SEAL Wolf In Too Deep (14 page)

Not that anyone would believe her. But the werewolf pack must have been worried enough that they didn't trust her on her own. If she'd had family or a friend, she could have suggested staying with them, but she was afraid the werewolves wouldn't have allowed that either.

She wasn't without resources. She locked the bedroom door, then looked for her cell phone. No purse, no phone. Figured. She hurried to change out of her clothes, packed a small bag, turned on the shower, and went straight to the bedroom window. She didn't know what to think about all of them, but she felt like she was in a horror flick where everyone was an alien and she was the only human. Now that she had discovered they were aliens, she had to flee. She planned to get in touch with Rowdy, but what if all his talk about werewolves wasn't just in good humor, but because he was one too? She had no idea how big the pack was or who all was in it.

She didn't know where she would go or what she was going to do. If she fled the state, would they come after her? Kill her? For now, they were just keeping an eye on her, being extra polite and really nice to her. But if she told on them, then what?

They thought she hadn't heard them, but one time she overheard the nurse say that Tara didn't want to shift into her wolf ever again after she'd nearly died. If Debbie hadn't heard their conversation when they thought she was still under, she would have believed she had imagined the whole nightmare.

Then the business with the guy who shot the woman with silver rounds? A naked woman, just like Tara? Debbie heard them say these rounds were silver too. But since Allan and his pack mates hadn't known who Sarah was initially—Debbie just couldn't wrap her mind around it—she must not have been with their werewolf pack.

Debbie was afraid someone would bite her and change her into one of them. So she was really trying to keep her wits about her, act cheerful like she didn't think she had anything to worry about, and then run—before they knew what she intended to do.

She grabbed some spare cash she had in a sock in a drawer, then climbed out the window and headed to the garage. This was going to be tricky. She was afraid that as soon as she opened the garage, Allan would hear it and stop her. Or
try
to stop her.

Here she had thought he was one of the nicest, sexiest, and most caring men she'd ever met. Until he gave mouth-to-nose resuscitation to a wolf who happened to be a werewolf and a friend of his. She suspected all of his extended family were werewolves too. No wonder they were such a close-knit family. She tried to think back to what she'd said about werewolves before this. When Allan had said if he'd played the LARP game he would have been a hunter, she'd really thought he meant he was against werewolves or the concept. Now she suspected he meant he wanted to hunt werewolf hunters. The PI? Vaughn Greystoke?

She put a hand to her temple, feeling light-headed all at once. Another wolf? Another wolf pack? She had to get out of here…now.

She opened the side door to the garage as carefully as she could and stopped dead. Her car wasn't in the garage, but Allan was. He looked up from grabbing the ice chest.
Crap.

His brows raised in one big question mark. What was she doing in the garage when she was supposed to be taking a shower? This was so not good.

Plan B. She would have to come up with a story really fast about why she was in the garage and go along with him to his mountainside cabin—despite wishing she had any other choice. Then when he was sleeping, as long as he didn't handcuff her to a bed, she'd escape using
his
vehicle.

She thought of just screaming, but what could she say to the police? A werewolf pack had abducted her? Allan was one of their divers and so was Paul. They were SEALs, for heaven's sake. Paul's wife had even trained a couple of men at her dojo who became police officers. So no, Debbie wouldn't be able to get anywhere with that.

“Hey,” she said, frowning a little. “I thought you said my car was here.” Can't come up with a story? Get on the offensive.

“I guess they parked it at someone else's place for safekeeping since you were going to be staying with me for a while. I thought you were taking a shower.” He looked like a really wary wolf.

And she felt like Little Red Riding Hood. So where was the werewolf hunter when
she
needed one? “I had a bag in my car with all my emergency supplies. I was going to add that to the stuff I wanted to take to your place.”

“Oh. I've got mine so if you need anything from it, you're welcome to it.” He escorted her back to the house. She was certain he didn't believe her one iota. And the feeling was mutual.

When she returned to her bedroom, she took a shower, glad that she had only been running the cold water or she wouldn't have any hot water now.

It would have felt good—it was her first shower in days—if she hadn't had to worry about what came next. But the problem with washing up was she felt even more tired, like she could lie down in the tub and go to sleep. She guessed the doctor was right. She still needed time to recuperate.

Debbie decided to take a bath instead so she could soak and relax before her next attempt at escape. She began filling up the tub, hoping she wouldn't drown in it if she fell asleep.

* * *

Allan picked the lock of Debbie's bedroom door so he could make sure she was in the shower and hadn't tried to take off again. This was really not good. Somehow, she must have figured something was wrong, despite acting as though everything was fine.

He heard her stop the shower, then start running water in the tub.

While he waited for her to actually get into the tub, he texted Paul:
She's acting like she knows nothing about us, but I think it's a ruse. She left the house to get something out of her car when she was supposed to be taking a shower. She didn't need to get anything out of her car. And of course, the car wasn't there.

Allan glanced at the bedroom window and texted:
She had to have slipped out the bedroom window. She's taking a bath now. But I suspect I'll have trouble with her.

Paul texted back:
Let me know if you need backup. You've got the sedative that Doc gave you, don't you?

Allan:
Yeah, but I only want to use it as a last resort.

Paul:
Gotcha.

Allan heard her turn off the water and step into the tub. He left the bedroom and closed the door. He couldn't lock it. He wasn't going to give her an explanation for that if she asked. He figured she knew to some extent what was going on.

He didn't want to start making lunch if she was going to be a while soaking in the tub either. But when she didn't leave the tub after a good twenty minutes, he knocked on the bedroom door. “Debbie? Are you all right in there?”

He was afraid she had slipped out the window and…

His heart pounding, he headed back through the duplex, and when he reached the front door, he opened it. Covered in an inch of snow, his hatchback was still there. He closed the front door and returned to the bedroom.

Worried about Debbie even more now, he knocked on the bathroom door. “Debbie? I'm coming in.”

He was afraid she'd accidentally drowned in the bathtub. He twisted the doorknob. It was locked. He used his lockpick on it and yanked open the door, afraid of what he might find.

He hadn't expected to see a wolf shaking water from her fur coat and had no time to react before she lunged.

Debbie had fallen asleep in the bubble bath only to wake to find she was a damned wolf! She couldn't believe it. She hadn't discovered any bite marks on her anywhere when she stripped out of her clothes. The oddest thing was that her scars had vanished. Yet it hadn't really registered in her tired brain until she turned into a wolf.

How had they turned her? Maybe it was like with vampires, even if they weren't real. But in some stories, the vampire could seal the wounds and then the bite marks were gone.

Now she was soaking wet and staring Allan down as he stood in her bathroom doorway. He had to have picked her lock!

She shook off the excess water, getting him all wet.

She was so angry, she wanted to rip Allan to shreds. He just stared at her in disbelief, as if he had never seen a wolf before. As if he wasn't a part-time wolf himself. Maybe he wasn't. Maybe he was a minion to a wolf pack, like Dracula had minions working for him.

Ohmigod, this was so unreal. She growled, and she couldn't believe she'd made such an angry growly sound, right before she lunged at him.

She slammed her paws into Allan's chest, but he quickly grabbed her head to keep her from biting him. He was strong and she thought she could yank free of him, but after her injury and surgery, she was way too weak. Her growls sounded menacing though, and she snapped her wickedly sharp teeth.

He held her head securely, despite the fact that she was shaking it, snarling fiercely, and trying to break free from his titan grip.

“Debbie, you were going to die if we didn't save your life the only way we could. Your heart quit beating twice. We have faster healing properties. No one else would have been able to keep you alive like we could.”

She called him a liar, only the word was just a menacing growl. It didn't matter that she looked like, felt like, and sounded like a wolf. The notion just didn't register in her brain, and she'd expected to hear human words, not an animal growl.

She likened it to a scenario in which she suddenly had elf ears or purple skin. When she looked in the full-length dressing mirror hanging on her bathroom door, she had expected to see her usual self—brunette, brown eyes—not a wolf with gray, tan, and black markings. Not a wolf with a long tail and big ears and teeth.

When she'd first seen her huge wolf feet and wolf legs in the bathtub, she thought she'd somehow turned into a German shepherd. Which was beyond bizarre. She had watched lots of horror stories and thought maybe she'd received a body organ from a canine and now could turn into a dog. But instead of a dog, she had been a long-legged wolf with a shocked expression—
her
shocked expression. No matter how much she tried to rationalize what she was seeing in the mirror, she couldn't.

“You're going to be all right. You've got a pack to take care of you, and you have me. We'll teach you everything you need to know.”

She felt the tension leaving her body. Not because she was done being angry, but because she couldn't keep the fight going. She felt like sinking into the floor and sleeping for an eternity.

As soon as he felt her relax, he released his grip on her, yet he was ready to tighten his hold again. She could feel the tension in his hands and arms.

Then he let her go and she dropped to her paws, sat, then lay down. She kept her head up, watching him, but she was too tired to battle him any longer.

Allan warily kept his eye on her and pulled out his phone. “Hey, Paul, the wolf is out of the bag. I'm going to need some help here.”

She growled softly. The whole pack would come and get her. She felt she was the blood sacrifice for some pagan satanic wolf pack.

* * *

Still lying down, Debbie didn't look like a threat now, but Allan didn't mind admitting she had scared the shit out of him when she lunged at him. A wolf's teeth could rip him to shreds. He was lucky she was either holding back and her lovely, true nature still had some control over the anger she harbored against him for what she had become, or she was still so exhausted from her ordeal that she just didn't have the strength.

Whatever the reason, he was thanking God she hadn't killed him. “I'm taking you to my place and we'll talk this all out.”

After about half an hour, though it seemed like forever, he heard trucks pull up and was surprised when Everett arrived with the owner of the Italian restaurant, Fred Garafalo, and his chef, Gary White—all three new to the pack.

They hurried inside to help Allan with Debbie.

“What can we do?” Everett asked, eyeing Debbie.

Despite the arrival of Allan's new help, she hadn't moved from where she was lying down. She'd rested her head on her legs, kept her eyes on Allan, and lifted her head when she heard the men arrive, but she didn't move to attack anyone.

Thankfully. Maybe she was coming to realize they only wanted what was best for her. And they didn't mean to hurt her in any way.

“She's got some food in the freezer if someone wants to pack it in the ice chest. Someone can get her toiletries. Someone can pack some clothes for her. I'll stay with her.” Allan would have packed her things for her so that someone she knew better was doing it, but it couldn't be helped. If she got vicious again, he wanted to be the one dealing with her. He still had the sedative in case he needed to use it, but he hoped he wouldn't have to.

She didn't seem to care. He half expected her to growl again. Maybe she was too tired.

“Paul told me to bring a crate for her in case you need it. I put it in the back of your hatchback.”

Allan didn't want to have to crate her, but he couldn't risk her getting all snarly with him on the drive back to his place. It took about a half hour, longer in this weather, and he really had to concentrate on his driving.

“We'll follow you home and help unpack everything so you can stay with her,” Everett said.

Everett was really good for the pack and Allan was glad he had mated his sister. He always seemed so diplomatic. Saying that Allan could keep an eye on Debbie would have sounded much more antagonistic than saying he could stay with her, as if to comfort her, which he wished he could. He didn't think that was going to happen right away.

When they were all packed up, Everett and the other men waited to see what Allan wanted to do about the crate or if he was willing to risk letting her ride with him without being locked up.

Everett left for a moment, then came back with a heavy-duty leash and collar.

Allan really didn't want to put her on a leash. But if they tried to get her out to the hatchback and she wasn't on a leash, she was sure to run. Chasing her down could be a real nightmare for them and a danger for her. But he really didn't want to have to leash her.

“Debbie, come on. Let's go and get settled at my place and then we'll talk.”

She was watching him, but she didn't lift her head.

Everyone waited.

“I'll carry her out, if someone can grab some towels for her.” Allan hoped that carrying her wasn't a mistake. He wasn't sure if she was playacting, or she really was being submissive and going along with the program. Or she was still exhausted.

She was so relaxed, he had a hard time lifting her. Everett helped get her off the floor, then Allan carried her to his vehicle.

Everett got the back door for her and the other men laid out the towels in the backseat since she was still so wet. Allan supposed she'd have an easier time stretching out in the backseat if she didn't want to sit up front and watch out the window.

She stretched out like one sleepy wolf, yawned, sighed, closed her eyes, and went to sleep. At least she appeared to be sleeping. But that could be just a ploy. She could wake at any time, ready to renew the fight between them.

Allan closed the car door.

“That was easy, but it might not be when we arrive at your place.” Everett gave him the collar and leash.

“True. And it's wilderness out there. She might think it's safer there than running through this more heavily populated area. But she won't know how to manage on her own in the woods. Not with all the cougars, wolves in real wolf packs, and bears out there. Thanks for all your help,” he said to the men, then got in his car and led the caravan to his mountainside cabin. He had mentioned the dangers for Debbie's benefit as much as the men's, hoping he could dissuade her from attempting to run.

They reached the cabin after about forty minutes and Debbie continued to sleep. At least he didn't have any neighbors that could see his place. He carried her to the bedroom Rose always used when she came and stayed up there. His mother had even dropped by to leave off all the flowers from the pack members and fellow law-enforcement officials. The pack truly hoped Debbie would adjust without too much trouble. No one was a newly turned wolf, which was good, but it also meant she had no one to talk to about what she was experiencing.

Allan figured that when he could, he'd ask Tessa to talk with Debbie.

Then Allan helped the men carry in Debbie's things, leaving the bags with her clothes and toiletries on the living room floor. While Everett was putting away her groceries, Allan thanked the other men and they left.

“Good luck,” they said.

“Thanks.” Allan suspected he would need more than that. Then he called Paul with an update.

“Do you want me to send Lori over? Would it help for Debbie to have a woman to talk to?”

“Debbie is sound asleep. I think for now, she's fine. I'll call you in the morning or if things get out of hand.”

Allan waved good-bye as Everett quietly left.

“Everett's headed back to his house. I think we'll be good for the night.”

“All right,” Paul said. “Don't hesitate to call if you have any trouble at all.”

“Thanks. Talk to you in the morning.” At least Allan hoped he wouldn't have to call anyone else tonight. He carried her bags into her bedroom and set them on the floor. Then he watched her sleep for a few minutes. Satisfied she was fine for the time being, he stalked down the hall to the master bedroom. He stripped out of his clothes, tired from all the late nights of worrying about Debbie and ready for a good night's sleep. Though with her here now, he didn't think he'd get one for long. He walked into the bathroom to take a shower.

He was lathering up when he sensed he was being watched. Then he saw her sitting on the tile floor, observing him through the lightly fogged-up glass shower doors.

Hell.
He sure hoped she didn't try to take a bite out of him when he left the shower stall. He realized too late he couldn't even reach his phone to call for assistance. He should have locked his bedroom or bathroom door, but he wasn't used to doing so, and he'd never even given it a thought.

“We don't bite people,” he said calmly as he finished washing himself, as if he did this all the time—washed up while a hostile, newly turned wolf watched him through the glass doors. “We don't kill people or hurt them.” Unless the people were trying to hurt his wolf pack. Even so, if they were human, his kind tried to ensure that law enforcement officials dealt with the crime through legal channels. He didn't figure he needed to get into that right now with Debbie though.

He finished washing, hoping that delaying the inevitable would give her time to cool down. But now that he was done, he had to leave the shower. Sure, he was plenty alpha, but from her posture, so was she. And a human didn't stand a chance against an angry wolf, unless he could discuss this rationally with her human side.

He wanted to reason with her, tell her the steps he was going to take, as if he were a police officer trying to talk someone down from doing something criminal. But wouldn't she know what he was going to say and do anyway? Not a lot of choices here.

He figured he'd try and talk her down anyway, just in case it helped. Using his calmest voice, he said, “I'm coming out now. Don't bite me. Your wolf teeth can crush bones and there's no recovering from that.”

He turned off the water and then opened the glass doors. In that instant, looking into her beautiful brown eyes framed by the tan mask and reddish fur, the black hairs covering the tips of her ears, he thought how lovely she was. Her ears were perked, expectant, waiting for his next move as he stood still in the shower, dripping wet, naked, and vulnerable. He didn't think he'd ever felt this imperiled in his life. Maybe because normally if he felt threatened, he'd take care of the threat in any way that he could. But in this instance, he wanted to make her feel safe and protected, and reassure her everything would be okay. That
she
would be okay.

So he was attempting to act calmly with no hint of aggression, which could escalate the already tense situation.

Her posture was stiff, indicating she was ready to spring into action, but her face was an unreadable mask. Wolves could be unpredictable when they were newly turned, or even if they were from another pack. Like old friends playing card games, wolves in a pack gave away their intentions in minute ways—the twitching of ears, shifting of the body, facial expressions—all kinds of visual cues. But she was an unknown quantity, totally indecipherable.

At first, her eyes were on his, a pure alpha challenge. But then her gaze moved and settled on his package. In a purely sexual way, he would have become aroused, but not in this instant. He didn't even want to think what she could do to him if she was
that
angry. He hoped his nervousness didn't show.

“You're family now,” Allan said, trying to coax her down. “You're one of us, a
lupus garou.
Before, I couldn't date you, given what we both were. But now I want to, if you're of a like mind.” Even if she wasn't, he wanted to give them a shot. It might take years, he figured, but she wasn't leaving them and he wasn't giving up on her. He wasn't certain this was the time to approach that subject, but she had seemed interested before. He wanted her to know how much he cared about her. That he would be there to help her through this every step of the way and, at the same time, give her his love unconditionally.