Animal Instinct

by Paige Tyler

  “Maybe you should have thought of that before you decided to attack me that day up in the state park,” she said through gritted teeth.

  He glared at her, but said nothing. Instead, he yanked open the driver’s side door of the pickup and shoved her inside, then climbed in after her, forcing her to slide across the seat to the opposite side. She immediately reached for the door handle, but when she jerked at it, nothing happened. Childproof locks. She was trapped.

  She turned to glare at him. “What do you want with me…” she began, but her words trailed off as she caught sight of the still form of a teenage girl in the backseat. Sukie. Oh God, is she…

  “What did you do to her?” she demanded.

  Ryan gave her a cold look as he turned the key in the ignition. “Nothing. And I won’t do anything to her as long as you do what I want.” He must have misinterpreted her look of panic because he added, “Relax. It’s just chloroform. She’ll be fine.”

  As if to confirm his words, Sukie let out a moan from the backseat. Heidi turned to see her trying to push herself into a sitting position, one hand pressed to her head. After a few moments, she succeeded and looked around in confusion, her gaze finally coming to rest on Heidi.

  “Heidi, what’s going on? Where am I?” she asked, eyeing Ryan warily. “Who is he?”

  Heidi’s mouth tightened as Ryan backed out of the driveway. “Someone I thought was a friend.” She turned sideways in the seat so she was facing the younger girl. “Are you okay?”

  Sukie nodded. “Yeah, I think so. I feel like I’m going to throw up, though.” Still eyeing Ryan suspiciously, she scooted over on the seat so that she was closer to Heidi’s side of the truck. “Where are we going?”

  Heidi would like to know that herself. “I’m not sure,” she told Sukie, reaching over the back of the seat to smooth the girl’s dark hair. “But it’ll be okay. You’ll be home soon.” She turned to look at Ryan again. “So, where are you taking us?”

  “You’ll find out when we get there,” he told her.

  She clenched her jaw. “That stuff about working with Luke was crap, so how did you know where to find me? Did you follow us from my apartment the other night?”

  “I was going to, but I didn’t want McCall to get suspicious, so I wrote down his license plate number and had my ex-girlfriend run it for me,” he said, then added, “She’s a dispatcher with the Anchorage Police.”

  How convenient.

  “That asshole McCall really screwed things up for me, you know,” he said conversationally. “I was supposed to be the one to rescue you. The plan was to bite you, disappear into the forest so I could change, then pretend I heard you scream and come running to your rescue. But then that bastard Luke McCall showed up like some damned knight in shining armor. And he’s not even a man, but another werewolf. What are the chances of that?”

  In the backseat, Sukie’s eyes went wide. “Werewolf? Did he just say that Luke’s a werewolf?”

  “Don’t pay any attention to him,” Heidi told her. “He’s crazy.”

  “Crazy about you, Heidi,” Ryan said, giving her a sidelong glance. “That was why I bit you. I want you to be my mate. I love you.”

  She snorted. He is crazy. “Well, I’ve got a newsflash for you. Attacking a woman when she’s out hiking in the woods, then kidnapping her isn’t the best way to make her love you in return.”

  “You gave me no choice,” he told her. “After our lunch date, you wouldn’t give me the time of day. And then you told me that you were leaving Alaska . I couldn’t let that happen. I had to do something to make sure you stayed.”

  “Why me?” Heidi asked.

  “You’re special,” he said. “Different.” He reached out to put his hand on her knee. “I knew you were the one woman who could accept me for what I am.”

  She pushed his hand away. “Accept you for what you are? A psychopath, you mean? You kidnapped an innocent teenage girl so you could use her to make me do what you want. That’s not the way a normal person acts.”

  His jaw tightened. “I told you that I wouldn’t hurt her.”

  “You already have!” she snapped. “You kidnapped her.”

  From the way Ryan’s hand clenched on the wheel, Heidi knew she had angered him, and she braced herself. But he merely stared straight ahead, his gaze fixed on the road.

  Deciding not to provoke him any further, she turned to look out the window. Where was he taking them? They were heading toward Anchorage , but she didn’t really think he would take them into the city.

  “You don’t know what it was like for me growing up, Heidi,” Ryan said abruptly.

  Heidi said nothing. What was he trying to do now, make her feel sorry for him? Fat chance of that, considering he was holding her and Sukie prisoner.

  “I always sensed I was different than the rest of my family,” he continued. “I never fit in with any of them. Never had any friends. I thought it was because I was adopted. It took me a long time to realize that was because I was a werewolf.”

  Heidi darted a quick glance at Sukie to see the other girl looking at Ryan like he was out of his mind. God, she hoped the girl really did think he was crazy. Come to think of it, he probably was a little off his rocker. She figured it was best not to mention it, but that was probably why he had never had any friends. No wonder her creep-meter had pegged out every time he had tried to ask her out.

  “I didn’t even know what was happening that first time.” Ryan was saying. “I was lying in bed, staring out the window at the full moon when it happened. One minute I was human, and the next I was a wolf.” He glanced at her. “I couldn’t understand it. I mean, according to all the lore, you have to be bitten to become a werewolf. But I never got bitten. So, I figured that I must have been born a werewolf. I couldn’t ask my adoptive parents, though. And since I never knew my birth parents, I couldn’t talk to them about it, either.” He shrugged. “I’ve been alone ever since then, alone with a secret that I could never share with anyone. Do you know what that’s like? The moment I met you, I knew what I had to do. I knew the only way that I would ever get you to stay with me would be to turn you into a werewolf, too.”

  Out of the corner of her eye, Heidi saw Sukie looking at her incredulously. “And how did you know it would even work?” she asked Ryan angrily. “For all you know, you could have killed me.”

  He gave her a superior look. “I didn’t though, did I? I turned you into a werewolf.”

  “How can you be so sure?” she asked.

  “Your scent. It’s different,” he said with a grin. “Sweeter. Even sexier than it was before.”

  Heidi felt ill. He was a complete nut job. Swallowing hard, she looked out the front window again just in time to see Ryan turning onto an access road that led into the state park. About half a mile in, he pulled over to the side of the road and shut off the engine. Without a word, he took the key from the ignition then got out of the truck, slamming the door closed behind him. Heidi watched nervously as he walked around the front to her side of the pickup.

  She swung her gaze to Sukie. “When I tell you to run, do it.”

  Sukie’s brow furrowed. “But what about you?”

  “I’ll be fine,” Heidi assured her. “Just do what I tell you. Luke’s at your mom and dad’s. Tell him that the man who kidnapped you took me to an access road into the state park offGlenn Road. The one that leads up to River Trail. He’ll be able to find me.”

  Sukie looked like she wanted to protest, but before she could say anything more, Ryan yanked open her door and dragged her out of the truck.

  Terrified for the girl, Heidi spun around in her seat and immediately jerked at the handle on her own door, but it still wouldn’t budge. Dammit!

  Holding tightly onto Sukie with one hand, Ryan reached out with the other to open Heidi’s door.

  “Try anything and I’ll have to hurt the girl,” Ryan warned as she climbed out.

  Heidi held out her hand in a placating gesture. “Look,
Ryan, why don’t you let Sukie go? I promise that I won’t make trouble.”

  His grip on Sukie’s arm tightened so much that she cried out. “She stays right where she is until I’m sure I can trust you.”

  “Then you’ll let her go?” Heidi asked.

  “Then I’ll let her go,” he agreed.

  Despite how sincere Ryan sounded, Heidi didn’t believe him. There was no way he could let Sukie go, not after revealing he was a werewolf. If he wasn’t going to let Sukie go, then what did he plan to do with her? The answer to that made Heidi’s blood run cold. She had to come up with a way to free Sukie. Fast.

  “Start walking,” Ryan ordered.

  Heidi looked around. “Start walking where?”

  He pointed behind her. “That way.”

  Giving Sukie what she hoped was a reassuring look, Heidi turned and began walking in the direction Ryan had indicated. If she walked slowly enough, maybe she would be able to come up with a plan.

  They began climbing a steep trail that headed up to the top of the ridgeline. The going was rough and she had to be careful she didn’t fall over the large rocks that lay along the trail. She glanced over her shoulder several times, checking on Sukie to make sure she was okay. The younger girl actually seemed to be doing better on the trail than she did.

  As they climbed higher, the ground began to fall away to the right of the trail. She had never come this far up this path for just this reason. It was too dangerous. One misstep and it would be a long slide to the bottom.

  Between negotiating the rough terrain, Heidi tried to come up with a plan. Since she couldn’t physically overpower him, she realized she was going to have to trick Ryan into releasing his hold on Sukie so the girl could get away. But how? She considered pretending to be sick, but then quickly decided against it. Ryan would never buy her act. She had to come up with something more believable. But what?

  The answer when it came to her was so simple that Heidi almost discounted the idea. But the more she thought about it, the more she thought it might actually work.

  After walking for a good ten minutes more, they got to a part of the trail that was perfect for what Heidi was planning. She stopped right near the edge of path and bent down, pretending to look for a nonexistent rock in her sandal. From the corner of her eye, she was able to see down the boulder-strewn hillside for at least a hundred yards. This would work fine.

  “What are you doing?” Ryan asked. He had stopped right behind her and was eyeing her suspiciously.

  “I’ve got a rock in my shoe,” she said, still pretending to look for it. “Sandals aren’t exactly the best footwear for hiking, you know.”

  “Well, hurry up,” Ryan said.

  But Heidi deliberately took her time, hoping that if she stayed in her crouch looking for the rock long enough that Ryan would get impatient and come over to hurry her up. Which was exactly what he did.

  Releasing Sukie, Ryan walked over to Heidi and bent down. Heidi tensed, waiting until he was close enough.

  “Sukie, run!” she shouted, standing up quickly and reaching out with both hands to give Ryan a hard shove at the same time.

  The plan was to push Ryan over the edge so he would fall down the ravine while she and Sukie made their escape. Heidi hadn’t counted on Ryan grabbing her and pulling her over the side with him. Before she even realized what was happening, they were both tumbling down the slope.

  They rolled a long way, plants and trees catching at their clothes as they went, and as much as she hated to do it, Heidi was forced to grab onto Ryan to keep from being beaten up too badly. Once at the bottom, though, she immediately pushed away from him and scrambled to her feet. Ryan got to his feet just as quickly and Heidi took an involuntary step back at the fury in his eyes.

  Crap. Turning on her heel, Heidi ran in the opposite direction as fast as she could.

  Ryan caught up to her before she’d gone more than a dozen feet, tackling her from behind and knocking her to the ground. Before she could even regain her breath, he had her back on her feet.

  “Try something like that again and I’ll have to really hurt you,” he warned. “Now, stay here. I’m going to go get Sukie!”

  “No, you’re not,” Heidi said. “If you try to go after her, I won’t be here when you get back.”

  Ryan swore. “You wouldn’t leave her behind.”

  “I wouldn’t be leaving her,” Heidi said. “I’d be going to get help.”

  She could see the indecision on Ryan’s face. He tried to look up the hill for Sukie, but she was long gone. Finally, muttering something under his breath, he tightened his hold on Heidi’s arm and began dragging her through the woods away from the direction that Sukie had gone.

  Heidi prayed that Sukie would be able to find Luke soon. Ryan was on the edge, and she didn’t want to think about what he was going to do to her if he were given time. Thank God, she and Ryan were on foot. At least Luke would be able to track them.

  Heidi wondered again where Ryan was taking her. She found out about twenty minutes later when a small cabin came into view.

  As he unlocked the door and shoved her inside, Heidi had to resist the urge to fight back. She looked around the interior of the cabin, searching for another avenue of escape, but she barely got a glimpse of the place before Ryan dragged her across the kitchen and pushed her into the tiny pantry.

  Heidi whirled around to glare at him. “So, what now?” she demanded as she rubbed her arm.

  “You stay in here until you cool down,” Ryan said.

  “Then I’ll be in here a long time,” she said between clenched teeth.

  His mouth tightened. “It doesn’t have to be this way, you know. You could just accept me as your mate.”

  “I already have a boyfriend,” she told him. “And he’s going to come looking for me.”

  Ryan snorted. “I kind of figured he would. This time, I’ll be ready for him, though.”

  She stiffened. “What do you mean?”

  He shrugged. “McCall won’t let you go without a fight. When he comes to your rescue this time, I’m going kill him.”

  Heidi’s heart squeezed in her chest. “Kill him?” she echoed. “Please tell me you’re not serious.”

  “I won’t have you go running off to be with him once my back is turned, Heidi. Which is exactly what you’ll do if he’s around.”

  She shook her head, desperate to change his mind. “But I won’t!” she told him. “I promise I’ll stay with you. Just please don’t hurt Luke.”

  Ryan shook his head. “I’m not going stay here and listen to you beg for that asshole’s life.”

  “Ryan, please—”

  But he had already slammed the door. A moment later, a lock clicked into place.

  Heidi threw herself at the door, pounding on it with her fist. “Ryan, don’t do this! Please!”

  There was no answer.

  Tears stinging her eyes, Heidi thumped her fist against the door with a scream of frustration. “Answer me, damn you!”

  But there was still no sound from the outer room. For all she knew, Ryan could have left the cabin and gone looking for Luke.

  Heidi turned and leaned back against the door with a muffled sob, her breathing ragged. She had to get out of here. But even as she looked around the small pantry, she knew that escape was impossible.

  Chapter 11

  Luke stood outside of the crime tape that surrounded Sukie Teeland’s bike and backpack. A forensic team was going over the area with a fine-tooth comb looking for evidence while cops went up and down the street talking to every neighbor.

  Luke didn’t need a forensic team to tell him that Sukie had been abducted by the same were who had attacked Heidi; his scent was all over the area outside her apartment building. Of course, the cops didn’t know that, so they were wasting hours looking for evidence they were never going to find.

  When he had gotten there over two hours ago, the cops had just arrived. Luke had had just a few minutes to talk to S
ukie’s parents before the cops shuffled them off to start asking questions and taking statements. But it had been enough time for him to see that Anita Teeland and her husband were completely losing their minds. Luke wished he could reassure them that everything was going to be okay, but he couldn’t be certain. He didn’t understand why the other were had taken the girl. Luke had tried to follow the other werewolf’s trail, but it had immediately disappeared in the middle of the road. He had obviously gotten into a vehicle, which meant that Luke couldn’t follow him.

  Luke ran his hand through his hair. Man, Heidi was going to be frantic with worry when she found out that they had been right. Taking out his cell phone, he flipped it open and pushed speed dial, then moved a little away from where Sukie’s parents were talking to the cops so he could have some privacy.

  After several rings, Heidi’s voice mail answered. Luke frowned as he listened to her soft voice ask the caller to leave a message. Why the hell isn’t she answering her phone?

  “Hey, Heidi, it’s me,” he said. “It looks like we were right about Sukie. I’m going to hang around here for a little while and see if someone remembers seeing anything.” He paused and ran his hand through his hair again. “Listen…um…call me, okay?”

  Disconnecting the call, Luke flipped the phone closed and shoved it in the pocket of his jeans. He turned and was about to head back over to where Sukie’s parents were standing when he saw something that made him stop in his tracks.

  Sukie Teeland was hiding behind his Mariner, peeking over the hood and vigorously motioning with her hand for him to go over to her. Luke’s brow furrowed. What the hell?

  Luke glanced over his shoulder to where Sukie’s parents were still talking to the cops. Frown deepening, he jogged over to his SUV. Why the hell is she hiding from her parents?

  From where she was crouched beside the Mariner, Sukie held a finger up to her lips. “Shhh,” she whispered. “Don’t tell anyone I’m here.”

  “What? Why not?” he asked, keeping his voice low.

  “Because I have to help you rescue Heidi,” she said.

  Luke’s gut clenched. “Rescue Heidi? What are you talking about?”