by Lisa M Airey
Elliott and Julie were the last to arrive at the bar. The band had already set up the stage and were clustered around a pizza box in the back room.
“Howdy, guys!” Julie chirped as she dropped her gear.
They rounded on her in one swift and choreographed movement, their cheeks bearing bright streaks of red lipstick. “How!” they replied, their palms raised in salute.
Julie groaned.
“How did you like sleeping in a wigwam?” asked George.
“It was like camping, but more… organic. So kind of you to ask.”
“How do you like your new relatives? All 70,000 of them?” asked Petey.
“The more the merrier,” said Julie.
“How did you like kissing a buffalo bladder?” queried Ro-Bear.
She held up a hand, “How would y’all like to shut the hell up? My tomahawk is getting thirsty for pig and at the rate y’all are goin’, I’m going to feed it!”
“Damn! Seventy-two hours with the Sioux and she’s already gone savage on us,” said George.
“All right guys, enough,” said Elliott. “Tonto here has to change into her buckskins.”
Julie couldn’t think of a sassy rejoinder, so she just spun on her heel and grabbed her garment bag.
“You know, Elliott,” said Petey, “I’ve been thinking.”
“That’s new and different, isn’t it boys?” said Julie to no one. She heard a few snickers.
Petey ignored her. “Perhaps we ought to incorporate a little Cher into our song list. I’ve always liked Half-breed and Jesse James.”
“How about Tim MacGraw’s Indian Outlaw? I’ve always been partial to that one,” added George.
She left them to their teasing and found the ladies room. She was going to have her little victory tonight. She had a new outfit. It was a short little golden sheath with red beads sewn onto the fabric and it finished in a soft golden fringe that fell mid-thigh. There was only one shoulder strap, the other shoulder was bare. Her high heels were lethal weapons. She stepped back from the mirror with a small smile.
She put gold tassel earrings into her ears, tucked a large gold cloisonné hairpiece midst her curls then added gold bangles to her right wrist.
She re-entered the back room to stunned silence and slack jaws. “What?” she asked coyly. “Have you never seen a squaw in a beaded dress before?”
As they loaded up their cars with their instruments and amplifiers, Julie pulled George aside.
“Hey, I’ve got a question for you.”
“Shoot.”
“That young Sioux that was so anxious to meet me a while ago?”
“Yeah?”
“Did he seem nice like a fan? Or was he more threatening? You know, a bit of the dangerous sort?”
“Why do you ask?”
“Well, I ran into a guy at the reservation this past weekend and he watched me intently. But not in a good way. It’s probably nothing. Gray said the man was just jealous because he did not have a guest of his own for the ceremony.”
“What did he look like?”
“He was a little taller than me, muscular, but built like a runner or a swimmer. Brown eyes. High, flat cheekbones. His hair was shoulder-length with bangs that were cut diagonally so that one eye was often hidden behind his hair.”
“Did Gray know him?”
“Yeah. Gray knows everybody.”
“What did Gray say?”
“He told me to stay clear of the guy, that he was trouble.”
“Sounds like good advice to me.”
“Do you think it’s the same guy?”
George shrugged. “Hard to say. Every Sioux I know has brown eyes and high cheekbones. The young man I dealt with had his hair in a long braid.”
“Well then, it’s obviously not the same guy.”
George scratched his shoulder absently then ran a hand through his hair. The barber had taken it a little short today. The cut was almost army issue.
“Penny for your thoughts?”
He smiled. “I’m much more expensive than that, Julie.”
“How about a nickel?”
“How about you let me puzzle this one through? He hasn’t threatened you, right?”
“Not really,” she said slowly.
He frowned. “Well, why don’t you ride off into the sunset. I’ll explore our options.”
“Meaning?”
“Go home, get some rest. Don’t worry.”
29
Julie was hiking the mountain at a good clip, especially considering the extra weight she was carrying. She switched the picnic basket from her left arm to her right. A backpack would have been more practical, but she had opted for romantic. The picnic hamper had been an expensive whimsy.
Her Saturday hike was taking her straight through the state park en route to Gray’s building site. She smiled softly thinking of wrap-around porches, big kitchens and her big Sioux.
She stopped abruptly frowning into the silence. The birds had stopped singing. She listened hard. Nothing. The lack of sound was disconcerting.
A cool breeze rustled the leaves softly. Rustle. Rustle.
She nearly jumped out of her skin. Something big was moving through the underbrush off to her left. She froze and listened hard. Nothing. Her chest tightened. With quiet footfall, she made her way forward. Just the wind. Just the wind. Maybe a squirrel. Goodness knows that a mouse can sound like an elephant if it scampers across dry leaves and bracken.
Rustle. Rustle.
Her heart skipped. Off to her left. Bigger than a squirrel. Definitely bigger than a squirrel. She glanced nervously into the foliage, but could see nothing. She stopped again and listened.
Silence.
She started forward once more. She could hear it, whatever it was. When she stopped, it stopped. It was pacing her. She reached into her pocket and pulled out her cell phone. With relief she saw that she had signal. She dialed Gray.
He answered on the first ring. “Gray?”
He could hear her panic and fear. “Are you on the trail?”
“Yes.”
“I’m on my way.”
She snapped her phone shut and with another nervous glance around her, she started back up the mountain. She walked much faster now and she held to the far right side of the path. The animal was also tracking faster. She could hear it moving swiftly through the woods. It came from behind, drew level to her, then raced forward, always out of sight. A four-legged something. Not a bear. The feet were swift and sure.
She drew a deep breath and tried to slow her pounding pulse. It had moved on and away from her. She hesitated now. It had moved off in the direction she needed to go.
She deliberated. Stay? Go? Stay? Go?
She stood stock still for a few minutes trying to make a decision, her ears straining to hear for more movement in the underbrush. She hugged herself. All she could hear was the fast hammering of her own heartbeat.
She looked down at her picnic hamper. Food in the woods. She’d never considered that a danger before. Perhaps she should re-think the wisdom of such a thing. She started up the path again. If the animal returned, she’d ditch the hamper and move on without it. She rounded the corner and stifled a scream.
“Did I scare you?” Lync said with a calm that irritated and angered her. He wore a white Izod shirt and jeans. You could tell from his GQ pose that he liked the way he looked in his clothes.
“You speak?” She cocked an eyebrow. “I thought you only stared and growled.”
“That was your boy that growled, not me,” he said with a smile. “You look like Little Red Riding Hood off for a visit to grandmother’s house with that basket of yours.”
She just glared at him.
“Aren’t you afraid of meeting up with the Big Bad Wolf, little girl?”
“No,” she said tersely. “I happen to like wolves.” She started on her way again and he fell in step alongside her.
“No surprise there, seeing as you’re dating one.”
The comment took her by surprise and she stopped and stared at him. “Now, what the hell is that supposed to mean?” she asked, wondering if there was such a thing as ‘dislike at first sight’.
He studied her face for a moment, lost in thought. Then his eyes grew wide and gleeful. “You don’t know, do you?”
“Know what?”
“You don’t know!”
“What are you talking about?” She was really getting irritated now.
“You’re seeing Gray.”
“Yes,” she said, frowning at him. “We’re a couple.” He leaned in close and sniffed.
“I beg your pardon,” she said, pushing him away from her.
“No, you’re not,” he said, a smooth smile spreading across his face.
She wanted to smack it off of him. “Not what?”
“A couple.”
“The hell we’re not.”
“Oh, he’s been marking his territory, all right.” He sniffed again. “But he hasn’t staked his claim.” She went to push him away again, but he grabbed her wrist with a wicked chuckle and refused to release it.
She tried to free herself from his grasp, but his grip was unusually strong. In exasperation, she looked up at him ready to unleash a torrent of expletives, but the words died on her lips. He was very still, too still. His eyes were watchful and intent, like a hunter, like a predator. Her stomach turned.
“I want you.” He said it quietly. A simple statement of fact.
“I am with Gray,” she said, trying to be composed and confident, but her hands had already turned to ice.
“Not now, you’re not.”
In the silence, she heard a thundering. Her heart? The staccato was fast and furious. Then, as one, both of their heads turned in the same direction. Barreling down the trail was her wolf, teeth bared. He launched himself at Lync going directly for the jugular.
Julie screamed long and loud.
Suddenly, Lync was gone. She fell backwards as his hand released her and landed in the dirt, her scream shifting from one of terror to one of surprise as she fell flat on her back.
She scrambled to her feet in a panic, trying to put as much distance between herself and the snapping jaws as possible. Big Boy was viciously tearing into another wolf and both seemed to be ripping apart men’s clothing. She scanned the clearing for Lync. The white Izod and blue jeans were in shreds. The man was nowhere to be seen. Her mind slowly began to wrap itself around what was happening.
A shoe got kicked to the tree line. She stared at it stupidly then looked back at the flying fur and flashing teeth. Lync was indeed in the clearing, he just wasn’t Lync any longer.
“Oh. My. God.” She said the words, but no sound escaped her lips. The two animals growled at each other in menacing challenge and ripped at each other’s hides, their teeth searching for purchase. Her eyes searched for a weapon. She rushed into the tree line and found a thick stick, but her hands were shaking so badly, it took her three tries to pick it up.
The savagery of the fight was turning her stomach. The wolves’ jaws clacked together loudly, forcefully when they contacted nothing but air. Worse was the sickening thud and wretched ripping as those jaws contacted flesh.
The two beasts broke apart, circling each other, their lips curled into hateful snarls. Suddenly Big Boy lunged. He sank his teeth deep into the throat of the smaller wolf and shook viciously, tossing the animal around like a rag doll. The smaller wolf twisted frantically, desperate in his effort to break free. Big Boy just locked his jaws and bore the smaller wolf to the ground.
There was only one wolf growling now and the growl was that of a victor. When the smaller wolf went limp, Big Boy released him.
That was a mistake.
With lightening speed, the smaller animal broke free, spun around and attacked her wolf head on. Julie shrieked as Big Boy took the bite on his shoulder, but instead of trying to wrest free, her wolf lunged again, this time catching the smaller wolf’s right fore-leg between its jaws. He bit down and wrenched the appendage viciously. Julie heard the ball joint pop out of its socket as the foreleg dislocated from the shoulder.
There was a yelp of surprise and a broken whimper as the two animals separated once again. The smaller one was beaten and bloody. It swayed on its feet and limped off unsteadily into the forest. Big Boy stared after him twitching with adrenaline, his hackles raised. Then he pivoted slowly toward Julie.
She shuddered as his eyes found hers. ‘Kill’ was still written all over his savage face. He was covered in blood. As he walked toward her, she backed away. Big Boy stopped his advance, sat on his haunches and whimpered, then took another tentative step toward her.
She bolted backwards and slammed right into a tree. Before she had time to react, her wolf was by her side licking her hand.
She looked at his shoulder. It was bleeding from a vicious series of puncture wounds. She looked back at the tangle of clothing in the clearing and started to shake. It all happened so fast. There was Lync. Then, there was a wolf in Lync’s clothing.
She trembled violently. And where was Gray?
Big Boy nuzzled her arm, commanding touch. She ignored him. He nuzzled her again.
She did not respond.
He touched her cheek with his cold nose then darted off into the woods.
A few minutes later, Gray crouched down beside her. He was naked. Julie looked at the blood streaming from a vicious series of puncture wounds on his left shoulder and they locked eyes.
“I don’t understand,” she said.
“I could…” He swallowed. “I could try to explain.”
She looked at him, her eyes large and fearful. She nodded and he placed a tentative hand to her elbow. When she didn’t pull away, he helped her up. He stared down at her, his face full of concern. Tenderly, he wiped away the tears that were cascading down her cheeks. She released a broken sob and closed her eyes.
“You’re naked,” she said stupidly.
“Shhhh,” he said softly and pulled her into his arms. “It’s going to be okay.” He held her tightly while she cried.
“He was going to—”
“No,” he stopped her. “No. Don’t think about that.” But Gray was thinking about that. Lync was no longer a nuisance. Lync was a problem.
“You… you… ”she stammered. “Are you…” She didn’t know how to form the question and she shuddered again violently.
“Let’s talk about that a little later, okay?” Her body convulsed again, racked by emotion and he worried that she was slipping into shock.
“But you’re a wolf,” she said brokenly, and she started to sob again in earnest.
“Julie, listen to me,” Gray said softly. “I need you to take a deep breath. Please. Deep breath. Can you do that for me?”
She tried.
“Come on.”
She tried again. He led her over to a fallen log and leaned against it, pulling her into his arms again. He mussed her hair and nuzzled her neck and rubbed her back until she got control of her emotions. They were quiet for a long time.
The silence became a soft, cottony cushion that surrounded them both. She became aware of the breeze, faint and cool. She smelled the rich, mossy undergrowth and the sharp, clean scent of chlorophyll. Her tears had dried. In fact, she thought she might be salted to Gray’s chest.
“I think I’m tear-dried to you,” she mumbled. He lifted her face and searched it.
She was a wreck.
“I’m not like Lync,” he said carefully.
She nodded.
“I won’t hurt you.”
She nodded again.
He stood her upright, crossed the clearing, rooted through the picnic basket and removed the tablecloth. He wrapped it around his waist.
“I apologize,” he said softly then he picked up the picnic basket. He hefted it. “What’s in this thing?” he asked, trying to re-introduce a little normalcy.
“Dinner and a bottle of wine.”
“
And you carted this all the way up here?”
She nodded. “It was starting to get a little heavy.”
He switched the basket to his left hand and extended his right. She walked toward him automatically and placed her hand in his. They started up the trail in silence, Julie never more conscious of his touch. They were headed up the trail, not down the trail. They were headed up. He took the fork towards his hunting cabin. She swallowed. She wanted to go home. Home was down. There was ringing in her ears.
“I don’t feel so good,” she said, stopping. A wave of dizziness washed over her and she weaved. He held her again as a shudder wracked her slender frame. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t apologize,” he said, hugging her to him. She was stiff and unresponsive in his arms. He could feel her quaking and he held her until she stilled. When she was in control again, they trudged on. It felt like an eternity until his cabin came into view.
She was sweaty and edgy and still quite light-headed. All she could focus upon was her hand. She wanted him to release her. A few times, she had tried to wriggle free, but he just gave her a reassuring squeeze and held on tight. He wasn’t paying attention. She wanted him to let go, not hold on. He tugged her to the cabin door and gently muscled her in.
He nudged her toward the bed, but she took a kitchen chair instead and put her head between her knees. He wet a washcloth and handed it to her.
“I’m a little thirsty,” she said, holding the cold compress to her face. He was back quickly with a glass of water.
“You should lie down.”
“I’m fine.”
“Julie.”
“I’m fine. Really.”
“Would you like to wash?”
“Oh,” she said. “Yes.” She moved to the hand pump and he gave her a solid stream of water while she scrubbed her face, neck, arms and hands.
“Better?” he asked.
“Much.”
“Please, lie down. I’ll warm up some dinner.”
She didn’t want to lie down, but she honestly didn’t feel like she had the strength to even keep herself upright in a chair. She let him guide her to his bed and remove her shoes. He tucked her in like a child.
“Rest, okay?”
She nodded, closed her eyes and fell into the welcoming arms of sleep.