Parahuman (Parahuman Series) (36 page)

     “He
deserved that, I guess.” Laney said sadly.

     “He
deserves a lot more than that.” Devan growled. He replaced the bullets and
stuck the gun in his back waistband. Bending down he began frisking Jarrod,
none too gently, confiscating the bowie knife strapped to the back of his belt,
and the cell phone in his back pocket.

     “I
don’t understand what…I mean; we’ve been friends for so long. What did I…?”
Laney broke off, unable to articulate Jarrod’s actions and her feelings into
words.

     The
look Devan threw her way before he went back to looking through Jarrod’s
pockets was agonized and full of guilt. “Laney, you said yourself that he
changed overnight when I came on the scene, so if anyone is to blame it would
be me.”

      Instant
anger filled Laney that he would take any blame for this. “Don’t even go
there.” She snapped. He looked at her in surprise. “Whatever was wrong with him
has been there for a long time and even though he focused on you it could
easily have been something else that set him off. He was carrying some sort of
fixation for me and our…” Laney flushed and pointed back and forth between her
and Devan. “…friendship tipped him over the edge.”

     A
look of discomfort crossed his face. “So, it was my fault in a certain way.”
Devan mumbled.

     Laney
rolled her eyes. “No, it could have easily been someone else showing an
interest in me triggering his volatility, or just realizing that I didn’t like
him like he wanted me to.”

    
Devan’s eyes flared and his features hardened in ferocity. Laney wondered at
his reaction and then realized he didn’t like the thought of someone else
showing an interest in her. Her heart lifted at his response and what it could
mean.

     Reaching
into one of the many pockets on his vest Devan pulled out some zip ties;
flipping Jarrod over unceremoniously he began tying his hands and then his feet
together. 

     “Are
we going to leave him here all tied up? A wild animal could find him.” Laney
looked on with trepidation.

    
Devan’s head was bent over his task but Laney saw his jaw clench. “I’m going to
have to leave you both here. Jarrod had his phone on him and there’s just
enough signal for you to make a call. I’ll give you the exact coordinates so
the search party can find you as soon as possible, and I’ll observe from a safe
distance to make sure they arrive.”

     Laney’s
heart sank at what Devan was telling her. “This is another one of those
situations you can’t be involved in, isn’t it?”

     Devan
stood and reached into his vest for a water canister and handed it to her. His
eyes were poignant. “Yes.”

    
“Those are all the situations we seem to have; first the mountain lion, then
the wolf, and this.” She choked out a laugh. “How are we going to explain this
one away? I don’t think anyone is going to believe that I broke Jarrod nose.”

     “They
will if you tell them you used a branch. I didn’t allow Jarrod to get a look at
me when I hit him, and I hit him so hard that it might even make him confused
about how he got hit altogether.” Devan smiled grimly at that thought.

    
“First a wolf and now Jarrod; I’m pretty impressive.” Laney remarked in misery.
She did not like taking credit for what Devan had done. He’d rescued her, twice,
no three times counting the bridge, and he wasn’t able to be recognized for the
hero he was.

     There
was a long silent moment and Laney watched several emotions move across Devan’s
face before a look of resolution settled on it. “We could come up with another
story. We could leave him here and I could get you near one of the search
groups; you could tell them you escaped.

     Laney
liked that plan a lot better because she would be spending more time with
Devan, but it would still leave him out of be credited with her rescue. “I just
don’t like taking credit for something I didn’t do. I want you to be
recognized, but instead I look like some sort of…” Laney grinned at Devan
impishly. “Super human.”

    
Devan’s looked astonished. “Is that what you think I am?”

     “If
the cape fits.” Laney quipped. “You have come to my rescue three times. Four if
we count the lion.”

     An
expression of guilt washed over Devan’s face. “If not for me the wolves
wouldn’t have even been at the school.”

     Laney
frowned. “What do you mean?”

     Devan
paced over to the door. “I knew from beginning that the wolves weren’t your
ordinary Gray wolves. First of all, they were substantially larger than your
average Gray, and secondly, their behavior was too methodical. They had no fear
when they entered the crowded parking lot. They were focused entirely on the
hunt; searching for what they’d been ingrained, probably from birth, to find.
That’s why they headed straight for my jeep and then the storage building.” He
turned to face her, his expression stony. “They were there for me. Hunting me;
possible sent to kill me.”

    
Ingrained
from birth? Hunting, killing!
“What do you mean?” Laney asked, thoroughly
confused.

    
“These wolves aren’t natural; they’ve been genetically altered and trained to
find me. They have been hunting me for who knows how long and somewhere along
the way they picked up my scent and tracked me here. They were at the school
because my scent lead them there. I put everyone in danger, I put you in danger.”
Devan’s tone was laden with remorse.

     Laney
felt her face lose blood at his statement, not because she’d been in danger,
but because the wolves were sent to kill him. “Are you sure, maybe…”

     Devan
shook his head, stopping her. “We’re sure; a sample of the wolves’ marrow
confirmed it.” 

     Anger
and horror trembled through Laney’s body causing the blood to rush back up to
her face. She was exhausted and all these emotions were becoming too much. “So
this so called Company made these wolves for the sole purpose of finding you?”

     More
guilt crossed Devan’s face. “Yes.”

     Laney
knew what he was feeling guilty about and she wasn’t going to allow him take
responsibility. “You need to stop blaming yourself, especially since it sounds
like they’re only interested in you, and even if they weren’t it still isn’t
your fault.” She growled, tired of him taking the blame for everything. Jarrod
behavior wasn’t his fault and these killer wolves definitely weren’t his fault.

     Devan’s
expression was a mixture of misery and self-condemnation telling Laney that he
wasn’t buying into any of her words. She gave him another aggrieved glare
before asking the question weighing on her mind. “How are these wolves
altered?”

    “The
Company must have been able to replicate one of Brett’s previous experiments;
one that involved wolves mixed with the DNA of a bloodhound and a bear. That’s
why the wolves are so large. When we escaped the facility I left behind a variety
of things that held my scent, and bloodhounds are known to track a scent for
weeks. They could have found my scent anywhere on the road between here and
Oregon.” 

     Laney
frowned.” Oregon? I thought you came from Michigan.”

     Devan
gave her a sheepish look. “We never tell our true previous location; it’s
better to cut all ties.”

     The
anger inside of Laney reached its boiling point, but not from Devan’s lie.
“These people are vile. That they would send out…these kinds of animals to kill
you…they’re the animals…utterly despicable.” Laney’s words were coming out
disjointed she was so mad. A terrifying thought hit her. “Oh God! The Company
isn’t here in Silverton, is it? Is that how the wolf disappeared; were they
trying to hide the evidence?”

     An
odd expression shifted over Devan’s face. “People didn’t come to retrieve the
wolf’s body; it was the other pack members that broke in. They raided the vet’s
on their own volition, razed the building to eliminate any possible evidence
and then dragged the body away. I found it last night after dropping you off.
The pack consumed most of the animal and crushed what they could of its bones.”
  

     Laney
grimaced at the picture he painted and then her eyes narrowed. He’d known all
this and hadn’t told her. Had he been trying to protect her or was it that he
still wasn’t comfortable with revealing certain information? She couldn’t yell
at him―even though she really wanted to―he had to be willing to
share.

     “Why
would they do that?” Laney asked instead.

    
“They’ve probably been trained to destroy anything that could prove the
existence of genetic experimentation. There was nothing left of that animal
except for some fur and various broken bones.” 

     Laney
grimaced again. “They ate their own pack member?”   

     A
groan from the floor had both Laney’s and Devan’s head swinging toward Jarrod.
She’d forgotten him while Devan had revealed everything that had been going on
behind the scenes. It was unbelievable to her that animals could think and plan
something rationally like that.

     Laney
suddenly found herself lifted up and everything blurred as Devan dashed out of
the small shack. She grasped his shoulders tightly in alarm at how fast they
moved. Once outside he closed the door and then bent over causing Laney to
squeak and tightened her grip even more at the almost upside-down position, but
Devan kept his firm hold on her. A second later she was back upright and Devan
was holding a branch in his hand which he wedged against the door to hold it
shut. 

    
Reaching into one of his vest pockets Devan pulled out Jarrod’s phone and began
typing something on it. Laney was going to ask what he was doing but he gave a
shake of his head gesturing toward the door and she realized he didn’t want
Jarrod overhearing anything if he was waking up. When Devan was done he tossed
the phone into the forest.

     It
was quite a toss…at least fifty yards.

     Picking
up a crossbow that was set against the building he slung it over his shoulder,
and after shifting her slightly into a more comfortable position he walked
swiftly away from the building while scanning the area.

     When
they’d reached a safe distance she couldn’t hold back her curiosity any longer.
“What did you do on his phone?”

     “I sent
coordinates to his father and yours.” He answered gruffly.

     Laney
raised her eyebrows. She had a feeling he only did it because he knew she would
have worried about Jarrod all tied up and defenseless. 

     “You
know you would look really good in spandex.”

    
Devan’s eyebrows went up. “What?”

     Laney
grinned. “You know, for your super hero outfit. Something black maybe.” She pursed
her lips thoughtfully and then ruined it with a yawn. She relaxed the death
grip she had on his shoulders.

     The
look Devan gave her was concerned. “Try to go to sleep.” He ordered.

     Laney
set her head against his chest wishing he wasn’t wearing the vest and she could
feel the warmth of skin. The day had gotten warmer so she wasn’t as cold as
she’d been last night. “I’m just saying…you would, but no cape. Maybe something
like Wolverine.” The long night was definitely catching up with her because
Laney could feel herself starting to babble. Her eyes were gritty from lack of
sleep and she was having a hard time keeping them open. Suddenly her eyes flew
open. “Wait, you can’t be carrying me, your arm is injured. Let me down right
now.” She tried to wiggle out of his arms but it was like trying to get out of
a boa constrictors hold.   

     “I’m
fine. I told you I heal faster than normal.” He grunted, pulling her in tighter
to his chest. The way he strode effortlessly through the woods while carrying
her seemed to testify to claim, but she was still worried.

     “You
can’t carry me all the way back.” Laney protested; although, she had to admit
this felt awesome.

     Devan
gave another small grunt. “You weigh barely anything. I’ve carried elk farther
that weighed more than you.”

     Laney
still wasn’t reassured, but there really wasn’t anything she could do because
she couldn’t budge from his grasp. “If you get tired you better set me down.”
She grumbled crossly.

     Devan
didn’t answer her and after a while his smooth rhythmic stride lulled her into
closing her eyes again.

    
“Laney?”

    
“Mmm,” she mumbled sleepily.

     “Do
you realize what the wolves signify?”

     Laney’s
sleep deprived brain was having a hard time comprehending what Devan was trying
to tell her, but she did hear the sadness in his tone. “What,” she asked
apprehensively. 

     “In
all probability The Company is tracking them, leading them here.” He said
solemnly.

      A
pain unlike anything she’d ever felt before arrowed through Laney’s body. She
almost cried out in pain,
‘no, no, no’
. She didn’t want him to leave. The
words nearly left her lips, the only thing that stopped her was the thought
that he would be in danger if he stayed, and the thought of anything happening
to him elicited more pain than his leaving did.