Coasting up to the first stop sign, she applied her brakes.
There were none.
The pedal went all the way to the floor.
A huge eighteen-wheeler had almost reached the intersection. And this wasn’t a four-way stop.
Lips drawn back in a grimace, she fought for her life. Jerking the steering wheel to the right, she attempted to avoid the intersection. The rear end fishtailed. The car was too heavy. Despite her attempt to turn it, sheer forward momentum kept her continuing toward the intersection.
The semi driver lay on his horn. Loaded, he brought about eighty thousand pounds bearing down on her car. His tires squealed as he tried to brake.
Damn it! Manually shifting from drive into second, she attempted to slow the Buick. The engine screamed and the car jerked.
Not enough. Not enough.
The huge grill of the Peterbilt loomed.
Impact.
Rear passenger side. The car caved in. Her seat belt held, though her chin hit the steering wheel.
Slow motion. She tasted blood. Her own.
So this is what it’s like to die.
She saw it all, her world tilting like some distorted carnival mirror. Her last seconds were full of images and sounds—shattering glass, the scream of the air brakes as the truck driver tried to stop. Metal on metal, her car crushing like an empty tin can under a giant foot.
Jewel screamed again and again. The sound became a howl.
The truck finally shuddered to a stop, her car impaled on its front.
She couldn’t see, couldn’t breathe, couldn’t feel.
Then, the wolf erupted in panic, fighting for freedom now, fiercely struggling to shed the human form. The flight instinct, the need for survival, overrode all else.
She wanted to live.
Jewel did, too. She fought the change, knowing she’d never survive if the wolf broke free.
Colton received the call on his way to the boathouse, just after stopping at the bait shop for a fresh crop of minnows. “There’s been a horrible accident on Harbor Road.” Sue Kearney, one of the police-department dispatchers, liked to keep him informed. “I thought you might like to know.”
Even a minor accident was news in a town like Anniversary. If the week had been especially slow, the paper might even put the story on the front page.
“Thanks, Sue. I’ll head over that way right now.” Clicking the phone shut, Colton pulled into the first driveway he came to and reversed the car. He’d hoped to get in a few hours of mid-afternoon fishing, but the minnows would keep. Duty called.
He made it to the accident scene in less than five minutes, coasting to a stop and parking on the side of the road. He grabbed his camera and, pushing past the yellow tape, waved at the sheriff as he made his way to view the wreckage. The jackknifed semi loomed like a giant, the shaken truck driver huddled by himself, talking on his cell phone. Groceries were scattered all over the highway and roadside.
After snapping several pictures, he took a look at the other vehicle. Colton’s heart stopped. Mangled and barely recognizable, it looked like Jewel’s—or Julie’s—car. The twisted and crumpled pieces of metal told him it would be a miracle if anyone had survived.
“No one could live through that.” He heard his own voice from a distance, as he forced his shaky legs to move. Circling the wreckage, he snapped photo after photo. He saw no sign of a body, though blood darkened the steering wheel and the remains of the front seat.
Sheriff Tucker came over. “Surprisingly, someone did, even though this car was too old to have an air bag.”
Colton could barely speak. “Where…” Clearing his throat, he tried again. “Where is she?”
“She’s been transported by ambulance into Athens. I’m thinking they may have to use Care Flight to send out to Parkland Hospital in Dallas.”
“Who…” Taking a deep breath, Colton swallowed. Though he suspected he knew the answer, he had to ask. “Who was it?”
“I can’t think of her name.” Tucker scratched the back of his neck. “Ah, hell. It was that new woman, you know, the one that lives out at the old Pryor place. Name starts with a J or an L, I believe. You know her, don’t you?”
Mouth dry, he nodded. “Jewel. Jewel Smith.”
Snapping his fingers, Tucker nodded. “That’s her. She was unconscious when the ambulance loaded her up. Her injuries are pretty severe.”
Jewel.
Surprised to realize his hands were shaking, Colton walked over to the trucker, who’d just closed his phone and looked lost. “What happened?”
Eyes wild, the other man was barely coherent. “I hope I didn’t kill her, man, but it wasn’t my fault. She had a stop sign, but she didn’t stop.” He pointed to a set of black skid marks on the pavement. “It looked like she tried to at the last minute.”
“I’m surprised she’s still alive.” Having followed Colton over, Sheriff Tucker clapped a hand on his shoulder. “Matter of fact, if you want to get more on the story for the paper, you’d better hurry to the hospital.”
As a reporter, he didn’t usually interview the accident victim until they were out of ICU. As a man, however…Heart pounding, Colton took off, starting his pickup and peeling out.
Athens was a good thirty minutes away, if one drove the speed limit. He made it there in twenty, blowing through the hospital doors at a dead run.
The plump nurse manning the admitting desk told him Ms. Smith was in intensive care. Since he wasn’t immediate family, he wasn’t allowed to visit. She pointed the way to the small waiting room.
Frustrated, he paced the halls instead. What had made her do such a thing? The truck driver had said she’d run the stop sign. Had she been using, or had she experienced another one of her seizures?
Until he talked to her, he wouldn’t know.
If he talked to her.
For the first time since his daughter had died, Colton Reynolds found himself uttering a prayer.
She couldn’t let them take her blood. Fighting back to consciousness, she noted first the absence of her wolf-self. Stunned into retreat by injury and shock, that was one less thing she’d have to deal with.
First, she had to get out of this hospital. Though the medical staff might see her injuries as severe, she knew her supercharged immune system would repair the damage quickly.
One of the primary Pack rules was avoiding discovery by humans. If she truly needed medical care, she’d have to find a Pack doctor. Since she was in the middle of nowhere, Texas, she had no idea how to even contact the Pack, nor did she want to.
She knew if she did, Leo would find her. He had friends and flunkies in a lot of different Packs, coast to coast. Most of all, she wanted to stay alive.
Blinking her eyes into focus, she tried to concentrate past the throbbing headache. The first thing she needed to do was take stock of her injuries. The hospital staff had done a good job of cleaning her up, washing the blood from her and getting her into a hospital gown. Her left leg was bandaged, and she had another large bandage on her side.
Was anything broken? She moved her fingers, then her hands, relieved when she felt no pain. All of her right toes wiggled on command, but trying to move her left brought excruciating pain.
Okay. Something was broken. From past experience, she knew her bones would reknit and heal much faster than a human’s. She couldn’t let them put a cast on her or worse, attempt surgery.
She had to get out of here before they found out what she was. At least she could still see. She hadn’t lost her contacts and the hospital hadn’t removed them.
“You’re awake.” A woman’s voice, sounding pleased. “Good. Just in time. We need to try again to take your blood. We’re having trouble identifying your blood type. Something must be wrong with the machine.”
Oh, no. This, she couldn’t allow. If they figured out her blood was an anomaly, she’d be in trouble.
“Stop,” she croaked, pushing at the nurse bearing down on her with a large syri
nge. “I don’t want that.”
Even if she was completely paranoid, better safe than sorry.
“It won’t hurt.” The large woman kept coming. Panicked, Jewel pushed at her, shoving her away and into the wall and sending the syringe clattering to the ground. She’d used too much force. Sometimes she forgot her own strength.
“I’m sorry.” Apologizing as she moved, Jewel placed her left leg gingerly on the floor, using her right to balance most of her weight. “I’ve got to go.”
Wide-eyed, the nurse stared at her. “You can’t. You may not realize it, but you were badly hurt.”
“I’m better.” Hobbling toward the hall, Jewel just reached the door when the woman lunged for a button on the machine by the bed. Immediately, an alarm sounded.
Crap. Jewel kept going, trying to hold her hospital gown in place with one hand. Though she had no idea where to go, or even how to get there, she knew beyond a doubt she had to flee.
Rounding the corner, she collided with a man.
“Sorry,” she mumbled, stumbling back. A shock of recognition went through her as she realized the man was Colton Reynolds, the newspaper reporter. For a second she wondered what he was doing there, then decided she didn’t care. Maybe he’d be an ally.
“Jewel!” His gaze searched her face. “Are you all right?”
“Please.” She grabbed his arm. “Help me. I’ve got to get out of here.”
He opened his mouth to speak, but before he could, two orderlies, a nurse and a man in a white coat who could only be a doctor converged on them.
“You need to come with me.” The doctor took her arm, giving the orderlies a meaningful look.
Panicked, Jewel shook off his hand. “I’m leaving.”
“No, you’re not.” At the doctor’s gesture, the two orderlies moved in, flanking her on each side. “You need to get back in that bed and let us examine you.”
“Just a minute.” The calm voice of reason, Colton moved to intercept. “If she wants to go, you have to let her. You can’t force someone into the hospital.”
“Who are you?” The doctor looked down his nose.
“A friend,” he said firmly. “And if Ms. Smith says she wants to leave, then she’s leaving.”
“This woman was in a serious accident. She was brought in by ambulance. She shouldn’t even be conscious, much less standing.”
As Jewel opened her mouth to speak, Colton touched her arm, forestalling her. “Perhaps she appeared to be hurt worse than she actually is.”
“Not according to the X-rays.”
“Please,” Jewel whimpered, fighting back the panic. Her wolf side had now awakened and was urging her to flee.
Something in her expression must have decided him. “Sorry, doc.” Colton took her arm. “She’s going with me. I’ll bring her back if she needs any other medical care.”
“There’s paperwork,” the nurse warned, brandishing a clipboard like a weapon. “She can’t leave without signing the release forms.”
“I’m not signing them,” the doctor warned.
“If he’s not, then I’m not.” With that, Jewel walked away, shaking her leg to iron out the kinks. She knew her limp was already less noticeable and that they’d wonder, but she didn’t care.
Colton hurried after her, catching her arm once they’d reached the parking lot. “Wait.”
“I’m not going back in there,” she warned. “What are you doing here anyway?”
“I’m a reporter, remember? I got called to the accident scene. When I saw the wreck and realized it was you, I came out here to make sure you were all right.” He searched her face. “They said you were badly injured.”
“They were wrong. I’m fine.”
“You don’t seem to be all that hurt,” he agreed. “Though I don’t see how that’s possible, considering the shape of your car.”
Her car. Jewel’s spirits sank. Now she was without transportation. Buying another vehicle would use up a lot of her precious stash of money. “I’m going home,” she said, moving forward.
Again, he kept pace with her. “I don’t blame you. But your place is a five-mile walk or more and you’re in a hospital gown. Would you like a ride?”
She hesitated, eyeing him sideways. His relaxed expression gave away nothing. “I would,” she said finally, pulling away. “If you’re sure you don’t mind.”
He pointed to his pickup, punching the key fob to unlock the doors. “Hop in and we’ll go.”
Once she’d buckled herself in, he started the engine and they pulled out of the hospital parking lot. He was surprised no one had followed them. But then, he’d never seen anyone refuse treatment before.
“Are you all right?” Colton asked, keeping his tone nonconfrontational.
“Yes.” She leaned back in the seat while he drove.
To his shock, he realized she was shivering. “Are you cold?”
“No. When I had the accident, I was on my way home from the grocery store with a trunk load of groceries. Now, I realize my foray for food was all for nothing. I need to eat.”
He nodded. “I’ll run through the drive-through at Burger Barn. Tell me what happened?”
“My brakes failed.” Her flat voice told him she thought it was something more. “I pushed the brake pedal and it went all the way to the floor.” She took a deep breath and met his gaze squarely. “I think they were tampered with.”
Because of who she was, he realized he had to take her seriously. But first, should he let her know her secret was out?
If he’d recognized her, so would others.
The Burger Barn was up ahead, on the right.
“Tampered with?” Stalling for time, he scratched his chin, a nervous habit he’d never been able to shake. “Why would someone do that?”
Staring out the window, she didn’t answer.
He signaled a right turn and pulled into the drive-through. “What do you want?”
“Three hamburgers, cooked medium rare. Diet Coke.”
“The mini-burgers?”
“No, the doubles.”
“The doubles?”
“I told you, I’m starving.” The look she gave him dared him to argue.
“Fine. I’m having the chicken-fried steak sandwich.”
“Steak?” She perked up at that. “That sounds good. Order me one of those, too.”
“Too? In place of one of the burgers?”
“No, in addition to.”
He placed the order, paid and pulled forward to the second window. Only once he’d accepted the grease-spotted bags and pulled away did he decide he needed a better plan.
“Let’s go by my place and eat,” he said, watching as she dropped the burger she’d been about to unwrap back into the sack. “You can borrow one of my shirts.”
“I’d rather you drop me off at home.”
This time, he didn’t answer.
When they turned into his drive, she made a sound, low in her throat. “It’s…beautiful.”
“Thanks.” He’d wanted to see her reaction, knowing how he’d felt the first time he’d seen the house. Set back among the pines and oaks, the weathered cedar house looked as if it would have been equally at home in remote Alaska. Floor-to-ceiling windows and several skylights completed the natural look, giving a feeling of openness.
He loved the place.
Grabbing one of his T-shirts and a pair of old, soft cotton shorts, he took them to Jewel. Shaking her head, she grabbed them, disappearing into the bathroom to change.
When she returned, she visibly inhaled the aroma of burgers and fries, eyeing the sack with an intent look on her face.
Handing her one of the sacks, he led the way into the kitchen. She went straight for the table, upending the bag and casting him an apologetic look as she ripped into a handful of fries.
He waited until she’d finished her third burger, barely chewing. He couldn’t help but watch, astonished as she scarfed down the meal as though she were starving.
&nbs
p; “How long has it been since you ate?”
Regarding him warily, she lifted one shoulder in a shrug. “I don’t know.”
“Days?”
“Why?”
Because he’d slipped back into reporter mode. Because he was making small talk until he told her the truth. Since he couldn’t say any of that, he went for the most logical explanation.
“Your health. You’ve passed out at least once that I know of, and you had the episode in the grocery store.”
“You know about that?”
He crossed his arms. “Everyone knows about that. Anniversary’s a small town.”
“I’m okay,” she said. Her uncertain tone let them both know she was lying.
Since he could think of no easy way to break the bad news, he waited until she’d finished polishing off the last of his French fries. “I know who you are.”
She froze. The haunted look in her huge green eyes was replaced by a flash of terror. “What do you mean?”
“I kept thinking you looked familiar, like a celebrity or someone who’d been in the news. One of the guys also recognized you and reminded me of where I’d seen you.”
“But I changed my hair, my name…” Her entire body had gone on instant alert, radiating tension. The bruise on her cheek had faded, too rapidly to be normal.
“You look too unusual to be able to hide.” He put it as gently as he could. “Your features are instantly recognizable.”
She stood. “I have to leave.”
“Wait.” Jumping to his feet, he reached out to stop her. “Tell me what you’re running from. Maybe I can help.”
To his shock, she cringed away from his hand. “Don’t touch me!”
“Fine. But why are you running? Your ex-husband’s in prison.”
“That shows how little you really know.” Her laugh was bitter, containing not one trace of humor. “Leo may be locked up, but his network extends all across the country.”
“He swore to have you killed.”
“Yes. And Leo means what he says. Even now, they’re hunting me.”
Cry of the Wolf Page 5
