Wolf Fur Hire (Bears Fur Hire 4) (12 page)

It was incredible getting to know her father in this way. She’d come to Alaska so scared that she would eventually go back to Kansas disappointed and have no better idea about where she came from or about the man who had been there when she was a baby. But instead, she got tiny, daily glimpses of him from the people around here and from Link.

Forty-five minutes of snowy driving later, and Link stopped the snow machine and pointed to a towering tree with a charred split in the middle from lightning. “This is the beginning of Buck’s trap-line.”

“It is?”

“This is Fire Tree, the very beginning of the line. I’m going to take you along it so you can see what Buck did for work. You’ll see where he spent his days and the woods he loved. He sold and traded fur during the winter, and that’s how he took care of Clotilda, and when you were a baby, it’s how he took care of you and your mom.”

“Link,” she said on a breath. “I was just thinking about him.” It was as if he’d been reading her mind, and now he was giving her another present—another piece of her dad.

“Trap lines are passed down from generation to generation. This one has been in your family for a hundred years. Clotilda maintains it now.”

“She’s a trapper, too?”

“No, she is a fisher. She uses traditional Yupik methods to bring in protein, but she told me she is maintaining it for you in case you want to claim the line someday. If she let it go to ruin now, someone else would take over the territory, or you would have to re-cut the trail.”

“She’s doing that for me?”

Link nodded and took off slowly, pointing out each place Clotilda trapped and each set of animal prints that crossed their path. He told her what they were and how to identify mature animals and scat.

And when the line was through, he sped off to continue their journey to caribou territory, closer to the mountains.

At the base of those mountains, they stopped and unpacked a thick-shelled tent from the sled behind the snow machine, then built it near a grove of trees that kept the harsh west wind off them. Link gathered wood for a fire and cooked ham and beans that Vera had sent with them. And when they’d warmed and filled their bellies, they cleared everything out of the sled, checked their rifles, and headed off. If they were lucky enough, the caribou would still be in the valleys, digging in the snow and eating any of the dry grasses they could find. The mountains looked snowy and the clouds above them gray, so if they were going to have a successful hunt here, the animals had to be in the right place at the right time.

Link turned his head this way and that, his nostrils flaring slightly as he scented the shifting wind. Nicole was nervous and shaky, but that was nothing compared to the feeling that washed over her when Link pulled the snow machine to a stop and put his finger over his lips.

He cut the engine and leaned near to her ear. “They’re close. I want you to wait here and be ready with your rifle, and mine as a back up.”

“Wait, where will you be?”

Link pulled off his sunglasses to expose his white, blazing eyes. “I’ll be bringing them to you.”

“Whoa, I’m taking the shot? Link, I’ve never taken big game. What if I miss?” Pressure slammed down on her shoulders, and her hands began to shake worse. She would definitely miss now.

“Then you miss, and we hope they stick around long enough to try again in the morning. Remember what we talked about. Three breaths, hold still, take a shot like we practiced on the target, and only if the animal is still and you have a clean angle on it. Go for the biggest with no yearlings on them. Pick a solo animal.”

“But if you bring them here, won’t they be running?”

Link gave her a sly grin. “I’ll bring them in slow. Be ready. Oh, and Nicole?”

“Yeah?”

“Don’t shoot me.”

She’d done it.

Nicole rubbed her hands together in front of the fire and stared at the sled lined with cooling bags of meat. Link said they could take a roast to Clotilda on their way back to thank her for maintaining the trap line and could spare some for all three of the Silver families as well, but that wasn’t why her stomach was fluttering with pride right now. She’d made a respectful shot, dropped her animal as Wolf chased down his own, and then she’d said a prayer over its body to thank it for the life that would aid in her survival. She’d never felt like doing that over the hamburger she bought from the store.

It felt important that she’d been a part of this instead of relying on her money to buy protein.

The fire crackled and smoked in front of her, the warmth battling the stark chill in the air. They were short on firewood so Link had left half an hour ago to look for more. He would be back any minute now, and a trill of excitement filled her stomach at seeing him again. The nerves of the hunt were through, and now they would spend the entire night here in the tent together before they drove back tomorrow morning. They would have an entire night of Link feeling good and of Wolf feeling sated before he took another shot of the McCall Reset tomorrow.

Movement on the other side of the sled captured her attention, and she grinned as Wolf trotted up and sat in the snow.

“Hi, Wolf,” she greeted him, so happy that he was back.

He canted his head and stared, but his eyes were off. They were greenish gray and a different shape, and they were much harder than Link’s. The gray tint in his fur was just a slight shade lighter, and he looked smaller. Acute fear froze her into place.

That wasn’t Wolf.

“Oh, my gosh,” she whispered. “You can have the meat.” That’s what it was after. The scent must’ve drawn it in.

The wolf’s eyes narrowed, and his lips curled slowly over his teeth as he laid his ears back. Long, white dagger-like teeth contrasted against the dark coloring of his wet lips, and as he let off a soft growl, frozen breath blew from his muzzle.

Her breath trembled, and her entire body began to shake as adrenaline dumped into her system. She shot a glance to the rifle leaning against the snow machine, halfway between her and the wolf. Too far, and she would have to get closer to the snarling predator to reach it. Shit.

Moving slowly, she gripped the last log sitting by the fire. The wolf leapt over the snow machine and charged. With a grunt, Nicole swung the log as hard as she could upward and caught the animal under the jaw the instant before its teeth touched her jacket. With a yelp, the animal went sideways and skidded across the snow as she bolted for the rifle.
Please be loaded!

She could hear the wolf inching closer, scrabbling for traction in the snow behind her, a desperate growl in its throat to reach her. Skidding on her knees in the snow, she snatched the rifle, twisted, and landed with her back against the snow machine. Clicking the safety off, she screamed as the wolf jumped at her.
Boom!

The dead weight of the wolf landed on her legs, pinning her as he let off a long sigh. His chest didn’t rise again. Gritting her teeth, Nicole struggled out from under him, desperate to get away from the dead eyes that stared vacantly at her. Scrambling to her feet, she swallowed another yell of terror when she saw them. Three wolves, two black and one gray, were stalking her from the other side of the snow machine. No time to jump on, much less turn the engine and get up to speed before they were on her. “Link!”

She lifted the rifle and huffed out a breath, then pulled the trigger. One dropped, two bolted for her, and she took off as she jammed another bullet into the chamber. “Link!” she screamed again. Fuck, she just had to buy herself time. She had to keep breathing until he could get to her.

She turned and planted her feet, then pulled the trigger on another. The last one reached her before she could reload. She lifted her arm to protect her neck, and it sank its teeth into her forearm. Nicole grunted in pain as the black, snarling wolf dragged her down with its body weight. It shook its head violently as Nicole struggled to finish cocking the gun one handed. Warmth sprayed across her cheek, and she panicked, jamming the butt of the gun against the hard packed snow. The sound of metal on metal was heavenly, and she aimed the barrel under the wolf’s chin. Its eyes widened with understanding just before she pulled the trigger. She staggered upward, and locked her legs against the uneven ground as she tried to catch her breath.

Standing over the wolf’s body, she looked from it to the others lying limp in the snow. What the hell? How would it know about guns?

Because that’s not a wild wolf.

The thought brushed her mind and sent ice shooting through her middle.

They would know about guns if they were McCalls.

Owooooooooooooooo.

The hairs lifted on the back of her neck. Link’s howl was the song of her heart, and that wasn’t it. That was the broken battle cry of a monster.

Turning slowly, she looked in horror as a dozen wolves melted out of the trees in a line of defense between her and camp. Between her and the snow machine and the extra rifle. Between her and salvation.

“Link, help me!” she screamed as the first wave bolted for her.

She picked off two before the awful clicking sounded that said there were no more bullets to load into the chamber. With a sob, she spun and sprinted through the snow. It was too deep, and the wolves were too fast, better equipped for the terrain than her.

She hadn’t gotten to say goodbye to Link. He would find her half-eaten by the same creatures that had killed her dad. Who would be his anchor now? Link would be no better than these wolves after she died. He would be doomed to the curse, just like the McCalls who were hunting her.

Her arm hurt so badly, and she used that pain to keep her in the moment. She had to think. Had to use her head and buy herself every second she could. She wanted to live! She wanted Link to live!
Link, Link, Link. Help me!

A thick grove of alders blocked her escape, their trunks so close together they created a wall. She gasped in horror as she skidded to a stop and crashed into them. They’d planned this. They’d herded her here. It’s why they hadn’t attacked before now, why they’d loped behind her silently, waiting for her to trap herself.

Nicole swung the rifle upside down and held it like a bat. “Come on, you murderous mother fuckers. Who wants to die first?”

A white wolf with a gray tail and bright blue eyes melted out of the pack, head down, eyes hungry, teeth bared. The others hung back behind him, as if they were waiting for this odd-colored wolf to ring the dinner bell. The alpha.
Kill him. Scatter the others. Buy time.

Nicole tensed and prepared to swing her empty rifle as the wolf bunched his muscles to attack.

A blur of gray ghosted through the woods and barreled into the white wolf. Link latched his teeth around the smaller wolf’s throat and shook him off the ground. His eyes blazed the color of snow, and the snarl in his throat held an intensity she’d never heard from Link before. No. Not Link. This was all Wolf.

The other wolves shied away, but then charged the fight at the first yelp from their alpha.

Nicole ran for them and hit the first attacker across the face as the blur of violence continued beside her. The wolf under the butt of her rifle went flying, but another caught the sleeve of her jacket and yanked her down to the ground.

Link turned and latched onto the wolf’s leg and jerked his neck, tossing him away like he was weightless. The black wolf slammed into a tree.

Link stood over her, hackles raised, making him look even bigger. She’d never seen him next to another wolf, but as she laid here, frozen and gasping for breath, she realized what a beast her mate was. He was bigger than every one of them, almost twice the size of some. In shock, she turned her face and met the empty gaze of the dead alpha. His fur wasn’t white anymore. It was red.

Link let off a low growl to command the attention of the wolves who were looking at the dead alpha with half-crazed, brightly-colored eyes in every hue. Link took a step toward the closest one, but it held its ground. Link took another step, and when the wolf didn’t give, he hit him so fast he blurred, and after a volley of brutality, Link tossed another limp body aside and leveled his white gaze on the next closest wolf. This one hunched down and made whining sounds deep in its throat as Link approached. It wagged its tail slightly against the snow as Link stood over him, head high, ears erect, eyes on the others.

As Nicole sat up, clutching her arm to her chest to ease the searing pain, silence descended upon the woods.

Link let out a soft woof, and the wolves backed away. One by one, they slunk off into the woods until she and Link were alone.

Nicole heaved breath as the realization of what had just occurred here slammed down on her.

Vera had told her to keep Link away from the McCalls.

And now he was their damned alpha.

“Are you still with me?” Nicole asked softly as Link wrapped the last layer of gauze around her bitten arm. He’d used most of the first-aid kit on her, and it still wasn’t enough to fix the damage that had been done. She needed stitches. Lots of them. If she didn’t take her mind off her ruined arm, she was going to pass out.

The growl was constant in Link’s throat, and his eyes were still the same demon-bright color they had been when he’d taken the McCall pack. He didn’t answer her, which was answer enough.

“I have to get you to Vera,” he gritted out in an inhuman, gravelly voice.

“Link—”

“I can feel them. Feel
it
. Dark. Darkness so thick I can’t breathe. I’m not with you, Nicole.” He lifted his terrifying gaze to hers. “But I will be.”

There was promise in his tone, so she nodded and scooted back to give him room to sit on the snow machine in front of her. Their supplies had been hastily wadded up and thrown on top of the bags of caribou meat, then tied down in a hurry, but at least they wouldn’t have to come back out here for it. These woods were haunted now.

She dragged her sad gaze over the wolves she’d killed that lay scattered around the camp and beyond. “I killed men.” Her voice came out ragged and shaky.

“Those assholes weren’t men. They were monsters. You did the world a favor.”

Link jammed the throttle and didn’t say another word as he drove them back through the mountain passes, down Buck’s trap line, and toward the Silvers’ land.

Her arm hurt like hell to use, so she kept it tucked between her stomach and Link’s tense back and held on with all her might with her other hand as the snow-covered evergreen woods blurred by.

He didn’t say a word as he cut the engine in front of Vera’s cabin. He just picked her up and ran with her up the porch stairs, shoved the door open, and yelled, “Vera!”

“What is it?” Vera asked, rushing in from the other room, her chestnut curls blowing behind her. “Fuck, Link!” she yelled, skidding to a stop. She looked from him to Nicole and back. “Why do you smell like that?”

“Nicole’s hurt.” His voice couldn’t pass for human at all anymore.

“Link set her down. I can’t come any closer. Send her to me. You feel… My fox won’t let me near you.”

Nicole scrambled from his arms and shrugged numbly out of her jacket, then shoved her warm layers up her arm to expose the bandages. Vera was growling now, too, as she unwrapped the bloody gauze, and when she got the first glimpse of the torn skin, Vera whispered, “Shit. Is this what I think it is?”

Nicole swallowed audibly and nodded. “The McCalls came for me when Link was looking for firewood.”

Vera jerked her attention to Link. She scented the air, and a wave of disbelief washed over her face. Even Nicole could feel it now. Link was different. He was filling the air with something heavy that made her nauseous.

“You didn’t.” Vera dropped Nicole’s arm and strode for the radio on the wall. She jammed the button and said, “Elyse, are you there? Please tell me you are there. Elyse!”

“Yes, I’m here. Damn, woman, you barely gave me any time to respond to—”

“Nicole’s hurt. The McCalls came after her, and now Link feels like a fucking alpha. Family meeting now, and please bring your sutures. Your stitches are better than mine.”

There was a single beat of silence, then, “We’re on our way.”

Vera slammed the handset back into its sling and rounded on Link. “You stay there. I can’t work on her with you at my back growling like that. I’ll take care of your mate, but you have to give me room.”

Link lifted his lip in a snarl and, for an instant, his face looked unrecognizable. He looked completely feral—half human, half monster. He jerked his white gaze away from Vera and nodded once.

Nicole padded over to him and lifted up on her tiptoes. Hesitating only a moment when a soft snarl emanated from his throat, she kissed him softly on the cheek. “Vera will take good care of me.”

He huffed a breath, as if he’d been holding it in, then lifted her palm to his lips and kissed her there. He looked at her seeping arm. “I’m sorry I didn’t get to you sooner. I heard the gunshots, I heard you scream my name and beg for help, and I thought I was going to be too late. Now you’ll be scarred because of me.”

“So I’ll be scarred. Because of you, it’s not worse. You saved my life.” She lifted her chin proudly. “My mate. You blew through two wolves like they were nothing defending me.” She lowered her voice to a whisper. “You did good.”

Link rolled his eyes closed and rested his forehead against hers. “So did you.”

****

“Let me get this straight,” Tobias said, leaning against the kitchen counter with his arms over his chest, looking grumpy. “Vera told you to stay away from the McCalls, and you became their alpha instead.”

Elyse cut the excess thread off Nicole’s last stitch and said, “That’ll do you.” She huffed a sigh and gave her a lopsided smile, her scarred cheek lifting with it. “Welcome to the club.”

Nicole snorted and swallowed down the pain meds Vera had handed her with a bottle of water.

“Isn’t anyone else concerned that Link looks like he’s about to murder all of us?” Tobias asked in a baffled voice.

Indeed, Link was sitting in a chair by the door staring at them like they were medium rare prime rib. He blinked slowly, then wrote something down on a pad of paper.

Ian stood over the pan of leftover cherry pie, eating it with a fork and looking unconcerned, and Lena, Elyse, and Vera were sitting at the table cleaning up first aid supplies. Only Jenner was absent because he’d left for his job as an outdoor guide this morning.

Shrugging his shoulders, Tobias asked, “Just me then? I’m the only one worried that we’ve just taken a huge step back in Link’s recovery.”

“I need you to fly me out near Kodiak,” Link said.

“Running away again isn’t going to solve this one,” Ian said around a bite. “You have to fix this shit. I don’t want to put you down and, right now, you feel like a fucking kill order waiting to happen.”

“You won’t have to put me down.”

Vera stood and leaned on the table, eyes sparking like gold flames. “Lincoln Finkledink McCall, I’m not burying you like I did Eustice, so if your plan is to off yourself—”

“My middle name is still Asher, and I’m not going to off myself. I need a ride out to Silver Summit Outfitters.”

“Jenner can’t fix this,” Lena said softly.

“I’m not going to see Jenner.”

Ian dropped the fork loudly into the glass pan, but other than that, the room went silent.

“That could work, right?” Tobias asked Ian.

“Fuck if I know. I’m not a wolf.”

“What could work?” Nicole asked.

“They’re going to be pissed,” Tobias said, a building smile in his voice.

“I don’t give a shit,” Link said, leaning back in his chair with his cold eyes challenging Tobias. “It’s them or the McCalls.”

“Who’s going to be pissed?” Nicole asked, utterly confused now.

Vera’s face went slack, and she huffed a single loud laugh. “The Dawsons. Chance and Dalton will be super-pissed.”

“Who are the Dawsons?”

“The Dawsons are a couple of not-psychotic werewolves without an alpha,” Vera said through a spreading smile.

Link stood slowly. “Ian, while I’m doing this, you need to secure kill orders from Clayton for these wolves.” He handed Ian the pad of paper he’d been scribbling on. “They were the ones who also went after Elyse but managed to get away. Two man-hunts on two human women, and I’d say they earned their fucking kill orders.”

All Nicole could read from here was the first name on the list. The one Link had written the biggest and darkest, as if he had stabbed the paper with the pen with each damning letter.
Braydon McCall.
That was the man Link had slammed against the truck. He’d threatened Link and called him a traitor. That asshole had deemed him Weak Link, but he’d been so wrong. Link was better, bigger, and stronger than all of them.

Ian stared at the names scribbled line after line. “This is us going to war with the rest of your family, Link. If we do this, most of the McCall lineage will be wiped out.”

“Ian, these were the wolves who went after your wife. They went after my mate, and I watched both attacks. I fought them both times, and they were in it for the kill. They aren’t my family.” Link looked around at each of them. “You are. Kill them all.”

“Okay, we’re doing this,” Tobias said, grabbing his warm layers from the coat rack and handing Vera hers. “Ian, get the kill orders, get whatever information Clayton has on their whereabouts, where they hang out, who they steal from, where they bunker down. When we get back, we’re going on a wolf hunt.”

“I’m coming, too,” Nicole said, cradling her hurt arm.

“You should,” Link murmured. “This affects you, too.”

Nicole scrunched up her nose. “Okay, I know this is probably a silly question, but for those of us who don’t speak shifter talk, what exactly are we going to do near Kodiak?”

Link shrugged into his coat and leveled her with a look. “I’m going to get us a better pack.”