As she slipped under the cozy blanket of sleep she knew her life would never be the same again.
Chapter Ten – Craig
He woke to the dim light of morning and immediately sat up, his eyes scanning the small plane for his mate.
She wasn’t there.
Craig was on his feet and heading toward the gash in the side of the plane before his other senses kicked in and told him she was close.
“Hey, where’s the fire?” Linda asked as he scrambled out of the plane and into the bright light of a new morning.
“I was just checking up on you,” he answered feebly.
“Sorry.” She instantly understood the panic he’d experienced at not finding her there.
“I came out for some fresh air. And it sure is fresh.” She brushed off his panic and let him recover his composure.
Rubbing his hands over his face, he shook his head and rid himself of his fuzzy sleep-filled brain. “The weather looks settled. We should make a move early this morning and get as far down the mountain as we can.”
“Are we still planning on making a sled?” Linda asked as she shifted her position and looked down the mountain in the direction they had traveled to fetch the wood yesterday.
“Yes, it still looks like the easiest route.” Easiest, but by no means easy. He sighed at the prospect of pulling a sled back to Bear Creek. But it had to be done, so he would do it. “The lower we get, the more chance we have of getting a signal.” He pulled out his phone and checked his battery level. It was still on eighty percent.
“We should wake Gina and Joaquin and get them fed and watered.” Linda moved closer to him, heading for the interior of the plane. But before she slid inside she stopped. “If you don’t mind morning breath, maybe a morning kiss might be the best way to start the day?”
“It sure would beat a breakfast of peanuts and hot water.” He grinned, looking more handsome in the early morning light than a man had a right to be. His dark features were enhanced by the stubble on his chin, which made him look rugged and wild.
She pulled back and looked at him with a frown. “My bear loves peanuts.”
“So does mine. But one of your kisses would be better.” He smiled. “It was supposed to be a compliment.”
“Oh.” She slid her hands under his shirt. “I get it.”
“You do?” He lowered his head and captured her lips with his.
“Oh, I really do,” she purred seductively.
“Get a room,” Gina’s slurred voice came from inside the plane.
“Some best friend you are.” Linda pecked Craig on the cheek and went inside. “How are you feeling?”
“Not great. But I put that down to the terrible hotel we seem to have ended up in.” Gina’s voice sounded more upbeat and the fact she could joke showed her strength was returning.
What about Joaquin? his bear asked.
We’d better take a look. Craig swept the area one last time, sending his senses way out across the frozen landscape. There was nothing there. Unless whoever was out there had learned to evade his senses.
Confident they were alone, he ducked inside the plane and made his way to Joaquin who looked pale but alert. “How are you feeling?”
Joaquin glanced sideways at Gina and sat up a little straighter. “I’m good. I think I’ll be able to walk down from this mountain. I just need to get myself moving.” He sat forward and winced.
“Let me examine you again.” Craig placed his hands on Joaquin’s shoulders and gently but firmly pushed him back into a lying position.
“I’m okay,” Joaquin insisted but didn’t try to fend Craig off when he removed the covers and lifted his clothing.
“That’s gotta hurt.” Craig frowned as he looked at the angry bruising along the left-hand side of Joaquin’s abdomen.
“I’ll walk it off.” Joaquin coughed, and his face creased in pain.
“I want to examine you and then bind your ribs.” It was half question, half statement. There was no way they could move Joaquin until they knew the full extent of his injuries.
“It’s gonna hurt, right?” Joaquin’s face paled further.
“I’m not going to lie,” came Craig’s reply.
“Just do it.” Joaquin’s face set firm as he spoke, but there was an underlying edge of fear to his voice.
Gina’s hand slipped from inside her blankets and reached for Joaquin’s. As her fingers curled around his, Joaquin brushed his thumb over the back of her hand and gave her a heartbreakingly brave smile. “I’m here for you.”
“Now who needs to get a room?” Linda commented as she moved to position herself by Joaquin’s head.
“I wish I was in a fit state to get a room,” Joaquin quipped as he gritted his teeth at Craig’s first tentative touch.
“I’m going to examine your ribs more thoroughly,” Craig told him as he pressed along the line of Joaquin’s lower rib.
Joaquin held his breath but didn’t cry out. “Is that all you’ve got?”
Craig smiled at Joaquin’s bravado, but it was filled with pity. “This one is going to hurt.”
Joaquin nodded, and a sharp gasp followed by a low guttural moan escaped his lips. His face paled even more if that was possible, leaving him as white as the snow outside of the plane. Snow that was going to be next to impossible for Joaquin to wade through. As Craig explored the extent of the damage, he was certain that Joaquin had two broken ribs.
What worried him more was the unseen damage. However, they couldn’t stay here, they had to make a move. Perhaps if he hadn’t sensed danger outside last night Craig might have waited it out a day or two to give Joaquin a chance to regain his strength. But staying here might also put his health at further risk if there was significant internal damage that needed urgent medical treatment.
“You’ll live,” Craig said bluntly as he straightened Joaquin’s clothing.
“You could say that with a little more conviction,” Joaquin told Craig breathlessly.
“I could. But I don’t want to sugarcoat this for you or anyone else. We have to move. We have to start the journey down the mountain and it’s gonna hurt like hell. Not all the time, but in places you’re gonna wish you were still lying here in the wreck of a plane.” Craig didn’t allow sympathy or emotion to creep into his voice. They all had to face the truth full on, backs straight and with the knowledge it was going to be the toughest thing they’d ever done.
“Craig’s right.” Linda moved to sit next to Gina. “We’ve been out there, it’s cold and barren. We have a long trek down the mountain through the snow. To make it easier we plan to make a sled of sorts which Craig and I can take turns pulling. But even so, it’s going to be rough and bumpy at times which is going to hurt.”
“I trust you. And since Craig is your mate and I know he’d only do the right thing for you, Linda, then I trust him. If we work together we will get off this god-forsaken mountain.” Her voice wobbled but then she took a deep breath and continued, “I’ll look after Joaquin as much as I can, while you two concentrate on whatever you have to do to make this sled.”
“And I came all this way to offer to look after you, Gina,” Joaquin said with a sharp cough.
“I don’t need looking after,” Gina said firmly, but then she faltered. “I just realized how stupid that sounds since you are all here because someone tried to kill me.”
“It’s not stupid,” Joaquin said, offering her his support. “I know you can look after yourself. That doesn’t stop me from wanting to be the man who looks after you.” He frowned, puzzled by his own words.
“I think what Joaquin is trying to say is that you might not need to be looked after but that doesn’t stop him from wanting to be the man who stands by your side through thick and thin.” Linda gave Gina a knowing look. “And that says a lot about Joaquin’s character.”
“I appreciate your kind words, Linda. It means a lot coming from you.” Joaquin’s pale complexion had a hint of pink to it now that Craig had sto
pped prodding his damaged ribs. It wasn’t enough for Craig to believe this journey was going to be anything other than hard and painful for Joaquin.
“Well, I hope your actions don’t ever make me change my opinion of you,” Linda said stiffly.
“I promise never to hurt Gina.” He squeezed Gina’s hand. “She means everything to me.”
“Did they give you some pain meds that are making you say all this stuff?” Gina asked, her eyes misted with tears.
“No.” Joaquin shook his head. “Last night I had time to think about my own mortality and what I want from life. And I realized what I wanted was here right next to me.”
“Joaquin, you don’t have to say any more.” Gina wiped her tears away. Tears that would freeze to her cheeks once they were outside of the plane.
“I do. I let you down. I don’t know how, but I failed you. This shouldn’t be happening. I should have landed the plane safely.” He slammed his fist into the frozen floor.
“No.” Gina shook her head firmly. “Don’t blame yourself. You saved us. Anyway, this is all on me and my family.” She pulled her hand away from his. “If you have any sense you’ll run as far away from me as you can get.”
“I don’t think I’m running anywhere for a few days. And even if I could, I wouldn’t. I got on this damn plane to tell you how I feel and I’m not leaving until I do.” His voice fierce, Joaquin winced as he lifted his arm and wrapped it around Gina.
Linda rose to her feet. “While you two have a heart to heart, we are going to make the sled.” She bent down and picked up a couple of packets of food. “Here, have a romantic meal for two.”
“Wow, I pity Craig if this is your idea of a romantic meal for two,” Gina retorted as Linda handed her an apple and an energy bar.
“Well, if my best friend had provided a meal on this plane trip we would have more to eat,” Linda replied with a wink, then she dipped down and kissed Gina on the cheek. “When we get back to civilization you can buy me a proper breakfast.”
Gina groaned. “I don’t even want to think of what I’d be waking up to if we’d made it to the hotel.”
“Enjoy your breakfast.” Linda straightened up and turned back toward Craig. “We just get an energy bar between us.”
“I’m happy to share anything with you.” He gave her a cheesy grin which lifted her spirits.
However, her spirits soon waned a few minutes later when they stood eating their meager meal in the biting wind that blew across the mountain and into the valley. “I suppose there’s one good thing.”
“What’s that?” Craig raised his voice, so she could hear.
“If we put the parachute on the sled as a sail, we’ll fly down the mountain.” She shoved the last mouthful of her energy bar into her mouth and grabbed a handful of fresh snow, which she sucked on to wash it down. The ice cool water trickled down her throat, waking her up.
“Maybe we could all jump on and surf down the mountain,” he suggested. “You know, I used to be a junior surf champion.”
He placed his feet hip-width apart and bent his knees. With his hands held out for balance, he wiggled his hips as if he were riding a wave.
“Cute.” She folded her arms and watched him for a moment. He sure had some movement in those hips. Oh, the fun they would have when they mated for the first time.
“You’re blushing.” He wriggled some more. “You’re imagining me in my swimwear and thinking how great it would be to be the girlfriend of a surfing star, aren’t you?”
She nearly choked on the snow melting in her mouth. “Yeah, you got me.”
Craig stepped forward and pulled her into a bear hug. “I can’t wait for us to be alone either.”
His soft voice awoke the need in her that she had tried so hard to keep dormant. Her hands rested on his upper arms and she dug her fingers into his shirt sleeves and held onto him for a long moment. “Aren’t you cold?”
“Not with you here with me.” Yet a shudder passed through him.
“When we break camp, you need to wear suitable clothing. Your bear blood might not keep you warm the whole way.” Linda let him go and pulled her own collar up around her face. “It’s freezing.”
“I’m good for now.” He swung around to look at the plane. “And I am about to go bear, so I’ll have a nice warm fur coat to keep out this biting wind.”
He’d formulated a plan for how to make the sled during the long dark hours he sat watching over his mate. Craig’s Army training hadn’t exactly prepared him for being stranded on the side of the mountain in the wreck of a plane, but he’d learned to make the use of the materials on hand in every situation he’d ever found himself in and this was no different.
Even if the stakes are higher.
The highest, his bear reminded him as Craig shifted and the four-legged side of him appeared in front of Linda.
The highest, Craig agreed.
Chapter Eleven – Linda
Still as impressive in the daylight, her bear commented as they watched Craig shift into his bear.
I agree. Linda followed the large grizzly around to the front of the plane. “Here?”
The bear nodded and lifted his paws to drag a sharp claw along the side of the plane, lengthening the gash made during the crash landing. Working together, they cut out a large flat piece of metal. It had room enough for two people and their meager supplies. With it lying flat on the snow, Craig curled his paw around and stabbed his claw into the metal four times. As he worked, Linda went back inside the plane to check on the others and to carefully remove the parachute and place it on the ground.
Once satisfied with his work, Craig shifted back to his human form and they began the task of fixing the parachute to the makeshift metal sled.
An hour later they stood back and admired their work. “It’s as secure as we can make it.”
Linda wiped her brow. “We should get moving and make the most of the daylight.”
Craig moved closer to her. “I’m concerned about Joaquin. We need to move him with care.”
“Understood.” Linda ground her back teeth together as she fought to control her emotions. Joaquin was a stranger to her. But he obviously loved Gina and Gina loved him, so that made him family.
“Let’s get to it.” He leaned forward and pressed his lips to her cheek in a searing kiss.
Stumbling forward, she followed Craig into the plane. The heat hit her instantly. “Get wrapped up, you are going to feel the drop in temperature as soon as we get outside. And Craig, you need to wrap up, too,” she reminded her mate.
She’d already learned he had a stubborn streak a mile wide and so she watched him dress with folded arms and a stern look until she was satisfied he would be warm enough on the journey down. Perhaps she was being so fussy because she was trying to delay their leaving. The thought of moving Joaquin with his bruised and battered body made her uneasy. But it had to be done.
“Okay, Joaquin. This is going to hurt, I won’t lie.” Craig slipped his arms under Joaquin’s shoulders, while Linda placed her hands under his feet. The idea was to lift him onto a smaller piece of metal that Craig had torn from the side of the plane. They would use it as a stretcher to carry Joaquin out of the plane and then transfer him to the sled.
It was simple, but that didn’t mean it would be easy.
“Ready?” Linda locked eyes with Craig, they had to lift him and swing him across onto the stretcher at the same time or risk jarring his body and causing him more pain.
Craig nodded briefly. “One, two, three.” They lifted in perfect timing and swung him onto the stretcher.
A low guttural moan came from Joaquin and for a second Linda thought he was going to pass out with the pain, but he gritted his teeth and puffed loudly like a steam train. “I’m okay,” he ground out with some effort.
“Good man.” Craig patted him lightly on the shoulder. “We’re going to lift you again, but it should be easier this time. Ready?”
Joaquin puffed a couple of t
imes and then took a deep breath and nodded.
“One, two, three.” Linda nodded, and they lifted the stretcher.
Careful not to jar Joaquin, they shuffled their way across the damaged floor of the plane. When they reached the torn metal gash which was their only exit, Craig adjusted his grip on the stretcher and ducked down, carefully climbing out of the plane into the cold mountain breeze. With some effort, Craig and Linda manhandled the stretcher, with Joaquin lying prone on it, out of the plane and quickly placed it on the sled.
While Craig secured the stretcher, Linda fetched more blankets and anything else she could use to cover their patient.
“Is he going to be okay?” Gina asked quietly as she stretched her stiff legs and helped carry the food outside.
“If we can get him off the mountain.” Linda stopped for a moment and turned to her friend. “We can’t tell if he’s bleeding internally.”
Gina took a trembling breath and nodded. “I wish none of this had happened.” She shook as tears threatened. “If only I’d picked up the phone and confronted him about those photographs. He could have told me they weren’t from him. We could have cleared the whole mess up and he would never have gotten on the plane.”
Linda placed her hand on Gina’s upper arm and gave her a gentle shake as if trying to rouse her from a bad dream. “This is not your fault.”
“It is.” She bit down on her knuckle. “Do you know why I didn’t phone and confront him?”
Linda shook her head.
“Because I was scared he would say they weren’t from him. I was scared of getting in any deeper. I was scared of love. I’m still scared. Which is why I haven’t told him about the baby.” She gave a teary smile. “How crazy is that?”
“Not crazy at all. It’s hard to trust people and let them in.” Linda knew only too well. “Your father was always paranoid, thinking everyone was out to take advantage of him and you.”
“We’re quite the pair, aren’t we?” Gina asked sadly.
Survivor Bear Page 8
