Wolf's Holiday (9 page)

Betty wiped away the one tear she’d shed. “How did you know?”

“When you live as long as I have, sometimes you know these things.”

“Oh yeah?” Betty smiled. Time to lighten the mood. “Exactly how old are you, Gee?”

He never told them. All of their years together, and she knew so little about his personal life. It was hard not to love Gee, even if she died knowing exactly as much as she had about him as when she was born.

“As old as I need to be.”

Betty sipped her water. “Cool.”

***

Drew smelled the cub before he saw him. Coming to a halt from his exhausting run, Drew shifted back to his two feet. He sniffed the air. The kid was there, but not the mom, which was fine by him. He approached cautiously, surprised to see the child was in his human form sitting on the ground.

A quick glance told him the cub remained outside of pack land.

“Where’s your mom?” Drew leaned against a tree a distance away. He wasn’t worried about the child hurting him. Not in his human form, anyway.

“She had some things to do. Since she’d shifted, she decided to run some errands. Told me to wait here.”The kid held a baseball glove and a ball in his hand. He tossed the ball in the air and caught it twice while Drew watched. They must have been the gift he’d told Colt to get.

He moved slightly closer. He didn’t want to scare the kid, should probably leave him alone. Who knew when crazy Mama was going to come back?

“You happy with that?”

The kid looked up at him with large eyes. Had she even left him with any food? “I’d like it better if I had someone to throw it with.”

“Balls are more fun when we have someone to have a catch with.”Shit, he was going to do it. “Let’s have at it, then. Throw it to me.”

The child wildly tossed the ball and Drew had to dart to not let it drop to the ground. Good thing he was a shifter. “You could have a strong arm, which isn’t surprising. If you could fake being human, you could be a baseball player someday.”

Drew gently tossed the ball back to the kid, who dropped it rather than catch the easy throw. “I’m not any good. Can’t catch or throw.”

“The power is there. Again.”The child threw a pass, and it was closer to Drew than it had been the last time. “As with most things, getting good at something requires some work.”

“I’ll never have anyone to throw it with again after today. My mom isn’t exactly a baseball player.”

Drew considered the problem. “Tell you what. If your mom will let you, you can come to the edge of pack land, and we’ll throw. Once or twice a week.” Maybe some of the other pack members would do it, too. He wouldn’t order them, only ask.

“You would do that?”The kid’s posture changed as he stood straighter. “Why?”

“Because I know how it is when things aren’t exactly right. When you know…you would want them to be different. But you’re a kid. So what are you going to do? I can’t fix your life. There’re no social services for bear shifters. I have to protect my pack. It doesn’t mean I don’t get it.”

The kid looked him up and down. “You had a bad mom?”

“Dad, actually. My mom died early. A truck hit her in her wolf form, and after that she never really recovered. One day, she was just…gone.”

The kid threw the ball, this time straight to Drew, and he caught it. “Good job.”

“You seem really normal. I mean for a wolf. You had a bad dad but you’re not crazy. You’re not weird. People don’t stare at you. Or run from you. Or call you names.”

“I’d kill anyone who did.”Drew paused. “Who does that to you?”

“Everyone. We don’t meet too many others, anymore. When we do, they all say, ‘Oh, hey, there’s that crazy bear with her crazy cub.’ You’re Alpha of this pack, and you smell really normal. Not sick or crazy. You turned out well. Think I could, too?”

“What’s your name, kid?” Drew couldn’t have this conversation with someone whose first name he didn’t know.

The boy scratched his head. “Ledo. Weird, right?”

“Well, Ledo, there’s no shame in being weird. The best people I know always have been. And you should never let anyone define you. If your mom is a nightmare, get out of there when you’re finally old enough. The second you look like a grown human male, you shift and go find your life somewhere else. If I can, when you’re older, I’ll help you.”

Ledo snorted. “Mister, when I’m old enough to be a man, you’ll be long gone from this Earth.”

They threw in silence until Ledo smelled his mother and took off in her direction. Drew stood against the tree, watching the child disappear. The snow picked up, and Drew shifted back into his wolf form.

Tomorrow was Winter Solstice. He had a pack to run with and a mate who needed to hear some promises.

Betty didn’t want to be late. She drove the truck as fast as she could down the road. They had six hours till Drew would call for the Winter Solstice run to start followed by a party like the pack had never seen. She patted the seat next to her just to be sure it was really there. They’d never had Christmas before, and she’d never had a reason to buy Drew a gift in December.

She had braved the human mall to get him the damn thing, and she wanted to get it home, wrapped, and set up before Drew led the pack on the Winter Solstice run. The car sputtered and made a strange noise before black smoke shot out the back. Jerking the wheel, Betty turned the car off the road.

“Shit.” She clenched her teeth. Obviously, she should have had someone look at it before she’d taken the drive. Drew’s car they occasionally used, hers had been sitting stagnant for a long time. When it started up without issue, she’d assumed everything was fine.

Betty pulled out her cell phone. She hardly ever used the device; no one did on pack land. Good thing she’d remembered to charge it and bring it with her. Someone was going to have to come get her since she had no idea what to do about the car.

She’d have to be a damsel in distress and wait for rescue, since she wouldn’t risk being caught shifting outside of pack borders.

Betty sat back in her seat and dialed. A second later, Jackson, the pack mechanic, answered. He’d been raised by humans but was back with their pack. Unlike some others, welcoming Jackson to the fold didn’t bother Betty in the least. He was a good, solid, fun member of their small world.

“Hello?” The male shouted into the phone, which didn’t bode well for him to be able to hear her.

“It’s Betty. Can you hear me?”

“Betty?” he shouted. “Barely. Sorry. Lots going on here. Some of the juveniles overturned some of the old farm tractors. There’s lots of screaming parents in the shop. Looking forward to the run tonight.”

“Here’s the thing, Jackson. I think we should be fine because we have six hours until the run. But I am an hour outside of town, and I am broken down on the side of the road.” She took a deep breath. “Any chance of a tow?”

“Hold on.” He shouted something she couldn’t make out and then came back to the line. “I think it’s going to be a few minutes until I can leave. I’ve got to get this crew out of here. Can you sit tight?”

“Listen, Jackson. Don’t risk the run because of me. If it gets too late, stay there. Let Drew know I’m fine. I really am. I know he’ll have issues, but I swear it’ll be fine. I’ll hang out here until tomorrow.”

He said something unintelligible and then their connection broke off. She was lucky she’d gotten as much communicating as she had. The lack of much cell service was purposeful. Keeping themselves hidden proved paramount.

“Drew is going to kill me.”

Betty hopped out of the car. She was an hour by car from the border. Not shifting made it harder but not impossible. She’d walk.

Betty grabbed the books from the passenger seat and set out toward Los Lobos. She’d never gotten to tell Jackson where she was, so the likelihood of his finding her was slim. But if she ran into someone she knew, maybe they’d pick her up.

Somewhere in the distance, a bird cried out. Other than that, the road was quiet. Betty used to love moments filled with no noise. When Magnum had run the pack, she’d gotten so little time to herself. Pack members showed up at her door day and night needing help, needing kindness. She’d been glad to give it.

Since Drew’s return, they didn’t come by as often in the middle of the night unless there was an actual emergency. Lately silence meant being left with her own thoughts.

She’d hoofed it about a mile farther down the road and was making pretty good time. Drew wasn’t going to like that she’d taken off pack land without leaving a note. Not that he’d been around to discuss it with or indicated when he planned to return. He might not even know she’d ever gone and come back.

A buzzing behind her caught her attention, and she turned in the direction to see five motorcycles plowing down the highway toward her. She wasn’t overly alarmed by their presence. Groups of motorcycles passed through the Hills during the summer all the time.

Only it wasn’t summer.

The dead of winter with snow on the ground didn’t seem really conducive to riding. She rubbed at her eyes as the strong scent of alcohol hit her. They must really be drunk for her to smell the booze over the oil and the gasoline. She stopped moving and watched them.

Sure enough, several of the men didn’t seem at all capable of managing their bikes. They swerved and jerked.

Betty shook her head. If they were going to ride in the middle of winter on an ice-filled road, they could at least….

She never got to finish her thought. One second she watched the bikes, the next the lead rider hit ice and skidded, the motorcycle jerking forward. The huge machine went down on its side, skidding with a loud groan as it barreled right toward her.

Betty tried to move, but the machine hit her anyway.

She was thrown backward. And then black.

***

“So we’re all set?”Drew spoke to Bastian. “The tree is ready to go?”

The human male looked up at the top of the tree where Drew indicated.

“Looks good to me. We had fun putting it together.”

He could imagine. “I saw the one in Rockefeller Plaza a couple of times when I lived near New York City. Beautiful. But, I have to tell you, I prefer ours.”

Drew wandered through the crowd, saying hello when others did. No one needed anything from him. The whole venture could be called a tribute to organization, mostly Saja’s. The woman could probably run his pack if needed.

Unease settled in Drew’s stomach. Where was B? He’d gone home after he’d finished his run, and she hadn’t been there. Not that he blamed her for needing to get out after the freak out he’d thrown at her.

He’d needed to run a lot lately.

His own shifting requirements were clear to him. He’d not been able to do it for a decade. His wolf longed for the woods, and his head cleared when he could exercise his canine half.

B always seemed to understand the shifting need without his explaining his feelings. She’d even told him to go.

His mate wouldn’t miss the Solstice run. They had a few hours. She was probably caught up in some kind of activity.

“Hey, Drew.”A strong call brought his attention back to their current situation. Jackson, a pack dominant, rushed toward him. “Did Betty call you?”

“No.” His hackles stood on edge. “Why would she need to?”

They never used phones on pack land. Service was so sketchy.

Jackson ran a hand through his hair. “Shit. She just called me needing a tow and a ride. She’s broken down outside of pack land. An hour away. I was hoping she’d told you where she was going. I don’t know what direction to go in.”

Drew’s heart galloped. His mate was off his territory. She needed help, and he hadn’t even known. Was she so angry, she didn’t even reach out to him for help?
Damn it, B.

“The top of Gee’s bar, the roof, it gets the best service,” Jackson supplied.

“How the hell do you know that?” Drew shook his head. “Never mind. Thanks for the information. I’ll call her. And I’ll go get her. Do me a favor. Tell Colt to run things here while I help B. I’ll be back in time for the run.”

Movement to his left caught his attention. Ryker stormed past the gym on his way somewhere. Drew was sure, whatever it was, the man had it under control.

He needed to help his mate. Drew ran to the bar. The lights were down, and Gee was nowhere to be seen. Weird, but not surprising, considering how busy the pack was right then. Gee, although not pack, was as integral to all of their existence as any other person who lived on their land.

The only non-pack member Ryker let regularly live among them.

Drew rushed up the stairs. He’d never been up on the roof before but he didn’t find it too hard to get to the room. He climbed out the window and hoisted himself up until he was there. Once he managed to steady him on the black asphalt of Gee’s bar’s roof, he pulled out his phone. Were members of his pack hanging out on the roof all the time?

The phone rang, which was at least a good sign.
Come on, B, love. Pick up. Damn it.

***

Betty rubbed her head, which should have throbbed, only it didn’t. She’d been hit by some drunk on a motorcycle and…. Wait a second…she wasn’t where she was supposed to be. The last thing she remembered was being on the side of the road.

Everything around her was white, like snow, only there wasn’t anything else, and there was no scent anywhere either.

Betty cried out, covering her mouth with her hands. Oh gods, she was dead. She’d been killed. No. She wasn’t ready. And there was Drew. There were so many things still to tell Drew….

“Now. Now. Calm down. You’re not dead. You hit your head. And you’re having a vision.”

She whirled. A woman stood in front of her. Older, maybe in her fifties, with long blonde hair and piercing green eyes. She had a cleft in her chin and she looked…familiar.

“You never met me. But, yes, I’m family. I’m your great-grandmother, Elizabeth.”

Betty tried to swallow her terror. “What?”

The woman, Elizabeth, sauntered to her until they stared each other straight in the eyes. “Your great-grandmother. Elizabeth. Sheet you are not very bright are you?”