Adam stood on the other side with a tray of food in his hand. I yelped and in my hurried retreat I stumbled over my legs. I crashed onto my rear and heard a noise behind Adam. It was a teakettle getting up to boil. That was the soft sound of air I'd heard before.
"You are rather clumsy," Adam commented.
I whipped my head up and glared at him. I was getting good at glaring at him. "And you are rather rude. No knock?"
"You didn't give me time." He walked past me and set the tray on the foot of the bed. "I wasn't sure how you were feeling, so I prepared some breakfast."
I stood and limped up beside him to survey the tray. It had sausage, bacon, ham, eggs, and a tall glass of milk. "The werewolf diet?" I guessed.
He sheepishly smiled and shrugged. "Meat is all I really know how to cook," he admitted.
"Well, I guess that's a big food group." I plopped myself on the bed beside the tray and slid it into my lap. Utensils were available, and I dug into the food like an earth mover into a hillside. The food quickly disappeared and I set the tray to the side. "Not bad," I commented as I licked my lips.
Adam seated himself on the other side of the tray. "What would you say if I poisoned it?" I froze mid-finger licking and felt the color drain from my face. He laughed, took the tray in hand, and stood. "Just kidding."
"You know, you could make a girl really paranoid," I scolded him.
He paused at the door and turned. The humor was gone from his face and the sun shone off his autumn eyes. They were like the brown and yellow-colored leaves of fall. "I can't stress enough how dangerous I can be."
This time he wasn't prepared for the pillow and it hit him in his cute face. The pillow slid to the floor as I wildly cackled my victory. "That's for being melodramatic!" I scolded in glee.
Gone was the creepy colors in his eyes and back was the smile on his lips. "I don't believe you're taking any of this seriously."
I wiped the tears from my eyes and shook my head. "Nope. I still have my silver fork up my sleeve and nothing you can say will make me afraid."
He half-turned from me and a crooked, evil grin slid onto his lips. "Good, then you won't be afraid when I take you in to the doctor."
My face fell. "Um, I don't think we need to do that. I feel just fine, see?" I waved my injured leg up and down, and winced when my leg told me I didn't know the definition of the word 'fine.'
He chuckled. "I can see."
My face fell. "Isn't there some small, defenseless animal you can harass?"
"You mean other than you?" he teased.
I snapped my arm up and pointed at the door. "Out."
He stepped partially back inside. "I didn't-"
"Out."
"But-"
"Out or I get the silver fork."
"All right, but I'll be back in a few minutes to take you to the doctor," he warned me. He left, shutting the door behind himself.
I fell back on the bed and lay my uninjured leg carefully on the covers. "I'm not sure which one of us has the worst curse. His with being a werewolf or me with him," I grumbled.
"Did I forget to mention I have very good hearing?" he called from the kitchen.
I sat up and stuck my tongue at the door. "Then stop listening!"
"Your thoughts are very loud," he argued.
"Then plug your ears!" I jumped off the bed and threw on some clothes. It was a bit of a hassle considering one leg was partially mummified, but I got the job done just as there came a knock on the door.
"Are you ready?" he asked me. I limped to the entrance and swung open the door. He smiled at me and lifted the key chain for my car and gave it a little jingle. "Your steed awaits, and I, your knight in shining armor, will attend to you."
I snorted and pushed past him. "You have no idea how annoying you are, do you?"
"Not often. I do try to avoid people," he reminded me.
"Sometimes I wish you would have-" I paused when my eyes fell on a thick, whittled staff. It lay across the couch and was about five feet tall when standing on end. I limped over to it and picked it up. The wood was from a knotted branch. Swirls dotted the smooth, shimmering surface, and at the top was a fat, rounded knot. There were bits of gray glitter in the grains of the wood that glimmered in the sunlight. The staff would have made Gandalf proud. I glanced at Adam and held up the staff. "Is this yours?"
He smiled and shook his head. "No, it's yours."
I blinked at him. "I don't own a stick."
"I figured you would need a stick to lean against and last night I whittled that for you," he explained.
I blushed and held it out to him. "I-I couldn't accept this. It must have taken you all night to get it this beautiful."
"Yes, but my curse gives me a sort of extra battery so I need very little sleep. Besides, I'm not the one who needs a crux, and if you won't allow me to be your staff then I insist on your using that," he told me.
I glanced down at the smooth, tan wood and brushed my hand over the surface. There wasn't a sign of even a splinter. I set the tip on the ground, leaned on it, and limped forward. It was as sturdy as a rock, but almost as light as a feather. I turned to him and stuttered out a few words. "I. . .I don't know how to thank you."
A devilish smile slipped onto his lips and he moved to stand close beside me. "A kiss would be more than adequate."
My eyes flickered around the room. Nobody to catch us smooching, not even a nosy squirrel. I turned to him, stood on my tiptoes, and pecked a kiss on his cheek. "There. That work?"
"I was thinking of something more like this." He wrapped me in his arms, swooped down and pressed his lips against mine. His searing body heat pressed against me as his passion swept through my lips and traveled down to the tips of my toes and back up. He released my lips, and I would have stumbled back if he still hadn't held me. "What do you say? A much better thank you?" he asked me.
"I say you're very demanding," I scolded him.
He chuckled. "I prefer the term 'bold,' but I will accept the change."
I leaned away from him and looked him in the eyes. "Why are you bothering me?"
"Because you won't believe my interactions with you are not bothersome," he replied.
I rolled my eyes. "No, I meant why me? Why not some other poor, helpless human? Why aren't you harassing some of the rich women around here? Just shave that beard and you'd be the most popular eligible bachelor on the mountain."
Adam leaned down and his words brushed against the skin of my neck. "Because I like your smell."
My mouth dropped open and I stuttered out my reply. "Smell? Is this what it's all about? What's my scent? Rotisserie chicken or lilacs?"
Adam chuckled. "Actually, it's more like an autumn evening when a wind brushes through the leaves."
I furrowed my brow and tilted my head to one side. "Really?"
"Really," he laughed. His laugh was starting to sound nice to my ears, and that didn't make me happy.
I pulled myself from his strong, warm, comfortable-I mean, hard, cold, uncomfortable grasp, and stepped away from him. "Listen, I appreciate your being my guardian werewolf, but I can take care of myself." His eyes flickered to my leg, and I slid it behind myself as far as I could without losing balance. "Really."
His eyes twinkled in mischief, but he shrugged and handed me the car keys. "All right, if you think you can tell Mrs. Vandersnoot that you have to cancel the welcome dinner then be my guest. However, I feel I must warn you that even if you were dying she wouldn't accept 'no' for an answer. Oh, and the doctor lives in one of the small glens at the bottom of the mountain. It's not easy to find, but since you can take care of yourself I'm sure you'll only miss the turn three or four times. If I were you, though, I'd take a couple of cans of gas just in case you drive into the next county which would be about twenty miles too far."
I stuck out my jaw and narrowed my eyes. "I hate you, you know that?"
"I don't believe you mean that," he replied.
My shoulders drooped and I
waved a hand toward the door. "Well, maybe I don't, but lead on, tainted knight."
He bowed and swept his hands toward the entrance. "After you, fair lady."
I snorted and limped past him and out into the cool morning air. The birds were singing, the creek was bubbling, and the squirrels were planning the demise of my food. At least, that was the vibe I was getting from their incessant chattering. I shook my hand at the squirrelly squirrels as they hopped from branch to piny branch in front of my home. "Curse you and your plotting!"
Adam came to stand beside me, and he, too, glanced up into the trees. "You seem to have a hatred for your neighbors."
I whipped my head to him and glared. "Only the furry kind," I growled.
He sheepishly smiled and held up his hands in front of him. "I stand corrected."
At that moment something hit the back of my head. I swung around and rubbed the bruised spot as I snarled at the creatures. I glanced down at my feet and saw that one of the possessed-by-the-devil squirrels had thrown a small pine cone at me. "Damn things. Isn't there some sort of a squirrel-be-gone repellent?"
A howl echoed through the small meadow, and I turned to find Adam with his head tilted back and his lips puckered. His wolf call silenced all the woodland creatures and caused the squirrels to have somewhere else they needed to be, like in the next county. Adam stopped and smiled at me. "Better?"
I snorted and studied him with a new sense of admiration. "You seem to be multi-talented."
"I also wash windows and can balance a checkbook," he added.
"Well, let's see if you can drive a car first." I tossed him the car keys and he caught them in one hand. Show off.
"You won't regret it," he promised.
"Or I won't live to regret it," I countered.
We slid into our respective seats and Adam bumped us down the road.
Chapter 2
Adam wasn't a bad driver for his age. No incessant stopping or under-breaking of the speed limit, not that there was any limit on these back roads other than don't-break-your-neck speed. We bumped and bounced our way to the first driveway and turned down the graveled, well-manicured road. The luscious green lawn on either side had an even better pedicure. Rabbits hopped through the cut grass and did their part to keep it a reasonable height. There was a distinct border between the end of the lawn and the beginning of the wilderness of tall trees and thick undergrowth.
The house at the end of the driveway was one of those unusual architectural wonders where there were two floors, and the front door was on the second. It was accessed via a long, cement staircase that became a death-trap when covered in snow and ice. The siding was stained a sickly woody color that did a poor job mimicking the forest around it unless that forest happened to be dying, and around the base of the foundation was the remains of flower beds. The rabbits had shown no mercy to the flowers, and now only sticks remained.
The driveway was wide enough for two cars to drive side-by-side, and finished in a loop. Adam parked us behind their fancy car. I lifted my pant leg to show off my bandages for maximum affect, and we stepped out. The staff came in useful as I limped a few feet closer to the house.
I looked up at the imperious money pit and Adam came to stand beside me. "Do you think they're compensating for something?" he teased.
I snorted. "If they are it's all because of Mrs. Vandersnoot."
Speak of the devil and he comes, and so did the devil who wore Prada, whatever the hell those were. Mrs. Clara Vandersnoot wore some sort of fancy shoes as she swept from the house and nimbly bounced down the stairs to greet us. She opened her arms and swallowed me in a tight hug. "Darling, what are you doing here so early? The party isn't until six!"
I wiggled out of her grasp and pointed down at my wrapped leg. "Yeah, about that. I don't think I can make it."
Her eyes followed my gaze and she gasped. "My goodness, darling, what happened?"
"A little accident with a hungry bear, and it would have been worse if Adam hadn't shown up and saved me." I nodded to my hero.
Clara turned to him and her smile faltered. She reluctantly held out two fingers for him to shake. "A pleasure to meet you, sir."
He took her fingers with gusto and gave them a strong shake that shook her entire body. "The pleasure's all mine."
Clara pulled her fingers lose and shook them before she wiped them on her skirt. "Yes, I'm sure."
"So I don't think I'm going to be able to make it to the party," I explained.
Clara tilted back her head and laughed. I thought she'd flipped from the disappointment. She stopped the frightening display of disappointment and waved her hand in front of her face. "A little leg injury shouldn't keep you from coming to the party, darling. You seem perfectly well standing as you are, and if you get tired we could always give you a chair."
"But I was mauled by a bear," I reiterated.
She smiled and patted me on the shoulder. "And I'm sure it was terrifying, darling, and if you need a psychiatrist I know the perfect one. However, as he would say, 'you need to overcome life's obstacles by moving on.' Isn't that such a wonderful phrase?"
My face and shoulders drooped. "Just wonderful," I muttered.
"I'm glad you agree, and that means I insist on your coming to the party. Oh, and don't forget to wear your best." She couldn't take 'no' for an answer, so she fled up the stairs, stopped at the top to wave, and slipped inside.
There was silence between us until Adam coughed. "That could have gone better," he commented.
My eyes slid over to him. "You think?" I growled.
He sheepishly smiled and held up his hands. "I'm on your side, remember?"
"That's questionable until I see what kind of a quack you're taking me to." I spun on my heels and hopped into the car.
Adam took his seat and we rounded the curve in the driveway to point back in the direction of the road. "If it makes you feel better I can come with you to the party."
I glanced at his appearance. His beard was still long and scruffy, his hair was stuck in a ponytail and greased slicker than a water slide, and his clothes were covered in dirt and a little smelly. "You could get shot," I mused.
He smiled. "Why is that?"
"Someone might mistake you for a bear."
Adam chuckled. "If I promise to dress appropriately for the occasion will you allow me to be your date?"
I sighed and shrugged. "Why not? Misery loves company. Anyway, I might not make it out of the doctor's office alive, or you might not if you don't dodge the silver scalpel I throw at you."
"I admit the doctor's a little eccentric and a veterinarian on the side, but he knows what he's talking about and won't sugarcoat his diagnosis," Adam told me.
I snorted. "So you can go to him with both your problems?"
His smile faltered and his hands tightened their grip on the wheel. "No one but you knows about my curse, and I'd rather it stay that way."
"No one but me and the doctor know about you," I corrected him.
He grinned once more and his eyes flickered over to me. "Then I'll have to make sure you introduce me to the right people tonight."
"If you want to meet the right people then we're going to the wrong party," I quipped.
"Well, I'm still willing to go with you, and the doctor I'm taking you to will make sure you're fit to go," he told me.
We drove down the mountain, but a mile short of the paved highway Adam turned off onto a road I thought was a disused logging route. The road was littered with half-buried boulders and fallen logs that showed signs of being driven over before our visit. The road narrowed so that the brush scraped the sides of my car and I cringed at every claw of limbs against metal. I felt like I was on a kid rollercoaster as we rose and fell with the small hills.
After a few miles we ended up at a small widening of the road where it turned to the right. On the corner sat an old chinked cabin on a raised boulder foundation. There was a porch with a thin-tree railing. On the porch was a wicker bench, an
d on the bench sat a man of fifty with a white, short, well-kept beard and his hair short at the back. Beside him sat a fox, and on the railings of the porch were squirrels, chipmunks, and woodpeckers. Behind the cabin I glimpsed a tall, narrow building I guessed was the private restroom for the home. On the side of the cabin sat an old station wagon complete with yellowish metal and fake wood paneling.
We parked beside the wagon and stepped out of the car. The woodland creatures sensed Adam and scattered. The fox leapt off the bench, and scurried between the railings and into the woods. The man rose and walked over to the opening in the railing above the three steps to the porch. He smiled at us with kindly blue eyes. "Good morning, Adam. Who have you brought me?"
"A patient, Doc," Adam replied. So this was the doctor. Adam strode over to the porch, and I limped along behind him using my staff.
The doctor's eyes glanced at my bandaged leg. His lips pursed together and he raised an eyebrow. "What happened here?"
"A bear attack. It wanted inside and Chrissy here stood in the way," Adam explained. I shot a deadly glare at Adam, but it was ineffective.
The doctor rubbed his chin with his hand and squinted one eye. "I think I know what bear you're talking about. It came through here a few weeks ago wanting to make itself at home in my living room, but it had trouble with the door because I'd wedged most of my furniture against it. I scared it away with a gunshot, but I hated to do it because it scared the other animals, too."
"It may need more than shot at," Adam suggested.
The doctor sighed and gave a nod. "I'll have to agree with you, but let's leave the nature life to nature while I take a look at this young lady. Come on in."
Chapter 3
The doctor led us inside with me behind him and Adam bringing up the rear. The cabin was cozy with rugs on the rough floor and a couch and love seat in the left-front corner. On the right was the open kitchen with a worn-looking table and matching chairs. Beyond the couch was a door leading to a new-room addition, and at the rear was another door leading outside. The rear wall was lined with two plastic tables, and on those tables were vials of liquids of every rainbow color. There was also a microscope, surgical tools, and other torture devices that suddenly made me very nervous.