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CHAPTERONE
“Are you serious?” Mike Halperin asked his best friend.
“Yes. It’s been driving me crazy. I need to know if I was imagining things,” Zach Granger responded.
Mike leaned forward in the overstuffed chair, a beer dangling from his fingertips. “You really think some beautiful mystery woman found you in the middle of the High Ridge mountain range and dragged your unconscious body to safety and then left?”
When he put it that way, it did sound unlikely, but Zach wasn’t going to give up. “How else can you explain that my sister, Liam, and Alex found me hundreds of feet from where I was shot?”
“Admittedly, the bullets those vigilantes shot you with were doused with a strong paralytic. That explains why you didn’t jump up, shift, and escape. That being said, it’s equally as likely that sometime later your inner wolf healed you enough to provide the energy to find that cave.”
“And then I passed out again? I never even shifted? That makes no sense.” Zach stabbed his fingers through his hair. “I wished to hell I remembered more.” He scarfed down the last of the pizza that Mike had brought over.
“Let me ask you this: What good will it do to return to the cave? Do you really think this good Samaritan has been hiding behind some tree for two weeks, waiting for you to return so she can see that you’re all right?”
“No,” Zach said.
“I’m glad you still have some common sense left. Just so you know, while I was playing forest ranger in your place, I never came across any ski bunny near the climbing site searching for some injured man.”
“Funny. If she did exist, she’d have no reason to stay near the cave. Obviously, it was a dangerous place to be.”
“That may be, but it’s also possible she was some hiker enjoying the sights for the day. And if she’s not from around here, she’ll be long gone by now.” Mike held up a hand to prevent him from commenting. “However, to satisfy your intense obsession with this woman, I’m game to help you look in the cave to see if we can find something that indicates she existed. Even if we spot some item, it might not belong to her.”
Zach leaned back in his seat. His logical mind told him that Mike was right, but his heart wanted to try anyway. “It’s just that when I saw this woman hover over me, I swear my teeth sharpened.”
Mike laughed. “Oh, really? This is getting better and better. Now you’re thinking she’s your mate? I hate to tell you, buddy, but this is probably wishful thinking.”
“Not true. Have you ever known me to lament the fact that I haven’t found my forever woman?”
Mike finished off his beer and set it on the coffee table between them. “No. Actually, just the opposite. You are happy sitting on a mountain top daydreaming when you aren't helping some camper light a fire. I can’t even remember the last time you dated someone, and heaven only knows I’ve tried to fix you up enough times.”
They’d shared a few women over the years, but no one had been very memorable. “See? This is why I think this memory is real.”
Mike got up and threw his bottle in the recycle bin. “I’m not leading any groups into the woods for the next few days, nor do I have any ski lessons planned—unless it snows tonight. Then I might. Like I said, to stop you from driving yourself crazy, I will help you look. I know you always check the climbing sites anyway since it’s part of your job, so it won’t be out of your way to explore the cave.”
Zach stood. “I appreciate it. I have the following day off, too, so if you want, we can crash at the cabin for the night. I’ll pack some food, some beer, and a pack of cards to keep us occupied.”
“Sounds like a plan. I haven’t been out to your family’s place in a long time.”
“No time like the present. Tawny, Alex, and Liam recently stayed one night, so I’m sure it’s in good shape.”
“How about I meet you at the ranger station tomorrow morning?” Mike asked. “At say eight?”
Zach huffed. “Make it nine, and I’ll be there.”
“Nine it is.”
After Mike took off, Zach went in to take a shower. The hot water always helped him think better. There were a lot of holes in his memory, and he needed to figure out how to mesh the puzzle pieces he had. No one denied that he had been shot twice with paralyzing bullets long enough for two human vigilantes to carve his family’s crest in his back. Thankfully, the scar was on the mend. So far though, no one really believed a woman had helped him.
Yet Zach still did. Why? First, there was the fact that some branches had been placed on the outside of the cave where his sister and her mates had found him. That would have been really hard to achieve if he was inside, especially in his weakened state. Second, while Zach didn’t remember much about his rescue, Liam said the cave was about a fifth of a mile from where he'd been shot. Could he have made it over the rough terrain in his condition and not remember any of it? Not likely.
The only reasonable explanation was that someone had helped him. The big question was whether his good Samaritan was a gorgeous woman or several people? But if he’d had some assistance, why didn’t they call for help afterward? Zach had been near death—werewolf or not. If humans had found him, they would have had more reason to get him help since they’d be unaware of his werewolf healing power. And the people who shot him wouldn’t have tried to save him. So did that mean his female savior was a werewolf and assumed Zach would heal on his own? Is that why he was left in the cave?
He had no idea. What he did know was that he needed answers and fast. After Zach finished washing up, he went back to the living room to locate his topographic map of the area. Liam and Alex, his sister’s two mates, had marked the approximate location of the cave. The passageway was the one to the right after the entrance. Hopefully tomorrow, he’d learn the truth about that fateful day.
* * *
“Let me see that map again,” Mike said. “I can’t believe you haven’t been back here since the incident.”
