by Abigail Owen
“You okay?” he asked.
She made a face. “Not a lot of mountains in Florida,” she said ruefully. “Guess I’m better with swamps and gators than I am with rocks and wolves.”
Shane cleared his throat. “You’re a trooper. Many shifters wouldn’t have been able to keep that pace. Sorry.” He found himself both praising and apologizing. What had happened to him?
She waved a hand. “Neah said to move fast.”
He tipped his head, eyeing her with respect that had been building since she’d transported them here. “Gotta love a woman who uses common sense.”
That pulled a grin for her, though one tinged with exhaustion and shock. “I’d call you a chauvinist, but I’m too tired.”
He chuckled—a dry, unused sound that surprised him. Her, too, if the rapid blink she shot him was anything to go by.
“Food?” she asked, before he had a chance to say more.
He squatted in front of the pack and tossed her the bags of jerky and granola, then handed her a water bottle.
“Damn. I was hoping for a five-star meal under the stars with a lovely fire,” she quipped around a mouthful of dried beef. The fact that she was joking with him was a good sign she was coming out of the shock of seeing her mother.
Shane reached over and pulled a hunk of meat out of the bag she held. “No fire up here, I’m afraid.” He savored the salty meat, happy to discover it wasn’t the overly chewy kind that made your jaw ache.
Her eyebrows winged high. “No wood?”
“Too visible.”
“Ah.” She gazed out over the treetops. Above the tree line, a fire would be a beacon to anyone searching for them. “I see.”
“We can either sleep in our cat forms, or use this sleeping bag. It’s rated for sub-zero temps.”
She grimaced. “Will it get that cold tonight?”
“Hard to tell. The weather’s acting strange.”
“I noticed.” She had been paying attention during their walk. “How about we spread the sleeping bag out and sleep on top in our cat forms?”
“Works for me.”
She pursed her lips. “Mind if we wrap up in it and sit a while? My cougar’s warmer, but we need to talk.”
Those words would normally make Shane shudder, but he knew she didn’t mean them that way.
“Sure.”
Chapter Sixteen
Tieryn shifted over to give him some space as he moved to sit beside her. Feet sticking out in front of them, they leaned against the wall of rock worn smooth by time and elements, the beauty of the mountains laid out before them in a panorama, illuminated by a waning moon that was still mostly full. He spread the sleeping bag across their legs and waited while she pulled it to her chin. The thin materials of her slacks and blouse were not much protection against the chill. The length of his body pressed against her side, and she tried to absorb some of the warmth he radiated. She ignored her secret longing for him to wrap his arm over her shoulders and pull her closer.
“I’m sorry I shut down earlier.” She broke the silence with her quiet words.
He shrugged. “S’okay.”
“I was considered a child prodigy.”
She caught his glance and knew he wondered where she was going with this. Shane didn’t comment, but Tieryn wasn’t looking for him to. She was just processing out loud.
She reached underneath her to brush away a rock poking her in the rear end, then leaned back into him. “My ability to heal manifested early, when I was only a year old.”
“When do Kuharte usually develop their powers?”
“It varies, but I understand that most have limited abilities by five or so. Because I was so young, it was hard to tell, but I appeared to have my full abilities immediately.”
“How’d they find out?”
“My grandfather was dying of cancer. One day when he was holding me, I put my hands on his face. Cancer cured.”
“Just like that?” His skepticism was hard to miss.
“Not exactly. Poppy said he felt a warm tingly sensation. My mother…” She swallowed. “She was a known Healer, so they had an idea. They ran tests to confirm.”
“It must’ve been crazy growing up knowing that,” he commented.
She stared out at the blanket of stars above the now-black line of treetops. In the distance, the call of an owl mixed with the whisper of the wind through the pines. This place was lovely in a haunted kind of way. Or perhaps her mood was tinging her perception of her surroundings. “It was lonely,” she divulged so softly, he had to lean over to catch the words.
When he didn’t say anything, guilt kept her talking. “Oh, I know. Poor little Healer. No kids wanted to play with you and your father was too busy being Alpha to spend time with you.” She shook her head at her own foolishness. “The ability to save someone’s life is a blessing. I know that. I—”
He placed a single finger over her lips to stop her talking. “I get it.”
She believed him. She nodded, and he removed his hand slowly, as if reluctant.
“Did they know your mother shifts into a deer?”
She pursed her lips. “Not that I know of.”
“Wonder how she hid that little fact?” he muttered.
Tieryn snorted. “She hid a lot more than that.”
“Yeah.” Shane shifted positions, to pull his arm out from between them and wrap it around her shoulders.
The small show of comfort from a man usually so closed off meant more than she could express. She didn’t comment on it, though, aware that would embarrass him, make him remove his arm.
Tieryn closed her eyes and voiced the thought that had been plaguing her all day. “She’s not just a shifter, is she?”
“No.” He turned his head and rubbed his chin on the top of her hair.
“What is she?” She hated that her voice cracked on the question.
“I don’t know… My bet is something ancient.”
“Like what? A goddess?”
“Maybe.”
“Do those even exist?”
“We do.” He pointed out with a logic she could appreciate. He was right.
She’d come to the same conclusion anyway. “But she seemed worried about being caught with us. Gods don’t have to worry, right?”
“I don’t know.”
“Who’s this George guy who’s coming to find us?”
“Polar bear shifter. One of Zac’s Timik.”
“How exactly is he supposed to find us?”
“An emergency procedure already in place. One valley over.”
“Where?”
He lifted a hand to point. “Down there.”
“Oh.” A frown tugged at her brows. “So how would George know my mom?”
“No clue.”
“Had you ever seen her before?”
“No, never…” Shane angled toward her. Using his free hand, he tipped her chin up so she could see his face. “I know you’re looking for answers. I don’t have them. I know even less than you, but I’ll help you get them if I can. Okay?”
“Okay.” Once again, she believed him.
He gave her an approving nod. They resumed their position, leaning against each other and the rock face.
“I was challenged to mate my wife.”
Tieryn started at both his comment and his words. “That still happens?”
“In some dares. Depends on the Alpha.”
She could hear the grim truth in his voice. “This was in the Carstairs Dare?”
“Yes.”
“What happened?”
“I opened my mouth.” She could feel his muscles bunching with his pain. “Kyle Carstairs, Walter’s son, was a menace. He was after Andie as his mate to secure his political position. He tried to take Sarai several times, to secure a Seer child he could claim and control.”
“Jeez,” she breathed.
“I started out as an accountant with the dare, but had worked my way up to a position as one of Walter’s Comm
anders. I voiced my concerns. Once.” He shook his head. “I should’ve kept my mouth shut.”
She didn’t protest when the hand resting on her arm squeezed hard enough to bruise. He needed to get this out. “What happened?” she prodded.
“As punishment for speaking my mind, Walter ordered one of the other Commanders, my best friend Mike, to challenge me for my wife. I refused to fight him. Walked out of the room. I went to my mother for help…”
“Your mother?”
He gave a sharp nod. “Her husband, my step-father, was on Walter’s board of advisors, someone Walter trusted. I told her what had happened. She left the room when I was done. I thought to call her husband.”
She wasn’t sure where he was going with this.
“When she came back, she told me to go home. I returned to my rooms to find Brenna already dead.”
“I’m sorry,” she breathed.
He shrugged. “Andie got me out of there. Sent me to Zac. Helped me fake my death to protect my family.” He huffed a bitter laugh. “My mother was all I had left.”
“You think your mother had something to do with your wife’s death?”
“I can’t be sure, but I think I’ve discovered the men who killed Brenna. I was about to confront them when I was told to go meet you.”
Tieryn winced. “Oh,” she said in a small voice.
“Exactly.”
“Have you asked your mom?”
“She’s dead.” She shivered at the emotionless way he said that, but given his suspicions, she couldn’t blame him.
“How?”
“She and my step-dad were apparently killed in a wolf attack when they were traveling between dares. I don’t know the details. I wasn’t around then.”
“Then who are you planning on confronting?”
“The men who killed Brenna will pay. And anyone else involved. Even in a small way.”
She considered that for a moment. “I’ll help you.”
He chuckled. “You?’
She poked him in the ribs. “I think I’ve proved that I could help multiple times now. Don’t scoff.”
He squirmed then sobered. “You’re right.”
Tieryn’s jaw dropped. “Can I get a recording of that?”
He shook his head at her and pulled her back down into his arms. “Thanks for the offer,” he muttered. “But I need to do this on my own.”
She bit her lip. “Okay. No direct help. What about indirect help?”
“What? Are you going to ask your dad for help or something?”
She pinched his arm. Hard. Then tried not to chuckle at his grunt. “No. I’m going to heal your ear.”
He tensed under her touch turning into a human rock wall at her side. “What?”
“I’m guessing it’s more than aesthetic, that it’s causing a hearing issue. Am I right?”
His lips thinned, and she took that a yes.
“Let me heal you. It’s what I can do.”
“I—”
“Not now. The process can be disorienting sometimes, and we can’t have you feeling off right now. But when we’re somewhere safe.”
“I—”
“Please, at least think about—”
“Tieryn,” he stopped her. “I’m not saying no.”
She blew out a long breath and wondered at herself. She never let passion overrule her brain like that. “Oh.”
He gave her that soft smile of his, the one that seemed to suck all the oxygen from her, leaving her struggling to breathe right. “Well, good then.”
He was quiet for a long moment. “Thanks.”
She smiled in the dark. “My pleasure.” And she meant it.
“Right. Let’s get some sleep.”
Chapter Seventeen
Tieryn slunk down the mountain after Shane, attempting to be as silent as he was. Cougars were one of the stealthiest predators out there, but Shane took it to a whole new level.
They’d woken as the first rays of dawn splayed out over the mountaintops like fingers of light. Breakfast had been another round of jerky, granola, and water. A quick pack, shift, and they were on their way. If anything the day was even warmer than the one prior, the rapidly melting snow no longer a hindrance. More astonishing, the plants and trees all around them had sprouted and bloomed overnight. The vibrant greens of spring surrounded them as they prowled through the land.
They traveled in silence, and Tieryn had a ton of time—way too much time—to think. She wondered again what exactly her mother was. Had Neah sensed a major warming trend…or caused it? A huge difference separated the two, and Tieryn was honestly a tad scared to find out. If she ever did find out, that was. She’d gotten the impression her mother had secrets she couldn’t share. Had her father known? Was that why he’d never seemed bitter about her disappearance?
Perhaps this George person would have some answers?
It took them the rest of the morning and into late afternoon before they reached the pre-designated clearing where they were supposed to be picked up. The closer they got, the slower Shane moved. Tieryn did her best to imitate his cautious, noiseless actions.
Eventually they stopped, still in the cover of the trees, just at the edge of the clearing. At least she assumed by Shane’s body language that they’d arrived at their destination. After moving sideways a bit, poking around, he lay on his belly and scooted under a large bush where anyone or anything passing would be unlikely to discover him. He glanced over his shoulder and jerked his head, indicating she should follow.
She dropped to her belly and inched forward. Then she misjudged the height of the bush and managed to snag it on her rump. Unfortunately, she shook the entire damn bush. Shane whipped his head around to glare at her and snapped his jaws in irritation. She did her best to look sheepish.
He shook his head. She could practically hear him saying, “Seriously? I’m wearing a pack strapped to my back and managed to get under here.”
At his signal, they backed out, and she followed him around until he found a new acceptable hiding spot. This time they both managed to get in position under the brush without incident.
The place he hid them was perfect. They were covered from above and behind. Anyone looking from the clearing wouldn’t be able to detect them, but they had a clear field of vision of the entire area. A cougar’s sense of sight was their most powerful and preferred method of detecting danger. They sniffed at the air, their ears twitching as they scanned for any sign of their pursuers, but she herself couldn’t find anything concerning.
They remained there for quite some time. Tieryn got it. Why expose their location to anyone who might be watching until they knew they’d safely be picked up? They listened, but she only heard the normal sounds of a mountain meadow: the rustle of the breeze as it stirred the pine needles on the trees and waved the new spring grass, the calls of the birds and buzzing of insects. The only scents she picked up were Shane’s earthy smell in this form and the pine trees and blooming field beyond.
Gradually, the shadows of the trees stretched their fingers across the meadow, casting a hush over the meadow in the gloom. Everything became eerily tranquil, then the unmistakable thump, thump, thump of the rotor blades of a helicopter broke the stillness of the air.
Tieryn grinned and was tempted to chuff at Shane’s double take. A cougar smiling was more creepy than pleasant, all those sharp teeth. She held her silence though, ever mindful of the peril that followed them. While they watched the aircraft descend, she kept her focus on Shane, ready to move when he did.
The helicopter landed, the wind from the push of the blades flattened the grass in a circle beneath and around it. The pilot kept it running as someone slid back the large door on the side. Several men stayed inside as a man with gray hair and a handlebar mustache hopped out and moved a couple paces away.
George. It had to be.
Tieryn frowned. She knew this man. Only he hadn’t looked exactly like that when she’d seen him, but no matter how she wrack
ed her brain, she couldn’t pin down when they would’ve met. Best she could figure, she’d been a child, because she remembered having to look way up at him, how huge he’d seemed. This gave her one more thing to ask him when they got out of here.
She’d have to worry about that once they were safe though. She bunched herself, muscles coiled, ready to spring when Shane did. But he didn’t move. George scouted the area for a few long moments. She wasn’t sure what he was looking for. They’d been here for hours with absolutely no sign of the wolves who were supposed to be on her trail. Seemingly satisfied, he held his hands up to his lips and let loose with a piercing whistle.
Shane moved out from their hiding place and Tieryn followed right on his heels. She broke into a loping run when he did. They were close, maybe only fifty feet away, when George turned sharply away to look off to the side of them.
What he saw must’ve been bad because he started waving wildly and yelling at them. “Get down! Get down!”
His words came at the same time as that now- familiar, sickening electricity zinged up Tieryn’s spine. She knew what was coming. Oh, God. Not now.
Shane stopped mid-run and spun around to stop her at the same time that she shifted. She slammed into his body and wrapped her arms around his thick neck, sinking her hands into his deep fur to hold on tightly.
“I’m leaping!”
In an instant, she was enveloped in strong male arms, skin to skin, though fear and adrenaline meant she didn’t really register that part.
“Grab the bag,” she instructed at the same time as he said, “The others?”
They both looked back toward the helicopter. An odd whistling sound was their only warning. A rocket launched from the woods off to their right screamed across the clearing just as a wave of nausea made Tieryn gag.
The rocket hit its target, and the helicopter exploded in a roar of flame and crushing sound.
“George!” she shrieked.
Her vision started to blur and darken as the flames consumed the man who’d come to save them. A man she could picture from long ago. She couldn’t be sure, but she thought he held up his hand, as if to say, “Don’t worry,” just before the fire surrounded him and the leap took her and Shane away.