Running with Wolves - Cynthia Cooke

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needed in the back—rope, knife, flashlight, water, extra food, extra clothes. He just hoped he wouldn’t need to use any of them. But she was changing fast and from what he could gather, she had no clue who she was or what was happening to her.

      How could Dean have been so careless? He knew the danger a fledgling wolf faced. How could he not have prepared her or at least told Lily what to tell her? He ran a hand over his face and wondered when Lily had died. Maybe they hadn’t had time. That was the only explanation that made sense. Maybe they’d died too soon, when Shay was still too young to understand.

      Grief tugged at his insides and he wished once more that Dean had chosen to stay at The Colony. Obviously if he had, he’d still be alive today and there wouldn’t be as much dissention in the pack.

      Malcolm was a good leader. A strong leader. But there had been grumblings about his methods, his integrity and honor. Not something anyone would ever have said about Dean Mallory. Dean had been as honorable as they came, which was why he’d left to marry Lily when she’d become pregnant. It was the right and honorable thing to do. The only thing to do.

      As Jason sat there staring at the little house, thinking about Dean’s daughter inside, he couldn’t help wondering if Lily had known the truth about them. Had he ever told her? Or had he gone to his grave never letting the love of his life know his true nature? That he wasn’t like everyone else. That he wasn’t human.

      Jason shook his head as the magnitude of what Dean could have done hit him. Had he really loved Lily that much? Had he made sure she never had to make the choice to give up her humanity, to give up her ties to her mother, to the outside world only to have to spend the rest of her life with wolves? That’s when Jason knew the truth of his thoughts. Yes, he’d loved her that much and more. Only now his daughter would pay the price of his silence. Dean had gambled on the fact that, as a half-breed, Shay would never make the change, that she’d stay human. He’d been wrong.

      Now it fell on Jason to have to tell her the truth about herself and her heritage. He would be the one to tell her it was time to give up everything and everyone she knew and move to The Colony with no forewarning of what was to come. Of what her future would bring, her responsibility to the pack and her need to marry Malcolm, the pack’s leader.

      He only hoped she’d come with him peacefully.

      Chapter 3

      Jason breathed in deep the salty ocean air. It had been a long time since he’d been able to enjoy the beach, the crashing of the waves, the sand between his toes. They were so close, he wished he and Shay could have even an hour together to walk along the shore and get to know one another better before he had to tell her about The Colony and about Malcolm.

      It was imperative that she understood how important she was to the pack. Her marriage to Malcolm was the only way to bring peace to The Colony, to stop the grumblings and whispers of war. She was Dean’s daughter; she was next in line as successor. As Malcolm’s wife, they would rule together. Side by side, they could bring peace.

      Jason walked back into the house. Shay was still sleeping as her body struggled to adjust to the changes going on within her. He sat in the chair next to her, watching her sleep while contemplating the best way to tell her she’d have to leave everything behind.

      The crystals twined into the rope on his wrist began to prick his skin. He rubbed his wrist then noticed the faint scent of sulfur drifting into the room. He stood, his gaze immediately going to the cracks in the wall. Dammit, he’d thought he’d have more time. He hurried into the kitchen and, one by one, began pulling family pictures off the wall and placing them in the canvas tote bag Shay had used for her grocery shopping. She would want these and it would be a long time before she would be able to return to get them. If ever.

      With the bag slung over his shoulder, he hurried back into the living room. It was time. It was almost dark and the whispers coming through the cracks were getting louder and almost...comprehensible. He sat on the sofa next to her and gently shook her shoulder. “Shay, you have to wake up. We need to go.”

      “Huh? Go?” she muttered, trying to rouse herself from a deep sleep.

      “Yes, it isn’t safe here.”

      “Not safe?” She sat up, rubbing her eyes and staring at him, her face crumpled with confusion. “What do you mean? Where do we need to go?”

      “To The Colony.”

      “Where?”

      Buddy whined at her feet.

      He knew what was coming. The dog had enough wolf in him that he could smell the acrid scent filling the room, a cross between sulfur and vinegar, a sign of the demons getting closer, of barriers being breached.

      “Where have I heard that name before?”

      “The Colony? Hopefully from your dad. He used to live there. In fact, he sort of ran the place.”

      “What? When?” She started to stand but, unsteady on her feet, she quickly sat back down again. “I’m confused. Is that where you’re from? This colony?”

      “Yes, I’ve come to get you.”

      “But what about the candle shop remodel?”

      “It can wait,” he lied. “What’s important is getting you to safety.”

      Her concern grew to fear as she came fully awake. He could smell it in the subtle shift of her scent. Could see it in the tensing of her shoulders and the way she kept moving her hands across her thighs.

      “I didn’t know I was in danger,” she said, her voice soft enough to almost be a whisper.

      “I’m sorry. I know this must seem strange, coming out of the blue like this from someone you’ve never met—”

      “That’s putting it mildly.” She got to her feet and walked into the kitchen and toward the coffeepot. She took down a clean mug and poured herself a cup, then popped it in the microwave.

      He’d spooked her. “I know how this sounds, and I wish I had more time for you to trust what I have to say, but I made a promise to your dad that... I promised I wouldn’t let anything happen to you. I’m not about to break that word. We have to go, and we have to go now. Take only what you absolutely need. You have ten minutes, tops, to get your stuff together.”

      She stared at him with incredulity filling her face. “You didn’t know my father. You’re too young. How dare you tell me you promised him? I’m not going anywhere with you. Now I think you should leave.”

      He stepped toward her then stopped as fear widened her eyes and she backed up against the cabinets.

      “I don’t know why your parents didn’t tell you about The Colony or about yourself, and I’m sorry for that, but I don’t have time to explain it all to you now. Those cracks in your walls aren’t caused by fault lines. They are doorways splitting open and leading into a demon dimension. Soon they will be wide enough for the Gauliacho to get through. Trust me, you don’t want to be here when they do.”

      “Demons! Are you listening to yourself?”

      “I know it sounds crazy.”

      “It doesn’t just sound crazy. It is crazy.”

      “It’s the truth. You heard the whispering. You breathed their air and it made you sick.”

      She stared at him wide-eyed and began shaking her head back and forth. “No. It’s. Not. Now get out.”

      * * *

      How could Shay have been so stupid? She knew better than to invite a stranger into her home. But she’d been distracted by his good looks and tempted by his cold hard cash. Idiot. Never before had a smooth-talking handsome man fooled her, and the one time one had....

      And then she noticed the pictures that were missing off her kitchen wall and her fingers froze at her sides. “What have you done with my photos?”

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