Walker's Run

by Mel Favreaux

  It was their annual, week long, holiday camping trip. Her father warned her not to go into the woods on her own. He’d left explicit instructions not to leave camp while he and Dean went to collect firewood and check their traps.

  Thirty minutes poking at the fire after they’d left, she’d grown bored and started to wander off when she noticed a wolf peering at her from behind a tree. He’d raised his head. Although not huge, he wasn’t quite a pup. There was a playful look in his grey eyes. His ears perked up and his mouth opened, his tongue lolling out the side.

  She giggled and stuck out her tongue. He cocked his head to the side with an amused expression she’d seen on her German Shepard at home. They played peek a boo around the tree for a while, and then she followed him. Somewhere along the way, she’d gotten lost.

  Trying to predict how her father was going to act when he found her, apprehension coiled in her belly. He’d never been heavy handed, in fact she couldn’t account for a single spanking in her young life. The horror stories her friends had told her of their spankings were enough to scare her straight.

  Tears snaked down her cheeks, and she wiped her nose on her sleeve.

  “Snotcicles,” she said and laughed at her father’s silly name for frozen boogers.

  The joke only succeeded in making her feel more alone and helpless. The sun had begun to set, and her fear piqued. She huddled into her parka and prayed her father and brother would find her soon. Her only weapon was the small pocketknife her father’d given her just a few days before. That wasn’t much help for anything.

  Twigs snapped. She jerked toward the sound. It was the wolf she’d been playing with accompanied by an enormous male. Casey’s mouth went dry. She began to shake.

  Her father warned her never to show fear to a wild animal, but she couldn’t stop.

  The adolescent she’d played with crossed to her and nuzzled her arm; then laid his head in her lap. The larger one examined her a few moments before he approached. A shiver of fear trailed up her spine, despite the comfort of the youth. The adult wolf towered over her. She’d never seen a mature one up close and couldn’t help but wonder if they all were this large. Unable to move, her eyes locked on the wolf in front of her.

  The adult male rubbed his cold nose to her cheek, followed by a gentle, warm lick. He made a soft sound in his throat and nuzzled the adolescent, scooting in next to him. She smiled and wrapped her arms around them, burying her hands in their soft, warm fur. It only took a few minutes for her to warm up while the wolves cuddled against her. The events of the past three hours had drained her. She curled up and drifted off to sleep feeling safe and secure.

  The sound of a rifle cocking woke her. She looked up to see her father and brother, Dean. The large wolf growled and rose to his feet, placing himself between her and her father.

  “Casey, hon. I want you to back away,” her father warned.

  “Daddy they were keepin’ me warm,” she protested.

  “They’re wild animals honey and can’t be trusted. They’ll turn on you in an instant.” Her father raised the gun and trained it on the adult male.

  The adolescent pressed against her leg. The large wolf gave a soft woof when he saw him there. The younger wolf pressed even closer against her. The elder snapped at him. With a yelp, the youngster backed away, looking anxious.

  “See, honey, they even snap at their own.” Her father narrowed his eyes looking at the wolf.

  Casey could hear the anger and fear in her father’s voice. She was torn with indecision. Though she’d never been one to openly defy him, she had to protect the wolves.

  “Please, Daddy, don’t shoot him,” she begged and placed her arms around the neck of the large wolf.

  “Honey, please.” Her father raised his head, worry obvious on his face.

  The wolf barred his teeth, a ferocious growl ripped from his chest in warning.

  Dean grabbed her from behind, dragging her away. Then placed himself between her and the wolf, raising his own rifle. Normally her brother’s need to play the role of the protector caused an eye roll of irritation. Now Casey wished she was the larger sibling and could get around him.

  Her father lifted the shot gun and motioned for Dean to pull her further away. The wolf turned, his eyes locked on Casey’s. Her father fired into the air.

  With a snarl, the enormous wolf turned and lunged for her father. She tried to dodge around her brother, but it was too late.

  The numbingly loud burst of gunfire rent the air again. The blast caught the wolf’s throat. Casey’s stomach lurched as she watched the animal’s head drop next to his body. Her gaze took in the blood that spread into the snow.

  “Daddy. No!” Casey sobbed, falling to her knees next to the lifeless form of her former protector.

  “The rest of his pack might be near. We have to get back to camp.” Her father gently took her by the arm.

  “He wasn’t going to hurt me. He was trying to protect me,” she cried looking up at her father. “You killed him for keeping me safe. He was scared of you, but he wasn’t scared of me.”

  “We’ll talk about this later, but we have to go. Now.” His voice was firm, his grip on her upper arm even more so as he pulled her to her feet and away from the dead wolf.

  * * * *

  “Daddy. No!” Casey sobbed and tried to roll onto her left side. Pain seared through her, jarring her awake. She gasped, winded from the pain and the horrible memory.

  Opening her eyes, she saw the concern in Braedyn’s pale eyes.

  “Bad dream?” he asked.

  “Yes.” She brushed a few stubborn strands of hair from her face and rubbed her eyes. “A memory actually.”

  He uncapped a water bottle and leaned in to help her. The scent of leather and snow surrounded her. His arm cradled her head while she drank.

  She noticed it was still dark outside and nervously wondered if she’d slept another day away. How long would it be before her father came to look for her this time?

  “You were only asleep about two hours,” Braedyn said as if he’d read her mind.

  She tried to nod but winced. Pain shot through her neck, then down her chest and back. Tears burned her eyes. With a few deep breaths, she ground her teeth against the torment.

  “Care to talk about the dream?”

  Casey sighed, understanding that Braedyn was trying to distract her from the torture that was sapping her strength. “About twenty years ago, my father killed a wolf out here. I had gotten lost in the woods, playing with an adolescent. Then the young wolf came back and found me and brought a much larger one with him. They curled up with me, kept me warm and safe. My father found me and was terrified. He'd had a wolf when he was younger. It had turned on him after it’d been part of his family for five years. He loved them but never trusted them again.” She wiped at her tears. “It happened so fast, the adolescent ran off when my brother pulled me away. The elder lunged at my father. Dad had to shoot him. He never discussed it, and I never ran off from camp again.”

  There was tenderness in Braedyn’s expression while he watched her tell the story. Casey tried to push away the slight thrill she received from having him look at her the way he was. It was impossible to consider he could care more for her than just to help her through this ordeal. It was only sympathy, she tried to convince herself, nothing more.

  Braedyn’s expression tightened a fraction, and he cleared his throat. “Wolves are unpredictable. Your father was only protecting you.”

  “But so was the wolf. He placed himself between me and my father trying to protect me.” She ground her teeth while the vivid images replayed in her mind. “That was so long ago, I actually think I saw the adolescent I played with as a kid the evening I was attacked. It could have been my imagination, but I know those wolves, Braedyn. I've followed them and taken pictures of them. I don’t think it’s possible after twenty years he could still be roaming the forest, but he could be a descendant.”

  Braedyn looked down at
his hands. “It’s possible.”

  Her gaze fell to his hands, searching for a ring and wondering if he had someone missing him at home. “Are you married?”

  His forehead smoothed and he smiled, shaking his head. The expression lit up his already handsome face. Casey wondered what it would be like to be the one to make him smile like that all the time. “No, I have a mother, a younger brother, and an older sister who passed away...very recently.”

  That surely wasn’t the answer she was expecting. A man who looked like him had to have women crawling all over the place. To hear he’d recently lost a family member evoked an odd feeling she wasn’t ready to think about.

  With a deep breath she cleared her thoughts. “I’m sorry to hear that. Were you close?”

  His jaw tightened, and he looked in her eyes. She couldn’t imagine an awful relationship with a sibling. Her brother was like an anchor for her; he kept her grounded.

  “My sister and I didn’t see eye to eye on a lot of things. She believed in vengeance and wanted to see the one responsible for our father’s death brought to justice, her way.” He licked his lips and shook his head, all traces of the momentary joy she’d glimpsed earlier gone. “It didn’t turn out well.”

  “I’d say not. Though I have to admit, I’d probably be the same with my father. I’m sorry for your loss.”

  He nodded and looked away from her again. “Sometimes you just have to realize there are misunderstandings and let things go. She couldn’t. In her heart, someone had to pay for it. In the end, she did.”

  Casey could feel the sadness radiating from him. It must have been a very recent loss. “How does the rest of your family feel?”

  Braedyn shrugged and rubbed his large hands together. “We’ve not had any major discussions really, but my uncle left the family over it. We’ve all made foolish choices in the past.”

  “Yes. If I hadn’t disobeyed my father and run off to play with the adolescent, the other wolf would have survived.”

  He nodded and pulled his gaze away from hers back to his hands. “The young one was just as much at fault. You can’t take the sole blame for it.”

  “No,” Casey whispered, knowing the truth. “In my heart I’ll always believe it was my fault. I should have listened to my father.”

  Braedyn let out a deep breath, absently fingering the braid hanging from his temple. “Like I should have to mine the day he died.”

  She furrowed her brow and looked at him, hearing more in his statement than his words. The inflection in his voice sounded tortured. “But you weren’t responsible, were you?”

  “Yes.” He sniffed, cleared his throat, and rose. “I’m going to throw a few more logs on the fire.” Unzipping the tent flap, he walked to the pit, keeping his back to her.

  His abrupt end to the conversation only left her with more questions, but it was clear he didn’t want to discuss it further.

  A howl sounded in the distance. He closed his eyes and tilted his face into the wind.

  She smiled, watching him enjoy a moment of peace. Exhaustion crept around the edges of her mind again. Her thoughts whirled. So many questions about the sexy stranger taking care of her. After a few moments, her eyes closed. She drifted off to sleep, hoping for sweet dreams.

  Chapter Five

  Four days had passed since the attack. Still no sign of a search and rescue team. Braedyn looked down at the snow covered forest valley below and frowned. He’d taken a mile hike from camp, to see if he should chance taking Casey out in the weather.

  Her fever had broken. She claimed the pain was better, but he knew different as he’d watched her writhe and moan in her sleep. The surface discomfort was better, but she was still in a great deal of agony.

  Too much to chance such a great hike in this weather. It could kill a healthy person, much less a severely injured one trying to fight off an infection.

  He lifted his nose into the air again, and then looked down at the valley once more. Making his way back to camp, he checked the snares for more rabbits.

  The sun would set before he returned. Regretting that he’d stayed away from her too long, he worried she’d awakened in his absence.

  * * * *

  Casey woke, and the dream still played around the edges of her mind. Over the last four days they had become more peculiar. The images weren’t as rapid fire as they’d been in the beginning, though she was still unable to comprehend why she was having them.

  The one that struck her most was when she seemed to be watching a pack of wolves being slaughtered by men clothed solely in fur. Casey’s heart ached while she stood by helpless and watched the murderous melee in her dream. The powerful urge to help flooded her muscles, but she was frozen in place.

  Unbearable loneliness spread through her again just at the memory of her haunted slumber. A cry of fury and anguish rose from her dream-self. As the sound echoed back, she heard just how desolate it was.

  Shaking her head, the memory slowly ebbed.

  Nothing felt right since she’d awakened after the attack. Her head pounded; her sense of smell and hearing had seemed to gain intensity and were nearly more than she could tolerate.

  The pain in her shoulder was much better, and she was stronger each day, but felt like she was on fire inside. Casey found herself hungry all the time. Waking from a nap after a few minutes, she would find she was starving again.

  Groaning, she sat up and pushed the blankets away. Somehow she’d managed to convince Braedyn she was well enough to get dressed. Now the call of nature was upon her, and he was nowhere to be seen. Dragging her boots closer, she slipped them on. Aggravated and annoyed at her predicament, she found the pain in her shoulder made it impossible to tie.

  Grunting with effort, Casey ground her teeth against the torment and shrugged into her spare parka. Her bladder almost at full capacity, the last thing she wanted was another accident. Her entire situation was embarrassing enough. She’d found modesty had taken a flying leap in the last few days. Never before would she have considered exposing herself the way she’d had to in front of a stranger.

  Standing was troublesome, but she managed and slipped out of the tent into the frigid air. The cold nearly took her beath away while she staggered a few feet away and leaned against a tree to relieve herself. It was much more difficult than she’d imagined it to be.

  Breadyn had at least been kind enough to bring her an old coffee can and dutifully emptied it when she was finished. Pride had overruled her good sense, and now she was regretting her choice. Struggling to button her pants, she noticed a wolf step into the light of the campfire.

  Her breath locked in her chest. It was the same wolf who had tried to protect her the night of her attack. Casey’s jaw dropped, watching him stretch. A faint cracking and a hissing whisper rent the air. The transition was so quick she was barely able to register what had happened. A few moments before there had been a beautiful wolf. Now, knelt on the ground, naked and just as equally gorgeous back lit by the fire; was Braedyn.

  With a gasp, Casey stumbled, crying out when her shoulder banged into the tree behind her. What felt like fire seared through her chest and back while she struggled to her feet. Before she could completely draw in a frigid, pain-filled breath, he was standing in front of her; fully clothed.

  “What are you doing out here?” he snarled, the corner of his mouth lifted into a sneer.

  “I-I had to pee. I didn’t w-want to have to use the can again.” Tears ran down her cheeks.

  His pale gaze narrowed on hers. “What did you see?”

  Her heart felt like it pounded in her throat. She tried to gulp down the fear. Just who was he? What...was he?

  “I don’t know.” The anger she saw in his eyes terrified her. “P-please...don’t hurt me,” she whimpered. Trying to back away from him, her mind was unable to draw the correct parallels with what she’d seen.

  A muscle twitched in his jaw, and his brows drew together in an anguished expression. The anger was complete
ly gone. This was the man she’d come to know over the last few days. “I couldn’t hurt you even if I wanted to, Casey.”

  She tucked a wide strand of her hair behind her ear and took a steadying breath. Finally things started to click into place. Her feelings about the handsome stranger and bits she’d noticed but had been unable to connect in the few short days she’d known him.

  “It was you, wasn’t it? That night. Protecting me from the shewolf?”

  There was a moment of hesitation before Braedyn nodded. “I’m sorry I wasn’t able to stop her.” He took a tentative step towards her.

  She didn’t cringe when he slipped an arm around her waist and lead her back to the tent. The familiarity of his gentle touch was welcome while this new revelation came out.

  “Was that you? So many years ago?”

  “Yes.” He maneuvered her inside the tent. “Your father killed mine. My sister blamed you and said my father was weak for protecting a human.”

  She shook her head unable to make her mind work. He couldn’t really be...?

  “But...you’re human?”

  Braedyn smiled and dropped the flap on the tent, helping her to the air mattress. “Yes and no. I’m also a wolf.”

  “I-I don’t understand.” She sat down, dumbfounded, and watched him kneel to remove her boots; then help her out of her parka.

  This is it, I’ve completely lost my mind.

  “Is this real? Am I having another fever induced nightmare?”

  He shook his head. “No fever.”

  “How...?”

  “My family has lived in this forest for centuries. Not all of us can change. Those of us who can, try to lead semi-normal lives to provide and care for the others. My father created Walker Pharmeceuticals. Financially, we’re set. When my father died, the pack divided. My mother is human and remains secluded from the rest of the world. My sister rarely changed back to her human form after our father’s passing. She preffered being a wolf. It...it takes quite a bit of practice to change at will.”