The Calling (4 page)

She opened her door and stepped out of the car. A glance at Mitch told her he was as puzzled as she was. They were in the heart of what looked like a ghost town. The place was deserted. There were no people milling around. The stores were all closed. Not a sound to be heard other than the wind and the noise the stoplight made as it swung across the street. It was almost spooky and the eerie feeling she was getting didn't bode well for the trip. "Are you sure this is it?" she asked.

"Yes, for the second time."

His curt reply left no room for argument and she sighed before walking around the car and stopping. She looked down the street in both directions before crossing her arms under her breast and leaning back against the car. "Okay, so what now?"

"I have no clue." He stepped up onto the sidewalk and peered into one of the shop windows, cupping his hands on the glass to block the suns glare. "It looks like a clothing store," he said. "But there's no one inside."

"Well, it is Sunday," Rayna said. "Maybe they're just closed."

A noise from behind them caused Rayna to jump before she swiveled her body to look. A man stood in the middle of the road staring at them. She gasped at his sudden appearance and unconsciously took a few steps backwards. "Where the hell did he come from," she whispered.

"Ms. Ford?"

Rayna stared at the man when he said her name and nodded her head when Mitch stepped closer to her. Her heart thudded in her chest and she took several deep breaths to try and control her breathing. "I'm Rayna Ford."

The man was tall and thin. His graying hair was cut short to his head and he wore a suit jacket with jeans and cowboy boots. He smiled and started toward them. "I'm Stan Buchanan. Welcome to Wolf's Creek."

"Uh, thanks," she said.

"We were expecting you earlier. Did you have trouble finding us?"

She smiled and glanced at Mitch. "A little," she said.

"Well I'm sure Malcolm will be happy to see you've arrived."

She nodded her head at him and took a quick glance around town. "It's kind of quiet around here, isn't it?"

He laughed, the sound soft and warming. "We're pretty laid back here most of the time," he said. He walked toward them and stopped just behind the car. "And it's Sunday. None of the stores are open. If you need something I can make arrangements for you."

"We're fine," she said. "We have everything we need." Movement out of the corner of her eye caught her attention and she turned her head, looking to the opposite side of the street. A young boy stood in the shadows, watching them. "So," she said, "Where is everyone? The town looks a bit deserted."

"Oh, the others will be along shortly. We don't get many visitors here but I'm sure half the town knows you've arrived by now."

"One does," she said, nodding her head to the boy. When Stan turned his head to look at him, the boy ran around the corner of the building and was gone.

Stan smiled. "That would be Jacob," he said. "He's quite curious. As everyone will be."

"I see."

"When you're ready, I can show you to Malcolm's. You'll be staying at his home while you're here in town. I wish we could offer you more privacy but as you can see, we don't have public lodging."

"All I need is a place to lay my head," Mitch said, walking around the car and opening his door.

"Well, that we can offer you," Stan said. "Come. I'll take you to Malcolm."

* * * *

Garrett looked up when Dan Reynolds stopped in front of his desk. He raised an eyebrow at him and leaned forward in his chair. "Why are you standing in front of me instead of watching Rayna?"

"Probably because I can't follow her past the county line," Reynolds said. "I figured you could so that's why I'm here."

"County line? She left Bluff's Point?"

"Yeah and she wasn't alone."

Garrett bit his tongue and took a deep breath. He stared across his desk at Reynolds and tried to calm his breathing.

"She left with Mitch Pierson..." Garrett could tell there was more in the way Reynolds paused. He waited, holding his body still and hoped like hell his face didn't reveal all he was feeling. The thoughts of Mitch and Rayna together caused the wolf to rage and beat against his flesh.

"I watched her pack suitcases into the back of Mitch's car," Reynolds said, "and then followed them all the way to the Interstate. They were headed south."

Garrett ground his teeth together, listening to the small crunch they made as his jaw tightened. Why this information surprised him, he didn't know. Mitch had never made it a secret he would help Rayna forget all her troubles, and him, and so far she'd acted as if she wasn't interested.

Apparently she's changed her mind.
And do you blame her after the stunt you pulled last night?

Forcing himself to stay seated and not run straight to his car and chase her down, he stared at his computers black monitor. "They were headed south? You're sure?" he asked, ignoring the roaring inside his head. How could he protect her if she wasn't there? If she wasn't there, he didn't need to protect her, did he? If he didn't need to protect her, then why was his wolf sliding against his bones and trying to get out?
Because your mate is with another man. A man that isn't you.

"Yeah, south on I-95."

Garrett looked up and nodded, waving his hand and dismissing Reynolds. He waited until he was on the other side of the room before reaching for his keyboard. A few clicks and several minutes later, he pulled up the DMV records on Mitch and wrote down every piece of information he could find. The desire to have them stopped was strong but without a damn good reason he could do nothing.

He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. Damn it, why did he have to push her buttons every time he saw her? Why couldn't he just let it go? He didn't have to prove to anyone, especially her, that he was over her. Surely she knew he was by the way he treated her but the fear she'd see through his lies was always there. Fear that she'd realize he only tormented her to remind himself he couldn't have her. That in alienating her, she'd hate him as much as he hated himself.

His phone rang and tearing his gaze from the computer, he answered. "Kincaid."

"Hello, lover."

Garrett's heart skipped a beat before his blood resumed rushing through his veins. He'd know that richly accented voice anywhere. He swallowed the instant rage that clouded his vision and caused his stomach to clench in dread and tried to keep his voice calm. "Carmen," he said. "What do you want?"

"What, no hello? I miss you?" She laughed and the sound of it beat against his skin like daggers. "You'd think after this many years your hatred for us would have lessoned."

"It hasn't."

"Still refusing to accept what you are?" she asked. "You'll never be one of them, Garrett, why do you still torture yourself by pretending?"

His pulse was racing and the wolf was fighting his way to the surface. He could feel it with every syllable she uttered. "You have less than two minutes to explain what you want, Carmen."

She laughed again and flashes of her invaded his mind. Memories he'd buried and thought long forgotten. "I thought we could plan a little conjugal visit since our last meeting didn't go so well," she said. "It's been way too long."

"Not long enough for me."

"The pack needs you, Garrett."

He turned in his chair, putting his back to the room. "No,
you
need me and I'm not ready to play Alpha to that twisted little pack you have wrapped around your conniving finger."

Her laughter was filled with a small growling purr. There was a time when the sound of it caused his body to harden. Now, it left him seeing blood. Hers, as it spilled from her body. "The sooner you realize you belong to us Garrett, the happier you're going to be. You can't play human forever. Someone will eventually realize you're one of the monsters."

"Maybe," he said. "But until then, someone has to protect the humans from the real monsters."

"And who is going to protect you?"

"I don't need protection."

"Of course you do," she said. "You're a danger to yourself."

He sighed and glanced around him before lowering his voice. "What do you want, Carmen. I know you didn't call just to hear my voice."

"No. I called to invite you home."

"Sorry. I'm not interested. Thanks for calling."

"Don't hang up!" she yelled.

His fingers twitched to do just that. The fact he was even still talking to her pissed him off.

"I have something of yours," she said. "I thought you might want to come and get it."

"There's nothing there that belongs to me, Carmen."

"Oh? I wouldn't be so sure of that," she said.

He could hear the rustling of fabric and her heels clapping against the floor before voices started filtering into the receiver. The harsh laughter of multiple voices reached his ears and he strained to hear what was being said. When the noise grew, he waited impatiently until he heard Carmen speak. "I'm sorry I missed your arrival. I was on an important business call. I'm Carmen Ortiz. You're Rayna Ford, correct?"

At the mention of her name, Garrett's wolf slammed against his bones hard enough to make him gasp. He felt it pulsing under his skin and when he heard Rayna's voice over the phone, his nails lengthened before he could stop it.

The connection died before he could even open his mouth.

That fucking bitch
.
I'll kill her.
He could already taste her blood and his beast howled inside his head as he slammed the phone down and stood up. He was out the door and headed to his truck before he realized he was being set up. Carmen had lured Rayna there just like she was luring him. Rayna was the bait she waved at him to get him to finally come home. The bait she tried to kill to force him to give up his life and conform to her ways. When Carmen couldn't kill her, she forced him to come to her.

It was her last mistake. He'd see to that. So Carmen wanted her Alpha male back bad enough to risk her own life? He'd show her the error of her ways as he ripped her heart out and fed it to her one piece at a time.

Chapter 3

Rayna smiled as Carmen introduced her to yet another person she wouldn't remember the next day. A barrage of faces had greeted her since the moment they pulled up the long winding drive to Malcolm's home. The three-story house had sprung up out of the trees like some gothic monolith. The faØade was covered in gray stone, large columns held up the second story balcony that spanned the entire front of the house. It looked out of place. Surrounded by trees, the structure was better suited for a windswept cliff overlooking a tide of raging sea. The interior hadn't diminished her observations. Dark, hardwood floors and heavy fabric drapes caused the rooms to have a dark, sinister feeling to them. She'd been uneasy since stepping foot inside the foyer. More so when she'd seen the first curious eye look her way.

The residents of Wolf's Creek had filled the house for the better part of an hour. They watched her, their faces neutral, but something in their eyes caused goose bumps to pimple her skin. They stared unabashed, sizing her up, for what, she didn't know, but they still watched her to the point she felt uneasy. And that feeling only intensified when Carmen had introduced her to the man with blue hair, Caleb. Him, she would remember.

She glanced over at him again as he leaned against the wall and noticed him still watching her. If she lived another eighty years she'd never forget him. He'd shocked her so much when she first saw him, she could do nothing but stare.

He'd entered the room as if he owned it, his gait slow and confident and she'd been too surprised by his appearance to look away from him. He was tall and incredibly thin with short spiky hair in the most flamboyant shade of blue she'd ever seen on anyone's head. A pair of leather pants was his entire wardrobe unless you counted the black leather bracelets that covered both his wrists. Dark liner outlined pale blue eyes that shined like small crystals as he watched her. His feet were bare, as was his chest, and rings pierced both his nipples. A condescending smile was plastered on his face and he stared intently at her as he walked closer. The minute he reached her and stopped, the leer he gave her made her skin crawl. The way he was looking at her now made her want to run. Very fast.

She looked away, focusing her attention back on Carmen. She was still talking and Rayna didn't have a clue what she'd been saying. She'd have to ask Mitch. Lord knows he was hanging on to every word. He hadn't stopped drooling since the woman walked into the room. She couldn't really blame him though. Carmen was very remarkable looking. Tall and dark skinned with an accent that would turn any man's head. Her hair hung in silky waves down her back all the way to her hips and it was a black so dark, it looked almost blue under the lights. Her limbs were long and graceful and she had a body women would have to pay to have. In a word, she was breathtaking. She wanted to hate her for that fact alone but she wasn't catty... not usually, but she felt like a short, fat dumpling standing beside of her. Even Mitch barely noticed her and he couldn't go five minutes without saying something salacious to her.

Malcolm walked back into the room and once again, Rayna couldn't take her eyes off of him. He was not what she had been expecting.

To say she was shocked by his appearance would be an understatement. She'd spent months corresponding with him by phone or letters and like most people you only talk to but never see, she'd forged a mental image of him in her head. How wrong her imagination had been. She'd assumed he was some harebrained loon with wild eyes and hair to match and even a wilder personality. That isn't what she got at all. This man looked like he should be sitting at the head of some large corporation making million dollar deals. He appeared to be in his fifties, tall, and strongly built. He was quite distinguished looking and had an air of authority about him that she wasn't expecting.