Every few minutes, she paused to visually search the woods for Alistair’s golden wolf. No such luck. He had promised to stay close but hadn’t responded to her call. Was he lost or hurt?
The fourth time she stopped, Nick bumped her side to continue moving. His fur was matted with chunks of icy snow. Penny touched her hair and felt the ice forming on her braid. They couldn’t continue in this blizzard or they’d freeze to death.
“We have to find shelter from the snow and wind,” she shouted over the storm. Her teeth chattered, making her hard to understand.
In wolf form, Parker couldn’t build them another lean-to. Not that such a shelter would work in this fierce weather. The wind was so sharp it cut through her layers of clothing right down to her bones.
The falling snow made visibility suck. The trail they were following zigzagged across the mountainside instead of going straight up the side, but she watched as Clare’s team’s tracks disappeared under the heavy snowfall. She hoped the others in the pack were safe, because they sure weren’t.
“Okay,” she called out. “Gather close, I don’t want to lose anyone. We’re changing direction and going straight up.” It wasn’t like Ian and Clare to take the easy route, so what had made them travel alongside the mountain?
The going was tough. Penny’s legs trembled from the effort of climbing in the deep snow. Her team plowed ahead, clearing a path. Nausea rolled in her gut. Alistair was out in this weather all by himself. What if he froze? She couldn’t bear the thought and focused on saving those around her.
Alistair had joined this mission to protect her and she had abandoned him.
Ahead, Amy came to a halt. Tail wagging, she turned around and barked.
Penny peered through the snowflakes lining her eyelashes. What was Amy excited about? A few more steps closer and she finally saw the cliff face had a nice overhang. Under it, the ground was covered in only a thin layer of snow.
“Thank God.” She wearily made her way under and fell to her knees. Wrapped in her teams’ clothing was the wood they had collected to make a fire. For once, she had made a good call. The kindling scattered across the frozen ground as she dumped her arm load.
With frozen fingers, she gathered what she needed to start a fire. She’d been making them since her arrival to boot camp but her hands were so numb that every time she tried to roll the stick between her palms to create friction, it tumbled free.
“Fuck.” She picked up the stick for the third time. Shivers traveled through her whole body now.
“Here.” Vicki stretched out her hand to take over.
Penny had been so focused on starting a fire she hadn’t noticed her team had all shifted and dressed.
Vicki made quick work of rolling the stick in her hand until a spark developed in the frozen wood. They worked together to get the fire going, then huddled over the warm. Hands held out over the flame, Penny closed her eyes for just a second and listened to the pop and crackle of the burning wood. They might actually survive the night.
Bobby Jo put his arm around her shoulders. “Nice job. I was getting scared we would turn into wolf-sicles.”
“Me too,” chimed in Parker.
Penny shrugged out of Bobby Jo’s hold and stared out into the storm. “Alistair is still out there alone.”
Nick snorted. “He’s probably safe in the manor by now.”
“Why would you say that?” Though she had shared those same thoughts earlier. Something in her gut believed in Alistair.
“Because he’s a self-serving asshole,” was Nick’s response.
A wolf was influenced by his or her pack. Only when separated could they truly expand their wings and find their true selves. The boot camp had proven this time and again. They had been training for weeks to find their true natures, though most of her pack mates didn’t recognize what Pallas was truly doing. Alistair hadn’t had the same amount of time, but every day she saw a spark inside of him grow stronger.
Kinder.
At least toward her. It was a start. She continued to gaze out through the storm, looking for a spark of gold.
Amy went out to gather more wood hidden under the snow. Their little overhang against the cliff kept in the heat and protected them against the wind and snow.
Guilt ate at Penny’s soul. She rose to her feet. “I’m going to take a quick look around for Alistair.” What if he was lying just outside their vision?
“Penny.” Vicki grabbed her wrist. “Don’t.”
“I won’t go far. I promise.” She pointed to the reflective cliff side. “Look, the firelight is like a beacon.”
Reluctantly, Vicki released her hold. “Don’t be long. We can’t afford to be sending out rescue party after rescue party until we’re all lost.”
Penny smiled, doing her best to make it reassuring. “Don’t worry.”
Alistair started his journey enamored by snowflake. Now, he fucking hated every little unique flake. How did the snow accumulate so high when the particles were so fucking tiny? He was from Texas. The occasional light dusting was the most he had seen. He’d been hunting in Colorado in the past with his father, but the Lodge had never been too far away.
He could abandon his team and turn tail to find the manor. What could the vampire do to him for coming back for shelter, fail him?
No, no. Penny was out in this terrible blizzard. He couldn’t leave the little wolf to freeze. First, he’d find her, then he’d drag her ass back to the manor by the scruff if he had to. The others could follow or not. This exercise was ridiculous. No matter what the vampire thought, shifters really could freeze to death. They weren’t as resilient as Pallas wanted to believe.
The snow made tracking scents difficult, if not impossible. Luckily, his team left tracks wide enough that the most inexperienced hunter could follow. But if he didn’t find them soon, the snow would bury their paw prints.
He paused, set the rabbits down, and howled. The dense snowfall muffled his call. He spun around. His own trail was fading. He shook his head clear of snowflakes. Which way was the manor?
Fuckity, fuck, fuck.
Lost, that was all he needed. First, he’d been shot by his ex-fiancée, now was lost in a snowstorm. He shook again to clear the cold snow from his body, but it stayed frozen to his fur. A wet hide meant less insulation from the weather. Frozen fur meant death. He needed shelter.
Penny was experiencing the same weather. Had she even thought to shift to wolf form? As a human, he wouldn’t have made it this far. He couldn’t give up on her. It wasn’t in his nature. She’d spent days caring for him even when they both knew he was healed and just needing some time to come to terms with his loss. She’d still checked on him, gave him food, hell, she’d given him her food when the vampire was starving the pack.
There was no way he was going to find shelter without making sure she was safe first.
He stumbled against a buried dead log. Maybe he should eat the rabbits. It was getting difficult to travel and carrying them didn’t make it easier, especially with the snow covering all sorts of death traps like this log.
A faint scent was mixed with the deadwood. Parker, Vicki, Nick, Amy, and Bobby Jo. Penny too. They been here! He was on the right track. He would keep the rabbits then. It wasn’t much but they would need the food to fuel their bodies.
Pushing forward, Alistair plowed through the snow. The land grew steeper and steeper. His heart raced. Maybe their bodies were covered in snow? The thought put more speed in his steps and he paused to dig when he spotted a wolf shaped snow pile.
There was nothing. He’d been mistaken and he paused to catch his breath. He was going to die on this godforsaken mountain. No one would ever find his body and his family would just assume he’d run away in shame since he’d lost Julia to a penniless wolf.
They’d never know that he hadn’t cared for her. That he had hunted her down to the boot camp because they had pushed him. If he had really wanted Julia as a mate, he would have won the challenge against
Darrell. His heart hadn’t been in the fight.
Penny’s scent filled his nose. It blew on the wind howling past his face. She was close. Ignited by the smell, he started his frozen march again. Between the trees of the steep mountain side, a flicker of light caught his attention. A flashlight? He kept climbing, unable to move any faster on frozen paws. There it was again. Brighter, more orange than artificial light.
A fire!
It must be Penny and her team. His heart soared and he climbed with his muzzle still full of dead rabbit.
Firelight coated the cliff face with an overhang protecting the team from the blizzard.
Parker and Nick rose to their feet as he approached. “Is Penny with you?”
Chapter Six
Alistair dropped the rabbits at Vicki’s feet and scanned the weary team’s faces. Penny wasn’t among them?
Ears back, he paced around the fire, a low growl rumbling in his chest. They had lost Penny? He faced the thick snowfall outside the protection of the overhang. The sun had set and it was dark. It would only get colder. He shifted and dressed, jerking on his clothes in sharp fast moves. “Why isn’t Penny here with you, safe by the fucking fire?”
Vicki knelt next to him. “She went out to look for you. We tried to stop her but she insisted she wouldn’t go far. That was two hours ago.”
“We’ve been going out in pairs to look for her. Me and Nick just returned.” Parker’s blue lips flattened in distress. “I’m really worried she’s lost.”
Alistair bared his teeth. He wanted to bite him. All of them. How could they let her leave the safety of the team for someone like him?
They both shrank back to the other side of the fire with the rest of their teammates.
The ache in his chest was unbearable. He had thought he had found her. “It’s not your fault. It’s mine. Stay by the fire in case she finds her way back. We can’t afford to lose anyone else in this storm. I’ll find her.” She was lost in the blizzard because of him. He told her he would track them after his hunt.
How could he blame her for not believing in him? He had had his own doubts when looking for her.
He pushed the rabbits toward the hungry shifters. “You need to eat to stay warm.” And he raced out back into the storm.
They had tried to find her, he reminded himself, but they failed. He wouldn’t.
Ian had asked him to watch over Penny. The alpha must have suspected the vampire was planning something dangerous. If he had known the weather would turn, Alistair would have dragged her back to the manor no matter the consequences to her training or his bet with Pallas.
A year of work was nothing to pay in comparison to saving her life.
The wind sliced through Alistair’s jacket sending shivers through his body. Wolf form would be warmer and he could travel faster but he didn’t need speed. He needed to be able to call out for Penny since visibility was nil. He hoped she had shifted before searching for him. Their fur was more resilient than clothes.
He followed the vanishing trail Penny and the others had made until it split off in different directions. Snow washed out their smells. He could discern Parker and Nick but not Penny. Snarling in frustration, Alistair scanned the terrain.
If he were Penny, looking for him, what direction would he go?
Not up the mountain—he’d been behind them, on lower ground. He twisted around and couldn’t see the firelight from the team’s sheltered spot through the snowfall and the scent of smoke had faded. He hadn’t gone that far. Shit, she could be a few feet from him and he wouldn’t see her. No wonder she’d gotten lost. He thought he was too.
He threw back his head and shouted her name. He may not be able to see her but maybe she could hear him. If she would only call back.
Nothing.
He ran farther down the mountainside, leaping over fallen trees and ducking low branches. Pausing again, he caught his breath before letting out another call.
Come on, come on.
Now, he was running and calling her name. Made enough noise to scare all the game in a ten-mile radius away. His breath no longer steamed from his mouth—body temperature must be dropping—legs wobbling…
Maybe he should just lay down here for a minute and catch his breath. He plopped against a snowbank and closed his eyes. So tired…
Something brushed his hand. It felt nice, like little fingers. Little ice cold fingers.
A jolt ran through his limbs as he rolled to his feet, heart pounding in his ears.
Penny lay buried in the snow. She reached out to him in zombie style. Of all things, she was still in her human form. He wanted to shout and yell at her. He wanted to kiss and hold her tight. He wanted to rage at the world.
Instead, he grabbed her by the scruff of her jacket and pulled her into his arms, squeezing her tight. “You’re safe now.”
She was alive.
He carried her as he climbed back up the mountain even though every muscle in his body seemed frozen solid.
She was alive.
That was all that mattered. Penny had spent days saving him from depression that had threatened to engulf him whole. He’d gone from alpha heir apparent to rejected mate. His pack would never accept him back after such a defeat. Shot in the leg by his own promised female, he would be lucky if they didn’t tear him apart. Whenever the darkness seemed the worst, like the sun would never rise again, Penny appeared to bring light back into his life. A moment of silver lining in an otherwise cloudy world.
Failure wasn’t an option. She would survive because a world without Penny in it was too dark for Alistair to live in.
“You came for me,” she whispered by his ear, burying her face against his neck. “I can’t believe you came for me.” He felt her sob and his heart broke.
Of course he’d found her. Why would she doubt him?
He paused, searching the falling curtain of snow for firelight or the scent of smoke, but found nothing. “Shit.” Maybe he’d spoken too soon when he’d declared her safe because he was good and lost. He’d been following his own footsteps but the snow was coming down so hard his trail had vanished further up the mountain. He had nothing to guide him except to continue forward.
Penny had gone limp in his arms. Her body no longer shivered as if it had given up on trying to stay warm. No food for days, she just didn’t have the reserve to combat the cold.
She was the only person he’d met that never asked anything of him and she was the only person he would do anything for.
“Stay with me, beautiful. I’ll find us some shelter. Just hang on.” Step after agonizing step, he lost track of time. His windblown face was numb. He could no longer feel his toes or fingers. The only thing that kept him going was the woman in his arms.
“Pallas.” She stirred and lifted her nose to the air.
Alistair stumbled to a stop. “Where?” He searched the dark. The vampire would be a welcome sight for once.
“Smell.” She pointed toward a thick copse of trees.
He inhaled deeply a few times, mouth open to increase the absorption of the surrounding scents. She was right. He could smell the vampire, if faintly. Following the smell, Alistair carried Penny into the denser area of trees and came to a sudden halt.
“You must have a guardian angel.” Alistair stared at a small cabin. No lights were on or smoke from the chimney.
“Jake,” she whispered.
Alistair frowned at the unfamiliar name, citing a surge of possessiveness. A boyfriend, possibly?
There was no answer when he knocked and the door was locked. With one swift kick, he broke the lock. Breaking and entering was not the worst offense he’d ever committed. Considering the situation, the police might be lenient.
He shoved the door closed with his shoulder and set Penny on a chair. “I’ll get a fire started.”
Most hunters kept their cabins stocked with the basics. Never knew when an emergency would strike, especially in unpredictable mountain weather.
Firewood w
as stacked by the hearth and he fumbled in the dark along the mantel looking for a lighter. Instead, he found a box of matches.
Pallas’s scent was everywhere, faded with time. The vampire had used this cabin in the last week. Probably when he set the flags on top of the peak.
It took Alistair a few tries with his trembling hands but he finally started the fire.
Penny shuffled over, falling against his lap as she hurried toward the heat. Her teeth chattered, lips were blue and her eyelashes were iced over. She looked like an ice fairy, so beautiful and fierce. “Where is our team?”
“I left them at the cliff face with a couple of fat rabbits.” His stomach rumbled at the memory and Penny’s answered in kind. He twisted around, inspecting the cabin in the flickering fire light.
A bed with blankets, thick curtains over the windows to block the sunlight, table with chairs. Very basic hunter’s cabin. Not really something he pictured the vampire owning. Alistair strode around the small space searching the cabinets.
“Bingo.” He pulled out a couple of cans. “Beans.”
Definitely not the vampire’s cabin. He hadn’t any need for food. Didn’t mean he hadn’t used the place to hide from the sun for a day.
Penny clapped her hands. “I can eat it, metal and all.”
After a few agonizing minutes, Alistair found the can opener. “No need to add tin to our diet.” He set the open cans in the coals burning in the fireplace to warm the frozen contents.
Penny dipped her fingers inside the closest one. “I can eat mine cold. I don’t mind.”
“Careful, don’t cut yourself on the sharp edge.” Alistair gently pulled her arm away. “Leave them in the heat. You’ll get warm faster if your stomach is filled with hot food.”
She moaned and leaned against his chest. “I have never been this hungry before.”
His inner hunter rose and he regretted leaving the rabbits with the team. Meat would satisfy her wolf better than beans. A soft frustrated rumble emanated from his chest. Penny shouldn’t suffer. Gentle wolves like her were meant to be cared for by the pack.
Penny of the Paranormal: Shifter Romance (Vanguard Elite Book 4) Page 4