Cal’s frown deepened with every word. Cal had worked with the Colorado Division of Wildlife ever since Duncan had been old enough to hunt. He’d been a good friend of Duncan’s father and had often joined them during hunting season. The poaching ring would piss Cal off, and he’d be damn eager to break it up.
“Let’s see what we can find from the air,” Cal said. “If we can narrow the search area, we’ll have a much easier time of it when we go in on foot.”
Duncan nodded his agreement.
After several hours of sweeping the area surrounding Elk Ridge and the region where Duncan had first run across the hunters, they turned up nothing.
The pilot indicated that they were low on fuel and would have to head back in. Duncan stared down at the terrain in frustration. He’d hoped the air search would turn up something. Instead he’d wasted an entire afternoon with nothing to show for his efforts. He was no closer to finding the hunters now than he had been two days ago.
They landed, and Cal got out and walked with Duncan over to his truck.
“What’s your next move?” Cal asked. “What can I do to help?”
Duncan shook his head grimly. “I’m not sure yet. I’m going to have to get with Nick and my other deputies. Put our heads together and come up with a search plan. Those sons of bitches are out there.”
“You know you can count on me to help. I can get some of my guys together. I know you probably don’t want the feds crawling all over your mountains but whether you call them in to help apprehend your poachers or call them in after you’ve taken them down, one way or another, they’re going to be involved. Those sons of bitches have broken all sorts of federal laws with the shit they’re pulling.”
“Yeah, I know.” Duncan sighed. “I’d rather hold off as long as possible. If we can’t come up with anything by tomorrow, we’ll have to call them in. I don’t want to risk these assholes escaping, or worse, continuing to turn these animals out to hunt.”
Cal clapped a hand over his shoulder. “I’ve got to go. Pilot’s waiting on me. Call me if you need me.”
“Thanks, Cal. Will do.”
Duncan watched as the older man returned to the helicopter. As it lifted off, Duncan climbed into his truck to begin the drive back into town.
His mind was abuzz with what his next plan of action would be. It was getting dark, which prevented any further search today, but tomorrow he would resume. He could gather Nick, his deputies and call up Cal and some of his men and launch a ground search in the denser areas not able to be viewed from the air.
For now…he was going back to his cabin…and Aliyah.
First he stopped off at the small supply store on Main Street and chose sweats, a few shirts, and a pair of boots for her. The shopkeeper raised a brow but didn’t question Duncan’s purchases, a fact he was grateful for.
When the clothes were bagged and paid for, Duncan headed back out to his truck, ready to be home after another long day.
The eagerness in which he drove to his cabin was alien. It had been awhile since he’d felt such intensity toward a woman, and never quite this way.
Tonight, there was no hesitation when he walked into the door. He looked for her and found her pacing the kitchen, naked, agitation radiating from her.
“Aliyah,” he said softly.
She whirled around, her eyes flickering, the pupils fluttering and changing shape. She rubbed her hands up and down her bare arms in a clear sign of distress, and then with a small cry, she launched herself at him, wrapping her arms around his waist and burying her face in his chest.
He caught her against him and hugged her as he stroked his hand through her hair.
“Aliyah, honey, what’s wrong? Are you in pain?”
Unease prickled his neck. He pulled her away from him so he could look at her more closely.
She rubbed her hands up her arms again and shivered lightly. Tiny little goose bumps dotted her skin. “I need…I need to shift for awhile. I can’t control it for much longer.”
He was shaking his head before she ever finished. “No way. Aliyah, that’s crazy and you know it. There is no way we can risk it. There are poachers after you, not to mention you could be seen by a number of other people. Everyone around here is already uneasy because of the strange animals being spotted.”
She closed her eyes then reopened them and locked her gaze to his. “I know it’s insane but if I don’t get out soon, I won’t be able to control when and how I shift. I was hoping you’d know somewhere we could go where the chance of me being spotted was small if we went late, after dark, and I’d be careful. It’s just that I’ve spent so long in shifted form that the cheetah is dominant. I’m growing weaker, and I need the rejuvenation that being in my cheetah form will bring.”
“Aliyah –” He was still shaking his head. He couldn’t even get his protest out fast enough.
“I don’t need your permission, Duncan,” she said softly. “But I would like your support. And your protection. But if you refuse me both, I have no choice but to seek out a place on my own. It’s not smart. I know that. I could place myself in a lot of danger. I know that too. But I cannot prevent a shift for much longer.”
“Can’t you do it here?” he asked, sweeping his hand across the interior of the cabin.
“I need to run. I need to be free in a manner I haven’t been free in six months. I need to regain my strength. I grow more unstable by the minute.”
Fuck. He didn’t like this. Even while she made sense, he didn’t like it one bit.
“I’ll be careful.”
He blew out his breath in a long whoosh. “You’ll stay in the truck out of sight until we get out of town. I don’t want you anywhere near here when you do your cheetah thing. We’ll go south an hour or so.”
She wrapped her arms around him again as she nestled back into his embrace.
“Thank you,” she said as she squeezed.
He let his hands fall down her back, and he rubbed up and down before he placed one hand behind her neck, the other arm around her waist and held her close.
“First you’re going to get dressed. I picked up some clothes for you from town. Then we’re going to make this quick,” he grumbled. “This whole thing seriously freaks me out.”
CHAPTER 11
Duncan drove slowly down the bumpy winding ATV trail off one of the closed national forest roads. He’d picked the most obscure spot he could think of, but that didn’t guarantee they wouldn’t come across campers seeking a remote place to pitch their tents.
Every one of his instincts told him this was a bad idea. Not just a bad one, a stupid risk that Aliyah had no business taking. But he couldn’t let her go off alone without any form of protection.
He glanced over at her, and even in the darkness, he could see her tense with anticipation. She was edgy, almost wild, and he knew that she was hanging on by a thread.
“It’s not far now,” he said as they forded a small creek and rounded a sharp bend.
The road had narrowed considerably, and they wouldn’t get much farther with his truck, four wheel drive or not.
She didn’t reply but kept her gaze fixed ahead, as if waiting the opportunity to bolt from the truck. When he finally pulled to a halt, she gripped the door handle then finally looked over at him.
“Aliyah, how much of yourself do you retain when you… uhm…shift?”
She cocked her head in confusion. “I’m not sure I understand.”
“A wild animal has instincts. You’re free now.”
“Ohhh. You want to know if I’ll run and keep on running.”
He nodded slowly. “I guess I’m asking if you’ll be back.”
She stared at him, her gaze steady. “I’ll return, Duncan.”