The Touch of Her Hands [The Wind River Pack 3] (Siren Publishing Classic) (3 page)

“Could you pick up any scents?” asked Zack.

Remus shook his head. “Nothing but Lyssa, and to a lesser degree, Nanita and Zebron. There weren’t even any tracks.” He paused and ran his fingers through his shoulder length hair. “I want some more search teams organized. They can’t have gotten very far hauling three little girls. I’m guessing the pups have been drugged to keep them quiet. No way would they go quietly if a stranger was trying to take them away. I put in a call to the National Council and they’re sending some of their enforcers to help out, but they weren’t very encouraging. This brings the total missing pups to twenty-two. That’s not counting the two recovered in the woods up in Canada.”

Zack frowned. “Are they still suffering from some illness, Alpha?”

“As far as I know, yes.” Remus glanced at Koril and nodded.

Koril moved to the front of the room. “Macon, Zack, David, and Eric. I want you boys to gear up and move out. You’ll head north, along the river. Keep your eyes and ears open and be ready for anything. We’re dealing with hostiles, and as far as I’m concerned, they’re expendable.” He nodded toward the kitchen. “The rest of you without children join me in the kitchen. I’ve got a map with grids worked out. We’ll see how much territory we can cover.”

Remus raised his hand. “Those of you with pups, consider the pack on lockdown. Nobody is to be out without an adult present. Now, let’s get moving.”

Zack stood and followed Macon to the door. They were quickly joined by Eric and David.

“We need to pick up some gear and drop Laynee off at Mom’s,” said David. “I don’t wanna leave her alone with all this going on.”

Zack nodded. “Understandable. I’ve got all my gear with me since I just came off patrol. Why don’t I head out now? I’ll take the main path down to the river, and the three of you can catch up by cutting across the school property. If you hurry, we should just about meet up at the forks at the same time.”

Macon frowned. “You sure you’re up to another shift so soon?”

“I’m fine. We need to get the pups back. There’ll be plenty of time for rest later.”

David placed his hand on Zack’s shoulder. “When you get to the forks, wait at least fifteen minutes. If we haven’t shown up by then, move on and we’ll catch up.”

“Will do.”

Erick clasped his hand on Zack’s arm. “Good luck, bro.”

Zack laid his travel bundle on the ground and then stripped off his clothes. Shutting his eyes, he let the change wash over him. In less than a minute, a large, reddish-gray coyote maneuvered his head through the straps of his pack and took off for the river. It took about a half hour of running before he reached the fresh, pungent smell of the clover on the muddy bank. The frothing gurgle of the swiftly moving water nearly drowned out the sound of the birds. His nose to the ground, Zack made his way north, following the twisting, musty trial. He couldn’t pick up anything but the scents of his own pack mates. It took him about three quarters of an hour to cover the ten miles to the forks. It was a lot slower than he normally traveled, but he didn’t want to chance missing any signs of the missing pups. When he arrived at the forks, his three brothers sat waiting. He pulled out of his pack and quickly changed back to his human form.

“Anything?” Macon asked.

Zack shook his head and glanced at his mismatched family. Between the four of them, they represented a wolf, coyote, bear, and a falcon. Surely, with that much going for them, they could find three small children. “Macon, why don’t you take to the skies and see if you can spot anything? The rest of us can shift and fan out to see if we can pick up any signs.”

Macon nodded and began stripping off his clothes. A minute later, he spread his wings out to their five-foot width and took off into the clear, blue sky. He cawed twice and headed north.

David stuffed his pants into his bag. “You think there’s any chance?”

Zack growled. “There’s always a chance. Let’s get moving.” He let his animal out, squirmed into his pack, and moved down the path, lifting his face to let the light and shadow dance across his skin. The wind ruffled his hair as his paws made their way over the uneven ground. Eric moved past him, the beat of his wolf’s paws against the path rhythmic.

He could hear David’s bear behind him, noisily foraging through the brush. He’d gone nearly twenty miles when Macon swooped down from above, cawing loudly, over and over. He tilted his wings twice and then flew east so Zack quickly followed. He didn’t know where David and Eric were. They’d split up to cover more ground a short distance from the forks.

When he rounded the next bend, he stopped and listened. He could hear something, maybe the cries of a child. Quickly he veered off the path and followed the haunting sound. The closer he got to the hillside, the louder the cries. Zack threw back his head and howled, warning his brothers he’d found something. Moving closer, he saw a small cave. The cries appeared to be coming from inside.

The smell of animal musk was strong inside the damp interior of the cave. The stone floor littered with dead leaves and twigs. And there, curled up in the corner, were the missing three pups. Zack moved closer, not wanting to frighten the traumatized babies. He stopped when the smallest of the three looked up.

She gave a small smile and struggled to her feet. Her chubby legs moved swiftly as she made her way across the damp cave, her arms thrown wide. “Doggy,” she cried, throwing her arms around Zack’s neck. The child buried her face in the coyote’s hair and sobbed.

The oldest girl stood up. “My name’s Kelly. Are you one of my daddy’s pack mates?” Zack managed to nod without dislodging the small child. Kelly sobbed and bent down to her sister. “Come on, sissy. We can go home now. You have to get up.” She turned her tear-ravaged face up to Zack. “I think she’s sick. She won’t talk to me.”

Zack licked the little girl clinging to him on the cheek and then moved back and shifted. He wasn’t crazy about being naked around children, so he quickly grabbed his bag and pulled on his jeans. He picked up little Celia, carried her over to her sisters, and knelt down. My name is Zack, and the alpha and your daddy sent me to find you.”

Kelly frowned. “But how did we get here?”

“You don’t remember,” he asked.

Kelly shook her head so hard her pigtails flew back and forth. “We woke up here and we called and called to Mommy, but she didn’t come.”

Zack reached down and smoothed his hand over the child lying quietly. Her wide blue eyes stared blankly up at him. He wanted to growl when he felt the heat radiating from her skin. Leaning over, he scooped her up into his arms. “Come on, girls. Follow me. We need to get outside where I can call for help.” Watching them carefully, he slowly led them out into the sunshine and fresh air. Yanking his shirt from his pack, he laid the lethargic child down and pulled out his phone. Before he could dial, his brother landed in the clearing.

He nodded at Macon. “I’m giving Alpha Remus a call. You fly back and lead them here. Bring the doc back with you. One of the girl’s is sick.” Macon nodded and took off into the sky. Zack hit five on his speed dial and waited for the alpha to answer his phone.

“Report,” Remus said gruffly.

“I found them in a cave about thirty miles from their house. Macon is on his way to guide you in.”

“Why aren’t you just bringing them home?”

“The middle girl is sick.”

“Hold on,” said Remus. Zack could hear him telling someone to get the doctor. “What’s wrong with her?” asked Remus.

“I don’t know. She’s feverish and kind of out of it. She doesn’t seem to know what’s going on around her.”

“What about the other two?”

“They seem okay for now, but I was worried about exposing them to the other children when we brought them back.”

“Did they say what happened?”

“Only that they woke up in the cave. They don’t know how they got here.”

Remus cursed. “Stay with them and I’ll get Doc out there as quick as I can. Did you catch the scent for who took them?”

“No, Alpha. I found them when I heard them crying. Actually, Macon heard them first and pointed me in the right direction.”

“Understood,” said Remus. “We’ll see you soon.” Zack disconnected the call and pulled out several candy bars and a couple of bottles of water from his pack.

Kelly’s eyes lit up when he held out the candy. “Thank you. We’re awfully hungry.” She opened the bar and broke it in half. He smiled as she offered the larger piece to her little sister.

Zack chuckled when the chocolate disappeared in two bites. He offered them the bottled water and glanced up when David ambled through the trees. “Stay back, David. One of the girls is sick and I don’t know if she’s contagious or not. Better not risk it. I’ve contacted Remus and they’re on their way. You and Eric watch the perimeter and try to pick up any unusual scents. When the others get here, you can head on home.” The huge bear wagged his head and moved back into the trees.

“Is my mommy coming?” asked Kelly.

“I’m not sure, honey. But I know Alpha Remus is on his way and he’ll get you to your mommy really fast.”

Kelly sighed. “Okay.” She got down on the ground and curved her body around her smaller sister. The youngest of the three came and pulled at Zack’s pants leg until he picked her up and held her against his chest. Zack looked off into the trees.
Come on, Alpha Remus. We need that doctor now.

* * * *

Remus watched Tehran quietly close the bedroom door. He’d been the pack’s only doctor for close to forty years and still looked to be in his fifties. Their shifter genes slowed down their metabolism prolonging their lives long past the normal human lifespan. “Well, what is it?”

Tehran sighed and rubbed his fingers up and down the bridge of his nose. “Their symptoms are the same as the pups Alpha Cardston found in the woods a few weeks ago, only you found your pups quicker.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means we have a big problem. The other two children have spiked a fever.”

“So, it’s contagious.”

Tehran shook his head. “I don’t think so. I found pinpoint holes in all three girls on their upper thighs. I can’t say for certain that Alpha Cardston’s pups had them. Hell, I can’t even be sure he looked for them.”

“What do pinpoint holes have to do with them being sick?”

“They’re injection sites, Remus. Those children were injected with something, and I have no idea what.”

Remus felt the thoughts in his head jumble as a growl escaped his lips. “Are you telling me that somebody injected something into those sweet children to make them sick?”

“I can’t tell you if their purpose was to make them sick, but I can tell you that they’ve been injected.” He held up his bag. “I’ve got blood samples, and I’m gonna try and figure out what we’re dealing with. For what it’s worth, I don’t see any reason to believe they’re contagious. Whatever is at work is making its way through their circulatory system.” He shook his head. “I’m afraid they’re gonna get a lot sicker before they get better.”

“Zack’s the only one besides you and their parents that has had contact with them. Is he in any danger?”

“No, I examined him thoroughly. He’s clean.”

Remus nodded. “Okay, get on it. Do whatever you need. We need answers and we need them fast.”

“Yes, Alpha.” Tehran bowed his head, exposing his neck, and then left the room. Remus sank down into the chair behind his desk and felt tears form in his eyes.
We have to find the people causing havoc with the packs. Nobody messes with our pups.

* * * *

Zack threw his phone on the coffee table and went to grab a beer. After popping the top, he dropped down onto the worn sofa and propped his feet on the table. He looked up when Macon came through the front door.

“I was given the all-clear to come home,” said Macon. “I guess they decided you aren’t contagious.”

Zack nodded and took a long drink of his beer. Belching, he looked up at his brother. “That’s what they tell me.”

Macon collapsed down onto the only other chair in the room, kicking his shoes off into the corner. They’d been roommates for almost a year, and neither one of them had a domestic bone in their body. “Be thankful you can’t catch whatever it is. I overheard Doc talking to somebody over at Cardston’s pack. Those kids are in bad shape.”

“What’d you hear?” asked Zack.

“They’re getting weaker and now they’re systems are shutting down. They’re talking about putting the little tykes on dialysis.”

Zack frowned. “They’re shifters, aren’t they?”

“Yeah, but they’re so young they haven’t gone through their first shift yet. The hormones aren’t there to help them heal.”

“And you think the pups here could be heading toward the same condition?”

Macon shrugged. “Seems logical, doesn’t it? They started with the same symptoms as our guys.” He rubbed his socked feet back and forth across the carpet. “I think we’re in trouble, Zack. It’s looking like it’ll take some kind of miracle to help those pups.”

Immediately the picture of a beautiful young girl with long brown hair and soulful brown eyes popped into Zack’s head. He set his beer on the table and got to his feet.