I grabbed his hand again and smiled tremulously. “It would be so nice to have an escort of such heroic and strong men to accompany me home.”
I clung to him leaning all my weight and let all my limbs drag heavily as if I was feeble. I may have been laying it on a bit thick but I hadn’t had this much fun in years.
“Ah, sorry, but no. We really must push on. I’m sure you will be fine if you just follow your usual path home.”
I breathed in deeply and my lip quivered before I gave him a confident look to show how wonderfully brave I was being. “Alright. I understand.” Stepping away I waved at the other masked man jovially then back at Bobby. “Thank you again. And good luck.”
I gave the woods around me a long frightened look then started up towards my cabin at a brisk pace, finally letting an evil grin stretch across my face. Once I was over this hillock I would pick up the pace then travel in a wide arc and follow after Luke.
That couldn’t have been more perfect.
Luke
It couldn’t have been more fucked up. Clinging to the tree branch like a moron I kept my body rigid as the two men passed down below then stopped at the edge of the cliff.
“The tracks stop here. You think he jumped off?”
They both leaned over then looked at each other. Easing back they scratched their heads.
“That’s got to be an eighty foot drop, right there,” one said after a baffled pause. “From three meters a fall becomes fatal. If you fall and fracture your spine cutting off the blood flow to your heart you’re finished. Unless you get lucky and land on your side or reach terminal velocity … but the fall isn’t high enough for that. No, no man could walk away from that fall.”
The other one spat and thumbed his nose. “But he’s not a man. He’s a beast. He just looks human right now.”
The one with half a brain sighed. “You want to abseil down to check it out, or head back and meet up with the others to use the snowmobiles?”
“We need to at least try and pick up the trail again. We’ll make it fast. It’ll only take five minutes to set up, fifteen to climb down, and another ten to scout around. An hour before we’re back up here max. At least then we can tell Cartwright we tried everything we could.”
“Alright.”
The men went about setting up their gear and I gritted my teeth. My muscles screamed at me to let go, but if I did I risked these assholes calling to their comrades, and that would be bad. Yes, Evangeline should have made it home by now and would be out of harm’s way, but still I didn’t want to risk it. I didn’t hear a commotion behind me after I’d led them away so I could only hope she didn’t do anything foolish.
Women often did foolish things. Let themselves be ruled by their hormones. It was worse with Wendiga’s as often their strength allowed them to get out of patchy scrapes by the skin of their teeth making them even more reckless the next time round. They always thought they were so clever until their own cleverness turned round to bite them in the ass.
I took a pleasant interlude of imagining myself nibbling on Evangeline’s ass. I added it to my to-do-list.
The soft grunting and creak of a taught rope turned my attention back to the two men. They had dug their pickaxes securely into the rock and fastened harnesses and buckles to it so they could trek down the side of the mountain.
I let my hands loosen their hold and flipped over to land softly on the powdered snow. The impact jarred my knees, but I’d experienced worse and shook it off, straightening.
Walking over to the axes buried in the ice I pondered what I should do. I was a hunter, a predator, not a murderer. I killed man to survive not for recreation. But I couldn’t let them come back up and see I’d been here. They’d follow me back to her. Scrubbing a hand over my head then smoothing my shag of hair back I let my hands cover my face before rubbing my chin in irritation. All of this bullshit did little else but prove I had little choice when it came to whether I stayed or left. I had to leave. Evangeline was in danger the longer I stayed. The more distance I put between us the better. No doubt the minx would be happy to see the back of me. Blowing out a short breath I hung my head. I had to be honest with myself. I was running out of places to hide. Cartwright would never give up. Not until I was dead or he was. Hunting him never worked, I could never get close enough.
I couldn’t go back to Canada or venture anywhere else in the States without risking bumping into a Wendigo who would have no choice but to engage in battle to try and kill me on sight. It was the way of things and I didn’t want some young boy to lose his life for nothing try to appease a bunch of stuffy old men who called themselves ‘Elders’.
Passing through Europe again would be dumb, and I had no desire to go stomping across Russia. That left Africa and damn, was it hot over there. The sun was relentless. I’d die, simple. The heat would be too much for my body to handle, and calling storms to such a parched land would be like waving a red flag at a raging bull.
I was back at square one. Should I just stay here? Try to kill Cartwright again and hope for the best? How would I keep Evangeline safe? I could see though she tried to act disinterested that she was concerned for my welfare and would want to help. Hell, even if it just meant getting these bastards off her mountain she would help.
I placed my boot on one of the axes to get my aim right then pulled my foot back. Murder, such an ugly thing. All the reasons why I should do it came to mind and I started to sweat, uncomfortable with the internal struggle inside me.
A small boot sailed past mine and crashed into the axe, jolting it out of the snow. Shock was replaced with horror then more shock. The rope went lax and it plummeted off the cliff face and a man’s scream cut through the forest and ended with a loud thump. There was a loud cursing and the second rope started to shake wildly. Evangeline moved to the side and swung her other foot back.
I grabbed her arm and she paused. “What are you doing?” I hissed my eyes roving the trees to make sure no one heard the screams.
“The others are on their way to my Da’s cabin. They’ll be too far away and deep into the woods to hear.” Her foot cranked back again. “We don’t have a choice.”
I shook her. “You don’t have to do this for me.”
She pinned me with a look that bordered on desperate. “I already have.” Her foot swung forward and the axe flipped out of the snow and disappeared over the ledge. There was no scream this time. “For the love of… .” She skipped to the ledge to look over and jerked back when a gunshot cracked the air. She made a sound of frustration. “Since you decided to wage an internal monologue that could give War and Peace a run for its money he made it to the bottom.”
I peeked over the ledge to see the black figure sprinting across the flat and white expanse of snow. About two miles ahead the forest started again.
“He’ll follow the edge of the river to keep him in a straight line. It’ll take him twenty minutes in a flat run to reach those trees for cover.” She was already turning her back to the ledge. “By then he’ll be exhausted from the cold and the physical exertion. It’ll take him at least three hours to double back and pick up the path to my Da’s cabin, or four if he’s going to their base camp.”
I tilted my head at her. “How do you know where the base camp is?”
She gave me a cool look. “These are my mountains.”
“Cute. How do you know?”
She rolled her eyes. “They have snowmobiles, heavy equipment and they know this area is prone to sudden and violent storms. They would need somewhere enclosed, easily accessible yet easy to defend. There is a half-mile wide alcove in the Southern pass that is secluded but would fulfill all these things. Your guys seem to know what they’re about so logically they must have set up camp there.”
“You seem awfully sure.”
She shrugged. “I’m never wrong. Now are you going to keep yammering on or are we going to climb down and catch this guy?”
I leaned over the cliff again and blanched
, this time unable to slickly hide the wave of vertigo that threatened to pull my under and make me black out.
“Fuck him,” I said casually.
She stared at me. “Climb down the cliff.”
I swallowed. “Why don’t we just–”
She cocked her head and a slow, evil smile tugged the edges of that gorgeous mouth up. “You’re afraid of heights, aren’t you?”
I winced. “Afraid is a strong word. Let’s try adverse to or wary of… ”
“Heaven help me. Is that why you didn’t head back to the caves? Do you want to try closing your eyes and jumping it?”
I eyeballed her. “It’s an eighty foot drop and we are in human form. Admittedly my life is drawing to an end but I had hoped my death would be somewhat more honorable than going splat on a sheet of ice.”
Her shoulders jerked again. “I managed a similar fall mid shift when I was fifteen. We might survive it as humans though I’d rather not try. But if you can’t manage the decent–”
I grabbed her and brought my mouth down on hers to shut her up. The woman drove me mad. I pushed my tongue into her mouth and lapped up the sharp and crisp taste of her. My hand wound into her silky hair until my fingers found her scalp and I massaged it gently.
She groaned and pushed herself into me. Her hands gripped the pleated fabric of the kilt into bunches and tugged roughly.
Mindless, I grabbed her ass and hauled her up so she could lock her legs around my waist and grind herself onto me. She liked it like this and that turned me on. I broke away from her mouth to graze my teeth against the hollow of her neck and licked her pulse point. She bucked and I stepped forward to accommodate of the shift in weight but my foot dangled in the air.
Evangeline squealed and tried to throw herself forward but she had nothing to grab for or hold onto. Her white-blonde billowed around us as we shunted forward and went from being horizontal to vertical.
All I saw was a blanket of white as we pitched over, head first off the cliff edge.
Chapter 8
My body locked up as the air whistled past my head. Vaguely, I felt Evangeline grab my hands and pull my arms up so they were straight. Then impact. My fists smashed through ice and I felt the surface give under my weight. Razors slashed at my hands and skin before icy water enveloped me.
Fuck the cold water, my mind was still up on the cliff edge. The god damned fucking high, high cliff edge.
Evangeline had other ideas than becoming mindless with fear. She kicked her legs and kept her hands in mine. At first I was unable to move and so we sank further into the freezing water. My hands went lax, but she didn’t let me go. Her grip tightened and she yanked me a few times before a slow moving knee connected with my groin.
My eyes stung and the muted pain was enough to snap me back into myself. I was no longer falling to my death from a height, it was done, we were in water and we would drown, trapped under the ice if we didn’t move. My woodland goddess would die in the crushing dark if I didn’t move. With a powerful kick of my legs I followed her around and we both kicked up.
I briefly felt awe as I remembered Evangeline had pulled my unconscious and water logged Wendigo out of the water the night before. Even in beast form that had to have been difficult.
By the time we broke the surface my limbs were stiff and uncoordinated. I trembled so hard the still waters thrashed as if rapids. Not from the cold, from the aftershock of fear. We both crawled out, using our fingernails to scratch at the ice. Luckily the rime was thin and so the surface was not out of reach. Soaking wet we panted and groaned as we felt our shredded arms stinging. Being human sucked, as a Wendigo I would have healed by now.
Evangeline was already up and stalking over to me. Up on my knees I opened my arms to her with a smile, seeking comfort.
Her left fist connected with my jaw and I flew backward and smacked my head hard.
Looking up at the clear blue sky in wonder, I tracked the little sparkles with my eyes and wondered why I had never noticed them before. Ah, right. I was ‘seeing stars’. Lurching up I steadied myself. I froze. There was a sodden heap of clothes on the ground before me. Even as I stared a wet jumper smacked me in the face. I dragged it off and my gaze wandered until I came across huge feet, bare legs, ample hips, a flat stomach, and perky tits. I sucked in a breath when I reached Evangeline’s face. Her body glistened damply and she wrung out her hair then shook it wildly.
“What,” my voice was a rasp so I swallowed loudly and tried again. “What are you doing?”
She glared at me, unconcerned with her nakedness. I watched her back and her nipples hardened. Damn, didn’t she just look sexy? Maybe if I crawled on my hands and knees and begged her to let me inside her she would.
“Wet clothes will slow us down,” she said. “Strip.” She flicked her hair over her shoulder, crossed her arms over her chest, covering those marvelous breasts and waited.
Feeling oddly reluctant I shook my head and tried to shove my hands into my front pockets. Impossible, since I was wearing a fucking skirt.
Gritting her teeth, she pulled her hair over her shoulder yanked on it. Taking a deep breath she set her hands on her hips and my cock did a little jump. She looked so good, eyes slitted and face twisted in a scowl.
“Listen, dumbass. Your body thrives in the cold and your blood will get colder, not warmer. The warmth from your skin won’t dry the fabric and so your clothes with ice over. We have to move fast and we don’t have time to keep stopping so you can snap icicles off yourself.”
I shrugged. She made sense, but I really did not trust myself to be naked next to her right then. “Unless you want me to mount you like a randy stag my clothes stay on.”
Snarling at me she held up her palm and pushed it out as if pushing me away. “Whatever. Just keep up.”
Was she mad at me? I shook my head. Of course she was pissed. I’d thrown us off a cliff into a frozen river. Again. It’s not like it was completely my fault. She had jumped on me and though I would be more than happy to oblige a repeat with a happy ending she was being all prickly.
She started off at a swift pace that had me admiring how fit her human body was. Our Wendigo forms were always in shape, perfect. It was genetics, but our human bodies often lacked proper cardio and weight training.
Evangeline didn’t seem to have that problem. She jogged a few paces ahead of me and wasn’t that distracting. She was dazzling, all lean and strong whilst keeping the softness and grace of a female. Her blonde-white hair swished behind her as she moved, brushing the middle of her back and billowing out when she sped up or slowed suddenly to follow the trail. She was good. I would have had to move much slower in human form to follow the man through this environment without making a mistake.
It was a twig gouging the sole of my foot that managed to tear my gaze away from that perfect ass. Cursing, I stopped and checked out my wound, sent her a pouty look.
With a noise of impatience she stomped back over to me and put her hands on my waist. The sudden change in her demeanor was unexpected but not unwelcome. Females were like that. Unexpected. They did the thing you least anticipated when it suited them and them alone. Admittedly I tensed, wary, waiting for her to lash out or deliver some other form of punishment. She was a mean thing my woodland goddess.
Her wide gray eyes looked up at me and twinkled with humour. My own lips twitched and I arched my eyebrow at her curiously.
Her face was grave when she said, “You deserved that punch.”
I snorted and indulged myself my trawling my hands through her soft, flower-scented hair. “Did I say anything otherwise?”
“That is the second time I’d been in that river in two days and I’m not a fan of swimming. Lucky for you I was in human form.” She sent me a sly look. “I fear my Wendiga would have simply ripped your head off this time.”
I winced, sensing she really wasn’t joking. Her Wendigo could tear my ass up if she wanted, and not in a good way. “You’re distracting. You muddle m
e.”
She sighed and went up on her tiptoes to press a kiss to my mouth. “I know the feeling,” she murmured. “But I apologize for hitting you. It was cruel of me. Are you alright?”
She sounded genuinely concerned and it made my chest hurt. I rubbed a hand over it absentmindedly, wondering why I felt so lightheaded and my chest heavy. “It could have been worse. I never would have set a toe down that cliff face, so falling off it was probably best.”
She pinched my ass. “Well, the next time you want to do something so dumb avoid dragging me with you.”
I chuckled. “The idea of dragging you everywhere with me sounds pretty good actually.”
She smiled and ran her fingers over my chest playfully, missing the expression on my face. I froze and looked down on her in a new light. If I were to take her with me she’d always be there, her unique lemon scent and beautiful pale skin. Her white hair that felt like silk and her waspy waist that my hands slid around now with such ease, like I’d been doing it for decades not days.
Would she come with me if I asked her? Could I dare to dream such a thing?
I opened my mouth, but closed it again when she rubbed her face on my chest then hissed when her hands wandered under the kilt and grabbed my already stiffening cock.
“Rubbing myself over you would be so much nicer if you wore no clothes,” she murmured and pressed a kiss to my chin. “Don’t you agree?”
In five seconds flat I’d pushed her away had whipped the top off my head and was struggling with the pin and clasp on the kilt. She laughed and jumped on me sending me falling back, another habit of hers I was fast coming to love. She was so playful and carefree at times and it warmed my heart.
My hands grabbed that fabulous ass and squeezed. “What about the hunter?” I asked burying my nose in her hair.
She reached back to grip my hands, interlacing our fingers and rocked her pelvis. I gritted my teeth. “Call a storm with me?” Her words were muffled since she pressed kisses to my upper chest. “It’ll get rid of the hunter then I can have you inside me without worrying.” She shifted and poised herself over me, sliding my tip against her core and sighing in that throaty way I loved.