Chapter 2
2
A s soon as Kira heard the sound of shots being fired, she was certain it had to do with the men she was after. What worried her the most, besides that they were in a shootout with possibly law enforcement agents, human types, was that they had the young boy as a hostage. She'd begun picking up the boy's scent soon after she had located theirs and that made the case of her finding them even more urgent. But when someone began shooting, she was worried mostly about the boy. If the police killed the wolf shifters, as long as they were in their human form, there wouldn't be any problem for the shifter community. Incarceration was the real problem.
She was running as fast as she could go toward the sound of gun shots, until they stopped and then she paused. She wasn't sure what was going on. No one was saying anything. No one was shouting to the men to put their hands up, if law enforcement was trying to take them into custody. Then a man said, "Did you get the wolf?"
Oh, God, so one of the men was running as a wolf. But that didn't make any sense.
"Yeah, I shot him, and he went over the cliff," a younger sounding man said. "We can't leave the kid here on his own."
One of the men was stocky, wearing camo clothes, black sneakers, had short cropped black hair and a thick black beard. "I told you what we're doing. Like I said, if you want to stay, so be it. Come on. We're going and he can stay behind."
"We can't leave him here. If we do and they catch him and he talks…," the other man said. He had shaggy brown hair, scruffy beard, and he was wearing khakis and hiking boots and a lightweight olive-green jacket.
"All right, I'm coming." The younger, blond-haired guy hurried off after the men. He was wearing blue jeans, sneakers, and a black jacket, his face sporting a light smattering of hair. It appeared he wasn't able to grow a beard yet.
Kira wanted to take down the men. She really, really did so they couldn't kidnap any other kids. But she had to get the boy to safety no matter what. Yet, she had to check on the wolf. Wolves were protected, but what if it wasn't even a wild wolf but a wolf shifter out for a run in the park?
She moved slowly through the woods, ducking down when she saw the three men heading through the woods in the direction of a trail. To intersect with the trail, they would have to hike a good twenty minutes, which meant the boy was a long way from the trail so no one who was just hiking along it would ever see him here.
As soon as the three men were completely out of sight, she hurried toward the boy. At first, he didn't see her, but then he did and cried out. She put her finger over her mouth to shush him. All she needed was for him to alert the men that he was in trouble and for them to come racing back to shoot her.
She quickly showed the boy her badge as she continued to run toward him. As soon as she reached him, she pulled him into her arms and gave him a hug, then spoke low for his ears only. "I'm taking you away from where those men are going and then I'll get you home, alright?" Though they needed to check out the wolf too. She hadn't lied. She needed to keep the boy far away from those men.
He nodded.
"I'm Kira. What's your name?" she whispered, taking hold of his hand, and moving him in the direction that she had smelled the blond guy and the wolf run.
"Billy."
"What's your last name?"
"Billy Forsythe."
Even though she was sure of that, she had to have actual confirmation from the boy's own mouth. "Okay, well, Billy, I was after those men, but I need to get you home safely first."
"The one guy was shooting at a wolf this way," Billy said.
"It wasn't a wolf, just a dog that looked like a wolf. We're going to check on him." If the wolf was a shifter, she had to let on he was a dog so she could take care of him.
Billy pulled her to a stop. "What if he's injured and mad and tries to eat us?"
"He won't. The blond guy said he went over a cliff. We just need to check on him and we need to stay far away from the men who took you hostage." Kira was trying to move the boy quickly through the brush, but she realized he must be exhausted. He might not have had anything to eat in a while. She stopped and reached into her backpack and fished out an oatmeal bar for him to give him some energy. At least he had a bottle of water.
"They said I couldn't drink very much of my water."
"I've got more if you need it. You can drink as much as you want now." Then she walked more slowly with him while he munched on the bar. "You're not hurt, are you?"
"No, just tired. My legs hurt from walking so much."
"As soon as we get farther away from the kidnappers, I'll use the satellite phone to call for help."
"The kidnappers' phones didn't work out here."
"Right. They wouldn't. There are no cell towers out here." She kept smelling the younger man's scent and the other wolf's anxious scent. The younger man's scent was more pronounced because he'd retraced his steps and run the other way to meet up with his co-conspirators.
But then the younger man's scent stopped, and she knew he must have fired that final shot right here. The wolf had continued on. Maybe he had been wounded. She sure hoped not. Then she reached the edge of the cliff. "Stay back, Billy. I don't want you falling off the cliff."
She peered over the edge of the cliff. Down below, probably thirty feet on a narrow ledge, lay a wounded gray wolf, his shoulder bleeding. Her heart went out to him. He lifted his head to look at her and lay his head back down as if he was too hurt to care that she might plan to shoot him next.
"I'll call this in first." They were far enough away from the kidnappers, but if she became injured, she might not have a chance to call this into anyone. She brought out her satellite phone and called the pack leader. "Devlyn, this is Kira Westwood. I've found the boy the three men I've been tracking had kidnapped. They've headed back on the Greenhorn Trail in the Rocky Mountain National Park toward the trailhead, but one of the men shot a uhm, a dog that looks like a wolf."
"One of ours?"
"I don't know. He's lying on a narrow ledge below a cliff. He fell about thirty feet. I'm climbing down to him to see if I can give him first aid, but?—"
The wolf lifted his head and howled.
"Hell, that's my cousin, Fisher," Devlyn said.
"I told you it's a wolf," Billy said.
"Some dogs howl, Billy," she said. "Okay, Devlyn, I'm climbing down to him. I'll call you back after I've taken care of him." Then she gave him their coordinates. She didn't wait for him to answer. She knew Devlyn would rally everyone he could to help rescue his cousin and the boy. But she had to go to Fisher's aid as quickly as she could and try to stop his bleeding and see if he was injured in any other way.
She took hold of Billy's hands and crouched in front of him. "My boss is coming with a whole bunch of men and women to help the dog and get you home to your parents. But I have to climb down and put a bandage on him, okay?" Even though Devlyn wasn't her boss, and he might not actually show up, she didn't need to tell the boy that.
The boy's eyes filled with tears. "Don't leave me."
She smelled his fear and she completely understood how scared he was. But she had to make sure Fisher didn't die on her.
"You sit right here by this tree. Okay?" She gave him a package of jerky. "If you get hungry for something more just eat this. And this way you can rest your legs. Just stay here. Don't go anywhere. Help is coming." Then she gave him another hug and he didn't want to release her, but she had to go to the wolf's aid. "He's hurt. I have to take care of him. I'll be back as soon as I can."
She didn't want to leave the boy behind because he'd already experienced enough trauma and he was scared to death. But she couldn't chance Fisher dying on her because she hadn't gone down to take care of him. She couldn't risk taking the boy down the cliff either.
Worried about the boy and the wolf, she felt her heart pounding furiously. She took the rope she had with her and tied it to a nearby tree. "You stay here. I'm going to climb down and check on the dog."
"He's injured. He could bite you."
"He'll be fine. I've taken care of them before in a similar situation." She began to rappel down the cliff to the ledge and once she was on it, she hurried over to the beautiful gray wolf, his chin and cheeks blond, the arch above his eyes dark brown and black, very distinguished looking. His eyes were a beautiful golden, his black nose sniffing the air, trying to smell her scent. She pulled out her first aid kit with as much caution as she could use. She didn't want to fall off the narrow ledge in the meantime.
"I'm a red wolf." Though after she said it, she didn't know why she did because he could smell her scent. "I spoke with your cousin, Devlyn, and he said you were Fisher. Don't shift." She was speaking low for his ears only. She glanced up to see the boy lying on his belly, peering down at them from the cliff's edge. So much for him staying safely near the tree. "Devlyn's organizing a party to meet us and help out. Were you shot just the one time?"
Fisher nodded.
She was already bandaging his shoulder, but it was hard to do on a wolf. It was easier to do on a man, but with the human boy watching from up above, Fisher couldn't shift. Though it would have made it a lot easier for her to learn where else he might be hurt if he was in his human form.
"Is he a dog?" Billy called out, as if a wolf wouldn't be this complacent and no one would try to rescue a wounded wolf—way too dangerous.
"Yes. He's a friend's dog who got away from his owner," she said and privately said to Fisher, "I hope you hadn't thought to rescue the boy in your wolf coat."
He grunted. She took that as a yes. She kissed him on the top of his furry head. She felt so bad for him. He whimpered. She let out her breath. She hoped he was going to be alright. Their kind healed in half the time that humans did, but his injuries could be bad. Still, he was keeping her from her mission of maintaining the boy's safety. Yet she knew she couldn't safely move the wolf up the cliff, not if he was severely injured from the fall.
"Did you break any bones when you fell?" she asked.
He moved his left foreleg a tiny bit.
"Sprain or break?" she asked. Shoot, he couldn't answer her again but with yes or no questions. "Sprain?" He didn't answer her. "Break?" He still didn't respond. She was trying to get the bandaging around his chest, and he groaned. She suspected he was badly bruised. Maybe he didn't know if anything was broken or sprained for sure. She knew he was hurting though. His heart was beating fast, and she could smell his pain.
Yet despite that he was feeling bad, he took several more whiffs of her like a wolf would, and she thought he even managed a small smile. Glad she was a wolf too? She suspected so. There was a small shelf above them that stretched out over a quarter of the one they were on that provided a bit of shelter from the chilly breeze. At least the ledge seemed sturdy enough to hold both their weights until someone came to rescue Fisher. She thought of moving Fisher under the shelf, but she was afraid to move him if she ended up injuring him worse than he already was hurt.
"By the way, I'm Kira Westwood, a special agent with the United Shifter Force. I know your cousin Vaughn and his mate Jillian. Both are great to work with, but they never mentioned you before. Just Vaughn's brother Brock because they wanted him to join them in the organization." She glanced up at Billy who was still watching them from the top of the cliff. She didn't want him too close to the edge, but at least he was lying down, and the cliff seemed stable.
Even though she was speaking quietly to Fisher, the boy probably wondered why she was talking so much to a dog. "He's going to be alright," she called up to Billy. At least she sure hoped so.
"Good. Can…can you bring him up here?" Billy asked.
"No. I might injure him more."
Kira suspected Billy wanted them up there to watch over him. She didn't blame him. She worried about leaving Fisher alone, but she didn't want to leave Billy alone either.
But then Billy whispered, "Hey, someone's coming." His voice was terrified.
She only heard him because of her wolf hearing, but she worried that the Greystoke pack members hadn't arrived yet. Just normal hikers traipsing through the woods, way off the beaten path? Or something more sinister like the kidnappers, coming to see where the boy had gone to? If they were, they would know she was a wolf and helping the boy and the wolf they had shot. They would know she was a shifter like them, and that Fisher might be also.
As carefully as she could, she pulled Fisher under the shelf to protect him, and he groaned. "Sorry," she whispered. "I have to keep you hidden from those bastards. I'll be right back."
Leaving her backpack with Fisher, she rushed over to grab the rope and began climbing up to reach Billy as quickly as she could. She had her gun belted at her waist, but she couldn't use it until she made it to the top of the cliff. She just had to reach Billy before the men did. Since he had already heard them coming, it was probably too late. But she had to take the chance. She couldn't allow them to take Billy hostage again. She was halfway up the rope, afraid they might cut it or shoot at her while she was climbing. She couldn't tell the boy to run or to hide because as wolves they would be able to smell him anyway and they would be able to outrun him.
Then the boy screamed. Her heart stuttered. A black-bearded man peered over the cliff, and she knew this was really bad. He sneered at her. "We've got a live one," he called over his shoulder. "Cut the rope."
Her heart in her throat, she felt a vibration in the rope, and she knew they were cutting it. She rappelled down the rope as fast as she could. Once she reached the ledge, she dove under the shelf and straddled Fisher, the only way she could get out of harm's way. Sure enough, the rope dropped to the ledge, and gunfire sounded, the bullets hitting the ledge, splintering rock, and the fragments hit her face and her arms, though she was wearing a long-sleeved, flannel plaid shirt that protected her arms.
The boy was screaming, pleading with them not to kill the lady, and she felt so bad that she couldn't rescue him. And bad that he was so scared that they would kill her and Fisher. She wanted to shout that they were okay, but she kept quiet, hoping the men would leave and not take the boy with them. She was being careful not to press her body on top of Fisher's in case he had broken ribs. She was stuck down here now, unless she could free climb back up to the cliff's edge. Which she thought she could do if no one was shooting at her. She just had to concentrate on her foot and handholds and be really careful.
She'd never thought the kidnappers would return for the boy. She again considered that maybe she should have tried to move him down there to protect him, but she felt it still could have been just as dangerous.
"Fisher," she whispered to him. But his eyes were closed, and he didn't wake. He appeared to be out cold.
Then one of the kidnappers said, "Come on. They won't be giving us any more trouble."
They moved off into the brush. The boy was still crying, but he was staying next to the cliff edge. She so hoped that meant the men were leaving him behind. She carefully moved beyond the little shelter she and Fisher had and looked up to see if anyone would attempt to shoot at them again. No one did. Then she saw the boy peering down and he smiled at her through his tears. Her heart lifted with joy to see him there and that he was still safe.
He motioned to her, telling her that the men were gone.
"We're okay and help is on the way soon," she said, her voice soft in case the kidnappers were still close by. She wanted him to know help was still coming and that she and the "dog" were fine.
He gave her a tearful thumbs up. He didn't look reassured though that any of them were going to be rescued any time soon. Then she heard a male voice under the shelf saying, "Where am I?"
She glanced back at Fisher and saw a very naked, very hot male wolf lying on his back on the stone.
"Uhm, Billy, I'm checking on the dog real quick. He's under this shelf. I'll be right back." She said to Fisher, "No, no, no. Turn back into your wolf. Your cousin, Devlyn, is sending people to rescue you." She quickly pulled out a first aid blanket and her parka from her backpack. Even though earlier, she thought it would be good for him to shift and be in his human form so she could bandage him and look over his wounds and speak with him, she realized he would be colder, and it could be worse for him.
"I…heard gunfire." He held his head as if it was hurting.
"The kidnappers of the young human boy, Billy, they're wolves. They came back maybe to finish you off. They discovered I had moved Billy to the cliff and had come to save you. In any event, they shot at you and me, but it was fortuitous that I had moved you under the shelf before that happened. They've left again. But they cut the rope that I used to climb down to take care of you."
"With you on it?" He groaned in pain. "They're wolves?"
She pulled out a cloth from her backpack and wiped his sweaty forehead. "I rappelled down before they could cut the rope all the way. And yes, they're wolves."
He let out a relieved breath as she covered his beautiful, muscular, bruised body with the thermal blanket. "And the boy?"
"He's up on the cliff. I'm going to free solo back up the cliff. The boy is terrified and I'm worried that before we can get help, he's going to get too chilled." She placed her jacket over Fisher's chest on top of the thermal blanket, then pulled out a knit cap from her bag and tugged it on his head.
"Are you sure you can do it without falling? How far was that drop?" He really sounded worried for her, which she appreciated.
"About thirty feet. I don't know how badly you're injured."
"A cracked rib or two, or maybe bruised, I think. And the gunshot wound. I'm feeling cold." Even though she had covered him with the blanket and her jacket, the stone ledge he was resting on would be cold.
On top of that, he was sweating from the pain.
"Shift back." She wanted him to be as warm as possible while wearing his wolf fur coat. She grabbed a bottle of water and helped him to sit up a bit to drink it.
"I can't. As soon as I shifted into my human form, I tried to shift back. It's much more comfortable to lie on the stone as a wolf. But I'm in too much pain to hold my wolf form. You have a red Kia."
She frowned, wondering how he knew that. "Right." Then she realized he must have smelled her scent by her car at the trailhead. "Okay, I've got to go." She tugged a sweater out of her backpack, tied it around her waist, then she left him the bottle of water. "Drink some of this if you need to. I'm going to climb up to the boy to make sure he's not getting hypothermia. Because of the trauma the boy had experienced and now that the sun was setting, he is sure to be cold. Don't you dare move from this spot until we get help here for you."
He gave her a halfhearted smile. She suspected he did because he was in no condition to move anywhere on his own. Which was good. She didn't want him accidentally falling off the ledge and then he would be dead for sure.
Once she was sure he was warmer, she used her backpack to make a pillow for his head. "I'll be back."
But before she could leave him, he seized her wrist. Despite being injured, he had a strong grip—that she was glad for—and he stopped her in her tracks. "Be careful."
"I will be. Or I'll end up joining you on the ledge in the same condition as you are, minus the gunshot wound."
Then he released her wrist, nodded, and she made her way to the cliff and began looking for the best possible handholds.
Her heart beating hard, she carefully picked her way around the rock face, finding the best finger and toe holds she could use while the boy watched her in silence. As much as her muscles were shaking, she knew she needed to get some extra rock climbing into her work routine. The boy appeared to be shivering though, so she was glad she was returning to him to aid him now. She finally made it up to the top of the cliff. He immediately rose to his feet and hugged her.
She hugged him back, so glad he was safe. She untied the arms of her sweater from around her waist and pulled it over his head and arms. Of course now, she was getting chilled! She was wearing a flannel shirt, but she could have used something heavier as it grew colder this evening and the breeze picked up.
She used her satellite phone again to call Devlyn with an update. "The kidnappers came back and tried shooting us, but we managed to get under a little bit of a shelf that protected us. I'm back topside to warm up the boy. The…uhm, dog might have a couple of broken ribs. Not sure."
"I understand. Heath, Fisher's brother, is a doctor and he's bringing medical supplies to take care of him. All our men are armed. If they see the wolves, they'll take them down. The men should be there in about fifteen minutes."
Fifteen minutes would seem like an eternity.
"We've got twelve men headed your way," Devlyn added. "Some will be looking for the kidnappers also. We can't allow our kind to break the laws."
"Right and they're doing it this time in your…uhm"—she glanced at Billy snuggled up in her olive green wool sweater, sitting on the ground—"jurisdiction." Though they couldn't allow them to break the law in any territory, or places where wolf packs hadn't claimed the locations either. "I'm going to let you go."
"They'll be there soon."
"Thanks." She wouldn't call her boss to tell him all that went down until later, since really nothing had been resolved. Saving the kid, yes, but the three kidnappers were still at large, and Fisher could be seriously injured.