Chapter Seven
Sienna lay on a fresh sheet in a lazy naked slumber after her intense orgasm at the hands of two men. She tossed words like “fugitive” and “criminal” from her thoughts and lay wrapped in Grady’s embrace.
He was holding her as though seeing her afresh, feeling something new in her. He’d mellowed since his anxiety levels about being captured had eased but this was new again, now he was positively doting.
He stroked her hair, kissed her cheek, and wound his legs with hers. He’d removed his sweater and she was enjoying having her palm flat on his warm hair-coated chest.
“Do you think he’ll be long?” she murmured.
“Tarl? Nah, he’ll soon find some information about what’s going on in New York. Hopefully the search hasn’t stretched beyond the city.”
“Perhaps not for you, but maybe for me?” She paused. “Do you think they’ll presume we’re together?”
“They’d be right.” He raised her hand and kissed her knuckles. “Yesterday you had me under lock and key, right now I feel like you’re taking possession of a different part of me.”
“What do you mean?”
He twisted is lips as though thinking of his answer. “I’m half direwolf, half human, the same as Tarl, so you have to understand that our thought processes and emotions are different from yours. We have a different biology.”
“Go on.”
“I guess what I’m trying to say is we fall in love hard and fast. When we know someone is right for us, when we want that person, or direwolf, at our side, the decision is made. It doesn’t waver, we’re decisive, and that’s for practical reasons. The wilderness is a tough place, why make it tougher?”
“You fall in love hard and fast?” she repeated.
“Yes, and it’s pretty obvious to me that Tarl is already in love with you.”
“He is not.”
“I know him better than anyone, and I see it in his eyes when he looks at you, the way his attention follows you around a room, how he knew in his heart you could help us, even if he didn’t understand the future at that point.”
She was quiet for a moment and watched the flashing light in the window as the train passed through trees. “I like him, a lot. I trust him, something I haven’t been too good at in the past.”
“Trust is vital to any relationship.”
“I agree.” She stroked from his sternum to his nipple and traced a circle around it, disturbing the hairs. “How long have you been together?”
“We had an attraction as soon as he started shifting, but I made him wait, it seemed the right thing to do.”
“Because you’re older than him?”
“Yeah. I gotta set an example to the pack. I’m alpha, remember.”
“I remember.” She studied his face. “How much older are you?”
“He’s twenty-two, I’m forty. And you?”
“I’m thirty-five.”
“I guess Tarl has a type then—older.” He laughed softly, his chest rising and falling.
“Can I ask you something personal?”
“Sure.”
“Do you … you know … fuck, when you’re direwolves, when you’ve shifted?”
“No, we don’t. Some do, not our thing.”
“Oh, I see.” She found herself glad about that. “Why isn’t it your thing?”
“It doesn’t seem as intimate somehow. When I fuck Tarl, I like to see his face, feel his flesh, not fur, I want to hear his words not howls.”
She nodded and tried to imagine them fucking. Perhaps she wouldn’t have to, maybe they’d let her watch when they eventually got to Kochi.
There was a knock at the door.
Grady got up, his movements swift and efficient. “Tarl?”
“Yeah, let me in.”
Quickly Grady opened the door. “Heard anything?”
“Yeah, everyone’s phones are blowing up with it.”
“What are they saying?” Sienna pushed to sitting and then proceeded to dress.
“Residents of New York have been told to stay indoors because of a dangerous beast on the loose.”
Grady shrugged. “Good advice. If I hadn’t had that pizza I’d be damn hungry.”
Tarl held up his hand, his expression serious. “Your face is everywhere, Sienna. Not that we should be surprised.”
“Everywhere?”
“Yeah, it’s a good thing we’ve got this private cabin. Ten minutes out there and you’d be recognized.”
She slapped on her baseball cap, went to the window, and stared out at the passing wilderness. “So, what are we going to do?” She fought down a rise of fear. Her image was everywhere. The entire nation was looking for her. She was the “wanted” person who’d released the dangerous direwolf.
Grady picked up a packet of crisps and opened them. He sat back, one ankle crossed over the other knee, and began to eat.
“I suggest we get off at the next stop,” Tarl said and pulled a leaflet from his pocket. “We’ve made good progress and it’s a small town, we could run north and be over the border in an hour from there.”
“Gosh, we have made good progress,” Sienna said.
“In all truth, you’ve been either asleep or writhing in ecstasy.” Grady raised his eyebrows at her.
“Best way to be.” She grinned, even though anxiety was rapidly knotting in her stomach.
“How long until our next stop?” Grady asked.
“Twenty minutes. We’ll wait until the last minute to get off and just make a dash for it.”
“Yeah, and if Sienna keeps her head down, cap on, hood up, shielded by us, hopefully no one will spot her.”
“Do you think that will work?” she asked.
“It’s the best plan we have.” Tarl set his hand on her shoulder. “Make sure you’ve had a snack and are ready to go. But remember, we’ve got your back, it will be okay.”
“We’ll make damn sure it is.” Grady crumpled up his crisp packet and tossed it into the trash. “Our lives depend upon it.”
As the train slowed and then came to a halt, Sienna stiffened with anticipation. They had to pass through an entire carriage of people to get to the nearest exit. Tarl had done a check, and she’d need to go quick, head down, just in case anyone saw that she was America’s most wanted woman and raised the alarm.
“Stay close to me,” Grady said, stepping in front of her. “Hold my sweater, here.” He tugged the hem that sat over the rise of his ass. “That way you won’t have to look where you’re going. I’ll guide you.”
“And I’ll be right behind, so don’t stop,” Tarl said.
She reached out and steadied herself as the train came to a complete halt. The absence of noise, the wheels clacking on the rails, was suddenly loud.
“Just keep walking,” Grady said. “Let’s go.”
She did as he’d instructed, following tucked in behind him, she spotted passengers in her peripheral vision. They were reading books, looking at phones, chatting. As each one passed, she felt a little safer. Nearly there.
Then, just as they were about to step off, a shout came their way. “Hey, you there! Wait.”
Her heart stuttered and she scooted closer to Grady. He didn’t stop, he alighted the train then turned and took her into the curve of his arm.
She’d lost Tarl’s presence behind her.
“What’s going on?” she asked, fear sliding into her veins. Was this it? Was this as far as she was going to get?”
“Your scarf, sir, you’ve dropped it.”
“It’s okay,” Grady said, “Tarl dropped something, it’s only the guard.”
“Is he looking at me?”
“No, and we won’t give him a chance.” Grady walked to the right, heading along the platform at speed. “Tarl will catch us up.”
Sure enough, by the time they’d ducked out of the station and navigated past a row of cabs, Tarl was beside them again. “Damn scarf,” he muttered. “Didn’t even realize it had come out of my rucksack.”
Grady shrugged. “We’ll go north.”
“How?” Sienna risked a look around.
The town was quiet, not a tourist spot, and there had been a frost making the ground sparkle.
“I told you, you can ride.” Tarl grinned and winked.
“I’m not sure if—”
“Not really any choice, honey.” Grady shrugged. “But we can’t shift here, we need to get to the forest. This way.”
He didn’t wait for the others to agree and headed off, Sienna still in the safety of his arm.
A car drove past, stuttering from its exhaust, and two children pedaled frantically in a race with each other to a chilly looking park. A ginger cat stepped in front of them and instantly hissed, arching as it backed away.
“Cats hate us,” Tarl said. “Whether we’re human or direwolves.”
“They’ve never liked me either,” Sienna said. “I guess that’s why I ended up working in the canine enclosure.”
After ten minutes of walking, they came to the last of the houses. Before them stretched a dense-looking forest. A slight mist hung over the tips of the fir trees and a huge bird of prey soared in the heavy gray sky.
“Come on,” Grady sped up, as though the need to shift was getting greater. “We’re almost there.”
“And then what? You shift and I just climb onboard?”
“And hold on tight.” Tarl curled his hand over her shoulder.
“How long for?”
“It will take us an hour to cross the border then we’ll go northeast for another three hours. That should get us there late evening.”
“To Kochi?”
“Yeah, to Kochi.”
She nodded. Was she strong enough to hold onto the back of a direwolf for so long? She hoped so, and there was only one way to find out.
The hard ground crunched underfoot and the air was damp and heavy with the scent of mulch.
Tarl dropped his rucksack to the ground and began to strip off.
Grady was still searching, looking for anyone who might spot them shifting.
Sienna knotted her fingers together. She’d seen them both shift now, but would she ever get used to the wonder of it? It really was an incredible thing to witness.
“Come on.” Tarl shoved his clothing into the rucksack. “Hand me your stuff.”
Grady frowned at him. “Can’t be too careful.”
Sienna scanned the area behind them. It was a flat field and in the very distance there were a few roofs, one had smoke trickling from a chimney. “I can’t see anyone.”
“We’re in the clear.” Tarl clenched and unclenched his fists then rolled his neck.
“Yeah, you’re right.” Grady pursed his lips as though still anxious. “We’ve gotta get going.”
“Who should I ride?” Sienna pulled her coat zipper right up to her chin.
“I’ll take you,” Tarl said. “Grady can lead the way, his sense of direction is second to none.”
Grady nodded once then shoved his clothes into the rucksack.
Both men were gloriously naked in the forest, their bodies sleek with the damp air and tiny droplets of sparkle sitting in their body hair.
“Don’t be afraid of us, we’d never hurt you,” Tarl said.
“I’m not.”
“Good.” He stretched up, his limbs thickening and his skin hazing as though she’d squinted her eyes. The next thing she knew he was falling to all fours as a direwolf. His nose had elongated, his ears were pricked up, and his body was covered in thick white fur with brown patches. He stepped up to her and nudged her hand with his wet nose.
“Tarl,” she whispered stroking the patch between his ears. “You’re beautiful.” And she meant it, he was utterly stunning.
He half closed his eyes and tipped his head. A low murmur rumbled from his throat.
Grady laughed. “Oh, you just found his sweet spot, we’ll be going nowhere if you keep tickling him there.”
She tickled him some more then stepped to his side.
He dropped a little, bending his front legs, and she scrabbled onto his back and took hold of two big handfuls of fur. He was wide, at least as wide as a horse she’d used to ride when growing up, and she was just as high from the ground.
“You hold on tight, especially if you see anything he has to jump as he’s running.” Grady pointed at her. “Promise.”
“Yes, promise.” She nodded and beat down a wave of anxiety. Her life had gone from crazy busy to just plain crazy. But what choice did she have other than to go with it?
Grady took a deep breath then repeated the same action as Tarl. He rose up onto his toes, stretched, and then fell forward.
This time Sienna tried harder to watch each bit of his body shift, but it was as though he were shrouded in mist as it happened, and it wasn’t until he was a dark direwolf that she could see him clearly again.
He raised his head and let out a long, low howl.
The sound vibrated right into her chest and stirred an emotion she couldn’t name. It was primitive and downright evocative.
And then Grady turned, snapped up the rucksack between his jaws, and took off into the darkness. Tarl followed and she ducked to avoid branches then braced as he jumped a log.
Instantly she loved it. He was easy to ride. She didn’t feel unstable because their bodies moved as one. The wind whipped moisture from her eyes, and she dashed at it when they raced over a clearing. Beneath them twigs cracked and snapped, and the cool air blasted around her ears noisily.
Grady was charging ahead. Hot breath puffed from his mouth and his powerful legs took great strides. Tarl kept up easily, slipping this way and that around tree trunks. Eventually the forest came to an end and a huge expanse of grazing land stretched before them.
A herd of black cattle spotted them and raised their heads. One decided to run away and the others followed until they were over a ridge and out of sight. Tarl and Grady paid them no notice and kept going.
Sienna had no idea when they’d crossed the border, it could have been any number of places, all unmanned, no roads, just wilderness. They hadn’t seen so much as a mounted officer, and it was clear Grady knew how to avoid humans … mostly.
Eventually they came to a halt beside a river. Sienna slid off Tarl and blew into her hands. It was cold. Both Tarl and Grady went to the water and drank deeply.
Sienna pulled a bottle of water from her rucksack and took a few sips. She also munched on a cereal bar—that would have to do as dinner. It was getting dark. Soon the sun would touch the horizon and slip away.
She looked around, hands on hips, and blew out a breath. At least no one would find her here. She hoped Kochi would feel just as remote and safe. Oh, and a fire would be good too. She didn’t have as much fur as her companions.