Shadow of the Wolf

Something that meant to hurt her.

Why didn’t I hear the spooky music, damn it?

She picked up her pace, but running was out of the question. It was black as pitch, and her night vision was bad on the brightest nights. Tonight she couldn’t see a thing except during those brief flashes of lightning. The rain, wind and thunder muffled any sounds she might have heard, so tracking her stalker that way was impossible.

Whatever chased her kept pace. She considered throwing up a witchlight but the damn thing would be a beacon to whoever was behind her.

When the fifth branch in fifteen minutes smacked her in the face, Lana started to mutter under her breath. She clutched her purse to her, her eyes wide and afraid. She searched the darkness around her even more certain she was being hunted.

And then she felt it. A second presence. There was someone nearby, someone who could help. Her instincts were never wrong. Two people stalked her in the night; one meant safety, the other did not. Now she just had to figure out which one was which.

Guessing wrong would be very, very bad.

* * *

Christopher watched his mate pick up speed, her face full of fear. He felt the sense she had of being stalked, and it worried him.

Could Cole be out there? Would Cole have sensed Christopher’s call for his mate?

Would Cole hurt Christopher’s mate just to challenge him?

Christopher couldn’t take that chance. With a last, lingering glance at the dark-haired female, he stalked to the back porch. He glared at the rain-drenched yard and changed shape with a shudder.

Christopher hated getting rained on.

He darted into the night, his wolf eyes much more suited to the darkness than the man’s had been. Sniffing the wind, he quickly found the scent of the female. His female, his mate. And something else, something elusive, something that stalked her. Something familiar that he hadn’t smelled in a long time.

Cole.

The wolf paused, growling, sifting through the scents and the sounds. His woman smelled incredibly delicious. Baked apples and warm sunshine, she tugged on his senses in a way he hadn’t expected. He moved swiftly and silently through the damp forest, that wonderful scent leading him straight to his prey. He stopped in front of her, confident he was hidden in the dark trees.

Soaking wet jeans molded to one of the finest asses it had ever been his pleasure to see. High heeled black boots slipped and slid on the wet leaves, nearly landing her on said ass. He couldn’t tell what size her breasts were because of the bulky knit poncho she wore, but if it matched her ass, she’d be a truly pleasant handful. Her dark hair lay plastered to her skull, the color impossible to tell. Porcelain skin glowed even in the dark night. She blew on one strand of wet hair that flopped into her eyes with an impatient sound and a roll of dark eyes that had the man inside the wolf grinning.

There you are.

* * *

Lana stopped, a strange sense of both safety and vulnerability flashing through her.

That way. She started to turn to her left and shrieked.

Lightning flashed, thunder rumbled, and the dark shape of a man stood before her.

His eyes gleamed in the flash of lightning, his grin triumphant. He reached out towards her and tried to grab her arm.

Her entire being shuddered away from him. Lana stepped away from the man. “Why have you been following me?”

The man tilted his head. “Isn’t that your car broken down on the road? I thought you could use some help.”

His voice was a pleasant blend of concern and attraction. Lana’s eyes narrowed, bringing up her second sight. Usually she could conjure up a person’s aura fairly easily, but this man’s was somehow shielded. Unfortunately she got just enough of a feel off of that shield to know what she was dealing with. Damn. A freaking wizard. Figures. No way did she want to engage in a magical dance with a wizard, especially when she couldn’t tell how strong he was. Lana took a step back, every instinct she had pushing her away from the man in front of her.

“I’d be careful, too. There are rumors of some kind of wild animal in these parts.

Found a few dogs mangled in the woods.”

The concern in his voice was false. A flash of red and sickly green surrounded him, the colors murky and muddled, before he shielded himself once more. Something was off about those colors. “Ah, thanks for the warning.” Lana backed up another step, her instincts screaming at her that her only safety lay behind her, somewhere in the shadows.

The man moved forward a step. “You really should have waited in your car for a cop or something, Miss…?”

Lana put her hands behind her, feeling for trees and branches. She continued to slowly back away from the menace she sensed in front of her. If she could reach the safe harbor she felt behind her, everything would be all right.

Only if she could reach it, though.

Then again, the Lord does help those who help themselves. Her eyes were drawn to the branch swaying dangerously above his head. And the Lady provides the means.

The stranger dropped all pretense of helpfulness. He shook his head at her, his expression annoyed. “Are you going to make this difficult? It doesn’t have to be painful, you know.”

“What doesn’t have to be painful?”

“Your death.”

With those words several things happened at once. A long, menacing growl erupted out of the darkness. One of the shadows hurtled through the night, knocking the blond man onto his ass.

And the branch he’d been standing under snapped, helped along by Lana and the force of the wind, hitting the blond on the top of his head and knocking him out cold.

The shadow animal turned, its golden eyes trained on Lana. Slowly it stalked towards her, its body moving with a supple, lethal grace.

A black wolf. In rural Pennsylvania .

Lord? Lady? No freaking way that’s safe. Lana gulped, and wondered if, somewhere out there, Fate was laughing its ass off at her.

* * *

Christopher’s heart was still pounding in his chest. He turned towards his mate, scenting her for any injuries. He relaxed a bit when all he smelled were scratches, most likely from her flight through the woods.

When Cole had threatened her, it had been all he could do not to rip out the bastard’s throat. The only thing that had saved him had been the falling branch and his mate’s horrified gasp.

She was brave, his female. She stood there and watched him coming towards her with big, chocolate brown eyes wide with fear and…

Yes. Fascination. He could work with that.

He approached her slowly, his eyes never leaving hers. When he reached her side, he gently stroked her thigh with his massive head, unable to prevent the rough, happy grumble that leapt to his throat.

“Oh boy.”

Her soft whisper sent shivers down his spine. His tail curled in pleasure, waving back and forth. Her hand came to rest tentatively on his broad back, her fingers digging into his fur.

With a yip he turned. Gently he gathered her hand in his mouth, careful of his sharp teeth, and gently tugged her towards his home.

“Um, okay. Go with the big doggie. Got it.”

He rolled his eyes but did his best to ignore her words. The breathy, scared tone of voice matched her scent,