by Lisa M Airey
But, of course she worried. This went beyond her comprehension and knowing. She was in an entirely new reality and it disturbed her greatly. He took her home after breakfast and she took a long, but fitful nap.
That evening, Gray showed up on her doorstep as a wolf. She let him in. “Ready for battle are you?”
Gray peeled back his lips and exposed his fangs.
“Got it.”
She gave him some steak in a bowl, but she placed the bowl on the coffee table instead of the floor. She usually ran a chatty dialogue when her wolf visited. That evening, she was silent and thoughtful while moving throughout the house.
She sat on the floor to watch a movie and he snuggled close, like usual, his head in her lap. She scratched him absentmindedly. If she stopped, he nudged her, as always, urging her to continue her affections.
She showered, slipped into her nightgown and crawled into bed waiting for Big Boy. He had ducked momentarily out of her room, but when he returned, he walked on two legs, not four. She wasn’t exactly surprised by this new honesty. In fact, she had almost expected it. She made room for him in the bed.
“When you are a wolf, do you understand my words? Remember what I say?”
“Yes, I’m me when I’m in wolf form.”
“Your eyes? Do you remember what you see?”
“Of course,” he said. “Why?”
“You’ve seen my naked body lots of times.”
“That’s true,” he said softly. “And I love your body when I look at it with these eyes and with my others.”
“Gray?”
He nuzzled her ear.
“Why is Lync so fixated on me?”
“Probably for the same reason I am?”
“Which is?”
“You pull me.”
“Huh?”
“I’ve wanted you as my mate since the moment I first saw you.”
“Love had nothing to do with it?”
“Oh, there are massive quantities of that now,” he said, tugging on a curl, “but in the beginning, it was a fatal attraction.”
“A fatal attraction?”
“I can’t live without you, Julie.”
The next morning, Gray awoke early and watched over her while she slept. She was pale. He touched her cheek and sighed guiltily at the charcoal smudges beneath her eyes. She awakened slowly as if pulling up from a very deep sleep.
“Good morning,” he murmured. She smiled.
“What is it?” she asked. His face was somber, his jaw set.
“Your ordeal on the mountain is written all over your face, Julie. Even in your sleep you look exhausted and spent.”
She shook her head in dismissal.
“How are you feeling about everything?”
“Okay,” she said. “It took me a while to fall asleep last night. I’ve been doing a lot of thinking.”
“If something starts to eat at you, you need to tell me right away. Don’t worry about hurting my feelings. I need to know where your head is, where your heart is, all right?”
“All right.”
“Promise?”
“I do.”
While she dressed for work, Gray changed back into wolf form. She let him out as she walked to work, wrapping her arms around his massive chest to give him a powerful goodbye hug.
Cole looked up as she walked through the office door Monday morning and did a double take. Despite the rouge and the cover-up, Julie looked shattered and haunted.
“We’ve got a few minutes. Why don’t we talk?” he said in an avuncular manner. Julie joined him wordlessly and took a seat. “What happened this weekend?” Cole asked, handing her a cup of coffee.
She looked up at him, trying desperately to keep control of her emotions. She didn’t know what to say, so she spoke the truth. “Met that tiger in the jungle,” she whispered.
“From the looks of it, the encounter didn’t go so well,” he said softly. She brushed away a tear.
“Have you been hurt, Julie?”
She shook her head no.
“You look very upset.”
She looked at him with a ravaged soul. “I thought I was a tough cookie,” she said, taking a deep and shaky breath.
“You are a tough cookie” They both fell silent, and Cole waited for her to collect herself.
“You know, they teach us that the sky is blue.” She looked out the window. “All our lives we are told that the sky is blue. I see it with my own eyes. But it isn’t really blue, is it? It’s black. Space is black. Our atmosphere is just an illusion.”
“Julie.”
“I’m not handling this new reality very well.”
“What can I do?”
She worked very hard at a smile. “Nothing, Cole, but thank you so much for asking.” She took a ragged breath. “I’ve got some things I need to work out and I’ve got to figure this one out all by myself. I think that I’m over the worst of it. I hope that I’m over the worst of it.” She wiped away another tear. “Right now I’m just trying to get myself back in the saddle, so to speak.”
“Well, young lady, anytime you need a leg-up, you just holler. I’m here to listen too, if you need an ear.”
“I appreciate that.” She expected polite respect, but what she saw was complete understanding. She was rather confused by this. Their eyes met wordlessly.
“I’m right here Julie.”
“Cole?”
“Yes?”
She was so fractured. “I don’t know what to do.”
He waited. “Can you give me a little more to go on?”
“I really like the tiger.”
“Ah. Well, can you like the tiger from a distance? Would that work? You don’t have to go into the jungle if you don’t want to.”
“I’m already in the jungle.”
“Can you get out?”
“I’m not sure. And I’m not sure that I want to get out.”
“What does your heart tell you, Julie?”
“It tells me to hang in there.”
“Then hang in there, okay?”
She nodded.
“Hey,” he said softly. “I happen to know a little bit about tigers. I’ve lived here all my life. You know, I’ve run into a few myself on occasion.”
“I’m not sure that we’re talking about the same thing,” Julie said carefully. “I’m not really talking about tigers.”
“Neither am I,” said Cole meaningfully. “If I’m on the right page, Julie, and I think that I am, I don’t think you need to be afraid of your tiger. You just need to get used to the fact that he’s a tiger. Does that help?”
She nodded mutely.
“Are you afraid of tigers, Cole?”
“The first time I met one, I was terrified,” he admitted. “Now, I have a healthy and cautious respect.”
“I see.”
The front door jingled.
“Why don’t I let you handle surgeries today? Are you up to it?”
“Sure.”
“I don’t want you scaring the two-legged.”
“That bad, huh?”
He put a hand on her shoulder as he walked by and gave her a small squeeze. “You sit here and finish that cup of coffee. I’m going to take all the morning appointments. If you’re up to it, you can deal with people after lunch.”
“You look better,” said Cole, looking her over as he locked up. She brightened a little. “Get some rest tonight.”
She nodded mutely then began her walk home. She usually walked at a fast clip, but not tonight. She didn’t have the energy. She trudged slowly, staring mostly at her feet, lost in thought. She was only dimly aware of a car slowing down beside her.
“Hey beautiful!” She turned and saw Dan Keating’s police cruiser creeping along beside her. He had the passenger window down and was talking to her as he drove. She gave him a little smile, but continued walking.
“You doing all right?”
“Yeah.”
“Doesn’t look like it.”
> “I’m just a bit out of sorts today.”
“Can I tempt you with a visit to the station for some stale coffee and a couple of day-old doughnuts?”
“Officer Keating, you can’t possibly be trying to pick me up in your police cruiser!”
“I am.”
“With an offering of old coffee and stale pastry? Don’t you think you’d have more luck offering a girl wine and roses?”
“Not in your case.”
She laughed.
“Hop in this car, Julie Hastings.”
She stopped walking, undecided, and stared at her feet.
“You know that you are craving a Krispy Kreme. Surrender, woman. Yield to your desire.”
She walked over and got in the car.
“Wow,” he said. “I’m going to revamp my entire pickup strategy.”
“How are you doing, Dan?” She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek then hugged him tightly.
“Fair to middling, but better than you.”
“Oh, I’m all right.”
“Is it Gray?” he asked quietly.
She pulled back and looked out the window, “No.”
He sighed. “Do you play poker, Julie?”
The question surprised her. “No, why?”
“Don’t start. You’d be bankrupt in short order.”
She kept her face averted as they drove, growing more uncomfortable by the minute. “Hey, Dan, perhaps you should just let me out here. I’ll walk home.”
“No. I don’t think that’s such a good idea.”
“Why not?”
“George and I talked today.”
“And?”
“And Gray and I talked today.”
“And?”
“And you and I need to talk today.”
Her heart started to pound. She could feel her face flush with adrenaline, so she shifted her body to stare more pointedly out the window. “The promise of old coffee and stale doughnuts was just a ruse then? Bad police officer!”
He chuckled.
“What did George say?”
“That you have a secret admirer, maybe two.”
“What did Gray say?”
“That you met one of them on your hike on Saturday.”
“You know, there is something to be said for the anonymity of a big city.”
Dan parked the car, walked around and opened her door. “Not in a pig’s eye.”
Her eyes flashed to his as she registered the double entendre. “Come on in, Sweetheart. Welcome to my world.”
When they were inside, he sat her in the cafeteria and pointed at the coffee machine and doughnut boxes. He hadn’t been kidding. The coffee was old. She made fresh. The doughnuts were stale, so she zapped them in the microwave for a few seconds so that she didn’t break a tooth. She hadn’t realized how hungry she was. Dan returned with a fifth of Jack Daniels and spiked her coffee.
“I’d like for you to tell me what happened,” he said.
“I’m really not much in a talking mood,” she replied.
He uncapped the bottle and added more whiskey to her coffee. She pursed her lips, but didn’t make a move to stop him. “Gentleman Jack has a way with the ladies,” he said, wiggling the bottle and ushering her down the empty corridor and into his office. She sat down on his worn corduroy couch and rested her coffee mug on the low table before her.
“So,” he said, taking a chair opposite.
She shrugged.
“I understand you had some unwanted attention at the reservation.”
She nodded.
“Tell me.”
She did.
Dan listened hard. She loved that about him. He had a way of hanging on her every word. That usually made her feel so good about herself, so confident. Tonight, it made her nervous. “I didn’t think much of it,” she lied, “Until I saw him on the mountain.”
“I’d like to talk about what happened on the mountain.”
She swallowed and immediately reached for her coffee. He watched her carefully, noticing the slight tremor in her hands when she set the mug back on the table. “I thought you and Gray spoke about that already.”
“He only could tell me about the events after he arrived. I want to hear about what happened before he arrived.”
“Oh,” she said, and took another sip of coffee.
“Gray said you called him from the trail.”
“Yeah,” she said, and took another sip of coffee.
“He said you were spooked.”
She nodded.
“Julie?”
She looked up.
“I don’t want to play twenty questions.”
She huffed and turned her head. “You are being very official.”
“This is official.”
“Then why did you spike my coffee?”
“It’s also personal.”
“I thought I had the right to be silent.”
“Only if I arrest you. Since I haven’t done that, silence isn’t an option.”
She frowned at him, went to open her mouth then shut it again.
“Julie, another woman was raped and mauled on that mountain on Saturday.”
She stiffened in shock. The horror of it washed over her in a wave. Lync? She felt her stomach rebel. The coffee, Jack Daniels and stale doughnuts weren’t sitting too well.
“I didn’t know.”
“I can see that.”
“Was she local?”
“Yes.”
“Was she Sioux?”
“Yes.”
“Where did it happen?” She had to ask, but she didn’t want to know.
“Before I tell you, I’d like for you to show me where you walked on Saturday.” He unrolled a layout of the park. Its hiking trails were clearly detailed. He uncapped a highlighter and offered it to her.
She glanced up at him then took it. Although her hands were shaking, she was much more certain of her route this time versus last, but the last time she had been lost in the middle of a blizzard. When she finished marking her route, she capped the highlighter and waited.
He laid a transparency overtop the hiking trails. The body was found very close to her path. She closed her eyes. It made no sense. Lync would have had to have attacked the woman before he had attacked her because he had a dislocated shoulder afterwards. How could he have raped and murdered already that morning? He was perfectly composed and neat in dress when she met him.
“What happened on the mountain, Julie?” She couldn’t help herself, she shuddered. “Can you talk about it?”
“Nothing makes any sense,” she said slowly.
“Did you see this woman?” Dan held up a picture.
Julie stared at it a long moment before shaking her head no. “I didn’t hear any sounds of a struggle. No screams.”
“What did you hear?”
“The woods were abnormally quiet.” She swallowed. “I got spooked and called Gray on my cell phone. I asked him to come get me.”
“Where was Gray?”
“He’s building a house above the ridgeline on the other side of the state park. A dump truck had just emptied a load of stone. I could hear all the noise.”
“How long did it take Gray to find you?”
“I don’t know. I’m very confused.”
“Julie? Hear me now. Please. It’s important that you focus because I’m starting to think that you are the real target and these others just happen to be consolation prizes.”
She positively couldn’t think a coherent thought. She tried to bolt for the door, but he grabbed her upper arm in a vice grip and pulled her back towards him. She wrestled with him briefly, but he just wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close.
“Talk to me Julie,” he said fiercely, rocking her slowly in his arms.
She trembled silently while he held her and he murmured soft, unintelligible words against her curls. “Were you assaulted?”
“No.”
He pulled back from her to look into her e
yes. Finding truth, he nodded with relief.
“But you were threatened on the trail?”
She stilled as she thought about what to say and he watched her war with herself. He was accustomed to watching a suspect disassociate truth from the adjusted truth they cared to share. It was rare from a victim.
“Julie.” He dropped his arms, his hands searching for hers. “I have three dead. Each and every one suffered before they died. Good people. Innocent people. They have suffered. I need you to talk to me. I need you to tell me everything, even if it doesn’t make sense, especially if it doesn’t make sense. I need to stop this.”
She slowly dropped her head onto his shoulder. He could feel her soften physically with… release?...relief?
“Speak to me. Please.”
“The forest got very quiet,” she said. Her voice came out dry and deep. “It was silent. I can’t begin to explain how eerie it was. The birds stopped singing. The insects. There was a total absence of sound. I was on edge even before I realized why.” She paused, remembering. “Then, I became very aware, so aware I could hear my own blood circulate through my body. It was as if all my senses were heightened.” She swallowed. “My skin tingled, my ears began to ring. I could smell a hundred different scents on the wind. I knew something was in the forest. I could feel it. It was hunting.” She looked him straight in the eye. “It was hunting me.”
“There was no sound?”
“Not at that moment,” she said. “I stood frozen in place for… I don’t know how long. When I finally took a step and started to move back on up the trail, I heard something off in the bushes to my left.”
“What did you hear?” he reached for her hands and held them firmly.
She shuddered. “An animal. It was furtive and four-legged. But big. And it was tracking me.” She shuddered again.
“Did you see it?”
“No, not even a shadow. Not even a glimpse. I couldn’t figure out what it was. It was heavy, but quick. I couldn’t make sense of it.”
“Your wolf wasn’t with you that day?”
“No. Every now and again, he doesn’t show up.”
“You said it was tracking you?”
“Yes, most definitely.” A little tremor wracked her. “It moved when I moved, stopped when I stopped, sped up when I did. I felt very threatened.”