Page 67 of Wolf's Chance

“I don’t like it.”

“Okay…why?”

“It’s hard to explain.”

“Try.”

Caleb shook his head slightly as he looked away. “Just… It just is, okay?”

“Then we go back to Whispering Pines, right?” He didn’t look back at me. “Caleb? We go back, right?” He didn’t answer, and I got to my feet. “Caleb! Answer me!”

“I don’t know.”

Flabbergasted, I watched him. “Okay…well,Iknow, and I want to go home.” When he said nothing, I turned around to pick up my phone. “I need my SIM card.”

The click of the door had me spinning around, and I realized he’d left me. “Asshole.” Dropping to the bed, something fluttered off the nightstand, and stooping, I bent to pick it up.

Dr. Nigel Hardman, M.D.

“You called for a doctor.” My whisper echoed around the room. “No wonder you have no money left,” I murmured as conflicting emotions warred within me.

He’d taken my SIM card. He hadn’t told my best friend where I was. He wasn’t letting me go back to Whispering Pines, myhome. He’d called a doctor to a B&B to ensure I was okay, paying the charge without question. He’d found a nice place to sleep, clean and well cared for. I knew it wouldn’t be cheap. He was protecting me. From what, I didn’t know, but I knew he was.

Or hethoughthe was.

Or…maybe he was a psycho serial killer, and this was his elaborate plan so no one ever suspected him?

The room was stuffy, and I needed fresh air. Slipping my feet into my sneakers, I left the room and went to find my sullen friend-slash-kidnapper-slash-husband.

The front door was open, and when I checked outside for Caleb, I saw Shelby with her back to the door, deep in conversation with someone who wasn’t Caleb. Heading through the house, I looked for a back door. Finding it in the kitchen, and finding it slightly open, I pushed it wide as I searched for Caleb.

The backyard was immaculately tidy, and as I admired Shelby’s gardening skills, I saw the slightly concealed path. He would have gone for a walk, I reasoned, and with little thought, I followed the path.

Voices drifted through the trees, and I slowed down, not sure who would be out here. Other guests maybe? Townsfolk. Scrambling in my head, I couldn’t remember if it was deer hunting season. I had nothing to visibly identify me asnotbeing wildlife, and panicking that I was about to be shot, I hurried forward and immediately tripped over nothing, tumbling to the springy mossy ground, which thankfully softened my fall.

With my palms flat against the ground, I prepared to push myself up when movement made me freeze. Turning my head to the left, through the underbrush, I saw the furry paws.

I almost swallowed my tongue in fear as my brain screamed at me to stay still. I didn’t know how long I stayed like that. Iwas sure the wolf had moved on when I heard a sudden crashing, and looking up, I saw the wolf run straight at me.

I scrambled backward, sure I would be today’s dinner, when from nowhere, Caleb appeared and tackled the wolf. My yell was drowned out by Caleb’s grunt as the two hit the ground. Frantically getting to my feet, I looked up to see if he was okay, and the trees were clear.

There was nothing here. Only me. Turning slowly, I looked everywhere.

“What?” I turned once more. “This makes no sense.”

When I turned to go back to the B&B, I screamed in alarm as I came face-to-face with Caleb.

He grabbed my arm, concern on his face. “Willow, why are you out here?”

“The wolf.” My chest was tight. “You fought the wolf!”

He was frowning and looking around. “Willow, listen to me, you’re disoriented. Let’s get you back to bed, okay?”

Shaking my head, I wanted to keep him here and make him explain everything I knew he was hiding. “No. The wolf.”

Caleb’s arm slipped around my shoulders. “There is no wolf. It’s just me and you here,” he assured me, leading me back to the house. “Let’s get you back to the room, and you can lie down, okay?”

“There was a wolf.”

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