SHAPESHIFTER ROMANCE: Protection of the Wolf (Paranormal Shifter Army Navy Seal Protector Alpha Wolf Romance) (Fantasy Military Action Adventure Urban Werewolf Romance Short Stories) (3 page)

She found enough stuff to make a stroganoff with, as well as enough veggies for a decent salad. She munched on veggies while cooking and played some upbeat jazz on her phone. She trusted Kurt, and trusted the fact that they were pretty well-hidden. Even if the mob found out about the cabin it would take time for them to get there. Elizabeth found some extra pepper to add zip to the meal. She knew she was just keeping busy to keep from freaking out, but figured if she could hold it together now she could freak out later.

Kurt came back in early evening looking pleased and tired. He sniffed a few times and smiled.

“I thought I smelled something good coming up the path. Thank you, I was thinking sandwiches again,” he said with a relieved smile.

“Well, I got tired of researching and figured you were out working so hard I figured the least I could do was keep the food coming,” she explained. She took a gulp of beer. She had already had two since she’d started cooking and was a little buzzed. He got one for himself.

“You’re looking good. I am glad you went ahead and showered if you wanted to. Sorry I didn’t offer earlier, I wasn’t thinking. Do you mind if I go grab one?” he asked politely.

“Feel free. It will be another half hour before this is done,” she told him. So while he got cleaned up she finished the dinner and it was ready to go when he was done.

Dinner went well. They ate and drank and laughed. She told him more about the mob’s financial illegalities and he told her about the traps and safeguards he had set. She really did like him and realized she was not talking with her foot in her mouth as she usually did. She either was getting comfortable around him, or it was the beer. After a moment’s thought she figured a little of both. It got closer to sundown and he began getting ready.

“Ok, I will probably try and get out for a while. From what I remember of locking myself in I eventually eat and go to sleep. I cannot get out though. That is why this cabin is so armored. It was not because I was paranoid of what was outside, but what was inside. You will have the run of the place but do me a favor. Once it is locked up, do not go outside. I realize it is what women are taught to do in horror movies, but do not go outside. If anyone does come they cannot get in. They will not have the firepower strong enough. Not to mention just getting this close will mean they are wounded and not too functional. I left some nasty traps,” She nodded, her fear beginning to push aside the buzz from the beer.

“No worries Kurt. I am not going to step a foot outside. I will sit here and listen to my headphones and hopefully fall asleep. That way they can knock all they want, I won’t hear them,” she told him. He recognized she was putting on a brave face. He gave her a quick embarrassed hug and a kiss then got ready to lock himself into his room. Once he was all set he sighed.

“I hate to say it Beth, but I am sort of glad you are here. I know it is selfish, but I have never had company on one of these weekends. It helps to have something else, someone else to think about. I just wish we could have got together under other circumstances, you know,” he said to her seriously. She nodded.

“Me too.”

They hugged again. He removed his shirt, handed it to her and went into his self-imposed cell. She waited in the hall for several minutes, waiting for she wasn’t sure what. When it was time he warned her.

“”It…it’s coming Beth. Maybe now would be a good time for your head phones...” she heard him call out. She went back into the living room and did just that. Soon she could hear faint howling over her music and turned it up. There was faint thumping and she could tell it was from him attacking the door of his cell. She squeezed her eyes shut and sat. Trying to ignore what her friend was going through.

It amazed her that she could so calmly accept the fact that this man was actually a werewolf. Well maybe not calmly, but accept it. Everything she had read or seen, (she had researched werewolves too) told her that usually a person would not believe that werewolves exist, simply because it was just impossible. Except she had
seen
it. He had begun changing in front of her. As illogical as the whole idea of werewolves was, it was more illogical to her to deny the evidence of her eyes.

As the music softened she could still hear him and she began to do math problems in her head to distract her. She also went to get another beer. Her job was to sit tight not matter what, she reminded herself. Maybe a little sleep aid would not be a bad thing. After another half an hour she turned her music down and couldn’t hear anything coming from down the hall. She took her headphones out and then could hear a faint whimpering. It sounded like a crying puppy.

Elizabeth slowly moved down the hallway to the door. She was startled to see a paw that was vaguely human shaped sticking out from below the door. She had not noticed there was a few inches clearance below the door. Not enough to get the whole paw through, but enough to reach out a little. She crouched down and the whining became a little louder. Her heart felt squeezed with her regret and sadness that anyone would have to go through this. The she got an idea.

“I’ll be right back, don’t worry, you are not alone,” she said softly. She went and got a pillow and blanket from the bedroom, and then went and set them in the hall. She got comfortable next to the door and softly spoke to the werewolf her friend had become. Soon she was stroking the soft fur on the paw sticking out under the door. He did not react except his whining softened to almost a woof of agreement that everything would be okay. She spoke softly and she did not know how long it was before the paw lost its tension and relaxed. Soon after that she heard faint snoring. He had gone to sleep.  It was not long before she was asleep there in the hall too.

Elizabeth awoke to her name. She had been having a strange dream about being at the side of a stream and laughing while a wolf played in the water. That was interrupted by the sound of her name. Well, not exactly, she thought. Part of her name.

“Beth, Beth, are you there Beth? I gave you the keys, right,” Kurt asked through the door. She realized it was morning and sat up.

“Yeah, I have ’em, just a sec,” she told him. She dug into her shorts pocket and pulled them out. She slid them under the door to him.

“Here you go, sorry about that,” she apologized. He opened the door as she was yawning. He looked down at her with a strange smile on his face and offered her his hand. She took it and allowed him to haul her to her feet. She sighed and smiled.

“Sorry, I hadn’t planned on falling asleep,” she told him.

“I am glad you did. That was the calmest night I have ever spent as a werewolf. Between that and dinner I owe you. So if those mob boys show up, it is on the house.” He leaned in and kissed her lips gently.

“Thank you,” he said with a soft kind voice. Then he was off to the bathroom. She stood there with a hand on her lips for a moment before shaking her head and taking the blanket and pillow back to the bedroom.

They ate and had breakfast quickly before he set up for the day. Setting up consisted of making sure a large number of weapons were prepared and ready to go. He got that done in what, to her, had to be record time. She was positioned at the front window watching the road. If they were coming, Kurt was sure it would be early. They did not know the terrain and could not be sure what he would be prepared to do. The Big Guy in the suit would want plenty of time to take care of business. It made a sort of sense to her. Kurt placed guns at every window with ammo for reloading, then got a cup of coffee for them both and came over to join her.

“So now we wait. It is the worst part of ambushing. You never know for sure when they are coming, despite any intel you may have,” he confided to her. It occurred to her, late she thought, that this was not his first rodeo.

“I am sorry to get you into this. I should have just gone to the cops. The last thing you need is to go into combat. You have enough problems,” she told him. He chuckled.

“Honestly, I am pretty optimistic and it is my pleasure to take care of this for you, and me when it comes right down with it. They made a mistake that put me with you. They had no way of knowing for sure you would be with me based on what the guy in the deli told them. It is not like we left together. They are making the mistake of assuming everyone acts like they do. I mean, I imagine if they had to go on the run they would all leave by different doors with an overnight bag,” he said. Elizabeth could not help laughing.

“True, except their assumption ended up being true,” she pointed out.

“Maybe, but considering the odds of it actually being right, they got lucky this time. Still if they know where this place is and they are working off of their assumptions about us, they have to come here. I would. Just check each possibility off of the list until one pops. Well if they show up here I will give them pops,” he said with a grim smile. I was going to comment on that when we both saw dust coming up the road.

“Shit, here we go. I was hoping I had been wrong. Do you know what to do?” he asked Elizabeth. She shook her head.

“No, other than stay out of the way,” she told him.

“Hell no. You are going to be my eyes if things heat up. They can’t shoot through the windows or through the walls unless they have a rocket launcher and I am sure they won’t have one of those. So when things get really hopping you keep your eyes out. If you see someone trying to go around the cabin, you let me know. Do not be shy, shout it out if you have to, ok?” he asked. She nodded feeling her fear rise up higher in her.

They watched as three cars pulled slowly up the dirt road. They stopped maybe twenty feet behind her car and his.

“I wish I had a cigarette,” she said.

“I didn’t know you smoked,” he responded with a glance.

“I don’t, but it seems like a good time to start,” she said absently while watching the men getting out of the cars. He laughed a short bark and she realized what she had said was funny. Elizabeth had actually meant it. The Big Guy in the suit was up front followed by six other guys in suits. They seemed completely out of place in this wooded retreat.

“Kurt Landan. We know you are in there. We can see you. Just give us Elizabeth Darley and you are out of it. She is the one we need,” the Big Guy shouted up at them. Kurt snorted and chuckled.

“My ass,” he murmured. Then, “Yeah as if I believe that. Besides, you are here to kill a lady who lives next to me. I would not be acting as a good neighbor if I did not help her out. What, were you raised in a barn?” Kurt shouted back. He brought his rifle up to his shoulder. The windows were all slightly cracked open for a muzzle of as gun.

“If you are trying to be a hero you are wasting your time. She is not worth it,” the Big Guy called out. Kurt looked like he was focusing in on something in the scope.

“She gives a great hand massage. My arthritis has not been this good in weeks,” Kurt called back and then there was a hug bang, of his gun going off. With ringing ears Elizabeth saw the man to the Big Guy’s left fly backward screaming reaching for his shoulder.

“Freeze Big Guy! You do not want to know where I am aiming now, I guarantee you will not like it!” Kurt informed him as he rolled his head on his neck before sighting in again. He was so calm, it was helping Elizabeth from having a meltdown. Later, she told herself. There would be time later. The men standing in front of the cabin froze. She did not see why. Then she saw glimpses of people moving through the woods on either side.

“There are people circling through the trees. They have more men!” she told him.

“Shit, here we go!” Kurt said and then took three rapid shots. Three of the five remaining in the front went down screaming. The Big Guy and two others hit the ground too fast to get hit. The smell of gun smoke was intense as a cloud of it wafted through the room.

“Okay Beth, go the side window over there and keep an eye out. Shut that window first,” he said as he shut the window he was at. They did this just as the attackers opened fire at the front of the house. Staying down she crawled to the window he had indicated and he went to the other side.

“They are trying to distract us. Let me know if anyone on that side gets too close,” said Kurt.

She agreed shakily. She watched and tugged her tank top down. It always made her uncomfortable when her clothes did that. She thought she saw two guys in the woods getting closer. Fortunately the trees did not come right up to the cabin, she thought. At least she hoped that was good.

She watched them closely while bullets were still being fired at the front of the place. She heard Kurt’s gun go off three times in rapid fire. Then as she was about to turn, someone popped up from under her window, a black haired man with a mustache. He got a hand slipped into the crack of the window, and began pushing it further open. Elizabeth screamed and threw her weight against it, smashing his hand against the window jam. He swore and began shoving harder.

“Hold on Beth, hold on, ok, down!” he cried. She let go and rolled backwards as she heard the window slide open. Kurt’s rifle fired again. Once, twice, and at the same time she heard the third she heard another, different sounding shot and screamed as her shoulder felt agonizing pain. Several more bullets fired from inside the cabin and then Kurt was next to her dragging her back down the hall.

“God damn it Beth, I should never have let you do that. Shit, let me see it. Easy girl, I got you,” she heard him say through the pain.

“Oh Christ, ok, the bullet just creased your shoulder. It didn’t puncture or break anything,” he told her, wrapping a bandana around her shoulder. “Put pressure on it with your hand on it and stay put. I am done playing with these bozos.”

The look on his face would have terrified her if she thought it was directed at her. She watched him head back to the front of the cabin. He picked up another gun. This one had a long clip and a big barrel.
Uh oh
, she thought to herself. She glanced down at her shoulder and could see blood leaking through her fingers. She pressed down tighter.

“Just you three left Big Guy. Come on out and play boy. What are you waiting for, think you are out of your league! You don’t even know,” he shouted furiously out the front window. His gun came up and there were rapid fire gunshots.

“Now it is down to two of you. I can do this all day.  You don’t have that kind of time though. You have to know the cops are on the way,” he told the mob men. Cops, Elizabeth thought. He called the cops? He could have told me, she thought. Her shoulder hurt and was throbbing badly. She was doing everything she could to just not cry when she heard the voice of the Big Guy in the suit.

“Now who is out of his league Marine Boy!” she heard him say. She saw Kurt turn and run towards her.

“What? Kurt what is—” said Elizabeth, her words cut off when he scooped her up and ran into the bedroom, diving down with her behind the side of the bed.

“Sorry Beth, they have a rocket launcher!” She felt the tears come then and he curled around her. Trying to protect her body with his.

“I wish I would have hit on you when I had the chance. If we get out of this I will court you properly,” he whispered to her and then he kissed her on the mouth. She returned it until they both heard sirens and a loudspeaker.

“Drop the weapons, this is NCIS. We have you surrounded.”

Then there was silence. Kurt and Elizabeth looked at each other in surprise.

“I thought you called the cops,” she told him. He shook his head.

“I was bluffing,”