SkyFall (Taken on the Wing Book 2) (22 page)

What he can see of the sky above is clear
of the pair of Will guards who
’
d followed them the first half
of the journey. Heavy branches overhead cover most of the campervan roof and
unless anyone is flying directly overhead it will be hard to tell Soar
’
s vehicle from another.

Soar circles the van, inspecting the
ground and surrounding brush for evidence of her passage, and spots several
snapped stems leading off toward some thinner ground cover. The wind blows
north toward denser brush and he decides her path west is a ruse. Instead of
following her he goes north, careful to avoid breaking branches or disturbing
anything. If he leaves no trail she
’
ll
have a hard time tracking him should she return to the camper.

Once in the brush and trees, he finds
they aren't as thick as they appeared. He can smell her mixed with the scents
from the camper and moves further away to avoid confusing it with any fresh
scent. It doesn
’
t really help. He
’
s been so immersed in Cloud she seems to
cling to his skin and hair and he can
’
t
take a breath without it containing a hint of her.

Fifty feet from the van Soar stops and
turns in a complete circle to make sure he
’
s alone then drops to a vulnerable
position on the ground. He crawls several feet before he finds the mixture of
Cloud and freshly broken branches. She
’
s
been through here and Soar calculates how long she
’
s been alone and how quickly she can
move.

Damn it, he hadn
’
t watched the time. He has a good idea
how fast she can move on the ankle from the night before but will it be any
better from rest or stiff from being stationary?

Before he can decide, the snap of wood on
stone reaches him from no more than thirty feet away. Still on hands and knees,
Soar
’
s head snaps up and he moves
sideways into denser brush affording him better cover then bobs his head around
in the direction of the sound.

There, just past a pair of trees he spots
her. The shirt he put on her the night before stands out low to the ground.

Maybe her ankle hurts more than he
thought if she settled down to hide. Maybe it made her clumsy as well since he
heard her.

Soar gets lower to the ground and prowls,
each foot and handfall placed with absolute consideration of the brush and
maintaining silence. Instead of a direct approach, he goes wide around to the
right to flank Cloud as he gets a better view. Her hiding spot is excellent and
other than a few glimpses of the shirt, he can
’
t see enough to know if he
’
s been spotted. Even listening doesn
’
t help. She
’
s absolutely silent. Soar has seen it
before during a stressful sparring match. The little gryphon somehow controls
her heart so well only her breathing gives her away and if she
’
s been working with Master Sky then Cloud
could be a very quiet adversary.

Just north of her position he picks up
another small sound. Not the crack of a branch but the soft rustle of something
softer on bark. Curious. It isn
’
t the shuffling he expects
from a frightened gryphon.

The new sound comes from further away,
just the slip of fabric on a branch and his eyes snap up.

If he wasn
’
t hunting her he
’
d whistle in appreciation. Right above
the spot where he
’
d gone to the ground to smell
for her he can see her leg twenty feet up a tree. The trunk hides her body and
he can only see her knee. Even with one arm and one leg the female can climb.

Soar decides to move in on the empty
shirt to draw her out. With his eyes on it he ignores her in the tree and
creeps forward, remaining concealed behind the trunks.

Cloud keeps her heart and breathing
silent as she watches Soar stalk the shirt she left hidden in the tight knot of
trees. She
’
s still downwind of him and
his attention is on the decoy. As he circles, he comes close to her.

Very close, in fact.

Had Soar continued much longer he would
have crawled right over her and that wouldn
’
t have been too bad at
all. He
’
s powerful and sure as he moves behind
another tree. Each muscle forces more of his scent from his skin and Cloud
resists the urge to squirm her naked body on the ground in appreciation of her
male. God, he
’
s gorgeous; sleek and strong
and hunting
her
. Everything she wished for
when she committed to going to his den five years earlier is finally going to
happen.

He
’
s
right too, she grudgingly admitted to herself as she ran from the campervan,
ducked into the trees and headed north to set her trap. Cloud is in season but
she is also about to claim her male. Another female in her position would let
the male hunt and prove himself but for Cloud there is some pride involved. He
dumped her like she was nothing important then rudely sent her off to Calgary.

She
’
s
no match for him with her injuries and damn well knows it. Whether she simply
runs to be caught right away or gives him a little showing up and runs to be
caught after doesn
’
t matter. The result will be
the same.

Once Soar has a small lead she mirrors
his movements, holding her good arm out for balance and taking every step with
him. No part of her shadow or scent reaches Soar. Her strides don
’
t have to be longer to catch up. Soar
’
s path isn
’
t straight since he works to stay hidden
from the shirt in the trees and her direct route allows her to quickly gain
ground.

He pauses and looks a little further
toward the sweatpants in the tree. Cloud had tossed them up intending them to
be her diversion since they were easiest to remove then when she found the nest
of trees she struggled out of the shirt and hid it there before moving further
down wind.

He discovered them out of order but it
works to her advantage because now she
’
s
behind him, quiet, invisible and about to strike.

But he stops short of the trees and she
realizes he thinks she
’
s in the one further ahead.
Her chance is almost gone so she holds her breath and seizes his throat with
her good hand.

Cloud
’
s fingers take control, digging in around
his windpipe as she gets close behind but not close enough to touch him and
give away her body position.

“
Cloud?
”
Soar hisses, his voice rising to a
squeak.

Her eyes drop closed and she grazes his
shoulder with her teeth to demonstrate her dominance. Then she licks at him
before nipping at his skin. Soar doesn
’
t
try and turn on her.

“
God damn, Cloud,
”
he shudders then forces
a dry swallow down past her hand.
“
God damn.
”

She laughs, enjoying her victory. As her
hand slides up to cup his jaw she lets her forehead rest on the base of his
neck. Always comfort the prey after the capture. Each of them savours the
intense thrill. Cloud
’
s exposed nipples brush
against his damp skin as he recovers. His scent changes to predator, working
her heart a little harder as their roles reverse.

“
This is my first hunt,
”
Cloud admits. She should have told him
she was a virgin five years earlier and the least she can do is tell him she
’
s never done this before.
“
There
’
s been nobody but you, Soar.
”

She resists as Soar takes her hand and
pulls it around him but he insists with his grip so she let him. His chest
swells with pride then she feels the length of his thickening cock through
denim.

“
It feels like I
’
ve been like this since I sent you away,
little gryphon,
”
Soar groans and in spite of
her apprehension at becoming prey she explores, dragging her palm up and
squeezing his shaft. Soar
’
s fingers tremble over hers as
he feels her feeling him.
“
Waiting for you to come home,
praying you would understand why I couldn
’
t
hold you back.
”

He looks up and laughs, a chesty rumble,
at the sight of the sweatpants in the tree above. Then he drops a hand to her
bare thigh.
“
Are you naked?
”

At that moment the balance of power
shifts. Cloud perceives the ground cover and trees have thinned immeasurably
and without the benefit of clothing she
’
s
completely exposed.

She hooks her good ankle over Soar
’
s shin and pulls at the same time she
pushes his back sending him stumbling forward.

Her next few steps jumble and blur as she
escapes.

Soar
’
s growl forces a fearful sweat from her
skin and she runs, ankle and shoulder numbed by adrenaline as she bounds north
and away. Cloud
’
s vision narrows, everything
goes to shades of grey. The only objects in clear focus are ones in motion.
Leaves and branches move in the wind, tree trunks she passes, even her sling
covered arm and glimpses of her white knees as she plummets through the forest.

Soar
’
s breathing roars behind her. He doesn
’
t try and move quietly, not like before.
She
’
s turned her back and his inner
hunter has reacted, determined to bring her down.

Cloud dodges a tree as she tries to stay
on level ground but in her panic she hasn
’
t
looked far enough ahead and clutches her arm to her side as she tumbles to a
stop just short of a small cliff. The drop is too far to try in human form.

Soar crashes only a few feet behind her
and she scrambles up but he seizes her from behind. Both his arms circle her
around the waist, stopping her from driving headlong into a tree so thick she
couldn
’
t get her own arms around it.

She shrieks in pure, shrill terror and
Soar roars in victory as she thrashes her legs and grabs for the tree as if it
could save her.

“
Little
gryphon,
”
Soar growls, barely human and
she knows his teeth have shifted into sharp points to mark her.
“
You
’
re mine.
”

Then he bites, scoring the surface of her
skin where her neck and shoulder meet and Cloud cries out again, this time in
surprise and pleasure. The initial burn of saliva driving under her skin is
worse than she imagined but almost as quickly one hand releases her. Soar
grasps the back of her neck and finds the spots that will comfort her. At the
same time he withdraws his teeth and nuzzles the wound with his lips and
tongue, soothing the sting as her terror slips away.

“
My
little gryphon,
”
he croons, pulling away only
long enough to speak.

“
Soar,
”
she breaths as her eyes roll up. She
feels his tongue work every tooth mark, connecting each part of his bite with
the deep ache in her belly. When her legs weaken with fading adrenaline Soar
lowers them both to their knees.