Deadlands Hunt

by Gayla Drummond

  Six

  "Fan out," Chase ordered, when they reached the spot he estimated would be about right for the settlers to have made their second night's camp. "Curtis, you take that side, I'll get this one."

  The canyon was roughly a mile wide along this point, most of the vegetation short grass and low-lying bushes. Only a few trees were in sight and the breeze was clear of the taint of orcs or trolls, so the Weren felt comfortable allowing the humans to spread out.

  To his silent approval, none of them needed reminding to make ready with their weapons. Even Sally drew one of her pistols with a sudden air of competence that surprised him. Amethyst had her bow up, the safety released.

  Out of the corner of his eyes, Chase kept track of the line of riders, confident his pack mates were doing the same. A half hour at a slow walk, sixteen eyes scanning ground and higher continuously, ended when Peter drew his horse to a halt and waved to catch everyone's attention.

  As they gathered, he said, "I'm not sure, but could this be a wheel track?"

  Curtis dismounted to take a look, carefully moving away grass that overhung part of the depression the human had noted. "That's what it is, all right. Good eyes, Peter."

  With something to focus on, and assured they were on the right trail, the Weren studied the ground around the track carefully. Bran spotted a flicker of brightness and turned up a brass button. Kyle discovered a half buried, spent rifle shell. The proof the settlers had come through here didn't answer how they'd made it this far without leaving any signs, but that was a mystery to solve later. The group rode forward, pointing out more items and signs.

  They halted when Amethyst uttered a low cry and vaulted off her still moving horse to stumble forward. Falling to her knees, she bent over something she'd spotted.

  "Amy, what is it?" Sally asked, hurriedly dismounting and trotting to her side.

  "Mother's brooch." The red head pushed herself up into standing position, holding her hand out as she turned to reveal the golden, star shaped ornament. There was a scrap of fabric still attached. "She left it to Pearl."

  "May I?" Chase asked gently, urging his horse up to the two women. At her nod, he slid off his horse and held out his hand, palm up. Amethyst passed the ornament to him, fingertips lightly grazing his skin.

  It was a tiny piece of cloth. Chase took a close look at it before crouching to scan the ground around where she'd found it. There weren't any more fragments of cloth to find; the Weren's cautious sniffing didn't reveal the smell of decay. Standing, he handed the brooch back to her. "My guess is it was getting late when they came through here. Probably was snagged on something, and she didn't realize she lost it when she yanked free. Traveling by wagon's rougher than by coach, and you've had a taste of just how rough that is."

  "My, yes," Sally replied brightly. "I believe mind and body numbingly exhausting about covers that particular experience."

  Amethyst cast him a grateful look before turning and gathering up the reins of her horse's bridle and re-mounting.

  *

  They rode steadily, watching for signs and found the trail led into an offshoot of the main canyon. Following it, the Weren weren't pleased to find it slowly narrowing, but the fact the ground began sloping upwards helped ease the feeling that they were riding into an ambush. Sometime after noon, the group found themselves at the end of it, and not too far from where they paused was the edge of cliff fading off in both directions.

  Winding through the thick underbrush, they came to a halt a short distance from the edge and dismounted. The four Weren exchanged looks, already realizing what they'd find as they walked to the edge of the cliff and looked down. Several hundred feet below could be seen piles of wood that looked small from the height they were viewing them from.

  Sighing, Kyle turned away. "They were run right off the edge."

  "I'm sorry, what did you say?" Confused, Amethyst looked from one face to the other as they moved away from the edge.

  "Something attacked them...trolls, orcs...herded them this way and ran them right off the cliff's edge," Curtis explained, his expression compassionate and tone gently patient. "Probably as they were trying to find a place to camp, and by the time they ran this far, it was dark."

  "Are you certain that's what's down there? Couldn't some of them have turned away?" Amethyst didn't want to believe Pearl's life had ended in such a plunge as she peered over the edge. Vertigo struck and a large hand caught her elbow, easing her back from the edge as she swayed. Looking up, she found herself meeting Chase's eyes.

  "I'll take a closer look," Chase responded, understanding she needed to be as sure as possible of her sister's fate. "See what I can make out as far as how many wagons might be down there."

  "That tree there looks good. I'll get the rope," Bran said, moving back towards the horses after gesturing at a gnarled tree.

  "You're going to climb all the way down there?" Amethyst asked, startled as she looked back to Chase.

  "Not all the way. We don't have enough rope for that. But I'll go down as far as I can, and will be able to see more," he replied, wondering if the look her eyes was concern for him. She confirmed it was with her next words.

  "Oh, please do be careful."

  Her plea sent a tingling feeling of warmth through the Weren. Nodding, he promised, "I will be."

  Bran returned with the rope, tying one end to the tree he'd chosen before playing it out to where Chase waited. Kyle and Curtis herded the other three humans back towards the horses, clearing the area. They didn't attempt to make Amethyst move. She stood with her hands clasped tightly together and tucked under her chin while she watched. She was worried about him. Chase felt pleased by the knowledge.

  Shaking out the loop in the other end, Bran offered it to him. Chase removed his hat, but before he could drop it to the ground, Amethyst stepped forward to take it. "Thanks."

  Sliding the rope over his head and under his arms, Chase nodded to Bran, who used himself as an anchor. The Weren went over the cliff edge slowly, and then worked his way down until he'd reached the end of the rope. Bran released it, kneeling at the edge to gaze over. "He's good, found a spot to brace. We'll just wait for him to signal he's ready to come up."

  "Or not," Curtis yelled, scenting something on the breeze that blew across them. "Orcs!"

  "Chase! Attack!" Bran yelled down. Chase's head snapped up from his survey of the canyon floor in time to see Bran disappear from the edge.

  Amethyst drew one pistol as Bran pulled her further away from the edge. The shape shifter told her, "We stand here until Chase is back up."

  "Of course." Orcs appeared, streaming from seemingly everywhere, and she fired. She could hear the rope making an odd noise, but fired twice more before she realized it was Chase's climbing that was causing it. Below, the Weren was rapidly scrambling upwards, lunging for handholds while taking up the slack in the rope by wrapping it around one forearm. Gritting his teeth at the noises of battle, he grimly wished he'd sent Bran or Kyle down instead of doing it himself. He should be up there, protecting the humans...protecting her.

  Confusion reigned as the orcs swarmed around them.

  *

  Amethyst caught the stealthy movement from the corner of her eye and swung her arm around as the orc raised its sword, preparing to sever the thrumming rope Chase was rapidly climbing to join the battle. She fired, but the sword struck the rope when the orc fell, partially cutting through the strands.

  The rope began parting under her horrified gaze. She dove for it, landing hard, and striking her cheek on a rock. A scream of pain tore from her as the rope cut and burned, viciously ripping away skin and flesh from her palm while she fought to stop its slithering towards the cliff's edge. Frightened, she found herself dragged along by it. "Chase!"

  Below her, the Weren was desperately scrambling for something, anything, to grab a hold of in order to halt his sudden fall caused by the loss of tension in the rope. A groan forced its way out as he caught the merest suggestion of
a ledge, his shoulders strenuously protesting their wrenching as he brought himself to a jerking stop.

  Sobbing, Amethyst realized the rope had stopped moving just as large hands pried her bloody one from it. Kyle snatched the rope up and wrapped it around his waist, digging his heels into the ground to brace against Chase's weight. "Climb!"

  Rolling over, she found Bran standing close, shooting with both pistols into the orcs rushing them. Blinking away tears of pain, Amethyst forced herself onto her knees and raised her pistol, cradling her wounded hand on one thigh.

  She strained to hear over the shots and howls of orcs, listening for Chase. Kyle's grunts of effort and sliding sounds made her want to turn to help, but she focused on what she could do: shoot orcs.

  Amethyst almost fainted in relief when she heard Chase say, "Thanks".

  "I just pulled you up," Kyle replied, dropping the rope and nodding at the little red head on her knees beside Bran. Both Weren drew their pistols and set to work.

  Curtis, having seen the whole thing, sighed in relief from his position ten yards away. The other three humans stood with him, steadily firing, either unaware of the drama that had just occurred, or proving themselves good fighters by not letting it distract them from the task at hand.

  A few minutes later, the last of the gun smoke whirled and began clearing, no more orcs upright to act as targets. The battle was over.

  Holstering her pistol and feeling horribly exhausted, Amethyst bit back a cry of pain as she uncurled her injured hand to look at the damage done to it. Chase dropped to his knees, reaching to gently lift and examine it himself.

  The shape shifter flinched as he surveyed the bloody mess. She had to have had a death grip on the rope for it to tear so deeply into her palm. He looked away from it to meet her eyes, and saw a flicker of something warm and enticing that cut through the pain they held. The bruise beginning to darken her right cheek drew his attention next. He freed one hand to brush away the tangle of hair partially covering it.

  She'd risked her life for him. If he hadn't of caught hold and stopped his fall, he'd have dragged her lighter weight over the edge. Meeting her eyes again, Chase ignored the others as they began moving around, realizing she likely wouldn't have let go. She'd saved his life, because even a Weren wouldn't have survived a drop from that high onto the rocky ground at the base of the cliff.

  Amazed, Chase felt his chest tighten. The other feelings he'd felt in her presence consolidated and the shape shifter realized he was falling in love with Amethyst without having noticed he was. Quietly and unexpectedly, it had been creeping up on him since the night she'd first spoken to him.

  Did she feel the same way? Was that why she'd risked her life for him?

  Chase hoped so, with a greedy hunger that shocked him. "Kyle, bring the kit so we can clean this up and bandage it. Hurry."

  *

  Aware of how brazenly she was staring at Chase, Amethyst blushed, dropping her eyes to the hand he was carefully cradling in his own. She'd surprised herself, acting smoothly and decisively despite the sudden upsurge of terror the thought of him dying had caused.

  Kyle returned, sitting beside them and opening the small leather bag he'd brought with him. Laying out a few things on its flap, he selected a leather wrapped flask and pulled the cork from its neck. "This is going to sting, Amethyst, but it'll clean it out."

  "All right." Clenching her jaw in anticipation, she watched Chase take her wrist in his other hand.

  As his fingers closed firmly around it, he softly told her, "Try not to pull away."

  Nodding, but not looking up, she watched as the clear liquid spilled in a thin stream from the flask. As it struck the wound, she shrieked and jerked against his hold. It felt as though the rope had returned with vengeance, determined to remove her entire hand this time.

  "Easy," Chase crooned quietly, keeping her hand still while trying not to add another bruise to her collection of injuries. "It'll stop in a minute."

  Tears stung her eyes as she gritted her teeth. They overflowed to spill down her cheeks and washed tracks in the dirt covering her face. Her palm was full of fire as the liquid boiled into pink bubbles that spilled over the edges of their hands to drip to the ground.

  Chase could feel her trembling and wished he'd thought to pull her into his lap to hold while gazing at the top of her bowed head. A faint whine rose in him, but it changed to the low rumble Werens used to comfort each other. Kyle's slightly lighter one sounded as he capped the flask and returned it to the bag before picking up the canteen he'd also brought along.

  The bubbling finally stopped. Amethyst almost cried out in relief as cool water washed away the remains of the first liquid. A clean square of gauze was laid over the wound to dry away the water.

  All three of them winced, though Amethyst was the only one trying to keep from hissing and shrieking, as Kyle next applied a thick coating of salve that would numb the wound, prevent infection, and help speed healing. The two shape shifters continued the low rumbling sound until he'd finished. The last thing Kyle did was loosely bandage her hand with more gauze.

  "Thank you," Amethyst forced out past dry lips as he finished. To her surprise, his response was a tender stroke of her tangled hair as Kyle rose to his feet. She had no way of knowing her attempt to save their pack leader's life had won her their undying loyalty.

  Chase knew - they all knew - that without her slowing his fall by catching hold of the rope, he wouldn't have had enough time to stop his deadly plunge. Releasing her hand, the Weren snatched the canteen from Kyle before the other moved off and offered her a drink. "Here."

  After she'd taken a few swallows, Amethyst managed a lopsided grin. "I imagine I look quite the fright right now."

  "I think you look beautiful," Chase quietly replied. The sincerity in his voice and eyes made her grin falter. There was another long, hushed moment of holding each other's gaze. Amethyst found something she didn't understand glimmering mysteriously in the depths of his pale golden ones.

  The moment passed and he was assisting her to her feet while speaking. "Let's ride, find a safe way down for all of us. I didn't get a good look."

  *

  "Curtis, you lead off, and see if you can't find us a way down. Kyle, you're rearguard. Bran, I want you and Peter ahead of him, and you two," he nodded at Sally and Brian. "In front of them. I'll lead your horse, Amethyst."

  Aside from the sour glance Brian threw him, no one made any protest. The Weren helped the red head up on her horse by grasping her around the waist and lifting her into the saddle. He paused, looking up and offered a bashful smile. "I forgot to say thank you. I was a little distracted."

  Recalling the expressions that had floated across his face as he'd gently held her hand, Amethyst smiled back. Almost without thinking, she touched his cheek with her good hand, fingertips stroking briefly. "You're welcome."

  Smile broadening, Chase collected the reins of her horse and led it over to his. Mounting, he looped her reins over his saddle horn and nodded to Curtis to lead them off. They rode quietly, alert for trouble. A slow two miles passed by before the burly shape shifter lifted a hand for a halt and slid off his horse to investigate the trail he'd spotted.

  "Game trail, heavily used by runebok," he reported. "Single file, we should be able to manage it, too."

  "Let's try it, then." Chase unhooked the reins and ran them over the bay's head to offer them to Amethyst. Glancing at her face as she accepted them, he murmured, "Ride close behind me."

  "All right."

  Chase was feeling protective of the little red head as he explored the feelings she'd evoked in him. She'd been the first human female who'd ever voluntarily spoken to him, and she hadn't once flinched away from him. Not even the night she'd been crying, when he'd clumsily attempted to console her and had startled her.

  Amethyst had even showed a preference for his company, choosing to sit watch with him the night before and selecting him as her riding partner while they travelled.
Was it only kindness on her part?

  Had Delphine hurt him so badly that he'd ignored any other women who might've shown him the same attention during the past year of riding border patrol? Was it simply her nearness that made him pay attention to Amethyst's friendly behavior?

  Glancing back to check on her, the Weren didn't think so. He liked Sally well enough, and she'd been around him as much as the red head had. However, she didn't draw his eyes or make him want to offer any affectionate gestures, like what was rapidly becoming a habit of brushing tendrils of loose hair from Amethyst's face.

  No, she was the one he wanted to touch and be near; the first woman he'd felt the need for since Delphine had left him. It was Amethyst, her sweet presence and those flashes of stubbornness she'd shown, that attracted him.

  If it wasn't love quite yet, Chase was certain it was heading that way at a breakneck pace he wasn't at all inclined to try and halt.