Guardian of Lone Wolf Peak

by Evelyn Winters

  She finally managed to get herself together, mind still floating within that veil of disbelief. She left. She had actually left. She let the surge of anger, as powerful as a tidal wave, carry her right out the front door. She had never felt such a contrary mix of emotions as the ones she was feeling now: strong, but vulnerable, terrified, but free, exhilarated, but exhausted.

  She still had to figure out where she was going to go and she didn’t have long before Harvey actually managed to drag himself to a phone and call the police. She needed to be as far away from the greater Seattle area as she could by then and she knew only one person who she could trust to help her.

  “Miss?” The truck driver prodded. “Do you want that ride or not?”

  Kira pushed herself up, fingers scraping against the rough bark of the lodgepole. She dusted off the thin layer of snow that had gathered on her jacket and walked up to the idling semi.

  “I think I would.” She said and helped him push open the heavy passenger side door. A wave of heated air rushed out of the cab to meet her, melting the flakes of snow clinging to her hair and eyelashes. She grabbed his offered hand, it was dry and cracked with age, and let him pull her up into the cab of his truck.

  The snow continued to fall in flurries, blanketing the trees and the sloping rise of the mountains around her. Within a few seconds, her footprints had vanished and the only evidence that Kira had ever been there at all, were a pair of taillights fading into the stormy chasm of the mountain road.

  Chapter 2

  The man sitting behind the steering wheel is Robert Morris, or Bob as he instructed her to call him. He gave her several appreciative glances since she climbed inside the cab, but so far has respected her personal space. His silver hair is longer than she thought, slicked back and tied at the neck. His face is handsome in that older way, weathered by age, but with a strong jaw and classically handsome features underneath. He was wearing a checkered red and grey flannel and a pair of faded Levi’s that were rucked up over his work boots. He seemed like he was trying not to pry, but Kira could tell he was curious.

  “Where did you say you were headed?” He asked.

  “The Lone Wolf Peak Ranger Station.” She said. “I have a friend who works there, I’m supposed to meet them tonight.” She added. It was only half true. Chloe said one of her brothers worked there and that he would take her to the cabin.

  “Lone Wolf Peak?” He asked, puzzled. “What in the world would you want to go up there for?”

  “To meet my friend. I’m going to be staying with them for a while.” She answered.

  “You better be careful up there.” He told her. “Lots of strange things happen out there.”

  “What do you mean by strange?” She questioned.

  He shrugged one shoulder. “Lot’s of people go missing up there, that’s all I’m saying. Well, and there was the Nelson Massacre.” He said casually.

  “The Nelson Massacre?” She asked.

  “A man, Oliver Nelson, well see, he had a mine up there in the gold rush days. He was working the land pretty hard, had just about 40 workers, and they’d come on down into town every Saturday. Well, wasn’t too long and they started skipping Saturdays. Now, first the townsfolk, they started thinking that maybe they finally struck gold up there and they was too busy to come down into town. Well, one Saturday led to another and another and pretty soon they started thinking they better send someone up to check on them. There could have been a nasty cave in, you know?”

  “Sure.” She agreed.

  “Well now, they send up a couple of boys to go check and pretty soon they were tearing back down the mountain and into town. They weren’t prepared none for what they were going to see.” He said.

  “And what did they see?” She asked.

  “Now, what they saw when they got up there, was nearly 40 men ripped to pieces.” He continued.

  “And when you say ripped to pieces…You mean?”

  “I mean ripped apart. It wasn’t like anything they had ever seen. They got the lawman up there and he couldn’t figure out what had happened anymore than anyone else had. The miners drove the big predators out years ago. Ain’t no wolves or bears up there despite the name. There weren’t no animal tracks neither, only a pair of bare, human feet leading back into the woods. They blamed the Indians, of course, even though there weren’t any of them either. Gold rush drove them all away years and years before any of this happened.” He said.

  “Well…” She wasn’t sure how to respond to that. “I’m sure I’ll be fine. I don’t plan on doing any hiking. I’m just going to the ranger’s station.” She said.

  “Oh, of course, of course you will. Just strange land is all.” He said and they lapse into silence together. The snow streaming past the window looks like shooting stars and she closes her eyes to make a wish. Please let me get to the ranger’s station, please let me be happy. She keeps her eyes closed and tries not to concentrate on the way her shoulder throbs at every dip or hump in the road. Chloe had given her some Advil and a brace if she needed it, but both those things were tucked away inside her backpack. She knew that Chloe would help her. Chloe was her best friend, her only friend really.

  Relief washed over her when she heard Chloe’s groggy voice in her ear. She was already on the road to her house when she was struck by the terrible realization that Chloe might not even be there. She thought she remembered her saying something about a party in Tacoma but she didn’t remember when.

  But here was her voice, muttering sleepily into her ear. “This had better be good, Kee, I just got to sleep and somehow I’m drunk and hung over.”

  “I need your help, Chlo.” She said and she must have sounded even worse than she thought she did, because when Chloe answered she sounded awake and fully alert.

  “What’s wrong? What happened? Shit, are you okay, babe?”

  “I’m in the car, in his car, I’m heading to your place.” Her voice cracked as she fought down the sobs threatening to erupt. “I left Harvey’s place, for good. Fuck, Chlo, I stole his car.” The profanity slipped past her lips and she instinctively flinched, conditioned to hear Harvey bellowing after her. He didn’t think a woman should use profanity. It wasn’t ladylike. It’s how whores spoke. But no reprimand came and the silence was enough to have those sobs wracking her body, her fingers clenched tight around the steering wheel like it was the only thing keeping her anchored to this earth.

  “Oh baby, don’t cry.” She crooned into the phone. “This was overdue. I’ve been telling you since you turned 18 to get away from that piece of shit. And don’t worry about stealing his crappy car. Just focus on getting over here in one piece and I’ll totally help you figure out the rest.”

  “I can get there.” She said, with her sobs now under control there was only a little tremor to her voice. “But…It’s even worse than that, the car, I mean. Chlo, I think I have to leave town.”

  “Sh, we won’t talk about that now, not over the phone. Just get here and I’ll do the rest.” Chloe reassured her and when she spoke again, her voice was so sweet with kindness, it sounded like her mouth was dripping honey. “You did the right thing calling me first and I’m so glad you did, babe. Everything’s going to be okay.” That brought a new flood of tears spilling down her cheeks, she was barely coherent enough to say her goodbyes and toss her phone on the passenger seat before she got pulled over for using a cellphone while driving.

  Chloe Woods was the type of girl that Kira normally never would have seen herself befriending. She was a beautiful, charismatic brunette with an ankle tattoo and purple dyed stripes in her hair. She wore ripped jeans and converse, popped her gum behind the teachers backs and never seemed to feel any shame when she inevitably wound up in detention. She drank beer from the bottle, egged the principals house on Halloween, and dumped an entire container of dishwashing liquid in the city fountain. The streets had been filled with bubbles for hours and instead of being scared to get caught, she stayed at the scene of the crime
, having bubble fights with Kira until they had laughed so hard they could barely move, let alone breath. And she was the only person Kira had ever met that had yellow, cat-like eyes.

  Kira envied her confidence. Chloe was the woman Kira wanted to be. Free from shame, free from fear, if anyone told her she was acting unladylike it was a toss up to see if she gave them the middle finger or just laughed them out of the room. She didn’t care what anyone’s expectations were, she lived her life how she wanted to live it. Maybe that’s why they became friends, maybe Chloe was able to see Kira for what she was from the very beginning: lost.

  They met their senior year. Chloe was new in town, 18 already and living on her own. When Kira asked her about it, she just told her that her parents were shitty and that had been that. She had a large family, she was the youngest. All the rest were boys, her brothers. She didn’t talk about them much. Most of their conversations were limited to Chloe’s opinion on Harvey and what she thought Kira should be doing about it.

  The familiar peeling, white paint of Chloe’s front porch rose to greet her as she pulled the car up the sloping driveway. Chloe was waiting on the porch, giving the neighbors a show in one of her old boyfriend’s band shirts and nothing else but a pair of fuzzy black slippers with little painted cat claws on the toes. She hopped down the stairs and pulled her into a tight hug as soon as Kira got out of the car.

  “Oh babe, you look awful. You’re even paler than usual, I think you could glow in the dark.” Chloe teased, but Kira wasn’t in the mood for her jokes.

  “Not now, Chlo, I’m just too tired…” She said and she meant it. Once the adrenaline had worn off, exhaustion had settled in her bones.

  “It’s going to be okay, babe.” She repeated and took Kira into the house. She poured her a cup of hot coffee and sat with her at the dingy dining room table while Kira shared her story. As Kira was re-living the fight on the stairs, Chloe got up and poured a generous portion of whiskey into her coffee cup. She just shrugged when Kira sent her a ‘look’, urging her to drink it.

  “Seems to me like you could use it, that’s all.” She said and encouraged her to finish her tale. When Kira was finished, Chloe slammed both hands down on the table, hot coffee sloshed over the rim of her cup, staining the already mottled surface. “That bastard got what was coming to him, Kee, and nothing more.” She said, yellow eyes blazing with a fire that usually erupted whenever they discussed Harvey.

  “I really doubt that’s what the cops will say when they track me down.” Kira muttered.

  Chloe simply shrugged. “Then they won’t find you. Simple as that. I know the perfect place for you to hide out.”

  Kira stared resolutely down at her hands folded together on the tabletop, picking at a broken nail. “I don’t know, maybe I shouldn’t run. Won’t that just make things worse in the long run?” She asked weakly. All her newfound confidence seemed to have left her after the rest of the anger faded. “It’s my fault anyway, I was the one that started it. If I go back now, I might have a chance to fix things before the police get involved.”

  “I’m not going to let you talk like that! Jesus, we’ve been friends for almost three years now, Kee, you think I’d let you run straight back to that house after you finally got away? Don’t fucking count on it, babe. And if I hear you try to tell me one more time how this was your fault or that you can’t leave your mom, I’m going to have to punch you myself. Maybe it’d knock some sense into you.” She said harshly then sighed and covered Kira’s hands with one of her own. When she spoke again, her voice was soft, gentle. “It wasn’t your fault, just like none of the other fights were ever your fault. And your mom is a grown woman, babe, she makes her own choices, just like you made yours. You left. You can’t take it back. We just have to move forward now.”

  She had to look away from Chloe’s kind and urgent expression. Another sob was building in her throat, so she cleared it, tucking her hands into her lap. Chloe was right and she told her as much.

  “But I have to get out of the city.” Kira said. “I can’t stay here.”

  “No, you can’t.” Chloe answered. “But like I said, I have the perfect place to send you. You do have a passport right?” She asked and Kira nodded her head slowly.

  “But I don’t have the kind of money for a plane ticket.” She told her.

  “No, you wouldn’t.” Chloe agreed. “But lucky for you, we don’t live that far from the Canadian border.”

  “Are you serious?” She asked incredulously. “I don’t know anything about Canada. I wouldn’t know where to go or what to do for work. Don’t they all speak French up there anyway?”

  Chloe rolled her eyes. “You know I’m Canadian, right? You’ll be fine because you won’t be alone. My brothers work the ranger station at Lone Wolf Peak, it’s on Vancouver Island. They can take you to the family cabin. It’s big, there’s plenty of room for you there and it’s secluded. And you want to know the best part?”

  “What?”

  “It’s unlisted. No one’s going to find you there. They run the electric by a generator and everything. No one ever goes out there, just my brothers and I.” She said.

  “I don’t know…”

  “No, this is perfect and my brothers won’t mind.” She wagged her brows. “They’re pretty hurt for any company.”

  Kira smacked at her arm over the table. “Quit it, I’m not going to-not with one of your brothers! Gross.”

  Chloe burst into laughter, Kira succumbing to the giggles after a breath. When they calmed down, she was staring at her with earnest, wide eyes. “But you will go, right? I swear they won’t mind and I can come up in a few weeks to see how you’re doing.”

  “Okay, I don’t have much choice anyway.” She said steadily.

  “Yes! You won’t regret it, I promise.” Chloe squealed and leaned over the table to drag her into an uncomfortable, hard hug.

  With her coffee drank and a couple extra items shoved into her backpack by her friend, Kira backed down the driveway and began to drive away from the only place she had ever felt truly safe. She guided her stolen car onto the interstate and tried not to act too suspicious whenever she passed a police car. The sun was a bright, glinting smear in her rear window, the light fading fast, as if the universe itself was trying to aide her escape.

  “Miss?” Bob caught her attention, guiding his truck carefully to the side of the empty, snow packed road. “This is as far as I can take you.” He told her and leaned over her to open the passenger side door. A lone road rose to meet her, lined with towering trees on either side. The mountain was blanked by such thick growth that the road itself looked like a gash; a wound carved up the mountainside.

  She was hesitant to leave the warm cocoon of the truck cab. “Do you know how far the station is from here?” She asked.

  “Well now, the way I see it, you’re a pretty lucky gal, miss. The station isn’t too far up the mountain. Just a couple of miles up that road. The snow must be getting pretty thick up there, I reckon. Now, are you sure you want to get off here? I could drive you up to the next town.” He said.

  “No, no.” She said quickly. “I’ll be all right. If I jog it, it should keep me warm. Thank you for all your help. You’ve been very kind.” She said sincerely.

  “You just look after yourself, miss. I sure do hope you get to wherever you’re going and that whoever you’re meeting is going to treat you well.” He said.

  She thanked him again and started up the mountain road before she could watch him drive away. She was worried she might run after him if she did. The sounds of his truck faded and then she was truly alone. Alone in the dark, with snow already up to her knees, struggling to follow a road that climbed up the mountain. It was dark and snowy enough that she couldn’t even see the mountain besides a general dark and formidable shadow against the cloudy sky.

  She was wet and cold and starting to wonder if she hadn’t made a terrible mistake getting out of Bob’s truck. She was sure she hadn’t even made it
a mile up the road yet and the snow was nearly up to her thighs. She was exhausting herself each struggled step she made. Her heart was racing in her chest and not just from the exercise, it became clear to her then that she might die here, stuck in the snow. Dying of exposure, isn’t that what people called it? Bob had tried to warn her about the mountain, but she hadn’t listened. Now it seemed she would be its next victim.

  A wolf’s cry, long and piercing, broke through the silence of the forest. It sounded lonely. Hot tears fell from her eyes and froze to her cheeks before she could bring a hand up to wipe them. The wolf cried out again and this time she answered it.

  “Help!” She screamed the word as loudly as she could, wedged in her snow packed prison, unable to free her wet, numb legs from their last entrapment.

  It seemed someone must have been listening, if not the wolf because the next thing she saw were headlights coming down the mountain. She waved her arms and screamed and cried, but this time in joy. When the large jeep finally made its way to where she was stuck, four of the most handsome strangers she had ever seen spilled out from within. They were tall, with muscular frames, tousled hair, and chiseled jawlines covered with just enough scruff to make desire flicker in her belly despite her circumstances. Her eyes bounced from one man to the other, noticing immediately and with dismay, that they all shared the same yellow eyes, twin to Choe’s. What have I gotten myself into? Was her first thought, the next being: I’m going to kill Chloe.

  Chapter 3

  Apparently, Chloe had not only called ahead for her like she had promised, but she also kept calling. When Kira didn’t arrive by Chloe’s estimated time, she made it a point to send her brothers out looking for her. And thank God she did, I nearly died. Now, she was sandwiched in the back of the jeep between Chloe’s two youngest brothers. Benjamin, or Benji as the others called him, was a boisterous 18-year-old with a halo of golden hair to match his golden eyes and a face that appeared set in a permanent grin and always seemingly on the verge of melodious laughter.