He’d have to be very sure she wouldn’t come in, though, because if she found him naked in her cabin, that would be extremely difficult to explain. But if he could pull off the maneuver, he’d be able to leave today. Rachel might think she’d left the door open by mistake.
Just as his plan began to seem possible, the bedroom door creaked and Rachel walked in. “I knew you’d come out once Lionel was gone, wolf.”
He stood still and watched her.
“I still think you understand a lot of what we say, and that conversation I had with Lionel might have spooked you. But don’t worry. I’m not going to call in the troops. This is between you and me. And you can trust Lionel not to squeal on us.”
Thank you. He hoped she could sense his gratitude.
“You’re welcome.”
Wow, that was strange. She’d responded as if she’d picked up on his thoughts.
“I’m going out to the workshop now, but I’ll come back from time to time and check on you. I’m not leaving you alone for the day, so don’t worry about that, either.”
Please do leave me alone.
She smiled. “I swear it’s like I can see the wheels turning in there. You’re too clever. I’m not giving you hours of solitude so you can figure out some way to get out of here.”
Damn.
“Boy, do you look disappointed! I swear you got the gist of what I just said. Well, just forget about escaping. You need more time to heal, and this is the best place to do that.”
Says you.
“Don’t look at me like that, as if you don’t believe me. I’m a doctor, or I was almost a doctor. I can tell that you’re supersmart, but I know more about this process than you do, so why not relax and let me do my thing?”
Her logic was impeccable. But she was working with the wrong information. If he were a true wolf, she’d be absolutely doing the right thing for him.
She couldn’t know that she was impeding the healing process. Because he’d been unable to shift fully soon after his injury, he would likely have scarring, something that didn’t happen when Weres took care of their wounds themselves.
He’d been hurt several times in his life, and he bore no marks as a result. But he felt certain he’d end up with red welts from the bear’s claws once he became human again. In time they’d fade, but his skin would never be perfect again.
In some ways that seemed fitting. It was as if Rachel herself had left her mark on him. He might as well accept the inevitability of that and realize that he would never completely erase her memory.
“See you soon, wolf.” She had the audacity to wink before she turned, walked out the door, and closed it firmly behind her.
Curses, foiled again.
Chapter 6
Rachel’s famous concentration took a beating the rest of the morning. Even Lionel remarked on it. She kept pausing in her work to check on the wolf, and when she returned, she spent long moments staring into space, her carving tools lying unused on her bench.
Finally she turned to Lionel. “How are you at tracking?”
“Okay, I guess.” He dumped a large dustpan full of shavings into a plastic garbage can. “I learned from my best friend Willie’s dad, on account of mine not being around to teach me.” He said it without a trace of resentment or self-pity. His dad had left when he was a baby, and he’d been raised by his mother and grandmother, but he’d never said a word against his absent father.
“If I let the wolf go tonight, do you think you could track where he goes?”
Lionel stopped sweeping to glance at her. “I thought you didn’t want to know his story.”
“I don’t, and if I could keep him a few more days, I wouldn’t be worried. But I can’t figure out how to do that. He’ll need to go outside again tonight, and I won’t be able to trick him again.”
“Again? You already tricked him once?”
“Yeah, and it cost me a very large steak.” She described her maneuver, which made Lionel chuckle. “Anyway, the fishing line won’t work twice, so when I let him out to do his business, he’ll be gone.”
“And you want me to follow him?”
“Not so he’d know. He’s very smart. That’s why I thought if you could track him from a distance, then you’d have some idea of where he goes but he wouldn’t know you were doing it.”
“I could try. But Willie’s dad could do a better job than me. Even Willie’s a better tracker than I am.”
Rachel shook her head. “I don’t care. I don’t want anyone else in on this, so you’re my guy. I’ll pay you for your time.”
“Hell, no, you won’t. You pay me to help you out. And I’m already aiding and abetting you instead of notifying Fish and Game. If I take money for it, that’ll look even worse.”
“Would you rather not do it at all?”
He grinned at her. “Are you kidding? I’m dying to do it. First of all, I’m really happy that you’re getting this wolf out of your house before something bad happens. Second of all, I want to know where he heads off to as much as you, maybe more. This job has always been interesting, but today’s been the most interesting so far.”
“Glad I’m proving to be entertaining.”
“Definitely. What time are you planning to let him go?”
“As late as possible.” She glanced at the clock on the workshop wall. “I’m not sure how long he can make it without needing a trip outside.”
“I can’t say for wolves, but a big dog can go about ten hours, maybe a little longer if they have to. You think this wolf is housebroken, right?”
She nodded. “He seems to be. Anyway, that still puts us at six or seven tonight. The sun’s very bright then.”
“So what are you going to do?”
“Don’t have much choice. He’ll have to do the best he can to stay hidden. At least tracking him should be easier.”
“It should, but . . .” He sighed. “Seriously, I’m not a very good tracker.”
“At least you know something about it, which is more than I can say. Can you also look for blood spots along the way? In case he starts bleeding again?”
“And what if he does? Does it matter?”
She thought about that. “Good point. Once he’s loose, there’ll be no getting him back. If I could think of some way to let him out on a temporary basis, I’d do it, but it’s not as if I can take him out on a leash like a poodle.”
“Nope.” Lionel gazed at her. “If you’re that worried about whether he’ll survive on his own, there’s always Fish and Game. At least then you’d know that he—”
“I’d know that he’d be miserable and I would have broken the promise I made to him last night.”
“You made a wolf a promise?” Lionel shook his head. “But listen, it would be for his own good.”
“Would it be? My instincts tell me that given the choice, he’d rather die on his own terms than deal with more human interference.”
“Then I guess it’s settled.” Lionel’s phone chimed, signaling the end of his workday with Rachel. He silenced the alarm. “I need to get over to the mill. Just tell me when you want me here.”
“Plan on seven.” Rachel wished she had reason to employ him full-time so he didn’t have to work at the sawmill thirty miles away. But cleaning the shop, buying groceries once in a while, and helping her with heavy pieces of wood didn’t take forty hours a week. And he’d be too proud to take more per hour than the job was worth.
“I’ll be here.”
“I’ll call you when I’m getting ready to let him out. If you park on the road instead of driving in, then he won’t know you’re coming.”