“So... do you really know where we’re going? Or is this just a shot in the dark?” he asked, changing the subject.
“I gave them their directions,” Uriel said. “They’ll be here.”
The sun rose and the group slept through the day. Many of the wolves were still having trouble transitioning, and Uriel spent the day helping them rather than talking to Forest, which was what he wanted to do. Gomer, Jason, Bianca, and the little grey wolf—whose name was Strella, Forest discovered—hunted for food at the end of every day and kept the group fairly well-fed. By the third day, the werewolves had all recovered; by then, things had gone unsaid for so long that Uriel didn’t know how to broach the subjects, or even if he should. Forest didn’t want to think about it, not about the lives he’d taken or the consequences of that, or about the life growing inside of him. It was all too much. So they traveled in relative silence for a week, and the longer it took for them to find the tribe, the more restless and untrusting the group became. A mutiny began to take root and blossom within the ranks, unnoticed by the preoccupied pair.
On the seventh day, they stopped to rest beside a creek. Uriel told the group that they would stay put overnight and through the next day in order to regroup and regain their strength. Forest caught the shadow of concern that crossed behind Uriel’s eyes. As the group curled up to sleep, Forest followed Uriel down to the creek.
“What’s wrong?” Forest asked him quietly.
Uriel shook his head. “I should have sensed something by now. They would have left a trail, a scent trail, from our last camp. If they did as they were told, we would have crossed that scent trail days ago. Our camp was only a hundred miles or so from the zoo. It wouldn’t have taken them long to travel through this corner of the wood.”
“Maybe it’s faded,” Forest suggested. “If it’s been six months. The trail wouldn’t still be fresh.”
“True,” Uriel admitted. “But even a cold trail holds clues, and I can’t find as much as a hint. Besides... it should be fresh this far out.”
“Why?”
“Because once the camp settled, they would have given me a bullseye. They would have gone out every night and marked a circle around the camp. The longer I was away, the farther out they would have gone. If they wanted me to return, they would have done this. After six months, the bullseye should be wide enough to reach these parts.”
“Since it isn’t...you think they don’t want you to come back?”
“That’s the best case scenario,” Uriel said grimly. “If they could and didn’t, there’s hope. If they didn’t because they couldn’t...”
“Then they’re gone,” Forest finished as the realization settled over his bones. “Do you think Animus...?”
“I don’t see how,” Uriel interrupted. “Where would he have taken them? They weren’t at the zoo.”
“Oh God,” Forest whispered.
He’d suddenly recalled a program the zoo had recruited for a year ago. He’d applied, but his application had been rejected. It was an opportunity for ambitious scientists and enthusiasts to study wildlife in their natural habitats. There was a six-month training program. The timeline was perfect. He tried to remember just how many spots had been open. Eighteen? Twenty-four? He couldn’t recall specifically, but it was certainly more than ten. If Animus had been after werewolves...
“We have to go back to where you left them,” Forest said.
“But I told them to—”
“I know what you told them. But Bianca, then you... they were targeting your tribe, Uriel. They have field researchers who don’t work in the facility. They work in the animals’ natural habitats. I would bet money that they’re still where you left them, that they can’t leave because they’re surrounded by Animus’ people constantly, and that... most likely... you were personally targeted, just like Bianca was, just like I was, by people who already knew what you were and where you were. That’s how they picked Bianca out of a crowd in human form. They don’t have some magic werewolf sensor. They already knew exactly who she was and exactly what she looked like.”
“Holy shit,” Uriel whispered.
“Exactly.”
“Right. Okay. We’ll rest here until tomorrow night, then we’ll alter our direction. Southeast.”
“They’ll be there,” Forest said confidently. “I know they will.”
“I trust your instincts,” Uriel told him.
They sat together in silence, throwing stones into the creek while waterfowl floated by.
“This reminds me a little of that place,” Forest said.
“What place?”
“The place I went to in my coma. It’s a garden I imagined up a long time ago, a secret, calm place in my mind where I can run to escape the world.”
“You must have lived there these past few months,” Uriel sighed.
“Not really,” Forest confessed. “I didn’t really feel the need, not after the first night, not until the coma.”
“Really?” Uriel asked, surprised. “Seems to me that there’s plenty to escape in that facility.”
“Sure,” Forest said with a shrug. “Except there was one thing in the facility I wanted more of, not less. One thing that I didn’t think could follow me into my garden... I was wrong, by the way. It was there the whole time I was in the coma.”
“What was it?”
“You,” Forest said quietly.
Uriel didn’t say anything. The moment stretched out between them until Uriel bridged the gap; he slid Forest’s hand into his and brought it to his mouth, pressing his lips to Forest’s warm skin.
“We have a lot to talk about,” Uriel said with a sigh.
Chapter Fifteen
Sounds of a dogfight shattered the peaceful moment, and Uriel leapt to his feet with Forest close behind. They charged up the bank, stopping short when they saw what was happening. All eight wolves were in were-form, tangled in a vicious battle.
“Hey!” Uriel shouted.
Nobody acknowledged him. He shifted with a ferocious roar, tearing his clothes to shreds, and belted out an earth-shattering howl. The fighting stopped. All eyes locked on him, each wolf froze in mid-attack.
“What the hell is this?” Uriel demanded.
Nobody answered him.
“Bianca,” Uriel addressed the white wolf, “what’s going on?”
“Roy,” she gasped. “Roy said you don’t know what you’re doing, that we’re going to be lost in the wilderness forever, that the humans are after us because one of you killed somebody. He wanted us to run off while you slept, and I wasn’t having it.”
“Roy? You have something you want to say?” Uriel asked, his golden eyes glinting dangerously in the sun.
“Yeah,” Roy spat. “I do. You said we were going to find your tribe and then everything would be okay, right? Well it’s not okay. Your tribe is nowhere to be found. I don’t think you even have a tribe. If you did, they abandoned your dumb ass. Now I have a wife and kids at home, and I’ve been gone long enough. I’m going back to where I came from, to hell with you, to hell with shifting, and to hell with your fictional tribe!”
“Sure,” Uriel said. “Go on home, Roy. Nobody’s stopping you. Except...I wonder what your kids will do the first time you get angry. You seem to have quite the loose temper there, Roy. What happens the first time you get cut off in traffic with your kids in the back? Or when you go home after being gone for four months to find your wife shacked up with someone else? I know how this works, Roy. I’ve seen it happen a thousand times. You’ll go home, confident that you can keep your terrible secret under wraps.
“Your untrained body will respond instinctively to threats—physical, emotional, even imagined. You’ll shift in front of everybody you love without warning. How long do you think you’ll be able to hold onto your family after that, Roy? How long do you think it’ll take for the government to find you once your family sounds the alarm? A day? A week? Try an hour. One hour, and you’ll be right back where you
started. Except instead of Animus’ comfortable zoo, you’ll find yourself laid up on a stainless steel table while government scientists pick you apart piece by piece. But sure, Roy. Be my guest. Leave.”
The fire died in Roy’s eyes and he slumped to his knees.
“So...I’ve lost them,” he said numbly.
“Not necessarily,” Uriel told him. “Human families have been integrated into werewolf packs since the dawn of time. It’s possible, if it’s done the right way. You’ll never be able to go back to your old life. But you might be able to get your family back. You can’t do that without our help, and I can’t find the tribe without all of your help.”
“Do you know where they are?” Bianca asked hopefully. “Because I’ve been on alert, Uriel, and I haven’t—”
“Yes,” Uriel interrupted. “I know where they are. We’re going to have to change our direction. Animus’ men have them trapped, that’s why we haven’t found them yet. But Forest and I know where they are, and you’re all going to help us find and free them.”
“How far are they?” another wolf asked.
“No more than ten days southeast of here,” Uriel told them. “I ask you to stay with me that long. If, at the end of ten days we still can’t find them, I will personally help each and every one of you get to where you need to be and plan the next centuries of your virtually immortal lives. Trust me for ten days, and then I will help you secure your future. If you agree to my terms, step forward and get in line.”
Bianca, ever loyal, was first, closely seconded by Jason and Gomer. Four other wolves shuffled forward hesitantly, leaving only Roy. He remained on his knees, staring down at his beastly clawed hands.
“Ten days,” Uriel repeated. “You’ve been away from them for four months. What’s another couple weeks in the grand scheme of things?”
Roy grudgingly stood to his feet and shuffled to the end of the line. Uriel looked them over with a critical eye. They were all tired and hungry and anxious. Bianca stood straight and proud, but even she was beginning to flag under the stress. What they needed, he decided, was a celebration.
“Very well,” he said. “All of you, get some rest. Let me worry about tomorrow.”
The wolves walked away in groups of two and three, curling up on the ground to sleep. Roy was last to move and chose to sleep alone. Uriel felt for him. He’d lost everything, and now that he was free to get it all back, he was a monster. Uriel hoped he would keep his head. He’d seen too many newly-minted werewolves throw everything away on a hopeless quest to return to their human lives.
“Come for a walk with me,” he said to Forest. He grabbed his hand and took him into the trees.
“Where are we going?” Forest asked.
“Hunting,” Uriel replied with a gleam in his eye.
Forest made a face. He had never been a fan of hunting as a human, and he was disturbed to imagine what a hunt as a werewolf would entail. Uriel led him just out of sight of the group, up a hill, and down into a valley, thickly carpeted by blackberries on shrub and vine.
“Ha,” Uriel said triumphantly. “I knew these were close. I could smell them.”
“Blackberries?” Forest asked incredulously. “You were hunting for blackberries?”
“They make a fabulous wine if you know how.” Uriel grinned. “Come on, help me pick some.”
Forest laughed and began stripping berries off the vine. He took off his shirt to pile berries onto, and Uriel added his own to Forest’s since he had no shirt left to strip. His impulsive shift had rid him of all the clothing he’d stolen from the facility, and now he was working naked and human beside Forest.
Forest watched the sun trail across Uriel’s skin, and heat pooled in his belly. Picking blackberries suddenly didn’t seem like the most fun he could have in this little secluded valley. His pants grew tight and his face was awash in heat as Uriel brushed past him to dump a load of berries onto the shirt.
“What’s on your mind?” Uriel asked.
“Nothing,” Forest said, blushing as he bent down to pick more.
Uriel stood directly in front of him, feet spread, hands on his hips so that Forest would be forced to meet his eyes as he stood; except his eyes weren’t the first body part that Forest was forced to confront. He rose slowly, eyes lingering on Uriel’s powerful thighs, the cut at his hips, and his low-hanging sex proudly displayed on his unashamedly naked form. The work had coaxed a glistening film of sweat across his body, making him gleam like some kind of god in the sunlight. Forest swallowed hard and peeked shyly up at Uriel’s face.
“Something’s definitely on your mind,” Uriel repeated. “Talk to me.”
“It’s...I mean, now that we’re back in the real world, I’m sure you have other things on your mind. It’s not like you and I are destined lovers or anything. We were imprisoned together, experimented on, the whole mating thing and everything really clouds the issue, you know, because if we weren’t in such dire straits you probably never would have looked at me twice, and I definitely wouldn’t have expected anything from you so now that we’re out it’s not like we’re obligated to adhere to the social connections that were forced on us inside, in fact we probably shouldn’t, we’d just be playing into their hands, except their hands are probably cuffed right now so they aren’t playing with anything... what are you laughing at?”
Uriel answered him with a hot, crushing kiss. Forest froze in surprise then melted as Uriel’s hands swept over his naked torso, igniting fire down his spine and across his newly-sensitive nipples. Uriel hooked his thumbs in Forest’s waistband and jerked him close, pressing his thick, hard sex against Forest’s belly.
“Wait,” Forest gasped, trembling. “Wait, there’s—”
“Nothing,” Uriel growled. “There is nothing, no reason not to, nobody forcing us, nothing in the way of me taking you right here, right now, except these goddamn pants.”
Uriel ripped the button and zipper open, emphasizing his point as he shoved Forest’s pants to his ankles.
“I know, I just... What if it’s wrong?”
“Does it feel wrong?” Uriel asked as he kissed Forest’s neck and smoothed his palms over Forest’s ass.
“No,” Forest sighed, grinding against Uriel. “It feels wonderful.”
“Then stop talking,” Uriel ordered in a hoarse whisper. “And let me in.”
Forest couldn’t resist. Every argument he had against it dissolved in the heat from Uriel’s skin against his and as he fell to the ground wrapped in Uriel’s embrace. He couldn’t remember why he’d resisted at all. Uriel took his mouth forcefully, demanding entry with his powerful tongue, and Forest opened to him as he pulled Uriel close. Uriel lifted Forest’s hips in his massive hands, squeezing his ass gently as he found the entrance. He teased for a moment, anticipation building up inside of Forest until he whimpered. Forest wrapped his legs around Uriel’s waist, bucking against him until, finally, he relented.
Forest cried out as Uriel filled him. Uriel stopped for a moment, staring down at his beautiful lover; that shaggy brown hair, that trim, pale build. He looked like a doll in the sunlight, but a doll’s eyes couldn’t burn blue fire that way. Forest bit his lip and Uriel groaned, running his hands over Forest’s soft skin, up his subtly thickening torso to his swollen nipples. Forest gasped, his eyes rolling back in his head as crystal clear pleasure dribbled from his painfully hard cock.
Uriel lowered his head to Forest’s chest and kissed the swollen, hard pink nubs, twirling his tongue around them one by one. Forest gasped, bucking against him, silently begging to be taken swiftly and enthusiastically. Uriel let him writhe, intent as he was on discovering the limits of Forest’s new sensitivity. He suckled, using his teeth gently, and Forest cried out, pulsing around him. Uriel switched to the other, circling the first with his thumb as he suckled on the second. Forest was sobbing with pleasure, writhing with need, sliding over Uriel’s dick with desperate insistence.
Uriel sat back on his knees, locking his han
ds on Forest’s hips to drag him close. Forest was moaning and writhing, his cock swollen and dripping. Uriel wrapped his hand around Forest’s cock, stroking slowly as he began to thrust. Forest gave over to instinct, to pleasure, to Uriel, moving in time with his rhythm, his hands splayed across his own chest, heightening his own arousal, even as his arousal heightened Uriel’s.
The universe exploded in Forest’s mind as he came, screaming Uriel’s name to the forest around them. Uriel groaned, curling over Forest, locking into a desperate rhythm as his own need reached the breaking point. Forest trembled on the verge of a second peak as Uriel thoroughly used his body. Uriel, in a sudden impulse, locked his lips around Forest’s nipple once more, biting as his lust built beyond control. Forest moaned and bucked, locking his arms around Uriel’s neck so he could bounce into each and every thrust.
Uriel growled as he emptied into Forest, and Forest moaned as he came a second time, brought over the edge by Uriel’s beastly sounds and demanding body. Pleasure coursed over them as one, shrouding them in a haze of satisfied ecstasy, separating them from every dark and dreadful thing in the world.
“So,” Uriel gasped, catching his breath. “What’s on your mind?”
“Nothing,” Forest sighed happily. “Not a single damn thing.”
Uriel laughed and rolled over, pulling Forest with him. Forest lay his head on Uriel’s chest, listening to the sound of his heartbeat as it began to steady and slow. Everything that was bothering him could wait; it would have to. He had no idea what any of it had been. He allowed himself to float on the afterglow, safe and protected in Uriel’s powerful embrace.
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