Chapter 15: Griffin

15

GRIFFIN

M aisy's been outdoing herself with the food, keeping me stuffed to the gills, while I sulk around her guesthouse like a bear with a sore arse. I feel like there's a dark cloud hanging over my head, following me wherever I go.

She doesn't ask me what's wrong, just keeps patting my arm reassuringly and feeding me more tea and buns. Right now, I wish I could move straight into the ranger accommodations, but it's not going to happen in this weather.

Some privacy would be nice, though. I barely slept a wink last night after leaving Kali's. The thing that lives inside me wants out, and it's getting harder and harder to keep him at bay… I don't want to explain why I shredded the mattress to Maisy this morning.

Staring out at the raging storm that mirrors my mood, my mind fixates on Kali. Her begging me to leave the bar this afternoon was like a dagger to my heart, and it plays over and over in my head, driving my beast into a dangerous frenzy.

He's panicking that she won't forgive us. That I've fucked things up for good. And he's probably right.

He's convinced he has a better way to win her around, and I'm terrified to think what that is. Given how rough I was with her, how I chased her and took her in the mud, and how he seems to think that was nothing, I can't trust him not to hurt her.

When I woke up in the night, watching her sleeping peacefully in my arms, the moonlight through the open curtains danced across her creamy skin. A feeling of intense possessiveness gripped me, and I wanted to disturb her sleep just so I could take her again. Instead, I satisfied myself with holding her while admiring her beauty.

As I cradled her to me, the sheets slipped away, and I felt sick when I saw the mottled bruises I'd left on her slim hips, and the teeth marks on her shoulder. I wanted to bite her, much harder than I had. I wanted to brand her as mine by putting a permanent scar on her perfect skin.

What kind of man, what kind of animal , does that to someone?

I'm so conflicted. I know I shouldn't have done it, but I can't say that I regret it, either. That was the best night of my life. Plus, Kali seemed to be pretty on board. I've just never been that rough with someone before. Or so out of control.

What if I'd really hurt her?

When I remember how primitive my urges were as I chased her through the trees, I don't know if I would have been able to stop myself even if she'd said no. And that terrifies me.

Groaning, I bury my face in my hands. I should tell her to stay away from me, but I tried to leave her in peace, and it lasted less than twelve hours. I'm not sure I can ever leave her alone.

The rattle of the windows rouses me from my self-pitying stupor. The storm is in full swing outside, getting more and more wild, and the old guest house creaks and groans as the wind batters it from all sides.

Nearly every visitor has locked themselves into their rooms for the night, glad to be cosy and warm. In a way, this is a good thing. I'm forced to stay indoors, and so is Kali. The roads out of town are probably impassable at this stage.

She can't run away, yet. And I know where she is.

When a particularly loud roll of thunder shakes the guesthouse, I hope Kali's okay. My animal wants to go and check on her, and to make sure Jack leaves after he escorts her home, but that doesn't seem like a good idea right now.

Forcing myself to stay put instead, I head downstairs to distract myself, gripping the bannister tightly to stop the memory of her scent from sending me to my knees. Thoughts of Kali, visions of her looking so pretty with her blonde hair in braids, keep coming to me unbidden, and I ache for her.

But I'm playing the long game. She might not forgive me today or tomorrow, but she doesn't know I live here now, either. We'll be seeing plenty of each other. It's a small town. There's no getting away now.

I remind myself of that as I stride into the kitchen, ready to pay whatever Maisy wants for another slice of her rhubarb tart. Just as I push through the door, there's a blinding flash and a deafening crack, before a branch falls against the window, smashing the glass and scattering shards everywhere.

Maisy jumps to the side of the kitchen, her hand on her heart, and a worried look on her lined face. She lifts her hands to her cheeks, brushing back a loose strand of grey hair with trembling fingers. "Do you think it's going to get worse?" she asks, staring out at the dark sky. "I hate thunder. It makes me so jumpy."

Brushing past her, I usher her away from the window, where the wind is now howling in, rain splattering onto the sink and countertop through the hole.

"This is supposed to be the worst of it," I say, trying to sound reassuring as I assess the damage done. Hopefully, the roof hasn't taken a hit.

Raiding her utility room, I find a broom and hold it high, out of her reach as I pass. After sweeping up the debris and shoving the fallen branch back out through the window, the kitchen looks slightly less destroyed, but it's still bitterly cold, and the floor is gleaming with wetness, making the tiles slippery.

The kitchen is officially closed for the evening.

"I'll get this boarded up for you to keep the rain and the cold out." I offer, remembering the extra sheets of plywood left propped up in the hallway.

Nodding, Maisy walks closer to the window and peers out into the trees beyond. She's unusually quiet and seems to be looking for something. Or someone.

"What's wrong? Do you see something else about to come down?"

Wringing her hands in front of her, she shakes her head, scanning her guest's cars. No longer parked in her driveway close to the trees, they're now lining the road where there's less chance of damage.

"My nephew. He should be here by now. Something's not right," she mutters, moving back toward me.

Pursing my lips, I stare outside. This is not the weather for driving in. It's not the weather for doing anything in.

"Maybe he turned back if the roads were too bad. Or he's parked up somewhere to wait it out."

Maisy shakes her head and looks up at me with big, worried eyes.

"No. My sister called to check if he'd gotten here, so he's not at home. We told him not to go… but he's got a girl in town… He's only a teenager, Griffin. I'm not sure he'd know what to do if he got into any real trouble on the road."

I think of my own younger cousin and know he'd do something reckless like try to walk rather than wait for help. And he has zero survival skills without being able to look it up on the internet. The risk of getting hit with flying debris or getting hypothermia in this weather is very real.

"When was he supposed to get here?" Leaning the broom up against the wall, I leave and go to my room, returning a few moments later with a backpack, and then grab my heavy rain jacket and thick hat off the rack in Maisy's doorway.

"Two hours." She looks pale and nervous as she watches me prepare to go outside. "Griffin, you can't go out in that… I don't want you to get hurt, either."

But as she looks me up and down, I realise she's got an inkling I'm not just a man. She suspects that I've got something extra about me that will make me a bit more resilient to the harsh conditions.

"It's part of the job, Maisy. And I think we both know, I'll be okay."

Taking a quick look at one of the maps I brought with me, marked up with all the trails I've visited since deciding to move here, Maisy points out the road he was driving. Then she points to where Evan's house is, right at the top of the hill, which marks the beginning of the bad stretch into town. Leaning over the table, I work out what will be the best way to locate him when I'm going to be searching on my own.

"Do you think you can find him?" she asks in a small voice.

Hopefully, he'll turn up in some neighbour's house, sheltering from the storm, but I can't promise anything.

"Call Jack and ask him to come by and board up the window. And keep some tart for me. I was looking forward to that."

When I give her a wink, squeezing her shoulder gently, Maisy smiles. It's forced, but it's something.

"Be careful," she whispers as I wrench the door open, using my body to shield her from the blast of cold air and spray of rain that blows through.

Nodding brusquely, I step outside and duck my head to avoid the driving rain that's stinging my skin. It doesn't work, coming in sideways and lashing my face. I set off quickly, torch in hand, and cut across the grass toward my truck.

If he had gotten as far as town, he would have been fine and made it to Maisy's by now.

The winding downhill section from King's property seems the most likely place for something to have gone wrong, either a swollen river cutting off the road, a fallen tree, or even an inexperienced driver skidding off the slick tarmac. That's where I need to focus my efforts.

The beast in my head roars at me to let him out, that he'll cover the distance in no time and find the boy with his nose, if he's there to be found. But I can't let him out. I'm too afraid of what I'll become and what he might do.

He's never had control before. I don't trust him not to seek out Kali's house instead. God knows what he's capable of. And she's made it clear she doesn't want to see me, although that doesn't seem to be something he's willing to accept.

The skin on my forearms ripple, and my chest heaves as he pounds against the mental barriers that I've built up inside my mind to keep him caged.

A quick look at my reflection in the rearview mirror of my truck makes my blood run cold. My eyes are coal black. The tang of blood fills my mouth as my teeth enlarge and lengthen, pushing my mouth forward and stretching my lips.

There's no way I could be near Kali like this. It wouldn't be safe for her. I'm far more dangerous to her than the storm.

Passing The Devil's Claw, I slow down and drive around back, checking to see if Maisy's nephew might have pulled in off the road to hunker down here. There's one car parked there, but it doesn't match the description Maisy gave me. Just to be certain, I open my window and shine my torch on it, making sure there's nobody inside. It's empty.

When I go to roll the window back up, a distant sound catches my attention: A whistle. Loud and sharp.

Parking, I climb out and stand still, letting the rain soak me as I wait to see if it sounds again. When it does, my beast tells me exactly which direction it's coming from. Not far as the crow flies, and straight through the forest in front of us.

With a sigh, I grab my backpack out of the truck and shine my torch into the trees, still swaying violently from the wind. This is madness, walking through the woods in the middle of a lightning storm with flying debris everywhere, but if it is the boy calling for help, I have got to go.

Pocketing my keys, I jog, head down, toward the sound.

My beast easily maps out the quickest route for me, over logs and under branches, like he knows every inch of this forest already. The further we travel, the more anxious he gets. I wonder what he can sense that I can't, and I pray it's not because the boy is badly hurt. Glad I packed a first aid kit, I push on, expecting to stumble across the injured boy at any moment.

Suddenly, my beast pulls me up, and for the first time in my life, I'm not able to move my own body.

Panic grips me as I realise that somewhere along the way, he's taken the reins and seized control. Recognising the coppery smell of blood in the air, adrenaline floods my body.

That's not good.

I'm trying to force my legs to move, to push on, when a blood curdling scream splits the air. The hairs stand up on the back of my neck, and I freeze, zoning in on the hushed voices and snarling close by. Twigs are crunching, and teeth are clashing. The sound of flesh hitting flesh echoes through the trees.

The blood isn't an injury from a car crash, someone's being attacked.

Surging forward, I finally agree that in this instance, the darkness inside me is the one we want to be in charge right now.

Opening my mouth to taste the scents drifting on the air, my legs almost buckle beneath me as I recognise one. A scent that normally fills my dreams, but this time, it's a nightmare. As I skid on a patch of wet ground, looking down as I regain my footing, I'm shocked to see my boots covered in dark red liquid.

My stomach lurches. All that blood belongs to Kali. There's too much.

When I hear her choking, coughing and sputtering nearby as she fights to breathe, it confirms she's badly hurt.

With a pain like nothing I've ever felt before, my beast explodes from my body, every bone snapping into a new place, and my skin splitting and knitting back together to cover my bulging muscles.

Raw power and the need for violence courses through me. I stare down at the thick fur coating my body as we sprint toward Kali, my paws pounding rhythmically against the earth as I run.

Another scream from Kali shuts down all rational thought, and my mind goes completely black. I'm no longer me.

I'm all him.