Bonded (44 page)

The men discussed
the matter between them and then headed back to the mine to talk
with their families. Brandi took Katie by the shoulder and spoke to
her sternly. “You are not going with us. Do you understand?"

“But—“

“No. You’re too
young and it’s too dangerous.” When the girl looked like she’d
protest again, Brandi switched tactics. “Besides, you know this
area better than any of them. What if the ACS doesn’t arrive in
time? If the halves and their families need to find a new hiding
place you’d be able to show them where to go.”

“Well...” Katie
mulled the situation over before finally agreeing. The girl’s eyes
glinted with mischief and Brandi suspected she was probably already
plotting escape routes and defensive moves.

Pleased to have
one problem solved, Brandi headed towards the others. She doubted
the wisdom of heading towards the Purists’ meeting but understood
how the human males felt. And while she really wanted to find and
help Reno, she knew duty came first. Pack before personal wants and
needs. It was the way of her people.

For a moment, she
debated if the situation warranted accessing her connection to him.
The ethics of poking about in his mind warred with her desire to
have a sense of how he was doing.

“Are you ready,
Brandi?” Peter spoke and she blinked, surprised to find him beside
her. Checking on Reno would have to wait. It was probably for the
best anyway. If he was in trouble her concentration and loyalty
would be divided and she was needed here.

Sometimes it was
better not to know.

Chapter
27

Reno splashed
through yet another stream, the water blessedly cool on his heated
body. It felt like he’d been running for ages trying to shake the
wolves chasing him and he was starting to feel the strain. The idea
of stopping for a drink was tempting but he didn’t dare pause, at
least not yet. Instead, he contented himself with licking up the
drops that landed on his muzzle while proceeding to race up the far
bank before doubling back through the stream and heading towards
town.

For all that he’d
told Brandi running through water wouldn’t throw trackers off a
scent, it might slow them down and at this point he’d take whatever
advantage he could find. The group following him was skilled—more
so than he’d expected after his encounters with Walt and the
threesome who’d accosted him outside his motel room. They’d seemed
more like caricatures and he’d erroneously assumed the rest of
Victor’s men would follow in the same pattern. He was wrong.

More than once
they’d split up, fanning out and trying to force him to change
course, likely wanting to herd him towards a dead end or some form
of terrain that would put him at a disadvantage. Luckily, he was
experienced enough to recognize their tactics. If circumstances had
been different, he’d have enjoyed the opportunity to match wits,
but now it was a matter of survival. Purists had no love of
Enforcers and there was no doubt that if he were caught, Victor
would eliminate him.

Despite his best
efforts, the five wolves following him persisted. His only
advantage seemed to be his size and stamina. Over the miles, his
longer stride had eventually allowed him to pull ahead just enough
that he was out of visual range at least part of the time, and he
had some sense that those following him were beginning to tire.
Unfortunately, they still showed no signs of giving up and if his
next ploy didn’t work, he might end up having to fight in order to
be rid of them. The odds—five to one—weren’t exactly in his favour.
He
might
survive the battle but at what cost? And would it
leave him too weakened to confront Victor?

Reno wanted the
Alpha’s hide. His wolf rumbled its agreement, eager for a fight
where it didn’t have to hold back as he’d forced it to at the motel
the previous night. Not only was Victor a Purist who’d resorted to
trickery to take over a pack and ignored the Rights and Freedoms
Act as it pertained to halves, he’d also insinuated he would lay
claim to Brandi. Reno wasn’t about to let that happen. Brandi was
his.

Concern for her
weighed heavily on his mind. When he’d seen Katie heading straight
towards danger, he’d had no choice but to try and become the
target. But it meant he’d left Brandi unprotected. At least the
wolf that had stayed behind had been smaller and relatively young.
Surely Brandi could handle the pup...he hoped.

Reno swivelled his
ears back and listened intently. From the sound of things his
pursuers were still following but considerably farther behind than
last time he’d checked. Good. There was still a chance he could
lose them when he cut through town. If there were enough scents and
criss-crossing paths laid down they might become sufficiently
confused that they’d break off the hunt. Of course, there was
always a chance that one of the residents might decide to challenge
him but it was a calculated risk. He was counting on the fact that,
with the Purist leaders holding a meeting near the town, the rest
of the pack might be busy or perhaps Victor would have ordered them
to stay home. After all, the head honchos were known to guard their
anonymity.

A corner of his
mouth curved up as he contemplated the fate of the leaders once the
ACS arrived. With any luck Damien would be able to intercept the
squad and clue them in on the news that a group of Purist leaders
were in town. They’d capture the whole group and cart them back to
Lycan Link, thus putting a serious dent in the Purists’ force.

His stride
faltered as he considered that the ACS might arrest Brandi as well.
She wasn’t guilty, of course. It had to be a mistake. In his gut he
was sure of it and his wolf grunted in agreement, yet a tiny grain
of doubt remained. Was he letting his personal feelings cloud his
judgement? He didn’t think so, but...

The town came into
view and once again he focussed on losing the wolves tailing him.
He mentally ran over his plan: circle the town, cut across several
of the main streets and head back into the mountains. By
intersecting his paths, the trail should become a maze that leads
nowhere. Once he was free of those chasing him, he could
concentrate on tracking down Victor.

Reno veered to the
left, skirting the outer buildings. The town seemed eerily quiet as
he ran by, only the clicking of his nails on the sidewalks creating
any sound. His supposition that Victor had confined the pack to
their homes must have been correct. Well, all the better for him.
He quickly completed his planned course, before heading back
towards the cover of the forest.

His sides heaved
from the exertion of the prolonged run and once he was well hidden
by the trees, he finally paused to rest and slake his thirst at a
small puddle. A five minute break and then he’d be off again.
Sinking to the ground, he sighed in relief, his exhausted muscles
thanking him for the reprieve. Slowly his heartbeat returned to
normal and his breathing calmed. Resting his chin on his paws, he
studied his surroundings; the spot where he’d chosen to stop
providing a good view of the town below. There wasn’t much
happening except...

The door of the
town hall opened and two people stepped out. Narrowing his eyes,
Reno concluded it was Walt and Victor. Slowly, he sat up, keeping
his gaze fixed on them. Now what were they up to and why were they
still in town? Surely, the Purist leaders had arrived by now. Was
Victor trying for a show of authority by arriving late and keeping
the others waiting? Perhaps. It was just the sort of tactic the man
would employ.

After conversing
for a few minutes, Victor got in a vehicle and drove off leaving
Walt standing in the street. Now that was also curious; could it be
that, like Klaus, Victor also suspected Walt of being duplicitous
and didn’t trust him near the leaders? Even from a distance, Reno
could tell by Walt’s stance that he wasn’t pleased. So there was
dissent in the ranks; Reno nodded. That fact might prove useful
later on.

Walt watched
Victor drive off and then paced back and forth several times before
turning to stare up at the mountain, seeming to look right in
Reno’s direction.

Reno resisted the
urge to slink down low. Remaining still was the best way to hide.
Eventually, the man went inside and Reno shifted his gaze to
Victor’s truck. The vehicle headed out of town then began winding
its way up a dirt road. Clouds of dust betrayed its progress even
when it was lost from sight by the trees. When the dust cloud
stopped, Reno mentally marked the location. Hmm... It appeared to
be only a few miles from the coal conveyor—the mine entrance he and
Brandi had used earlier that day—just higher up. Hell. If he’d only
known he could have been there ahead of Victor, lying in wait.

A frustrated growl
escaped him as he contemplated retracing his steps back up the
mountain once again. This was better than any workout routine the
trainers at Lycan Link had ever devised!

The sound of
howling drew his attention back to the town and he noted with
satisfaction that those hunting him seemed to be milling about in
confusion. His lips curled into a smile as he took a moment to
enjoy their obvious frustration, but didn’t allow himself to
linger. They were clever enough to figure out his trick and he
wanted to be well away before they picked up his scent again.

Rising to his
feet, he headed towards Victor’s location, resisting the urge to
detour and check on Brandi. He had to believe she was capable of
taking care of herself. And she wasn’t alone; the humans and their
mates were with her plus whatever assistance Klaus had put in
place. A short bark of laughter escaped him when he realized this
was the same pep talk he gave himself whenever Brandi went into a
Purist pack as a DC to do clean-up. Logic couldn’t always soothe
feelings when you cared about someone.

Briefly, he
wondered if a second shift of Victor’s wolves would arrive to guard
the halves. Had the ones following him alerted anyone they were
leaving their post? Or had the mixed families and halves been left
unguarded? If that were the case, would Peter and the others stay
put or take the opportunity to leave the mines and seek safety at
the base of the mountain in one of the towns? And would Brandi go
with them?

Reno concentrated
on finding the quickest path possible up the mountain. The sooner
this mess was taken care of, the sooner he could find Brandi.
Something inside was urging him to hurry, to not waste time but
exactly why, he was unsure.

Despite the
growing tension within him, he was careful to approach from
downwind, wanting the element of surprise to be on his side.
Constantly scanning the area in case Victor had guards posted along
the way, he finally found himself back at the conveyor entrance.
Approaching with caution, he sniffed the air to see if anyone was
about.

Faint whiffs of
other wolves drifted by but none had been in the vicinity recently.
His scent and Brandi’s still lingered bringing back memories of
their close encounter. Had it only been a few hours ago that they’d
played in the nearby pond, totally oblivious that they were but a
few miles away from the site of a major Purist gathering? Damn,
they’d been lucky. It would have been all too easy for Purists to
take them unaware while they were wrapped in each other’s arms.

Reno grimaced at
how close a call that had been. The captain was right; emotional
involvement clouded your senses and put you at a tactical
disadvantage. That was another reason rogues made good Enforcers;
the fact that they seldom formed deep, lasting bonds with others
meant they weren’t distracted when carrying out their duties. He
frowned and wondered where that left him and his relationship with
Brandi.

He tried to ignore
the unsettling question and moved on towards where Victor and his
cronies were likely gathered. The Purists had to be his main
concern right now and he needed to keep his wits about him.

Picking his way
along, Reno used the shadows and outcroppings of rock to hide his
progress. Recent rains had left the plant life green and lush which
meant his paws moved silently over the moist ground; no betraying
crunch from dried leaves would alert his quarry. The winds remained
light and he was able to keep his downwind advantage. No squirrels
or birds called out warnings as he passed by. Yes, all in all,
things seemed to be working in his favour.

Yet, if that was
the case, why was he second guessing his plan the closer he came to
the meeting site? Why was there foreboding growing inside him? Was
this what he’d heard the old ones talk about? A sense that your
time was almost up?

A shiver passed
over him at the idea this might be the day he died. As an Enforcer
it was always a possibility but he’d never really worried about it
before; there’d been nothing binding him to this earthly life. Now,
however, he was on the verge of building a relationship with a
female and he wasn’t ready to die without having explored that
possibility further.

He gave a snort of
disgust when he realized the path his thoughts had taken. Quit
whining like some wussy romance character, he muttered to himself.
Suck it up. Today’s as good a day to die as any. Wasn’t that what
he was supposed to be saying?

Giving his head a
shake to clear his thoughts, he focussed on the present. He needed
to stay alert. It was obvious from the scents in the air that
dozens of wolves were about. No doubt each Purist Alpha had brought
along their own contingent of supporters. Narrowing his eyes, he
grumbled his discontent. Somehow, he’d envisioned taking Victor off
guard or luring the Alpha away from the others, but apparently that
wasn’t likely to happen. The man was probably surrounded by
protection.

Reno cursed under
his breath at his own folly; he’d let emotion rule his judgement.
By concentrating solely on the fact that he wanted a confrontation
with Victor, he hadn’t analyzed the situation properly. Only an ass
would come charging up here by himself for some grand showdown.