The big grin that crossed the over-sized rabbit’s face suggested I was going to regret something, I just didn’t know what yet.
Julian
After a couple of ill-met attempts at jokes, Chuck finally gave up on talking and the result was a very long, very silent ride back to the ODI compound. I got a few minutes of peace when Chuck stopped at his office while I returned to the room I was sharing with him, but it didn’t last.
“You don’t think it was even alittlefunny?” Chuck cajoled through the bathroom door, his tone still entirely too amused for me to agree with him. “I mean, you suggested the Easter Bunny should have his head examined for thinking that he is who he actually is. Are youreallysurprised I laughed?”
I continued to ignore him, focusing instead on the foamy bubbles in my warm bath. Even through the door, I could hear Chuck sigh.
“Okay, I know you’re pissed at me, but I really am sorry,” he said, making it the fourth apology he’d woven in with theit was kind of funnydefense lines since he’d started trying to lure me out of the bathroom, assuring me that he wasn’t really sorry in the least. “I have to go meet with Kade and the others. Can we talk at dinner?”
Hrmph. Like I had any desire to sit down and eat with him. My inner beastie huffed in agreement, much keener on the idea of us taking to the woods for an adventure. Which honestly sounded pretty good to me.
When I heard the door to the hall click closed, followed by the faint beep of the electronic lock engaging, I slid out of the cooling water and reached for my towel. Not needing any clothes for my current plan, I rubbed myself dry and slid the window open, plucking the screen free like I had before. A quick shift, a hop through the open window, and I was free and clear.
And facing an entire field of rabbits who were staring at me like I was, well, a predator.
Which, technically, I guess I am even though I tend to forget that tiny detail.
Making eye contact with the closest one – a large gray creature with extremely long ears that reminded me of a jackrabbit I’d seen once – I made a show of carefully picking my way around the perimeter of the group, trying to indicate that I wasn’t a threat but the rabbits didn’t relax until I’d reached the edge of the trees that led into the forest.
Deciding that I had nothing better to do, I gave into my curiosity about the group of Hunters Chuck had told me about and lifted my pointy nose toward the sky, searching for the human scent. Let’s just say that it wasn’t as difficult to isolate as I had anticipated. In fact, as I poked my head through the brush at the edge of their camp, the scent of unwashed human bodies was nearly overwhelming and not in a good way.
At the edge of the encampment, I came nose-to-nose with a pack of hounds caged in an odd enclosure. Six-foot wooden spikes formed out of small sapling trees were driven into the ground to make a tightly sealed circle, leaving just enough space between the slats to get a glimpse of the yapping, howling inhabitants who had definitely noticed my presence.
Picking my way to the opposite side of the camp from the dogs, I found a juniper bush with a large dead space in the center. I curled up and leaned my chin on a low branch that gave me just enough clear space to watch the goings-on around me. And let me tell you, there was plenty to see.
Young children were darting here and there, playing some sort of game that had them jabbing one another with pointed sticks. Women and older children were sharpening knives and swords at a long table fashioned from more strapped-together sapling trees. In fact, it looked like nearly everything in the camp from the dog pen to the small, crudely constructed cabins were made of saplings of various sizes held together with rough, jute-type rope. It was very, well, rustic, I guess?
On a crude wooden platform several adult males poured over what looked like a hand-drawn map while others were arguing and laying out rifles and other long guns in some sort of inventory. With all of the activity, I was only able to make out bits and pieces of conversations despite my excellent hearing. What I did pick up seemed to be centered on gaining access to the main building of the ODI compound, but the reason for their interest wasn’t clear.
Then I noticed that I wasn’t the only creature intent on observing the goings-on and staying hidden while doing so.
Less than fifty feet from where I lay curled in the safety of the bush sat a massive wolf. Its coat was solid snow-white with silver-black tips to the fur. It was such a stunning animal that it should have been impossible to miss, but it was sitting in a thicket of young birch trees, the colors of its fur blending perfectly with the tree bark. When the animal closed its brilliant blue eyes, it faded completely into the camouflage of the trees. It was truly astonishing.
It was also watching me through the branches of my bush.
The intelligence in those eyes left no doubt that there was much more to this particular wolf than could be seen. I lifted my chin in acknowledgement, relaxing slightly when the other animal dipped his snout in response, a completely unnecessary submissive gesture from the much larger animal that seemed intended to assure me that the wolf meant me no harm. After that quick interaction, the wolf’s eyes returned to the humans between us, seeming to catalogue everything at once.
Turning my attention back to the humans, I saw that the only change in activity was the completion of the weapons inventory. The guns had been haphazardly stacked in vertical racks inside the only solid looking shed in the midst of many ramshackle, lean-to type buildings. An older man slammed the door and snapped a silver padlock onto the hasp then stepped over to join the men on the platform. Kneeling next to them when one pointed at the paper, the leather thong that held the padlock key slipped from the back pocket of his jeans and dangled over the edge of the wood.
The temptation was too much.
Creeping out from my hiding place, I stuck to the tree line, again counting on the brindled gray of my fur to help me blend into the late afternoon shadows. I felt the wolf’s eyes on me as I made my way closer to the platform and the dangling leather of the keychain. Raising my head, I chanced a look at the paper that held the men’s attention but couldn’t make out much beyond the circle surrounding one ODI dormitory.
With a mental shrug, I oh-so-carefully gripped the dangling leather in my teeth and gave the slightest tug, wincing when the key slipped free and landed against the dirt in front of me with a dullthud. When no one seemed to notice, I glanced over at the wolf again and amusement was plain as day on his furry face. One brilliant blue eye winked at me and I chuckled inwardly. Gripping the leather in my teeth again, I backed up into the shadows. Hopefully, by the time they realized the key was missing, I’d already be back at the compound, curled up for a long nap. Being sneaky took a lot out of me.
ChapterFourteen
Chuck
There are some sounds that once you’ve heard them, they stay with you forever. That’s why when the guard buzzed me to tell me that we had a guest coming up from the security shack at the front gate, I already knew who it was.
Well, I guess I should say I knew it had to be one of very few people, namely members of the wolf shifters known as the Blood Valley Pack. The custom exhaust systems on their Harley motorcycles were a unique thing of beauty and music to my ears.
When I stepped out into the waiting room to find only their Omega, I was, well, confused. Now, don’t misunderstand me. No one knows better than I do that Omegas are beings in their own right and don’t need an Alpha to manage them, but that doesn’t change the fact that there are risks to them being out alone and most are still hesitant to travel long distances without protection. And no matter how forward thinking an Alpha is, very few who value their mates would leave them unprotected.
Then, when Colby quirked a brow at my silent observation, I sighed at my own inner stupidity. If there was one belief common to everyone who knew Colby, it was that there was nothingaverageabout Colby DeCastro. For goodness’ sake, he was the only Omega in history to have been granted a special dispensation by the Council of Packs to defend his own honor in the Ring of Combat, a job usually held for the Alpha of the pack.
