Bears of Burden: WYATT

by Candace Ayers

  Maybe it was the sudden, hard set of his shoulders, or maybe it was the way the smile had steeled from his face — how his eyes had become cold and hard, and barely interested in what she had to offer, in any way, shape, or form.

  But then they were at the opening of the mouth of the little babbling stream, and he turned toward her and gestured further up the mountain. “If you come this way, you can see exactly where he found the nuggets.”

  Paulette moved up past him, focusing on that space where he had pointed, searching for some sign of exactly where the gold had been found, tendrils of fear and discomfort slipping down her spine.

  She was part way up the hillside, peering down toward the water when it happened. He was so quick about it, she barely had time to register the pain, the sudden weightless feeling of her body, the knowledge that her feet were coming out from underneath her, and his hands were wrapped tightly around her body.

  “That’s right, pretty girl.” He was growling in her ear, his words were hard and angry. “You can tell me all about whether or not you think that money belongs to me. We can pass that along to your little dandy when he comes here searching for you.” He sneered at her, and she was at a loss for the sudden change in his temperament, in his being. His eyes became darker, sparking with something she didn’t want to see. “And he will come for you.”

  The gentle man she’d thought he had been was gone, and in his wake was this one, with the angry slivers for eyes, the sneer marring his face, he jabbed at her with one hand and yanked her arm painfully behind her with the other, pushing her forward up the hill so she had little choice but to place one foot in front of the other and allow herself to be steered further and further from her home.

  And from Zed. With certainty, she knew he had been right. Copeland was obviously not to be trusted, just like Zed had insisted. And now Zed wouldn’t know where to find her, or even how to look for her. There were no guarantees he would come for her if he couldn’t piece together where she had gone. She didn’t want to think about what that might mean for her. What would happen if he didn’t realize she’d been forced somewhere against her will? What would happen if he didn’t retrieve Abigail from the nursemaid’s house when he was supposed to? Even if he could figure it all out, there were no guarantees he would be able to find where Copeland had taken her. What was going to happen if she couldn’t get her way out of this?

  He pushed her along none too gently, until she was walking along a narrow little edge, the empty air beside her a constant reminder of the kind of trouble she was in. They continued until she was standing in a small outcropping of rock — an outcropping Mr. Copeland had obviously planned on using.

  He collected the rope and knife that had been sitting there, patiently awaiting her arrival, and bound her wrists and ankles, meticulously tying them to each other so there was no hope of making it back along that narrow little ledge and back to the relative safety of the mountainside.

  “You just wait here for me. I’ll come back for you.” He bared his teeth in what Paulette suspected was supposed to be a smile, but that seemed more like a snarl. “And we’ll see what we can get out of your man.”

  Then he was moving back along the ledge, and Paulette was left behind, pressing her body into the solid wall of rock behind her, the jagged edges gouging through the thin material of her dress.

  Zed had been up and down the street a half a dozen times. Something wasn’t right. He’d known right away, but every passing moment confirmed the fact.

  Paulette wasn’t in the office. The door was locked and she was gone. She wasn’t in the house. The door was locked and she was gone.

  And when he made his way to the nursemaid’s house, Abigail was safe and accounted for.

  So where was Paulette, then?

  He’d imagined she’d had a quick errand to run. Maybe she’d stopped to pick up some produce. Maybe she’d gone out of her way to swing by a neighbor’s.

  In brief spurts he imagined any number of reasons she might have left her designated posts.

  But none of those really made sense. She was always in one place or the other, or close enough to see.

  And most importantly, she was never without Abigail.

  The more time that crept by, the more Zed was certain something had happened to her.

  And if he was a betting man — and he wasn’t because bets were always rigged — he would say it had everything to do with that damned miner. The very one he had told Paulette not to have anything to do with. The one she had practically bent over backwards to defend.

  He was angry all over again, just thinking about it. Her stubbornness. Her insistence. Damn that Paulette.

  He was wondering what steps he needed to take next when the man made his appearance. He moved slow, and easy, like the cat who’d swallowed the canary — like there was nothing Zed could do to him.

  He clenched and unclenched his fist. How wrong the miner was. Zed would just as soon see the man dead than anything else. And if he’d had half an indication where Paulette might be, there wouldn’t have been any waiting.

  But Zed could wait. He had centuries of practice cultivating patience under his belt, and he would use that patience now.

  “Copeland,” he growled, his whole body rumbling with the sound of his voice, though it was barely greater than conversation level — hard, emotionless. “What have you done with her?”

  The miner made a little sound, like Zed’s distress meant nothing to him, did nothing but please him and stroke his ego.

  “I knew she was the ticket I needed. The minute I saw you with her, I knew once I had her I would have you.” Copeland’s eyes narrowed and he brought up a hand to that grizzled beard. “If you want your girl now, I think you’d like to come with me.”

  There were many things Zed would like to do, and following along complacently behind Copeland was not one of them.

  But, like Copeland said, he did have the ticket, and Zed was going to do whatever it took to get Paulette back. Even though that would mean following Copeland, presumably somewhere where Zed wouldn’t have the upper hand.

  The miner didn’t wait for an answer. He turned on his heel and walked away from Zed, his very swagger insulting. His confidence in his ability to remain untouchable a slap in the face. As though Zed couldn’t leap onto him from there, and end this debacle all at once.

  But he couldn’t. Or he could, but where would that leave Paulette?

  Wherever Copeland had stashed her, and around here that could be a lot of places. And wherever she was, she could be in more than one kind of danger.

  He shouldn’t have been surprised when they made their way toward Copeland’s claim. It didn’t take a genius to know what this was all about. Copeland felt he was entitled to more than he had. He’d made it plain with Zed that he felt Zed was hiding money and wealth from the others, that he was stealing it out from underneath them all, even though he was the only one who even had an actual right to that money.

  Like he hadn’t been the one collecting it all these years. Hoarding it all these years. Protecting it. And then these miners sweep in and want to know why they can’t walk out with it in their hands.

  They walked past the little path Zed knew meandered through the triangular claim. He knew there were two other pieces and the boundary line wasn’t well defined — he knew because he’d dealt with all of the miners on one occasion or another, fielded their complaints about their neighbor taking what they felt was theirs, impeding on the success they felt they deserved to have. He knew because he knew every inch of this mountain.

  It didn’t take Zed long to realize they weren’t heading directly to wherever Copeland was planning on taking him. Copeland had moved forward, doubled back, made exaggerated loops in their walk. Whatever Copeland was playing at, he wasn’t going to find success in it.

  If he thought he could turn Zed around, or if he felt he knew the land better than Zed did, he was going to be in for a rude awakening. No one knew this lan
d better than Zed. He had walked these hills and paths before men had even settled there, when it had been just him and the mountainside. He knew every little stream that ran dry in the hot months, and every little reservoir that held water when every other bit was gone. He knew which mountainside was steady and what would crumble under your feet with no warning.

  There was literally no advantage Copeland had over Zed.

  Except, he knew where Paulette was, and right now, that seemed like the biggest single advantage any man could ever have over him.

  It was after dark now, and while Zed did not struggle with the loss of light, the miner did, beginning to pick his way more slowly, more carefully.

  He heard her before he saw her, the ragged sound of her breathing, laced with panic. He could smell her on the wind, her sweet scent spiced with fear and longing and desperation.

  Zed felt a new wave of hatred slice through him. That this miner could make Paulette feel that way, that he could so readily take away her peace and happiness, was enough to plunge Zed right back over the edge and into his frothy state of anger.

  Copeland wouldn’t live to see the morning.

  Zed knew it with a sudden urgency and conviction. There would be no saving him. He felt no regret or remorse over the realization.

  Copeland had managed to get Paulette out on a little out cropping, her hands and feet bound, and she pressed herself into the side of the mountain, as though she were afraid the very wind would wrap itself around her and pull her to her end.

  Zed felt that stretching in his shoulders, the ache that came from being denied his wings. In a heartbeat, he knew he could free the beast and change the dynamics of the encounter.

  But, just as quickly, the man had stepped out onto the ledge, yanking Paulette to her feet, pushing her in front of him and toward the edge, so there was nothing between Zed and Paulette’s wide, frightened eyes.

  “Zed,” she said, and her voice was hoarse. Hoarse, and pleading, and scared, and relieved all at once.

  His jaw clenched, anger swelling within him.

  Copeland gave Paulette a playful little push toward the edge, like he just wanted to hear her cry out. Like feeling the fear that was seeping out of her brought him joy and satisfaction.

  Zed heard a snap, and realized it was coming from him, his tenuous hold on humanity shattering into nothing. He felt that ache of his shoulders again, punctuated with pain.

  One minute he was there. The miner and Paulette were watching him, the miner gleeful at his position of power, Paulette desperate for rescue. And the next, Zed was gone, and in his place was the massive dragon, caught between the trees and craggy edges of the mountain.

  His neck was long and proud, arched, his teeth were sharp and on full display. The sound he made was caught somewhere between a bellow and a mechanical screech, and it filled the air between them, plumes of smoke and dirt making it hard for either Paulette or the miner to see.

  But neither needed to see.

  Paulette felt her body jerk, and just like that she was free of the miner, the man nowhere to be seen.

  She heard the strong beat of wings against wind, felt the rush of air against her face. Then the dust and smoke was clearing, and it was just her on the outcropping, still bound.

  The dragon was still there, his wings huge and outstretched behind him, perched a few yards from her on a large bounder, his back toward the open air behind him, his wings and tails unhindered by the earth, moments away from carrying him off into the sky.

  It was impossible. The whole thing was impossible. It was impossible that she had seen Zed turn into a dragon, entirely impossible that there was a dragon here at all.

  But here he was, watching her, large, diamond snake eyes, unblinking, watching her balefully. The strong flick of his tail, the way he threw his head back, gave another one of those indescribable screams, and then was wheeling backwards, tipping into the sky, wings and scales and all, just a moment later, barely more than a dot, a hazy recollection of what might have once been a dragon.

  Paulette collapsed back against the rock, left alone once more. Was that dragon Zed? Whether it was or not, she was going to have to sit back and wait for him to come back and get her.

  It had been a mistake. Zed knew that. He shouldn’t have let the beast claim him. He shouldn’t have let Paulette see what he truly was.

  He pulled a hand through his hair and paced another small circle.

  The look in Paulette’s eyes. It was enough to kill him.

  He’d seen terror in all kinds of eyes. His lifetime was long and it had spanned many encounters with humans. As the dragon. As the man, the shifter. But he had never cared as much about seeing the fear as he had when it flared in Paulette’s eyes. It was a punch to the gut. And maybe it was deserved. After all, he had sent that miner flying to his death.

  Zed wasn’t going to be able to pace much longer. He was going to have to face whatever it was Paulette was going to say to him when he saw her.

  He knew she was up there still, alone in the dark, waiting for the rescue he had promised her. He knew she was frightened, possibly more frightened after his rescue, just as much a captive as she had been in Copeland’s grasp.

  Would she be afraid of him? Would she cower from him the same way she had from the miner? Would she welcome him, like she had when she placed supper in front of him? Would she keep his secret?

  What if she refused to protect his identity? He wouldn’t be able to hurt her. He wouldn’t be able to threaten her into submission. He would leave it all, leave her.

  Somewhere in this world there had to be an unoccupied mountain top, not besieged by miners with picks and hopes of finding gold. If this place could not be his, if she could not be his, he would find some other place that would have him. He would learn how to live without Paulette. Without Abigail.

  He took a deep breath and forced himself to move up the mountain and back toward Paulette, straightening his shoulders, embracing his resolve. The time was now. Waiting would do no one any good.

  Chapter Eight

  The sun had long since set, the dark settling around her. She could almost pretend that precipice wasn’t merely a few feet away. It had grown chilly on the mountainside, the wind picking up, slicing through her dress, blistering against her skin.

  Paulette wondered if, at some point, it would be safer for her to try and go than it would be for her to sit and stay. Except there wasn’t going to be a way for her to navigate that ledge while still trapped in restraints.

  She’d brought this whole mess down on herself, really. She didn’t like to think about it that way, but there it was. This could have been avoided, if only she’d given half a thought to what Zed had said to her. If only she hadn’t gone on thinking it was impossible for her to be wrong.

  She was running her hands over the rocky ground beneath her, the walls behind her, looking for anything that might be sharp enough to help her escape her bindings when she heard him say her name. It barely carried on the wind, and she supposed she shouldn’t have been surprised that she hadn’t heard him approach.

  Animal. Monster. Whatever he was or had been, now he was the man she’d known. The one who had been kind to her, who had given her a place to live, her daughter a future, when so many men would have turned away from her, wouldn’t have cast her a second glance.

  “Zed.” She answered in a soft voice. Too soft, she thought, and she wondered if he would be able to hear her over the winds and the rustle of the trees.

  But she needn’t have worried, because he was there before her, hands reaching down to slice through her bindings and pull her to her feet. His hands were warm, grounding. They reminded her of everything he had done for her — not the least of which had been saving her life that day.

  Then she was standing in front of him and his hands were moving over her arms, the side of her face, twisting her this way and that as though he could see despite the darkness, like he was checking for any signs of damage.

>   “You are well?” he asked, and his voice was gruff and sincere, laced with emotion and no longer detached, like it had been when he had said her name moments before. His touch was all the things she had remembered it being from the time before, where his mouth had been hungry on hers, his hands moving gently over her skin.

  She laid her hand on his arm. It was solid, comforting and human. Not like it could ever belong to the monster she had seen before, the one trimmed in scales and teeth and plumes of flames. This was the man she had come to know.

  When she didn’t pull away from him, he folded her into his arms, like she was something precious he had come a long way to keep. He was murmuring something in her ear, words she didn’t recognize, couldn’t make out, but sweet and reassuring nonetheless.

  Then his mouth found hers, and she melted into his kiss.

  “I’m so sorry, Zed, I should have listened when you told me about Copeland. I just…I didn’t think —”

  “No apologies, Paulette. If I had told you more, the rest of the story, if I had done a better job…If I hadn’t left you alone so much, none of this would have happened.”

  His words were hard and unwilling to compromise. A silence settled between them, lulling Paulette into a sense of peace, the day finally catching up to her, exhaustion close on its heels.

  “Come, there is something I want to show you,” he said, taking her hand in his and leading her down the way they had come.

  It was dark and she was slow, but he never made her feel like she needed to rush, even though it was clear he would have been moving much faster on his own. And truthfully, she wasn’t worried, Zed had her hand in his, and she was certain he would keep her safe. They wound up and down and around, until they were on a large flat portion of mountainside that led into the mouth of a cave.

  From here she could appreciate the dramatic backdrop of the ocean and the moon, beautiful in its wild, untamed, and raw way.