“Jonathan.” River wiggled out from under him. Again. “I think I better sleep in my own bed.”
“Don’t go.” Jonathan rolled onto his side then slid his arm around River’s waist. He spooned his body around hers then rubbed his chin against the top of River’s head—another dominant behavior. “I’ll behave.”
“That’s what you said last time.”
“How will I know when the merge thing is done? Is it a fight to the death? Do I have to kill the wolf?”
“Yes and…no.” River hated what merging would do to her wolf. Its spirit would live in River’s body, but it wouldn’t be the same. Even the gift of an extended lifespan was a poor substitute for freedom.
“That’s about as clear as the water in the mud pit. Care to elaborate?”
“You won’t believe me until you see it.”
“Try me.”
“Trust me.”
“River…” Jonathan growled her name.
River turned her head and exposed her neck instinctively. A flush of heat spread from her scalp to the base of her throat. Reuben was the only male that had ever triggered a submissive response in her. And Jonathan hadn’t even merged yet. It thrilled her to know that she would be bound to such a powerful alpha.
Jonathan rolled River onto her back. “How am I supposed to know what to do if you don’t tell me?”
“Merging is instinctive.” River touched the bite mark on her neck. “I didn’t tell you to bite me, but you did it anyway. Merging will be the same.”
He kissed the mark on her neck. “I can’t believe I bit you.”
“We don’t normally exchange bites until after we merge and mate.” River kissed the mark she’d left on his neck. “But there’s nothing normal about this situation.”
“You can say that again.” Jonathan’s chest vibrated against River’s back as he chuckled. He sighed then grew quiet. His breath tickled her ear. “So, you aren’t going to give me any tips or hints or anything?”
“Not until after I merge so I can show you.” Something deep inside River’s chest calmed and settled. That must be what Reuben was talking about when he’d told her that she would know when and how to tell Jonathan about merging. She couldn’t tell him without showing him.
“You just expect me to jump in a cage with a wolf and hope my instincts kick in before it kills me?”
“Pretty much.” River snuggled closer. “And then we can mate.”
Jonathan groaned and gripped River’s hip. He held her in place as he pushed himself away from her body. “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but you’re right. We need to sleep in separate beds.”
River rolled over, kissed Jonathan’s cheek then climbed into her own bed. She was exhausted, but couldn’t sleep.
She couldn’t stop thinking about the warm, wet feel of Jonathan’s tongue as he sucked the apple juice from her fingertips. Just thinking about it made her heart thump against her ribs. The kissing and touching set her on fire. She’d never imagined such bliss. But even that couldn’t compare to the physical and emotional desires he unleashed when he bit her.
River kicked off her blankets but couldn’t escape the heat. She cracked the window then held the neck of her tunic open, directing the cold night air between the fabric and her naked skin. She crawled back into bed and flopped onto her belly; but couldn’t get comfortable. She stared into the darkness until her eyes adjusted enough to reveal Jonathan’s form. At first she couldn’t see any details, just his silhouette, an outline of his head and body, like a shadow cast on the wall. River lifted her hand and reached across the room as if she could touch him. She wanted to feel those soft curls slipping through her fingers again. She wanted to trace the straight line of his jaw, the bump on the bridge of his nose, the firm curve of his mouth…she wanted to touch every inch of him. The need was so intense it was painful.
Jonathan called her name then mumbled something incoherent.
River smiled when she realized he was dreaming about her.
He tucked his arms under his blankets and hunkered down until all River could see was his mop of curls.
How could he stand all those blankets? He had to be burning up. River raised the window another three inches then crossed the room to check on him.
His forehead was bone dry and cool under her palm. She tried to lower the buffalo robe. Jonathan shivered and yanked it out of her hands. He buried himself even deeper, curling up into a ball. How could he possibly be cold when the hut was as hot as an oven?
The plaintive cry of a lone wolf sank a hook of desire behind River’s navel. The hut wasn’t hot. She was.
She hoped Reuben and Gabriel had found a wolf for Jonathan. Reuben had told her to wait for them in the hut, but she was too restless. Maybe she’d feel better if she were outside, closer to her wolf. She wouldn’t go far, just enough to ease the ache.
River dressed quietly to keep from waking Jonathan then slipped outside. The cold air didn’t cool her fever. It only burned hotter. Her wolf howled again. River dug her nails into the porch railing and fought the pull. She refused to merge without Jonathan. Where was Reuben? And where was Jonathan’s wolf?
As her fever climbed, it became increasingly difficult to think. Rational thought gave way to pure instinct. Long, blue shadows, like fingers, reached out from the forest, clawing their way across drifted snow, beckoning, coaxing, enticing. River leapt off the porch and flew across the frozen ground. She continued to run even though her legs burned and her lungs screamed for air.
When she finally found her wolf, the animal’s beauty stole the last of River’s breath. Its white fur sparkled in the moonlight as if it had been dusted with diamond powder. The wolf lifted her nose into the air and howled then trotted towards River.
“Hello my lovely. I’ve missed you.”
The wolf slowed to a walk, but didn’t stop.
River dropped to her knees and held her hand out, fingers splayed.
The wolf stretched its neck and sniffed River’s hand then rubbed its downy muzzle against her cheek.
A tingling sensation ran down River’s spine then spread across her torso, down her arms and legs, into her fingers and toes. The sensation intensified until her entire body hummed with energy. Jonathan. I must wait for Jonathan.
It took every ounce of strength River had left to pull away.
Another wolf, a majestic, solid black male, stepped out of the forest, into the moonlight. River knew without a doubt that this was Jonathan’s spirit guide.
He lifted his nose to the sky and howled. The white wolf joined him. The beauty of their song brought tears to River’s eyes.
The white wolf pressed her forehead against River’s chest and trembled.
River wanted to wait for Jonathan, but fate had other plans. At least his wolf was near. She should have known that the son of Ephraim’s merge would be mutual, too. She’d have to trust it to guide Jonathan through their merge and bring him to her so they could mate.
“Forgive my lack of faith.” River slid her hand over the white wolf’s back. She felt its fear as if it were her own. The wolf knew it was going to die. But she still gave herself to River.
Grief wrapped its thorny vines around River’s throat and squeezed. She didn’t want to trap the wolf’s spirit. But this was their destiny.
River wrapped her arms around the wolf’s chest, close to its head, and prepared for the coming ordeal.
The humming energy triggered a vibration deep inside River’s body. She felt as if she were falling apart—as if whatever held her intact were dissolving.
The wolf whined and trembled but did not try to escape.
“I’m so sorry.”
A sudden burst of pain lit up every nerve in River’s body. It seemed to begin and end in the exact same moment—like an explosion. It knocked the breath out of her and threw her to the ground.
Her first lungful of air delivered an overwhelming variety of scents—pine, snow, dirt, birds, smoke, man and wolf.
River rolled onto her side then scrambled to her feet. All four of them. Her body trembled. She was supposed to shift back to her human form as quickly as possible after merging, but there was too much adrenaline in her blood. The urge to run was almost as strong as the urge to merge had been.
She took a breath and marveled at the way her lungs expanded. Her muscles quivered with power as she flew across the snow covered ground. She howled her joy without slowing down.
An answering cry in the near distance raised her hackles.
River skidded to a stop, lifted her nose in the air and took another whiff. She recognized her own scent and her mate’s. But there was another wolf in their territory. A male. An involuntary growl rolled out of her throat when she recognized the wolf’s scent. Even though she’d never noticed it as a human, some part of her brain must have stored the information because she knew, without a doubt, that the third wolf was Eli.
Jonathan
THE DISTANT HOWL OF A wolf disturbed Jonathan’s dream. He blinked and stared at the rough-hewn ceiling. It took him a moment to remember where he was. And who he was with. He smiled and rolled over.
River wasn’t in bed. And it was freezing in the hut. The grey light of early dawn poured through the partially open window. No wonder it was so cold.
“River?” Jonathan got up and looked outside. She wasn’t there. Maybe she’d heard the wolf’s howl and gotten up to go check on the horses. Or maybe she was out rounding up wolves for that merge thing. He hoped not.
Jonathan threw his clothes on and shoved his feet in his boots. He hissed with pain as he strapped on his prosthesis. River had told him not to wear it until she had a chance to make pads for it, but he couldn’t hold his bow without it. And he wasn’t going outside without a weapon. Not with a pack of wolves on the prowl.
The hair on the back of his neck stood on end when he noticed River’s bow under her bed. She never went anywhere without it. Something was wrong.
Jonathan strung his own bow, grabbed his quiver then ran to the stable. The horses were fine, but there was no sign of River. He cupped his hand around the side of his mouth and called her name. “River!”
The wolf howled again, but River did not answer. Jonathan threw Saucy’s hackamore on then led him outside and positioned his left rump against the barn. “I don’t have time to fool around. You’re going to let me mount from the right whether you like it or not.”
Saucy didn’t like it at all. Jonathan vaulted on successfully the first try, but Saucy paid him back by slamming Jonathan’s knee against the barn.
Jonathan rode back to the hut and found River’s tracks heading east. “What the hell is she up to?”
Jonathan had faith in River’s survival skills, but the fact that she’d run off, unarmed, on foot, without telling him, tied his stomach in knots. The howling wolves only made it worse. She’d made it clear last night that they needed to do this together. At least her tracks in the otherwise unbroken snow were easy to follow.
Blood roared behind his ears when he spotted her discarded coat lying on the snow. He slid off Saucy’s back and picked it up. Her shirt fluttered in the breeze a few yards ahead of him—her boots, socks and pants marked the trail like beacons. He gathered River’s clothes but he wouldn’t be able to hang on to everything on horseback. “Shit!”
Jonathan hadn’t given any thought as to how he was going to get back on Saucy without a fence to climb on or a wall to pin the stubborn animal against so he could mount from the right. It was at least ten degrees below zero. River wouldn’t last long without clothes.
“Okay, think!”
Saucy turned his head toward Jonathan and blew puffs of steam out his nose, asking for a ration of feed. The horse knew that when Jonathan dismounted the ride was over and it was time to eat.
Jonathan patted his neck. “Sorry, no feed bags out here.”
For some reason Jonathan’s mind made the leap from feed bag to saddle bag. He stuffed River’s pants and shirt inside her coat then folded it all together. He set the bundle on Saucy’s back with the sleeves of the coat hanging down on either side.
Saucy twitched his hide as if trying to dislodge a fly, but that was his only reaction. Jonathan tied River’s boots together, stuffed her socks inside then hung them over Saucy’s withers.
Even though he’d been warned not to, Jonathan wound a handful of Saucy’s mane around his prosthesis. If he missed or spooked the horse, he’d get trampled and dragged to death before he could untangle himself. He vaulted onto Saucy’s back from the left without a problem.
Jonathan tucked the sleeves of River’s coat under his thighs, hung her boots around his own neck so they wouldn’t flop around on Saucy’s, then urged him into a mile-eating canter.
Jonathan called River’s name every five minutes, but the only answer he ever got was the howl of a wolf. When it got too close for comfort, Saucy crow hopped and tossed his head. Jonathan pulled his bow off his back, locked it into his prosthesis and reached for an arrow. He knew before he saw the whittled tip that he’d grabbed a practice arrow. The point was about as sharp as a crayon. But according to River, his bow was powerful enough to take down an elk. Of course she’d assumed he’d be using a hunting arrow with one of her razor sharp hand-knapped points to do it.
If he could get close enough, the practice arrow might pierce a wolf’s hide. More than likely it would only infuriate the beast. Jonathan pulled his quiver around to the front of his body to look for an arrow with a sharper point and found one of Gabriel’s hunting arrows. He put the shaft in his mouth and dug his heels into Saucy’s sides.
Another set of tracks flowed out of the forest and merged with River’s.
Jonathan slowed Saucy to a walk and leaned over to get a closer look. The prints were as big as his palm. The thought of a wild animal tracking River sent Jonathan into a full-blown panic. He kicked Saucy’s flanks, urging him to go even faster. Not taking into consideration that the closer they got to the wolf, the less Saucy was going to like it.
Jonathan had his gaze focused on the ground so when Saucy put on the brakes, he had no time to react. He flipped as he flew over Saucy’s neck and landed on his back. The snow cushioned his fall, but it still knocked the wind out of him.
His bow was still attached to his prosthesis but miraculously unbroken. The feathered end of Gabriel’s arrow peeked out of a snowdrift ten feet to his right. Jonathan offered a brief prayer of thanks when he pulled it out and found the arrowhead in perfect condition. He found his quiver with three of his practice arrows. He didn’t waste time searching for the others. Or gathering up River’s scattered clothes. If he didn’t find her before the wolf did; she wouldn’t need them.
He pressed the medallion containing Franklin’s feather against his heart as he stumbled forward. If you can hear me, Frankie, I need your help. Help me find River before it’s too late.
A low growl froze Jonathan mid-step. The sound came from behind him. The animal must have realized it was being pursued and circled back around. Better me than River.
Jonathan nocked Gabriel’s arrow as he eased his body around. As soon as he caught a glimpse of the wolf in his peripheral vision, he recognized its black fur and white blaze on its forehead. It was the same wolf that’d chased him and Carrie out of the mine a lifetime ago.
The wolf’s eyes widened as if it recognized Jonathan, too. Maybe it did.
He didn’t want to kill the animal, but he couldn’t risk letting it get to River. He drew his bow and sighted down the arrow. The tip bounced with every beat of his heart. Calm down. He’d been hitting targets twice as far away as the wolf. I can do this. River’s life depends on it.
The wolf turned, exposing his flank. Jonathan released the arrow just as the wolf leapt over a fallen log.
A yelp of pain meant he’d hit it. The prolonged whine and din of a heavy body crashing through the undergrowth, meant it wasn’t an immediate kill shot. He had no idea if the wound was fatal. A quick inspecti
on of the ground on the other side of the log revealed a bloody trail heading deeper into the forest, away from River’s tracks. But Jonathan didn’t trust the wolf, or his marksmanship. He prayed as he ran, even though he didn’t trust God either. What little faith he had, died with Franklin.
Jonathan’s lungs burned. His legs trembled. The stitch in his side twisted his upper body to the right but he refused to stop. He ran until he couldn’t run any more. He fell face first in the snow, but was too exhausted to do anything other than roll onto his back. He felt as if every muscle in his body were cramping. Pain wracked his chest. Jonathan was young and strong, but maybe he’d pushed himself too hard. Even a healthy young man could have a heart attack if he exceeded his body’s limitations. I’m so sorry, River.
Something blew a musky puff of air into Jonathan’s face. He opened his eyes, the only part of his body he had the strength to move. A huge, black wolf stood over him, looking at him with its head cocked to the side. At first, Jonathan thought it might have been the wolf he shot, but this beast was even larger and solid black, without a speck of white on him.
Every hair on Jonathan’s body stood on end but he wasn’t afraid. There was a static charge in the air, like right before a lightning strike.
The wolf’s fur was all puffed out, too. He shook his coat like a wet dog then sat on his haunches. Jonathan should have been terrified, but he wasn’t. He was strangely drawn to the animal. He sat up.
The wolf lowered his head and sniffed the air in front of Jonathan’s chest.
Weird. Jonathan reached up and stroked the wolf’s shoulder before he could stop himself. A jolt of pure energy shot up his arm.
The wolf licked Jonathan’s face, from the base of his jaw, across his cheek, all the way to his temple.
Energy roared into Jonathan’s body. And with that energy came renewed hope. He could continue to search for River.
The wolf spun around and ran into the forest.
Believe: The Complete Channie Series Page 130