Love in Dreams: Rescue (6 page)

The wolf-dog ignored Cass. He didn’t break from his circuit
of the room until he passed the door, veering out at the last second.

“Good morning to you, too,” Cass said. She was mildly
annoyed. Food, water, shelter...and the animal ignores her. Still, she was happy
to see him moving well and not as lifeless as the previous day. He was probably
eager to get out and stretch his legs.

Cass was stepping into the kitchen when the wolf-dog
returned. He breezed past her and incorporated the entire cabin into his manic circuit.
Around and around he went, walking the far edges of each room, sniffing the air
occasionally and taking long looks out the picture window when he passed.

“Huh,” Cass said. “Getting used to your new surroundings?
Don’t get
too
comfortable.”

She busied herself with breakfast, tossing together an
omelet, toast, grapefruit juice, and coffee. The wolf-dog eventually settled
like a sentry at the picture window. He stared far into the distance. His
breath made puffs of fog on the glass.

Cass ate in the kitchen. She stood at the counter and
watched the gray animal carefully. He seemed to be filling out by the hour. His
ribs weren’t as prominent. He carried himself proudly, no longer meek. But he
also refused to meet her gaze or respond to her voice. The more he ignored
Cass, the more she wanted him to look at her like he had when she was sunning
by the lake. His eyes then were kind and curious. Now they were cold.

Leave it alone, Cass. Take the thing in to town and be
done with this.

So far, this new guiding voice hadn’t been wrong. She nodded
once, as if conversing with the eggs on the plate in front of her.

“It’s settled, then. Off to town as soon as I shower.”

Cass stood under the shower’s warm jets for a long time,
letting the steady heat wash over her until her cheeks were flushed red. She
stretched her arms high over her head. Her muscles and sinews stretched and
popped. All the trigger points in her shoulders and neck relaxed; so much so
that she dropped to the shower stall floor and sat with her knees to her chest
for a long, long time.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, Cass was overcome. It all came
flooding out then, finally. A stream of tears. Convulsing sobs. It was the best
and most primal kind of therapy. The immediate urgency and stress of escape had
faded. She was alone but safe, a sentry posted at the picture window, a cabin
full of supplies, and her guard fell like a house of cards.

Cass wept. She wept for the life she’d escaped, and the man
she once loved. She still couldn’t define the twisting emotions. A tiny part of
her craved the evil that was Preston, and she didn’t understand why.

He’s gone, Cass. Gone gone gone.

Everything hurt during those long minutes under the shower’s
relentless waterfall. Cass thought it might never end. She thought she’d be
bruised and damaged for all time. She screamed at herself for both wanting and
hating Preston. Why did part of her crave one more chance to wake up in bed
next to him? To spend a normal day in her old normal life, instead of facing
the unknown? Her throat ached until she could barely breathe. Utter loneliness.
No family. No friends. Nothing but the cabin and her car and a mangy dog. The
pain gripped her soul like a cruel fist, and it didn’t want to let go.

But then, when she’d exhausted the tears, Cass pulled
herself up and turned her face toward the showerhead. She was close enough that
the streams stung her cheeks like a thousand hot needles. She closed her eyes
and held firm. The pain was nearly unbearable, but Cass imagined it cleansing
her – it blasted the tears from her tender skin and banished them forever. She
turned left and right, wishing for the water to scrape away the remnants of
bruises and shame alike.

No more.

Cass leaned back, pulling her face from the spray, and she
smiled a pure and full smile for the first time in weeks. The water splashed
across her chest and she felt like she was born anew. Right as she was really
starting to feel good about things, the hot water ran out.

“Holy shit!” Cass screamed as ice water washed over her. She
hopped wildly out of the shower and wrapped herself in a puffy blue towel,
shivering and bright-eyed and rosy-cheeked. She felt lighter – still dealing
with the ache of the past week’s events, but without the overwhelming weight on
her shoulders.

The feeling would be short-lived. Before Cass had a chance
to dry her hair, she heard a loud knock at the back door. She tiptoed out of
the bathroom and studied the wolf-dog. He sat still as if nothing was wrong.
This was
just
reassuring enough to keep Cass from hiding in the bedroom
until whoever was at the door went away.

Cass took a deep breath and slapped across the kitchen with
her wet feet.

“Must be Wanda,” she said. “Maybe coming to apologize.”

But when she peeked out a window in the back room, she saw a
dark green police cruiser parked at an angle to the cabin. A voice squawked
from a radio, and a man’s voice near the back door murmured a response. It was
Officer Lincoln.

Cass yanked the door open a split-second before she
remembered her lack of clothes. Too late to retreat, she wrapped her arms
around her towel-clad chest and greeted the surprised police officer.

“Good morning,” she said confidently. “Officer...Lincoln,
right?”

“Um, yes ma’am,” Lincoln said. He pulled the green GRPD
baseball cap from his head and nodded awkwardly. “Sorry to disturb you this
morning. I was driving through and thought I’d, uh, stop by.”

“That’s very nice of you,” Cass said. She tilted her head
and studied the young man in front of her. He’d lost the easy confidence that
was on display at the grocery store. Now he shifted from foot to foot,
obviously nervous, fiddling with the strap over his revolver. It struck her
that with the Saturn parked on the other side of the cabin, the lot should have
appeared empty. “And how very random that you’d show up here.”

“Well, it’s not exactly random,” Lincoln said. “I ran into
Wanda in town yesterday and she mentioned somebody new at the Danby place. It
was the second time someone brought this old cabin up, so I thought I’d take a
ride out here and say hello.”

“Ahhh, Wanda,” Cass said. “A real character. My name is
Cass, by the way. Did she tell you I have her wolf-dog?”

“Yes, ma’am,” he said. “And believe me, that thing is one
hundred percent wolf. You’d do well to get it out of here as soon as possible.
You have it inside?”

“Yep.”

Lincoln shook his head and let out a low whistle. “Wouldn’t
do that if I were you, Cass.”

“Really?” Cass paused. His reaction only served to confirm a
feeling that had been building since the previous day’s strange and violent
dream: she’d changed her mind about keeping the wolf inside, and resolved to
move him outside as soon as Officer Lincoln left.

A cold breeze made Cass shiver. She saw Officer Lincoln eyes
flash over her body, lingering on her legs, and her cheeks warmed.

“I’m sorry I can’t ask you in,” she said quickly, nodding
down and adding, “You kind of caught me off guard.”

“Oh it’s no problem,” Lincoln said in a rush. He, too,
appeared to be blushing, and Cass had to admit that there was something
decidedly attractive about the slightly goofy younger man. He was a mix of
eager and afraid, and definitely easy on the eyes.

Lincoln took a step back, slid his cap back on, and raised a
hand to wave goodbye. He paused, like a teenager unsure of how to end a
conversation with the first girl he ever asked out.

“Have a good morning, Officer Lincoln,” Cass said, laughing.

“You, too, ma’am,” he said. He turned toward the cruiser,
then spun around as Cass let the porch screen door flex closed. “One more
thing, though, since I’m here. Earlier yesterday, before I saw Wanda, the
dispatcher told me a man had come in asking about this place. And asking about
a woman who’s maybe out here.” He ran a hand over his cheek and scratched his
chin. “I, uh, well, thought it might be you. Anyone meeting you up here?”

Cass’s heart nearly stopped. She pushed the door open again.

“No,” she said quietly. She felt frozen. “Do you know what
he looked like?”

“Sorry,” Lincoln said, shaking his head. He reached for his
radio. “I can find out real quick.”

“No!” Cass said sharply. “It’s okay.” It couldn’t be
Preston. No way. He’d never find out about the cabin.

It’s him, Cass.

“Nonsense,” she whispered to herself. It was time for her to
stop the constant worrying. What were the odds that Preston was lurking
somewhere in Grand Rapids? Between slim and none. “Probably Wanda’s realtor.”

Officer Lincoln frowned when he heard Cass’s back-and-forth
with herself. He walked back toward her. “Do you...
want
anyone to meet
you up here?”

“Um, no,” she said. “It’s kind of a sabbatical for me. A
little getaway.”

“If there’s anything – ”

“No worries, officer, thank you,” Cass said, more happily
than she felt. Her brain buzzed with a mix of panic, false confidence, and an
urgent need to run back inside and regroup. “But thank you so much for stopping
by. I have your card, and trust me, I’ll call you if I need anything.”

She added under her breath: “If I ever get a phone again.”

Officer Lincoln stared at Cass for a few seconds, sizing her
up. For a brief moment, he seemed angry that she’d cut him off. Then his
expression went neutral.

 “Okay, Cass,” he said. He tipped his cap and turned
back toward the cruiser. “You have a good day then.”

Cass watched as he eased into his car and slowly pulled out
of the driveway. Then she deadbolted the back door and walked into the kitchen.

You need to prepare. Now, Cass.

But she couldn’t. Despair reared its ugly head. What would
she do? If this mystery man actually
was
Preston – her more hopeful side
kept swearing it couldn’t be – but if it really was, then he’d find her
anywhere. She couldn’t even run and hide. She’d be better off giving in and
returning to the Cities and whatever waited for her in their old home.

Never give in.

Cass breathed deeply.

“Okay,” she said.

Go to town. Tell the officer. Tell him everything.

Cass returned to the bathroom, reasoning along the way. She
really didn’t want to follow Officer Lincoln into town and spill out her sorry
tale.

Besides, if it
was
Preston asking about the cabin,
he’d have shown up already. And why would he even choose a police station to
ask about her, anyway?

Cass laughed, trying to reassure herself.

“So jumpy,” she said to her reflection in the steamy mirror.
“What you need is a nice fire in the wood stove and a quiet Sunday alone.”

Suit yourself.

“Fine! I will!”

Cass dressed in a pair of old jeans and a flannel shirt,
leaving her hair loose and free around her shoulders. She was sitting down on
the orange couch to put her shoes on when the wolf stopped its slow circuit of
the cabin and sat in front of her.

“Finally you’ll look at me,” she said. “Bad news, though,
buster. You’ll be headed back outside today.”

The wolf’s green eyes flickered. They were bright and
strong. It was the most alert Cass had seen the animal yet.

Cass blinked. She couldn’t look away. She felt a fluttering
in her chest and a warmth along her back. She swayed backward slightly.

“Have to...find firewood,” she murmured.

The wolf held her gaze. Soon, she could see nothing else –
only the dark emerald pools shimmering within the dark gray fur. Cass rubbed
her head. She was dizzy. Impossibly sleepy. She tried to stand and couldn’t.
She toppled over, crashing into the pillows like she was a sack of grain.

She was out cold, but her eyes were wide open and staring at
the wolf, who moved close to her and sighed deeply.

~~~

She is not Nurse Cass this time. She is Cass. The real Cass.

He is the same man as before. Same appearance, although
healthier. He sits at a table in an empty restaurant. She stands in the
doorway. She is scared.

“Who are you?” she asks. “Why am I here?”

He motions for her to join him at the table. She walks
slowly, unsure.

“My name is Collin,” he says. His eyes blaze green like the
wolf’s.

Cass blinks hard. She expects to wake up in the cabin.

“I brought you here,” he says, noticing her bewildered
state.

Cass sits across from him.

“You’re the soldier,” she says, crossing her arms
reflexively. “We...we touched each other.”

The man shifts uneasily in his chair and smiles shyly.

“Yes,” he says.

“I feel like I know you.”

“Likewise.”

“But I don’t.”

“No.”

Cass starts to say something else and then stops. She can’t
form the words. The man’s eyes hold her like the wolf’s – she’s aware on some
level that she is conscious and responsive, but she is also half-paralyzed, as
if she can’t tear herself away from this vision no matter how hard she tries.
This is not a dream, but she is not awake.

“You’re confused,” he says.

“You’re the wolf,” she mumbles.

“Yes.”

“How?”

“That form is part of me. This form is part of it. I’m both
man and wolf.”

“A werewolf.”

“If that’s how you’d like to describe me, yes,” he says.

“Why are you doing this?” Cass says.

“Believe me, I don’t know. I’ve been alone for fifteen
years. I haven’t shown myself to anyone since...for a long time.” He’s
agitated, raising his hands in disbelief. “You, though, you appear out of
nowhere and you’re this glowing form in my vision. That’s only happened once
before. I know it doesn’t make sense, but I
knew
you were coming and
once you were here, I knew we’d meet. In these dreams.”