Shiver(107)
“Oh, you mean the snowmobile getting stuck? Yeah, that was a bad turn. I got a bit hasty in my excitement and took that bend too fast. But then you came along and unstuck the damn thing for me.”
“No, I’m talking about that.”
“What?”
“You’ll never make it back to the cabin. The wolves will get to you first.” Aidan indicated the black wolf standing twenty feet off, his gums silently pulled back to reveal shiny, sharp teeth.
Genie screamed, panicked, swung the gun around and shot at the wolf. The wolf was off, with a leap, into the forest, unharmed. Aidan tackled Genie, but not before she got off another wild shot.
White hot pain seared for a second, stealing Raven’s breath, and then she felt nothing as the snow reached up to cradle her in its slumbering embrace.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
“Raven!” Aidan tore the gun out of Genie’s hand, cold-cocked the whore, and rushed over to Raven’s prone body. “Raven? Come on, baby, open your eyes for me.” He felt around her chest, struggled with the zipper of her parka, until he could part her coat and see for himself what kind of injury she had.
Nothing.
No blood, no wound. What the hell? Had she fainted? Raven wasn’t the kind of woman who fainted. “Raven?” He shook her, and she moaned.
Her eyes fluttered and then opened, only to quickly shut again. She reached up a gloved hand and pressed it to the side of her head. Blood coated the light-colored fur of her glove.
“Oh, God.” Aidan tore off his gloves and gently removed her hat, then brushed back her long dark hair—soaking up blood—away from the wound, praying under his breath. There, above her left ear, blood bubbled where the bullet had torn through her flesh. Blood poured from the wound, not letting him see how badly she’d been shot. He took snow and washed the area, holding her hair up and out of the way. It wasn’t long before Raven started to complain. The words were the sweetest sound he’d ever heard.
“Fuck, that hurts. I’m going to kill that bitch.” She winced, but didn’t move as he washed and packed the wound, the coldness of the snow slowing the bleeding and hopefully numbing the pain.
“How many fingers am I holding up?” he asked, hoping that the injury hadn’t caused a concussion. He held up two fingers.
“Four. Now let me at her.” Raven struggled to sit up, weaving back and forth.
“Easy. Easy now.” Aidan frowned. “Let me make sure you’re all right.”
“We don’t have time for this. We need to know where Fox is.”
Aidan zipped her parka, watching as her eyes dilated when she blinked. He needed to get her to help, but first they needed to find Fox.
Aidan gently wrapped Raven’s scarf around her head, tearing the felted wool with his teeth to tie a knot, keeping it in place and then repositioned the hood of her parka. “Hopefully that will hold until we can get you to Eva. Are you doing okay?”
She went to nod and then thought better of it. “Yeah. I’m fine.”
He knew she was lying. Her skin was as pale as the snow she sat on.
Genie groaned. He turned to see her slowly sitting up, holding her hand to her head where Aidan had knocked her out.
“Sit here for a minute.” Aidan got up and walked back to Genie.
“Hey,” she protested, and then snapped her mouth shut when she got a clear look at his murderous face.
He reached into his pocket and flicked open his knife, cutting the strings free from the hood of his parka. Grabbing Genie by the arms, he dragged her kicking and screaming to a crowd of trees.
“You can’t leave me here,” Genie cried, when Aidan pulled her toward a stand of spindly birch. “I’ll freeze to death.”
“One can hope.” Aidan yanked Genie’s hands around the trunk of a tree.
“Okay, you win. I’ll take you to where your brat is.” She glanced fearfully around, her wide-eyed gaze frozen on the black wolf who’d returned as sentry and stood along the tree line. “Just don’t leave me here.”
“I’m through playing your games. Where is my son?” Aidan demanded, his voice menacing, as he tied the nylon string around her hands.
“Untie me and I’ll take you to him.” Genie’s eyes drooped, pleaded. But Aidan was immune. This bitch had shot the woman he loved and kidnapped his son. She could rot out here for all he cared.
“Ouch. You don’t have to be barbaric,” Genie complained when he tightened the thin strings around her wrists, under her gloves. She glanced again at the wolf who had continued to stand like a totem within the cover of trees. “Seriously, you can’t leave me here.”