Winter’s Wolf (21 page)

Matt shook his head vehemently. “No. He’d freak. I need to be with you when you find him.” He touched his arm. “Thank you, though. I know you’re just trying to make it easier on me.”

Actually on himself. “Let’s go, then.” Matt hurried out of the townhouse with Winter behind him. Winter sniffed the pajama top again. Not likely he’d miss this smell. “Matt. Let me find his trail. Then you can get the car.”

Matt nodded. “Fuck, this is my fault. If I’d been home….”

“Maybe it would have been different, maybe not. Now, quiet.” He bent low. Might as well pretend to be looking for clues. He inhaled deeply. Matt’s father had crossed the walkway and struck out across the lawn toward the street. Winter pointed. “He went there.”

“How do you know?”

“No time to explain. Get the car and come around to the front quickly. I’ll determine which way he went from there.”

“Okay.”

Matt ran off. Winter immediately lowered his nose toward the grass. The scent of the man blended more with natural things than with man-made materials like concrete or asphalt. Still, it was a distinctive and strong smell. He found the spot at the street where Mr. Partridge had crossed. Funny, he didn’t pick up any scent of fear. Across the street, a small park led to another street beyond. Probably more condos like Matt’s. A gray car pulled up, and Matt peered out the rolled-down window.

Winter gestured. “Go around the block. I’m going through.”

“He came this way?”

“Yes.”

“Oh God, we may find his body somewhere. With his heart, this much exertion could be really bad.”

“I don’t think so.”

“What?” His brows drew down.

How did he explain he didn’t smell weakness or illness? “He seems to have been moving with energy.”

“Maybe just the mania.”

“Maybe. Wait here.”

Winter trotted between two townhouses that backed onto a dense stand of trees beyond. The scent led that way. He ran back to Matt’s car. “Leave the car here. He went into some trees behind these houses. No way to drive.”

Matt pulled over and parked, then jumped out of the car and rounded it to Winter’s side. He’d pulled on a windbreaker. He looked at Winter. “Damn. I should have gotten a coat for you.”

Winter smiled. “Not too likely it would fit, and I’m fine.”

“I guess you’re right. I’m not thinking too clearly.”

Winter touched his cheek. “If I’m ever lost, I hope someone spends so much energy looking for me.”

“How could you ever be lost?”

“You never know.” He leaned down and kissed Matt’s cheek. “Come on, let’s find your dad.”

Winter led the way across an open lot into the sparse trees on the edge of the wooded area. For a few yards, the moonlight reached through the foliage, but it quickly became denser. Now the father’s smell blended almost completely with the scent of the tree bark and evergreen needles. Just the sharp edge stood out, and Winter had to sniff on the wind.

“What are you doing?”

“Just sniffing to see if there’s any water or other distinctive scents.”

Matt’s eyebrows popped together over his slim nose, but he didn’t call Winter an idiot.

Ah, there.
Winter lowered his head as if looking for tracks and pointed in the direction the scent took him. An increase in tree canopy lowered the underbrush, since sunlight couldn’t reach the ground during the day. Winter moved fast through the spaces between trunks. Matt kept up and barely breathed hard. He was in shape.

The scent trail got stronger and veered to the left. Winter broke into a trot. “He’s close.”

“Oh God, let him be okay.”

“I don’t think he’s injured.”

They ran in single file, since the narrow spacing of the trees wouldn’t allow them side by side. Winter breathed in, held up an arm, and stopped. “Wait. He’s nearby.” Matt skidded to a stop and bumped against Winter’s back. Winter slid an arm around him. “Easy.” He nodded in the direction he knew the father would be found. “Let’s be quiet so we don’t chase him off.”

Matt nodded, but his eyes gazed so hard at the path ahead, he barely blinked. Still holding Matt, Winter stepped forward quietly.

“Silvery moon. Silvery moon,” the man’s deep voice chanted in a singsong cadence.

They rounded a last tree and faced a small open area in the forest. Moonlight bathed the clearing, making everything glisten—including the body of the tall man who stood in the middle of the space, totally nude.

“Silvery moon. Silvery moon.”

Matt inhaled to yell. Winter pressed a finger against his lips. He whispered, “What’s your father’s name?”

“Jason.”

Winter held up a hand. “Wait to come out for a minute.”

“He may be frightened.”

“If he is, come faster.” Winter stepped into the clearing, took two steps toward Mr. Partridge, and stopped. “Hello, Jason. Beautiful night, isn’t it?”

Jason’s head snapped around. For a second his eyes widened in fear, but then he cocked his head as if taking Winter in. “Yes, it is beautiful. You like the moon too, don’t you?”

“Yes, very much.” Winter squatted down and plucked some grass. Jason watched him, totally unconcerned about his own nudity. Though shrunken a little, probably from so much time in bed, Matt’s father looked strong and probably still outweighed his son by twenty pounds or more.

Jason looked interested in what Winter was doing and crossed closer.

Winter piled some pebbles into a heap. “So did you decide to come out so you could see the moon?”

“Yes. From my room, I can barely see it at all. I need to see it. I don’t want to tell Matt. He does so much for me already. But I couldn’t stand it anymore.”

“May I ask why the moon is so important to you?”

“You already know.”

He looked up and grinned. “Humor me.”

“Life and blood.”

“Yes. I see.”

“Dad?” Winter looked up at Matt, who stared at his father with misty eyes.

His dad frowned. “Matt, what are you doing here? I didn’t want to bother you.”

“I came with my friend, Winter.”

Jason’s eyes widened. “He’s your friend?”

“Yes. I was so worried about you.”

“I apologize, son. I just had to see the moon is all. Most times I can make it through, but tonight seemed too much.”

“I’m so sorry I didn’t understand. We can move you into the other bedroom where you can get a better view. Or we can buy a new house.”

Winter shook his head. “Better to just plan on taking your dad out to see the moon whenever he wants to go. Cheaper than buying a new house.” He grinned. “You may have to rethink the wardrobe, Jason.”

Matt looked at Winter, then back at his father. “You seem very calm tonight, Dad.”

“Having a moon bath.”

Matt frowned. “It can’t be just that simple. Seeing the moon.”

Winter crossed his arms and murmured, “Probably not. It’s a novelty at the moment.”

“Where’d you leave your clothes, Dad?”

“Don’t need them. Need to change.”

“Change clothes?”

A deep furrow carved his forehead. “Need to change. The moon is ready. Must change now.”

Matt opened his mouth, but Winter held up a hand. He walked to Jason. “Too late now, Jason. It’s time to get home. We’re getting close to dawn.”

Jason whimpered. “No, no. Not too late. Please.”

Winter put his arm around the man and felt the slackness in his muscles.
Not good.
He needed more exercise. “Matt will bring you out here more, okay?”

He looked up at Winter. “Will you come?”

“Yes, if you want me here, I’d love to come.”
How amazing.
He gazed at Matt over Jason’s head. Matt gave him a sad smile that squeezed Winter’s heart. A noose of responsibility drew tighter and tighter around him—and he didn’t even mind.

Matt took off his jacket and wrapped it over his naked father. They walked Jason back to the car, and fifteen minutes later they were at the townhouse. Rita leaped from the couch. “Oh my God, you’re here. You’re okay. I’m so glad.” She ran over and gave Jason a huge hug, which looked funny with his bare legs hanging out the bottom of the windbreaker. Maybe Matt would find the missing clothes tomorrow.

Rita bounced. “Can I get you something to eat?”

Jason shook his head, and his shoulders sagged. He was leaking energy like the top of an hourglass. Winter put a hand on his shoulder, feeling his underlying strength, but so compromised by his confinement. “Probably some sleep is a good idea.”

Jason nodded and let Matt lead him into the bedroom. Winter sat on the edge of the couch.

Rita stood with her arms wrapped around her slender frame, the flowered scrubs bagging. “I can’t believe you found him. How did you do it?”

He shrugged. “I’m used to tracking people.”

Her eyes widened.

“No, that came out wrong. I’m from a rural area where we track game for hunting and people who become lost.”

“Oh, I see.” She glanced at the window, where a soft light was warming the sky near the horizon. “I guess I better go. I have school in a few hours.”

“You should get some rest.”

“I’m used to no sleep. But please be sure that Matt gets some rest, okay?” She smiled softly. “Are you gay too?”

“Yes. Is it that obvious?” He grinned.

“Yeah. You both look at each other like chocolate.” She giggled. “I’m glad to see Matt has that in him. He’s always so serious and lugs so much responsibility. Tonight’s the first time I really get that he’s gay. I mean, he told me, but I never quite believed it until I saw him look at you.” She stood, stretched her back, and grabbed a jacket from beside the door. “Good night.”

“Good morning.”

She grinned as she left.

Winter lay back on the couch. Matt’s footsteps on the hardwood floor brought Winter’s eyes open. “Is he sleeping?”

“Yes. It’s odd. In some ways he seems better than usual, but he’s so disappointed about something. It’s like he’s depressed.” He shook his head and perched on the edge of the couch next to Winter. “Rita left?”

“Yes. I think she wanted to leave us alone.” He smiled.

“Good thing. I have some serious thanking to do.”

“You bet your ass.” He ran a hand over Matt’s back and felt the tension and the exhaustion. “I like your dad.”

“He really liked you too. He kept saying how much it meant for him to meet you.” Matt glanced at Winter. “I know you’re great and all, but I’m not sure why you made such an immediate impression.”

“Sometimes you just click with people.” He pulled Matt down so that he lay on his side in front of Winter with his back pressed to Winter’s chest. “You take care of him so well.”

“Thank you. Doesn’t feel that way when something like tonight happens.”

“I actually think he’s better off getting out some. Seeing the sky.”

“Yes, I realized that tonight—thanks to you.”

“Uh, what’s wrong with him? What do the doctors say?”

“His heart’s bad, of course, but I sometimes think that’s a side effect of the strain of his delusions. They say he’s schizophrenic.”

“A lot of people would have put him in a facility.”

“I can’t do that to him. You see how sane he seems most of the time.” Matt’s heart beat way too hard against Winter’s chest. Something was banging its way out. Winter waited. Finally Matt said, “There’s some self-interest in it too.”

“Yes?”

“By keeping him here and hiring my own private nurses, I keep his health issues off the grid. There’s no public record of his mental illness.”

“That seems good.”

“I don’t know if it’s good for him, but it means there’s no record that I have a father who’s mentally ill. It keeps it out of my FBI files.”

“Do they care?”

“They would.” He sighed long and slow. “Especially since there’s a good chance that his disease is hereditary.”

Though Matt’s back was turned, Winter felt the tension and sadness radiating from his shoulders. “What does that mean?”

“It means that whatever’s wrong with Dad—I’ve got it too.”

“Why do you think that?” He had a good idea.

“Remember that night I about attacked you at the Way Station?”

“Yes. With great affection.” He laughed.

“Yes, well, I go crazy at the full moon. I do things I’d never do otherwise. I haven’t wandered off into the forest naked yet, but I imagine it’s a matter of time.”

“Are you saying you wouldn’t have had sex with me if you hadn’t been somehow influenced by the moon?”

He turned, his eyes wide. “I’m saying I’m mentally ill. That’s what I’m saying.”

“No, answer me. Wouldn’t you still have had sex with me? Maybe you wouldn’t have been so pushy, but if I asked, wouldn’t you have said yes?”

“Probably, but—”

“So all that happened is you lost a few inhibitions. You got more keyed up, maybe, edgier.”

“I guess, but other times—”

“What have you done that’s really out there?”

Matt shrugged, but it was an unconvinced shrug. “You can’t think that stripping naked and running into the forest is just a loss of inhibitions?”

“Well, you haven’t done that yet, but it might not be so crazy for some people. Your dad seems pretty normal to me.”

“You haven’t seen him when he’s yelling and trying to get out of bed to get to the forest.”

“But when he got there, he calmed down, right? Maybe he was just frustrated because he couldn’t have what he needed.”

“If you’d seen him—”

He rubbed a hand in circles on Matt’s tense chest. “I’m not making light of his mania. I know it has to be very disturbing. But don’t jump to conclusions. You’re one of the smartest and most stable people I’ve ever known.”

“Hmm.” His smile looked sad. “That would be compared to the doofuses from the wilds of Canada, right?”

“Of course. I’m a connoisseur of doofusi.”

Matt finally laughed, and Winter tightened his arms, which in turn tightened his cock. He snuggled it neatly into the indentation in Matt’s jeans between his hard buttocks.

“You trying to distract me?”

“Ummm-hmmm.”

“It’s working.”

“Let’s get nakeder.”

Matt slid off the couch to the floor, kicked off his sneakers and socks, unzipped, and pulled jeans and briefs down at one time. Winter watched for a second, appreciating the hardening landscape, then pulled off his own sneakers and jeans. He scooted against the back of the couch and patted the cushions in front of him. Matt smiled and lay down facing Winter.
So pretty.
Winter touched Matt’s cheek. “You must be tired. Such a tough day. Just close your eyes and let me make you feel good.”