Wolf-Bound: Unfamiliar Territory (12 page)

I-I don’t know what I’ll do if I lose either one of you.”

She followed him out onto the porch, where Dev stood waiting, holding a sack, the contents of which she had no desire to know. She supposed it was a lure for Jacob, and while she had no problem with the roles of predator and prey in the wild, it bothered her that they were going to trick him and then lock him up. She understood the necessity -- after all, it was her own suggestion -- but this rubbed completely against the grain of what she and her husbands stood for. The idea of confining another human being against his will, no matter the reason, made the hairs on her neck prickle uneasily.

“Lock the doors and stay inside.” Dev put an arm around her and brushed a kiss across her forehead. “No matter what.” It was a measure of how difficult they felt the task would be that Devlin was the one warning her rather than Damien.

He stepped away, and Damien rested his hands on her shoulders. He gazed deep into her eyes. “I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

He kissed her, a hungry kiss that made her heart ache with fear for him. “Don’t do anything rash,” she whispered. “Promise me.”

He chuckled. “Shouldn’t you be saying that to Dev?”

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Normally, she would, but there was something in his eyes. She shook her head. “He’s not the one I’m worried about.”

“Don’t worry.” He kissed her again. “Everything’s going to be all right. I promise.”

She watched them disappear into the darkness and tried to draw comfort from the knowledge that neither of them had ever broken a promise.

Jenny sat in bed, holding her e-reader but unable to focus on a single word. Her body tingled with awareness, jumping at every sigh and creak the house made, every muted sound from the woods beyond.

A strangled howl pierced the night, a voice she recognized instantly. “Devlin!”

She scrambled out of bed and raced through the house. She fumbled with the lock for a moment, then flung open the front door and pounded down the porch. Running, barefoot and in her nightgown, she whispered to the Goddess. Show me. Please, lead me there.

She heard no answer, but felt a surge of energy and sensed a guiding presence. Despite her condition, she flew over the ground, drawing strength and speed from her weyr blood.

Surefooted and fleet as the wolves she loved, she dodged scrub and ducked limbs, trees passing in a blur. Seconds later, she raced into a moonlit clearing and lurched to a stop before a frozen tableau that set her heart pounding.

A black wolf, massive even by weyr standards, straddled Devlin’s inert body. Jenny choked back a sob. The weyr stiffened, ears twitching in her direction, but his eyes remained locked on Damien, who was raising the shotgun.

Oh, no. Without thinking, Jenny dashed over to stand between them. “Damien! Put it away.”

He stared at her in horror. His gaze dropped to her rounded belly. He shook his head, tear tracks on his cheeks glinting in the moonlight. “You have to move, Jenny. Now.”

Her heart ached, but she couldn’t let him pull that trigger. “Trust me, Damien. Please.”

He hesitated a moment longer, but finally flipped the safety back on and lowered the gun, the tense lines of his body screaming betrayal.

“Trust me,” she whispered again and turned to face the wolf.

He growled, lips drawn back from enormous incisors.

Every instinct she had screamed at her to run. She’d thought Damien was big -- of course, she had only Devlin to compare him to -- but this wolf was noticeably larger.

But in truth, it wasn’t his size that was so frightening. It was an instinctive understanding that, of every being present, perhaps even including her Gaian mentor, Jake was the most dangerous.

His eyes met hers. Wild, haunted, dark as midnight. Jenny struggled to keep from being drawn into their dark abyss.

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She drew on her link with the Goddess and her fear for Devlin to give her strength.

Slowly, she held out a trembling hand. “Jacob.” Pleased that her voice came out firm and strong despite her fear, she took a small step toward him. “Jacob. I know who you are. I know what’s happened.” He huffed, his hot breath washing over her. Muscles bunched beneath his matted black fur. Jen swallowed hard and halted. “I know you’re hurting, and I want to help. Please, change back to human form. Talk to me.”

He shook his head roughly, looking for all the world like a dog trying to rid himself of an annoying fly.

Jenny swallowed nervously. “Jacob. We don’t want to hurt you. Please believe me.” He watched her, but she sensed his awareness was still firmly on Damien. “Damien,” she said softly. “Please toss the gun away.”

“Jen --”

“Damien, please!”

Tense seconds of waiting. Then, “I have to unload it. I don’t want it going off by mistake.” Snicks and rattling. A rustle, snap, and the thunk of the stock hitting earth far off to her right.

The next few seconds passed in slow motion for her. The wolf leapt. Jenny scrambled backward and tripped, landing on her back in rotting leaves. Damien screamed her name.

Jacob’s huge paws pressed into the loam to either side of her waist, straddling her as his head came down, his jaws open wide.

Jen ducked under his chin and threw her arms around his neck, plastering herself against his chest. He shook his head. Stepped back. One step, two. Jen got her feet beneath her and let him draw her upright as he moved. He shook again, but she held tight. “Jacob, please,” she whispered into his coarse, tangled ruff. “I’m pregnant. Please don’t hurt me.”

He stopped, and his forelegs trembled. “Yes, I know,” she whispered. “I know about your son. I’m here to help you. I promise.” Finding her footing, she loosened her grip on his fur. “Change. Talk to me.”

He jerked hard. She lost her hold, but remained standing. He shook his head again, dark eyes glinting dangerously in the moonlight. Her whole body trembled, but Jenny reached out and grabbed the hair behind his jaw, determined to get through to him. “Look at me, Jacob!”

He bared his teeth, breath frosting in the cool air. Her legs wavered, but she forced herself to speak, voice trembling. “You still have one son.”

He leaned into her with a low, rumbling growl.

She tightened her grip, steeling her nerves and her tone. “Stop that.”

The wolf jerked his head, eyes going wide. Jen pressed her advantage. “No more nonsense. Your son doesn’t deserve this. There’s no reason for you to die. No reason for him to die.” He stared. She could see the disbelief in his eyes -- eyes now showing a hint of

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human awareness. “I know. Everyone believes no weyr twin can survive his brother’s death, but I don’t. Sometimes it takes fresh eyes, a fresh mind, to see that beliefs are just that --

beliefs, not necessarily truth.” She forced herself to meet his eyes, trying to see past the threatening dark to the spark of humanity gleaming in their depths. “Help me, Jacob. Help me prove them wrong. Help me save your son.”

He stared at her for what seemed like hours, but could only have been seconds. She breathed in his warm exhalations, watched his pupils contract, the black abysses disappearing to reveal irises the color of chocolate, glazed with silver by the moonlight. He shuddered. She loosened her grip on his ruff, running her hands through the matted strands gently. “That’s it. Come back, Jacob. Come back and let us help you.”

He whimpered, settling back on his haunches. Bones shifted in the shoulder beneath her hand.

Jenny let go, backing up. The wolf shivered, joints cracking. Faster than she’d ever seen, he shifted. In moments, a naked man crouched before her, trembling, still on edge, still acutely aware of Damien, whom Jenny prayed would stay where he was.

“Jacob.”

The man looked at her.

“I need to check my husband. May I?”

His brow furrowed. She pointed. “Behind you. Devlin.”

He nodded, moving so that he could watch her and Damien both. She knelt beside Devlin, reached out to feel his neck for a pulse.

He caught her hand in his.

“Dev!”

He grinned weakly. “Got a knock on the head, but I’m okay. Been playing possum, trying to figure a way out.” He reached up and cupped her cheek. “You did good, baby.”

She glanced at Jacob, whose eyes darted nervously from her to Devlin to Damien and back. “We’re not out of the woods yet,” she murmured, surprising herself by being amused at the unintentional pun.

She squeezed his hand and stood. “Will you come with us, Jacob?”

“Wh-who are you?” His voice cracked, raspy from disuse.

“A friend. Someone who cares about you and your child.” She held out her hand. Jacob winced, backing away. His mouth lengthened into a muzzle.

She froze. “Jacob?”

He shook his head. Moaned as his jaw shifted again to its human form. “I’m trying,” he said. “I don’t know how long --”

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Jenny nodded and grabbed his outstretched hand. Resisting the impulse to run, she forced herself to walk slowly and calmly, leading Jacob from the clearing. Damien waited until they had passed, then hurried to Devlin’s side and helped him up.

“I’ve got to find the shotgun. I can’t risk teenagers or poachers coming across it.”

His brother nodded.

“Don’t let her out of your sight.”

He nodded again and strode swiftly in Jenny’s footsteps.

Ahead of him, their wife spoke in low tones, letting her instincts guide her back to the house. “Jacob, I’m Jenny. Jenny Blake.”

“H-how do you know me?”

Jenny knew mentioning Tara or the baby at this delicate point might be dangerous.

“Can we talk about that later?” He stopped abruptly, swinging her around to face him. “I will tell you, Jacob. I promise, but…” She decided to plunge in, to be honest. “I see it in your eyes. You’re still too close to changing. If I say the wrong thing…” She caught both his hands in hers. “I promise you, we don’t want to hurt you. I’ll do everything in my power to keep you safe. To bring you back.”

His eyes filled with tears. “Can you bring my brother back?”

Her own eyes misted. She didn’t answer -- she couldn’t. He shuddered and clenched his jaw. “Just…keep going,” he barked.

She nodded and moved, swiftly now, dragging him behind her. She heard Devlin shadowing them, but staying out of sight. Bless him. Moments later, she spotted the golden glow of lamplit windows. “Almost there,” she urged.

A couple of minutes later, they stepped onto the gravel path that led from the back of the house to the stable, potting shed, and garage. Knowing it was necessary, but still reluctant, she led her charge to the stable. The keys hung on a hook just outside the double doors. She held Jacob’s right hand tight in her left as she beckoned Devlin out of the shadows. Silently he joined them, lifting the keys and unlocking the sturdy padlocks holding three thick wooden bars in place. He lifted the bars aside and pushed the doors open, then moved back as Jenny and Jacob stepped inside.

Jenny flipped a switch just inside the door. They faced a spacious stall constructed of thick, sturdy timbers. The gate stood open, revealing a large iron ring bracketed to a huge wooden post sunk into the dirt floor near the back of the stall. Hanging from the ring were three heavy chains. Two were short chains capped with manacles. The third was longer, and looped at the far end like a gigantic choke chain. Jenny did choke when she saw it. She turned to Devlin. “Oh, Dev. No.”

But Jacob was nodding. He tugged at her. “I’m fighting, but it’s hard.” He grunted. She could hear the strain in his voice, feel the tension as his fingers clenched on her hand. “Do it now.”

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She looked at Devlin, but Jacob shook his head, eyes narrowing. “No. You do it.”

Jenny stepped forward, breathing in short, sharp gasps. She hated this. Hated it.

Trembling, she knelt and fastened the manacles around his ankles. “H-hurry,” Jacob gritted through clenched teeth. He shuddered, bones shifting beneath his skin. She picked up the loop with numb fingers and stood. With a deep breath, she guided the loop over his head, settling the chain gently around his neck, then stepped back.

Again, he shifted so quickly she could hardly believe it. One moment, he was a human male. A blink, and a huge wolf lunged at her, yelping as the chains brought him up short.

Jenny backed out of the stall, and Devlin shut the gate as she moved out of the way.

She wrapped her arms around herself, staring as Jacob snarled and snapped, claws scrabbling at the hard-packed earth.

Devlin put an arm around her, gently turning her away. She started sobbing, and he sighed. “Oh, honey. You didn’t think it would be easy, did you?” He ran his fingers through her hair as he guided her outside the stable. He pushed her out of Jacob’s line of sight, into Damien’s arms. Damien held her while Dev replaced the wooden bars and secured the padlocks.

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Uncomfortable Admission

Jenny took a quick shower and changed into a clean nightgown, then sat on the bed waiting for her husbands to finish cleaning up. Rubbing her belly, she closed her eyes, concentrating her senses on the two lives within. She sensed their hearts beating steadily --

rapid, but not too rapid. Relieved, she sighed. The activities and tension of this night had not adversely affected her boys.

When Damien and Devlin climbed into the bed, she propped herself up on her pillows.

“I know he agreed to it, but I really hated locking him up like that.”

“We had to, Jen.” Dev sighed. “It was a miracle you were able to get through to him out there. I’m surprised he had as much control as he did.” He glanced at his brother.

“I agree.” Damien stared into the distance thoughtfully. “I guess he really does want help.”

“So, you do think it’s possible? To save him?”

Damien shrugged. “I don’t know what to think anymore. This is unfamiliar territory.”

He glanced at her, then wrapped his arms around her shoulders and shuddered. “I thought he was going to kill you.”