Chapter Twenty-seven

The meal was over and Ren had ordered her cubs to go and rest. This was the time for strategy, to ask outright for help, and she didn?t want the youngsters to overhear her plans. They moved to Marie?s cabin to talk over the situation.

?Isabelle went after Hope, so there?s a good chance she?s still on Hope?s trail. Perhaps she?ll find her way to Little Dip, too?? Godfrey said.

?If she?s following me then she?ll walk straight into Patrick and his gang. I?m not sure how many there are of them. We counted three at the Lucky Seven,? Hope said.

?Four,? Godfrey corrected her. ?Remember the big black one that ran across the road as we left the parking lot. It was humongous.?

Ren stood. She was angry with herself on hearing this news. Why was she still here? Mouse and Joey were safe. She had a mission to find Isabelle, but the cubs? arrival with Hope had distracted her. Isabelle could be walking into danger while she sat and talked.

?Where is this shack?? she asked Hope. ?It?s time I had a word with Patrick. He didn?t grab Mouse for a keepsake.? She needed to know what on earth Luc was thinking to order a stunt like that.

?I?d like a word with him, too,? Hope said darkly. She cast a glance across to the fireplace to where Tadpole lay in his dresser drawer, deep in a drugged sleep. ?The shack is outside of Lost Creek. About five miles to the west along an old track that takes you down to the Silverthread.? She stood, as if ready to go. ?You?ll need help if Patrick?s buddies have arrived. You can?t go alone, Ren. It might be dangerous.?

Marie put a hand on Hope?s shoulder and pressed her back down onto her seat.

?Ren will not be alone. Her family will be with her. Claude, gather the hunt. We?ll head out together.?

Ren shook her head. ?I want do this alone now I know where to find her.?

?You?ve no idea what your sister?s intentions are,? Marie pointed out. ?She?s infiltrated your pack, kidnapped a cub, and wants to kill your mate. This is a challenge. Is that why you want to face her alone?? She stood face-to-face with Ren. ?Because understand this, if you fight and Luc wins, she will have to be destroyed. She?s too volatile. I?ll never allow her to have a pack of her own here, or in Canada. I will kill her.? Her words were icy.

?I think Luc wants to talk to you, Marie.? Godfrey cut through the silence. ?I don?t know why she got Patrick to steal Mouse. But grabbing Hope was a definite demand for your attention. She can?t be far away.?

?My number is in the phone book like everyone else?s.? Marie swung away and strode to the door, her pack hard on her heels. ?She?s got more than my attention.?

?Are you going to head out with the Garouls after your sister?? Godfrey asked Ren.

Ren also headed for the door, the back door. ?I need to find Isabelle first. Luc can wait.?

?I knew you?d go off on your own.? His words drifted after her. ?I knew she?d do that.? She heard him tell Hope. ?She?s the broody, loner type.?

?Good luck, Ren,? Hope called after her. ?Bring Isabelle home safe.?

Night fell, the temperature fell, and her energy levels fell. Isabelle curled up, cupped in a massive tree root. She needed rest and food. She was ill for lack of it.

If I lie down for just ten minutes, I?ll be refreshed enough to catch something to eat. What comes out at night that?s tasty? Owls? Bats? She closed her eyes, and within what seemed like mere minutes was shivering herself awake. She had no idea how much time had passed, but it was longer than the ten minutes she promised herself. A new dawn streaked the skyline. She was naked and human. It happens when I sleep. I change when I sleep. This had happened to her before; sleep and scents were her triggers, there was no doubting it now. She lay blinking up at overhead branches, and curled up tighter to keep what little warmth she could.

A new awareness grabbed her. The carcasses of two freshly killed rabbits lay by her head. She sat up, startled, and looked at them in dismay.

?Aw. And I skinned them for you and everything.? The voice came from her other side. She swung around to face a darker, leaner version of Ren. The face was angular, with a fox?s cunning. The eyes were black and curiously flat, as if all light was sucked in and held. And they were cold, as cold as the blood-red smile on the beautiful and eminently wicked face before her.

?Luc,? Isabelle said, and drew her knees up to cover her nudity.

?You remember me! How good is that.? A dark gaze roamed over her body. ?It?s all flooding back. Werefever does that; it fucks up the head. Soon you?ll remember what a lovely vacation you had in Bella Coola. How you flirted with the handsome twins, and even had a dalliance with one.?

Isabelle inched away, unsure how to respond.

?It wasn?t me, by the way. You preferred the wonderful Ren. I was too raw and edgy for you.? Luc snapped her white teeth. ?Too damn fine.?

Again Isabelle could only gawk.

?You look lovely naked. You should do it more often.? Luc raked her in idle curiosity, tinged with a little boredom. Isabelle knew this was not good. Boredom soon led to viciousness with people like Luc. ?A tad too thin for my taste, but maybe Ren likes all those awkward angles.?

?I knew you were here.? Isabelle struggled to sound strong. ?You killed Patrick and that other boy.?

Luc shrugged. ?Everything they touched turned to shit.?

?That?s all you can say? They suffered so much.?

?Sums it up. They were dying anyway, if it makes you feel any better. All my changelings rot from the inside out. Talking of suffering, Patrick told me your old boyfriend ran straight into a tree. Now that was funny. I wished I?d seen that.? Luc visibly cheered now that she had a wound to pick.

?Patrick killed Barry.? Isabelle?s chest tightened. Barry hadn?t deserved to die like that. She would always carry guilt that she had brought these killers to his door.

?Patrick was stupid.? Luc?s tone hardened with dissatisfaction. ?I already had your scent. I?d found all your favorite city haunts. It was fun following you around. By killing that man, Patrick made you run. Not good.? She shook her head. ?He spoiled the hunt. He had to go.?

?So why are you chasing the others? Mouse and Joey and the human woman?? Isabelle fished for information. She kept Hope?s name out of it. The Garoul connection was a card she was uncertain how to play. She needed to find out as much as she could. ?You?re out here hunting them, not me.?

?You have a wonderful nose. I love your nose. I may keep it after I pull the rest of your face off.? Luc gave the tip of Isabelle?s nose a playful tap with her forefinger. Isabelle twisted her head away.

?I don?t understand any of your actions,? she said.

?That?s because you?re not wolfie enough.?

?I?m wolfie enough to know you turned those kids Ren?s trying to look after. Is that why they?re becoming sick? Is it something you do when you attack them??

?She?s a saint, isn?t she? And I don?t deliberately infect them. It?s a side effect of the werefever. Some pull through, some don?t. Some relapse.? Luc shrugged. Her skin had an oily, waxen sheen under her tan, and Isabelle wondered about Luc?s health.

?Is that why you came out here after Mouse and Joey? Because they?re ill, too? Were you going to kill them as well??

Luc tensed. ?Don?t be ridiculous. They?re not ill. They?re the healthiest of the lot.? There was almost pride in her voice. Her face flexed into a deeper, more menacing scowl as if daring Isabelle to dispute her.

?I know you?re jealous of Ren and me.? She changed tack. Luc would not reveal any more about infections, not if her own health was implicated. Isabelle was satisfied there was an illness running through Ren?s pack and Luc was the root of it. ?You?ve never liked me.?

Luc barked out a laugh. ?You wouldn?t be my first choice for my sister?s mate.? Again, her eyes scoured Isabelle?s face and body and found her wanting. ?You were leaving and she was sad. I can?t have my sister moping around the place.? She placed her hand on her heart. ?It?s a twin thing.?

?I know something else.?

?You?re so fucking erudite.?

?I know why Patrick grabbed Mouse. I know why you?re chasing those kids.? A faint flaring of Luc?s nostrils was the only clue Isabelle had hit her target. ?Mouse is your daughter. Isn?t she??

?You fight sneaky. I say you?re not good enough for my sister; and you come back at me and pull out my biggest secret. You?re a nasty little thing, aren?t you? I think I?ll revise my opinion of you.?

?It?s hardly a deep, dark secret. Anyone can see she?s yours.?

?She could be Ren?s.?

Isabelle shook her head. ?She has an?edge. That?s all you.? This brought a flicker of a smile, and Isabelle drove home her point. ?So why are you kidnapping your own daughter? You know Ren looks after her well.?

?Because she?s older now and needs to know things not even Ren can teach her. Because all my other little darlings are dropping down dead, and I?ll be damned if I?ll let Mouse grow up in a diseased swamp hole. Ren needs to accept what?s happening on that farm. Her pack is falling sick. They?ll all die.?

?You were bringing Mouse to Little Dip?? Isabelle was incredulous. ?You hoped she?d find a home there. Were you going to be part of it, too??

?Cleverness always goes with a great nose. It?s the wolven way. The sniffers always were the thinkers.? Luc avoided her last question. Her face held a curious, distant calm, as she was slowly detaching herself from all emotion. Isabelle knew time was running out.

?Why do you want to kill me?? she asked bluntly. She might as well get to the core of it.

?It?s not all about you, you know.? Luc looked grumpy at this direct approach. ?It?s about getting Mouse to Little Dip. You happened to be an interesting sideline. A mate is for life. You ran away. If you?re not her mate then you?re dead, simple as that. How else will Ren be free of you??

?Isn?t that for Ren and me to discuss? Why are you sticking your nose in the midd?Oh, I see.? Isabelle?s voice hardened. ?You attacked me, didn?t you? You?re the one who started all this. Like you start everything, and then it turns to shit, right??

?Ouch. You can nip when you want to. But yes, it was me who infected you. I feel so ashamed.? Luc leaned into her, her eyes gleamed wickedly. ?Was it the wrong thing to do? After all, you two did hit it off. Patrick told me you were getting along famously. Ren even adorned Big Tree for you.? Luc had a roguish smile she used with great effect. ?It?s a metaphor,? she whispered. ?A sort of initiation thing.? Her smile didn?t work on Isabelle.

?If I was a Were I?d bite you right back,? Isabelle said.

?You are delightful. I should have kept you for myself.? Luc stood and kicked off her boots. ?Bring it on. You?ve got thirty seconds by the time I strip and change.? She pulled her shirt over her head. Before it was free of her body Isabelle had fled.

?I won?t kill you, by the way. I think I like you better now that we?ve chatted,? Luc called after her. ?But I?ll put another mark on that pretty face so you never forget me again.?

Isabelle raced through the underbrush. It tore at her skin and hair. Branches whipped at her face, and stones and shale cut the soles of her bare feet. She had to get away, she had to put enough space between herself and Luc so that she could hunker down and change into a Were. But how? It had always just occurred before; she had never initiated the process as far as she knew. Sleep and scent were all she knew as triggers. Could she do it to order?

Luc was behind her in an instant. A sharp shove between her shoulder blades sent her reeling onto her knees. It had taken Luc less than thirty seconds to find her. The wind was knocked out of Isabelle. She?d never had a chance anyway. She lay sprawled naked on a bed of twigs and dirt, frightened and defeated. Where was her wolfskin now? Not that she could tackle an enormous beast like Luc, even as a Were, but it would have been less humiliating than scrabbling in the dirt like an earthworm. A huge part of her wanted to stand and fight, to swing her claws and roar out her anger. The fingers of her right hand twitched and her nails hardened and lengthened. Wide-eyed, she focused on her hand, willing it to make a claw, to begin her transition. Please, please, let it happen.

Behind her she could hear Luc pant as she decided on her next strike. Isabelle focused on her shaking hand. She trembled with effort, willing her wolfskin in to life?A massive clawed foot stepped into view, an inch from her face. A deep, menacing growl accompanied it. A second beast now loomed over her.

Isabelle peeped up at the enormous werewolf standing over her, facing off against Luc. It shimmered with a vibrant energy. Dew spangled its black fur like a thousand little diamonds. This Were had been roaming the forest all night. It was well settled in its wolfskin and filled with muted rage.

She sensed Luc draw back, surprised by the new arrival and the aggressive challenge. Isabelle twisted her head and found the beasts on either side of her, face-to-face, snarling at each other with increased ferocity. Their coats shone an oily blue-black in the weak morning sun. Both were of an equal height, though Luc had the leaner, wirier build. Her eyes were matte black; no golden light burned in them. The other beast shook with fury. Its eyes burned with an amber glow so fierce it could brand an opponent?s heart. This was Ren. Isabelle knew it with every fiber of her body. Ren had found her just in time, like all heroes did.

Large dollops of saliva dripped onto her skin from their snapping maws. The ground below her trembled with their warlike rumbling. She dragged herself out of the center of what promised to be a vicious fight once the threats and posturing were over. Her feet were barely clear when Ren head-butted Luc squarely on the muzzle. Luc reeled back, caught unawares.

Ren drove her shoulder into Luc?s solar plexus with a guttural roar and crashed her backward into a tree. Luc clawed at Ren?s back and clung on as Ren spun her from tree to tree, bouncing her off the creaking trunks until the forest floor was littered with leaves and twigs. Debris rained down, and the ground shook as they spun in a roaring, thundering circle from tree to shuddering tree. Isabelle had never heard noise like it; it was prehistoric in its violence and barbarism. She crouched terrified, afraid to move.

Around her the forest began to vibrate with another ancient sound, the howl of wolves. Shrill and piercing, excited by the hunt, Isabelle easily picked up their intent. Wolven closed in on all sides until her head hurt with their cries. Luc, too, was affected. Her face creased into a grimace of panic. She clawed harder at Ren?s back, her intention changed. She struggled for freedom, not to fight. Her bid for escape made her even more vicious.

Ren lifted Luc clear off the ground with one last victory howl and flung her across the clearing. Luc landed heavily, close to where Isabelle crouched. For one stunned moment she lay there, winded. Isabelle barely breathed. Their gaze locked for a split second, then, with a wicked wink, Luc was gone. Twigs and dust swirled behind her as she sprinted into the depths of the wood.

The howling clamor changed and began to spiral away, as if magically attached to Luc and her movements. The prey was on the move and messages were flying through the forest. Luc had fled, but the hunt continued hard on her heels.

Isabelle crawled back to lean against a tree. She did not trust her legs to hold her. She shook violently with shock. The growing coldness had marbled her limbs with blue blotches. She sucked in huge gulps of air and blinked back the tears that crowded her eyes now that the danger had passed.

In two steps Ren was beside her. Her damp muzzle sniffed Isabelle?s tear-filled eyes, then her left ear, her neck, and armpit. Ren continued to investigate the valley of her breasts and her navel, her crotch, the back of her knee. Isabelle lay a weary hand on the hunched back of the huge beast nuzzling at her.

?I?m okay, Ren,? she said wearily. ?She didn?t hurt me. You got here just in time. Oh God.? Her hand came away slick with blood. Bright red and wet, it mapped out the lines of her palm. She shuffled onto her knees and began to comb apart Ren?s fur with her fingers. Deep punctures and scores studded Ren?s back.

?More scars. She hooked you good. I suppose all she could do was hang on. You gave her one hell of a pounding.? She scratched the fur between Ren?s ears and tweaked them with a gentle tug. ?I guess you?re the dominant twin. She?s just the wicked one.?

Ren responded to Isabelle?s touches with a long, ticklish lick along her hand and arm, and then another across her belly that awoke a flock of butterflies inside her. Isabelle was suddenly awkward in her nakedness. She pulled back and rose to her feet. Several yards away Luc?s abandoned clothes lay in a heap. She pulled on the shirt and screwed up her nose at the smell.

?It stinks of her, but it will have to do.? She pulled on the pants, too. The clothes were much too large, but at least she was covered. Ren approached and sniffed at the garments, growling in dissatisfaction.

?I know. You don?t like me smelling of her either. But once I get a shower I promise to burn them. A shower, a meal, and a big, big sleep.? She was suddenly exhausted. Before she could draw another breath, Ren swung her up into her arms and began to make a path through the undergrowth.

?You know where we?re going? I was trying to follow Mouse and Joey. You know that they?re out here somewhere, right?? She got a big lick along her cheekbone right up into her eyebrow, and took it as an affirmative. Ren broke into a smooth run, moving through the forest like liquid. Cradled in her massive arms, all Isabelle could do was cuddle in and feel the safest and happiest she had ever been in her whole life.

?I burned them in the fire pit,? Ren said with satisfaction as she raised the bedclothes and slid in alongside Isabelle.

?Couldn?t wait, could you? I barely had them off me.? Isabelle curled around Ren.

?I don?t want her scent in the compound. The Garouls are not very happy with Luc. And I don?t want Joey and Mouse to pick up on it. It?s going to be hard enough explaining all this.?

?We?ll do it together.?

?You?re going home with me?? Ren asked hopefully.

Isabelle hesitated. ?I think you should consider Marie?s offer. They?re so young, Ren, and they deserve all the help they can get. A summer in Little Dip sounds like a good deal to me. Plus Marie will send some of her pack up to tend the farm. They can cross-train each other. I think she likes the idea of a northern Garoul base. They?re very acquisitive, this family of yours.?

She could feel Ren tense as she considered the alien idea. Isabelle knew it was asking a lot of her, to bring her pack down to Little Dip while other Garouls ran the farm and hatchery station for her. She could stay on and work at her veterinary business, or take a sabbatical and visit Little Dip for the summer, too. The choice was hers.

?Luc was trying to bring Mouse back here, in her own perverse way,? Ren said. ?She must have thought it was a good idea. And for all her faults, Luc was never stupid.?

?I think Luc saw the writing was on the wall for a small pack like yours. You did your best, but none of those kids had a healthy start and the future is very uncertain.? Isabelle was kind but determined. ?Claude has promised to train them along with the younger Garouls. It?s a good offer. At least here they?d have a better chance.?

?Where would we have the better chance, Isabelle? Our future is just as uncertain,? Ren asked her. ?Wolven mate for life, but I can?t hold you to that. You were stolen, and I?d never stop you if you wanted to leave.?

?Luc infected me, that?s all. She?s nothing more than bacteria. But you loved me and bit me and claimed me. I?m wolven, through and through, there?s no escaping it, and I?m going to be a great wolven. I can track butterflies on a breeze.? Isabelle smiled at her boast. ?I?m happy in my wolfskin. If wolven mate for life, then I guess I?m in it for the long haul with you.?

Ren snuggled into her. The heat under the bed clothes soared.

?I can?t believe how easily you took to it,? she said. ?There?s much to be said for a double infection. Maybe I should bite you again and make you über wolven.? Isabelle slapped her arm playfully. They lay nose-to-nose, and Ren?s gaze burned into Isabelle?s. Little flecks of amber burst upon her iris like stray fireworks in a midnight sky.

?So blue,? Ren murmured. ?Your eyes remind me of summer.?

?Aunt Mary always called them cornflower blue. I love my aunt Mary, and she adores you.?

?She doesn?t know I?m a werewolf. That might sway her opinion.?

?She would adore you anyway. My pack accepts you, Ren Garoul.?

Ren snorted back a laugh. ?Mary adores me because of Atwell.?

?And Hope adores you because of Tadpole. Hope?s pack accepts you, Ren Garoul. See how it works? And if Hope and her den accept you, then the Garouls have to. It?s a chain. Are these people going to be my in-laws??

Ren rolled onto her back and pulled Isabelle on top of her.

?Maybe. It will take time for me to rest around them. But they came to my aid when I needed to find you, and I?ll always be beholden to Marie for that.? She growled and captured Isabelle?s lips in a playful kiss. Isabelle broke the kiss. One more question hummed at the back of her mind.

?What about Luc? What will happen to her??

Ren frowned. ?That depends on Luc. Marie sent her best trapper after her. She wants her brought back here. After that, I?m not sure what the Garoul council will decide. But I won?t let them kill her. Luc needs to be rehabilitated.?

?She sent a trapper??

?Yes. Not a tracker, like you will be, or an out-and-out hunter like me. A trapper is all those things, but with a subtle difference. Their job is to bring their quarry back alive. They?re tricky and artful.?

?Rehabilitation. You think that?s possible for Luc??

?I want it to be. Luc?s been on the wrong side of feral for too long. She?s ill. I want her back in the fold. I suspect she knew she was unwell and that?s why she wanted to return to Little Dip and bring Mouse with her. I think she hoped for a fresh start. I hope Marie?s trapper can catch her in time, and that maybe Marie can help her somehow.?

?Time will tell. Our pack will come to Little Dip to learn and then we will return home to our own valley. We?ll be another Garoul den.?

?Then that?s our way forward. I can do it with you by my side.?

?I?ll always be by your side. I?m your life bond, your mate.? And with that Isabelle rolled into Ren?s arms and kissed her Alpha.

Date: 2016-06-12; view: 60