by S. L. Hess
Being so tired made it really hard for her contain her utter desolation, but she was able to contain most of it with only a few tears slipping out. She kept her head tucked into his chest so he wouldn’t see them. Swallowing past the painful constriction in her throat she whispered chokingly. “So, you’re leaving.”
“We were actually headed out of town when I found out what happened to you. I told Brett to go on ahead and that after I found you I would follow.”
Would he have left without saying goodbye? The thought brought another arrow of pain. “So as soon as you hand me off, you’ll be gone?” Laney wasn’t able to hold back the small hiccuppy sob that escaped at the end of her sentence, but she able to contain the rest from exploding from her.
Devan’s arms constricted around her. “Yes.” He answered in a strained voice.
“Do you know where you’re going?” Maybe they could keep in touch.
“No, not yet. I couldn’t tell you if I did anyway. People have seen us together, and because of that they will watch you. They’ll most likely tap you phone, your computer, possible even your house. You have to forget you ever knew me. If they hear you mention me they may think you know where I am.” Devan gave her a little shake making her look up at him. His expression was agonizingly fierce. “I mean it, Laney. Forget.”
Laney looked up at him wretchedly as she comprehended that there would be no future contact…no future at all. “You’re asking the impossible.” She whispered softly lifting her hand to cup his cheek.
He tilted into her touch again like he had in the shack and his eyes pleaded with hers. “Please Laney; I need to know that you’re going to be safe.”
Instead of agreeing with him Laney traced around his eyebrow letting herself sink into his golden gaze. “Your eyes really are amazing. Remember when you said you could smell me all day, well I could gaze into your eyes all day.” She stared at him trying to imprint everything about him into her brain. Everything about his features was just so striking; his amazing eyes, his straight regal nose, his chiseled cheek bones, and his multicolored hair. Unable to stop herself Laney ran her fingers through it. For only being an inch in length it was so soft and thick.
Laney’s gaze moved back to Devan’s and the yearning in them made her heart clench with the same longing, but also in pain knowing that what they both yearned for wasn’t possible.
“Close your eyes. Try to get some sleep.” Devan growled low and thickly. He shifted her slightly and she suddenly became aware that he’d stopped and that they were standing motionless in the middle of the woods.
Laney was having a hard time keeping her eyes open but she was afraid he would disappear if she closed them. “Will you be there when I open them?” She asked softly.
The muscles in Devan’s jaw jerked he clenched it so tightly. “Yes,” he answered firmly resuming his tramp through the forest.
Closing her eyes Laney latched one hand around his neck and the other onto his vest; even though he’d assured he’d be there when she woke she was still afraid. Tears she was unable to halt leaked from her eyes until, ultimately, the stress and long night caught up with her and fell into an exhausted sleep.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Devan strode through the forest as smoothly as he could, trying his best not to jostle Laney. He shifted her body and settled her more into the crook of his arm not for comfort but because he wanted her closer to him. He’d been truthful when he’d said her weight was barely notable, the elk from five days ago had been heavier and he had no problem carting that thing back to the house.
After his reassurance that he wouldn’t disappear on her Laney had fallen asleep almost immediately, testifying to her exhaustion. He was finding it difficult to pull his gaze away from her slumbering features. Her face was pressed into his vest completely relaxed, but her hands gripped tightly to his neck and vest like she was afraid of being dragged away. It left a deep chasm in his heart thinking he wouldn’t be able to look upon her features again after today.
That thought had him stopping and doing some fancy maneuvering so he could pull his phone from his pocket to take a quick snap shot of her. She didn’t stir once through the entire shifting process.
They’d had only a short time together. Once he left she would in all likelihood forget about him…just as he’d told her to. She had so many other friends to occupy her thoughts; whereas she was the only person he had made any connection with. Maybe after a time she would fade from his memory, but he doubted it; it felt like she’d embedded herself in his essence.
This whole ‘feeling’ concept was messing with his head. How had he ever let it get this out of hand? Since first meeting her it seemed like everything in his life had spiraled out of control. Devan lived his life logically, making rational decisions, but she had ripped the veil from his eyes and exposed the fact that not everything could be relied upon to work that way.
That might be why he had scorned the lives of his so called peers; their lives were so capricious. Emotions became the prominent motivation that ruled their lives. In a way they reminded Devan of the animal in him he tried so hard to bury, the primitive and impulsive side. Devan had prided himself on suppressing that part of his nature, but ever since Laney had appeared in his life that part of him, his instincts, had become the most dominant part; prevailing over logic and rationality.
Laney had referred to him as a superhero, a topic Devan wasn’t all that familiar with since he didn’t watch television, but he had heard references to the fictitious character superman and his weakness when near an imaginary substance called kryptonite. He couldn’t help correlating that association with his relationship with Laney, her being his kryptonite.
Laney whimpered in her sleep, and Devan looked down at her anxiously wondering what images were drifting through her dreams…or nightmares. She had been joking around earlier, but he knew this incident had been distressing for her. Before bursting through that cabin door he’d heard the distress and panic in her voice.
Having someone point a gun at you could leave you with a few nightmares―Devan had personal experience on that one. His thoughts flashed back to the escape six years ago, in a forest just like this one, when a different gun had been pointed at him. He’d had training to fall back on, but it had still been a terrifying moment.
Devan squeezed her and found himself making ’shushing’ sounds in an effort to comfort her. She quieted and her features relaxed as if he’d set her free from the terrible entity in her dream, and then she smiled. What images had supplanted the previous ones?
Lifting his gaze from Laney’s sleeping form Devan contemplated the trail. He was taking the same path back through the forest; the probability of finding a search party would be greater since he hadn’t crossed any sign of one earlier, that’s if they were following a grid. A grid would certainly move them into new search areas. Five miles into the hike Devan was still unable to locate one.
On one hand Devan wasn’t in a hurry to get her back, since these would be his last moments with her, but conversely she had been through such an ordeal he felt it was imperative that she get back quickly. Devan was considering the idea of just taking her to the road to be found when he was halted from his thoughts by a familiar scent heavy in the wind.
Wolf!
Devan’s muscles instinctively tensed in response to the impending threat. He had no idea of the wolves’ location but his first thought was to get Laney to safety. Looking around frantically he spotted a tree with an ideally placed branch not twenty feet away. Darting forward Devan leaped high into the air.
The run jostled Laney awake and her eyes flew open wide in shock as they flew up into the air. Her arms automatically reached up and around his neck at the weightlessness of flying through the air. As she did this Devan was able to free his arm from under her neck.
“Hold tight.” He told her reaching out and grasping the tree branch so they wouldn’t be propelled forward on account of the extra weight in his arms.
Laney stared up at him her green eyes glazed with shock and sleep holding on to his neck with a death grip. “What in the name of heaven,” she cried.
She didn’t have long to wait on the ’what’ part.
The wolves must have been stalking him from up wind, because they suddenly burst out of the woods charging straight for them.
“Get higher,” Devan commanded, lifting her up to the next branch.
Drowsiness gone, Laney pulled herself up just as two of the wolves leaped for the branch he was standing on. Devan leaped for the branch across from hers and one of the wolves just barely missing his calf. Laney screamed as she watched it fly by his leg and over the branch…definitely not your average Gray’s.
The wolves regrouped themselves around the base of the tree, snarling viciously up at them.
Devan swung over to Laney’s side and he was glad to see a little bit of the terror vanish from her face as he moved closer. The wolves stopped their snarling momentarily observing his movements, but resumed once he landed lightly next to Laney.
“I’m sorry; I was really hoping I would get you back before they could track me down again.” Devan looked down at her anxiously.
“Don’t even say you’re sorry because some genetically engineered wolves are hunting you down trying to kill you.” She gave him an indignant look, most of her remaining terror instantly transformed to outrage. Loosening one of her hands from around the branch she was clutching she pointed a finger at him “Did you bring that equipment on your back for looks or are you going to use it?”
Devan straightened as much as he was allowed within the many confining branches of the tree. “I was thinking about it.” He retorted a bit indignantly at the same time reaching over his shoulder for the crossbow. “I thought I might make sure you were alright first.”
“I’m fine, thank you very much.” Laney replied formally while grinning at him madly, which had him wondering at her state of mind―she’d been through a lot and now she was dealing with this.
She reached out to grip his arm firmly and leaned in close to his face. Devan was crouched down so it brought them almost face to face. It was amazing how the wolves snarling faded into the background as her eyes looked into his.
“I want you to stop taking the blame for what is happening around you. Jarrod is not your fault, what this…Company does is not your fault; these wolves are not your fault. I can see it in your eyes every time something goes wrong around you; you blame yourself. I want you stop that. None of this is your responsibility.” She gave his arm a squeeze before letting go and drawing away; the sound of the snarling resumed in full force.
Devan couldn’t take the time to reply to her comment, and he wasn’t sure what he would have said anyway. Crouching lower on the tree branch he loaded a bolt into the crossbow. Most people would have to use a foot to cock the weapon because it requires significant physical strength to pull back the string, but for him this wasn’t an issue. Using his index and middle fingers he pulled the string back until it fitted itself in the catch.
“You have Jarrod’s gun on you, right?” Laney asked, leaning in close to his ear. Her breath sent both a chill and heat through his body.
Devan nodded.
“Let me see it.”
He turned this time. She had leaned back and was holding out her hand wiggling her fingers.
“You know how to use this type of gun?” Devan asked.
She rolled her eyes at him. “Pa’lease, I’ve been raised on guns.” She shook her hand at him impatiently.
Devan pulled the revolver from his belt and held it out to her. Taking it from his hand she flipped open the cylinder, checked the chamber, and with a flip of her wrist she closed the cylinder and switched the safety button off.
“What?” She asked with a smirk.
Devan realized he had been gawking in astonished admiration. “Uhh, nothing; just make sure you put your back to the tree or else the recoil could propel you right off this branch, and only use it if you’re in immediate danger.”
The wolves had backed away from the tree and seemed to be considering their next move. Five pairs of eyes were watching them with interest; their snarls had diminished to low growls as they paced around the base of the tree. Devan was just taking aim at one of them with the bow when they suddenly scattered in different directions.
“What are they doing?” Laney asked. She shifted on the tree branch trying to locate them.
That was a good question. They hadn’t gone all that far, maybe a hundred yards. They were spread out in a circle around them taking cover in the brush.
“If I had to take a guess, I would say they noticed our weapons and have decided to back away for their own safety.”
“Get out of here,” she scoffed, “animals don’t recognize weapons.” The notion of animals thinking in such complex patterns was outside her scope of imagination.
‘Get out of here?’ “These might,” Devan mused with a frown. Why did she want him to get of here?
Laney’s frown turned up slightly and she rolled her eyes. “It’s just a saying, Devan. Jeesh! You need to bone up on your slang. So you think they’ve been trained to know what weapons are?” She asked, returning to the original topic.
There she went knowing what he was thinking again. Devan couldn’t decide if he like it or if it was annoying…his instincts said ‘like’. “I think they’ve been trained in a lot of things.” He commented darkly in response to her question.
She looked around the forest perimeter, a frown on her face. “Like what kind of things?” She asked hesitantly, sounding if she was unsure if she really wanted to know.
Before Devan was able to answer her one of the wolves yipped twice and he heard the pitter-patter of twenty paws sprinting in their direction from all sides. It was going to be a multiple attack then was it.
“Get up higher,” Devan directed her again.
Without hesitating she swung herself up to the next branch, demonstrating her climbing proficiency. In seconds she had settled herself against the tree frame two branches higher, the revolver in her hand, eye out for a target. Her fortitude was something to admire.
“Remember; only use that if they get in the tree.” Devan wanted her to save those bullets in case they got anywhere near her. He was somewhat confident that she was in a sheltered position, but there was no telling what other abilities the wolves had.
Devan did a quick estimate to see which of the wolves would likely come in first, and it looked to be the one coming in from the east. Laney’s breath caught above him as the wolves came into her line of sight.
Placing an extra bolt in his mouth Devan took aim at the east incoming wolf, shadowing its movements with the optical sight. He held off on the shot, not because he was afraid he would miss―the wolf was so big that would be almost impossible―but he wanted the shot to be fatal, and a distant moving target made for less accuracy.
There was no denying that the wolves had some kind of specialized training so he knew he couldn’t depend on them to act in the way normal wolves would, and because of that it was highly possible that they had some strategic plan in motion.
As his target drew closer Devan zeroed in on its fore chest and noticed that its strides were becoming more elongated, indicting an imminent jump. At the same time he picked up a change in two of the other wolves tread, their strides sounding more elongated also.
Realizing there was no more time Devan pulled the trigger on the crossbow just as the wolf took another bounding leap forward, exposing its chest perfectly. He heard the other two wolves leave the ground at the same time his arrow flew and not waiting to see if it hit its mark he dropped from his branch and twisted in the air to see the two wolves soaring in the air toward the branch he’d been crouched on. Prior to his drop Devan had unsheathed a knife from his vest, he let it fly straight at the animal nearest to Laney just as she fired the revolver. Before he was able to see if either of their aims were true the ground
was rushing toward him and he had to twist again to avoid falling on his back.
Landing in a crouch at the base of the tree Devan heard a yip telling him that one or both of their aims had hit. A glance upward showed that the injured wolf had lost its forward momentum causing it to fall short of its intended branch. It clawed frantically at the limb before falling to the earth about five feet from him.
The other wolf landed on the branch effortlessly, but proceeded forward with another leap to the ground; either to pursue Devan or to get away from Laney’s gun. Whichever the reason he was relieved it was out of the tree and away from her.
While three wolves had gone for the high ground, the other two had going for a ground attack. Fear for Laney’s safety had distracted Devan and one of the wolves on the ground came up behind him rapidly. Devan executed a full-round back flip at the same time grabbing the arrow from his mouth. The wolf made an attempt to latch on to Devan; its head and snapping teeth reached out for him as its body did a partial twist and flip of its own fighting to turn around, but it missed him by a foot.
Devan didn’t miss though, he stabbed the bolt into the wolf’s neck as it passed under him and gave a yank for maximum damage and was rewarded with a long pained yelp. When his feet touched the ground he jumped instantly for the nearest tree away from the last wolf. Grabbing another bolt Devan had it loaded in seconds as the final wolf came running in, but it swerved at the last minute heading back into the denseness of the forest. Not wanting to lose another mark Devan looked for wolf three but it was also gone.
Two of the wolves had made it back to the protection of the woods. The first wolf Devan had shot with the arrow had instantly died while the one Laney and he had wounded was struggling to its feet at the base of the tree. The animal snarled menacingly, blood dripping from the bullet hole in its shoulder and the knife in its stomach. It was no longer a threat, but it would take a while to die.