Page 65 of My Fugitive Wolf
"Listen to me!" he yanked her back, his hands gripping her arms too tight. "You are the most powerful alpha in the world. Like it or not, you cannot allow Josiah a single shot at incapacitating you and stealing your grandfather's wolf shadow. Walking into that camp will put every wolf shifter in existence at risk with your uncontrolled power. Not to mention what he'll do to Carlie and George if he finds them. Please tell me you understand that we cannot let that happen."
“But how are you going to escape? You must have a plan for that.”
“We’re not going to escape. At least, not right away. My brothers and I have supplies hidden throughout the woods, just in case one of the tourists or ranchers caught a glimpse of us. We know how to escape chains if we need to. If we can get to just one pack of supplies, we’ll have a better chance of breaking Josiah’s hold over us.”
“If? You know what he’s going to do and your whole plan is based on an if?” Fear and rage clashed and somewhere inside, she felt her wolf shadows waking up. A surge of conflicting thoughts and desires collided with her adrenaline. It took every ounce of her inner strength to dampen her urge to run, to fight, to kill.
"Promise me you'll protect Carlie and George."
There were too many other things she wanted to say, so she kept her answer short. "I will."
Next thing she knew he pulled her close, not kissing her but hugging her as he had his brothers. In her ear he whispered. "I love you, Samara. Not my wolf, me...just me. If I survive this then I swear I will dedicate my life to you. We will seal our shadows together forever."
"I pledge the same. I love you, Kellen, until the end of time. I swear I will never ever break your heart. You will survive this. I believe in you."
Then he backed up, his powerful gaze locked on hers as he tugged off his jacket and loosened his clothes. Only when he'd reached the edge of the parking lot where Grace waited for him, did he turn his back and jog into the woods with her. George emerged from the trees with a slight limp and a black eye. Kellen clapped his hand on the chef's shoulder. The man tried to tell Kellen something, but Kellen kept going, not stopping until he disappeared into the trees.
Samara couldn't pull her gaze away from the forest. The smoke in the air, the breeze shaking the tree branches…it all pushed her to where her wolf shadow—her grandfather’s—wanted her to go. But she couldn’t leave because George was there, calling her Maria, demanding to know where Carlie was. With all the inner strength she had to muster, Samara pulled herself together.
"Carlie is inside the gym. Follow me. We have work to do."
Chapter
Twenty-Four
Within minutes, Samara pulled the van behind the gym where no one could see it. Another minute she had George inside the gym and back in Carlie's arms.
The two embraced the same way Kellen had embraced his brothers, but with joy instead of resignation.
Samara opened the office door to leave. Carlie pulled away from George and whispered, "Maria, you are coming with us, right? That's why you're here? Because Kellen wants to keep you safe."
Samara’s throat closed so tight, she couldn’t respond. Yes, that was what Kellen wanted, but she couldn’t do it. Her head still spun with conflicting instincts, her wolf shadow wanted her to run, but her grandfather’s was still dominant. She left the office without a word and made her way back to the van so she wouldn't have to hear Carlie explain to her husband just how much Samara had fucked up their lives. She never meant to hurt anyone and yet that’s all she’d done since she hitchhiked into Winterbourne. Yanking open the back of the van, she rummaged through supplies, until she found what she was looking for—three automatic rifles wrapped and stored. Only after she unwrapped them did she realize these weren't the commercial automatic rifles her grandfather had owned. All three had automatic and burst options, along with a sling. Each one showed light scars of past usage. If she had to guess, she’d say the brothers had kept the rifles they used the last time they served in the military.
At the moment it didn't matter how they got the weapons. The only thing she cared about was finding bullets. It didn’t take long. They were also packed in another carton along with pouches and gloves so she could easily carry the boxes and access the silver bullets without hurting herself. Further digging in the spare tire compartment revealed three handguns and more silver bullets along with holsters for each.
She placed the weapons on the pavement and slammed the van door shut. Part of her wanted to search for body armor but decided to forgo the extra protection since it wouldn't fit her and could cause problems if she had to shift. She knelt down to get the rifle strap around her shoulders.
That was when she saw the drone. Stephen had landed it at the other end of the building. An idea bloomed, so she ran over, picked up the hawk-looking device and ran back.
Squatting back down next to her stash, she slipped the holster around her right hip and secured a sidearm.
"What the hell is all this?"
Samara didn't bother to look up at George, who stood over her along with his wife.
"Maria, please tell us you're not going after them. You know Kellen wouldn't want you to." Carlie's voice sounded both pleading and stern at the same time
"My name is Samara, and Kellen isn't here, so he doesn't get a say in what I do." She winced at her own words, but she hadn't exactly said she wouldn't try to rescue Kellen, just that she would protect George and Carlie. How better to protect them than to kill Josiah and rescue Kellen. Right?
George squatted down. He must have realized that talking her out of her plan was useless. He ran a hand over one of the rifles.
"Do you know how to use any of these?"
"My grandfather taught me." Still keeping her gaze off her friends, she scooted around George and opened the passenger side door. From the floor she picked up Stephen's laptop. The only way to secure both was to place the laptop in her backpack and wrap the rifle’s sling around the drone. She'd be loaded down with the extra weight, but for what she had in mind, she wouldn't need to carry it for long.
"Is there anything we can do to help before we leave?" Carlie asked, her voice tight.
"Yes. I need you to get something for me from the pharmacy. Can you do that and be back here in ten minutes?"
