Leon didn’t argue, but there was a tightness to his shoulders that hadn’t been there over coffee. “And if we lose them because we’re strategizing?”
“You telling me you can’t move quickly enough to avoid that?” Karl asked, letting some bite through, more from habit than anything else.
Leon’s mouth twitched, something between irritation and amusement. “Better than you, wolf.”
Then he shifted, smooth as poured shadow, making the transition look seamless. As if the animal had just been underneath the whole time, waiting.
Karl stood there for half a second too long, watching the sleek, dark shape disappear into the trees. Sleek.Jesus,what was wrong with him?That cat was too damn sure of himself for his own good. Or Karl’s.
He gave himself a hard shake.
“I swear to God,” he muttered, already shifting. “Cats.”
Then he was running.
Chapter Twelve
LEON
A few hours later, they reached the place the men had camped that night. The scent was so fresh, Leon realized they’d only just missed them.
Without a word, they veered off the open trail and scaled the steep hillside above, moving quickly and quietly through the trees. From there, they’d have a clear vantage point and less chance of being seen.
Karl moved more quietly than Leon would have expected for a wolf. There was a fluidity to the way he handled the terrain, and though he wasn’t perfect, like a cat would be, he was good enough that Leon grudgingly approved. Almost.
Down below, the voices carried at the kind of volume that made Leon’s tail twitch in annoyance. Football. They were talking about a game they were going to watch after they got back from their little adventure. Jackasses.
As the pair came into view, Leon and Karl both sank low, pressing flat against the hillside. It wasn’t necessary. The two men weren’t alert enough to notice a tree falling on them, let alone two predators watching from the undergrowth.
Leon caught Karl’s gaze and indicated with his head in a human way because he didn’t know if he would understand cat language. Karl understood that, at least, and the two of them slunk silently away, only shifting at a safe distance.
“Underwhelming,” Leon muttered. “A newborn kitten could take them down before they noticed.”
Karl gave a noncommittal grunt. “Still don’t know if they’re armed. Even a fool can pull a trigger fast.” He looked at Leon, something cautious in his expression. “If not for how long they were watching the ranch, I’d say they were just nosy hikers.”
Leon nodded slowly. “I was thinking the same.”
They stood in silence for a moment, then Karl said, “Let’s find out for sure.”
This time, it didn’t feel so much like an order as an agreement.
They sketched out a rough strategy between them. Leon didn’t love how much he still had to guess at Karl’s instincts. There was no shared rhythm between them, not the way he had with Luna’s guard. But Karl didn’t seem like he’d throw him under the bus either. They’d manage.
Low and silent, Leon stalked behind the two hikers, every step deliberate. His paws barely whispered against the earth. Even as he tracked them, he kept scanning the woods, alert to whatever else might be out there.
The older one smelled of stale cigarettes. It clung to him like a second skin, coating the air and muting every other scent. Leon wrinkled his nose and adjusted, filtering through the haze. There was nothing to suggest weapons, no sharp metal tang, no hintof gun oil. Just the sloppiness of people too confident they were alone.
They rounded a bend and stopped short so suddenly Leon almost ran into them.
“Holyshit!”The older one grabbed his friend’s arm, his voice loud and panicked.
Leon eased to the side for a better view, and there was Karl, standing stock-still in the middle of the path. The black wolf wasn’t growling. He didn’t need to. He just stood there, massive and utterly immovable, the weight of his gaze pressing down like a thunderhead. That kind of presence couldn’t be faked. Even alphas didn’t always have it, but Karl did, and then some.
The men spun around.
Leon was already shifting, rising into human form just in time to meet them with arms crossed and a dangerous glare.
One of them choked on a breath. “What the fuck?”
