by Cree Storm
“Your face suddenly got sad and I know you just realized who I actually am and were probably remembering how you kept shooing me away,” Ireland said, his voice filled with sadness.
“I’m sorry, Ireland. If I had known you were a man trapped inside your animal, I would have done anything I could to help you—but why me? I mean, you were living with Timmy and York, and thanks to Timmy’s Christmas present of his ability to talk to animals like Dr. Doolittle, why didn’t you tell him?”
“I tried so many times, but Timmy never understood me. I’m not sure why, but I think it was because I’m not a real animal, only part. But thanks to Charlie, who could understand me, he was the go between for Timmy and me this morning,” Ireland explained.
“Okay. Well, I’m really happy that you were finally able to communicate with Timmy and that he could now help you, although, that won’t be necessary now that you’re back to your human form. But what I don’t understand is, why me? I mean, why did you keep following me or showing up wherever I was? And why the hell did Timmy sneak you onto my plane?”
Flyer could hear Ireland clear his throat before he whispered softly, “Because you’re my―”
But he never got to finish that sentence as Wade’s voice came from somewhere. “Ireland?”
“Shoot, it’s the radio. I was able to get it working for a little while before, but it went out and I guess I hit something right again,” Ireland said in a rush as Flyer heard him moving further away.
“Wade? Wade, we’re here,” Ireland called.
“Ireland, listen to me. Rory found you using the black box GPS. We can see the crash site. He’s also been monitoring the people Flyer was sent to recon and caught some chatter. You and Flyer are in danger. The people who Flyer was going to check out somehow found out about his mission and they’re on their way there now. You need to get the hell out of there.” Flyer heard the panic in Wade’s voice.
“Shit! Ask him what their ETA is.”
“Did you hear that, Wade?” Ireland asked.
“Yes. Flyer, man, am I so glad to hear your voice. You need to move soldier. Enemy combatants are four miles south and closing in. From the satellite pictures Rory was able to tap into, there are six big SUVs coming your way, and heat sensory shows thirty bodies. Get the hell out of there, Aiden! We’re loading up and coming for you. Do you hear me? We’ll find you.”
“We have a small problem, Commander. I can’t see, and my right arm is fucked from the crash.”
“Shit! Listen to me, Flyer. You’re a god damn SEAL, soldier up! We don’t give up or let something stop us. You have a partner there, so utilize him and watch each other’s back,” Wade ordered.
“Copy that, but it’s gonna be tricky with no eyes, Commander,” Flyer said, as he tried to get himself to his feet.
“Fl…r? Ir..,d? Do…opy?”
“Flyer! You n…d m…now! Th…ming! Th…coming,” Radar’s panicked voice came over the radio.
CHAPTER 7
A spike of fear rolled through him and suddenly Flyer had no idea what to do. Then Wade’s words screamed in his head. “You’re a SEAL, soldier up! We don’t give up or let something stop us.”
Yeah, but usually he has his eyes, and his arm isn’t screaming at him for even breathing. Okay, Flyer, think. These guys are notorious drug dealers and gun smugglers, which means…they will kill both of you on sight. Well, probably not, but they will drag your asses back to their boss and torture both of you until they think they’ve got everything they can out of you, and poor Ireland doesn’t know shit about any of this. Fuck! The guy was trapped in his animal form, finally comes back, is immediately in a plane crash, and now has one of the biggest, baddest drug cartels in the world breathing down his neck, yet all he has between them and him is your sorry ass and you’re just sitting here having a private pity party. Wade’s voice screamed inside his head again, rattling his brain. “Get your ass up, soldier and move!”
“Flyer,” Ireland said, and he could hear the fright in his voice.
Okay, he could do this. With determination, Flyer looked in Ireland’s direction. “Okay, we need supplies, but you’ll have to be my eyes for now. Can you get into the back of the plane?”
“Y-yes. There are some seats tossed around, but I can make it over them.”
“Good. Just past the bathroom there is a cabinet on the left wall. In there, you’ll find a first aid kit and a black box, we need those. Then the last door at the rear is a bedroom. In there, you’ll find a set of clothes and some shoes that might fit you.”
“Um, I’m already dressed. When Timmy snuck me on he also left clothes for me,” Ireland replied in a shy voice, which had every protective instinct in Flyer standing up and growling.
“Okay, great. But you’ll also find a few black hoodies and some camo ones, too. Grab those and shove them into the pack you’ll find on the floor. Then under the pillow is one of my guns. Grab that, and don’t worry, the safety is on. Once you have everything, come back up here. When you were in porcupine form and scurrying around my plane did you see a small box right before you came into the cockpit?”
“Yeah, it looked like a little refrigerator.”
“Yes, that’s it. Bring all the crap back to me, then get to that box. You’ll find more bottles of water, a bottle of antibiotics, and a few power bars. Grab those and in the cabinet above it, there are packs of MRE’s. Grab as many of those as you can. Oh, and Ireland, next to my seat there’s a compartment that holds a satellite phone and some backup batteries. Grab those too.”
“How are we going to carry all of that? With your eyes not working I’ll have to help you.”
“I know we don’t know one another that great yet, but please trust me,” Flyer pleaded.
Without another word, Flyer heard Ireland move and make his way to the back of the plane. He sighed in relief, then the realization came, that even in his fucked-up condition, Ireland trusted him. It was a very humbling feeling and right then, Flyer swore he would do whatever he had to do to get them out of this and keep Ireland safe. Something inside him screamed it was imperative to his future that Ireland be safe.
* * * *
It had taken Ireland a little more time than they both expected to locate everything Flyer asked him to, but he did find it all. Once he got the pile of supplies back to Flyer, he instructed Ireland on what to pack in which bags and Ireland was shocked to see it all fit. Then the fun part began, getting Flyer up and out of the mangled plane without his sight or the use of one arm. By the time they crawled from the wreckage and were moving away from the crash site with Ireland helping Flyer, it must have been at least a half hour or more since Wade and Rory first told them to move.
He had no idea how long it would take the bad guys to get to them seeing as Wade said they were four miles away and in vehicles, but Ireland kept expecting them to appear at any moment, engines roaring.
“You need to relax a little, Ireland. I can feel how tense and nervous you are. I know you’re scared, so am I, but if you panic or let your imagination get the better of you, then we’re both screwed. I wish I could fucking see so I could lead us out of here and hopefully calm you down, but unfortunately that’s not the hand we were dealt. I need you to focus on where we’re going,” Flyer said in a very controlling, soothing voice and Ireland found himself relaxing slightly.
“Okay. It’s not easy, but okay. You want to know the most fucked up part of all of this?”
“What’s that?” Flyer asked as Ireland, with his arm wrapped around Flyer’s back, weaved them around a group of trees.
“Right now, part of me wishes I was still in my porcupine form. Then I could scurry off into a small hidey-hole and those men wouldn’t even know I was there. How sick is that?”
Flyer chuckled. “Not at all. It’s totally understandable and I don’t blame you. Look, Ireland, this is my shit and you don’t need to be a part of this. I don’t want these guys getting their hands on you and hurting you. Just find me a
stick I can use as a guide and give me your sack, then I want you to shift and do what you said, okay? Go find somewhere to hide until it’s safe, then get the hell out of here. Even if they do see you, they won’t think twice about going near you.”
Ireland stopped short and Flyer cursed. “Shit, fuck that hurt. What was that for?”
Ireland couldn’t believe what he had just heard. His mate wanted him to just leave him behind, all broken and battered, with no eyes to guide him, while he had evil men chasing him down. Was Flyer insane? Even if he was in perfect health, Ireland would never leave him behind like that to deal with this on his own, mate or not. And he decided to tell Flyer just that.
“Are you insane? Like I would abandon you now, right when you need someone. If you were in perfect health I still wouldn’t leave you. We’re in this together and we’ll figure out how to get out of it together,” Ireland said with conviction. “Now, just hold on tight and let’s keep moving. Are you sure we’re going North?”
Flyer chuckled and shook his head.
“What?”
“Just like that cute little stubborn porcupine who followed me around. You don’t listen when I tell you to skedaddle.”
“Yeah, well, after all these months, you should be used to it,” Ireland replied with a laugh of his own.
“Okay, my little shadow, what is the compass telling you?”
Ireland looked down at the compass in his hand and it still said they were heading north. “Still going north.
“Good. We were flying into the night and I have no idea how long it was after the crash before I came to. Is it still dark out?”
“Kind of. I can still see a few stars and the moon, but it looks like the sky is lightening up over to the right.”
“Perfect. Where you see the sky getting lighter is the East, so if we keep that to our right, we’re moving in the right direction,” Flyer said.
“I do know the sun rises in the East, you know,” Ireland said, feeling like an idiot. “But…I’m so freaked out, I can’t seem to remember little things like that,” Ireland confessed.
Flyer squeezed him a little with the hand he had wrapped around Ireland’s waist for support. “I know, Sweetie. That’s how most people get lost in the wilderness. When you’re in an emergency situation, or something like this, suddenly even the simplest things go right out of your brain. It’s the panic mode that starts to set in. No matter what’s happening, just do your best to remain calm. If you can control yourself from panicking, then you will keep your wits about you and can think rationally. Most people lost out here freak out, and before they know it, they’re miles off course and totally lost. Then the rescuers coming for them can’t find them because they’re not where they should be.”
A thrill went through him from the endearment his mate had used, even though it didn’t seem to affect Flyer the same way, as he just went past it and kept on talking. But it was okay. Ireland was still overjoyed.
After walking for another hour through the woods without any problems, Ireland saw what could be their first. “There’s a large rock formation ahead that unfortunately, looks like the only choice we have is to go over it or change course,” Ireland said as they approached the area.
“Okay, then let’s go over it. I trust you to guide me safely,” Flyer said with a smile.
Ireland felt his heart fill with joy as Flyer’s words penetrated. His mate trusted him. Ireland took Flyer’s pack from his back, then placed his mate’s good hand on the rocks. “Stay here. I’ll take the packs over first and get a good look at what to expect, then I’ll come back for you.”
After getting the packs to the top, Ireland could see that it wasn’t as bad getting down the other side and he should have no problem helping Flyer down. He also saw the trees became denser in this area and hoped it would help to hide them. There was no way those bad guys would be able to drive anything through there unless it was a dirt bike.
Once Ireland got them and their gear safely to the other side, put Flyer’s pack back on his back, and slid his arm around the man’s shoulders again, he was sweating and getting tired, but he knew he had to keep moving.
“We feel like we’ve gone uphill some. Is that so?” Flyer asked.
“Yeah, and there’s a ridge over there to the left just a little way.”
“That’s great. Get us to that ridge. Once we make it to the top I want to try and call Radar again on the satellite phone.”
When they made it safely to the top of the ridge, Ireland sat Flyer down on a rock and pulled out the phone, then handed it to him as he too sat. He pulled out two bottles of water, opened one, and handed that off to Flyer as well.
As Flyer fiddled with the satellite phone and tried to contact someone, Ireland watched to make sure he drank. The last thing they needed out here was for one of them to become dehydrated. They had been traveling for about five hours and the sun was now high in the sky. And even though it was still winter, they were both sweating from all the exertion.
Ireland gulped down half his bottle of water, then closed it and put it back in his pack. He had no idea how long they would be out here and knew he needed to conserve their supplies. Looking around, he noticed there was a lake off in the distance, maybe a few miles, and wondered if maybe that would be a good place to go.
Turning to point it out to Flyer, Ireland saw red appear through the bandage he had placed over his mate’s head and eyes earlier. Shit, he hoped Flyer wasn’t losing too much blood.
“Your head’s bleeding again,” he said as he rifled through his pack and pulled out the first aid kit. Just as he was getting the gauze and wrap ready, a voice came over the satellite phone.
“Flyer? Ireland? Are you there? I hear you, buddy. Can you hear me?”
“It’s Bull,” Flyer announced. “Hey, Bull, I can hear you,” Flyer responded into the phone.
“Oh man, it’s good to hear your voice. I don’t know how much time we have before we lose you again, but Flyer, those guys are on foot now and following you. They’re only about a half mile back, man, so you need to move,” Bull replied.
“Shit! With my injuries I’m slowing us down, man,” Flyer responded in frustration.
“Hold on, here’s Radar,” Bull said.
“Flyer, Ireland, you need to get the hell out of there. They’re coming up your backs. I’ve checked the satellite and if you head west about another three miles, you’ll come to a lake. There looks like there’s some kind of cave system there. In the summer months groups go there for spelunking. You may be able to hide out there until we get to you.”
“I can see the lake from here,” Ireland said and pointed.
“Is it to the west?” Flyer asked.
Ireland checked the compass, then answered, “Yes, it is.”
“Radar, Ireland has spotted the lake. We’ll head that way. What’s the team’s ETA?”
“The last I heard from them they were about to land. That was four hours ago, but then I lost all communication with them. I know once they land they were going to come for you fast, so I’m hoping they’ll be there within the next few hours. They’re probably on foot by now if they’re sticking to the plan.”
“Copy that, Radar. We’ll try to contact you again when we reach the lake. Flyer out.” Flyer shut off the phone and handed it back to Ireland and he slid it back into his pack.
“Okay, Ireland, you heard the man, get us to that lake.”
CHAPTER 8
Flyer was hurting like hell. His head was throbbing as hard as his fucking arm. However, it was more important to get Ireland and himself out of sight than to pamper himself. “I hear dogs. Damn, they’ll catch our scent and give away our location unless we can find a place in the water to hide.”
“There’s a small cave just under a tree on the bank. It looks like water is in there, but I think we can get inside. It doesn’t look high enough to cover our heads,” Ireland said in a rush.
Hearing the man’s fear had Flyer realizing
that Ireland had never faced situations like this before. He was used to dodging bullets, but Ireland had no clue what he was up against and Flyer’s injuries were stopping the man from getting to safety. “Ireland, I want you to shift and get to the pick-up location. I’ll stay in the cave and when Wade and the guys get here you can let them know where I am.”
Ireland gasped, “Have you lost your fucking mind? I can’t do that. Even if you weren’t my mate—which you are—There is no way I’m shifting into my porcupine. I was stuck in that form for three years. What if I shift and get stuck again?”
Flyer’s eyes widened. “Mate? Ireland, what the hell are you talking about?”
Hearing the dogs getting closer, Ireland quickly said, “We can talk about that later. For now, we need to get out of sight—and fast.”
Flyer wanted to demand Ireland explain his comment, but he also knew the man was right. The dogs were closer and with that, so was the threat to their lives. He didn’t have any wish to die, but he also had no wish for an innocent man’s life to be snuffed out either. Flyer had signed up for danger—and possible death—many years ago, but Ireland had done nothing of the sort and needed to be kept safe from harm.
“Ireland, these people are going to kill us if they find us. I don’t want you hurt or killed. Get your ass to safety and I can take care of myself.”
Ireland snorted, “Yeah? How do you think you’re going to do that? You can’t see a damn thing, Flyer. How would you see a threat? No, we do this together, like mates are supposed to do. Now come on. The dogs are getting closer.”
Flyer stumbled but caught himself as Ireland pulled on his arm. “I don’t know about us being mates and when we have a chance, we’re going to have a long talk about it, but what I do know is that you are a stubborn shit.”
“So my mother always said. Now watch out. Step up and over the roots,” Ireland said.
The water was like an ice bath, but Flyer didn’t complain as he was led deeper. He could feel the coolness increase the further they walked and the shadows he could see turned to darkness. Ireland whispered, “Wow, this cave is bigger than I thought. It opens up into a cavern.”