2
Cullen scouredthe ground below him, awash in sensation as the cold air whipped over his feathered body. He screeched in response to a cry of greeting from a bald eagle passing by and asked after Sarah.
To his relief, the male had spotted her. The bird went on to mention a large skirmish just over the next rise, with very bad odds for the lone opponent.
Cullen tore through icy wind and flutters of snow. He saw everything. Rabbits, mice and deer seeking shelter. Ac-taw, in both animal and man form, roaming through the outskirts of town bordering Glacier National Park. Cullen made no effort to hide himself. Instead he cried out for Sarah, offering help if only she’d reach out and take it.
Minutes later, he found her dodging a harrier, two red-tailed hawks and two bald eagles.Damn Jenny Larsen.Furious that, once again, Sarah had to deal with more dickhead raptors, Cullen darted after the smaller predators.
“This isn’t much of a fair fight, and definitely against clan rules,” he warned them.
They didn’t veer from Sarah, and he gladly wracked his talons along the harrier’s underbelly before nipping one of the hawks’ wings. It didn’t take much to put the other hawk out of commission. So much for Jenny’s small posse.
The eagles were his biggest threat. While Sarah engaged Jenny, Cullen took care of Pat. The woman was as big a bitch as Jenny. An unpleasant bully who liked nothing better than to laud her riches over the clan, as if her husband had done more than inherit his wealth.
“Stay out of this, Whitefeather.” Pat stared at him as if he was no better than the dirt beneath her sharp claws.
“What did she do to you? Or is this a challenge?”
“Yes.” She leaped on the excuse, as he’d known she would.
“Whose?”
Pat squawked at him with a resounding curse to mind his own business.
“Right. It’s Jenny Larsen’s challenge, so back out of it.”
Pat retaliated. Cullen neatly avoided the eagle’s beak and slashed her back, taking care not to rip too hard. He wanted to scare her, not maim her. A warning to any and all who messed with him or Sarah. He didn’t give two shits about raptor law, made by those who refused to follow it. Cullen couldn’t wait to pay Dennis Larsen a visit. Clan leader or not, the man had clearly overstepped his position, first by hitting on Sarah, and then by having his wife pull this stunt. And if Larsen was spitting in the face of raptor tradition by having multiple affairs, he should have been stripped of his leadership position long ago.
“I won’t forget this,”Pat cried out as she spiraled away.
“Good. Neither will I.” Cullen then shrieked at Jenny, who was entangled with Sarah. Jenny let go only after Sarah released her, but the woman had done some damage. The scent of Sarah’s blood came to him on a gust of wind.
Enraged, Cullen forgot himself. He darted at Jenny and bit her neck, enough to draw serious blood. She screeched and veered away, trying to escape. He would have gone after her to finish the job, but Sarah warbled for help.
“I’m not going to make it,” she managed to whisper.
Cullen covered Sarah, allowing her to use his draft as they glided over the wind toward the ground. He did his best to nudge her gently, prepared to grab her should she suddenly fall from the sky. He couldn’t stop her blood flow in his current form, and he’d seen enough to know she was really hurt.
This close to his property, he forced her to go just a bit farther. They successfully reached his land. As soon as they touched down, he shifted form. Sarah, however, didn’t move. Swearing, he lifted the fragile bird in his arms and ran into the house. Her next shift would speed her healing,ifshe could shift.
Stemming the blood, he wrapped a loose bandage around her ribs and wadded cloth around her breast. Her eyes and face remained unscathed, but the wounds on her chest bothered him. Carrying her in front of the fireplace, he leaned close and whispered, “Come on, Sarah. Wake up.”
She didn’t move.
“Sarah, honey. It’s me, Cullen.” He cleared his throat, trying to project comfort and not worry. Stroking her head and wing, he said, “You need to wake up. The clan needs you.” When she didn’t move, he took a chance and added what he’d suspected for some time. “Your mate needs you, love. Come back to me, to Cullen.” He leaned close and rubbed his cheek against her feathered one.
Her slight shudder relieved him. He pulled back, on the off-chance her animal spirit took charge and struck out at a perceived threat. Sarah blinked back at him, gradually transforming from bird to woman.
He’d never seen the shift done so slowly before, and he watched the sheer beauty of her being as Sarah’s golden skin took the place of feathers. She blinked in confusion, but held out a hand, reaching for him.
He clasped it, pleased at how right her smaller palm felt in his.
“Thank you,” she whispered before closing her eyes once more.
The bandages had sloughed off during her shift, so he found new ones. After applying salve and new dressings, Cullen clothed her in one of his long shirts and sat her in his overstuffed chair, facing the fireplace. Shivering as the cold penetrated, he started a fire and put on some warm, dry clothes.
He returned to Sarah and lifted her so that she sat on top of him in his lap. Stroking her hair as she slept, he felt true peace for the first time in his life. And, without meaning to, he fell asleep.
