Time Mends(90)
It didn’t seem possible, but the ground was littered with the bodies of the Alpha Pack’s elite, and Charlie was still standing.
“Go,” he demanded the moment our eyes met. “Get out of here.”
“Stefan is still alive.” I could hear his wet respirations and slowing heartbeat.
“Not for long.” He looked towards the trail, obviously hearing the same thing I did. “Dammit, Scout, they’re coming. Don’t make this be for nothing. Go!”
That is what got me to move. Not the sound of the others rushing to scene. Not the wolf, who was butting his head against my leg and growling at me to get moving. No, it was Charlie telling me to not let all this blood be spilled for nothing. With one last look over my shoulder, I took off through the forrest, a gray wolf at my heels, refusing to slow down, even when the sound a gun echoed through the night.
***
The truck was parked where the trees met a large overgrown field. It was a monstrous affair with a full size cab and more wheels than any vehicle not hauling mass quantities of goods cross-the country needed. I jerked open the driver’s door with my good hand. The wolf bolted into the back seat, and after three attempts, I pulled myself into the driver’s seat.
Driving a vehicle that big across a field filled with holes and ruts isn’t easy for a Prius owner on the best of days, but having the use of only one hand made it near impossible. I breathed a sigh of relief when not only did I make it to the road, but I even knew where we were.
The drive should have taken twenty minutes, but I didn’t know how likely it was someone was following, so we made it in twelve. The gate Talley showed me was distinctive, and one I knew well. The ostentatious thing with tons of curlicues and an “R” proudly displayed in the middle came from some rich guy’s house when he bought a fancy electric deal to replace them with. The discarded gates now kept trespassers from using an old access road for a local fuel company. However, the company’s general manager was one of Mom’s brothers, and he’d shown us how to jimmy the lock open so Dad could use the car-free stretch to teach all of us - Jase, Charlie, Talley, and me - how to drive.
Despite my rush, I redid the lock after driving the truck through, hoping to delay anyone who came looking for us. My eyes strayed to the backseat as I jogged back. The sight of a sun-kissed shoulder had me looking away quickly, my cheeks ablaze.
My eyes watered as I drove over a mile to my next location. The fumes had always been awful, but with my Shifter senses they were nearly unbearable. I found the barn, which wasn’t really a barn but an old office, near the base of one of the fifty-foot high tanks containing fuel that would be hauled down the river on barges. The back of the building had a garage type place, probably where they’d parked gas trucks at one point in history. There was already an older four-door sedan of some sort parked inside. I pulled up next to it and cut the engine.
“Are they following us?” I asked.
“They will be.”
“The gas. It’s to cover our scent, right?”
“Hopefully.”
I took a deep breath. Turning off the truck felt like a conclusion, as if the chaos was over, but I knew it had only just begun. “So, what do we do now?”
Liam’s grey eyes met mine in the review mirror. “Now we try to outrun fate.”