by Renee George
Instead of going to talk to Luke, as I'd planned, I ran to Cal. When he saw me, his rage dissolved from his face. I held out my hand. He took it.
I blocked out everyone around us. Anything to keep his eyes locked on mine. "Yes," I told him. "Yes. I'll run with you, but only if we go now."
Cal blinked, the distended veins in his neck flattening as some of the tension uncoiled from him. He nodded. "Let's go."
And so, we ran.
Chapter Six
The Corman's woods were only about a hundred feet behind the house. Cal held my hand, dragging me along with him until we hit the tree line. He stripped his t-shirt over his head when we stopped, and my mouth dropped open in pure yummy awe.
The corner of his mouth tugged into a pleased smile. "Are you planning to wear your clothes when you shift?"
I wasn't normally shy about nudity, but Cal Rivers made my body react in ways that made me self-conscious. I looked back to the Corman house. "You know, Luke and his buddies are probably gone now. We can go back."
Cal pulled his t-shirt through a belt loop in his jeans and walked over. He touched my cheek with the back of his fingers and stared down at me, his eyes reflecting the moon through the trees. "Why are you afraid?"
His question surprised me. "I'm not."
He dropped his hand to his side. "Then what's the problem?"
"We're too different from one another." I couldn't meet his gaze as I said the next part. "Some people just shouldn't be together." Like wolves and deers.
"I like you, Dakota. The first time I saw you, that morning before the Smith wedding, I thought you were the prettiest woman I'd ever laid eyes on. I think you like me, too. Or do I have that wrong? If I do, tell me, and I'll leave you be."
"I like you, too," I said. Gah! Why? I should have lied and lied hard. It would've had been easier to tell him he was wrong. It would have ended this flirtation between Cal and me, and all the problems that came with it. I could've gone back to my quiet uneventful life where men fought over women like my sister Michele and not women like me. "But--"
Cal smiled. "I'll take it." He reached and unbuttoned the top button on his jeans. "Why don't we run tonight, and whatever happens, happens?"
I chuckled when I saw his superhero boxer briefs. "Are you planning on leaping tall buildings in a single bound?"
He grinned. "If it means I get to be close to you."
"And are you faster than a speeding bullet?"
He touched a round scar on his shoulder. "Not usually." When I frowned, he added, "You should see the other guy."
I felt a mixture of wariness and curiosity. "You've been shot before."
"On the job," he said. He shook his head. "Four years in the army, two spent on tour in the Middle East, I never once took a hit. But less than a year with the highway patrol, and I was shot by a guy who I'd pulled over for going seventy-eight in a sixty-five."
"You were a police officer?" And he was in the military, as well. I touched his scar. "Dangerous work."
"Yes," he said. "Your brother's a deputy, right?"
"Yeah, but we're a small town. He knows almost everyone in the area, and therians know there is a different set of rules for us when it comes to violent acts."
"Like tonight? Luke didn't seem worried in the least about bringing a small mob to come after me."
"I'm sorry about him. He's harmless, honest." I slid my hand absently down Cal's arm, his biceps as big around as my head. I smiled as I thought about the Red Ridinghood story my mother used to read to me.
"What?" Cal asked.
"My, my, what big arms you have."
"The better to hold you with, my dear," Cal said without missing a beat. He slid his arm around my waist and held me close. The hair on his chest tickled my chin as I craned my neck back to look up at him. With his free hand, he caressed my cheek.
"I feel like you've used that line a time or two." I tried not to dwell on the fact that the superhero bulge was pressed against my stomach.
He chuckled, and desire wound through me.
"Maybe," he said. "Is it working?"
"Maybe," I replied. I pressed my palm against his chest. The intense heat of his skin traveled up my arm and filled me with warmth.
"I've never met anyone quite like you, Dakota."
"I find that hard to believe."
"It's true."
"You don't even know me," I told him. I wasn't oblivious enough to think I wasn't pretty. After all, I am my mother's daughter, and deer shifters tended toward a delicate beauty not seen in other therians, but there was nothing else special about me. I wasn't smart like Emma Ray or wild like Michele. Hell, even my youngest sister Lisa was braver than me. "I'm ordinary."
"I can see you believe that," Cal said.
"Because it's true." I leaned my forehead against his chest. "I'm a safe choice."
"A guy just tried to kick my ass because of you. Hardly seems safe to me." He stroked my hair. "Now, you're either going to have to take off your clothes, or I'm going to have to put mine back on." When I gave him a startled look, he added, "My wolf can't wait to run with your deer."
"Because he likes to chase prey?"
"Because he, we, like leggy blondes." He let me go and stepped back. Immediately, I missed being in his arms. "Are you going to change your mind again?"
"Nope." I unbuttoned my blouse. Cal's gaze made me flush. "But maybe you could turn around until I'm done."
He laughed. "Spoil sport." He turned away, and I quickly stripped down, tucking my phone into my folded jeans, then taking my bra and panties off last.
I breathed in the woods, concentrating on the few whistling birds and chittering squirrels I could hear. I didn't change much outside the full moon, not like my little brother, so it took me a second to latch on to my other nature, but then...ripples of pleasure poured over my skin as my body was remade, my hearing and sense of smell heightened so incredibly that Cal's heartbeat and his delicious musk drowned out any competition for my attention. I flicked my ears back and forth as I tested my split hooves on the hard ground. I barely felt any of the impact thanks to the pads beneath my two toes that acted as shock absorbers. My tail swished as Cal, still with his back to me, dropped his briefs to the ground. Criminently, he really did have a delicious booty.
Playfully, I trotted up behind him and gave his rear and nudge. He stumbled forward, then sharply pivoted to face me. His expression lost all humor as he placed his hand on my head between my ears before the magic of his wolf blurred his features, his thick fur sprouting over his skin until he was standing on four legs, nose to nose with me. The wolf rubbed his large body and his face against my legs, my torso, and finally my neck.
I twitched my ears back and forth in a question that I couldn't ask aloud in my current state. Cal's tongue lolled out of his mouth, and I now understood what the term "wolfish grin" meant. I sniffed the air around me, and it was saturated with the wolf's scent.
He'd put it all over me. He could've have been claiming me as a possession, but I didn't think so. I think he'd done it to protect me. If I smelled like wolf, the other predators would leave me alone. Cal's fur was white around his face, and dark gray, almost black around his ears and neck. The rest of him was gradated shades of gray, white, and black. I'd been around shifted coyotes, and they weren't nearly as big. The sheer size of Cal's wolf made me tremble. I tempered my deer instincts to run away from the big, bad wolf. Instead, I waited for him to take the lead.
Cal barked once as he faced the woods then howled, the melodic sound singing through my bones. After one last look over his shoulder at me, he took off in a trot into the canopy of trees. I released a happy high-pitched bleat I'd been holding onto and leaped in his direction then took off running after him.
Elation overcame me as we loped, unfettered by too much thought. My heart soared when he climbed up onto a fallen log and I jumped nearly eight feet to sail over his head to the other side. I snorted hard at the surprised look on his furry fac
e when I landed, because it was as close to laughing as I could get as a deer. He barked and yipped as he climbed down and ran at me. I didn't have time to drop down, so I could only watch as he launched himself into the air and reciprocated the fly-by. He kept on running when he hit the ground with smooth ease, and I was right behind him, surprised at how well my deer kept up with his wolf. And then, I passed him. I swished my tail as I gained ground, daring him to come after me.
He didn't let me down, his howls and chirps, trailing behind me as he poured on more speed. I don't know how long we were running, but eventually we made our way to the pond near the edge of Brady Corman's property where he'd built the new house. I trotted down for a drink, and Cal joined me at the edge. I knelt on my front knees then back, panting to cool myself in between sips. It was a little muddy, but my animal self didn't mind.
Cal dropped down to his belly beside me and lay his head across my back, and I felt so much contentment in just that little bit of familiarity between us. I'd run with a wolf. We drank together. We lay together. Maybe, just maybe.
A sharp sting in my hindquarter brought my head up sharp. My vision blurred as I looked around. All I could smell was Cal's fur as my soul seemed to separate from my body. I felt disconnected, my movement suddenly sluggish. Then, there was growling, a harsh yip, and my head grew heavy, my thoughts turned cloudy. I tried to shift, but I couldn't concentrate. I heard a noise like a growl, but not quite. I knew I should recognize the sound, but I couldn't make my brain work. Then someone spoke, their words hollow and soft like a distant echo.
"This will all be over soon," it said.
Wet drops splattered my naked skin as I blinked daylight from my eyes. I felt like I'd had a V-8 engine dropped on my head during the night. What in the world had happened? The last thing I remembered well was changing into a deer and Cal... I sat up, instantly regretting the speed I'd used, and looked around.
My hand went to my mouth as I stared at the bloody figure of a man, only a few feet away. He wasn't big enough to be Cal, and he had clothes on, so who? Nausea brought the sour taste of bile to my throat as I crawled toward the body. Maybe he was alive. I didn't think so, but I had to check.
When I got a good look at the face, even ripped and covered in blood, I knew without a doubt who it was. "Luke," I said. "Oh, God. No." I could detect the strong odor of Cal's scent on the body. No, no, no. Horror filled me.
Where was Cal? Had he done this? Had Luke found us? Somehow knocked me out, and then fought with Cal? "Please, no," I prayed. "Cal?"
When he didn't answer back, panic took hold of me. What if Cal was dead as well? Had Luke killed him, only to drag me here--I looked around--where ever the hell here was, before dying of his own wounds? I looked around again, the fog beginning to lift. This was the Hackenstraw woods. How in the world had I gotten so far from the Corman property? And where was Cal?
"Cal," I said again. Then as the panic clawed at my guts, I shouted, "Cal!" I scrambled to my feet, but my legs were wobbly, and I found it hard to gain my balance.
"Cal!"
"Dakota!" he bellowed in the distance. "I'm coming!" When he was close enough that I could see him, I stumbled toward him, collapsing into his arms.
"What happened?" I asked, my grief choking my voice.
"It's okay, now," he said. "It's okay."
"It's not," I told him. "Luke's dead. It's not okay." This would be the straw that broke the camel's back for Peculiar, and Luke, who had wanted the lycanthropes gone, would soon get his wish. But at such a high price. I glanced at my dead ex-boyfriend and shuddered. "It's not okay."
Chapter Seven
Only for the briefest of seconds, did I fantasize about hiding Luke's body. The guilt and shame had lasted much longer. Cal had been much more decisive. Neither of us had our phones, which were in our clothing piles back at the Corman's.
"I'll stay with Luke. You run to town to get the sheriff," he said.
I shook my head. "I don't think that's a good idea. I should stay with Luke."
"Why?"
"They are going to think you did this."
"Do you think I did this?"
"I don't know." I sucked in a breath. "I can smell you on him."
Cal leaned in close to Luke and sniffed. "I see." He shook his head. "That could be from our altercation earlier."
I hated to admit that his reminder eased some of my dread. He'd taken Luke down at Jo Jo's, plus, Luke had punched him. That could explain the scent if it came up in the investigation. Still, would it be enough to keep Cal out of hot water? And would it be enough to keep the lycans from getting kicked out of Peculiar. "Good," I said. "Yes, you both were in physical contact last night."
"I didn't kill Luke," he said.
I felt the blood drain from my face. Luke. Dead. This was someone I knew. Someone I once cared about. The worst part was that my first thought had not been for Luke, it had been to protect Cal.
"You believe me, don't you?"
I nodded. This was a man who spent his adult life protecting and serving, first in the military then as a police officer. But those callings also leant themselves to violence. Still, I believed him. "What happened to us? Do you remember anything?"
"Not much. You made a noise and your fear scent kicked in. I tried to react to defend us but someone shot me with a tranquilizer. It had to be a pretty heavy dose because I was out in seconds."
"I remember feeling a sting in my hind quarters, then everything got pretty fuddled."
"Someone drugged us," Cal said. "And we need to get this reported quickly and get our blood tested right away so we can prove it. You can't be charged with murder if the evidence shows you were incapacitated at the time. Depending on the drug, though, it might be out of our system by now." He put his hands on my shoulders. "So you should go into town. I think the news about Luke will be better coming from you. You're the cooler head between us, and we can't just leave him out here alone."
"You think whoever did this might come back?"
"Or a wild animal scrounging for a meal," Cal replied. "Either way, we can't leave the scene unattended." He forced a smile. "Go. I'll be fine, and I won't touch anything. Promise."
The body buzzed. I knelt down next to Luke.
Cal said, "We shouldn't touch anything."
I used two fingers and plucked Luke's phone from his pocket. A morning alarm was going off on his phone, causing the vibration.
“Now, neither of us have to go." I slid my finger across the front and a lock screen came up. "Shoot."
"What's wrong?"
"It is password protected."
"Use the emergency call feature."
"Right." I slid my finger across the screen and hit the emergency call button at the bottom of the number screen and waited.
"Peculiar Sheriff's Department. What's your emergency?" a man asked.
"There's been a..." I glanced at Cal. He shrugged. "An accident," I said.
"Do you need an ambulance?" the operator asked.
"No." I shook my head even though he couldn't see me. My voice quavered as I continued, "It's too late for that. Luke Dwyer is dead."
"Dakota?" the operator asked.
Now that he said my name, I recognized Eldin's voice. "Yes."
"Tell me what's happened, and don't leave anything out."
An hour later, the sheriff arrived with John Connelly and Willy Boden. Sheriff Taylor looked as if he hadn't slept in several days, but dark rings around the eyes was typical for raccoon shifters. Willy had her hand on her weapon as she neared our position.
"Why don't you come over here by me, Dakota." Her voice was strained as she kept a wary eye on Cal.
I glanced at Cal. He nodded.
"Go on," he told me. "I'll be fine."
John Connelly stayed back at the SUV with the radio in his hand while the sheriff walked over the body.
He bent over to get a closer look but didn't touch Luke. He circled his finger around Luke's face. "What happened here?"
"We don't know," I said. "He was like that when I woke up."
"And you?" Sheriff Taylor nodded at Cal.
"It's like Dakota says. I woke up a ways off from here, but when I found Dakota, Dwyer was mangled like that."
"Did you do it?" The sheriff asked.
"No, sir," Cal said.
"What are you all doing here on Hackenstraw's property?"
"I'm pretty sure we were drugged, Sheriff Taylor," I answered. "Neither of us remember leaving the Corman woods."
"Uh huh," he said.
"Test our blood," Cal said. "If we're telling the truth the evidence will be there."
I grimaced, wishing he hadn't told me that some drugs might be out of our system by now and prayed that whatever we'd been hit with wasn't one of them.
Sheriff Taylor looked back to his truck and yelled, "Call Doctor Smith and Mark Smart." Doc acted as a medical examiner for the town, and Mark Smart was the elected coroner. "We're going to need them both. And tell the doc to bring his vampire kit. He's going to need to take blood samples. Two sets." He stared at Luke's body. "Make that three."
"Does it look like an accident?" Connelly asked.
Sheriff Taylor gave a slight head shake.
Willy, who must have decided Cal wasn't an immediate threat, moved in. "Does your mom know where you're at?" she asked me. Willy was my mom's best friend, so it had surprised me she'd waited so long to ask.
I shivered, goosebumps raising on my skin, as a misting of rain started up again.
"Come on, girly," she said. "I'll get you and the wolfman some blankets from the back then we'll call your Mom. She's probably worried sick about you." She snapped her fingers at Cal as we walked to the back of the SUV. "And you should know better. What happened to keeping your head down until after your probation period is over. It's going to be a hard sell to the town council and the Tri-State Council that keeping you all around is a good idea. Especially, after this."