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Ridge accepted that, but Clawson and Audrey looked dumbfounded to hear my knowledge. I wouldn’t have been surprised if they started demanding some answers once we were out of here. I fucking would.
“We need to get moving,” I urged, putting the bag of weapons in the trunk. I held onto the small bag of pills, not wanting them out of my sight. “Clawson, I’m handling the getaway. I’m the one who knows how to throw the hunters off our trail.”
I had my reasoning at the ready, expecting him to argue with me, so I was pleasantly surprised when he nodded and sat in the back.
Yup, I’d have a lot of explaining to do.
Closing the back door, I moved toward the driver’s side when Ridge grabbed my wrist and pulled me against him. His mouth landed hard on mine, giving me the most desperate kiss we’d ever shared. There was no hesitation on either part. This was not a gentle, schmaltzy romantic kiss. As soon as his lips touched mine, he demanded entry, and I gave him easy access.
I circled my arms around his neck as he gripped my waist and pulled me in tight, being extra careful of my wounds. The world around us faded away until it was just Ridge and I trapped in a bubble.
My inner wolf was at peace for the first time since I’d woken in the hospital, and we both felt like we could breathe again. Having Ridge by our side made the world right and reasonable again.
Ridge eased off the kiss, lifted his lips from mine, then rested his forehead against mine as he gazed into my eyes. “I’m absolutely furious with you for bringing yourself right to the hunter’s doorstep when you’ve been running from them for so long. You should still be resting and healing.”
Exasperated, I opened my mouth to argue, but he nipped my bottom lip. Then he flicked his tongue out to soothe it.
“But I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t happy to be holding you right now,” he went on. “No matter what they did or were going to do to me, being apart from you and not knowing if you were okay was the worst torture. I’d never survive it again.” He gave me one more passionate kiss before untangling us, and we headed into the car.
Joy and relief fueled me. I’d succeeded, at least for now. Ridge was alive, and we’d get back to Blackwood Creek if I could throw off the hunters long enough. We’d get everybody checked out and figure out what they’d done to Zander.
Then, we’d start fortifying the town against the hunters. There was no way in hell they’d stay away from a town of shifters, especially after we’d thwarted them and rescued their prisoner. Especially not when we’d taken Kyle and my father knew I was living there.
My heart clenched at the thought of more people getting hurt because of me, but there was nothing I could do about it for now. What I could do was get everyone in this car back home safely and prepare them for what was coming. Focus on what I could control and prepare for whatever came our way.
Hope for the best, expect the worst.
Chapter36
Ridge
Now that I was this close to my mate, I couldn’t stop watching her. Being separated from her had been a killer, and when I’d caught her scent, my wolf had started to rage. He was ready to tear the place apart until we had Tori and she was safe with me. When I’d laid eyes on her, my breath had left me in a gush, and my wolf and I calmed.
She was alive and well, but that didn’t mean I wanted her here. Tori had been through a traumatic ordeal, and with her already being somewhat feral, we couldn’t risk the chance of her shifting in a town full of innocents and witnesses. She needed to be resting peacefully in Blackwood Creek. It was safest for everyone involved.
But every time I closed my eyes, the image of her lying motionless and bleeding out on the library floor had me losing my mind. That sight would plague me for the rest of my life. Now that we were seated next to each other in the car on our way back home, I’d loosen up. Anytime I got to be with my little wolf was heaven after the hell I’d been tormented with for several of the longest hours of my life.
I kept my gaze on her as she drove to get us out of danger. Everything I’d learned about Tori amazed me, and the more she showed me, the more I admired everything about her. She was a warrior, and the way she showed the skills she’d had to gain over the years of running on her own from the hunters made me joyful and sad at the same time. I kept reminding myself that if I wasn’t around, she could take care of herself because, at the end of it all, I didn’t want to think what it’d do to me if I had to live without her in this world. She’d slipped into my life and become the center of my universe. I couldn’t—wouldn’t—lose that.
“Where are we heading, little wolf?” I asked.
Without taking her eyes off the road, she answered, “We’re not flying out of the airport we flew into. The hunters would be expecting that. They’ll be scoping out all the nearby private airports.”
She maneuvered the vehicle like a racecar driver, keeping her attention on our surroundings with little effort. Watching her take control had to be one of the sexiest things I’d ever seen. Even Clawson eyed me and lifted a brow while she got us away from the compound with speed and ease. She was a true pro.
“We’re staying in a cheap hotel near Denver for the night and leaving in the morning. It’ll muddle the timeline for the hunters. They wouldn’t expect us to stay so close longer than we’d need to.”
She glanced over at me and gave me a soft smile, a little twinkle flashing in her eye. But then she frowned when she looked at the mess that was my shoulder.
“We need time to rest,” she said. “Can one of you call the pilot and get him to take the plane to the Denver airport without filing paperwork? It’ll prevent them from tracking. The hunters won’t expect us to use such a public place, which is why we’ll leave from there.”
Clawson took out his phone and made the call. After he hung up, we all sat in silence.
My eyes never strayed from Tori. She was always the center of my attention whenever we were in the same room. Her brow wrinkled as she thought, and I’d put money on her thinking about all kinds of hunter-escape strategies, sifting through that brain of hers, picking over everything she had learned and done in the past.
She’d been conditioned to be on the go constantly. She could never stop, never take a break. To keep breathing, she had to be firing on all cylinders 24/7. No wonder she’d struggled so hard to stay with me in Blackwood Creek.
My heart spasmed at that thought. My little wolf had been through too much, and I wanted to make everything better for her. Make her safe, for once in her life.
