Page 17 of Tracking the Alpha
His lip curled as he growled softly.
“That sounds like a no.” She sighed. “If you’re going to murder me, mind doing it quick? I’d rather not have a long, lingering, painful death. My uncle got mauled by a mountain lion when I was a kid. You could hear his screams a full hour before they brought him back to the reserve, and he ended up dying anyhow. Horrible way to die.”
Agreed.
“I’m ready anytime you are.”
Why did she remain so calm?
Because she plotted!
Barrett barely managed to twist away from the knife she’d palmed and used to slash. It scored across his ribs, leaving a thin weal that burned.
She’d given him the opening he needed. She’d attacked. Now he could?—
Flee?
Barrett found himself racing away from the woman, ignoring the throb along his ribcage. Running from the petite woman who’d disarmed him on so many levels.
A woman who’d managed to injure him.
He ended up splashing into the stream, and the chill water eased the pain as well as the trembling that had begun in his limbs.
He kept swimming, past the bend where the rocky sides rose high enough to hide him. Only then did he do something most wolves wouldn’t do. He submerged and swam for the opening he’d found before the water rose high enough to hide it.
Once inside the cave, he shook, spraying droplets before moving up the passageway to the larger cave with an opening overhead that he could use to escape if needed.
In the nest he’d created—by stealing some of the gear dropped by previous hunters—he hunkered down and pondered the woman who’d almost gotten him.
Whose appearance remained blazoned in his mind.
With a scent that tantalized even hours later.
Who tempted him to leave his safe hovel to find her for a bite.
Chapter Five
Another day in the woods and another failure. A dejected Tanis sighed as she climbed the tree she’d chosen as her bed for the night. Given the wiliness of the wolf she hunted, she took no chances. She needed to rest, and the best way to do so without getting mauled involved getting high enough off the ground that a leaping predator couldn’t snag a bite.
That assumed, of course, her target remained in the vicinity. She’d not caught sight of the beast since their encounter a few days ago. It should have been impossible for a wolf that size to vanish. Tell that to the lack of tracks and spore. It was as if it disappeared into thin air. Impossible, of course, and even more annoying, she’d have sworn it watched her. The hairs on her nape prickled almost constantly, but despite how many times she spun, expecting to find it lurking behind, she’d yet to spot a hair left behind.
As she’d trekked through the forest, employing every skill she’d ever learned, she’d had much time to replay the events that brought her here. She still didn’t quite grasp why the military insisted on bringing in this creature alive. Such a dangerous killer should be put down. At the same time, had she been told the truth? The beast hadn’t torn out her throat despite having the chance. She’d expected to die when it pinned her to the ground. After all, it outweighed and outmuscled her. Yet it had only stared. Stared in a way that discomfited because she’d have sworn she saw intelligence in its gaze. It appeared curious and not rabidly murderous, which led to her wondering what the general and his major-minion neglected to mention when giving her the supposed facts on the wolf. They’d indicated it would be bigger, stronger, smarter, but she now had to wonder just how intelligent they’d made this predator because she should have found a trace of it by now.
At the same time, why would something with smarts remain close to the place that wanted it dead? The wolf obviously knew it was hunted, and yet it chose to remain. Hunted her like she hunted it, its presence a light scent whispered on the breeze that whistled through the barren boughs. It watched and yet remained out of sight and reach, showing caution since their encounter where he’d somehow evaded all three of her snares. Unheard of. Tanis had been herding animals for capture from a young age. However, she’d never come across anything that moved as quick as that wolf and either knew to avoid the traps or had such a ridiculous amount of luck. Her grandmother would have claimed the creature held the spirit of a god and would have chastised her for trying to capture it. Then again, if grandmother could have seen the size and lushness of its fur, she most likely would have turned its pelt into an epic fur cloak once she finished her scolding.
This wolf wasn’t a god, just a creature whose nature had obviously been tampered with, and the sooner Tanis tracked it down, the sooner she could return home. She leaned her head back against the bark of the tree and stared at the sky. The bare limbs let her clearly see the fat full moon shining overhead, casting a silverly glow on everything around. Its presence reminded her of the general’s warning to stay far from the military installation this night. Something about them performing a military exercise, one not meant for civilian eyes.
Whatever. She preferred staying outdoors to the cramped cell with its cot they called a room. The food they’d served was decent, at least, what little she had of it before she’d headed out. The general—a pompous and cold dick—hadn’t wanted her wasting any time, which suited her fine. The sooner she snagged the wolf, the sooner she’d get away from here.
She hoped.
Something about the general, this place, everything really, had her on edge. It didn’t help she couldn’t escape the niggling sense she’d never see the place she called home again.
In the distance, she heard popping noises that sounded like gunfire, followed by a howl, a strange and eerie ululation that brought a frown. It didn’t sound like a wolf. Not exactly. The baying kept going, rising and falling in timber, almost siren-like before going abruptly silent. In that quiet, more gunfire erupted, making her wonder if the wolf had gone after some of the soldiers doing some training. Did she waste her time sitting in the tree? Should she be relocating to where the commotion appeared to be happening? She eyed the walkie-talkie, which she’d kept switched off since that first disastrous day when that idiot general ruined her cover. The thought of beeping him made her grimace. She’d vowed to only contact him once she trapped the wolf. Speaking of traps… The clearing held four new snares, carefully placed and hidden with leaves, but she didn’t have much faith in them. Not with the way this wily predator had evaded the last set. Still, how else would she capture the damned thing? As a backup, she also had a tranquilizing rifle strapped to her pack, not her first weapon of choice because an adrenalized predator wouldn’t be stopped by a single drugged dart. An arrow to a haunch, though, that would slow it down enough for her to put it to sleep. Screw the major and his demand she not seriously harm it. A hole in its flesh would heal.
The strange howl erupted again and turned into a stuttering high-pitched cackle that had her brows rising. Definitely not a wolf but canine in nature and most likely a coyote. Odd, because she’d not seen signs of any in the environs, but not surprising, since they were common in most parts of Canada. Nuisance creatures, they rarely bothered adults, but small pets and children should be monitored.
The bow across Tanis’ lap shifted as she arched her back to stretch it. The only weapon, other than her knife, the major let her keep. He’d confiscated her firearm, reminding her she was to capture, not kill. He’d tried to take her bow as well, and Tanis had argued that she couldn’t be expected to venture into the wild defenseless. In the end, the major allowed her to keep it with a stern admonishment to only use it as a last resort and to avoid any grievous injury to the target. Whatever. If it came down to Tanis or the wolf, she’d kill it without hesitation, and screw what the major or the general wanted.
