Master of the Mountain

* * * * *

Logan carried an armload of groceries into the kitchen and looked around. Paul and Mel were putting dishes into the dishwasher while Christopher scrubbed pots in the sink.

Something smelled good, and he'd missed it. Damn. “Spaghetti?”

“Yes,” Mel said. “It would have been really good except Rebecca bailed out, and Ashley cooked the noodles into mush.”

“What do you mean, Rebecca bailed?”

Behind Logan, the kitchen door opened, and Jake walked in with the last sack of groceries. “I saw you were back. Is this it?”

“Yeah, thanks.” Logan started unpacking the goods and putting things away. “Have you seen Rebecca?”

Jake's hand stalled over a loaf of bread. “I thought she went into town with you.”

A chill slid up Logan's spine. “No, she wanted to paint.” He turned to Mel. “You said she bailed. Where to?”

“Ah.” Mel exchanged glances with the other two men. “She was worried about the dog, but I told her it probably took off after a deer. I-”

“I don't remember seeing her after that. 'Bout an hour ago?” Paul said, frowning at Christopher. “We didn't think too much about her not being here, since she isn't hanging with the group.”

Logan rubbed his jaw and glanced at Jake. “If she was worried about Thor, she'd go after him.”

Jake nodded. “That's how I read it.”

Logan glanced at the swingers. “You people stay here at the lodge. I don't need anyone else lost.” He didn't wait for an answer, just headed into the main room, stopping long enough to grab a heavy-duty flashlight and his backpack from the hook on the wall. Jake followed right behind him.

Outside, Logan checked at the sun, his gut tightening with fear. “Got less than an hour.”

Jake grunted an answer, then walked over to the west edge of the clearing to check for tracks. Logan did the same on the east side. At the road, he found tiny tracks with shallow indentations. Sneakers on little feet. “Over here.” He followed the shoe marks first, then the muddy streaks leading to the east trail.

“Nice that we've got a place to start,” Jake said, following Logan into the forest. “God help us if we didn't have that.”

Logan didn't bother to answer but broke into a jog. Little rebel, what the fuck were you thinking? But he knew. She'd thought only of the dog, not her own safety.

Dammit, she wasn't stupid. Not in the least. She'd have seen the sun setting and would have turned back. If she could. As he ran, his eyes skimmed over the forest, checking for signs of her passage. And he couldn't help but see all the ways she could be hurt. Or killed.

Chapter Fourteen

When Thor's ears perked forward, Rebecca sat up. “What?” She tilted her head and then could hear it too: a shrill sound from higher up. Another. Someone was blowing a whistle.

Oh God. Thank you, God. A sob wrenched out of her as tears overflowed her eyes. Now with hopes of rescue, she could admit how terrified she'd been.

She rubbed the wetness off her cheeks. No wussy behavior. It was probably Logan. After taking a slow breath, she firmed up her voice. “Here!” she yelled. “We're here.”

She could see someone up high, about where she'd left the trail. A second later, Logan came down the incline in a graceful slide, Jake shortly after. They followed the path she'd broken through the streamside brush.

They stalked up to the stream, two powerful men, like two more animals that belonged here in the forest. Logan stopped at the edge of the stream for only a second before crossing on the same stones she'd used, so fast and coordinated she wanted to hit him. Jake moved just as fast.

Shoulder to shoulder, they scowled down at her.

“I hurt my ankle,” she said meekly, wanting only to fling herself into Logan's arms. “And Thor hurt his foot. He got trapped in there.” She pointed at the pile of river wrack.

Logan didn't speak as he knelt beside her. His eyes were cold, the muscles of his jaw rigid, and she realized he was furious. Boiling-over and ready-to-yell furious. He stared at her and then inhaled, and his anger disappeared. How did he do that? Have so much control over his emotions?

“Come here,” he said softly and pulled her into his arms. Oh God. His scent surrounded her, and his arms wrapped her in security. She laid her cheek against his muscular chest and tried really, really hard not to cry. She didn't succeed very well.

“Shhh,” he whispered, stroking her hair. “You're safe, sweetheart.” A growl entered his voice. “For now.”

After a minute, she got herself under control and reluctantly pushed back. No time to be a baby.

Logan wiped a tear off her cheek with his thumb, his gaze intense. Then he gave her a nod and turned his attention to her ankle. When he rolled up the leg of her jeans, she saw how her left ankle swelled over her sneaker.

“There's a mess,” he muttered. “The shoe stays on for now, but I'm going to wrap it for extra bracing.” He pulled Ace wrap out of his pack and started to strap up her ankle.

She gritted her teeth at the wave of pain, digging her fingers into the sparse grass to keep from yelling. Or bawling. Logan's gaze flickered over her face, her hands, but he didn't stop.

When he finally secured the end of the elastic wrap, and the pain decreased to a tolerable throbbing, Rebecca pulled in a breath.

Logan squeezed her shoulder. “Brave girl,” he murmured, before rising. “Thor okay?” he asked Jake.

“Paw's ripped up some, but it'll heal.” Jake grinned at Rebecca. “Nice bandaging material, Red.”

Logan glanced at the bloodstained chemise still wrapped around Thor's paw and snorted a laugh.

“Looks like we'd better go straight west till we cut the old Bear Trail and use the Cedar Tree crossing,” Jake said.

Logan eyed the stream. “Agreed.” He grasped Rebecca under her arms and hauled her up.

Pain stabbed through her ankle, but she managed to turn her scream into a hiss.

Logan's hands closed on her upper arms, steadying her. He pulled her arm over his shoulders. “You're going to use me and Jake as if we're crutches. If the going gets too rough or you can't manage, then I'll carry you.”

Carry her? She looked at him in horror. She'd die before that happened. Besides, she wasn't the only injured one here. “I'll be fine. You should carry Thor.”

Logan's eyes softened, and he brushed her cheek with his knuckles. “You're just a marshmallow inside, aren't you?” He glanced at the dog. “He has four legs; missing one will barely slow him down.”

Jake took his place on her other side. Between the two of them, she felt like a midget, and he apparently caught her thought. “Okay, short stuff, grab on, and let's do this before it's too dark to see.”

* * * * *

By the time they reached the lodge, Logan was drenched with sweat, and Becca white-faced with pain. No complaints from the city girl, though. Every time he asked if she hurt, she'd say, “I'm fine.” As a man, he appreciated her stoic bravery. As a Dom, he wanted the truth, but halfway down a mountain near sunset didn't seem the time for a lecture on honesty. Instead, he monitored her carefully, and when the tendons on her neck stood out, her lips tightened to a thin line, or her breathing turned shallow, he'd ignore her protests and have Jake put her up on his back.

The only other times she spoke on the trip down were to express concern for him and Jake. And the dog.

Thor, being Thor, led the way down, despite his hurt paw, and the white tip of his tail made a beacon in the darkness of the forest. Still in front at the end of the trail, he trotted onto the lodge porch and waited for someone to open the door.

“Probably wants supper now, the bastard,” Jake grumbled.