ready and everyone had used the restrooms, we piled back into the cars and started driving again. Bethi barely ate, claiming it would just make her more tired. I didn’t think it would matter; we both knew she’d only be able to hold out on sleeping for so long. But I didn’t point it out to her, preferring to avoid a fight.
She didn’t make it more than forty minutes before she started crying and twitching. Gabby watched with sad eyes as I inadequately tried soothing Bethi.
We stopped traveling around six and checked into our next hotel. As a group, we found somewhere to eat and then split up into our rooms for the evening.
That day established the pattern for our lives on the road, with the exception of the car assignments. After that second day, Carlos and Grey were again our companions.
With Gabby’s ability, the group avoided detection, with a few occasional close calls. One morning we woke to a knock on our door and a quick “pack up.” We’d left that hotel minutes before the Urbat reached town.
Gabby assured the Elders the Urbat had only been scouting, with their net still spread wide in an effort to find us, but everyone was nervous after that.
From that day, I began to notice Gabby’s exhaustion from constant monitoring, Michelle’s growing fear for her brothers, and Charlene’s quiet withdrawal into her own thoughts. We were losing our females far a field and close to home.
* * * *
On the fourth day, Grey told us the Urbat had managed to catch a lone werewolf. They tortured the man, stretching out his death for hours in hopes of gaining information about Charlene, Gabby, Michelle, and Bethi. Grey didn’t share any of the details; but when a tear trailed onto his cheek, I knew the man had finally found his end.
Bethi shivered beside me, and I wrapped an arm around her shoulder.
“Shh. Don’t think. Don’t remember. Just breathe and look at the trees. You’re here, now. You’re safe. Shh.”
It took a long while for her shaking to end. We stopped early that night. Everyone quietly went to their rooms.
Most nights Bethi and I had a room to ourselves. Whether alone or with company, we slept together as we had that first night. It was the only time I really felt connected with her. Although I tried to talk to her in the car, she never said much. I’d like to blame it on increasing stress and lack of rest, but most mornings she woke well-rested. Sure, a few dreams snuck in here and there, but nothing so drastic as to stop her healing. Color started to return to her face and the sharp angle of bones under skin had softened.
After that first night, I’d grown a little smarter and kept some extra food in our bag and the remote within reach. The television helped keep my mind off how completely comfortable she was using me as a body pillow and how very much I liked it.
That night, after hearing about the death, Bethi went to bed right after eating. I fell asleep easily enough but woke in the wee hours to a grumbling stomach. Sighing, I pulled the sheet over Bethi’s head—I’d learned my lesson after dropping ham on her face—and snacked on some chips while watching television.
Just before dawn, I shook off the sheet and settled in to doze once more. Most times, I dreamt of Bethi trailing kisses from my chest to my neck or some similar version of making out the second time I fell asleep. I figure it happened because she tended to snuggle a bit more in the morning hours. It was the best way to wake up.
However, snuggles weren’t in my immediate future. I woke to Bethi’s very loud protest in my ear and for a panicked moment I thought she’d discovered the inappropriate direction of my thoughts.
“What the hell, Luke?”
I peeled my eyes to find her scowling at me while holding up a rather large chip crumb in front of my face.
“In my hair,” she said, her face turning red.
I scrambled for something to say that would save me from her anger.
“I’m sorry, luv. The sheet must have slipped from your—”
Her eyes narrowed. “You pulled the covers over me so you could eat?”
I kept quiet, unwilling to say anything further to anger her.
“I’m not a table. No eating in bed.”
She stomped off into the bathroom, crumbs clinging to the back of her hair. She didn’t talk to me for the rest of the day.
Nineteen
Because of the weather and the Urbat, we ended up a little further south than where Gabby said we wanted to be after a week of travel. Bethi still carried a chip on her shoulder, but I couldn’t be sure if it was still toward me or because we were all tired of the never ending road trip.
Dripping wet, we trudged into the lobby of yet another hotel. While Charlene and Thomas went to the desk to check us in, Winifred approached Bethi and pulled her off to the side.
“I’d like to take out the stitches today. It was a shallow enough cut that it should be fine, but you’ll need to take it easy.”
Bethi’s gaze brightened as she nodded eagerly. “I’m so ready to get rid of my Frankenstein.”
After getting our room card, we went to settle in before meeting for supper. Not more than a minute after the door closed, Winifred knocked. She came with gauze, alcohol, and sharp scissors. Bethi moved to the bed as Winifred came in.
“Are you ready?” Bethi asked. “Should I assume the patient position? On my back with my shirt up?”
“That would be best.”
“That’s what he said.”
Winifred gave me a questioning look, and I held up my hands as Bethi snickered.
“It’s a saying,” she said, easing onto her back. “He’s still being annoyingly puritan about Claiming.” She lifted her shirt, exposing her flat, soft stomach. I swallowed hard at the sight of so much skin, my thoughts going south until I saw the neat row of little black stitches. Guilt gripped me, and I moved closer so I could hold her hand.
“Removing the stitches will be far less painful then receiving the cut,” Winifred said. I wasn’t sure if she was assuring me or Bethi.
Probably me. Bethi looked completely at ease as she lay there. Her jean clad legs hung off the edge of the bed from her knees. The knife strapped to her thigh stood out without Bethi’s long coat to hide it. She was a tiny, slightly broken, badass girl who kept me on my toes.
Winifred didn’t appear to care about the knife as she doused a piece of gauze with alcohol. Bethi had kept the weapon fairly hidden, but Grey had noticed it early on. No doubt the reason Winifred didn’t seem surprised or question the knife.
Winifred swabbed the area with alcohol then cut the first loop. Bethi winced when Winifred tugged the first stitch free, but kept quiet through the rest. As soon as the last thread pulled free, Bethi sighed and moved to tug her shirt down.
“Not yet,” Winifred said, reaching down for a bottle. “It needs to be cleaned again.” She passed the small bottle of rubbing alcohol to me. “I think you can take it from here.”
Bethi frowned at Winifred’s back as she left. Without sitting up, she pulled her shirt down over the little bleeding holes.
“You heard her,” I said. “Let’s do this quick, and then we can grab dinner.”
Bethi shook her head. “I’m too sick for dinner. Let’s sk
ip it.”
Tilting my head, I studied her. How could a little sting of alcohol cause this much trepidation when mutts and knives never had?
She stared back at me, a challenge that made me want to grin. I loved her stubborn will as much as it aggravated me. But, right now, her fear was prompting her to make a decision that might lead to infection.
“Bethi, you’re tougher than this,” I said, gently.
She made a face at me, but lifted her shirt again.
“Go on, you sadist,” she said without rancor. “Inflict some more pain on your poor little human.”
She scrunched her eyes closed and took a slow deep breath.
It was too late for her to hide. Those words created an ache in my chest. My little human…I rubbed the spot over my heart.
I studied her. Dark hair spread like a halo behind her head. The healthy flush spreading over her face, darkened her lips. She tempted me with each chest expanding breath she took. The exposed area of skin begged for kisses, not sanitation. I leaned over the bed and pressed my lips to her forehead, then dabbed some alcohol on each tiny little hole in her stomach. Touching her soft smooth skin again and again made my hands tremble. She made a few noises and twitched a little, but kept still and quiet for the most part.
Finishing, I leaned forward to kiss her forehead again. When I pulled away, she was watching me.
“I’m sorry I hurt you.”
“You didn’t hurt me. I did. I’m good at that.”
I tossed the gauze into the bin and helped her sit up. “But not anymore. Never again.” I lifted her chin, wanting her promise.
She nodded.
Satisfied, I moved away from the bed and cleaned up the tissues and stitches Winifred had removed. Bethi carefully sat up then stood. She moved cautiously, testing the newly healed thin line on her stomach.
“Since we’re eating at the hotel’s restaurant, it might be better if you leave that here,” I said, with a nod toward her knife.
She sighed and made a face, but bent to remove the knife and hand it to me. I packed it into our bag, in the spot she favored for easy access.
She wore an anxious expression while she waited by the door for me. As I’d hoped, the knife had given her a small sense of safety.